Tara sent this over - she made a table runner and placemats with Joel Dewberry's Modern Meadows 2.  If I had a table that looked like this, I'd for sure never put things on it like: bills, school permission slips, homework, clean laundry, my sewing machine.....oh, whoops, I was thinking of MY table!
Beautiful job, Tara!

Just delivered today - the new Stitch magazine - get it while you can - they go fast!

(I'm taking home a copy tonight to read cover to cover!)

She's so darn sweet!

Holly Holm, that is....but that doesn't surprise me a bit.  She stopped in to Hip Stitch this evening, with the FABULOUS bag that she made.  I just love the contrasting talents in her: boxing and sewing!  And, she's very sweet, to boot!

(and in my state of excitement to meet Holly Holm in person, I could only find my cell phone camera, so the picture isn't the greatest quality....but she was very kind, probably thinking "oh my gosh, this woman is a nut")

Ode to the State Fair

Big Bubba's Bad BBQ......deep fried Capt'n Crunch.....Chinese acrobats.....humongous squash & pumpkins......kettle corn........square dancing.......the miracle mop........sheep shearing.......mini donuts that melt in your mouth........

That's just a sampling of what we love about the New Mexico State Fair - my family, that is.  We went Sunday - stayed for 6 hrs., and still didn't see it all!  (Ironically, it was 10 yrs ago Sunday that I went with my girls, then ages 3 and 1.....and after walking around listening to the radios broadcasting the horror of the day, the fair closed at noon and we went home.)

The State Fair is one of the many things I love about New Mexico.  I love that everyone gathers there - young & old, rich and poor, all races, all walks of life.  I love that we always get the same food - a Navajo Taco at the Indian Village, and then dessert varies from a piece of Asbury Cafe pie, or ice cream, or kettle corn, or a funnel cake.  I love that my girls, who are now in middle school, still love to go to the McDonalds Farm and harvest the vegetables, even though they now tower over the toddlers.  I love that we all love to go to the same places - the Arts & Crafts building and see quilts, and pies, and woodworking, and photography, and square dancing, and the New Mexico Resources building, and see the same fish and the same hummingbird and the same rattlesnake exhibits year after year, and never get bored, and the School Arts building, and look for artwork from anyone we know, and the New Mexico store, and the county exhibits, and the produce from all over New Mexico.

It's just the best - and if YOU go to the State Fair this year, (and you should), bring some sort of PROOF that you've been there, and we'll give you 20% off your purchase here at Hip Stitch.  Is that incentive enough??

Just another day at the shop.....

.....with Addison busy playing on mom's IPad:

and Adrienne stopped by to show us her newly-created Maxi Dress - we squealed with delight over how beautiful it came out, and how FABULOUS she looked:

 You go, girl!

IKEA and food and fabric

A few pictures from our IKEA trip a few weekends ago:

 We were positively giddy just driving into the parking lot!

HAD to eat the Swedish Meatballs

 This is one of the many pieces of furniture I've been lusting after....the Varde kitchen island

Swedish pancakes

 Pretending we're standing in our new kitchen at home

The "Put a Bird on it" chair

(What?!  You haven't seen THIS video???)

And peach pie I made this week.....peaches compliments of customer/friend Ann, who had just picked them from her backyard tree and brought them to me at the store.....my Grandma taught me how to make pies when I was little, and she always pricked into the top crust the 1st letter of the fruit:

I thought I had a picture of Grandma rolling out pie crust, but couldn't find it....I did find this one, though:

teaching me how to knit 

(that was the time in my life where I was mistaken regularly for a boy, with my short hair)

THIS fabric arrived yesterday:

It's like Christmas morning.....

.....except instead of Santa arriving, it was Matt, the UPS guy:

So, in order to fit it all in the store.....the SALE area is growing - $6/yd fabrics, and many bolts that have 3 yds or less are 40% off if you buy the rest of the bolt!

Bittersweet morning

School starts today in Albuquerque.  Alarm clocks were set last night, and at 6:30 our day began.  I have 2 middle schoolers now - whoa, time, what's the rush??

(try as I may, I couldn't get the rotation to apply when putting this picture up!)

Lunch packed in recycled plastic bag!

Notice my 6th grader - on the right - is TALLER than my 8th grader?!  Just a smidgen, but yep, she's surpassed her sister in height.
As bittersweet as this day is.....fall is coming!  The mornings are just a wee bit cooler....the State Fair is just around the corner.....the garden is ready to harvest:

Yes, that's a PINTO BEAN!  Grown in our garden!

And finally, FABRIC!  The big shipment.....which I mistakenly thought was arriving last week - alas, no, it didn't.  I do now have confirmation that it's arriving this Thursday....with a follow-up shipment coming in Friday.  If I receive all the bolts I've ordered, we'll have 38 new bolts by Friday.....but I'm sure a few will be backordered.  Can't wait!!  Here's a sneak preview of a few:

And well, you'll have to come in to see the rest!