To meet today’s guest designer, let’s travel to the small haven of Bainbridge Island, a short trip from Seattle, Washington in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.  There, we’ll find a wonderful fabric shop called Pink Chalk Fabrics and its much-loved and highly regarded owner, Kathy Mack (@pinkchalk).  Via her blog, Pink Chalk Studio, Kathy has chronicled her journey from sewist and quilter (with an unbelievable eye for print and color), to pattern designer, to independent, at-home fabric seller, to full-fledged businesswoman — with an office and employees and everything! — and her readers have followed every step of the way.  Kathy has transformed her labor of love to one of the most influential and beloved online fabric shops for modern quilters and sewists.

When Kathy agreed to take part in our Basic Grey Designer’s Challenge, we could wait to see what she came up with.  Ready for a little Christmas in August?  We hope so!  What follows details Kathy’s thought process as she transformed her blank sampler into a beautiful piece of holiday decor.  Enjoy!

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I started with the simple idea of a Christmas theme. I knew I wanted to use fabric for the blank medallion spaces so I began there.

I traced a medallion onto fusible paper-backed web and quickly realized that each medallion was unique in shape and different on each of the four sides. I got out the light board and traced from the back of the canvas marking the bottom with an ‘x’. To stay organized I fused, cut and applied each medallion one at a time. I learned a bit with each one and my cutting became more accurate as I went along.

Next came the clear glass vintage buttons. It’s always a treat to have a project emerge that absolutely needs them! Little ice crystals shimmering in the winter light.

And however cheap and tacky plastic pearl beads are I love them and just can’t resist putting a sprinkle on every project! The glistening snow. Brrr.

The covered buttons came last. I like how the buttons led to a more detailed discovery of hidden treasures in the fabric.

I plan to hang this in my home now as I start counting down the days to Christmas early this year!

Fabric and notions used:

Flurry by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics
#36 (7/8″) Covered Buttons
Vintage Glass Buttons purchased several years ago at Beads & Beyond in Bellevue, Washington (now part of QuiltWorks NW)