Wonderful One-Block Quilting

Wonderful One-Block Quilting was published in November 2015 and is my twelfth book. It’s a spiritual companion to Quilting Simplified in that it’s a great book for beginners to quilting. However, this book places patchwork projects first and quilts second. It features lots of uncommon and underrated quilting techniques with 8 accompanying projects to test out your skills. Each project prominently features one quilt block – one that you can use later in the book to build a full quilt! In the back you’ll find the Quilt it! section, where you can see how the quilt blocks translate to full quilts. Fabric requirements and cutting instructions are given for every major quilt size from baby to king.

Just like Quilting Simplified, Wonderful One-Block Quilting has a very fresh and modern aesthetic, with designs that focus on bold geometry and saturated colors. I think the modern quilting attitude is great for beginners, because it encourages experimentation and bending the rules. So whether you’re just trying out quilting for the first time or want a project that’s quick to put together, you might find something you like with this book. Check out the more detailed book page to learn more about the projects or where to buy!

Pixel Craft with Perler Beads

Pixel Craft with Perler Beads was published in July 2015 and is my eleventh book. It’s a one-stop resource of over 50 patterns, 6 fully-photographed step-by-step projects, and over 20 idea gallery projects for Perler, Hama, Nabbi, Artkal, and other melty craft beads. The designs range from cute and quirky mustaches, woodland animals, emoticons, and ninjas to more sophisticated geometric patterns. The beginning covers all the basics of fusing perler beads that you need to know, troubleshooting, adhesives, building 3D objects, and using mini beads.

I love pixel art because of the way it’s so iconic and simple 😀 Perler beads do a fantastic job of bringing those pixelated elements to life. And with all of the idea gallery projects to pull inspiration from, you can color swap and customize the patterns to make some beautifully unique and functional creations! The best part of all is you really don’t need any crafting experience to get started with perler beads, using them is as easy as following a chart. So if you’re interested, check out the main book page to get a closer look at the projects, or see where to buy!

Sew Me! Sew & Go!

Sew Me! Sew & Go was published in July 2015 and is my tenth book. This book is the third in the Sew Me! series and and is for beginners that want to try out making travel accessories, such as tech covers, totes, purses, and other carry-alls. As always, you’ll find the projects are simple enough for a complete beginner, complete with loads of diagrams, illustrations, and photographs to take you every step of the way. There are also lots of applique motifs to decorate your finished creations, which might appeal to some more experienced sewists as well.

For those interested in getting into the world of handbag design, there are 3 projects available that give you a chance to play around with sizes and shapes to get just what you want, all while being totally approachable for beginners. So if you find you’re always on the go and need a place for books, pens, personal items, and especially your tech gear, this book will help you build a selection of useful accessories that will be completely coordinated and perfectly personalized too! Check out the Sew Me! book page for more info on the projects!

Quilting Simplified

Quilting Simplified was published in May 2015 and is my ninth book. This book is a beginners guide to quilting, with an emphasis on alternative techniques and designs that will make your first journey into quilting much more fresh and fun! Inside are 8 quilt projects of various sizes, but each project comes with additional cutting charts so you can make them in any size, from baby to king!

In addition to all the extra size information, there’s a huge getting started section that takes you through all the fundamental techniques you’ll need to sew a fabulous quilt. But in addition are extra tips that will simplify your quilting adventure — such as paper foundation piecing, quilt-as-you-go, applique, and free-motion quilting tips. And the fresh and modern designs are very forgiving and up for interpretation and improvisation. No matter how you decide to tackle your quilt you’ll be sure to get a fabulous result.

If you’d like some more details and to see some of the projects up close, check out the main book page.

Awesome Duct Tape Projects

Awesome Duct Tape Projects was published in October 2014 and is my eighth book. This book is a collection of basic duct tape projects and techniques to get you started with duct! In it you’ll find 20 step by step projects as well as an idea gallery of 30+ more projects that include ideas for washi tape, masking tape, and FrogTape.

You’ll find classic duct tape staples in this book, such as wallets, flip flops, and flowers, as well as some fun twists like an iPhone Wallet Case, Tablet Case, and even a primer on how to make prom outfits from duct tape. You’ll see there’s something for everyone here, boy or girl, newbie or expert. The Getting Started section gives fundamental techniques that will help you through any of your own custom creations as well.

If you want to see some of the projects up close, check out the main book page.

Craft Projects for Minecraft® & Pixel Art Fans

Craft Projects for Minecraft® & Pixel Art Fans was published in July 2014 and is my seventh book. This book is a celebration of all the amazing facets of Minecraft® and projects you can create with a pixel art style. In it are 15 step by step projects (along with an idea gallery containing lots more project inspiration) showing you how to make kid-friendly crafts with a Minecraft® twist like Perler beads, duct tape, paper crafting, and even simple beginner projects for crocheting and hand-sewing. Because the Minecraft® style is so simple and easy to replicate, you can swap out your favorite characters and motifs with just about every project. A huge pattern section in the back makes it possible to recreate your favorite aspects of Minecraft® in just about every medium.

If you want to see some of the projects up close and see just what kind of possibilities there are, check out the book page here!

Bling it Up!

Bling it Up! was published in May 2014 and is my sixth book. This book is a handy little guide that introduces you to decoden! It’s a type of craft that originated in Japan and literally translates to “phone decoration” but can be applied to lots of other personal belongings, like trinket boxes, tablet cases, shoes, hats, glasses, journals, you name it! Decorating your things with rhinestones, trinkets, and ‘whippy’ frosting adhesive has been popular with fans of Harajuku fashion in the US for some time, but what’s improved is there’s now a new alternative to frosting adhesive. Where before you had to buy silicon bathroom sealant, now there’s Collage Clay. It’s an alternative to silicon that’s non-toxic and very user-friendly.

In this book there are 16 step by step projects for deco items ranging from simple rhinestone projects to all-out frosted goodness. There are also loads of other project ideas that are sure to inspire you. Not only that, but the beginning section includes a primer on how to make a collection of fake food from polymer clay so you’ll be ready to cover your stuff in super sweet desserts! Get info about the projects here if you want to know more!

Sew Me! Sewing Home Decor

Sew Me! Sewing Home Decor was published in October 2013 and is my fifth book. This book is the second in the Sew Me! series and is for those beginners that want to try out making wonderful home furnishings! You’ll find easily customizable basics like coasters, duvet covers, and curtains, as well as a few unique items like the Modernist quilt.

It uses a lot of the same techniques covered in Sew Me! Sewing Basics and puts them to good use, giving you the skills to handle making items around the house with a bit of handy math and measuring. The projects are a little bit more intensive than the ones in Sew Me! Basics, but they’ll challenge you to take on greater sewing tasks as you go! By the time you’re done with the projects, you’ll have a wonderfully furnished home, and maybe be ready for the next book in the Sew Me! series! Get info about the projects here if you want to know more!

Sew Me! Sewing Basics

Sew Me! Sewing Basics was published in November 2013 and is my fourth book. When I started learning how to sew at age 12, I was a little disappointed by most of the books that I found – in this book I seek to create the kind of book that I would have wanted back then!

This book covers the very basics of learning how to sew step-by-step as you create projects (instead of all at once). You’ll start with tips for buying your own sewing machine, then takes you through sewing your first seam. From there, useful techniques like interfacing, installing zippers, buttons, and Velcro, and appliqué are covered as you create projects to test out your skills. And whenever possible, I try to cover the whys of sewing skills rather than just the hows. By the end, you can easily graduate to more general sewing books now that you have an arsenal of skills behind you – or you can try out one of the other books in the Sew Me! series to hone your craft! Get info about the projects here if you want to know more!

Sewing Stylish Handbags & Totes

Sewing Stylish Handbags & Totes was published in June 2013 and is my third book. Being a bit of a bagophile myself, I was very excited to take on this project, creating 18 interesting and varied bag designs for every taste. I personally am the type that likes useful bags, but my goal in creating this book was to create bags for every need and every person.

The projects include useful bags, such as lunch bags and shopping totes, casual bags, such as an expandable messenger bag or a super-cute side-pocket purse, and lastly a group of quirky bags, which have more unique shapes as well as some great bags for kids or kids at heart. Every bag has lots of options for adding your own embellishments, some are classy, while with others I’ve added my own kawaii edgy flair that might make you think of bags that can be found on Modcloth or Thinkgeek. These versions are all completely optional though, as I hope you’ll find the bare-bones bag patterns to be simple, classy, yet also unique. Find out details here if you want to hear more!

Sew Baby

Sew Baby was published in March 2013 and is my second book. While in Sew Kawaii! I embraced the cute, kawaii style for people of all ages, in this book I distill it down to perfect projects for babies!

It seemed like a natural progression that my animal hats, soft plush toys, and adorable housewares would be perfect for infants, so I took the leap and made projects that are ideally suited for all the little ones in your life. You’ll find 18 great projects like quilts, home décor, lots more plush toys, a load of cuddly accessories, and even a few practicalities or two.

Every project is done in the same simple, yet sweet and sophisticated kawaii style and spotlights every gentle and loveable animal you can imagine, from kitty cats to red pandas; elephants to monkeys. Pick up this book if you have a little one with you that you would love to surround in smiling faces, or need a gift for a favorite baby that works perfectly for little girls and boys. Find out the details here if you want to know more!

Sew Kawaii!

Sew Kawaii! was published in December 2011, and before the book I was making cute clothing and accessories as a hobby for my Etsy store, craft fairs, and anime conventions. I was approached by Fox Chapel Publishing to write a book about all the cute things I was making and this is what I came up with!

Sew Kawaii! was my first book, and as such it has so much of my heart and soul in it //^w^// The projects are things I’ve been making for years just for fun, so it fills me with such joy to be able to share them all with you.

The name, kawaii, is Japanese for cute, and is used much the same way in English to describe everything that’s sweet, adorable, or loveable. The book is filled with 22 projects ranging from small sewable charms to purses and carryalls, cuddly cute accessories to comfy home décor, and not to mention loads of fabulous plush toys! Try out some of the projects if you love simple cute style with the occasional sweet or edgy flair! Get the whole dish here if you want to know more!