What's Sabra Up To Now?

Hi everyone! Even though it’s been a few months since FabricLovers has transitioned from my hands to the new owners’ hands, I wanted to “pop in” and let you know what has been going on.

Wonder Wallet for Mexico

First off, for those who don't know me, I'm the original owner/creator of FabricLovers.com. I’m really excited about the energy and creative ideas that Beth, Dean, and  Yasmine have been incorporating into the company. They are bringing some fresh perspectives and are working hard to find the best fabrics and patterns to offer you. I like where they are headed, and I think you will, too! I know they are always looking for your comments and suggestions, so if you have something you’d like to say, be sure to leave a comment below.

Love my Wonder Wallets!

Even though I’m no longer running FabricLovers, I am still involved with it--it is my baby, after all!  I’ve been helping to bring Beth and Dean up-to-speed with the business, discussing how to make things run smoothly, and offering support in any way that I can. I am very thankful that they are serious about making it work and are committed to the business. It’s nice to know that FabricLovers will be around for a long time, and I look forward to shopping there myself!

 Now that I'm not working full time at FabricLovers, I’ve been able to get back into sewing, and I’m enjoying finishing projects that have been waiting too long to get done. Take this quilt for example.  This fabric came through the shop many years ago, and I just loved it, and now I’m finally able to do something with it. I’ve finished the top, and will be using this as a wall hanging.

Tried some fancy trim and stitches

I’ve also completed the Wonder Wallets pictured above and to the right.  I must say the Wonder Wallet pattern by Lazy Girl Designs is one of my favorites! It's so fast and easy, and uses so little fabric, I make one to go with every purse from the scraps I have left over. I also love that they hold loose change, and the change doesn't fall out! They are great travel wallets, but I find I use mine all the time, since I prefer to have less stuff to carry around. If you haven't tried a Wonder Wallet yet, you can get the pattern here; however, I must warn you--they are addictive! But they do make great gifts, so you'll always have a reason to make more. :-)

For my two newest purses, I thought the pink fabric would be perfect for our frequent trips to Mexico, plus I just loved the colors of the main print. I made the purple purse for our most recent trip to Costa Rica. Most of this fabric has been sitting in my closet for at least a year, so I’m happy to finally give it a new home!

One of the reasons we decided it was time to transition out of FabricLovers is that my husband and I will be moving to Costa Rica in four years—we’re just waiting for our youngest to graduate high school. We’ve fallen in love with Costa Rica, and have started up a new venture helping people discover how to live better for less in that beautiful country. That’s where our focus is now, and we’d love to have you stay in touch with us, and share in our journey, on our Facebook page, Blog, and/or Website. I know many of you already have, and it’s so special to see familiar faces—thanks! Also, we’re holding a Sweepstakes now through August 7th, so be sure to head over to our Facebook page and click on the “Win A Happier Book” icon to enter!

We just got back from another trip to Costa Rica, and thought you might enjoy this video we took at an animal rescue center there. The video is of our daughter and her friend holding baby Capuchin and Howler monkeys--and it ends with a surprise!

Well, that’s it for now, but I’m sure it won’t be the last you’ll be hearing from me as I will be commenting occasionally on the FabricLovers blog or Facebook page. I look forward to continued interaction with all of you! 

---Sabra

Sewing Failures

Failures. They teach us what we shouldn't do the next time we're in the same situation. But that moment when you realize you've done something wrong and your stomach starts to turn into a tight knot, it doesn't feel like a teaching moment. This goes for all sorts of failures, even those that involve sewing.

As I embark on my journey to start sewing more often, I know that I will get into situations where my sewing machine will stop abruptly and where I will shout an obscenity. Thank goodness my machine is in a separate room.Sometimes it's because we weren't paying attention and sometimes, like Lisa of Polka Dot Cottage stated, it's pure laziness.

No matter how many mistakes I make, or if my first quilt comes out looking like a well used rug belonging to a wild animal, I'll learn and move on to making quilts that more closely resemble a blanket.

Read up on Lisa's sewing mistake here and if you know anyone who could help with her pattern dilemma, let her know!

Totally Off Topic!

Yes, I am straying far, far away from fabric today, but sometimes you need to, right? Anyway, I just couldn't help myself. Yesterday while shopping at Costco, I came across Mystic Pizza in the frozen section. So? you may be asking yourself. Well, some of you may remember the movie with Julia Roberts back in the late 80's that made the restaurant immortal. Interesting movie, but that's not why I HAD to get a box. You see, I grew up about 20 minutes from Mystic in Connecticut, and since I've been living in California for 15 years, it's a BIG deal! lol  I think it was a bit of nostalgia that lead me to grab the box (plus it does look yummy!), but the funniest part is I've only eaten at Mystic Pizza once in my whole life, and I don't even remember if I liked it or not. But it will be fun to smell the pizza cooking and reminisce about the "olden days" when I used to enjoy visiting Mystic with all of it's charms. (I really hated the tourist traffic though! It could get almost as bad as going through New York City some days--well maybe not quite, but locals have very little tolerance for tourist traffic.) Come to think of it, I'll be visiting my family back there this summer--can't wait! Maybe I'll have to pop in to Mystic Pizza and try it again, and then I can be part of the tourist traffic. :-) 

How about you--have you ever bought anything because it brought back memories?

Mission Accomplished: Total Surprise!

SeaVenture Hotel, Pismo Beach, CA

Our Room--Rose petals on floor!

YUM! We devoured 2 before I could take a pic!

Breakfast delivered to our room in lovely basket

Ever tried to keep a secret from your significant other--especially when 3 kids are in on it? Well, our 15 year anniversary is this week, but we were booked up for the next few weekends with "stuff", so hubby had resigned himself to just eating out on our anniversary as there was no way to fit in a get-away. That's when I decided I would see if I could surprise him!

The only thing I could "wiggle" out of was my piano-playing with the worship team for church this Sunday, so I got an excused absence from the leader. That was the start. For the hotel, I decided to go with one of our favorites, the SeaVenture in Pismo Beach, CA.

Since I was feeling especially giddy about how surprised my husband would be, I also booked the Anniversary Package which included rose petals, a long stem rose, balloons, a bottle of wine, and breakfast in bed. Now it was time to keep it under wraps!

View from our balcony

Finally the big day came, and none of the kids (or myself!) had "spilled the beans" and told him. But now it was time to tell him, and I still hadn't decided how. My middle daughter and I had whispered conversations all morning trying to figure it out. She suggested I just pack stuff, stick it in the trunk when he wasn't looking, then somehow get him to go with me. That's exactly what ended up happening, although I was scared he would look in the bathroom and see the toothbrushes, etc, missing and figure something was up.

Surfer with Pismo Beach Pier in background

We decided to get some fresh air by going to get some coffee, and I had to convince him to take my car since that's where the suitcase was! After coffee, we headed back to the car, where I programed the hotel's address into our GPS. He was busy talking and didn't even notice! As we're leaving the parking lot, he said, "Do you want to go anywhere else?" and right then, the GPS spoke up and said, "Take second left." I said, "Follow the GPS!"

Sand dollar on beach

He was totally clueless as to where we were going, and even when we arrived, he thought I had only made dinner reservations. It was great to see his face when I told him I had booked a room. One of those "priceless" moments in life. :-)

Pismo Beach

So, hope you enjoy the pictures of our hotel and of Pismo Beach. Do you have any Surprises you'd like to share?