Day 2: HG Summer Party with Jill Finley and Barbara Jones

Today we have Barbara Jones of  QuiltSoup and Jill Finley of Jillily Studios.

Jill Finley
Jillily Studio

Best Vacation Spot:

Looking back at our vacations, I really don't have a favorite spot. The thing that makes a great vacation is who you are with. Being with my family is what makes me happy. Even if I was to go somewhere really exotic and awesome, I would be wishing I could share it with my family. That being said, we have been to some wonderful places: We had a family cabin in Schofield, Utah that waas awesome fun. For several years we made an annual trip to Yellowstone; We went to New York to see the sights and some shows and Washington, DC was a wonderful patriotic trip. The Zion, Arches and Bryce Canyon National Parks are unmatched and a ranch in southern Utah was our vacation spot many times; So you see, I guess I like variety ... and the company!

Favorite summer drink:

I love a root beer float. (It is even better if the root beer is home made. I haven't done that for a while, but I should!) I love how the ice cream gets kind of melty and root beer ice crystals stick to it. Then the root beer gets creamy and yummy. We can make these at home, but it sure is simple to drive (at least weekly) throught the drive-up window in the summer time!

Favorite ice cream flavor:

Anything with chocolate in it. If it is not chocolate, what is the point? Why waste calories on something not chocolate? Add caramel, nuts, brownie pieces, hot fudge, but be sure it has chocolate in it!

Studio news from Jill:

I am having a fun summer. We just moved into our new home, so I have been busy setting up the new studio space. It seems to me that no matter how big you make your space, you will always need more, so I am working on storage solutions for my studio. You may be able to use some of these tips in your space.

I have one closet in my room, so I am using it to store bulky and ugly stuff - like all the shipping boxes, UFO bins and such. Then I am using the built-in shelving for FABRIC.

I want to be able to see the fabrics that I have, and they are so pretty to look at. I have bolts in one section and the other section is for cut yardage. My bolts are soon going to be used up in kits to make room for my new line of bolts from Beyond The Gate. This line will be in shops in September.

I used to have the cut yardage (stash) in a closed cupboard but it was so hard to see what I had, and it was always messy from pulling out pieces in the stacks. So I decided to use wire baskets.

They are good because you can easily see what's in them, and you can pull them down individually instead of disrupting the whole stash. Instead of stacking the cut pieces from the bottom up, I folded them and stacked them vertically so I can see all the pieces when I look into the bin.

That way they will always look neat from the front too. (Theorectically.) I still have quite a bit left in my stash to fold, so I will need to get more baskets and move the books to under my ironing station, but it's a start.

If you want to see the whole studio, com to my open house> I am hosting an Open House to celebrate the new studio and my new book release for Home Sweet Quilt published by Martingale. Those of you who are in my area can swing on by to enjoy the free demos, food, book signing and home tour. Of course I will have all the book projects displayed in various rooms and famous people will be here to demo techniques from the book!

If you don't live nearby, read more about setting up the rest of the studio on my blog, Jillily Studios.

Barbara Jones

QuiltSoup

Best Vacation Spot:
Santa Barbara because my grandkids are nearby, the weather is superb and the community is an interesting mix of old and new.

Favorite summer drink:
Arnold Palmer al fresco

Favorite ice cream flavor:
Strawberry! I don't care for chocolate at all but love berries and a rich strawberry blended with vanilla beans is my idea of heaven. Peach ice cream comes close!

Studio news from Barbara:
The timing of this beach party is perfect for readers to visit the QuiltSoup site as we are having our semi-annual sale running through July 31. We are closing out quite a few items and some are deeply discounted. Take advantage as it only happens twice a year. We have to make room for all the new stuff!

My first book with Martingale is coming together beautifully. You will find happy quilts in this collection!

Do visit my website to get the latest news on that release as well as my latest fabric releases!

Thank you, Jill and Barbara!

Please join us for the rest of the party. Details here!

For today's question, what is your favorite vacation spot? Leave a comment here for this question. You have a chance to enter all of the Henry Glass Summer Party giveaways on this blog only [does not include any individual designer giveaways] up until midnight, August 10, 2012.
GIVEAWAY COMMENTS CLOSED ************

-hg