Quilted Tree Skirt

I've just had a whirlwind weekend in Melbourne attending the Australian Quilt Market, where I promoted my quilt patterns and my book Quilt Petite at my distributor Creative Abundance's stand. It was so much fun catching up with old friends, finally meeting people I've known online for literally YEARS but never met in person, and meeting lots of new people! After a stressful journey back home (my original flight was cancelled so there was a scramble to get the last few remaining seats on another airline's flight that evening) I'm finally recovered and can start planning for Christmas! My favourite time of year!

My first Christmas project this year is a quilted tree skirt, which I finished just before I flew to Melbourne. For years I meant to make a tree skirt but never got around to it, so in all our old Christmas photos our trees have bare metal feet - which really doesn't look very good. So much better to have a pretty festive skirt, don't you think?

The pattern is a Craftsy online class by Caroline Fairbanks-Critchfield (Sew Can She) - it's a step-by-step video tutorial, plus a PDF pattern to download if you want to attempt it yourself without the videos. The fabrics I used are from my latest collection Sweet Prairie by Riley Blake Designs (plus the red text print from my previous collection Sweet Orchard, as I needed an extra red).

The skirt is supposed to have tassels at each point - I skipped these as I have two playful cats and I knew the tassels would have been to hard for them to resist! But here's what the skirt should look like with them (image courtesy of Craftsy).  Here's the link to the class on Craftsy. It looks harder than it is - trust me it's a very forgiving pattern!

I also want to make another festive cross-stitch this holiday season, as I find it the most relaxing thing in the world. Remember this one I made last Christmas from Helene Le Berre's new book La Magie de Noel?

There are so many adorable projects to choose from in this book, but I think this is the one I'm going to stitch next (image from the book). Isn't it just adorable? Thinking I may turn this one into a festive cushion... We'll see!

Thank you for visiting and I hope you found some festive holiday inspiration today!

Book Review: Crafty Little Things To Sew

There's a new book that's just come out that I wanted to share with you today. It's called 'Crafty Little Things To Sew' and as the name says, it's full of quick and clever projects using scraps and small cuts of fabric. The author is Caroline Fairbanks-Critchfield from Sew Can She with project contributions also by Jenelle Clark, Jennifer Heynen, Becky Jorgensen and An Kuppens.

I wanted to sew something from the book straightaway as it has so many darling projects to choose from. Alice is really into hair accessories at the minute so I decided to make her the 'Color Block Headband' and the 'Felt & Fabric Hair Baubles'. They came out so so cute!

For the headband I used some scraps of 'Little Dolly' fabrics by Elea Lutz, and the baubles are made from the mint mini floral from my Sweet Prairie collection.

I learned a couple of cool techniques whilst making these projects (like how to join different pieces of fabric at any angle so they form a band - the book shows a supercool trick that I didn't know about!). I think it's really important that sewing books are not only inspirational but also teach us new techniques and expand our sewing repertoire. This book definitely got the tick in that regard from me. And a big tick on the inspirational front also - here are a few other projects that I would love to make.

Courtesy of Caroline I have an extra copy of this book to share with one of you! If you would like to win it, head over to my Instagram account now and follow the instructions to enter the giveaway. Good luck!

Handmade with Love: The Ultimate Giveaway!

I have been sitting on some super exciting news. What would you say if I told you 52 brilliant modern handcraft designers were joining forces and practically giving away over 200 of their best projects, patterns, and tutorials? You’d probably say I’m crazy. But I’m telling you, that’s exactly what’s going to happen with the Handmade with Love Super Bundle, which will be available on November 27. Over $1000 worth of patterns and projects for only $29.97 - an overall discount of 97%! This digital bundle will include my Bearhug & Honeybun Baby Storybook pattern. I will share more info on the rest of the bundle soon, so stay tuned!

To celebrate the launch of this super bundle, there is an incredible giveaway happening! How would you like to win a Cricut Maker Machine ($400), a Brother Embroidery and Sewing Machine ($390) or any of 18 other prizes altogether worth $4000? I thought you’d be excited about that!

Here’s what’s happening: the good folks at Ultimate Bundles are running a giveaway…and not just any giveaway! Including the prizes I already mentioned, there are 20 prizes (worth almost $4,000 altogether!), so you’ll definitely find something crafty that you’ve had your eye on. I mean, with categories like Knitting & Crochet; Embroidery & Cross-Stitch; Sewing, Quilting, & Applique, and Mixed Media Fiber Arts (like Weaving), there’s something for every maker.

Head over to the GIVEAWAY PAGE now to enter. All you need to do is pick a category, enter your name and email address. That’s it! Entries close November 26 so don't delay. Open to everyone worldwide! Good luck!

Sushi Roll Mini Quilt

When Caroline from Sew Can She asked me to design another mini quilt for her popular monthly mini quilt series, how could I say no? I enjoyed the first mini I designed for this series so much!

The inspiration for my new mini quilt came from a sushi roll I saw on Pinterest - google 'mosaic sushi roll' and you'll see what I'm talking about. I thought it would be interesting to replicate the design in fabric. I used my Sweet Prairie fabric collection for Riley Blake to make it and I'm very pleased with how it turned out. You can download the free pattern from the Sew Can She blog.

I've had very little time for sewing as of late - we are still catching up with the spring mowing and slashing of our acreage, mulching the borders and trees, tending to the orchard (which has started to yield fruit), and in our spare time (!) building our new DIY chicken coop. 'Cluckingham Palace' as my hubby calls it - it's going to be a Hamptons style mansion when it's finished. The cladding and nesting boxes are finished, the roof will go up next. Then we are on the home stretch - shutters, doors, a lick of grey paint. Hopefully ready just in time for summer!

My sewing time being so limited, I've been making small things of late. I helped my friend Nadra from Ellis & Higgs test her new Christmas mini quilt pattern, Holly Jolly, by making one of the blocks. It's supposed to be a gift box though I think mine looks more like a funky shirt with a bow tie - maybe using a low volume for the box wasn't the best idea! I still think it's cute though.

Yesterday I made a sweet macaron cross-stitch and turned it into a pincushion. The cross-stitch pattern is from the book ‘Friandises & Patisseries’ by Helene Le Berre. It's quite hard to find (you may need to order it from Amazon France) but it’s a real gem of a book packed with beautiful cake and French patisserie patterns. One of the most cherished books in my library!

Thanks for visiting today. Until next time - happy sewing!

New Pattern: Indigo Star Quilt

I have a new quilt pattern out: it's called 'Indigo Star'!

This is a fat quarter friendly pattern that is quick to piece and suitable for all levels of quilters, including beginners. It's available in paper and PDF versions - ask for it at your favourite quilting store or you can purchase it in both formats from my shop. It's also available for wholesale ordering through Creative Abundance and Checker Distributors.

The beautiful fabrics I have used in this quilt are 'Blue Carolina' by Riley Blake Designs - available now at quilt stores!