Gone To Earth

Would you like a 'Free' magazine with your next order?

Well, would you?  I posted this on Facebook yesterday but I didn't want anyone to miss out so here's a little blog post to make sure that everyone gets the opportunity. This is afterall a very busy 'crafting' time of year, so just in case you need to stock up on a little fabric, interlining or habby bits and bobs bear this in mind.

Receive a FREE copy of Simply Homemade Issue 23 (RRP £4.99), which is full of Christmas ideas.

Simply Homemade Magazine - Issue 23

It comes with 3 free gifts worth £7.99 (I know this 'cos it says so on the cover.), which include Jolly Jingle bells, braid and wire. 

 

The free gifts which accompany the magazine

All you have to do is place an order for £10.00 or more (excluding P&P) in the shop and type ‘Simply Homemade’ in the comments field as you check out.

On receipt, make the beverage of choice, sit back, enjoy a good read and be inspired to stitch, cut, stick, knit and bead. (This offer is available only to UK customers while stocks last.)

Happy Crafting!

Julia x

Something to share

Ali over at Very Berry Handmade is hosting an extremely delicious fabric giveaway to kick start January into sewing frenzy of a month ( and hopefully the following 11 months of 2012).

(Kate Spain's Terrain fabric - just one possible prize amongst many.)

 

There are many prizes and different ways in which you can participate, so why not join in?

What are you going to resolve to sew in 2012?  Are you going to start sewing for the first time or tackle or learn something completely new.  Tell Ali and take part in her massive giveaway, which is open until the 26th January.

 

 

....and the winner is...

Remember this pretty little bundle of Valori Wells gorgeous linen fabrics?

 

Thank you everyone for joining in with this giveaway and I'm sorry if I didn't get to reply to you all.

I've entered the numbers into the random number generator and the result is;

 
and that comment was made by Mary.  

So, congratulations Mary.  I'll email you so that you can send me your address and I do hope you enjoy these pretty fat quarters.

Jx

Jenaveve and a litle giveaway

Jenaveve is a gorgeous fabric line designed by Valori Wells.  It's a blended fabric made from 45% cotton and 55% linen and is a massive 54 inches wide. So, you get the benefit of cotton and the delicious texture of linen.

Let me introduce you to a few of the designs.

This is Tribal in Merlot in deep pinks and burgundy background. Valori has just taken part in a Library show featuring her fabrics so take a look at her pictures to see the scale of this richly coloured fabric.

 

This is Leaves in Merlot which has a burgundy tending to brown background.  These pretty leaves are in pink, peachy pink and tangerine in colour and measure approximately 7.5 centimeters in length with each individual leaf being about 1.5 centimeters in long.

 

 

Pebbles in Merlot has pink and orange coloured petal shaped marks picking out this floral yet geometric pattern.  Take a look at the Martha Stewart website to see this one in action. (How to make a Reversible hat - feel tempted to make one?)

 

 

Pebbles in Merlot

Pebbles in Teal is just as beautiful in a gorgeous blue teal.

 

All of them are brilliant for all kinds of sewing....clothes...bags.....cushions... all kinds of things.

But. perhaps you'd like to try some?  If you do then just leave a comment on this post to enter my little giveaway consisting of one fat quarter of each of these fabrics (four fat quarters)., which is 1 metre of Jfabric for some lucky person.  A fat quarter of this fabric measures a hefty 50cm by 70cm - that's a lot of small bags !  I'll use the random number generator to select a winner next Friday. (September 9th).

 

Speak soon - Jx

 

The winner of the giveaway is.... ta dah!

Thank you everyone for taking part.  I know I've been a bit slow in posting this, but here it is.... the winner of the Sandi Henderson book ' Sewing Bits and Pieces'.

It's difficult to inject a lot of build up and anticipation into typing numbers into the Random Number Generator, but hopefully someone will be excited by the result.

The winner is ....

(I think I've just discovered how to create a 'drop shadow in PhotoShop. :)  They'll be no stopping me now)

And comment number 6 was 'Alix of BigBlueBed'.

Congratulations Alix, I hope you get something out of this lovely book.  If you email me your address I'll get this book sent to you.

 

Speak soon,

Jx

Boring? And a giveaway remedy, just in case....

I had a visit from a fabric rep the other day and there was a mention of 'boring fabric', it kind of crept into the conversation.  The idea that there is boring fabric is eating away at me...

A rainbow of 'plain' fabric.

Where or what is this boring fabric....?  I can't think of any fabric I find boring, not even just 'plain', solid, monochromatic fabric.... there's so much you can do with it.

I know we all get inspired by different artist's, patterns, colours and probably there are colours and designs that don't excite you ...  so you don't buy or own those.  I'm not a great fan of gingham for example, nor do I particularly like lemon yellows but I know a lot of people do.  I wouldn't describe those fabrics as boring, they just don't do anything for me.

Some recent fabrics that have appealed to me..(Spirit by Lila Tueller.. Fandango by Kate Spain... and Pure by Sweetwater)

If 'inspiring' is the opposite of 'boring' in this instance, what is is that inspires you? 

What do you do when you're looking for inspiration?  Do you look at fabric ? Or do you think about what you'd like to make and then think about what you'd like to make it from?

 
A quick fix for inspiration?

I think I start from being inspired by things I see that I'd like to make.  I get inspiration from blogs, books, magazines and then there's things you need around the house, so I get prompted to make .... new cushion covers.... fabric coasters.... place settings... hot pads for the kitchen... rice bags for aching shoulders and it gives me pleasure to see things around the house that I've made, which in turn inspires me to keep making.

I think 'boring' is a state of mind, it's a bit like the children when they shout 'Mum... I'm bored....', as the terror recedes, you know it's time to break out the paints, or go to the park... just change something so they can be stimulated by something different, something new.  I think it's the same with fabric or anything creative actually... sometimes you need to spice things up a little.

Sometimes, you need a change just to recapture the excitement that sewing/creating gives you.

 If your sewing 'muse' (there probably is one) has left you, what do you?  Do you blame the fabric or do you something useful and make some changes, do something different, try something new?

What works for me is a trip around my favourite blogs, searching for some new ones.... visiting the craft section in the library.... going for a walk looking at the colours I see around me.  This is a fantastic time of year for colour.  

To help things along a little I thought I'd have a giveaway.  This is a book full of surprises, 'Sewing Bits & Pieces' by Sandi Henderson.  If you've not come across her before she's a talented fabric designer for Michael Miller.

There are some gorgeous projects in here, some quite small items such as this pretty pincushion.

Some really cute projects such as this wonderful bunny,

and just as cute...look at this lovely little owl.  

 

 

These party lights are really different.

 

And many of these projects use small pieces of fabric so it's a good way of using up all those scraps that get left behind from larger projects, such as this Story Time quilt.

If you'd like to join in with this giveaway, then please leave a comment on this post by the 3rd November and I'll use the random number generator to select the winner.  

But, no! I really don't see a time when I look at fabric and find it 'boring'.

Speak soon 

Julia x

Small stash Sewing.... a giveaway

I cut a great many fat quarters in the course of a week, but what exactly can you do with a fat quarter apart from admire it.

Well, I've found a book.... 'Small Stash Sewing 24 Projects using Designer Fat Quarters' written by Melissa Averinos with a Foreword written by Amy Butler.

It's all about using fabric... fat quarters... smaller pieces.... tiny pieces, your favourite pieces and incorporating them into sewing projects that you'll live with for a while.

Melissa is a fabric designer, she has a blog YummyGoods where you'll find links to all kinds of things especially her animated unicorn stories. (psst! They work well with the cushions.)

This book represents the way she loves to sew and her 'new' belief that maybe fabric is made to be used and not just to hoard.... this book is to get you over that paralysis that comes from gazing at beautiful fabric and not being able to decide what to do with it apart from drag it out of the cupboard to look at and hold. Beginning to recognise the symptoms of a little fabric obsession?

This is a light-hearted book, a can-do kind of book with instructions for creating belts, for modifying t-shirts, for adding fabric to trousers legs to either lengthen them or just to stylise. There are patterns for bags,

Lovely curved shape...

Cute unicorn and moon cushions ...

the perfect cushions to have adventures with..

sachets and braided fabric necklaces and even suggestions for prettifying a wicker basket with a 'Fancy Fabric Liner'.

I like the scalloped edges..

There are lots of ideas for using fabric to brighten up your home, your life and your loved ones.

So, to celebrate my blog moving home I thought I'd have a giveaway of this book. To join in all, you need to do is leave a comment on this post by Friday 30th July. I'll use the 'random number generator' to select a number and the lucky person that made the comment that corresponds with the number will be the winner. (Does that make sense?) I don't mind where in the world you come from so long as the struggling postie can get there :)

Fabric Giveaway and a question or two...

I've been busying myself today putting together some new fabric bundles for the shop, which always gets me thinking. I know it isn't necessarily easy when buying fabric on-line, computer monitors don't always reflect true colours. Plus, it's not always easy to work out how large the fabric pattern is etc.....so how can it made easier?

... some gorgeous blues in these designs...

Some people, I know are brave enough to ask for samples... quite sensible if you're trying to match fabric with some that you already have or putting together a quilt. But is there anything else that might help given that we don't (yet) live in a Star Trek like world where samples can be 'beamed' across the airwaves in a nano second!

Does it help to see the fabric used in a completed project? I'm thinking particularly, of those designers who blog and produce sewing patterns using their own fabric lines, plus the multitude of other crafters who also blog. I know that sometimes that sends me off looking for paticular patterns and designs. Does this wealth of 'visual' information help you to have the confidence to mix and match fabrics for yourself? Would shopping on-line for fabric be more difficult without this?

What kind of information do you look for in fabric descriptions? I try to include a description of the colour but that of course is quite subjective. I'm going to resolve some of these issues with matching and contrasting some of the 'pink', 'roses' 'fuschia' and 'green' type colours in some of Amy Butler's fabrics by getting some of her 'solids' fabrics. But they've yet to arrive. I've also been wondering whether it's useful to include care information; details of washing and drying etc. ? At the moment I only supply this if I'm asked for it.

For now anyway, I'm holding on tightly to the belief that fabric bundles help. I get a great deal of pleasure in putting fabrics side by side and seeing the effect they have on each other, which is why I think that the bundles are helpful. (... did you think I was just being self-indulgent, tsk, tsk) Also I think that it gives you the opportunity to see the patterns side by side, you can see the sizes of the fabric prints in relation to one another and you can get an idea of how they interact and 'work' together.

These fabric bundles from the Daisy Chain range are based on Amy's own colour palettes. Look I even got a bit carried away and took a more 'draped' looking photograph to accompany them, just to show a little more of the fabric you understand.

But is that enough?

I should love to hear what you think about all this.

In the meantime I'm sticking to putting fabric bundles together.... it's fun, playing with the prints and the colours.... and I've all the Midwest Modern, Heather Bailey and Anna Maria Horner fabrics to work my way through....

So, how about a giveaway ? I haven't had one for a while. How about this?

and of course it's more drapey partner.

All you have to do is respond to this post by leaving a comment and I'll use the 'random number generator thingy' to randomly select a number.... and that person will be the winner of some lovely fat quarters.... all this excitement will take place on the 23rd September which is a Wednesday.

Speak soon

Randomness...

Do you remember these pretty little things?

...pure fabriccy gorgeousness !

I know I didn't get to return all the e-mails but thank you for joining in with this litle bit of fun.

Well the winner is, courtesy of the random number generator; ..... Number 28

... which is and I've counted very carefully; Lacehearts.

Congratulations, I'm sure you'll get some sewing fun out of these. So, please e-mail me your address and I'll send these off to you.