On Sunday, I got together with some ladies to shower one of my dear friends with gifts for her new baby, due any minute now.  We don’t know if she’ll be having a boy or a girl, but we do know she has flawlessly good taste, so the gift had to be one that was thoughtful and beautiful and lasting–which is to say, it just had to be handmade.

Knowing that the mom-to-be is a huge fan of Anna Maria’s, it didn’t take me long to pull out my copy of Handmade Beginnings. And once I’d opened it, I almost immediately decided on the Hide and Seek Spectrum Quilt. I love all the gifts in the book, but the mommy gifts were of less use at the end of her pregnancy, and while the baby gifts are off-the-chain adorable, I really wanted this to be a gift for her.  This quilt is perfect.

Not only was it really fun and fairly quick to assemble–an excellent project for someone new to sewing or quilting–but it looks fabulous and eye-catching as it goes together.  Every step of the way I was really motivated to keep going, because I couldn’t wait to see how it turned out.

It was also a really great chance to showcase some of my favorite fabrics.  The Happy Campers fabric is the keystone of her nursery, so I knew I’d include that under the red window.  I threw in some Good Folks, some Alexander Henry out-of-prints, and a really awesome mix tape print as the center square.  The whole quilt is designed to be a play quilt with a built-in activity that grows as your child grows, so over time, he can lie and wiggle, then lift the flap, then discuss the objects he sees in the fabric, then learn the color names, then understand the color spectrum.  It can even be hung on a wall as nursery decor when it’s outgrown.

After a 10 minute photo shoot test-driving it with our own new little one, I can see I’ll be making at least one more of these in the near future.  In fact, when I showed it to my husband, he said, “Wait, you’re giving this away?  How come our kids don’t have anything as cool as this?”  Must up handmade quotient in our own home, it seems!

Happy stitching, everyone, and hooray for babies!

Y’all.  I am so, so excited.  In the midst of all the other excitement going on, I am delighted to announce new Whipstitch e-Courses for this fall!

I’ve been wanting to offer online classes for ages now, and have finally worked out the details to make it happen.  I worked hard to choose topics that are in demand and that I feel passionately about, so that I can bring you content that will help you get where you want to go with your sewing!  First up, in just a few weeks, is Sewing with Knits, designed to get you started sewing confidently and artfully with knit fabrics–without a serger!   With all the amazing knit fabrics out right now–from Patty Young’s collection for Michael Miller to City Weekend from Liesl Gibson of Oliver + S–there is a whole mess of eye candy waiting for you to stitch it up.  Don’t let a new fabric scare you!  This e-course is designed to walk you through the steps of sewing knits of all types step-by-step so that you can create amazing projects with total confidence.  This is a five-week online class with insane amounts of very cool content, and I am about to bust from excitement–I can’t even tell you how hard it was for me to wait until today to break the news!  I am totally looking forward to having you join us all.  See all the details here!

Then, in November, a course near and dear to my heart: Crafty Business Basics, where we’ll look at how to start, run & grow your sewing business!  Five weeks of exploring all the angles of turning your sewing machine into your own crafty enterprise.  There is a whole world of handmade fabulousness out there, and I hear all the time from folks who love to create and who have the most amazing original ideas–but who have no business experience and don’t know where to even begin to find a way to sell their designs.  Worse, there are crafty folk who don’t take the steps to sell their creations because they’re concerned that if they start a business it will take over their whole lives and leave no room for anything else–like their day job or their families.  Nothing could be further than the truth!  A sewing and craft business can exist on a lot of scales, and we’ll cover details of all of them–from dining room table cottage industry for pocket money all the way up to global stitch domination.  Details here, below the Sewing Knits e-Course!

Seriously over-the-moon delighted to meet new faces, share all the things I love, and watch you take off running in the courses!

Happy Stitching!

This:

Plus this:

Equals this:

Just a little sneak preview until the mom-to-be gets her gift on Sunday!  Full reveal next week

Am thinking seriously of keeping this one for myself.  If you don’t hear from me, Baby and I have absconded with the gift and are living on the quilted lam somewhere.  Will write when we get work.

Happy stitching!

I just learned what ZOMG means.  It’s like “OMG,” but you’re so excited that you missed a key and typed it wrong.  And I have just had a ZOMG moment, y’all.

I went to order more copies of Stitch by Stitch for the shop from our distributor for the book signing scheduled for Friday night.  And they’re sold out.  SOLD OUT! I had to triple check the info to be sure I was getting that right.  I am so, so excited and grateful to learn that the book is getting a good reception and a little overwhelmed at the idea that it’s selling all over the world right now.  Y’all have all been so wonderful and supportive, and I am a little teary-eyed at the idea that major suppliers to independent fabric shops all over the nation have sold so many copies of my book that it is currently on back order.  That is so wild and amazing!

I was all set to do a book signing tomorrow night but I’d really rather open up the shop and sign books when we have some on hand.  Y’know, to sign.  Right now, we’re down to our last six copies!  So I’m postponing the book signing and demos until the weekend of the Sew-A-Thon to allow book sellers to get more copies in.

Please pass the word along, and mark your calendars for 7:30 pm, Friday September 24.  Come by the shop, grab a copy of Stitch by Stitch, have it signed on the spot, and stick around to see all the wild craziness that is the Sew-A-Thon!

See you then, and Happy Stitching!

P.S.  Have you bought a copy of Stitch by Stitch? I’d be so grateful to hear your feedback or read a review on Amazon!

Thank you, Patty Young! Something soft and flirty for our teen to wear.

This was a super quick project–took about 45 minutes to stitch up, and ready to wear right out the door.  Off to pick her up from school and surprise her–easy peasy AND I get to feel like a generous mom.  Love these knits!