Click to purchase a SIGNED copy from the Whipstitch shop!
For those of you following along on Twitter, this is not breaking news, but: my publisher has shipped out the book early, and it’s officially available for purchase! Woot! I found out sort of by accident–I went to send the Amazon link and noticed that their website had updated to “In Stock.” I swear, my heart skipped a beat. It’s funny, because I realize now that when I was staying up late to meet my deadlines, when I was laying out the patterns, when I was stitching the samples, when I was shipping box after box of materials to the publisher to be photographed, it all felt like play-pretend. Then, when I got the printed version, it felt like magic, but not like it was real. Ridiculous as it sounds, when I saw it “in stock” on Amazon, that’s when it felt like I had written a book. I know, I know, but there it is.
I’m just so excited and proud of all the work by all the people who put their time and talent into taking my projects and manuscript and making them into a Real Book. And I feel so very deeply that the content–learning to sew by creating projects that teach foundational skills while giving instant gratification and motivation to continue–is something whose time has come, and is such a fantastic way for folks today to learn to sew. My mission is to lead everyone who reads the book to passionately love sewing, full stop. And I feel so grateful to have a finished book to share with you that does even a little bit to help that happen!
Thanks to all of you who’ve been reading and commenting and encouraging me along the way. You’re all in the acknowledgments!
Signed copies of Stitch by Stitch are shipping NOW, personalized just for you! The book is also available online through Amazon (only three copies left!) and Barnes & Noble, and within the week should be in bookstores all over. Eeep! Am heading out with my camera in hand in hopes of catching one in the wild…
In the coming weeks, I’ll be doing a blog tour to some of my favorite blog destinations, and leading up to that sharing some projects that are extensions of what’s included in the book, with additional pattern pieces and tutorials–hooray! Keep an eye on the Stitch by Stitch page for updates, as well as for signings and appearances. I’m having so much fun meeting folks in person who I’ve gotten to know through comments and through Twitter–I hope I’ll have the chance to meet a whole bunch more of you at events in coming months!
My publisher asked me if I would put together a mini-movie trailer for my new book, which will be out in a month (eek!). It was SUPER fun, way more fun than I anticipated. Our oldest helped me film and edit it (and had some very strong opinions about what looked best), and we got some hysterical out-takes that will almost certainly show up in the behind-the-scenes, day-in-the-life video we’re working on now.
I am SO excited that the book is nearly out, and working feverishly on putting together a blog tour and local appearances and a window display of the projects from the book. I hope y’all love it as much as I loved writing it–I know every dorky author says that, but this book was such a labor of love for me, and I can’t wait to see it in the hands of new stitchers and watch them blossom into amazing, confident folks with needles in their hands.
In the midst of all the craziness and excitement leading up to the opening of the Whipstitch shop in the next few days (eek!), I am a little overwhelmed to share another, exciting announcement: I’ve written a book, which is being published by F + W and is due to be released late this summer!
I’ve been teaching adult sewing classes here in Atlanta since 2007, and have had the most amazing experiences doing that–it’s so different from teaching high school (which I did before I began designing and sewing professionally). It has been easily one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever had the privilege to accomplish. So when I blogged a tutorial for making Continuous Bias Tape, I didn’t really think much of it, beyond that it was an extension of my classes and that the tute would make a great resource for my students after they’d completed the course.
So when I checked my inbox about a year ago and discovered an email from an acquisitions editor over at F + W saying she’d read my tutorial, loved the style and voice, and asking if I’d ever thought about writing a book, I couldn’t reply fast enough (my answer: “Only every day since I was 6!”). The past year has been an insane whirlwind of manuscripts and photo shoots and pattern drafting and sample making, and I’ve been elated and frazzled and flattered and humbled by all of it. And now, it’s nearly coming to a conclusion: the book is set to be released in late July of 2010, and I couldn’t be prouder!
More details as the release date gets closer, including some sneak peeks of the interior of the book and some of the projects I’ve designed. I can’t wait to share it all with you, and welcome you into our new retail space to see the finished product of BOTH the Whipstitch babies being born this year!
