Link Love: Busy Little Bee

What a fabulous day it is to be alive! The weather here in Canberra, Australia has start to turn decidedly spring time. The flowers are blossoming, the days are bright and blue and we’re not having as many super cold mornings. I’m on my 3rd week of heading to the pool 5 days a week and I’m loving it. It’s been nearly 12 months since my hysterectomy and I’m finally starting to feel like the world has righted itself. I’m also needing to remind myself of the joy that is knowing I won’t have to stop going to the pool for a week each month. It’s such a sublime luxury to no longer have my uterus. I’m very grateful for the son it helped give me, but I’m also rather glad we’ve parted company.

As the weather has changed so has my productivity. I feel like I’m on fire at the moment. I did something I’ve never done before and I sewed an entire quilt top in a day! Yep, a day! From fabric pull to finished quilt top in a day! I was so happy with myself. I’ll be sharing the quilt at the end of October. Until then it’s off to have a pampering treatment with Raylee of Sunflower Stitcheries and Quilting.

While I’m in such a super productive mood I’ve started the planning and making for 2020. God willing, I’ve got another 100 block quilt pattern being released at the end of this year and I can’t wait to share this one with you – it’s super special and I’m really chuffed with it. We’ll be having a sew-along for it kicking off 1 March. There’s also an online sewing bee with Make Modern coming for 2020 and a special women supporting women monthly pattern hop. Not to mention, there’s #100Days100Blocks2020 kicking off 1 July using the Kinship: 100 Block Fusion Sampler quilt pattern. There’s details of everything below. If there’s something you’d like to see on the roster, now’s the time to suggest it. Drop me an email and we’ll talk.

In the meantime, I’m off to do the school run. It’s the last week before school holidays start and I can’t wait to have the kiddo home with me for 2 weeks. Wishing you a fabulous week filled with love, laughter and much fabric fondling!

The signs are here and they’re ready for you to order! I’ve listed 20+ versions of our first batch of custom handmade signs ready for you to add some flair to your home and creative space. These signs are limited edition and made to order from sustainable Australian timber.

There’s 11 phrases to choose from with 2 standard colour palettes (aqua and rainbow) or you can customise your own. These signs will never be offered like this again. The order window will be open from Monday 23 September to 11:59pm Sunday 29 September AEST. You can find them listed in my store by clicking here or clicking the button below.

PLEASE NOTE: For signs being shipped to the continental USA we cannot offer our flat rate of AUD$10 for shipping. You’ll be charged AUD$10 for shipping at checkout and then we’ll invoice the remainder of the shipping for payment prior to order being completed. I’m sorry that it’s not more streamlined, we’re working with out IT contractor to see if there’s a way that we can automatically calculate shipping at the time of purchase. Shipping is approximately AUD$21 (total) for 1 sign to be shipped to the US. Happy to provide a quote on shipping before you order.

Planning for 2020 is well underway and I wanted to give you the first heads up of what’s coming.

Rise Up 2020 Pattern of the Month Blog Hop: Sam Hunter and I have partnered with 10 other talented quilt pattern designers to bring you a monthly pattern hop focused on women supporting women.
10 January 2020 – Make Modern Magazine + GnomeAngel Sewing Bee: I’ve partnered with Make Modern Magazine to offer an international sewing bee. Details will be published in Issue 32 which goes on sale on 10 January 2020.
1 March 2020 – Make the Cut Sew-along: Using my “Make the Cut: 100 Block Pictorial Sampler” pattern (being released in December 2019) you’ll make 100 blocks in 100 days to win prizes and complete a 6″ x 6″ 100 block sampler.
1 July 2020 – #100Days100Blocks2020: Using the “Kinship: 100 Block Fusion Sampler” pattern you’ll make a block a day for one hundred days.

If there’s anything else you’d like to see offered in 2020 simply reply to this email with your suggestions.

A: Show your love of the bees with this bee-utiful quilt pattern. Click here to read more.

B: Gnomes! Need I say more? Click here to read more.

C: I love the movement in this quilt pattern! Click here to read more.

D: I’m a sucker for a good heart quilt block and this FPP version is just fab. Click here to read more.

E: I found this song by accident and I’m obsessed with it now. Click here to listen.

F: Love how yum this cold chicken and spinach salad looks – adding it to this week’s rotation! Click here to read more.

I love to share the cool things that I find during my week of surfing the internet window-shopping and splurging. Here’s my top 4 from this week:

A: Magical creatures to have fun fussy cutting with. Click here to purchase this on Etsy.

B: It’s never too early to start that Christmas quilt. Click here to purchase this on Etsy.

C: Rainbows and animals, yes please! Click here to purchase this on Etsy.

D: I love the colours and the summer feel to this bundle. Click here to purchase this on Etsy.

The Colorblock LOVE Sew-along kicked off on Sunday and this week we’re covering fabric selection and fabric preparation. These 2 things are crucial to you finishing a quilt you love. I’ve shared all the details about the sew-along, including links to all the tutorials and a peek behind-the-scenes on my fabric selection and finished quilt top.

Projects in Issue 30: A: Lotus Blossoms by Amanda McCabe | B: Pencil Pusher by Kerry Foster | C: On Point Pouch by Lauren Wright | D: Rainbow Colour Wheel by Sue Bone

Issue 30 marks Make Modern’s FIFTH birthday! In Issue 30, you’ll meet three incredible makers – Lauren Wright from Molly and Mama, Saija Kiiskinen who the Make Modern Team fell in love with on Insta, and Meghan Buchanan from Then Came June; you’ll make rainbow quilts, pinwheels and the prettiest little project pouch; and the Make Modern Team motivate readers to improve their practice with an article on applying Aggregation of Marginal Gains to quilting (intrigued?!), and there’s also the brand new Techniques + Tips column by Alyce Blyth. You’ll discuss the therapeutic benefits of quilting with Make Modern’s feature article, Why is Quilting Good For Us? Issue 30 is jam-packed with patterns suitable for beginner through to advanced quilters, and articles guaranteed to make you smile, teach you something new, and inspire you to try. Make Modern is published independently by a small team of Australian quilters, and at just AU$8 (approx. US$5.50, CA$7, €5 or £4.50), you can’t afford to miss out. Click the button below to purchase or you can purchase via clicking this link.

Don’t forget if you purchase the all access subscription you’ll get Issue 30 included in that for no extra cost!

Happy 5th Birthday Make Modern! To celebrate they’re hosting a fabulous party where you can win prizes simply by making your own version of one the 200+ patterns that are available in past issues. It’s so simple and there’s so much scope for fun that I’m even going to have a crack at playing along. You can find all the details on how to participate by clicking here.

If you want to get started on picking out your pattern to make why not check out Make Modern’s all access subscription. The All Access Subscription is for serious creatives – it gives you one simple link to download every single back issue of Make Modern PLUS new issues as they are published. Download issues as many times as you like while your subscription is active, then read on your tablet, smartphone, or computer, and print as required.

You’ll receive:

200+ modern quilt patterns,
40+ mini quilt patterns,
30+ cushions,
50+ other patterns including pincushions, placemats, table runners, bags, pouches, wallets, camera straps, coasters, luggage tags, doll quilts, machine covers, journal covers, baskets, Christmas stockings, needle books, and even a foldable waterproof picnic blanket!

You get all of this for just AUD$99* for the first year, then $40 each year thereafter (the same price as the annual subscription). That’s all those patterns for less than AUD$0.20 per pattern! (Even less if you’re in the US because of the exchange rate!) CLICK THE BUTTON TO PURCHASE!

BONUS: For the month of September all new subscribers get a free Make Modern enamel pin!

If the button doesn’t work you can access the link to purchase by clicking here.

A note for current subscribers: If you already have an active subscription but would like to upgrade to our All Access Subscription, purchase a new subscription from this page, then email Lara to request a refund for the remaining balance of your original subscription.

Have you got an event, a charity drive, a pattern release, a class schedule or something else that you think my community would be interested in hearing about? Why not drop me a line and let me know – I’d love to share it with my readers. Click here to email me.

Angela Bowman, of Sewinfinity, has a new blog post out on how to make fabric swatch fridge magnets. It’s a super cute and fun project. Find out more by clicking here.

This newsletter may contain affiliate links. If you purchase those items through my links I will earn a very small commission. You will not pay more when buying a product through my link, in fact in some cases I can offer you a better price via an affiliate link. I will not recommend something that I do not use myself. These commission help me to be able to keep providing you with great content. Thank you, in advance for your support! For more information about my sponsorship and advertising policy please click here.