Stitch Gathering 2017 Goody Bag Giveaway - RESULT!

Thank you so much to everyone who entered this giveaway! I'm so sorry you can't all win a prize.

The winner is ....

Number 21 Archie The Wonder Dog!!

Archie the wonder dog11 October 2017 at 18:51

I'd like my lovely friend Beryl Frank of Knot, partly because she's fab and partly because she might take me with her ;o) If I have to pick a famous teacher, I'd go for Lynne ;o)

ReplyDelete

Congratulations to Helen!!

Commiserations to everyone else. Did you enter the Instagram giveaway? Maybe you won there instead!!

Stitch Gathering 2017 GOODY BAG GIVEAWAY!!!

 

Yes it's that time again! I have kept aside two of the amazing goody bags from this year's event to giveaway!

You can enter one giveaway here on the blog and the other on Instagram!

But let's take a closer look at what you will be winning...

1. From Immediate Media we have a copy of Love Patchwork and Quilting AND Today's Quilter!
2. A bundle of Cori Dantini 'Makers' fabrics courtesy or Blend Fabrics (4 panels!!).
3. 2  balls of Perle Cotton number 8 thread by DMC.
4. A fat quarter of Cloud 9 Fabric.
5. A fat quarter of Dear Stella Fabric.
6. A fat quarter of Sarah Campbell's 'Our Yard' fabric from Micheal Miller.
7. A half metre piece of Joel Dewberry's 'Florabelle' from Free Spirit Fabric.
8. A 30cm (WOF) piece of 'Down by the River' from Lewis and Irene fabric.
9. A fab little Liberty Tana Lawn Scrap Pack from Duck Egg Threads.
10. A 30cm (WOF) piece of fabric from Dashwood Studio
11. A set of spools of all types of Aurifil thread - 7 different threads including 80wt!! Also booklets and shades cards and a cool Aurifil sticker for your sewing machine!
12. A packets of delicious Nairn's Oatcakes.
13. An Aurifil Tote Bag (not pictured).
14. A mini sewing kit from the Sewing Quarter.
15. A chalk lolly courtesy of myBearpaw :)

WOW! What a haul!

A huge thank you to all our Sponsors, both for the goody bags and for the Lucky Dip prizes. We are all so grateful for your support!!

So how do you win all this booty?

Simply leave a comment on this post:
I'd like to know, if you could have your dream teacher, from anywhere around the world come to teach at the Stitch Gathering in 2018 who would you choose?! If you can't think of anything just say hello :) Make sure you leave your email address if you are a 'no-reply' commenter.

That's all you need to do! If you want to increase your chances then head over to Instagram @mybearpaw and enter the giveaway there for the second bag too.

Giveaway will close Tuesday 17th October at midnight. International entries are welcome!
Good luck!

Stitch Gathering 2017 workshops and news round up!

Our workshops for this year's Stitch Gathering Retreat have just been announced and I thought I would share my two new class samples with you.

As you can see from the mosaic above there is a fabulous selection of classes on offer this year from our new guest tutors, Mandy Munroe, Lucy Brennan and Sarah Ashford, as well as returning regulars Trudi Wood, Fiona Calvert and Julie Rutter. You can read all about our teachers here.

Every year I find it harder to come up with a new class to teach. This will be our fifth event and I have taught at least 2 classes every year. In the end I decided to do just a little more improv this year!

It turns out this will be the fourth year in a row that I have taught an improv technique for the morning class - so far we have had Freehand New York Beauty, Patchwork Portraits, 3D Improv Dresden Plate and now this year - Improv Flowers!

This will be a condensed version (very condensed!) of the 8 week evening class I sometimes teach for my Improv Meadow Quilt. Initially this quilt was begun in a workshop with Anna Maria Horner a few years back and is very much inspired by her work.

In this 3 hour Stitch Gathering class I will be showing students a couple of different improv flower and leaf blocks and also how to make bias stems. We won't have time to applique and leaves but...

...in the afternoon I will be teaching Appliqueing Leaves and Circles, so some people might want to spend the whole day with me!

Or just come along to the afternoon class and make a start on this cute panel (which I will turn into a zippy pouch as soon as I get hold of a zip!). This is a version of the applique class I taught at the Thread House Retreat where I show students clever ways to prepare fabric shapes for applique. You can read about all this year's workshops here.

The Stitch Gathering  is now fully booked but we usually get a few cancellations every year so if you would like to join the waiting list then email me through the SG website.

Speaking of the Thread House Retreat, we have just announced the launch date for next year's retreat tickets! You will be able to book from 2pm on Friday 23rd June (2 weeks today!).
Check out all the info here.

I've recently been making another quilt with gorgeous Kaffe Fassett Spring Collective fabric for Today's Quilter magazine (you'll be able to see it in August). I made this matchstick quilted zippy pouch with some of the scraps. But I still had quite a bit of fabric leftover and as I like to share the love I am currently giving away 14 Fat Quarters PLUS this zippy pouch on my instagram account! So if you have an IG account why not pop on over and enter, giveaway closes on Monday night, just search for @mybearpaw.

I promise to balance things up with a blog giveaway soon too!

Lastly I wanted to share a letter with you that I received from Acorns Hospice.

Do you remember the Words Quilt that was made from all the amazing 'ticket words' that were brought to the Stitch Gathering 2016? You can read about them here. They were made into two quilts one of which was donated to this wonderful place. The other quilt is still being hand quilted by the amazine Lynsey. I would apppeal again for any suggestions for a permanent home for this last quilt when it is finished. Please leave a comment below or email me.

Thanks so much to everyone who took part in the ticket project that year!

FOQ ticket giveaway winners!

The winners are...

number 10

Beatrice25 May 2017 at 06:36

Hello, love the small bags! Would love to win a ticket to the Festival of Quilts. Last time I went was 3 or 4 years ago. Haven't used up al the fabric I bought there, though!

and number 12

SewLittleToSay26 May 2017 at 17:52

I'd love the chance to see all the quilts.

I can't get a screen shot of the random number generator from the computer I am using so you will just have to trust me! 

Congrats to you both, I will email you. Sorry everyone else! But don't forget you can get £2.50 off your Festival of Quilts ticket with code WS41!

Festival of Quilts ticket GIVEAWAY!

As a teacher at this year's Festival of Quilts I've been given some free tickets. I've given two away on Instagram and now it's time to give two away over here, to all my dear blog readers!

Read on to find out how to win one of these tickets. But first let's find out about this year's FOQ!

There are so many reasons to come along this year! First off I am teaching two workshops!

I am teaching Patchwork Portraits on Thursday afternoon. This is a fun three hour workshop which uses an improv technique to create you or someone else out of fabric! I have taught this at both the Stitch Gathering and the Thread House retreats to fantastic results.

On Friday morning I will be teaching my 3D Dresden Plate class. This is another improv technique which gives you the basics for regular Dresden Plates too. I taught this at last year's Stitch Gathering and many gorgeous blocks were made, one of them (by our Edinburgh MQG president, Cathlene) became a mini quilt and was exhibited at our recent Knitting and Stitching show gallery space.

Lastly on the Thursday morning I will be demoing these two origami bags at a Quick and Easy class. To book tickets for the workshop head over to the FOQ website here.

And then there are all the other reasons to attend FOQ, like... the shopping! And... the quilt galleries! This year the Best of QuiltCon is coming to Birmingham! So excited to see all these stunning quilts again. There are so many amazing exhibitions this year including Victoria Findlay Wolfe, and 'Mastery - Sustaining Momentum' which is curated by my absolute quilting hero - Nancy Crow!

And then there is the main quilt exhibition, with over 700 incredible quilts from all over the world. I have entered quilts for the last two years and last year I got a highly commended award from the Modern Quilt category. This year I am entering two quilts, one of which I am still making. Yes I know the deadline for entries is next Friday, but the quilt doesn't have to be finished by then (FOQ quilts are not juried,  and therefore you don't need to send a photo), though of course that is advisable 😊.

Are you planning to enter a quilt this year? Find out more here.

And could this become the quilt I enter?! This is a version of my Mid-Century Modern Quilt, made for the 2016 QuiltCon magazine. I am teaching this for the first time on Sunday June 4th, and as it is a while since I made it I thought I better make a few blocks. I really love how this is looking so I may go for this... then again, I may have other ideas!

One more reason to come along - I will be launching something very exciting at one of the stands!! More on this soon...

But what about those tickets?!

Right let's get on with the giveaway. All you need to do to enter is leave a comment below. That's it, I'm keeping things nice and simple, just leave any old comment. Maybe you'd like to tell me what you think about those blocks above?! Or how much you'd like to take one of my classes 😉

Giveaway will end at midnight this Friday, 26th May. International entries very welcome. Oh and make sure you are not a 'no-reply' commenter and if you are please leave your email in your comment so I can contact you if you win!

And if you just want to go ahead and buy a ticket then you can get a whopping £2.50 off your ticket price (so instead of £15 it will cost you £12.50) by using this discount code at checkout WS41.

GOOD LUCK!!

A little more news... and a fantastic community quilt!

Let's get the news bit out of the way first! I know I asked you to vote for my shop a couple of weeks back in the Sew Awards but like buses, two award nominations have come along at the same time!

I found out this week that I had been nominated for not one but TWO British Craft Awards in the Quilting category - Best Quilt Designer and Best Quilt Blogger!!! And The Thread House has been nominated in Best Quilt Brand! I am really blown away by this and so honoured to be in the company of such fabulously talented quilters and bloggers (most of whom are really good mates/business partners!).

So if you do decide to head over here and vote for me then I completely understand if you change your mind and vote for someone else when confronted by the rest of the list! If you do vote for me then THANK YOU very much!

I thought you might like to know about this wonderful quilt project that I took part in for the Museum of Childhood which is on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. They have a new exhibition called Bedtime Stories which is all about memories of bedtime stories. Part of the exhibition is a special quilt made by over 60 adults and children from across the UK.

I contributed this cute deer block which was from a pattern by Shapemoth and available on Craftsy here. It was a great little FPP project and I love how it turned out.

Here's what I wrote to accompany it:

"When I was six years old I had a very powerful dream about a deer. I can't remember anything else about it now apart from the deer, but the memory of how the dream effected me has stayed with me through all of my life. At the time I had probably just seen Bambi at the cinema (which I loved) and this was probably why I dreamt about a deer. There was also a favourite sit-on ride at a nearby supermarket which was of a deer. I used to think about all these deer at bedtime because I wanted to have this dream again, but I never did. However I still have amazing dreams and often write them down, and I still love deer, and think of them as a kind of totem animal for me."

If you are in or around Edinburgh then you should definitely try and get to this exhibition, it's on till 24th February. If you want to find out more about the exhibition click here.

One more little thing, I am having a giveaway over on Instagram for this gorgeous big box of Blueberry Park Aurifil and some lovely BP fabric!! Head on over to IG to enter!

Stitch Gathering 2016 Goody Bag Giveaway RESULTS!

Congratulations to Sew Little To Say!! You have won my blog giveaway for the Stitch Gathering 2016 Goody Bag!!

The Instagram winner was Silver Bells and Cockleshells - congratulations to you too!

Commiserations to everyone else :(

But thank you so much for entering!!

Stitch Gathering 2016 GOODY BAG GIVEAWAY!!

Yes it's that time again! I have kept aside two of the amazing goody bags from this year's event to giveaway!

You can enter one giveaway here on the blog and the other on Instagram!

But let's take a closer look at what you will be winning...

1. From Immediate Media we have a copy of Love Patchwork and Quilting AND Simply Sewing!
2. A bundle of Lotta Jansdotta Windham fabrics courtesy of our UK distributor Anbo (6 FQ!).
3. A skein of lovely Coloris thread by DMC.
4. A fat quarter of Cloud 9 Fabric.
5. A fat quarter of Dear Stella Fabric.
6. A fat quarter of Micheal Miller Fabric.
7. A Cori Dantini 'The Makers' panel from Blend Fabric.
8. A whole third of a yard of Lewis and Irene fabric.
9. A fab little Liberty Tana Lawn Scrap Pack from Duck Egg Threads.
10. A little packet of beads from myBearpaw.
11. Two large spools of Aurifil thread.
12. Four packets of delicious Nairn's Oatcakes.
13. An Aurifil Tote Bag (not pictured).

WOW! What a haul!

A huge thank you to all our Sponsors, both for the goody bags and for the Lucky Dip prizes. We are all so grateful for your support!!

So how do you win all this booty?

1. Leave a comment on this post. I'd like to know, if you could have the Stitch Gathering event moved to anywhere in the world where would that be? So tell me your dream quilt retreat location! If you can't think of anything just say hello :) Make sure you leave your email address if you are a 'no-reply' commenter.
2. Share this giveaway on a social media platform such as twitter or a Facebook Page (but not IG as we will be doing a separate giveaway there), and leave another comment telling me where you've posted it (with a link if possible).

That's all you need to do! If you want to increase your chances then head over to Instagram @mybearpaw and enter the giveaway there for the second bag too.

Giveaway will close Tuesday 5th October at midnight. International entries are welcome!
Good luck!

The Thread House Pattern Giveaway RESULTS!

 

CONGRATULATIONS to the person behind comment number 14!

It's Amy Crafty Shenanigans!

Amy's Crafty Shenanigans1 September 2016 at 22:45

Cube quilt is stunning and the crockery is very fun!!!!

ReplyDelete

Amy has won my The Thread House pattern giveaway and wins a copy of both of my patterns! Phew so pleased she said she liked at least one of them!

! really hope you enjoy making them Amy! 

Commiserations everybody else :(

But never mind as if you have fallen in love with one of the quilts then you can download a copy of the pattern here!

Thanks so much for entering!

The Thread House Pattern Launch and GIVEAWAY!!

Our The Thread House patterns are now ready to purchase! You can check them all out here.

Right get ready for some serious quilting eye candy...

We are so pleased with our first six patterns! We hope you like them too. At present you can only buy them as a download but paper patterns will be coming soon!

Let's take a look at them all...

This is Karen's Giant Hexie cot quilt. I think this was the first pattern she ever wrote and she has revived it and re-made it in her beautiful Blueberry Park fabric.

And this is Karen's Summit Quilt, a brand new design, love the colour placement. The whole thing is so simple yet so striking!

Next up is Lynne's Pic'n Mix Sampler Quilt, which is amazing value for money, with four different versions included! My husband loves this quilt and wants to keep it for himself :)

You probably recognise some of the backdrops featured. We are so lucky that my very talented husband, Jonathan, offered to do the quilt photography for us. He took all these gorgeous photos using Shangri La Farm and his Tiny House as locations, aren't they amazing?!

Our lovely Gothic bench which was one of Jonathan's first fabric designs from around 20 years ago, is the fabulous setting for Lynne's Cube Quilt, which is just stunning!

And of course there are my patterns which we already looked at in great detail in my two previous posts!

To celebrate our launch I am giving away a copy of each of my patterns on both this blog and IG. And Karen and Lynne are also doing the same thing with their patterns (though not necessarily at the same time as Karen is in Rome!!) so check out their IG accounts and blogs!

Just leave a comment below telling me which quilt you like best out of the six featured above (you don't need to say one of mine, just be honest, I can take it!!).

For an extra entry then share this post on some other form of social media (your own blog, facebook page, twitter etc.) and leave me an extra comment here telling me you've shared it.

If you are on Instagram then head over and enter the giveaway there to double your chances!

Giveaway is open to International entries and closes midnight on Sunday (4th September). Remember if you are a 'no-reply commenter' then you will need to leave your email in your comment.

Good luck everyone! And don't forget to check out all the patterns on our website!

Giveaway Winner!

Thanks so much to everyone who joined in my Color Brigade Bundle giveaway!

The winner is....

Number 67 - Catherine! Congratulations Catherine, I will email you separately!

Commiserations everyone else :( 

But maybe you won the Instagram bundle? Better go and check!!

Color Brigade Bundle GIVEAWAY!!

I mentioned earlier in the week that I would be hosting a little giveaway this weekend (just made it phew!).

I have some Color Brigade fabric left over from making my New York Beauty quilt, enough for two Fat Eighth Bundles with twelve fabrics each. I thought it would be nice to share these with my dear readers. So I am giving away one bundle here on the blog and one on Instagram.

Color Brigade is the latest collection from the amazing Jennifer Paganelli for Free Spirit Fabrics. The quilt below was made entirely from this line. The pattern for this quilt is in the latest issue (13) of Today's Quilter, read more about it here.

So how do you get your hands on one of these cute little bundles (of fabric that is actually really hard to get hold of in the UK!)?

All you need to do is leave a comment below telling me what your all time favourite fabric collection is, or if you can't think of one then your favourite fabric designer (if you don't have one of these either then just say hello!).

For an extra entry then share this post on some other form of social media (your own blog, facebook page, twitter etc.) and leave me an extra comment here telling me you've shared it.

If you are on Instagram then head over and enter the giveaway there to double your chances!

Giveaway is open to International entries and closes midnight on Wednesday (24th August). Remember if you are a 'no-reply commenter' then you will need to leave your email in your comment.

Good luck everyone!

Quick and Easy Quilts Book Giveaway Results

Congratulations to Teresa Stanulis, comment number 74!! I will email you.

Commiserations everyone else :(

Thanks so much for taking part!

Quick and Easy Quilts Book GIVEAWAY!!

I am so excited to be part of the Quick and Easy Quilts bloghop!! This is Lynne Goldsworthy (of Lily's Quilts blog) new book which is published by Kyle Books.

And as well as a quick preview of the book and a look at a project I've made from it I will also be giving away a copy later in this post!

But first of all let's talk about this excellent book and the glorious quilts contained therein. Like Planet Baby above, one of my particular favourites, and the wonderful cover 'star' quilt below

I absolutely love the styling and photography by Jan Baldwin!

The book contains so many wonderful projects with a huge range of techniques. Even if Lynne wasn't one of my best quilting buddies I would still thoroughly recommend this book! You can buy your copy here.

I have always been a huge fan of Lynne's designs since way back in the Flickr days. One of my all time favourites is the Scrappy Trees she used for a round mini quilt years ago which was also her logo for a while.

I was so pleased to see the Scrappy Trees reappear in the book!

At last I could make my own!

I needed a class sample for the Snowball Knitting Bag workshop on Sunday but instead of making snowballs I decided to use the scrappy trees and make a different shaped bag!

These panels were so fun and easy to do and a great way to use up precious scraps. Lynne has made a quilt-as-you-go full sized quilt using this motif in the book.

I used a mixture of straight line and free-motion quilting (scattered leaves) on these panels, then made them into this bag along with the class.

It's an odd shape for a knitting bag but I am sure I will find a use for it - what about a couple of bottles of prosecco??!!

So what about that giveaway then??!

I have one copy of the book to giveaway here.  All you need to do is to leave a comment below!

Let's make this quick and easy too so just say what you will. If you would like another entry then share the giveaway on social media and leave another comment to let me know!

Giveaway ends this Friday 22nd April at midnight and is open to international entries too!
Don't forget to leave your email if you are a no-reply commenter! Good luck!!