Small Projects and News

My working life is roughly divided into four parts:

MyBearpaw Studio and Shop

Stitch Gathering Retreat

The Thread House Retreat

Quilting/Sewing Patterns for publication

I always joke that I’m part of the gig economy as I need to run at least four businesses to survive! Actually I am only partly joking and sometimes I can get a little overwhelmed with the juggling required. But I do appreciate that I’m doing my dream job (which many others would swap me for!) so when I feel like that I just give myself a good talking to 😉

Sometimes all the businesses need attention at once and it’s been a bit like that recently. I’ve needed new classes for the Stitch Gathering and myBearpaw’s new term, and I’ve been getting ready for the launch of tickets for the next Thread House Retreat.  Plus all the secret sewing going on in the background.

So no big new project to share this month but a wee round-up of all the things I’ve been making, some of which are just for fun/friends (the best sewing!).

I made the panel at the top of this page as a new class for the Stitch Gathering. It was lots of fun to do but it wasn’t my original plan (more on this below)!

But it did seem to go down particularly well when we announced the SG classes, so I thought it could be turned into a full day workshop for myBearpaw.  I made another panel and then made them into this super cute ‘open wide pouch’!  I used this tutorial by Noodlehead for the zippered pouch.

And I think my intuition was right as the myBearpaw class sold out within a day of release! Don’t worry if you missed it, I will repeat it in the winter.

Meanwhile what was my original, abandoned idea?

For some reason my first attempt at a row of improv houses involved giant blocks!  I think I had a notion to make a table or bed runner with them.  I made that first part of a house on the left but it looked like a pair of evil eyes!  I continued to make the rest of the house (on the right) but then it turned in to a many-eyed monster!!!

I persevered with one more large house before giving up.  I went for a run instead and as usual a better idea came to me (I find exercise so good for problem solving!) – tiny improv piecing!

Yesterday I managed to resurrect the second giant house into a version of my usual improv house block. This can now go with my collection of class sample blocks which will one day become another house quilt. I have a tutorial for this block here, and local peeps may also be interested in a forthcoming Improv House Quilt class. Not sure what to do with the ‘monster house’ yet!

We’ve got two other new classes at myBearpaw this term, I’ll be teaching my Compass Spin Quilt and Karen Lewis is coming for a third visit (yay!) this time with a new class, Advanced Screen Printing.

You can check out all our classes here.

Meanwhile The Thread House Retreat news:

The tickets for our 2019 retreat go on sale on Friday at 2pm! Check out all the info on our website and for rooms and prices head to our Big Cartel store and get ready to buy your place!

A male friend had a special birthday recently and as I know how much he likes to garden I decided to make a notebook cover for his ‘garden plans’.

I found these wonderful FPP patterns within my EQ7 programme. I scaled them down and made them

one at a time, one in each colour and with plenty of grey (as I didn’t want it to be girly in any way!).

I sewed them together, bordered them with more grey and then began embroidering the text on to a Manchester Linen background using the new Sashiko thread we have in the shop.

I used some Tim Holtz fabric to finish the notebook cover.  So pleased with how this turned out (and the friend loved it too)!

I’ve had a few requests to turn this into a future class, perhaps for a slightly smaller book and without the embroidery, so watch this space!

One more newsy item:

As I mentioned in this post I am one of 80 designers to be included in the Splendid Sampler 2 book.  The book is out later this year but the Sew-Along starts this week with the release of the first of 20 FREE BLOCKS!

Thursday June 14th is lift-off day so look out for plenty going on in the quilty social media universe.  The designers have been working behind the scenes for months to make the first 20 blocks ahead of the general public and I CAN’T WAIT to share all the beautiful blocks I’ve been making.  However I will have to be patient as they are being revealed strictly one a week (including mine which is one of the free 20!!).

Find out more on the Splendid Sampler website here and check out the facebook page here. I hope you’ll all be joining in!