shopping small

This is a haul post, full of fabric & sewing goodies (and shoes) from small independent shops/sellers - all of whom I know and love!! They are all places I've bought from before too so they may be familiar names if you're a regular round here. It's a testament to the quality and wonderfulness of the products. There's also a fun Stitch-Along announcement that I encourage you to join!

First this pile of beautiful panels from Karen Lewis Textiles, the May bundle from her fabric club. The stripy triangles design is so beautiful, with a beachy vibe, on lovely Kona colours. I seem to be collecting Karen's prints, they find their way into lots of my projects because they so good but I would still love to make something with just her fabric.

And other screen printed fabric added to my stash recently was from the second edition of The Bees by Lucy Engels - I got some in the first run and HAD to have these ones too. I adore them (bees!!!) and they are so brilliant for fussy cutting. The colours are also fabulous - I bought Shitake, Oyster and Mac and Cheese - Kona colours again! The Mac and Cheese is truly such a great yellow/orange.

I received my latest Signs of the Sewdiac box, designed by my amazing friend Samantha Claridge, it's an absolute joy to open up this box of treats! I am so glad I subscribe because it's money well spent, I adore every thing you get each month and this is a really fun one. A banner to easily sew (and a place to keep my growing pin collection!), a card, pin, sticker and a sheet of temporary tattoos. And can we talk about the gorgeous rotary cutter design?! It's really pretty but also empowering for this quilter.

I am so torn between saving these for special occasions (festival of quilts?!) and enjoying each one or completely covering myself in all the pretty tattoos just because! Leave your vote or suggestions in a comment below!

While teaching at Patchfinders I spied the new display of Presencia threads, how could I not take some home?! The grey is a 40 weight thread for machine quilting and the Finca perle threads are for hand quilting, I can't wait to use them and the whole colour range is beautiful.

Next, slightly randomly but totally me, new moccasins! These are my fourth pair of Minnetonka shoes. The first pair were worn until they literally had holes in, my sister kindly got me a pair of boots and then later gave me another pair she'd bought for herself but were a tiny bit too big for her. As much as I love the boots, the normal style of moccasins is perfect for warmer weather and I need no excuse for falling for Hello Kitty. They are literally the most comfortable shoes, as a usual trainer (sneaker) wearer I actually prefer these. Like slippers!

I will leave you with some exciting news!

This summer, join us for the Kingfisher Stitch-along, designed and hosted by Rachel of Stitched in Color and Jodi of Tales of Cloth. Over 8 weeks of stitching (June-July) we'll create hexie flower quilts that combine English paper piecing, applique and piecing.  New to EPP?  Learn all the basics and win prizes along the way!  Pick up your needle and stitch along, whatever your pace!  Visit Stitched in Color - click here for all the details.

Jodi will be offering a discount on the Kingfisher quilt kit from May 16 through June 1st.  The code is KINGFISHER15 for a 15% discount. 

The quilt design is stunning and I'm thrilled to be one of the guest contributors of the Stitch-Along. It's a perfect summer project!