I just heard that The Elven Garden is having a fun Pop Garden giveaway this week. Enter to win this stack of popular, out-of-print fabrics from my Pop Garden collection over on her blog at TheElvenGarden.blogspot.com by Saturday, December 14th at 2pm (Australian DST) for a chance to win.
I'm working behind the scenes to finish up the new embroidery patterns so we can get those back from the printer with plenty of time to ship them out before Christmas. I plan to scent up my home with cinnamon and nutmeg—baking or candles, whatever it takes—then snuggle up with my kids and a soft quilt to embroider while we watch The Sound of Music or Gone with the Wind.
Doesn't that sound fabulous? It's the picture in my head that's getting me through the last leg of this race. I should have some embroidery-pattern news here very, very soon.
Happy Holidays!
As I hinted last week, I'll be heading to Utah in three weeks to give the keynote address at The Sewing Summit 2013. The announcement was made yesterday on The Sewing Summit blog and throughout their social media outlets. Click on the image below to read the full article.
is The Sewing Summit? As they put it, "We’re a cross between a
traditional sewing retreat and a social
media and blogging conference… With hands-on workshops, networking
events, inspiring speakers,
informative lecture sessions and enough down-time to connect with
friends new and old—Sewing Summit is the only event of its kind. Join us
for a weekend of skill-building, networking, laughing and
reconnecting!"
I'm excited to meet everyone and share. The event has been sold out for a while. However! They have added a handful of spaces this week. If you are interested in attending, jump on it. Just have a look at these great classes and teachers.
I hear the sewing labs will be open till 2am or so. You can sew in your
pjs with friends. Doesn't that sound dreamy? Of course, I'm a serious
night owl.
So then, whether you're attending or not, what would you like to hear
from me at an event like this? The conference covers such diverse
topics: fashion, quilting, blogging, photography, business and more. I want to do a bang-up job for you all.
My giveaway plans were derailed today by a very important little person and his very own 2nd birthday. Little Evan
is two years old today! When I giddily plucked him from his crib this
morning, we snuggled up on Charlotte's bed while I sang him a Happy
Birthday song. At the end of every phrase, Evan chimed in with "cake!"
Happy Birthday to you…cake!…Happy Birthday to you…cake!… Happy Birthday dear Evan…cake!…Happy Birthday to you…cake!
He knows what's important.
It took us till eveningtime to finally make good on the promise of
cake with a small family birthday party. Boisterous cousins followed
Evan about, patting his head and picking him up in turn. By the time
cake was served, Evan couldn't care less about the stir of children
throughout our home. Cake, at last—what a birthday is all about.
I wanted to write Evan a little love note today to enumerate his
sweet particularities at this age, count the many ways in which I love
him. But, Sundays are my busiest days—even without a birthday to
celebrate. As such, the love note didn't happen. And today's giveaway
post didn't happen either. When it came down to it, I had to choose
between photographing and writing a giveaway post and giving my little
son his birthday dues—time, attention and cake. I chose the baby.
I could prep and post today's giveaway
now, but it's getting too late in the night to do our awesome Day 25
prize justice. Instead, I'm going to go for a double header tomorrow and
put up two separate giveaways in two separate posts. Hang tight and
watch for those tomorrow. I'll make sure the deadlines are generous so
you won't miss your chance.
Happy, Happy Birthday to my darling boy. From our early morning
cake-song to my late-night blog update, today, I'm reminded of this
lovely poem by Ruth Hulbert Hamilton—though it could use a new stanza about the internet, the computer and the smart phone:
Song for a Fifth Child
Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
Sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.
Oh, I’ve grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).
The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.
I was chatting at my baby earlier this week, conspiring with him to
start a Birthday Month tradition for August—as we are the only two
August birthdays in my immediate family. With enough fuss, we'll surely
make the Mays and Januaries jealous. Midst our little tete-a-tete it
dawned on me that I neglected to host my annual birthday giveaway last
year. Boo.
I will now make up for that. Right. About. Now. In the spirit of Birthday Month, how about a GIVEAWAY EVERY DAY for the month of August!? I'm talking about fabric, patterns, jewelry, equipment, supplies, etc.
am SO very grateful to each of you for your love and kindness—and for
your support of my business and consequently my little family. I am
inspired by you daily and I look forward to your comments and feedback.
Thank you so much for your encouragement.
I know this madness will put me in a swirl, but I don't care. I want
to show you my appreciation. Celebrate with me. And let me celebrate
you. I'll post one new giveaway on my blog each day in August. To enter a giveaway, simple leave a comment on that blog post by 11:59pm PST on the day of the post.
Be sure to enter your email address so we can contact you if you win.
We'll draw a winner at random, send out an email, then announce the
result with an update at the bottom of that post.
If you are on Instagram as well, enter an additional daily giveaway for a $15 gift certificate. (See footnote in green below.) That's actually two giveaways each day, isn't it? This thing keeps growing!
To kick things off with a splash, today's giveaway is for a $50 GIFT CERTIFICATE to our online store, HeatherBaileyStore.com
where you can stock up on fabric, felt, sewing kits, patterns, paper
crafts, and more. I have a new fabric collection I will be announcing
later this month. And I'll be releasing all-new embroidery patterns as
well—in between blogging about giveaways, right? This prize should come in handy.
Remember, comment below
to enter and make sure to submit your email address so we're not stuck
with no way to reach you!
Good luck. And again, thanks for your enthusiasm and support. I love you guys.
xo—Heather
This weekend I had the pleasure of speaking at the Revive blog conference in Phoenix, Arizona. It was put on by two cool ladies, Coley and Lindsey,
who run an outdoor antique market twice a year called Junk in the Trunk Vintage Market. The next one is April 27th at Westworld—and I will SO be there.
They wanted to reembrace their blog and improve
their approach, so instead of waiting to attend a remote conference or researching
the subject online, they decided to assemble an event to educate others while getting an education
themselves.
I was asked to
give a keynote address, but because I am in the throes of designing
another fabric collection—yes!—that is due this week—we decided
on a Q &A
instead. That way, the audience could glean what they most wanted from
my being there. The other speakers joined in as well— it was great.
It's always nice to step out of the studio for a break when I'm in the thick of a big project. Time
away helps me gain perspective on where I'm at. And more
than that, this time, I got to meet and help some wonderful and creative women in my own area.
So, as I was posting images from the conference on Instagram during
the event, a couple of women commented on Instagram that they felt like
the only bloggers in their states. (It was Maine and South Carolina, I
think.) They wished there were meet-ups in their areas as well.
If you feel this way too, can I just take a moment to empower you to make it happen!?
You can rent a small space or see if the city has a meeting room you
can use, ask a couple of bigger bloggers to do a shout-out for you, see
who might be willing to come speak. Bring in some food. Or keep things
super simple with a round-table discussion amongst the attendees. The
fact is, if you're feeling alone in your area, the chances are that
others around are feeling the same way. You can be the solution.
And you don't have to make things all fancy and froo-froo. Just get
started and see what becomes. You will likely return home with a few new
friends, some great ideas, and a good helping of fresh energy.
Photos above are from my Instagram feed: www.Instagram.com/heatherbailey or @heatherbailey if you're in the app. Sign up for Instagram, it's awesome.
I'm back from 'maternity leave.' I didn't intend to be away for a couple of weeks, but with family in town, my assistant moving into a new job, some replaced stitches, and the usual ruckus that accompanies a third baby, I needed the break. I'm a little behind on big announcements, so watch for new fabric, new patterns, and more.
I might need an iPad so I can blog with one hand while I feed the baby. He's a full-time job by himself these days. Of course, I take smooching his feathery head and peachy cheeks rather seriously. Has anyone tried an iPad for typing up posts? I'm excited to get back to it.
There's been a lot of corn on the cob and swimming this weekend —
dental floss and sunscreen. (Somehow, in there, I completed the
illustrations for another sewing pattern too.)
Happy Fourth to the U.S. Let's hold tight to our freedoms. Educate
yourself (real, balanced, self-directed education — not spoon-fed.)
Speak up when needed and don't just wait for election time. That's not
loud enough. Fit it in.
And God bless the troops. I don't know how they do it — super powers?
I'm grateful for the principles upon which this country was founded. A favorite book of Isaac's, John Adams, was mentioned at election-time last year. I've decided it will be my next read. I know right where it is.
And, check out that sparkler of a hairdo Isaac did for Charlotte. A daddy 'do. I don't think I've ever wrapped three different colors in one motion. Impressive. Yep, I wasn't even in the room.
Next
up, pattern testing/editing. Today I'm taking 20 nickels to the
nearest wishing well to wish for a skilled seamstress/writer to move in
next door. I hear there's a magic fountain at the mall, right below
the escalator.
Okay, so Google Reader is the CLEAR winner. I checked it out and you can easily export the feeds
you're following in another aggregator and then upload them to Google
Reader. You can be all set-up and transitioned-over in less than 5
minutes. Dead serious. Then, if you install a Google Reader 'Next' button
in your browser's bookmark bar, you can click from one new post to
another and read each post in its original blog setting where it belongs. All great tips from you guys — thanks for chiming in!
Now I'm exploring Twitter.
Ya, I took my time getting around to it. I think they invited me to the beta of Twitter
three years ago or so. I'm getting serious deja vu on their site.
Let me say, I love the simplicity of their concept. 'You know, for
blogging.' Have you seen The Hudsucker Proxy (one of my all-time favorite movies!)? If not, then that's what you should do for fun this weekend.
Isaac loves to cook. His sister, Evie, gave him a subscription to Cooks Illustrated magazine
for Christmas one year and now we're hooked. I'm pretty sure I would
never have picked up this magazine from the shelf of a bookstore. But
it's great!
Cooks Illustrated covers the science of
cooking in a fun, easy-to-follow format. In any given issue, you might
learn how to best hard-boil an egg so the yolk stays centered (helpful
for deviled eggs), or which brand of stone-ground mustard is the most
flavorful, or the science behind aged cheese. Who knows — all kinds
of interesting things. Their test-kitchen cooks tirelessly compare
techniques and recipes to arrive at the best methods and flavors. Then
they quickly outline their test results and make suggestions in the
magazine. Even better, their research and info is completely unbiased
– like Consumer Reports
for cooking techniques, food, & recipes. The magazine doesn't have
any ads and is illustrated in old-fashioned pen-and-ink-drawings, which
I love.
Anyhow. Yes, I'm recommending a cooking magazine as a favorite tool for March of the Tools. Next time you're out shopping, stop by the magazine row and take a peek through Cooks Illustrated. I love knowing the 'why' behind a good recommendation. And Cooks Illustrated is full of 'whys' — and good recommendations.
