New stitchy zine

You may have seen it over on my craft blog already: there's a new stitchy, embroidery-y type e-zine in town! It is called &Stitches. Written by me and Nicole, one of my stitchy colleagues.

It's full of fun things like interviews with other embroiderers, patterns, book reviews and more. In this, the very first issue, we're looking at colour, because colour really can make or break a stitchy project. :-)

We're already hard at work planning the next issues of &Stitches!

But back to this issue, we're very excited to have a pattern from the very talented Corinne of SeptemberHouse. See, that pattern is pretty cool right?

&Stitches is available now, check it out! :-)

Review to win

As you may know you can review your purchases from Polka & Bloom and be automatically entered in a drawing to win a free pattern.

Although, I've been running absolutely horribly behind with the picking of such winners lately! So here are three in one go. Randomly picked of course!

Guadalupe reviewed the Spring Birds pattern:

I love my "spring birds" pattern and actually just finished it
and am so proud of myself and can't stop looking at it!
I stitched on eggplant colored linen and added a few more
stars. Thank you Carina.

Erinn reviewed the embroidery ebooks:

These are the best two ebooks I have ever purchased online. They are very descriptive and well thought out. The author takes us through all of the materials needed for the craft and the variables within those materials and then introduces each stitch with so much detail. Even though they are ebooks they are just so beautiful, it's a pity I have only a black and white laser printer. I am so confident I can't wait to upload a picture of the finished product to the polka and bloom flickr group : )

Erica also reviewed the ebooks:

Wonderful ebooks with great step by step instructions that are easy to understand and follow, particularly regarding the less well known stitches. Would love to know if you plan on producing anymore ebooks of a similar nature. Love your work.

Thank you all for your kind words! And thank you to all of you who've left feedback/reviewed the things you've purchased; I really appreciate hearing what you think. :-)

Perfect gift: 2012 Polka & Bloom pattern subscription

This has been on my mind for quite a while and now it's finally here: Polka & Bloom pattern subscription! For 2012 it's a bi-monthly subscription, so you'll get 6 patterns. And I wouldn't be surprised if there were a surprise or two as well.. ;-)

The first pattern will be emailed on January 15th.

So if you love stitching and want Polka & Bloom patterns delivered straight to your inbox with no effort, this subscription is for you! And you save a pretty penny too. :-)

The pattern subscription is also a great gift for friends or family members who love to stitch. Maybe with a selection of fun floss colours or a nice pair of embroidery scissors. I've made a gift card envelope which you can download with the purchase and personalise. And yes, it is quite alright to give yourself the gift of stitching! ;-)

December Polka & Bloom shop freebie

Did you know that you get a free pattern with every pattern or ebook you buy from Polka & Bloom? Well, you do!

It's taken me a bit longer than planned, but the December pattern is now ready. If you've purchased a pattern or ebook already this month, I'll be emailing the pattern to you in the next few days. I hope you enjoy it! :-)

2012 Calendars new colour to pre-order!

Thank you very much for your kind comments and emails about the fabric calendars! Two of the designs have sold out and there are just three calendars left of the current batch!

I'll be re-ordering the next lot later tonight, so if you'd like one of the two designs (Red Outline and Green Outline) which have already sold out, you can pre-order them now to make sure you get the one you want!

I'll also be ordering a Blue Outline version, so if you're interested in that, please make a pre-order so I can know how many to put in this lot.

Don't forget there's free shipping to anywhere in the world for all calendars! :-)

Make 2012 a Polka & Bloom year!

I've been stitching on something brand new: 2012 Polka & Bloom calendar panels! So very exciting! They're the perfect gift or just something to make for yourself.

You can stitch over the lines in the design, with 2-3 strands of floss you should be able to cover them fairly well with any colour you like. Or add buttons, beads or whatever embellishment you fancy. Make it your own!

There are two different colour ways: red and green. And two different types: a delicate linework version and one that's a bit more full-on with the colours. Only two available of each version at the moment. So get in there while stocks last.

They may just get to you before Christmas if you buy 'em now. Would be a pretty nice Christmas present for the stitchily inclined in your life! Just $15 with free shipping anywhere. :-)

Check 'em out. :-)

Give away winners

Right, I've finally had a moment to pick a winner - wow, there were way more entries than I expected!

Here are the winners-

Pattern set

Adaiha said...Oh, congrats! The patterns are lovely :)
I'm in the US, and I'd love to win.

Mollie Makes magazine

Sasha said...Great giveaway! Congrats for the magazine feature, the article looks really pretty.

Wall calendar

Maaike said...Wow, your pretty designs in Mollie Makes, great! Congratulations! And oh yes, of course I would love to win one of your prizes... I am in Canada.

Thank you to each and every one of you who entered the give away! :-) As a consolation prize to those who didn't win anythin', mention code 'Christmas Tree' to save 20% until (and including) Friday 2nd December on all patterns and ebooks in the Polka & Bloom shop.