Cinderberry Stitches

What's in a name?

Here I am - back again! 

How much fun are you having on the Cotton Floss book tour?  I am enjoying popping into my favorite sites each morning with a cup of tea and reading with a smile on my face.  Wow, was that really me eating a double icecream....?  If you missed the tour, it's never too late - put the kettle on, brew up your favorite cuppa and come for a ride.

Today is the last day and it's Paige's stop - you seriously have to see what surprises she has for one lucky peep, so pop over and let her know I sent you!

There is no way my tour would have come alive without this group of wonderful ladies so I would like to thank each of you for taking time out to blog, write a review of Cotton Floss or thinking up some amazing questions....Monica, Amanda, Pam, Sarah, Krista, Bari, Shari and Paige thanks you for your awesomeness.....I have a margarita waiting for you xo.

I have been asked a lot recently and again this morning *hi Scarlette!* "How did you come up with the name for the book?"....good question.  So here was my thought process...

FLOSS: The floss (embroidery thread) is what makes my work pop, it's like the ink in my pen - the paint in my pot.  I choose my colour floss in the same fashion as I would if I were painting a picture to tell a story.  For me the only difference is, I paint with thread.

COTTON: The cotton is simply the fabrics I use to stitch my designs and make them come alive. 

So that's it - Cotton Floss......the perfect pair don't you think?

 

Ok - so, moving right along :)

It's about time I shared with you something new I am working on and I will show more as soon as I get the green light.  Trust me, it's going to be fun.

This time I get to play with Moda Ruby - by Bonnie & Camille.

I just have a small sampling of the line.  But I know one thing for sure.  I LOVE Ruby.

I HAVE to have more :)

Do you know the feeling?

Till then,

Natalie xo

 

A 'mummy to do list'

So many things I should have been doing today like finishing of writing my two new patterns, taking some pattern cover images and beginning a new project that needs to be completed, wrapped up and posted by the end of the month.....but sometimes you just have to put work aside. 

It will still be there in the morning.

Instead we wrote a 'Mummy to-do list' I took my daughter to the park, sat in the cool winter sunshine, played in the sand and built sand castles, laughed, played hide & seek in the maze and made chocolate cake - just so she could sit on the kitchen bench, lick the beaters and make a mess, then we sat and watched Peppa Pig together.

The other 'to do list' will still be waiting for me tonight when Izzy is sleeping soundly and the house becomes quiet, actually I love late-late night stitching & I know she will never be this little again. 

I hope you have been enjoying following the Cotton Floss book tour, yesterday the tour stopped by at Pam Kitty Morning's - you know she is always full of fun and I only wished there were not so many miles between us.  If you are interested in winning a signed copy of Cotton Floss pop in and say hello to her, ok?

Today the tour stops at Sarah Fielke amazing blog, can you even believe Sarah has sat and stitched up a pair of Stella and Henry owls that she is giving away...go on, you know you need this pair sitting in your sewing space - How awesome would that be?

Here are the rest of the tour dates....hop on the wagon and visit them all!

Stop 1 -  Monica - Happy Zombie

Stop 2 -  Amanda - Amanda Brooke

Stop 3 -  Pam - Pam Kitty Morning

Today's stop! - Sarah - The Last Piece

Tomorrow! 16^th Krista - Poppyprint

17^th Bari - Bari J

18^th Shari - Doohickey Design Studio

19^th Paige - Paige Hill

 

Ok, that's all for tonight, must sit down and write tomorrow to-do list...

I wonder - what's on your list?

Till then,

Natalie xo

 

The Book Tour - day 1

Have you heard about the Cotton Floss Book Tour?

It's about time I told you, after all it starts today and there will be eight fabulous women I admire reviewing my book.  The good news is - it's a book blog tour, so you can leave your slippers on and cruise the tour in your own private bus...or wagon, whichever you prefer.

Coffee, tea, wine & chocolate optional.

So here are the dates and links for you to follow this week

12^th Monica - Happy Zombie (pop over now to read!)

13^th Amanda - Amanda Brooke

14^th Pam - Pam Kitty Morning

15^th Sarah - The Last Piece

16^th Krista - Poppyprint

17^th Bari - Bari J

18^th Shari - Doohickey Design Studio

19^th Paige - Paige Hill

Pop over here now to see what Monica has been upto and read her review!

(image from M @ Happy Zombie)

Be sure to pop back each day, follow the links above and read the reviews. There will be a few interviews with fun and interesting questions about my design process and even a few chances to win signed copies of my book Cotton Floss.  

Trust me, it's going to be fun.

So...what else have I been upto? hmmmm - hand sewing in the evenings, there is nothing better than late night stitching it relaxes my mind and soul completely in a way I can not explain.  I will just call it sewing meditation, do you understand what I mean?

Here is a peek at what surrounds me this week - actually, it is part of a submission for a U.S quilt magazine.  If enough of us keep our fingers and toes crossed we might just see this one in print toward the end of the year.

Kind of makes me rainbow happy, don't you think?

There is also a pile of delicious Moda fabric waiting for me, it is part of an awesome new design project I am working on with a bunch of my favorite Australian designers...I know you are going to love it, but I will share more with you as soon as I am able.

Time for me to grab my needle and thread and start my sewing meditation, back soon.

till then

Natalie xo

 

It's arrived and in stores NOW!

The good news? Cotton Floss is in the house and shipped to stores around the globe.

I am hearing people love it and can't work out which design to stitch first....LOVE it!  When my copies arrived last week I sat there for a few moments just looking at the envelope - then I reached for the camera.

When eighteen months of work all comes down to one express parcel, you need to take a photo.

So in one surreal, excited and quiet frankly incredibly scary moment,

I ripped open the bag & there they were. 

My books.

My paper baby was born.

Cotton Floss has now been shipped to stores (who have placed orders) and I am just beginning to get feedback from those who have their copies and don't want to let them go.

I can see a field of Toadstool pin rests beginning to grow around the world.

Not to mention owls dotted here and there.

With Cotton Floss arriving in stores it's time I shared with you all twelve projects fetaured in the book, there are still a few more designs I have not managed to show you yet.

Row 1 (L to R) The Hidden Garden canvas art / Little Red Cap needle holder / Little Red Cap thread holder / Little Red Cap zip pouch Row 2 (L to R) Market Folk carry bag / Toadstool pin rest / Market Folk journal cover / Owlish Dreams bag (library bag, toy sack or pj bag) Row 3 (L to R) Stella and Henry owl softies / The Big bag / The Family Tree wall hanging / Market Folk mini quilt.

Got to love the little elfin girls that pop up here and there.

So would you like to get your hands on a signed copy, directly from me?  To celebrate the arrival and release of Cotton Floss in stores I have two signed books to giveaway, all you need to do is leave a comment on this blog post to join in the fun.

Two signed books = Two very happy winners

Names will be drawn at random on the 25th May 2011

Till then,

Natalie x

Feel free to leave a comment but the competition is now closed - winners announced here

More new designs in Cotton Floss

If all goes to plan Cotton Floss should arrive at my Distributors at the end of the week....exciting, I think I might have to make a trip up to the Melbourne office just to make sure it is real.  I can flick through the pages, hug it, smell it.  Yes there may even be tears.

Afterall, it's my paper baby.

So I guess I need to share some more of the projects with you.

One of my favorite book projects is The Little Red Cap Canvas, the little girl in the corner is Clover, I think she is about to tiptoe through the toadstools.

Here is a little snippet of the 'Market Folk Bag' - with stitched fabric tabs and sweet little Ginger selling apples at her fruit market stand.

Among the pages of Cotton Floss you will also find the Little Red Cap sewing set, a place for your needles, threads or bits and bobs.

Yes, there is more to come....

Till then,

Natalie xo

Cotton Floss - The Big Bag

Firstly I would like to thank you for all the messages of support I have received about the up coming release of my book Cotton Floss, I am equally excited as you although holding my breath in anticipation for the May release. 

Must remember to breathe, right?

Many stores have started pre-order lists for the book so if you are interested in getting your hands on a copy as soon as they arrive just come over here - to the new pre-order page  (Store details will be updated regularly).

Last time we spoke I promised a few more peeks at projects from Cotton Floss -

You may have seen this image before on the new blog banner above - it is one of my favorite shots amongst the Cotton Floss photos.  It was taken in the front yard of the Lymer ranch, in the distance you can see the fresh cut flowers and the 'Toadstool Pin Rest' I showed you in detail just a few days ago.

But what is that in the foreground?

It's called 'The Big Bag' - loads of spotty goodness, and the second creation in Cotton Floss.  There are 12 new designs in the book so I have a few more things up my sleeve to share with you in the next few weeks.

Right now this is my new bag love, something about the yellow lining against the red fabric, or maybe the stitched toadstool village or the combination of all three.

Whatever it is this bag makes me happy.

Even these friendly guys seem to enjoy hanging out with 'The Big Bag' - that's my kind of owl.

Next time I will officially introduce you to Stella & Henry and their Family - there is quite a tribe of them in Cotton Floss.

Till then,

Natalie xo

 

 

Cotton Floss - photo shoot

(Revised 13/04/2010 book pre-order list now includes USA!)

Well now I have spilled some beans I can start sharing more goodness from Cotton Floss.  So today I will take you on a trip backwards to the book photo shoot journey so you know where I have been.

The images for the book were taken over a series of 3 or 4 photo shoots and I ended up with loads of photos to sort through.  The days were humid, filled with a little stress, a gazillion mosquito's and two other special peeps - but they were also fun, enjoyable and such an amazing moment, there I was photographing Cotton Floss.

It was important to me that Cotton Floss was an extension of my blog, of me, my style so I chose to take all the pictures at the Lymer ranch also known as Mum & Dad's place.

I did have helpers - my assistant stylists Mum and the little one.

We ended up with 400+ photos (of course not all could squeeze into Cotton Floss) but over the next few weeks I will share images here and there of the journey - some are even those extra shots we just couldn't squeeze in so consider them as behind the scene views, because each one tells you the book story.

There are 12 projects in Cotton Floss and I hope you fall in love with each one like I have.

Maybe it's the way this little village of toadstool houses sits and looks at me.  But it's these little pin rests that make my heart sing - maybe shout even.

Bless the little cutie patooties....I wish I was small enough to live in there.

They came to the shoot with their own candy, I surely did make myself sick on those sweets and ate them by the handful.  I classed them as a great stress relief product at the time, they also made my dentist very, very happy.

The best news is you don't have to wait long to get your hands on a copy of Cotton Floss. Publishing date is set for early May so only about 3 weeks away.  If you wish to get in early and pre-order your copy you can do so at these stores (Aus) Cookies & Cream Craft or Quilt Fabric Delights - awesome.  If you are in the USA you can pre-order at Daisy Cottage Quilting (a pre-order page will be up on her site soon) - double awesome.

Next time on the Cotton Floss journey I will tell you about 'The Big Bag'...

Hmmm...yum

Till then,

Natalie xo

Cotton Floss - It's coming soon!

Well they say a picture tells 1000 words...I'm lost for words and can only think of 6.

It's finished and ready for print.

(*squeal*tear*smile*sqeal*)

Natalie xox

Spilling some beans

Have you ever tried to take your own photograph?

I did last week.  It was fun as the self timer went off and I quickly ran to the seat and sat smiling at some invisible person in my studio, it reminded me of all the Family photos my Dad took when we were kids - our expressions were the best because Dad would always pretend to trip over something or we would sit there smiling at the un-manned camera until he realised he had forgotten to press the button.  Anyway - I would highly recommend it, if only for the laugh.

So here I am in the studio beside my sewing machine, it's the neat part of the room - the bit filled with the most eye candy.  Opposite me is the super sized cutting table and window which looks into our side yard.  It sure is a nice place to work and dream. 

I don't normally take photo's of myself but I needed a profile picture, you see - this week I have been given the green light to share some exciting news with you.

Eighteen months ago with a one year old on my hip and a passion for dreaming up 'big ideas' I decided I would write a book.  During that time one word was embedded in my mind - the word?

en-chant-ed: to utterly delight, charm, enrapture and fascinate.

I began sketching ideas on paper in the evenings and any spare moment with this one word as my inspiration - elfin girls, toadstool houses and whimsical owls (known as Stella & Henry) appeared from my pencil and have been surrounding my studio and mind every moment of the design process.

The journey has been enjoyable and at times difficult, many times I wondered wether the designing mountain I had created was just too big for me to climb.  It wasn't.

Right now I am in the final stages, proof reading and choosing the best cover - design wise, possibly one of the hardest decisions I have had to make, or so many great options. 

'Cotton Floss'

It's coming soon, I promise.

I guess that means in a short while you can call me an author.

Till then,

Natalie xo