A GOIN' SURFIN' GIVEAWAY : : WITH PAINTBRUSH FABRIC STUDIOS

GIVEAWAY TIME!!! On Instagram! Starting today April 8th!

Enter to win a Lysa Flower Goin' Surfin' Flat Fat Stack!

Um, what the heck is that?! It's Paintbrush Fabric Studio's, answer to a Fat Quarter Bundle but it's printed all on one piece of cloth, with a super long piece of selvage! (One of my personal favorite perks of a FFSB!) …BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE!

ALSO win a surprise gift pack from ME! Lysa Flower (there might be a rumor, it's a little somethin' somethin' from each of my collections in it! But my lips are sealed!)

A Goin’ Surfin’ Flat Fat Stack Bundle!

P.S. If you feel like overachieving and getting some extra entries you can share this reel to your stories and tag us!

All the legal jazz: Giveaway by @lysaflower/@pbsfabrics and is open to everyone, but if outside of North America, the winner will be asked to pay shipping. Giveaway closes on Friday April 12th, 2024 at 11:59 PST. By entering the giveaway you are acknowledging that you are subscribing to emails for Lysa flower, Paintbrush Studio Fabrics. You can unsubscribe at any time.

We will announce the winner in our stories on Saturday April 13th! (So don’t let scammers trick you with fake accounts and ruin our fun!)

 

PRETTY PLEASED ABOUT PURPLE!

… BEFORE IT USED TO MAKE ME PUKE! Okay well that’s a bit dramatic but it has been on my “No thank you” list for a long time. When I started designing for my Goin’ Surfin’ collection I wanted to push my colour palette and decided now was the time to make friends with purple. I had done it with grey about ten years ago, so I knew it was possible. Have you ever had a colour aversion?

I think A LOT about colour and I’m curious about these aversions. I don’t know what it’s like for you but for me colour is instinctual. I’ve taken all the colour theory courses, but to be honest, I can never remember all the rules. All I know is when I use certain colours or combinations they give me strong feelings that I react to.

I know about the symbolism of colour, which I find surprisingly conflicting for some colours (like yellow which can be both happy and anxious). I know purple is a hard colour to make and that’s why it was reserved for royalty, but that never helped me warm up to it.

Then there’s a psychology to colour but I think it gets muddy with your personal relationship to it. Let’s say a colour was a hot trend when you were a kid, for example avocado green, and you have memories of your mom making you peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as you basked in your avocado green kitchen. You might have warm fuzzy feelings whenever you see avocado green but others might have the exact opposite reaction to it.

When it comes down to it, I think the specific hue is the important factor to making friends with a colour. For example, my father in law and I both love yellow. Except, he loves school bus yellow and I love a bright lemon yellow. To me, it’s not the same colour at all! Kind of like growing up with other Lisa’s in my class room. I didn’t think of our names as the same ever, even though they sounded the same!

So in the end, I searched and found a hue of purple I adored and used in Goin’ Surfin’. Not only did I stretch my colour palette, I finally made friends with purple and I LOVE what it did for this collection, especially my Sunshine Floral! Those pops of purple really made it sing!

 

MAKING WAVES FOR SURFERS!

Designing the waves of this intricate surfer print was one of my favourite design challenges in this Goin’ Surfin’ fabric collection!

Once I got my head wrapped around the repeat, and realized I needed to bring each wave to a point (otherwise it looked like toothpaste, ha, ha!) AND then when I put the surfer silhouettes on the waves, it was pure joy!

Then of course I played with ALL the colours (my very favourite thing to do!)! While I didn’t end up using the pink and yellow waves for the surfers I did end using it for the base of the sunshine floral!

In the end we went with the above colourways. ALL of them I’d LOVE to swim in! Or Surf! :D

 

DRIVIN' DOWN 9 : : SEWING INSPIRATION

I’ve had an absolute blast seeing projects being made with my Drivin’ Down fabric collection. Feast your eyes on these goodies!

LOVE SEW MODERN : : When I first saw Erin’s Radical Cassette Tape Pattern, I knew one day we had to collaborate!

HOLD MY SEAM RIPPER : : Holly’s work is always outstanding and I LOVE watching her process!

THE RETRO QUILTER : : True story, when I was designing Drivin’ Down 9, I had Maude in the back of my mind! Gah! I LOVE those pillows!

This first quilt on the left, called “FAR OUT” and pattern are featured in the Retro issue of Modish Quilting.

If you’re looking for a quick win of a project, Maude’s groovy 70’s Sun Quilt can be found in her shop!

 

LITTLE LIGHT STITCHERY : : When designing the cassette panel in this collection, I immediately thought of Nicky’s witty embroidery and how great it would be for the labels!

In the photo on the right, she stitched a label that says, “You are unstoppable”. I sewed it into a cassette tape zippy pouch! Stay tuned for more to come! :D

OCTOPURSE : : Daphne also made that flower eye glass snap purse (above right). I couldn’t believe the ALL the awesomeness Daphne made! SO MANY cassettes, eye glasses, and pretty print snap purses! We didn’t preplan the sizes or anything, ‘twas meant to be! Snap purses for EVERYONE!!! Check out her ESTY store!

 

EMBER CRAFT COMPANY : : My heart leapt out of my chest when I saw Mary’s daughter in this first photo! #1. Hello heart sunglasses! #2 I love her attitude! AND that #llkmackinacisland dress! (pattern by @littlelizardking) ! Could we make it in my size?! #3 and I love how snuggly she makes that #roadtrippinquilt feel! I mean, that’s exactly what they’re made for, right!

MARVELOUS AUNTIE M : : So who picked the very most perfect pattern for this fabric?! Maryanna did with @MountianAirHandmade, Sunnies Quilt pattern (20% off in her shop!)!

LAURA : : SLICE OF PI QUILTS : : And the over achiever award goes to… Laura! Not only did she make her Suitcases Quilt! She also made (with the scraps of the suitcase quilt) her MINI Exploding Heart quilt! Look at those bazillion-tee pieces!!!

WHOLE CIRCLE STUDIOS : : And last but not least Sheri’s Dual Directions Quilt pattern mocked up into a desk table runner. My desk is metal and boy would I ever love one of these!

 

Unbelievable right?! All these makers, all these projects have just blown me away!

If you’re a maker, please tag me on Instagram or email me a photo of your makes! I’d LOVE to see! It’s my favorite part of all this!

FABRIC.COM DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT!

So this happened! I’ve been dying to share it with you forever… Now I finally can!

Big thanks to Paintbrush Studio Fabrics for EVERYTHING! To my sewing community that rallied around and embraced #sewinglikeamothertrucker to prepare for this… WE DID IT! A specific post about all the makers is coming soon! And especially a BIG thanks to Steve Hawkins for the bang up job on the video. To see it and the feature just click…

Then stay tuned throughout the month on Fabric.com for more Lysa Flower sewing / fabric fun times! HIGH FIVE!!!

ANNABEL WRIGLEY'S DAISY CHAIN GIVEAWAY!

Have you ever come across fabric that made you gasp? Where instantly you fell in love?

I don't have a HUGE fabric stash. Having too much fabric stresses me out. I like to buy per project when I have a plan. It keeps my stash lean. BUT, I do allow for pieces that make me gasp and leave me with that "I HAVE TO HAVE IT!" feeling. Remember that IKEA "Start the CAR!!!" commercial? Yeah, that feeling.

Well, that's what Annabel Wrigley's fabric collection, Daisy Chain, did to me! It just might be the prettiest thing I've ever seen. And then I met her! She's just like her fabric; beautiful, warm, light, smart and a whole lot of fun! Within seconds of seeing it I bought her fat quarter bundle at Windham's booth this past Spring Quilt Market. I have a few idea's of what I'm going to do with it but I haven't quite decided. I was content just having it in the studio, to Ooo and Ahh over. Then I got a little itch one day. I decided if I did a zippy cassette pouch I wouldn't be using too much right?! Ooo, and if I made a mini needlebook to go in the cassette tape pouch that wouldn't be using up too much fabric either! I still have oodles left. I realize I'm being pretty precious with it. I can't help it, it's SOooo PRETTY! 

Definitely be sure to check out Annabel Wrigley's Instagram feed this week (@littlepincushiostudio). Each day this week she's giving away a fat quarter bundle of Daisy Chain... Go! Go! Go!!!

Oh wait before you go... I'm also pleased to announce the CASSETTE TAPE ZIPPY POUCH TUTORIAL is ALL done! Yep! It's ready and waiting for you, anytime you need it. It's also posted on my website under SEWING DESIGNS. Big, BIG thanks to my pattern editor Jonna (once again, love ya girl!)

RECOMMENDED FOR YOUR PLAYLIST: Just as pretty as the Annabel's collection, Shakey Graves, DAISY CHAINS.

 

CIRCA 15 FABRIC STUDIO... We're all going to be okay.

As he walked to the car, I could see the weight of the world on my son's shoulders. He slumped down in the front seat and stared straight ahead. Then he asked, ”Have you seen “Humans Need Not Apply?”

I hadn't at the time. I have since though.

"We watched it in Socials" ... ahh, good old Socials. When did Socials go from interesting facts to complete doom and gloom?

"Basically", he continued, "by the time I have kids everything will be automated and nobody will have jobs."

I felt 100% relief in my bones. I knew he was wrong simply because I sew. After watching the show I still feel the same way.

Now don't get me wrong... I know many jobs will become automated. I accept that as a given. I believe the key is the pendulum. Take fashion: one season short skirts are all the rage, a few seasons later it’s all about the long skirts. Perhaps that's too fluffy of an example. Here's another one: Obama. Trump.

We all lead busy lives. Technology hasn't saved us as much time as promised. It’s made life faster. Which in this case, the pendulum is our saving grace. It gives momentum for movements like Carolyn Friedlander’s Slow Sewing Studio, Sublime Stitching and Embroidery… and don’t we all gasp when we realize someone has hand stitched an entire quilt... hello Sherri Lynn Wood! (Plus, did you know, mending is on trend right now in Britain?! Mending!!!)

With that "slow movement" pendulum, it includes trends to buy local and buying whole food. I suspect these “trends”, aren’t going anywhere. If anything the more things become automated, the more we see self checkouts, the more people will seek out handmade products, sold by the people who make them or grow them. Made by hand will be more sought out and become more precious. There’s a personality in these products that simply can’t be mass or auto produced. It’s simply impossible.

Another force behind that pendulum, with automation you loose connection to people. Connecting is something we sew-ers, sewists, quilters, crafters, create-ers, DIY-ers are really good at. We create connections through guilds, sew-ins, swaps, quilt bees, workshops, trunk shows, coffee klatches, in person and online (thank you technology for creating a smaller world and a bigger space for connection)!

Then (and I think even millennials would agree) nothing replaces walking into a beautiful store. Recently I popped by Circa 15 Fabric Studio, in fact I popped in again a week later because the first visit was so fantastic. I love the atmosphere, the FABRIC and of course the "in person", warm, friendly, knowledgeable service. Online is great and honestly I don’t know how you can have a brick and mortar fabric shop these days and not have an online store (Circa 15 has one). I do enjoy a little note with my name spelled correctly when I receive my online orders, still, I would never fully abandon the experience of walking into a beautiful fabric shop. It’s like a breath of fresh air and one that leaves me knowing, we’re all going to be okay.