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Hi Smites

Things are settling down again here... things on the Charlie end are still not wonderful as it looks now like he can't have his appendix surgery until August 8!! He's not feeling the best but at least now we have a definite date and then we can get him back to normal. It's been a bit of a drama all around but we will get there.

I've been keeping something under my hat, and its still under my hat a little bit but I've decided its ok to tell my Smites about it :) I have signed a contract to start designing fabric again! It's been a looong time between collections, and I can't tell you yet which company I will be designing with or what the new collection will be, but you will be the first to know I promise. I had fairly much decided that my fabric designing days were over - mainly because I am a pretty busy girl between the BOMs and the online shop and the various other things I do. But I was asked, and it was an exciting ask, and they are excited about an idea I've been sitting on for a long time so I just couldn't say no! 

Being me, the collection isn't all about drawing some things and choosing come colours but also about a bunch of research and a story and something I'm really passionate about. The upcoming collections will be a lot more about ME and the things that I am personally inspired by than the previous collections have been. I've been wandering around second hand book shops both in person and online, because using my existing library and a library I need to build will be a large part of where this is all going. Oooh goodie.... new books! Here are some I already had and some I bought recently....

I've also been purchasing some vintage books about Polish embroidery and textiles because - research! :D This is one of my favourites. I've been using it and some others as inspiration for the additional appliqué on my Słodki Block of the Month blocks. I can't tell you how happy I am with this quilt, I am loving it!

I will be showing you some of my fabric design progression as I go, and a little insight into what I'm doing. Obviously I'm not allowed to show you the actual designs until the fabric is revealed at Market, which won't be until the end of next year, but I can show you some of my process as I go. Bear in mind this will be sporadic and probably pretty slow, so it will be dropping in here and there. 

In the mean time, I was a little too excited about my research and I managed to buy this book twice - once as a new copy and once second hand. Well done Miss Sarah! If you're a history nut like me or just think you would enjoy reading about textiles in the Tudor era, and would like it, drop a comment below and see if you can guess what the general theme for my new fabric collections might be. All the guesses will be entered into the draw for the book. If you're an Aussie I will pay the postage, if you're overseas and would like to enter I will pay the Aussie shipping equivalent ($15.50) but ask you to pay the difference as books are heavy! 

I'd also like some input on things you would like to see on StitchyMites for the rest of the year. You can drop a comment about that below too, and those will be entered into the book draw - unless you say otherwise and don't want it hahaha not everyone it interested in Queen Mary's skirt patterns.

Have a great day peeps

Sarah