Sarah's Block of the Month 2027 is now open for interest registration so we can keep you updated on the launch on Oct 1. Happy sewing! Sarah

This week’s Down the Rabbit Hole is a big reveal! I’ve been dying to have my Słodki Block of the Month quilt ready to show you and it’s finally here. Make sure you take a good look at the BEAUTIFUL custom machine quilting, done for me by Katherine Jones of Two Cats Quilting. If you’re in Sydney, you can see this quilt in person on my stand, and order the book, at the 2026 Sydney Quilt Show, September 17-19 at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse. I will have my 2027 quilt there too! The pattern book for Słodki is available for preorder at www.sarahfielke.com, and comes with access to all the video tutorials for the BOM. Don't forget to join up to my new small project BOM - The Lemonade Stand here. Happy sewing! Sarah

Hi peeps. It's a bleak sort of post today, for which I apologise... but hey, you get me warts and all here in the Smites chatroom. I'm a bit down in the dumps, and although I know what I need to do to cheer myself up I can't do it at the moment and so that's making things very hard. I'm usually pretty good at snapping myself out of the doldrums - a brisk walk, some stitching that isn't for work, an afternoon in the sun with a book, a glass of wine with friends. At present though I am so busy trying to meet the deadlines for my fabric collection, the Sydney Quilt Show preparations both as a show committee member, president AND a stall holder, the Lemonade Stand and the Three Techniques Sew Along that I really cannot take a moment off. I'm at work at 7am and I don't stop until 10 at night. And I haven't taken a moment off for nearly four months now. And I was holding it all together (just, with string and baling wire), but on Sunday night my back packed it in and now I am in extra fun amounts of pain. I know you're all going to tell me to listen to my body and stop for a moment, ​but I actually quite literally can't. QuiltNSW is depending on me for a lot of things right at this moment and I can't drop any of those until the show is done on September 19. The fabric company need things done for the launch of the fabric on September 22 - I only got my sample yardage two weeks ago, and I have three quilts to make and ship to the USA before then. My Lemonade Stand peeps are waiting for their next pattern, and Three Techniques is a collaboration so I can't let the other girls in that down. Also, my sewing isn't something I just do for fun - it's our income, it pays our mortgage. I can't just tell people waiting on me I'll be back in a second. Sigh. Sorry peeps, what a bundle of fun I am! There's fun spots in between though I promise! Although this past weekend was absolutely exhausting, Saturday and Sunday we had the judging days for the Sydney Quilt Show. 400 quilts passed under the judges noses, some of them several times over. I judged this show last year, so I know what a mammoth task it is! This year (and for as long as I'm Co-President) I was "the scribe" - meaning I stand with the judges and watch their process, answer any questions about categories or quilt descriptions they may have, and take down their winners for each category and nominations for special awards. It was very interesting to listen to someone else judge a show, and to hear their comments about the quilts, see what I would have chosen and what they chose. I obviously had to step away when my own categories were being judged, and someone took over for me whenever that happened! I was totally tuckered out each night but it was a wonderful two days, and out absolutely incredible volunteer team made it seamless and extra special too. And then to the best part of being President - yesterday I got to make over 80 phone calls to all the prize winners, and let them know that their quilt had won an award! Im not allowed to tell them which quilt or what they won, but it's lovely to hear the surprise and glee in everyones voices - and especially when I know which award they won and I can't wait for them to find out. Serious perk of the job peeps, I loved every call I made. And while the sewing is just going on and on and on with seemingly no end in sight, I am in LOVE with my fabric collection and I'm so happy with how the quilts are turning out. I'm so excited for it to be revealed (and terrified too!). And I'm particularly proud of the Lemonade Stand projects this year, they are just 100% cute as a button, and unusual and functional too. I will have kits for them all at the Sydney Quilt Show so make sure and pop past if you're coming. Oh, and the large Słodki quilt is FINALLLLLLLLY back from the quilter, and it's BEAUTIFUL. That has been the holdup with the book. Now that's its back and finished, I can do the photography and get it to the printer. If you've ordered one and you're waiting I really apologise that it's so late, but its been out of my hands I'm afraid. I won't get the photography done now until after the show, as its a several day task and so far out of the time I had scheduled for it that I can't fit it in right now - so the book is still a few weeks away. As soon as the show is over that's priority #1. Make sure and watch my Down the Rabbit Hole video next Friday though because it's about the quilt! So there are good things, see I just cheered myself up a little. Right, heat pack, paracetamol, big girl pants and back to work. What do you do to cheer yourself up when you're in a mood? Let me know in the comments, I could do with some tips :D Sarah x PS. The Three Techniques Sew Along is now on! So if you want to play with us and you don't have your patterns yet, hop to it! The pouch is just as cute as a button.

Sunday might look like a big bang, but she’s a quiet quilt with a quiet story. Pdf and printed patterns available at sarahfielke.com Don't forget to join up to my new small project BOM - The Lemonade Stand here. Happy sewing! Sarah

So many things to tell you Smites, I'll be playing catch up for weeks! On July 18 Molli Sparkles (my NSW Co-President) and I were invited to attend the Eastwood Quilt Show. ​Eastwood are a Sydney guild local to us, and they have been a QuiltNSW member group for a long time so we were very pleased to be invited and to attend, especially as it was their 40th anniversary. We were treated to reserved parking spaces, a tour of the show from the guild President and even coffee and scones!! Quite the VIPs. 👑 For a local suburban quilt show they always put on a great display - around 50 quilts from my guess? There were some really fab ones and I thought you might like to see a selection. Firstly, for their 40th anniversary they made a group quilt. Everyone one of the ladies on the panel represents one of the girls in the group! Isn't that a fun idea?? They are all apparently embellished with something that is true to that person's quirks or personalities, and then on the back is this wonderful poem to help identify them. I think that's such a fun idea for a group quilt - something to put in your idea bank Smites! They also had a challenge for the show as it was a special one, and the challenge was RED. Some of these really were awesome, only 40cm (16") square but they packed a lot of punch. I of course love the little appliquéd and hand quilted wreath, but the gift bow is such a cool block, and the Dancing Ribbons!! Wowzers. It's always fun when I go to a show and someone has made one of my quilts 😍 I do so love to see it, so it was a lovely surprise when I saw this version of my Mirror Image pattern hanging. It was made by Angelique Parr, who is actually a member of our QuiltNSW Executive Committee, and she never said, the cheeky minx! It's all made in Liberty fabrics and she made it for a friend's 70th. If you want the pattern, it will be. Down the Rabbit Hole feature soon, or it's in Old Quilts, New Life. Other quilts I loved especially were this "Stack" by Diane Moody. Zoom in so you can see how it's put together - so clever! And I couldn't go past this star quilt on the black background. I love a star quilt, I really really do. I mean, REALLY. I have toyed with doing a star BOM actually, but I always worry that I will annoy my appliqué peeps if I have a fully pieced BOM. What's your thoughts on that Smites? Like 24 different star blocks, all set in a fun way and scattered across a quilt. Maybe it would have an appliqué border to appease the hounds 😉 OK I'm back to work - my fabric collection will be announced on September 22 so I am sewing flat out like a lizard drinking, as we say down here. I can't WAIT to show you all... and September 22 is a Tuesday in the USA so it's a Wednesday in Aus so maybe you'll get the first sneaky sneek peek of them all! Sarah x

North by North East is a flock of geese, flying through the sky. Can you see it? The book, pdf and printed patterns available at sarahfielke.com Don't forget to join up to my new small project BOM - The Lemonade Stand here. Happy sewing! Sarah

​​or, how big quilt shows are put together without causing total chaos. There is something magical about walking into a big quilt show and seeing hundreds and hundreds of quilts displayed together. Quilts that normally live on beds, folded over chairs or tucked safely in cupboards suddenly become the stars of an exhibition - and they always look so different when they're hung up in front of you, rather than lain on the floor or crumpled in your lap while you stitch the binding on! Behind the apparently effortless display is a massive amount of planning and straining of brains. A successful quilt show is not simply a matter of making quilts and finding somewhere to hang them. Organisers have to decide which quilts go where, how they will be grouped, how they will be identified, and how they can be hung safely and still look good! One of the best examples I've ever seen of this is at Sisters, where over a thousand quilts arrive from all corners of the globe to be sorted, hung, sorted again and mailed back - hung in the sun, in the rain, in the elements - and be mailed back without being damaged, or worse still , lost in the chaos. The Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show is unusual because the entire town becomes the exhibition space. Rather than bringing thousands of quilts into one convention centre, quilts are displayed throughout the town, including on the outside of local businesses, along fences and in parks. The 2026 show featured more than 1,000 quilts and all those quilts have to be transported and hung by volunteers. Even more incredible, they go up all over the town in ONE HOUR. ONE. The result feels spontaneous, but the organisation behind it is anything but spontaneous. Planning has already started for 2027's show, and they only just finished this one! It's a roundabout thats for sure. Anyway. The reason I'm telling you all this is that we are in the absolute peak middle of all these pieces of planning of the Sydney Quilt Show. At a conventional quilt show, organisers start with a floor plan: they know the exact dimensions of the exhibition hall, how many frames they have to work with and how many display panels or frames will fit into rows. We have a resident show floor wizard, Donna, who is currently mathing all the maths and then mathing it again when someone withdraws their quilt (which is then replaced with The Black Curtain of Shame, as we call it), or Giucy Giuce decides to bring two new quilts he just finished (I mean, yay right?! Want to see those!! But also.... maths) The show is getting closer and closer and we are getting busier and busier. We're locking in the final vendors, organising demos, selling tickets and workshops..... sorry to say but Guice's workshops are all sold out, BUT there are tickets for his lecture and I HIGHLY recommend you come along if you can! He's a warm, interesting and knowledgable guy and you will be blown away by his quilts and what he has to say. I'm getting my stand ready, I'm getting my fabric collection ready to launch, I've just released the new Lemonade Stand pattern and the next Lemonade stand ready to make, I'm getting the video tutorials ready for the Three Techniques Sew Along.... and I'm getting ready to fall in a heap when its all done! Stay upright peeps!! Sarah x

Make a wish! Fluffy white dandelion heads in a field of green. Or if you’re going to go all “that’s a weed” on me, pretend they’re daisies. Try out simple improv piecing with this quilt- it’s quick, it’s fun and it’s full of impact. The pdf and printed patterns available at sarahfielke.com Don't forget to join up to my new small project BOM - The Lemonade Stand here. Happy sewing! Sarah

From months of work to quick and easy! Are you looking for a quilt you can bang out in a weekend or at a retreat? Something for the couch, or a quick gift? Haven’t ever made a quilt before and want to try something that’s achievable? Botanical Gardens is the quilt for you. Watch to see why! The pdf and printed patterns available at sarahfielke.com Don't forget to join up to my new small project BOM - The Lemonade Stand here. Happy sewing! Sarah

​​Hi peeps! I'm back from Sisters but I've been on the road again, this time to Queensland to teach for Kaela's Patch in Woodend. I was really looking forward to this one, I'm taught my Summer Sunshine quilt which is a fave of mine, but I haven't taught it for years! It was very nice to give it a revisit, and to see all the student versions coming to life. I started cutting out some sample blocks and straight away thought ooooh maybe I want to make this quilt again... I always do this to myself! Anyway, maybe if I get a few done and get motivated I will do a little sew along, it would be a fun one as the appliqué is so nice and easy. I also taught my Rainy Days and Sun Rays quilt, giving everyone a start to making one of the circles with the birdies in. Everyone got one circle laid out with their tape around the edges, and some leaves along the edges of the circle. On Friday night we had a trunk show. As I drove up from Sydney I was able to bring loads of quilts, so it was a nice big display along with some fun stories - not to mention snacks, shopping and a lovely goodie bag for everyone from Kylie! In general a lovely time was had by all. Sisters was a week of fun and mayhem as always. If you don't know about the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show and Quilters Affair, where have you been! 😂 Essentially, Sisters is a little mountain town in Oregon, which swells to three times its size once a year for the event. For the week leading up to the event, teachers come from all over the world and hold classes in the high school, and hundreds of students attend the classes and also the fun events held in the evenings. I have taught there many many times and it is my absolute favourite teaching gig! On the Saturday, the show is held. Over a thousand quilts are hung throughout the town, on all the buildings and stores. The streets are closed and people walk through the town shopping and looking at quilts and generally having a wonderful day! This year I taught one new class, for my Dilly Dally Dolly. We had such a fun day that I completely forgot to take any photos!!! Everyone got at least one pieced flower done - some got all of them made - and they all got various amounts of appliqué done too. It's a fun little project, and nice to have some piecing and some appliqué in the mix. The other four days I taught two two day classes that I have taught many times. People keep asking for them but next year I really want to teach something new - although I don't think I'll ever be able to retire Climbing Scrap Mountain. As soon as the "mountain is tipped out onto the floor, people start poking their heads around the classroom door to see it and they inevitably all say "ooooh are you teaching this again next year??" . So I guess I am 😂 This will be my final time teaching Tiny Town for a while though - as much as I love it, and I love the results for the students, it's time for something new. If Tiny Town is fun and quiet and relaxing, Climbing Scrap Mountain is another kettle of fish all together. Everyone in class brings a small bag of scraps, and we tip them all out onto the floor to make a "mountain", which everyone then works from to make all their fabric. On day 1, we learn to make crazy pieced and string pieced fabric. It's a relaxed and then on day 2 we cut it all up again to make a scrap quilt. There's a workbook for the class with over 30 different quilt patterns in it, and an interlocking template set. Everyone in class ends with not only their own unique design, but the tools to make loads and loads of different combinations of quilts from the workbook for years to come. I truly love teaching this class, it's such fun. One of the other highlights for me this year was the fabric designer panel that was held on the Thursday night. The panel was comprised of myself, my friend Giucy Giuce (he will be here teaching for us at the Sydney Quilt Show in September! The tickets go on sale on August 1); the sisters from Sew Kind of Wonderful, Helen and Jenny; the lovely Latifah Safir; Mathew Boudreaux aka Mx Domestic; Lesley Tucker Jenison and of course the queen herself, Jean Wells. Val was the MC and she asked us all a series of questions, some with quick answers and some that needed longer explanations, about our processes and preferences when designing. It was really interesting for the audience but also for all of us to hear about everyone's different inspiration sources and ways of working. The most wonderful thing about Quilters Affair is the sense of community that the show brings to everyone who attends. The staff of The Stitching Post go to such a beautiful amount of detail for the shop, the classes, and all the events. If you ever have the chance to go I really recommend that you do - and come and take a class with me while you're at it, I'd love to see you! While we're talking about teaching, here is where I am in the next little while in case you're nearby... Victorian Patchwork Quilters - two trunk shows and pop up shops, Oct 3 and 4 (members only) Atlanta MQG - Zoom class, October 17 (members only I believe?) Cutting Cloth, VIC - two x one day classes and a trunk show, October 30 and 31 (bookings through Cutting Cloth) Camden Quilters, NSW - one day class and pop up shop, November 7 (members only) Brisbane MQG - two classes, pop up shop and trunk show, December 4-6 Road to California - five days of classes, January 18-22, 2027 AQC Melbourne - four days of classes, April 15 - 18, 2027 H&H Chicago (wholesale) - May 5-7, 2027 Sisters, USA - five days of classes, July 5-9, 2027 Madeline Island, USA - five day masterclass, July 12 - 16, 2027 See you somewhere Smites? Sarah x

This weeks Down the Rabbit Hole is the story of my Homeward Bound quilt, which was designed especially for The Quilt Show’s BOM a few years ago. Watch to find out about it. The pattern book and accompanying video tutorials is available at sarahfielke.com Don't forget to join up to my new small project BOM - The Lemonade Stand here. Happy sewing! Sarah

In this week’s Down the Rabbit Hole, we’re looking at my Night Garden quilt. Moonlight is shining through the leaves into the flower bed… The Night Garden pattern is available in PDF or paper format, and there’s an accompanying acrylic template set if you like! sarahfielke.com Don't forget to join up to my new small project BOM - The Lemonade Stand here. Happy sewing! Sarah