I'm a busy bee over here, so many projects being planned and worked on. Of course when you craft, you need supplies! Happy mail in the form of fabric, cross stitch supplies and vintage trim. Over the past couple of months I have bought the things you'll see here, some have already been used and others are for upcoming makes that I will share soon. Shopping small and supporting independent businesses is important and I found some fun creative businesses to buy from. This post is really a way for me to keep a record of the things I've bought so I can return to it, to remind me of the details when I share my makes. If you do not need enabling then come back soon because I have a finished project to share... but keep reading to see some lovely things and get details of my machine quilting class 🧵

First up, look at these adorable individually wrapped needle minders - opening them was such a treat, like it was my birthday! I love this kind of personalisation and in her note she apologised for the puns but it made me chuckle.


Such care and thought in the wrapping and yay for recyclable packaging.


Here are the three needle minders I chose and aren't they cute! They are essentially magnets, you put the back magnet behind your fabric and the cute decorative pieces on the front (which also have a magnet), they stick together and you then place your needle on them when you take a break from stitching or when you are preparing to rethread. You can see one in action in the top picture.

There are so many cool needle minders at Hotties Vintage Stitch, she uses broken vintage jewellery and accessories to make them. The kitsch style is just so cute!


I felt the need for some Anna Maria Horner fabric and got some of her prints and some Bookhou from the Conservatory range too - all from Sew Hot.


top: Pink Keys, Passionflower by Anna Maria Horner; Tilli Rain in Natural, Vestige by Bookhou and Woven Dots in Blush, Vestige by Bookhou.

More fabric, because those crosses could not be resisted. These are from The Fabric Fox - who have a nice sales and they offer free second class shipping in the UK!


top: Cross Stitch by Alison Glass in Blanc, Neon and White.



Destined for a particular cross stitch project I got this lovely Cashel Linen from local seller Tandem Needlework. It's not easy but I am trying to be good with my cross stitch projects and not have too many on the go. The Modern Folk Embroidery SAL is ongoing so I work on that every month and then I am also allowing myself to work on one other project at a time so it doesn't get too overwhelming (like the amount of quilts I have unfinished!!).

More adorable wrapping, this time from Suzie Sharp Vintage which has a lovely selection of vintage fabric, buttons and bits and bobs.



I got some vintage playing cards, sequin trims and ric rac. There's a vague plan for these for a project I'm doing next year so we'll see how much of this gets incorporated.

Next more cross stitch fabric ordered from Lakeside Needlecraft, who have fabulous customer service. The aida in the first picture was sent accidentally and they sorted it out and shipped the correct fabric along with a stamp so the other one could be returned. The Honeycomb fabric is such a great print that I ordered more when I placed my next order - a different base fabric though, one is evenweave and one is aida. It's fun trying out different sorts to see what fabric I most enjoy stitching on, linen is my current favourite but lots of people seem to stitch on evenweave so it's worth a go. 






I have been using beeswax to run my thread through when I do cross stitch and embroidery. I have one lovely piece which is kept in a tin but thought it would be handy to have another piece. When I came across these cuties from Cobble and Hive it made sense, smaller pieces so I can have one for each project!


Again lovingly wrapped with a sweet note on seeded paper that you can plant! Just look at these adorable little beeswax hearts, made in Yorkshire. You run the thread through the dip at the top of the heart, how clever! I've found beeswax help stops thread tangles and it's become part of my stitching routine now.


Last thing, I just wanted to let you know about the online Walking Foot Quilting class I am teaching on Saturday 17th April. It's a slightly more advanced class, for those of you that have done some walking foot quilting before and want to expand on basic patterns. 


What You Will Learn in this Online Interactive Workshop
⬪ how to prepare and mark designs 
⬪ more advanced walking foot quilt patterns
⬪ explore all over quilting designs as well as individual/block designs
⬪ how to securely start and finish your stitching
⬪ tips for perfect stitches
⬪ as well as what to avoid!
⬪ build your own designs 
⬪ how to create visual interest and texture.

Join me for a fun, informative class packed with tips and ideas to inspire your quilting! Click here to BOOK NOW and please share about the class with your quilt friends. I've created a graphic below that you can pin to help get the word out - thank you!