Winter Has Arrived

Happy Winter Solstice

It's just after 4 p.m. and the sun is on its rapid descent. Our official sunset time today in Minnesota is 4:35 p.m. We've had a brilliant - and cold - sunny day. It definitely feels like winter and it definitely feels like the holidays. The children are all now officially on winter break. We're all desperately ready for a week of rest, some sledding, and lots of hot chocolate.

As you're finishing up your shopping and gift wrapping, please let me remind you of my Little Treasures Drawstring Pouch tutorial. Drawstring bags are a great alternative to plain old throw-it-away wrapping paper. They're ideal for small gifts and small kids. Here's a festive wintery version I whipped up this week for my daughter's preschool teachers' gifts.

Have a wonderful and safe holiday season. Hold your little ones close. Tell your family you love them. And last but not least, raise a toast to longer days in the Northern Hemisphere!

Best wishes,

 -Annik

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Winners

I'm pleased to announce the winners of my Sew, Mama, Sew giveaways. Drum roll please...

Number is 119 is Gill. She enjoys making quilts and bags, and she's getting the Kokka fat quarters.

Binks is my second winner, scoring the gorgeous Riley Blake Stacker and threads.

Hooray and congratulations to the winners!

An enormous thank you to everyone who participated in my giveaway, especially those of you who became new blog followers or liked my Mini Mushrooms Facebook page. And a huge thank you to Sew, Mama, Sew for sharing the blog love on Giveaway day :)

-Annik

P.S. Wow, lots of quilters and bag/pouch makers out there! I love sewing those things, too.

It's Giveaway Day!!

***winners have been contacted and announced here***

Hi and thanks for stopping by. It's Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day - one of my favorite days of the year! What a great way to discover new blogs, see what other people are making, and maybe score a little swag :)

This time around I've decided to give away two bundles of sewing happiness.

The first is two fat quarters (18" x 22") Dutch Door Press fabric from Kokka of Japan. It's available in my shop, Mini Mushrooms, but here's your chance to get some for free. It's absolutely lovely 85% cotton 15% linen lightweight canvas. Great for accessories, home decor projects, even quilting.

Here are more photos so you can see just how fabulous this print is:

The second little bundle of goodies includes a Riley Blake Designs Stacker (5" squares) of Lila Tueller's Bohemian Festival line. The colors are gorgeous - bright pink, sky blue, lovely green. I'm also throwing in two spools of Presencia 50 wt cotton thread in bright yellow and peach. Made in Spain, this is my favorite cotton thread!

To enter, simply leave a comment below and answer this question:

What is your favorite thing to sew?

I'll select two winners at random on December 7 at 5 p.m. PST. I'm happy to ship internationally (hooray!). The first winner will be allowed to choose which prize they prefer. the second winner will get the remaining bundle.

Thanks for participating and thanks for checking out my blog. Best wishes and good luck!

-Annik

P.S. "Like" the Mini Mushrooms Facebook page to get new blog post alerts and updates on what's new in my Etsy shop.

Lint Busting

December 1st already? Did November fly by for you, too?

I have a post up today on the Minneapolis Modern Quilt Guild blog all about cleaning and caring for your sewing machine. FYI: there are a ton of helpful tutorials on our blog. I hope you'll check it out even if you don't live in Minnesota ;)

Now back to holiday boutique prep.

Happy crafting,
-Annik