FRESH PICKS

Head to Europe’s biggest quilting show, taking place from 18th – 21st August at the NEC, Bir mingham!

The biggest date in our diar y is back! In true FOQ fashion, expect four days of quilting and textile celebrations to make it a memorable one! The show will be packed with displays of breath-taking competition quilts, including over 700 entered into the annual competition, unique Special Features, outstanding Textile Galleries and hundreds of specialist craft suppliers offering unrivalled shopping opportunities. If that’s not enough, you can learn a new skill in their jam-packed workshop and talks programme, meet your heroes in the brand new Sewing Street Lounge, and watch live demonstrations on the Product Stage. W hether you’ve got your eye on a particular class, plan to treat yourself to V IP tickets or want to secure your preferred entr y times – make sure you book early to avoid missing out!

SAVE £1.50* ON TICKETS WITH DISCOUNT CODE: TQS22!

TERMS & CONDITIONS: Discount expires 17 August 2022 *Save £1.50 on adult and concession tickets when quoting discount code ‘TQS22’ at checkout. To purchase tickets visit www. thefestivalofquilts.co.uk. Not valid on child, VIP, or group tickets. £3.50 transaction fee applies per e-ticket order (for any number of e-tickets purchased), and a £3.95 transaction fee applies per postal ticket order. T&Cs apply.

LoveCrafts are renowned for free, beautiful patterns and projects available to access and download at the click of a button. The stunning Criss Cross quilt pattern designed by Natalie Crabtree using LoveCrafts’ exclusive Spring Garden collection is no exception. Featuring a dynamic duo of blocks that show off its stunning prints, this fabulous intermediate pattern is available to download from the website now.

www.lovecrafts.com

Would you believe, quilters, that we shoot all our Christmas projects for the magazine right in the middle of summer? That’s right! It can be the hottest day of the year and we could be in a beautiful house surrounded by stunning quilts with a roaring f ire and a Christmas tree up. For some of us, Christmas starts in July! From designers Becky Goldsmith and Linda Jenkins of Piece O’ Cake Designs comes a collection of whimsical projects, including all the detailed instructions you could need. Hone your wool appliqué and needleturn appliqué skills and get stitching some festive creations!

£15.99 www.searchpress.com

It feels bizarre to be thinking about festive projects at this time of the year, but preparation is key! W hich is why we love Jo Colwill’s new book, published this month. Christmas at Cowslip is a compilation of the best festive projects from Jo’s Cushions and Quilts and Patchwork Quilts & Gifts books. You’ll f ind plenty of designs to get you planning ahead for those allimportant yuletide makes, including a Scandinavian Horse pillow, a Christmas Countdown quilt and a Scandinavian Journey quilt.

£14.99 www.searchpress.com

Designer, Sue Daley, is no stranger to masterful English paper piecing. L earn from the best with her new book, Paper Caper Mini Quilts, available now! Create six stunning mini quilts and jump straight into EPP, skipping the pesky tracing and cutting by popping out Sue’s templates. By beginning with a unique English paper piecing glue-pen method and f inishing with a simple appliqué technique, you’ll be adorning your house with darling miniature quilts in no time!

£15.99 www.searchpress.com

We all k now what it feels like to lose a little inspiration f rom time to time w it h our quilts. T hat’s why we simply adore t he Quilt Builder Card Deck Set #2 f rom C&T Publishing! As a follow up to t heir best-selling prev ious deck, t his second set of cards includes 40 new blocks; br illiant for g roups and quilting bees too! So, why not take up a new quilt challenge and create dy namic desig ns w it h t hese in novative cards, per fect for ig niting your creativ it y.

£14.99 www.searchpress.com

The newest arrival in Vlieseline’s extensive range is a mediumweight, ver y soft, sew-in wadding made from 50% bamboo and 50% cotton! With a recommended quilt spacing of 10 -20cm and a large width (224cm), the new bamboo-cotton wadding is perfect for both hand or machine stitching, which makes it ideal for a variety of projects including quilts, duvets, throws and light clothing such as jackets and coats. The luxurious, natural soft handle makes it easy to work with for a wide range of applications and it is suitable for use with most fabrics. It can be washed at 30° and used with an iron on a cool setting. W hat’s more is that over 80% of products in the Vlieseline wadding range are manufactured using either recycled or sustainably sourced f ibre, so you know you’re getting great quality while being environmentally conscious.

To f ind out more about Vlieseline products, visit www.vlieseline.com