applique

Ooh la la! Mrs Claus.

Posted on by The Red Boot Quilt Co.

Hey lovelies, someone asked me to draw a Mrs Santa in a bikini, so I did :o) The template will be free for the next few weeks (it’s not ready yet).

Tomorrow I’ll resize the templates so you can use them on the Here Comes Santa (Santa Sacks). Mrs Claus matches Mr Claus in his board shorts.

I’ve also got a free Christmas Apron pattern (that we’ve updated) for you. I’ll upload it in the next couple of days. Are you ready for Christmas? I’m in panic mode! xx

Christmas Apron

Bears, Daisies & Nine-Patch Blocks

Posted on by The Red Boot Quilt Co.

I’m having a late night sewing session. Warm colours, fun shapes, and a toddy for the body – perfect!

My sweet Janome has sat idle for so long, she spluttered a little before she found her groove. To be honest I spluttered a little too.

I’ll need a quick trip to Peppermint Stitches tomorrow to buy some fabric. Why is it that the fabric you decide will anchor your project is the piece you have least of?

I hope Stacy and the crew have the fabric I’m looking for otherwise I’m going to have to do a LOT of unpicking! Wish me luck and have a great weekend, toni xx

This Little Piggy – Block 2.

Posted on by The Red Boot Quilt Co.

Hey lovelies, the second instalment of our ‘This Little Piggy’ BOM has been uploaded to the site here. The This Little Piggy BOM is brought to you by the lovelies at Therm-o-Web, the makers of my favourite fusible webbing HeatnBond Lite.Month-2---Sheepthermoweb-logo

A big congratulations to Helen B. who won our first Thermoweb giveaway! 

Enter our Month #2 giveaway by emailing us and answering the question
‘What is your favourite fictional or cartoon pig?’ (from TV, movies, comics, games, or books).

Ps. I’m still having to draw the blocks for you. We spilled a large cup of black coffee on the flimsy quilt top and I think it’s beyond saving LOL.

piggy 3

Ending on a sad note, our hearts go out to our Kiwi cousins in Christchurch tonight. We are sending all our love on this deeply sad and tragic day. toni xx
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Let’s talk quilts.

Posted on by The Red Boot Quilt Co.

Hey lovelies, how are you this sunny and somewhat hot Wednesday afternoon? Let’s talk quilts, specifically Red Boot Quilts.

clotheslineI’ve been feeling completely miserable when it comes to Red Boots recently. It’s been very much touch and go whether to keep trading or not. There are a number of reasons but it’s mostly behind the scenes industry pressures.clothesline-4This morning I was scrolling through Instagram and saw this on one of my favourite artist’s accounts and it really resonated with me.

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Art by Lisa Congdon on Instagram – @lisacongdon 

 

This. This is going to be my 2019. Permission to be me and not conform to other’s expectations and demands. Most importantly this simple sentiment has given me the urge to get designing and sewing again – something that I didn’t think would happen anytime soon.clothesline-2Today has been the first day since before Christmas that I’ve sat down and enjoyed, and felt joy, with what I was doing.

Moving forward into 2019 some things will be a little different with Red Boots. I’m considering not supplying patterns wholesale anymore. I won’t make a final decision until the end of the Australian financial year which is 30 June. The wholesale side of the business has been declining due to high postage and printing costs in Australia, and I haven’t been able to secure a US distributor at this point.

I’m also setting up a new pricing structure. It’s slowly being rolled out in the Etsy store, the website will follow shortly. PDF patterns are being sorted into $2, $4, and $7.50 categories. Printed patterns will remain at $14.50 with free postage.clothesline-6I’ve decided to put most of the free patterns into the $2 category. With the changes to social media and Craftsy I no longer have a platform where I can offer the patterns for free, reach a large audience, and not have to pay site fees or advertising.

Pricing the patterns at $2 each will help pay the website, processing, and advertising fees required to keep the business running. The patterns will all be updated with better instructions, coloured diagrams, and coloured templates to compensate. They will also be available as printed patterns for those of you who prefer to buy their patterns that way.clothesline-1

Oh, one more thing. I am a terrible photographer. Cameras defeat me. Completely and utterly. Whilst I will continue to make the quilts, I may use a professionally drawn image for the pattern cover instead of a photograph. This won’t affect the patterns but it will take an enormous amount of stress off my shoulders with the added bonus that I very much enjoy the process of drawing the quilts. A lot of other designers use this method too so I’m not the first LOL.

Anyway, happy Wednesday to you all and thank you. Happy quilting too. toni xx