Sunday, July 8, 2018

Sunday Stash - Island Batik

Christmas in July it was indeed....
I have the advantage of having a daughter who lives across the river from me. Why is that an advantage, you ask? Well, she is in one country, America, and I am in another, Canada. So to save Island Batik a little postage money, and to get the fabric to me a little bit faster, I had them send my box to her! Can you see the heart shadow above the box?! Made by her fake wasp nest that hangs by her front door, but rather à propos, nest-ce pas?!
One of the requirements for being an ambassador is showing off the gorgeous fabrics within this box. So let's take a look!
I think I may have squealed in glee and excitement.

Hobbs sent THREE packages of batting this time! I've been a Hobbs fan for a few years now, particularly of their 80/20 cotton/polyester blend, and more recently, thanks to the first box this year, of Thermore, which is fabulous for placemats and smaller items like runners and mug rugs. I've used wool in two quilts so far, (not Hobbs), and absolutely loved it, as do the recipients. It gives incredible definition to the quilting and is light and warm for the user. So I'm super-excited to quilt with Hobbs! I've never tried a cotton/wool blend, so I'm also very curious to use it too. As for the "Surprise!" package, it is to DIE for, but I can't show you yet, sorry. Sometime this month you are going to get to see the surprise package that was in my first box all quilted up!

Aurifil literally gave us a bag of goodies! another spool of their wonderful thread, 50 wt in a beautiful mint, and a package of various greens in several weights, which I am itching to try. As you know, I love Sulky threads in 30 and 12 wt, so this is a perfect inclusion. We also got a couple of colour charts. (note that they spelled colour the English way?! I'd say over half of Canadians spell it this way too. 😄) There is a great neutral 3-yard piece, yes! and three pieces of other neutral colours, fist pump!


So much rich colour goodness! This past year I have been drawn to the turquoise and purple combination; as with the first package, it's like they've creeped in my brain to know exactly what colours I love! I didn't get any 10" squares in the first box, so I'm looking forward to working with this size of precast, and those plums and berries with the green and golds, yum!

Yep, a second set of 10" squares! I saw several ambassadors working with them, and thought, hmm, i'd sure like to try doing something with those...  Second, I saw several ambassadors work with a rainbow of batiks, and thought, wow, I love those! I'd love to get a run of rainbow colours...

Wish and you shall receive!

See what I mean about being inside my head?! The quilt that is not quite quilted, our June challenge, I want to remake, in rainbow colours. I have a kinda/sorta pull from the first box, but no background. Well, not only do I now have a rainbow of fabrics, I also got a few background choices, didn't I?

Finally there's a pack of 2.5" strips and yardage to create something using Jungle Cruise. I like this packaging, used it in my April challenge, Popstar, and found it really workable.

If you follow me on Instagram, you'll have seen a photo of a bit of a DrEAMi! moment I had this weekend, which involved some Island Batik fabric from my first box:
I had great fun quilting the calaveras, or sugar skulls, with Sulky Blendables 12 wt thread. Hint: use a Topstitch 90 needle. I did this on my Bernina, because Avril is busy with the June challenge, right? The hot pink batik is Geranium, the lining for this project, which is on its way to the recipient as I type.

I am just having a blast with being an Island Batik ambassador this year. I feel that it has revved up my creative juices so much! I am so very thankful that this company chose me to be an ambassador, and very grateful for all the beautiful fabrics they've sent this year! Thank you! And thank you too to Aurifil and to Hobbs for adding to the package with their own products with which I have been very impressed so far! I was before I was an ambassador, so you know that I'm not just saying that!

Hope you've snagged a class from Craftsy this weekend, as they're all under $20US. More on the Craftsy Unlimited I signed up for in another post...I may not be such a happy camper, but we shall see if that changes.

17 comments:

  1. This is an exciting package Sandra. I can't wait to see what you do with all the rainbow goodness.

    ReplyDelete
  2. All that glorious burst of colour in one package! Wow!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Such beautiful fabrics! I'm working with Jungle Cruise for our August hop -- it's absolutely gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a beautiful array of colors and fabrics and treats to work with for the rest of the year. I look forward to seeing what you create with them all!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Sandra! Wow - all the fabric goodness in one box. It will be difficult to know which one to use first - so much inspiration. It's almost overwhelming, no?! Happy Monday! ~smile~ Roseanne

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wonderful box, isn’t it! Love the way you can get thiings quicker by having them sent to your daughter - and then you get to see your daughter too - the best of both worlds.

    ReplyDelete
  7. How Yummy!! Looking forward to seeing everything you make with these beautiful fabrics. I can imagine the huge smile on your face.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh my...what a wonderful box of goodies. I, too, love Hobbs. Have fun creating.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Enjoy playing with all your new goodies.

    ReplyDelete
  10. What a fun package of yumminess! I follow several ambassadors and it's interesting to see the slight variations of what you each receive. I just know you'll do something fabulous with yours! And looking forward to the reveal of your previous "surprise" bundle :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. So many pretty things! Can't wait to see what you make with them. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Those are all awesome fabrics and thread.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I love the cotton/wool....it shows amazing definition once quilted, but I probably won't get it in anymore since my clients just aren't interested. They are really catching on to the wool, though. I also love it for hand-quilting....like quilting through butter!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Woohoo! Those are some really fun combinations! What a super great mail day, especially since you most certainly must've gotten to spend some time with your daughter in the deal, eh?! I just put my first pattern on Craftsy(!) so I look forward to what you have to say about the Unlimited!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Lovely fabrics, Sandra! You are still petting them, aren't you :)

    -Soma

    ReplyDelete
  16. Wow, what fabrics!! I can't wait to see what you do with them.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Lots of colors and textures. Looking forward to seeing what you make for each of the challenges.

    ReplyDelete