Day 8 - S is for Stitch - AND a Giveaway!
March 28, 2013 Today's the last day of my book tour and so I guess it's my turn.
I can't exactly "review" my own book ... that would be weird. But I can share with you some behind the scenes stuff.
The 26 girl alphabet designs were purely labours of love for my daughters. I had absolutely no intention of turning them into a book. I didn't have a blog and didn't know I was going to start a pattern company. And since I've never taken art or design classes of any kind, I certainly didn't feel qualified to write a book.
But one thing led to another and my just for fun project became a book.
I didn't want S is for Stitch to be another "here are some designs and instructions" sort of craft book. So I wrote much of the text as if I was having a conversation with you - my imaginary readers. But it was all about the technical side of embroidery and not so much about the creativity. And when I was reviewing an early draft of the book - all organized and laid out with the "how to's" - I thought it was missing something and found myself wanting to share more personal information. I really wanted to connect with people like me - people who have a creative spirit, but who don't feel "qualified" to design.
My solution was simple: beside every one of the 52 designs in the book, I wrote a little something. Because, as it turns out, even though I wasn't formally schooled as a designer I have somehow learned a few things over the years about how to make embroidery interesting ... and pretty ... and easy to stitch.
Sometimes I wrote about what I was thinking that dictated my design decisions:
Sometimes I wrote about "arty" techniques I used to achieve certain features:
Sometimes I wrote about exploiting specific stitches:
Sometimes I wrote about how you can change my designs to make them your own:
Sometimes I wrote about how I made the girl quilt very personal for my daughters and me:
And sometimes, when I was at a complete loss for something to say, I just wrote ... something! LOL!
I hope my little anecdotes make the book interesting and informative.
And now how - exactly - does one end a book tour?
Tada?
The End?
Oh. Right. A giveaway! You didn't think I'd forget, did you? ;)
Please leave me a comment (with your name and a valid email address!) telling me which one of the above anecdotes you like best and you'll be entered to win a copy of S is for Stitch! If you are a US resident, you'll be sent a hard copy of the book. If you live elsewhere, you'll receive an eBook. All the giveaways close Thursday April 4th and the winners will be announced on Monday, April 8th.
I really hope you enjoyed these special peeks into my book and that you're totally motivated to pick up a needle and get stitching!
And a great big thank you from the bottom of my heart to Stash Books, Allison H, Amanda, Amy, Anne, Lori & Sherri for playing along. Couldn't have done this without you! xo
Reader Comments (275)
Thanks for the giveaway!
Beertje Zonn & Sonnja
Doe graag mee
Kisses from Barcelona
This book makes me want to get serious about learning how to embroider.
Betsy in The Sunny Seattle Suburbs
LOVELY book! Original point of view :)
Thank you and Stash Books for a super giveaway and a chance to win.
usairdoll(at)gmail(dot)com
I loved the 'something' story because i pretty much do the same. I came to post because i madly love your banner!!
Come by my blog sometimes.
Love.
N
You are so talented! Love your blog and thank you for the chance to win your book!
Espero poder comprar, aunque vivo lejos.... lejos....
Felicitaciones por sus logros, sus pensamientos al igual que los mios, es bordar y bordar.....
virginia
Arica, Chile Sudamerica.