Valley of Dolls Zine Giveaway

Hello there, my darlings. I have something delightful to share with you. I just received a bundle of Valley of Dolls zines in the mail. I have an interview in there, and the lovely publisher sent me a few copies to share with you.
This zine is just jam packed with dolly awesomeness. Oh, this zine. Where do I start? Valley of Dolls is put together by the very talented Su Mwamba of Tanglecrafts. Have you visited her blog? Or her shop? Both are so much fun. She even has put together a club.

There's a cute piece of Matrushka cotton on the cover, and a piece of felt, so you can make your own little Matrushka doll. There are actually four different doll tutorials in this book. There are also interviews, book reviews, and plenty of lovely illustrations.

SO, what can you do to win a copy of your very own?
Leave a comment, my dears!
Make sure I have some way of contacting you (Email, Etsy, Twitter, whatever.)
I’ll pick the winners by random number generator next Wednesday, the 15th. I've got FOUR copies to give away. Woot!

*Want extra chances to win? Okay, we can do that.
Leave another comment if you do any of the following:
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Link to this anywhere else!

Crafty Book Review - Simple Sewing for Baby by Lotta Jansdotter

Lotta Jansdotter's Simple Sewing for Baby: 24 Easy Projects for Newborns to Toddlers

Many, many, many years ago, I came across a Lotta Jansdotter book in Japan. I was instantly smitten with her simple, striking designs. Now, many many many years later, it's easy to come by her textiles and hooray! her books. With a little one on the way, I knew I had to have her Simple Sewing for Baby.

I really resonated with her introduction. Here was a designer/crafter who understood my own strange design sensibilities. (And general reluctance to spend an arm and a leg on things that were just going to get baby puke and poo all over them.)

There's a wide range of practical and fun patterns. (Simple pants! Toys! Nursing pillow! Bookends! Wait, what?) The photos of the finished projects are lovely. The patterns are printed on nice white paper, not that nasty tear prone brown stuff. There are even cardstock stencils included.

However, a caveat: the illustrations in said patterns are few and far between. For a visual learner like myself, this translates to TORTURE. Or at least it did on the crib bumper tutorial. Making that bumper was one of the more unpleasant things I've done recently. (And at the time of writing this, I am 32 WEEKS PREGNANT. So that should give you some idea of scale.) But I did get it DONE, and hey, it's pretty cute.

If you're not afraid to get in there and figure out a way to make the patterns make sense to you, go for this book. (Or if written descriptions of what to do work for you. You know, if you have a brain that works properly.) Most of the projects are simple enough that you can sort of figure them out just by looking at them, anyway. At the very least, it opened up my eyes to what it was possible to make for baby. That alone has been invaluable!

Crafty Book Review - Embroidery Companion

Embroidery Companion: Classic Designs for Modern Living

I've been a fan of Ms. Paulson's adorable blog for years. (How could I not? Corgis! Crafts! Cakes!) So I was thrilled to see that she had a new book out, and about one of my favorite topics, no less.

The photography is simply gorgeous, and the pages are a lovely weight. Seriously. If you're into that sort of thing, you'll notice that this book just feels dreamy to hold. It is, quite frankly, a beautiful book. If you enjoy the art of embroidery, you should probably just get it. It's gorgeous to look at, and would be very much at home on a coffee table.
There aren't a ton of projects, but what's there is top notch, and full of illustrated directions to help you along. There's a good variety among the projects too. A little something for everyone. It's not just traditional embroidery, but counted cross stitch and crewelwork as well.
But, can I confess something? The country time quilt is what won me over. Good grief, that is some cute stuff. (Page 31. Prepare to have your farmy socks knocked clean off.)

Check it out in detail here: Embroidery Companion: Classic Designs for Modern Living

(and why yes, that is an amazon associates link. i have to support my habit somehow. ^_^ )