NEW! A lizard! Or maybe a salamander! Or a newt?
Plus - free wallpaper with an adorable otter and playful purple zebras!
I made something new! In my new studio!
I drew the pattern while we were traveling, but I did all the sewing here. It was so nice to sew in my new home! I’m still tweaking my set-up, so no studio photos to share yet, but soon.
So! A newt/lizard/salamander.
I started off thinking newt because I’m working towards an ABC quilt and I didn’t have any patterns yet that start with N.
While I was researching newts I found out that they’re actually a kind of salamander - but not an official kind. It’s just that there are some kinds of salamanders that people have called newts for a long time, and so that’s kept on as a “popular tradition,” but there’s no real scientific basis for the distinction.
Interesting! (At least to me. 😁 If anyone else wants to read more about it there’s an article here.)
So all newts are salamanders. But what about lizards? Well, lizards are reptiles and salamanders are amphibians - so even though their bodies are pretty much shaped the same, they’re very different. The most obvious difference is in their skin. Lizards have scales and salamanders don’t. (You can read more about their differences here.)
For those who want to cut to the chase - both lizards and salamanders come in about a kajillion different colors! That makes this an especially fun pattern. I can easily imagine a whole quilt made with this one block pattern, with each block a different color. That would be so much fun!
Right now the pattern is exclusive to members of the Funny Faces Club, which costs just $4 a month. You can join here - and use the code SILLY to get your first month free!
A new month means a new pattern for members of the Funny Faces Club, but also a new free wallpaper for everyone!
The Olson Otter applique pattern got a LOT of love, so I redrew it in my favorite cut-paper style for this month’s calendar.
It’s available in wide and tall formats (so you can use it for all your devices), and with or without the May calendar (so you can use it other months as well). Get your free downloads here.
As a little thank you for paid subscribers to this newsletter, keep scrolling for a link to download printable versions of this guy. You get JPGs in four different sizes, plus a PNG with a transparent background so you can drop it onto any background you like. There’s getting to be quite a nice little library of these goodies 🥰 and when you become a paid subscriber you get access to all of them - plus a special discount code to get 20% off everything in the shop all month long.
Whew! New stuff! I’m so excited to be sewing again! I’ve got more sewing on deck for this week, including the next Funny Faces pattern and also updated SVG versions of the fox and the ermine/ferret/mink. Yay!
I still don’t have my books unpacked 🙁 but I’ve been scratching that mystery itch by watching Elsbeth and really enjoying it!
She’s a character I liked from The Good Wife, and the structure is very Columbo-ish (much like Poker Face which I loved).
Episode 2 is my favorite so far because the guest star is Jane Krakowski and I think she’s brilliant. She definitely steals every scene she’s in, in the best way possible. 😂
Awesomeness from the Shiny Happy People group!
Elaine already made a lizard with the new pattern! And she added an adorable little flower. 🥰 She’s been appliqueing her faces onto felt to use for garlands and on cards - so clever! Click through to see the whole gang!
Ann made a super fun quilt with the Mix & Match Monsters pattern and the wonky sashing setting! I love all the little extras she added and the way the characters are interacting with each other!
Linda made a pair of playful purple zebra pillows for an auction and I’m pleased as punch with them! 😂 She used the Zulima Zebra pattern. Someday I want to make an all-zebra quilt with this pattern. I’ve got it all planned out. Each zebra will be a dark and light version of a different color of the rainbow, the background will be the complement to that color, and the binding will be a black and white stripe. Now if I could just conjure up some extra time. . .
Head over to the Shiny Happy People group on Facebook to see lots more wonderfulness people are making with my patterns—and to ask questions and share photos of your own projects. It’s my favorite place on the internet!
The archives and sale now have their own newsletter every Friday. Last week this link got more than twice as many clicks as any of the others. A clear favorite!
If you know someone who’d like to read this, please share! 🥰
Happy stitching!
I hope you have a fabulous week!
Best,
Wendi
🥰
PS - Here’s a closer look at those otter printables. Paid subscribers will see the link to download the folder (plus other goodies) below the picture. 🥰
