Thank you and Giveaways not to miss

First of all a big thank you to my friend who gave me this incredible mat for Christmas (we only just managed to exchange Christmas presents last week!). She really knows what I like and this mat is such a good way to start the (crafty) day, isn't it?!

Cotton Joy - Stonewashed Convertible Mat

An enormous thank you also to the Fat Quarter Shop for sponsoring Le Challenge. Thank you to Lucy @ Charm About You and Nat @ Made in Home for organising and hosting Le Challenge. I was so lucky to win the December edition Le Challenge #18 - Ink with this entry on Instagram:

Ink Note Pouch

These are the fantastic fabrics I chose with the Fat Quarter Shop's gift certificate:

Airmail by Eric & Julie Comstock for Moda Fabrics

Mochi Purple Floral by Rashida Coleman-Hale for Cotton + Steel Fabrics

The Makers Multi Happy Crafty Quilt Panel by Cori Dantini for Blend Fabrics 

And now for the giveaways! If you're looking for an updated list of giveaways, Melissa @ Missouri Mel has transfered The Giveaway Roundup to a new location. You can find it here and she's hosting her own giveaway to promote the new site.

If you love pin cushions then you don't want to miss my friend Mara's giveaway at Secretly Stitching. Don't forget to vote for her lovely Fabric Frame at the Fat Quarter Shop's blog the Jolly Jabber. She is so creative!

Quilt #1 Fabric Frame by Mara of Secretly Stitching in Greece

8² Fabric Swap Group - Text fabric for Sunday Stash (Giveaway)

This week some super happy mail arrived in the post from Greece. It was the wonderful text fabric from the 8² Fabric Swap Group organised by Mara @ Secretly Stitching.

I am really happy with this fabric! It worked out so cheap. Buying fabric here in Italy is becoming impossible for me it's so expensive. On the other hand, paying the shipping costs from the States is also frightening! Paying over $23 shipping? I could buy a metre (just over a yard) of fabric here and it wouldn't take over two months to arrive in the post (that really happened to me!). It's money (and time) thrown away for me. That is unless...

Unless: 

1. I manage to buy fabric I won't be able to find here because it's too new and no local shops seem to have the same tastes as I do anyway;

2. the next trade fair is in three months time (there is more choice in these fairs and sometimes there are shops from other countries) and I'm not sure I'll find what I'm looking for anyway;

3. fabric costs so much less in the States that I can compensate the shipping costs with the lower prices. In the end I'm even, I suppose.

The 8² Fabric Swap Group solved this problem for me as we had a discount offered to us by two shops, thanks to Mara. Some of us also bought the fabric together, meaning we divided the shipping costs. Mara also cut my fabric for the swap, so that was fantastic of her too!

Looking forward to the next round of this swap, which could be "low volume" fabric. If you're interested, you can read more about the swap here.

By the way, Mara @ Secretly Stitching is giving away a bottle of Jet Set 2000 (ends 2nd of September). A bottle of what? Read her fabulous tutorial here if you don't know what it's for (I didn't know either until I read it!).

P.S. If you'd like to have the possibility of recieving a Fabric Bomb, don't forget to leave a comment on this post: Would you like a Fabric Bomb?!

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