Each day we’re faced with myriad choices and according to an article we found on UNC-TV Science, as our level of responsibility increases, so does the number of choices we’re required to make. It’s estimated that the average adult makes about 35,000 remotely conscious decisions every day.
We’re not sure about you, but we found that number a little overwhelming!
Luckily many of the 35,000 daily decisions are reasonably inconsequential - cereal or toast, tea or coffee, to knot or not to knot?!
There are, however, times when the choices we make about something will alter the direction we’re currently heading. The decision about a new house, job or relocation can have lasting consequences and sometimes the significance of these decisions can weigh heavily upon us.
Whilst each of us will have our own way of navigating life’s choices, both big and small, it’s important to remember that many of the choices we make last only as long as the time it takes to make another choice about the same thing.
Now we don’t mean to add to the 35,000 decisions you’ll already have to make, but with the release of the Beating Around the Bush 2020 Catalogue today, we may have done just that!
Do you choose by project, technique or tutor or maybe a combination of each? Now we can’t promise you the decisions will be easy, but we can promise it will be worth it!
We know you’ll find yourself spoilt for choice and we look forward to the opportunity of hosting you in Adelaide for Beating Around the Bush 2020.
Have Your Say
Speaking of choice, in All Stitched Up! issue #196 HERE we asked ‘What’s Next?’ as we unpacked some ideas on how to choose your next adventure with needle and thread after you’ve laid the final stitch on your current project. We asked the Inspirations Community for some suggestions that would help guide us through this decision-making process and hope the responses below help guide you as they did us as you consider what to put your needles and threads to next…
Carol Meadows
‘I think I’m on mission to learn, so I’m always looking for my next challenge or another class to take! From there, I try to stitch in advance for gifts, Christmas ornaments and charity sales. I also have a project by my bedside to work on when I’m drinking my early morning coffee, one in the car for when I’m waiting to pick up grandchildren and a project I work on in the family room too!’
Roberta Kenney
‘Usually it's picking the project that interests me most from my stack of WIPs unless I’m working on the current one from our Guild, although occasionally a new one will catch my fancy to try!’
Susan
‘I take screenshots on my iPad of things I find aesthetically pleasing and then file them in my ‘inspiration folder’. I ensure I make notes or circle something in the photo before filing it and almost always find my next project there.’
Carol, Roberta and Susan, we appreciate you taking the time to help point us in the right direction when it comes to choosing what to put our needles and threads to next… now if we could just decide what’s for dinner tonight!
Needlework News
New Book | Mabel Bunny & Co
Sometimes you buy a book to learn a new technique, be enlightened about some history, or to help you re-create a specific project. Then there are the times you buy a book because the cover is so adorable you can’t possibly live without it!
That’s how we felt when we saw the new book ‘Mabel Bunny & Co’ by Claire Gelder. Not only did we buy a copy for ourselves, we bought cartons of them so we could share it with all of you!
How can anyone resist these loveable characters? Made from soft chunky yarn and with floppy limbs, these oversized toys are perfect for cuddling and snuggling by anyone and everyone.
With fifteen different animals to crochet and love, the projects are pitched at beginners to improvers, and are suitable for anyone who has mastered the basics of crochet.
So be inspired, choose a pattern to start and be prepared to fall in love with this collection of adorable toys.
PRINTED BOOK
Mabel Bunny & Co
A-Z of Crochet
If you, like us, have fallen in love with Mabel Bunny and her friends but are new to crochet, or have someone in your life you’d love to teach how to crochet, our book A-Z of Crochet is the perfect companion.
A-Z of Crochet is the ultimate resource guide with everything you need to know about crochet explained. Learn how to master every stitch using easy to follow step-by-step photographs.
Great for beginners or experienced stitchers wanting to expand their repertoire, A-Z of Crochet is the ideal gift to pair with the book ‘Mabel Bunny & Co’.
PRINTED BOOK
A-Z of Crochet
New Digital Pattern | Buttoned Up!
In a recent meeting with our elves from the Inspirations digital pattern department, they let us know that a large order from Father Christmas could be coming soon in the lead up to Christmas. Luckily, we were able to sneak in a quick special request from one of our readers before they get too busy:
‘I am looking for a pattern for the project 'Buttoned Up!' from AS&E issue #98. It is a baby boy’s outfit, shirt and shorts. Is there any way I can purchase this project please?’
Well, Elle Kingon from Toowoomba in Queensland Australia, we can absolutely help you with that!
‘Buttoned Up!’ by Nancy Lee is a traditional button-on suit in a choice of navy and white or powder blue and white.
The design of this traditional smocked garment has as much appeal today as when it was first introduced in the early decades of the twentieth century and now it’s available to purchase as a digital pattern.
DIGITAL PATTERNS
Buttoned Up!
BATB 2020 Catalogue Out Now!
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your patience, it is with great excitement we can finally announce the release of the highly anticipated catalogue for Beating Around the Bush 2020!
Inside you’ll find a needlework wonderland with 57 of the world’s most beautiful projects presented by 19 of the world’s most talented tutors.
Download a free digital copy of the catalogue now using the link below:
Or for those who prefer the tactile pleasure of a physical copy, you can order a printed catalogue which we’ll post to you anywhere in the world:
If you are not familiar with our needlework convention Beating Around the Bush, you can read more about it in our article below.
Special Events
Beating Around the Bush 2020
The history of Beating Around the Bush begins like all great stories – a woman, a needle and thread, and a mission to make the world more beautiful. Now, 30 years later, thousands of enlightened needlework enthusiasts have made the pilgrimage to South Australia to attend what has become the internationally acclaimed, world’s most beautiful needlework convention.
Official Beating Around the Bush 2020 Logo
In 2020 we will be hosting the 11th BATB and this week we’re celebrating the release of the catalogue for the event which details all the projects, the tutors, the events and just a taste of the wonder one can expect when attending.
Often the first question people ask when they hear about the event for the first time is, what does the name mean? While the literal definition of Beating Around the Bush is to ‘discuss a matter without coming to the point’, the event itself couldn’t be further from the truth as from the moment we get together it’s all about the wonderful world of needlework and we very much get to the point, over and over again!
Logos from Beating Around the Bush over the years
When the very first BATB was held in the dusty country town of Keith in rural South Australia in 1989, it was given the name Beating Around the Bush simply as a playful term loosely taken from the Australian slang meaning to ‘hang out in the country’. All these years later, with the event now well and truly modernised and held in a capital city rather than an outback town, people travel from all over the world to ‘hang out down under’ and stitch together with us, so in many ways the name still rings true.
As Inspirations Studios is primarily a publishing company, this event has special significance for us because it’s one of the few times we get to come out from behind our newsletter, magazine and books to meet our community face to face. It’s our time to hang out with our tribe and we
love it.
In 2020 the format remains mostly the same, although we are moving to a new venue which is exciting, and we have four brand-new first-time tutors to BATB. We can’t wait to welcome Christine Burton and Ana Mallah both from Australia, Cynthia Jackson from Canada and Sue Spargo from the USA.
‘Honey Bees and Blossom’ 2-Day class by Susan O’Connor
By now you’ve probably been admiring the amazing bees, buzzing about collecting pollen, featured in our 2020 logo. Each year we select a project taught at the convention to incorporate into our imagery and this year we simply couldn’t go past the design ‘Honey Bees and Blossom’ by our very own Susan O’Connor. We’re sure you’ll agree the realism and detail is stunning and as our CEO Kristian Fleming remarked, ‘Wow - Susan O’Connor sure can stitch!’
Another question we get asked about BATB is ‘What makes it so good?’ Probably the best way we can answer that is to repeat what’s in our catalogue:
You + Us = Together. Regardless of where you’re from or who you are, our collective passion for needlework transcends everything and creates a bond that is ageless, timeless, borderless and fearless.
At Beating Around the Bush it’s all about stitching together, learning together and laughing together. It’s that simple. And that’s what makes it so good.
So, on that note, we really do hope as many of you as possible can come and spend the week with us next year as we all bring to life many of the world’s most beautiful needlework designs right before our eyes. The way we see it is we get to have coffee with you once a week via our newsletter, a meal once a quarter with the magazine, and attend a party with you when we launch a new book, but the most cherished time is when we get to holiday with you once every two years at Beating Around the Bush.
We can’t wait to see you there!
Interested in attending BATB 2020?
Step 1 – Review Catalogue & Select Projects
> Free digital copy HERE
>
Purchase printed copy HERE
Step 2 – Registration Opens 3rd Feb
Secure your place when registration opens on 3rd February 2020 at www.beatingaroundthebush.com.au where classes will be allocated on a first come basis.
Step 3 – Book Travel Arrangements
Book your accommodation directly through us when you register or reserve your own hotel nearby, lock in your flights then make your way to Westminster School in Adelaide, South Australia from 30th September to 7th October 2020.
The Inspirations Team looks forward to hosting you.
What Are You Stitching?
This week’s ‘What Are You Stitching?’ celebrates the work of the tutors who help make Beating Around the Bush the world’s most beautiful needlework convention. We love the time we’ve spent with each of them at past conventions and can’t wait to do it all again in 2020!
Alison Cole via Kelvin Martin
‘I just saw a recent newsletter and there was Alison Cole’s Honey Bee! I completed that project last year and thought you’d like to see the finished piece. I had a lovely man make me a black walnut box with a photo frame lid, and a local framer inserted my work into it. I then gave it to my bee-mad husband for his Christmas present.’
Kelvin, you’ve done a bee-utiful job of replicating Alison’s Honey Bee from Inspirations issue #90! We know from our emails with you just how much the gift meant to your husband, so know it will be treasured for years to come.
Jenny McWhinney via Ann Rowley
‘I have been sewing as a hobby for around eighty years now. Whilst I have focused mostly on dressmaking, I have also done a fair bit of embroidery. I have just finished this, my first needle painting. I absolutely loved working it and am delighted with the result!’
Ann, the years of experience you have with needle and thread have served you well as your first needle painting is rich in character, detail and carefully laid stitches.
Nicola Jarvis via Sonja Sanguinetti
‘I just finished Nicola Jarvis’ project Forbidden Fruit. Once it is framed, I’m donating it to the pain clinic that made it possible for me to get back to the needle work I love. Your magazine and newsletter kept me going through a long struggle with pain and illness.’
Sonja, we love that needle and thread have helped guide you through a difficult season with pain and illness and appreciate that Inspirations was able to play a part in your journey to recovery.
Susan O’Connor via Susanne Brisach
‘Thought you all might like to see the embroidery that I began on the 2014 river cruise with Susan O’Connor and Hazel Blomkamp. What a wonderful trip that was! We started out in Cambodia with a visit to the amazing Angkor Wat temple and then boarded our wonderful ship for our cruise.
Amazing instructors, Hazel Blomkamp and Susan O’Connor were on board with about 16 students.
Three of us celebrated our birthdays while onboard, including my 70th. We had a wonderful time stitching as well as fascinating excursions.
Upon my return home, the project was put aside for another two years. Then, a year ago, we moved to a wonderful retirement village and I decided I had to finish the beautiful project. I am so very thankful to Susan and Fiona and all those who arranged and participated in the fantastic journey.’
Susanne, we love that you found the time and space to complete the project you began with Susan in 2014. It is a lovely reminder of the time spent with needle and thread along the Mekong River.
We look forward to seeing how your needles and threads have celebrated the work of one of the Beating Around the Bush tutors! Email photos of what you’ve stitched along with a few details about your stitching journey to news@inpsirationsstudios.com
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