So, um… I haven’t been around a whole lot the last month and for this I am almost really sorry. I wanted to say it’s because I have been writing a book but the truth is that I wrote this last year so that excuse is out the window. Hey, a book! That is a way better topic than where I have been.

So here is my book. Quilts from the House of Tula Pink. I was lobbying for the subtitle “Super Awesome Crafty Crap” but in the end everyone decided that the less offensive “20 Fabric Projects to Make, Use & Love” would go over better with the masses. So here is it: 10 amazing quilts and each with it’s own accessory project, fun for everyone!

The photography totally blew my mind. We are talking some serious quilt porn here. The photos were all taken in this crazy abandoned apartment. I like to call the style post-apocalyptic chic. It’s very cool if I do say so myself. The book should start shipping late February. You can pre-order it directly from me in my shop. All books ordered from me will be signed, I have a lovely signature I think you will like it.

GO TO SHOP

Hey troops! I am having my first semi-annual Show and Tell at The Quilt Shoppe in Stewartsville, Missouri. If you can make it out it should be super fun! So here is how it’s going to go. On Sunday, November 6th I am going to be at The Quilt Shoppe showing the whole design process for creating Nightshade. You will be able to take a look at all of my sketches and process materials for creating the collection. The whole mystery revealed in an intimate setting. See what it takes to create a fabric collection, the work and thoughts that invoke the idea and lead to the final product. Ask me questions, here my witty yet informative answers. Since this is the first one I will be bringing some of my Parisville and Prince Charming sketches as well. This will be an informal sort of discussion, you know, like a bunch of friends just hangin’ out talking about fabric design. I’m excited! I hope to see you there!

Tula Pink Show and Tell
Sunday, November 6th
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
The Quilt Shoppe
118 Hill Street
Stewartsville, MO 64490
quiltshoppeonline.com

Happy Halloween!!! This is my favorite holiday. It’s a creative holiday filled with sugar and spice. Halloween is a time when we all get to live our wildest fantasies. I love beautiful things, I love shapes and details that reflect a kind of over the top decadence. I also have a dark side. Nightshade is the perfect marriage of dark and beauty with a tiny hint of humor.

When I decided I was going to design a Halloween collection I had a really specific idea of what that would and would not entail. I wanted to capture the spirit of the holiday not rest on the icons. My Halloween is about costumes, fantasy, dark mansions and creepy butlers, witch’s brew, mystery and a dash of magic. I intentionally left out the obvious themes and colors. The collection centers around three witch sisters. Each with her own talents as well as her own skeletons. There will be more about that later.

The prints in Nightshade are subtly sinister. Spider Blossoms is a lovely little dark floral concealing spiderwebs, lightning bolts, celestial moons and skulls with crossbones. All the makings of a Halloween bouquet. There are apothecary jars filled with mysterious ingredients that could only lead to the darkest of concoctions. A fishnet lace formed into clockwork ravens that are dispatched to do their witch’s bidding. Of course, all of the best Halloween magic happens at midnight so the collection would be incomplete without a “dark and stormy night” print filled with lightning, stars, moons and stylized clouds. Coven, the main print, is a portrait collage of my three Nightshade witches. They are the heart of the story and every print branches out from them.

So here is the nitty gritty… Nightshade is scheduled to ship to your favorite quilt shop and online stores in April. Why am I showing you all of this Halloweeny goodness so early? It’s not to be mean, I promise. Every once in a while I hear that someone can’t find my fabrics in their area. Now is the time little troops, to let your local shops know that you want Nightshade!

I have been traveling this past week doing all kinds of fun stuff.  I went to the aquarium  where I Instagram’d (@TulaPink) hints of a possible new fabric collection in the far but not so far off future and visited old friends from home.  I started off in San Jose, then San Francisco, Los Angeles south to Laguna Beach and finally ended up back in Los Angeles. It’s crazy how fast a place can change when you are busy whiling away in the country. One night on my tour de force I wondered into a tattoo shop where I met the lovely Ina, an artist and all around awesome gal. I decided to let her take a needle to my knuckles. I walked in for a tattoo and walked out with 8 of them! Can’t wait until it heals! I was afraid that this experience might lead me down a path of addiction like so many of my friends but I think that will have to wait until I forget how much this thing hurt. It’s also very distracting when I type.

Hey! I’m on Instagram! It’s like twitter but with pictures. What? That’s amazing! Now you can track what I’m up to even if you don’t know how to read. Let’s face it, y’all just look at the pictures anyway. It’s a free iPhone app. Everyone is doing it so join me in a picture party. Follow this! @tulapink

Lets celebrate National Sewing Month in September together!  Join the Wesminster Fibers Sew-Along, led by ME!  How fun!  Burdastyle has teamed up with FreeSpirit Fabrics and Coats & Clark to put this event on and its going to be a total blast.  Beginning to advanced sewists are welcome to participate.  It will run the entire month of September (9/1/11 – 9/30/11)  For all of the information regarding sign up and this event, click HERE!

Don’t forget to watch my super dorky video too. I work hard to be that lame so please appreciate it! I had to make it on my phone and I have no idea how to edit video so there are some lovely moments of pure humiliation. All in all I think it’s highly representative of me.

I have had a bunch of emails from people wanting to know if there were patterns to go with Prince Charming. Well, of course there are! What do you think I do over here, sit around investigating my toes? I do have lovely toes but I also make time to get some work done. I have four delicious new patterns to accompany Prince Charming just for you, my very favorite people.

Field Study is a new take on the Zig Zag quilt. The blocks on this baby are fairly large so it really shows off the bigger prints. It’s super easy to whip together. So easy in fact that I made a second one two days before I left for Quilt Market just because I could and hey, I wasn’t that busy anyway.

I adore this quilt. I love how all of the colors came together. Little octagon blocks are historically called snow balls and since these are really big it’s called Snow Globes! The cleverness never ends around here.

Crown Jewels was originally going to be called Family Jewels but everyone seemed to think that might be taking it a little too far. I thought it was funny but what do I know I am just the designer. This pattern is crazy fun to make by the way. The little “jewels” on the points of each crown are covered buttons. Fun right? Also I photographed each step for the pattern instead of diagramming so that’s an extra little perk. I hope y’all appreciate it because it was a total pain to do. If you know me at all then you know that I hate taking pictures. I keep buying more expensive cameras to compensate but I can’t seem to find a camera that will set up the shot, adjust the lighting, take the dang picture, upload and color correct for me. Maybe I should just sell them all and hire a photographer:)

It was hilarious at Quilt Market listening to people say “I just love the… uh… Love quilt” About half way through the sentence everyone realized how it was going to end and became uncomfortable. I didn’t plan it that way but I might in the future.

If you want to see any of these in person or pick up a pattern and some Prince Charming of your very own they will be at The Quilt Shoppe here in  Stewartsville. If you don’t live near us then ask your local quilt shop!

Jump over to Fat Quarterly to check out an interview I did. I thought the questions were super good and led to some interesting answers. There is also a bit of a sketch from Price Charming if you want to see how it all began which I know y’all love.

Fat Quarterly is a quarterly (obviously) e-zine about modern quilting, sewing and fabric. It’s really the first of it’s kind, a for us by us sort of affair. Check it out if you don’t already know about it. Oh and I did a little header doodle for them too. So hop on over and say nice things about me in their comments so I look like I have a bunch of friends. It’s the least you could do

International Quilt Market is finally over! It was an awesome week for  Prince Charming and me. I love getting to see my bi-annual buddies from around the world. Now it’s straight back to work and busier than ever. For all of those I saw, it was lovely. For those I missed, maybe next time. The booth is going back up at The Quilt Shoppe this week so come by and see it if you are in the area or just happen to be lost.

Oh, and did I mention that I’m a winner? I took second place for the best single booth category. I like prizes, unfortunately there wasn’t a cash allowance that came with this one but I will take the ribbon. I feel like a prized pony! I might wear it around my neck for a week or so.