Your StitchyMites subscription will open on Wednesday, September 20, with the Spooky Town Sew Along pattern. You can read more about that in the Sew Along link at my website. The Sew Along is free to anyone. The pattern for the Tiny Town quilt is available at my website, and everyone MUST have a copy of the pattern to participate - but there is a really sweet Halloween version that non-members will need to pay $10 for. StitchyMite members will get the pattern as part of their subscription, along with some demo videos about English Paper Piecing and applique that the other sew along members will not have.

You will also have free access to my Christmas Ornament Swap should you choose to participate - there is usually an AU$5 admin fee, but if you’re a StitchyMite that is waived. If you DO want to participate, don’t sign up for the swap yet because you will be given a special code to remove your fee on Wednesday.

After the stitch along is over, every week there will be something new:

Sometimes it might be special access to a new pattern (like Spooky Town!),

Sometimes discounts on existing programs (like the Christmas Swap!).

Sometimes there will be a post about new fabric I’ve seen, new quilting tools, someone I follow online who I think is amazing, or a new book.

Occasionally, a few of those things at once! I might write a story.

There might be a block pattern, a little applique project, a tutorial video, a video show and tell, a special sale code… we might even have a few Zoom chats.

Whatever it is, it will always be a bonus. Also, you’ll have the inside scoop on new things before I make them public - sneak peeks of new designs and programs that are just for the StitchyMites Vault. Sound like fun?

StitchyMites does NOT include access to any current or future Block of the Month programs.

If you’re an Aussie, then you already know!

I thought it would be fun to name our club after something thats distinctly Australian! Although most non-Aussies won’t know about happy little Vegemites, you will probably have heard of Vegemite itself - it’s a dark (almost black), thick food spread, made from leftover brewers yeast extract, with added spices and vegetables, thats famously internationally revolting and that many Australians consider our national food. You spread it on hot toast with butter, or sandwiches, and it can also be used in cooking to add salt and flavour to stews or casseroles and that sort of thing. Its a staple in most Australian pantries. I personally think it tastes like heaven - like my childhood - although I’ve had international friends tell me they think it tastes like petrol, like burnt meat or like “the worst thing ever” :D The “official” description is:

“Vegemite has a complex flavor that is profoundly savory and hyper-rich in umami; it almost has a meaty flavor like demi-glace or rich stock. This yeasty byproduct of brewing is an extremely condensed flavor. Think of it like a bouillon paste — extremely salty and savory.”

While all that is interesting, and I’m probably not selling the flavour to you, it’s the advertising campaign for Vegemite that I’m naming our little group after. The song “Happy Little Vegemites” was written in 1954 by the J Walter Thompson advertising agency in Sydney. The song is a part of growing up in Australia, and the phrase happy little Vegemite has entered the Australian lexicon - its not uncommon to describe yourself as being a Happy Little Vegemite if you are very happy, cosy or satisfied.

Theres even a song! You can watch the original 1954 Vegemites commercial here.

And believe it or not, the original song is STILL used to advertise Vegemite today, slightly updated.

I hope you’ll join me and be a Happy Little StitchyMite!

I’m even planning merch :D

StitchyMites is only $5 AUD per month.

That’s currently about $3.20 US, 3 Euro or 2.60 GBP. When you sign up, you are charged the first month right away. The subscription rolls over every month on the day you signed up (so if you signed up on the 18th of September, it will roll over on the 18th of October), and you are automatically charged, unless you choose to opt out which you can do at any time. You have access to the all the content for as long as you’re a member - once you opt out, the month you have paid for will finish up and then your access to the site will be discontinued.