Timeless Treasures Stitch Star Giveaway

Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while may have already seen a mention or two about my love for reality TV. While I do love a good episode of the Real Housewives every now and again (don't judge me!), the shows I am really drawn to are the competition shows where the contestants actually have some real talent. I'm talking about shows like Top Chef, Project Runway, Design Star, and Work of Art. In all of these shows, those competing bring true talent, skill, and creativity to the table -- OK, well most of them do -- and it's exhilarating to be able to observe the creative process in action.

That's why I'm SO excited that the wonderful team at Timeless Treasures Fabrics -- home of some of my favorite fabric designers (such as Mo Bedell, Rashida Coleman-Hale, and the Dear Stella gang) -- has invited me to be one of the judges in their Stitch Star contest!

So what, exactly is Stitch Star? Well, like those competition shows I mentioned, it's a way to earn cash money and amazing prizes by doing something you already love -- showcasing your creativity by making a one-of-a-kind quilt. And while it won't be televised, your quilt will travel to my hometown of New York City to be displayed alongside all of the other entries.

I'm thrilled (and a bit nervous, to be frank) to be judging the contest alongside Lorry Chwazik (who I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting), and my friend Susanne Woods of Stash Books. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be the Simon Cowell of the panel or not, but it's more likely that I'll play the Paula role ("I love them ALL!")

Timeless Treasures asked each of us to create a short video introducing ourselves to the contest entrants. I'm not a huge fan of being on video so I stressed and stressed about this right up until 11:30PM on the night before the deadline, when I finally decided to stop worrying about it, sit down in my kitchen, flip on the webcam on my Macbook, and wing it. I hope I didn't come across like too much of a tool. Wanna see it?:

OK, that was embarrassing.

Earlier, I mentioned some great contest prizes (and cash money). Here's what's on the line in the Stitch Star contest:

• 1st Prize: $5,000 and a Horizon Memory Craft 7700QCP Sewing Machine by Janome, a $2,999.00 value!
• 2nd Prize: $1,000 and 20 yards of our newest fabric.
• 3rd Prize: $750 and 20 yards of our newest fabric.
• People's Choice Award: 20 yards of our newest fabric.

Worth playing for? Well, d'uh. There's a lot more to know about the competition, including how to enter and more specific information about the quilts that will be considered.

To celebrate the kick-off of the Stitch Star contest, Timeless Treasures and I would love to offer up a giveaway prize here on my blog. All of the Stitch Star contest entries must use at least two pieces of fabric from Timeless Treasures' new Plume or Orange Crush lines, or one fabric from each collection, along with their Stitch Star complements basics collection.

I'd love to inspire you to start creating, so one winner will receive four pieces of one of TT's newest collections as well as a “teaser” piece of Orange Crush or Plume. All you have to do for your chance to win is to first head over and “like” the Timeless Treasures Facebook page. Once you've done that, come back and leave a comment here on my blog telling me about a dream project that you would love to make out of these vibrant fabric collection. (In your comment, please indicate that you completed the Facebook step already.)

I'll pick one lucky winner sometime before Christmas day. And stay tuned for more updates about my journey as a Timeless Treasures Stitch Star judge. Good luck, & Happy Holidays!