New Lunar Year, New Ambassador Year, New Fabrics, New Colours!

Happy Chinese New Year 2019

Today, Tuesday February 5th, is Chinese New Year and also my 1st Island Batik Ambassiverary. 2019 is Year of the Pig and in the next few weeks we will have several cute piggy appliqués on the blog to celebrate. But first, we get to herald in the New Lunar Year with Colour & Inspiration Tuesday. The Chameleon thinks this is a very good sign for 2019!

And today is not just any Colour & Inspiration Tuesday either. It is none other than the first opportunity in my blogging calendar for me to share with you about the 2019 Island Batik Ambassador year. If you read on, you will see that we going to have a lot of batik fun here this year! And there is also one major change in the program from last year, that I hope you will like.

As on previous occasions, there is also one set of pre-release fabrics in my new samples from Island Batik that is concealed for now. But I promise you, you are going to love my surprise fabrics come August. And I can let slip a little something about them today……. Shhhhh, don’t tell though, it’s our secret.

Happy New Island Batik Ambassador Year 2019

It is with great pleasure that I am sharing with you the start of the 2019 Island Batik Ambassador year. For those who have joined my blog family recently, the Island Batik Ambassadors are a group of quilters who accept free goods from Island Batik, a premium batik fabric company, in return for showcasing those fabrics in monthly projects aligned with challenge themes. Island Batik also has industry partners who add to the Ambassador boxes in return for exposure.

This year we number 50 Ambassadors: there are two guys in the mix; at least 5 countries represented, and probably every style of quilting you could possibly imagine. You can find the list of Ambassadors here anytime, but I will also have it available from my main menu for a time to allow you to easily peruse it at your leisure.

Starting off Strong!

As this is my second year as an Ambassador, I can tell you with confidence that there are many benefits to you and to me of Clever Chameleon being so closely associated with Island Batik.

• The fabrics are to swoon for….. bright and fun and beautiful. I pretty much love all batiks for their colour intensity and their high thread count. But Island Batik fabrics are one of my favourite brands, because I have experienced time and time again that after a proper pre-wash they are more colour stable than some other brands available to me, and they are not stiff to play with or to snuggle. It gives me great pleasure to be able to show you the latest Island Batik products and give you ideas on how to use them, because I genuinely love them.
• Island Batik has quality industry partners, who also provide product samples to Island Batik Ambassadors. Last year we worked with Aurifil thread and HOBBS batting as well, and I enjoyed using their products. More on that in a minute 🙂
• And the Ambassador community connects regularly behind the scenes to help each other out with all sorts of things, from personal support through tough times to blog and social media help, article cross-promotion and challenge ideas. These things all add up to me enjoying my blogging more, and a better output for you, the reader and quilter.

Having said all that, I didn’t take on another Ambassador year lightly. Twice a year Ambassadors are gifted what I consider to be a towering mountain of quilting goods – more than I could afford to buy retail – and I do feel a significant responsibility to do them justice. I am also very protective of my blog’s integrity and I only accept relationships that I feel add value for my readers. Thankfully, I can look you in the eye and say I am really proud of what I did with all my samples last year, both in the sewing room and on the blog.

But. Last year I also left nothing in the tank some months, and I felt like I was always chasing deadlines from the very start. I am going to have to work a little smarter this year to keep the joy in my sewing room and not kill my sew-jo. And I want to set aside a bigger proportion of my time for pattern writing too.

But do I feel like I am starting from a much stronger place than this time last year… I am familiar with the Ambassador program, it doesn’t make me nervous this time…. I know a lot more about blogging in general now….. And my Ambassador box arrived a month earlier than last year, which is going to make a world of difference to the first few months. I am really excited for the beginning of the new year, better skills, a fresh slate, and a new box of goodies.

Did I mention a new box?

Ha, yes! The start of the Island Batik Ambassador year always begins with the big box reveal, followed by the big tease. So, let’s do this: “What’s in the box?!”

This round, the Ambassadors are actually receiving two boxes….. I say “receiving”, because unfortunately I haven’t received my second box yet. I think I am the only Ambassador languishing in One-Box-Land…. so we are just going to have to power on without it today. The Clever Chameleon has a whole stack of fun scheduled for you this February and we cannot be beholden to the postman. And unless you don’t read any other Island Batik Ambassador blogs (which you definitely should), you probably already know as much or more about what is going to be in my second box as I do. So I’ll tell you about that first.

The Anticipated Box

The box I am still waiting on is from an industry partner who wasn’t part of last year’s Ambassador scheme. So I am very excited to announce that this year, Accuquilt will be making a sudden reappearance on my blog. All the Ambassadors are receiving a Ready. Set. GO! Ultimate Fabric Cutting System – unless they already officially work with Accuquilt in some other capacity – then they are getting new cutting dies. Ohhhhhhhhhh, that was gob-smacking news for me! The particular product combo being distributed is not even available in the Australian market – you have to buy all the parts separately. Back of the envelope calculation, that amounts to the tune of about $990.00 Australian dollars at full price.

I actually found out about the Accuquilt GO! addition to the 2019 program nearly a week before I discovered whether I was re-accepted into the Ambassador squad. That. was. really. torturous. Because I know what my Accuquilt GO! Cutter is capable of. I coveted it and saved up for it for two years before I bought it. But sadly it doesn’t come out to play very often.

The reason I do not create with it more often is mostly financial. The dies last for a very long time, but they are an upfront investment that I have only so far justified twice because of the significant time savings I could get with these diamonds and equilateral triangles.

And here’s the best part of this news for me. The Accuquilt GO! Cutter Fabric System coming to me contains a GO! QUBE Mix and Match 8″ set, which is a collection of 8 dies of shapes commonly used to make 8″ finished quilt blocks! Including the blocks of my turtle quilt that I want to remake and pattern up. When I realised this, and found out one will be headed my way, I nearly cried. Did I mention that time is a thing I am often pressed for? Yes? Well, this collection is essentially a package of time credits. I might yet cry when I get to touch it, lol. I’ll update you when it arrives.

The Box of Touchable Goodness that has Arrived

The box I have already received is HUGE. Not as heavy as the stickers would have you believe, as I think the weight being in lbs not kg causes some confusion at the border. But it was filled to the brim. This is the box of Island Batik, Aurifil and HOBBS products given to me to use to fulfil my duties as an Ambassador. In an effort to illustrate the size of the box I placed it next to fairly standard kitchen chair. Of course, this happened within moments……

When the Incoming Supplies Inspector was satisfied that there were no American kitties on board, I was allowed to open the box. Inside were treasures galore. Here are all the Island Batik fabrics and the Aurifil threads in one place.

And here are the contents of the bottom half of the box…. all the HOBBS products! I have to say, even as a returning Ambassador I was open mouthed at the variety and quantity of batting. And celebrating already, because there is one particular product amongst these that I have been itching to try. Yes, quilty itches are quite contagious and you are probably already infected. Sorry.

But since you now have nothing to lose, let’s have a closer look at everything!

Where to start?! Let’s talk batting.

HOBBS has been super generous with their batting samples, and I am overwhelmingly grateful to have all these products to work with. Last year I found the smaller HOBBS batting samples we were given were lovely but they weren’t big enough for several of my favoured Island Batik monthly project ideas. And because I like to optimise everything, considerable mental energy was burned in trying to come up to solutions to keep everyone happy. But in the end, Island Batik promotion had to trump HOBBS promotion, and several large quilts were made with other branded batting. Clearly I will not need be losing any sleep over this problem again for a while.

The products you can see in the foreground of the batting collection are (left) a silk-polyester blend in throw size (60″ sq) and (right) Thermore polyester batting (54″ x 45″). The silk blend is new to me and I am very curious to try it. The Theremore polyester batting I used last year for multiple wall hangings, a sewing machine dust cover and a table topper, and in the end I really really liked it. It is very stable and easy to work with. I found it resists being pulled out of square during free-motion quilting. It does have far more friction in free-motion stitching than cotton batting if you are quilting without a backing on, like I usually do for appliqué. But I got around this with an iron-on wash-away stabiliser underneath. And last year my sample smelt a little chemical for a day or two when I opened it. But this year the packaging popped open in transit and it has arrived already odour-free. Bonus! Joan of Moosestash quilting has more to add about Thermore here.

The crib-size cotton batting package balanced on the top of the pile is earmarked for April’s challenge, which is a baby quilt with Accuquilt. Perfect!

The three largest rolls, aka the HOBBS batting queens, left to right are: natural cotton batting on a scrim; bleached 80/20 cotton/polyester batting and 80/20 cotton/polyester black batting. Being all queen sized, I’ll have lots of freedom to create at will (THANK YOU HOBBS!). The first batting is the HOBBS version of my staple go-to batting. The scrim (a thin polyester film on the back side of the binding) means that this batting is stable enough for me to free-motion appliqué on it without a backing or a stabiliser, something I do pretty regularly. Scrims also prevent bearding, something I totally appreciate. The bleached batting is the same batting (but bleached white) as I used in my Shimmer Light, Shimmer Flight quilt. It does NOT like my appliqué abuse. But it does make a marvelously soft quilt, and I will use it in a more appropriate project now I know how it handles. Horses for courses, and I have plenty of ideas. Shocking I know!

And the black batting! What can I say?! I have been wanting to try this for several years, so I am squealing like a little girl getting a pony for Christmas…. ok only maybe as much as a little girl getting a toy pony for Christmas. But the fact remains that the competitors’ “black” batting products available here are most definitely grey. And a grey batting seems to me the worst of both worlds, with any bearding showing on light AND dark fabrics. As you can see, this batting is truly BLACK. Awesome!

Are you still here? I hope you have coffee!

Because we still have the fabric and thread to look at. Crazy huh?! Here are the rest of my box contents in more detail.

The Foundations

These are eight half yards of Island Batik Foundations fabrics. They are left to right, Ocean Cherio Blender, Turquoise Small Pointed Floral Blender, Periwinkle Basics, Periwinkle Bubbles Blender, Teal Basics, Blueberry Basics, Purple Basics and Storm Marble Blender. Remember that now. It will be important later.

There is other yardage in the box too….. black, white and grey solid colour batik-weight cottons. 3 yards each! I worked with these last year, and they are awesome. I love having these plain colours in the sleek, fray-resistant format I am used to for batik fabrics. I am secretly crossing all my extremities for Island Batik to add a few more of their popular colours to this range…. don’t you think that would be marvellous, to have a rainbow of solids like this in the same fabric as the batik prints and hand dyes?

The Precuts

Next I’ll show you two more Island Batik products you should definitely ask your local quilt shop to stock. Firstly, nestled at the bottom of this pile is a 5 yard cut of a lovely neutral fabric called Shaved Ice Snowman. This fabric comes from the very recently released Icicle collection.

And sitting on top of Shaved Ice Snowman are two packets of 5″ wide WOF strips. Each pack has 5 rolls of four strips each. These are an amazing way to make a scrappy looking quilt if you haven’t a big collection of scraps or stash. Being 5″ wide they are surprisingly versatile… you can use them for strips, squares, smallish appliqués, paper piecing. I foresee that these are going to work marvellously with the Accuquilt 8″ QUBE dies too. Whoop!

Here’s a closer look at the contents of one of those packets of strip rolls.

The Rayon

In my box there were also two pieces of rayon. A black scarf from the Sapphire collection and 2 yards of Think Pink rayon yardage.

Are you familiar with rayon? Rayon is a manufactured fibre, also known as a semi-synthetic. It is made from regenerated cellulose. It can be spun into many weights. The Island Batik rayon is luxurious – soft and flowing, perfect for scarves or drapey clothing. Not being a garment sewer myself, I will probably come up with an off-target use for my yardage, but that’s half the fun. In the meantime, it provides a really lovely backdrop for my 10 yo daughter’s latest crochet project finish. 🙂 Isn’t she getting quite talented?

More Precuts

Back on topic, it also makes a great backdrop for these pretties….. 10″ precut squares of Ditty fabrics plus 2 yards each of Apricot Paisley Tree and Custard Mini Dots.

Here are the 10″ squares with the plastic off…. do you recognise these fabrics perchance? Yes, I am using some of the Ditty squares to do the appliqués in my Love with a Twist quilt along samples and some Apricot Paisley Tree as sashing. I think these colours are perfect for a gentle but fun balloon animals quilt. I can’t wait to show you more as the year progresses.

And then there is the tease….. the Secret Fabrics

I will admit, I always feel a little awkward telling you that I have fabrics you can’t see. I am well aware that having the secret is always more fun than knowing that someone has a secret. As least when it is a secret as nice as pre-release fabrics.

But the secret fabrics must truly remain a secret until next Quilt Market. So as a consolation prize for sticking with me, I will tell you that my Foundations fabrics and Aurifil threads are, to some degree, colour coordinated with my secret fabrics…… Now your imaginations at least have something to work with. But don’t tell anyone I told you. Shhhhhh!

And that about wraps up our look at the Island Batik Ambassador supplies for the first half of the 2019 Ambassador year.

Getaway Prize Announcement

Before we go though, I do have one last Island Batik-related announcement. The winner of my Paisley Park fabric strips from the Getaway Blog Hop is:

Jean M from New Zealand, with her three wishes – Character, Kindness, Courtesy.

Congratulations, I have sent you an email Jean. Thank you to everyone who entered. I was amazed at some of the very thoughtful answers to my question and got smiles and laughs out of the witty ones. You all made my January.

My husband, who chose the winning entry on his idea of merit, also couldn’t help but add his two cents worth. He thought the Fairy God-Lizard should grant the wishes to the parents instead of the infant, and they should be: eyes that can see in two directions at once, a quick-witted tongue for endless Dad Jokes, and the ability to blend in and observe your kids unnoticed….. I think Paul possibly took his job of choosing traits a little too seriously, but they are very good answers, aren’t they? Luckily he was ineligible for the prize, and wouldn’t know what to do with it anyway!

And finally, don’t forget, it is actually Tuesday…..

From last week’s Colour & Inspiration party the Chameleon was very taken with Susan’s colours, Jen’s form and Andrée’s texture. Head over to their blogs to find out more.

I am hoping if you made it to the end of this mammoth post that you will also remember to join our weekly linky! It would be criminal not to have a party on a New Year’s Day. So let’s press ahead: What are you working on, or have recently finished in your sewing room? Link up a blog post, a Flicker pic, an IG post or simply a photo from your computer.  See if you can get the Chameleon to turn quilted with happiness. We’d love to see your quilting colours!

Guidelines

• Link up your latest or recent quilt/sewing excitement. All quilt construction stages welcome – finished quilts, quilt blocks – even fabric pulls! Or inspiration sources!
• You have 50 characters in the link description…. tell us who you are and what your fantastic project is.
• URL links are not necessary to link up…. non-bloggers 100% welcome! If you don’t have a URL, you can link up with just a photo.
• Take a moment to visit some friends who came to the party – leave a little love and make their day. And a link back to Clever Chameleon is always appreciated.
• Do it now……. before you forget!

[inlinkz_linkup id=815720 mode=1]

---

The Chameleon turns rainbow with pleasure when he hears from you. I am more reserved, so I will respond in gratitude by email instead. Now that it’s your turn…. Scroll right to the end, leave me a comment and tell me, what do you think? Thanks for connecting!

Would you like to keep in touch with Clever Chameleon and the fun quilty ideas I design as well as find all over the internet? You can follow directly for email updates, or through Bloglovin’, Pinterest, IG or FB. All your follow options can be found here. Don’t forget to link up all your current quilting projects on Tuesdays at our Colour & Inspiration Linky parties!