Our first Merchant & Mills Community Preorder for 2026 is officially in Sprucedale and we're starting to chip away at cutting and prepping your orders. The new colourful jacquards and denims are truly special, sometimes the original photos don't do them justice. Take a peek at my unboxing video and stay tuned for more detailed shots and videos so you can really see the qualities up close.
We wrapped up a very special Handmade Getaway last weekend, our first of the year, a custom booking by a group of quilt guild friends from Quebec. They arrived Thursday, hit the ground sewing Friday morning, and didn't stop until Sunday. We added in a mini longarm lesson that resulted in three small quilts being fully quilted in a single afternoon. To say they left over the moon is an understatement. Being able to demystify any corner of sewing for the people who come through this space - that's the whole point for me.
Monday marked the official start of our March Scraps Challenge. We had a wonderful Zoom conversation about our individual systems and non-systems around fabric scraps and how we manage them. Our next two sessions will focus on Scrap Projects and Improv Patchwork. It's still the perfect time to join, get access to Monday's recording, and find us in the online space where we're already sharing project ideas and prompts for the month. We meet again this Monday at 7pm. Join us here!
There's a lot happening! Read on.
Karyn
p.s. If you are part of the community preorder for Merchant & Mills - all those orders will start shipping out on Monday and through next week (if you've got a Weekender project kit). If there's anything else you want added to your delivery - just use the code IFORGOT to remove the shipping fee and flag your order as an Add On.
Weekender Bag Community Sew Along! We just opened up the online space for the Weekender Bag Sew Along and we've started by posting some tips for working with dry oilskin - such as having a tool like the Bamboo Point Turner to press and crease your fabric since you can't use a hot iron on it.
We're building the project kits this weekend with the Khaki dry oilskin and barrier lining. Take a peek at the Fern Hardware Kit above - These unique zips, leather tabs and G-Hooks are professional details that will truly make this bag project extra special.
The Sew Along is free for members of the workroom studio community, but anyone else can grab a copy of the pattern (and a kit) and register here - I can't wait to see dozens of these Weekenders come together all at once.
Sewing Machine Essentials Starting March 31st The thing that surprises people most about this class isn't the tension module or finally understanding presser feet. It's realizing how much easier everything else gets once the machine stops feeling like a mystery. When you're not bracing for something to go wrong, you sew differently.
Sewing Machine Essentials is six weeks, virtual, short focused lessons plus weekly live Zoom calls where you can bring any question, revisit anything that didn't click, or just hear it explained a different way. We'll be covering threading, tension, stitches, presser feet, precision techniques, and simple maintenance. You get lifetime access to everything.
HANDMADE WARDROBE ESSENTIALS Clearly this class struck a chord! It filled up in just a couple days. So, we've booked a second session for everyone who is looking to set up some good foundational garment making skills. Two sessions · April 18 & 25 · 9–11am EST Online via Zoom Session 1 - Monday April 18 · Before You Cut Reading a size chart and finished garment measurements · understanding ease · tools that actually help · pattern prep (tracing vs. cutting vs. PDF) · understanding your cutting layout · open conversation and questions
Session 2 - Saturday April 25 · From Cut to Ready to Sew Laying out your fabric carefully · pins vs. pattern weights · scissors vs. rotary cutter · efficient cutting · marking notches and darts · pre-finishing and serging · open conversation and questions
I'll be using the Merchant & Mills Cassidy Jumpsuit as my demo pattern throughout the April Session. If you'd like to follow along, it's available from us in PDF, wide format print, and paper versions.
SEWING WITH KNITS : SWEATSHIRTS Knits have a reputation they don't deserve. Once you know how to handle them, on a sewing machine or a serger, they're actually some of the quickest, most satisfying projects you can make. T-shirts, joggers, leggings, sweatshirts. The kind of things you reach for every day.
Our Linden Sweatshirt class starts tomorrow. All you need is the pattern in hand for week one. We'll go through sizing and prep before we pick up the machine in week two.
After that we move into Structured Sweatshirts, the Named Sloane with its beautiful dart detail, or the Merchant & Mills Sidney if you want something oversized and boxy. Two very different sweatshirts, both completely doable once knits stop feeling like the enemy.
Merchant & Mills : Coloured Denims & Sanded Twills The coloured denims and sanded twills in this delivery are exactly the kind of fabric that makes you want to plan something ambitious. (and a bit fun) Our next session of Harlene Overalls starts next week and if you've been thinking about a pair of jeans or a Paynter jacket, the timing couldn't be better.
Also in this shipment: those three new cotton jacquards, plus the dry oilskin and barrier cloth lining we've been waiting on for the Weekender Bag Sew Along.
Right now just the Jade Green Denim has already sold out. For me, that Terracotta colour is the sleeper hit. It's much more soft and pretty in person. New Ginger Jeans or Quinn Trousers? I can't decide.
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