Black Friday Sale 2019

Get ready to squeal... our biggest sale of the year is here, with up to 40% off sewing goodies!

We have discounts on patterns, books and kits make sure you check out these very special offers. You can build your stash, or give the gift of sewing to somebody else this Christmas - you decide : )

The Black Friday sewing goodies sale must end Monday 2 December midnight GMT, so don't miss out!

Happy Shopping!

Author: Louise Carmichael
Photos: Jane Looker

Our First Fabric Collection is Coming Soon!

I’m pinching myself as I’m writing this… We are excited to tell you that we are launching our first fabric collection in a few weeks’ time!

You may have already seen an announcement about this on Instagram a while back, and today I’m here to share with you all the details about these gorgeous fabrics - and let you know that pre-orders are officially open :)

Get ready to be excited – not only are they cotton jerseys, but they are organic – yasss!

This all started in February of this year when we were approached by the Craft Cotton Company (part of Viscount Textiles) and asked if we would be interested in working on a fabric line together. The idea of doing Tilly and the Buttons fabrics had been a “someday” dream project for me… until that day when it suddenly jumped up the “to do” list.

I knew right away at that meeting that this was a great company to partner with. They had so much enthusiasm for our brand and were just really nice and genuine. I love working with people who are authentic and passionate about what they do – not just going through the motions. The Craft Cotton Company pride themselves on creating high quality fabrics at great value prices. They were keen to get a TATB collection just right, and embraced my perfectionist tendencies throughout the development process :)

Ten Tips For Sewing A Wool Coat

What do we want? Coats! When do we want them? Now!

Personally, I find one of the only consolations of the weather getting a bit chilly is wearing - and making - a lovely, snuggly coat. However, making a coat usually involves sewing with some kind of wool, or wool-type coating, which is a material lots of sewists will be unfamiliar with, and can therefore seem a little bit intimidating. The good news is it's so much easier to work with a coating fabric than you'd think - yay!

Before we get started, let's talk a bit about coating fabric. Coating refers to fabric suitable for coat or jacket making. There are loads of different coating options available - you can buy a 100% wool coating or a blend with one or more different materials, such as viscose (rayon) or polyester. You also can also buy coating fabrics without any wool content whatsoever. Our Eden coat kits come with a super soft wool type fabric which also makes them vegan friendly :)

There are quite a few different coating options out there so if you're ordering online I'd advise to order a swatch of fabric so you can have a closer look before purchasing.  If you want a bit more info on the different types of coatings available, such as boiled wool, cashmere or boucle, check out our fabric suggestions blog post for our fave coat pattern ever, the Eden coat and jacket.

Whilst sewing a winter coat is quite time consuming it's totally worth it for the amount of wear you'll get out of it, as you can wear it all autumn and winter long. Actually, if cared for properly (and not nibbled at by hungry moths!) a good coat can last for many years. That's a lot of opportunites for you to proudly say "why yes, I made it myself".

So, are you ready to learn some top tips about sewing with wool coating? Let's get cracking.

Make It Simple: The inspiration behind my forthcoming book

Have you ever caught yourself saying, “I’d love to sew, but I don’t have time”?

Me too. As a business owner and mum to a toddler, I don’t have big chunks of free time to sew. My week is divided between being in the office and being at home playing with my energetic little boy, and, once he’s in bed, quite frankly I’m wiped out! After he was born, I went through a spell of not sewing at all. But I soon missed my hobby and passion, so I decided to question the story I was telling myself about not having time to sew and reframe my thinking to make it achievable.

This was the inspiration behind my new book. I’m excited to be able to share the cover with you today!

Make It Simple will be out in February 2020, published by Quadrille (Hardie Grant). You can order it now from Amazon or pre-order a signed copy from our online shop. As you may know, pre-orders are so important for a book as they show potential stockists that the demand is there – and, in turn, help keep the book in stock so it’s available to more people. If you are able to pre-order my book, I’d be extremely grateful :)

Pitch over, let’s talk about what the book is all about and what you’re going to get out of it…



My goal in writing Make It Simple was to help you fit more creativity into your life, no matter what you’ve got going on.

The book is jam-packed full of my trusted time-saving tactics and secret shortcuts to make it easier for you to get your sewing fix.

Moreover, it features 24 gorgeous garment projects that you can whip up in a few hours, from a classic T shirt to a pretty playsuit, a cosy cardigan to an office-ready shift dress, comfy PJs to a stylish pinafore. They’re all easy to make, simple to fit, with no fiddly bits, and extremely wearable. I am obsessed with these patterns and hope you’ll love them too! I can't wait to share some sneaks of the patterns with you a bit nearer the launch.