Introducing: Past & Present!

It's been a big week for Design*Sponge managing editor Amy Azzarito. Her first book, Past & Present: 24 Favorite Moments in Decorative Arts History and 24 Modern DIY Projects Inspired by Them, has hit stores, and we couldn't be more excited!

Today is especially thrilling—Amy is on on Grace Bonney's After The Jump podcast this morning, and her book launch party kicks off tonight at West Elm Broadway! If you're in the New York area, make sure to stop by from 6-8 PM EST for food and cocktails, and to see 10 DIY craft projects from designers who contributed to the book, including Grace Bonney, Erica Domesek, and Confettisystem (RSVP on Facebook here).

We hope to see you there!

STC Craft at QuiltCon: A Recap

Here at STC Craft, we're excited about the modern quilting movement as it's attracting all sorts of different crafters to the quilting world. When we heard that the Modern Quilt Guild was organizing a conference for quilters, we were immediately on board.

QuiltCon, which was held in Austin, Texas last weekend, brought together some of the biggest stars in contemporary stitching. Fittingly, the keynote speaker was designer, STC Craft author, and "mother of modern quilting" Denyse Schmidt, whose stunning quilts were featured in a special exhibit that we were proud to sponsor.

STC Craft was also represented by Heather Ross, who captivated crowds with her demo; Joelle Hoverson, who judged the show's quilt competition; and our own Melanie Falick, who offered her unique insight during a panel on craft book publishing.

You can check out more of our photos on Facebook, and for a full recap of the show, we recommend Meg Cox's excellent newsletter feature. Our final thought on QuiltCon? We hear there will be another one in 2015. Count us in!

What Do(odle) You See?

Created by Dawn "The Doodle Queen" Sokol, Art Doodle Love is an interactive fill-in book full of prompts that will motivate you to discover yourself while developing your artistic skills. The pages provide fun, colorful backdrops that are sure to jumpstart your creativity.

Eager to put markers to paper, we picked a prompt from the book (shown above) and challenged some people around the office to let their creative juices flow, doodling what they saw within the splotches and drips. We were amazed by the different ways each person interpreted and altered the page.

For instance, as in real life, I'll try to make cake out of anything:

STC Craft Senior Editor Liana Allday's cute partygoers search for their missing friend:

Ellie Levine, our STC Craft Marketing Manager, channeled Palm Springs:

 

And Lindley Boegehold, our Director of Calendars and Licensing, took some inspiration from the farm:

And now it's your turn...what do you see in the splotches and drips? Click here to download the sample page we used and get creative! We'll be putting together a photo gallery of creations from Art Doodle Love, so be sure to take photos of this or any of your doodled pages from the book and upload them to Twitter or Instagram with the tag #artdoodlelove.

And if our "professional" doodles above aren't enough of a draw (pun intended), watch artist Mindy Lacefield doodle her way through the book in this amazing video:

We can't wait to see where your pen takes you!

A Day of Love and Friendship (and Crafts, of Course)

Kaffe Fassett: Dreaming in Color

It's that time of year again where seemingly everything is saturated in shades of red punctuated with hearts and flowers. While I do love the vibrant decor, I have to admit that Valentine's Day has never been particularly appealing to me in the traditional sense. Instead, I choose to celebrate the more inclusive Mexican iteration, El día del amor y la amistad ("the day of love and friendship"), a day where you show your affection for everyone you like best! Naturally, my version also involves crafting (bonus points if it takes place in a blanket fort, like this one courtesy of Comfort Knitting and Crochet: Afghans).

Comfort Knitting and Crochet: Afghans

Crafting with your friends is a great way to get together and catch up on each others' lives, as well as some projects that have been languishing in a basket. Whether you want to keep it easy like this quick and festive hat from Weekend Knitting...

Weekend Knitting

...or let your togetherness inspire you to take on something more challenging, like vintage dresses from Gertie's New Book for Better Sewing, nothing promotes closeness like creating something side-by-side.

Gertie's New Book for Better Sewing

So whatever you end up doing, we hope your day is filled with fun (and maybe a hand-crafted item or two). Happy Valentine's Day!

Get Inspired With Our Spring Book Galleries!

Past & Present by Amy Azzarito

Although it still feels like winter out there, we’re so excited to present photo galleries for our spring book list! Get ready to:

Learn new shaping techniques with Lynne Barr:

The Shape of Knitting by Lynne Barr

Flatter your body shape with Amy Herzog:

Knit to Flatter by Amy Herzog

Create a fresh, new quilt project with color wizard Kaffe Fassett:

Kaffe Fassett Quilts Shots and Stripes by Kaffe Fassett and Liza Prior Lucy

Get creative with pen and paper with Dawn Sokol:

Art Doodle Love by Dawn Sokol

Feed your inner history buff with decorative arts-inspired DIY from Amy Azzarito:

Past & Present by Amy Azzarito

And fire up a kiln with our first ceramics title from the inimitable Simon Leach:

Simon Leach's Pottery Handbook by Simon Leach with Bruce Dehnert

Click-through above to enjoy more inspiring photos, and make sure to keep an eye out for these titles, coming soon to bookstores near you!