sewing event

All Texas Shop Hop: A Quilting Adventure Across the Lone Star State

This year, AllBrands.com Sew Contempo in Houston, TX, is participating in an event that no quilter or sewing enthusiast in Texas would want to miss—the All Texas Shop Hop. This annual event brings together quilt shops from across the entire state, inviting quilters to explore unique fabric collections, take part in special promotions, and be part of an exciting community celebration of all things quilting.

The Joy of Hopping

The beauty of the Shop Hop is that it’s a self-paced adventure, and quilters can visit as many participating quilt shops as they like over the course of the event. Each shop will have its own unique offerings, including special fabric collections, exclusive kits, and discounts on merchandise, making it a treasure hunt for quilting enthusiasts. For many, the joy comes from exploring new shops they’ve never visited before and meeting other passionate quilters along the way.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced quilter, the All Texas Shop Hop is an opportunity to be inspired, discover new products, and gather ideas for your next quilting project. In addition, each shop often has its own unique flair, offering not just fabrics, but workshops, demonstrations, and sometimes even local delicacies to sample.

How Does the All Texas Shop Hop Work?

Here’s a simple rundown of how to participate in the All Texas Shop Hop in stores from March 1-April 30, 2025:

Sign Up: To participate, quilters can sign up online or at participating shops for the event, which usually takes place over a span of several weeks. Some events might have online registration options, while others prefer in-store sign-ups.
Get Your Passport: Upon signing up, participants typically receive a “passport” or booklet, which lists all of the participating quilt shops and the event details. This passport acts as your guide, and at each shop, you’ll get a stamp or sticker to mark your visit.
Explore and Shop: Visit as many participating shops as you can during the event’s duration. Each store will have different deals, themed products, and exclusive offers for hop participants.
Win Prizes: As you hop from store to store, you can enter to win fantastic prizes, such as fabric bundles, gift cards, sewing machines, and more. Some events even feature grand prizes for those who visit the most stores or complete special challenges during the hop.
Share the Fun: Many quilters enjoy the social aspect of the Shop Hop, sharing their experiences, tips, and project ideas with fellow participants on social media or in quilting groups. You can often find Shop Hop hashtags to follow along with the event.

The All Texas Shop Hop is much more than just a shopping event; it’s a celebration of quilting, creativity, and community. Whether you’re looking to expand your fabric stash, make new friends, or win some amazing prizes, this event offers something for everyone. So grab your passport, hit the road, and join in the fun during the next All Texas Shop Hop! We look forward to seeing you at the Allbrands.com store in Houston, Texas.

Sewing Group Bands Together for Australia Wildfire Relief

Checklist of needed supplies for the Animal Rescue Collective Crafters’ Guild from January 4, 2020.

Sewing groups aren’t just a way to make friends, but can also be a way to make a difference in the local community. Now with the rise of social media, the world is more interconnected than ever. In the wake of tragedy small groups can make a difference not just locally, but all across the globe.

Since September 2019, devastating wildfires have ravaged Australia, destroying homes and decimating ecosystems across the country. According to ecologist Chris Dickman, over a billion animals have died since these fires have started. If you’ve been active on any social media platform these last four months, you’ve likely seen many images of injured animals rescued from the devastation. Being so far away from such a large environmental disaster, it can feel like Americans can’t make a difference in a tangible way.

While the situation is dire, folks around the world are coming together not only raise money, but to create and donate resources. Rescue centers in Australia are in urgent need of bat wraps, joey pouches, and blankets to help those animals who were able to make it out of the fires. The Animal Rescue Collective Craft Guild, located in Australia, is working with wildlife groups and crafters around the world to get these desperately needed supplies.

Australian rescues desperately need joey pouches for rescued animals. As the name suggests, these pouches can fit joeys, or baby kangaroos. They mimic kangaroo pouches where young joeys rest until they’re old enough to fend for themselves. According to the Animal Rescue Collective Craft Guild, will help not just those baby kangaroos, but also sugar gliders, possums, koalas, and wallabies. The patterns for the pouches were shared on various social media platforms and can be scaled up or down to create different sizes for different animals.

*One member of a local sewing group, who met in our Baton Rouge location, creates joey pouches to be sent directly to Australia.*

One such group came together this Thursday at our Baton Rouge location to help with relief efforts. This sewing group in particular met in our Baton Rouge location in 2013. Now, almost 7 years later, the group is still getting together and sewing regularly. A local wildlife organization has been reaching out to businesses in the Baton Rouge area to ask for any help in sending resources almost 10,000 miles away to Australia. One customer got wind of the need for help and assembled her sewing group to help. Thursday the group came together to make joey pouches of all shapes and sizes to send directly to local rescues in Australia. The ladies worked on several pouches on our Brother Dream Machines in our sew studio.

These ladies donated supplies and so can you! Patterns for these pouches are available here, so please pass the patterns on or make your own pouches! In a time of serious environmental disaster you can make a difference like these customers did.

Events You Don’t Want To Miss

Mark your calendars for these great sewing and embroidery events! Join us for some very unique tips and tricks to help you create your one of a kind master piece. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to gain valuable knowledge and experience in sewing, quilting, embroidery and more. Leave inspired with new unique techniques, projects, memories, and most of all, make new friends. You’ll learn the secrets and tips to stitch like a pro. You will be inspired with new techniques and projects that are easy, exciting, fabulous, and fun. You will be part of a very special event like none that you’ve ever experienced.

Coming Up: