Ways to Stay Connected Online...

Wow! I am heading into 9th year of blogging! I began this blog as a way of documenting my quilt finishes, creative process, and quilting journey. At first I had a readership of 2: my partner Doug and my mother! Over the years, I gathered the courage to share the link with a few quilting friends, who in turn shared my blog posts with their friends... As my quilt teaching business has grown, I've added a few new ways to share my quilting adventures with a larger audience: website, monthly newsletter, and social media.

Of course, I love connecting with quilters in person at guild meetings, workshops, and quilt shows. Unfortunately, the current COVID-19 pandemic prevents these in-person gatherings and connections, so I thought I would share ways we can stay connected and inspired...

1. My Website: www.melbeachquilts.com

My website is packed with up-to-date information including:

• My welcome page with exciting updates/announcements
• Gallery of quilts sorted by technique/style (with each quilt linked back to its corresponding blog post for more information)
• Teaching page where you can learn more about my workshops and lectures, pricing, workshop samples, and supply lists.
• Schedule of upcoming teaching engagements
• Blog
• About Page to learn more about me including my quilting awards/honors, television segments, published articles, published quilts, interviews, and professional affiliations. 
• Contact to find ways to contact or follow me, including a contact form.

Feel free to share my website with your quilting friends and program chairs, as that helps me get teaching invitations all around the country.

2. Subscribe to My Monthly Newsletter

On the first Saturday of each month, I send out an email newsletter that is packed with quilting tips and inspiration. Each month features a different topic and includes a round-up of my latest content/posts, quilt related resources and links, list of quilt challenges, my upcoming teaching engagements, and sneak peaks into my studio. You can sign up to join my mailing list and catch up on archived issues. Please forward to your fellow quilting friends and encourage them to sign up. And I greatly enjoy when subscribers hit reply to leave me comments/questions (and yes! I do reply to those messages.)

3. Visit My Piece, Love & Happiness Blog-->You are here now (either on my blog or via email!!)

This is where I share more in-depth information regarding my latest quilt finishes and teaching adventures. I strive to share more about the "method behind my madness" through the inclusion of step-by-step photos (when I remember to pause and take photos), helpful resources and links, as well as lessons learned in the process. You can catch up on past blog posts in my archive (right column) and/or use the search button (top right).

You can follow my blog by saving it as a bookmark and visiting it from time to time to catch up on new blog posts, OR subscribe to have new blog posts sent directly to your email inbox by going to my blog and clicking on the Subscribe button (enter your email and follow the prompts).  

I especially love it when readers leave comments and/or hit reply to share their thoughts. Unfortunately, I've discovered a glitch where some email replies are not getting through to me (especially among my long-term subscribers who joined under a different subscription service). 

When you hit reply to my blog posts sent via email, you should see the email address below...

Newer Glitch-Free Subscription Service

If you hit reply (or hover your pointer/cursor over the email) and see "noreply@blogger.com" in the To Field, that means you signed up with an older subscription service and those email replies are going into some void that will never reach me.

Glitch with Older Subscription Service

If you receive the "noreply@blogger.com" email reply address, here are two quick and easy steps you can take to resolve the glitch:

Step 1: Unsubscribe from the old subscription service by scrolling down to the end of the blog post email and click "Unsubscribe"

Step 1: Unsubscribe from Older Subscription Service

Step 2: Join the new Subscription service by going to my blog and clicking Subscribe (at the top left).

Feel free to test it out by hitting reply and I will message you back with some quilting inspiration!!

4. Follow Me on Instagram: @melbeachquilts

I strive to post regularly to my Instagram account, including my daily 100 Day Project blocks, upcoming workshop announcements, studio tours, virtual trunk shows, unboxing videos, and free-motion quilting demos. Feel free to tap on the heart and/or add a comment (as it provides me with wonderful feedback and helps to boost my post for others to discover!) Oh and if you click on the link posted in my profile, it will take you to a webpage that includes helpful links (online course registration links, newsletter, social media channels, and fun announcements).

5. Like or Follow Me on Facebook: Mel Beach Quilts

While there is a lot of overlap between the content I post to both my Facebook Business page and Instagram platforms, there is some variation. In Facebook it is easier to share interesting articles and resources, while Instagram is great for posting my daily 100 Day Project pics. If you are on Facebook, I invite you to like and/or follow my business page, so you are more likely to receive my posts in your feed. Of course you can leave me feedback about my posts by using the facebook reactions (thumb up, heart, wow, etc), leaving a comment, and/or sharing the post to your page and/or other Facebook groups, as this helps me connect with other quilters that may enjoy my content.

I look forward to staying connected and hopefully providing you with some quilting inspiration throughout this pandemic! And I look forward to when it will be safe to gather and connect in person again!!