Christa Quilts Clearance (and a little bit of store history soap-boxing…)

October 29, 2013May 15, 201429 Comments

I’ve been spending the last few weeks organizing and minimalizing, both my sewing space and my online store. I’ve had a blast selling fabrics online for the last 10 years. (Where has the time gone?) But as I’ve been hinting over the last few months, it’s time to change directions.

Teaching FMQ techniques – gotta love it!

I’m not necessarily having an all-out going-out-of-business sale because I am most certainly not going out of business. I’m just shifting my focus, and modern quilting is to blame, but in a good way.:-)

So here’s the thing: I thought I would be content to run my little online shop forever, selling all styles of quilting cottons to whomever would buy. I stocked calicoes and batiks, fun novelty prints, some solids and big name designers, plus a few modern lines.

However, it was a joke around here that “Christa Doesn’t Quilt” because all I did for several years was cut fabric and package orders. Mind you, I was very content doing this. It was a small scale thing and something I could handle in my spare time. But I wasn’t quilting (after taking up the hobby nearly 20 years ago).

Jason helping to set up my new workspace so I can sew to my heart’s content!

Enter the modern movement, which has totally rocked my world! All of a sudden I was pumped up about quilting again and I wasn’t the youngest one in the (quilting) room anymore. All these fresh sewers were making these amazingly bold and simple quilts that I wanted – no, needed – to make!

They were using solids that showed off their beautiful quilting and they were coming up with original designs that appealed to me big time. Not only that, but they were blogging, setting up modern groups left and right, sharing their work, and getting published. I simply had to be a part of it!

Reading the email notifying me of my MQX honorable mention for String of Pearls. What a happy day that was!

So, I quickly and somewhat painfully sat down with Jason and we had a big chat about my “quilting future”. I finally came to the conclusion that what I really wanted to do was design and make quilts! Using our accounting backgrounds, we crunched some numbers and decided we could go one of two ways.

(1) We could either find warehouse space and get really big and not work from home anymore and hire managers and become a huge online store. (2) Or, we could clear out all of our store yardage (which is labor intensive to cut, package and ship) and find other ways to supplement our income.

Meeting with fabric sales reps at home. Yes, I love orange shirts!

We I chose the latter. I started designing, teaching, and showing my quilts again, and I’ve never been happier. In addition, I took the bold and scary move to start submitting my work for publication. And it’s started working.

All of this backstory is basically to tell you I’m having a huge clearance sale so I can clear out my entire inventory of yardage and fat quarters (plus all patterns, gifts and notions). I’m sure it will take several months to sell out and that’s fine. We aren’t going anywhere, so it’s not like it all needs to be gone this weekend (though that would be nice).

I love to sew – don’t you?

I thank you in advance for your support, and I really appreciate that I can blog on a more personal level than what I can express in my weekly store email. Blogging for me has been very therapeutic and has enabled me to articulate my quilting vision and share it with others. 🙂

Click here to view my entire clearance section – about 600+ items are on sale (over half the store), anywhere from 20% – 50% off the original prices. It includes FREE US shipping, too!

Thanks for reading and happy shopping!

Christa’s Soap Box – I am a minimalist. And organizing is good.

October 18, 2013October 17, 201329 Comments

I didn’t realize how much of a minimalist I have become until I started dejunking and reorganizing my sewing room big time! Remember this picture?

This was about half of my stash that I got rid of simply because I can’t stand excess. (Sorry they are gone now but I’m sure in a few months I will need to dejunk again!)

So I started thinking about events in my life in which I get overwhelmed by choices and clutter. For example, back in the day when you would go to the video store (instead of watching videos on demand or by mail) I would never pick out movies. Instead I always left it up to my husband – there were simply too many choices! (Thank goodness he likes a good comedy and will watch a decent chick flick with me.)

Stack of Yummy Solids

I’ve started comparing my lifestyle to my fabric and quilting choices and maybe the reason I love solids so much is because they are so simple. They are just pure color without any busy-ness.

Early on in our marriage we had some tight living arrangements. Before we had kids, Jason and I lived for a time in a small trailer on his parents’ property and then for several months in a motorhome. We really figured out then what we could do without!

A smaller, tidy stash.

So I’m always dejunking and getting rid of things. I figure if I accidentally throw something out, I can just buy it again. But to store too many things in the hope of one day using them – no thanks!

I think one of the reason negative spaces in quilts appeal to me is because it’s calming and gives your eyes a place to rest without the clutter. Sure I will fill up all that space with quilting, but that’s just an extra layer of subtle texture which gives life to the quilt.

Look at all that white space!

One of the best pieces of advice I ever heard about controlling clutter was from a home-making class at church. (I get more then just spiritual fulfillment there – bonus!)

The speaker said to take all of your personal mementos you want to keep and store them in one box only. If you are hanging onto items for family members, kindly give them back as soon as you can. And finally, put everything you don’t use/want in a box. If you haven’t touched it in a year, you can live without it. Words to live by!

Lots of organizing going on around here!

Recently, we’ve been having the kids dejunk their rooms and started installing shelving and organizing closets. It’s sort of in my best interest as I have been slowing moving all of their creative supplies out of my sewing space and into their own bedroom corners. 🙂

Gotta Love Shelves!

Does anyone else run into the problem of starting one project only for it to quickly overwhelm the entire house? I do, but I’m working through it one room at a time. Hopefully in a few weeks I’ll be able to have a “sewing room reveal” which will leave me more organized, efficient and ready to work!

Christa’s Soap Box – Why I am Not a Longarmer

October 1, 2013September 30, 201327 Comments

At my guild’s annual quilting retreat I attended this past weekend, I made an important discovery about why I am not a longarmer – my arms are not long enough, LOL!

You need long arms to be a long-armer.

During the retreat, I hung out with many of my BQF’s (Best Quilting Friends), including the amazing talented long-armer and nationally award winning quilter Cory Allender. (That’s quite a few adjective for one sentence). 🙂

She told me how she made the switch from quilting on her domestic machine to a long arm because her hands and fingers kept getting in the way. So I quickly snapped a picture to compare our hand sizes. Holy cow – what a difference!

Hand size really does matter!

I honestly have tried to quilt on a long arm. I’ve taken classes with Angela Walters, tried out machines every time I attended a quilt show, and seriously chatted with Lisa Sipes about getting a long arm when I was in the market for a new machine.

However, no matter how I tried, or what I adjusted, I always felt like I was driving a tank. It also doesn’t help that I’m only 5′ tall.

I love my Bernina!

So now that I’m pretty comfortable machine quilting on my Bernina, I am happy to say that I’m proud of being a domestic machine quilter. After all, it doesn’t really matter how you (or other people) quilt your quilts, so long as you have fun doing it!

One more thing: I recently discovered a fabulous blog by Amy Johnson of Free-Motion Quilting Adventures. She actually machine quilts on her domestic machine using long-arm rulers. How fantastic – I must find out more and try that out for myself, soon!

Free Motion Curved Crosshatch Quilting with Long Arm Ruler
Image Courtesy of Amy K. Johnson

Thanks, You Guys – I am Officially De-Stashed!

September 7, 201313 Comments

Thanks so much to everyone who helped me de-stash yesterday. I couldn’t believe the response! I spent all day Friday going through my stash, packing it up and shipping it out. I sent out a total of 33 flat rate boxes worth of Stash and it feels great!

Boxes of Stash

For those of you that missed out, there is still good news for you. I am sort of doing the same thing with my store inventory, but not quite as dramatic. Right now I have over 800 fabrics on clearance, until they sell out. They are anywhere from 20% to 50% off so you can still get your fabric fix for cheap. 🙂

Click here for my store clearance section – over 800 items on sale!

Part of all this fabric cleansing is to make way for changes in my quilting direction, both personally and professionally. I recently realized I need to redo my sewing studio to make it more comfortable and useable.

Stash – Before

Step one is cleaning and organizing my stash. I’m waiting for those mini cardboard fabric organizers to arrive so that I can make make the most of my shelf space.

Stash Cleansing

Step two is setting up a better design wall. Right now I have a small portable flannel wall and it’s just not cutting it – I need more space for designing!

Stash – After

Step three is cleaning up my store to make it more focused and efficient. The less time I need to spend working, the more sewing and designing time I will have.

I really live by the philosophy that less is more. In other words, the less clutter I have, the more quilts I’ll be able to make!

New Stash to Wash

Now I’m off to spend the morning washing and ironing this lovely pile of fabrics since I have room for them once again. 🙂

40 Is…

August 17, 2013August 15, 201326 Comments

I recently read a blog post written by the lovely and talented Jennifer of Ellison Lane.

She titled her post This is 38: A Look at Middle Life and she made a list of things that came to mind.

That really inspired me, and since I’m a couple of years older than she is, I thought I’d write my own version, so here goes:

40 is….

Happy to be married with kids that are old enough to feed and clean themselves.
Being ok with the oncoming grey and a little relieved that it hasn’t taken over yet.
Lamenting with my hubby that he’s losing hair in places he doesn’t want, and I’m getting it in places it shouldn’t be!
Embracing the new direction in my quilting career and enjoying the child-like excitement I feel with every little success.
Old enough to think I am wise, but young enough to realize I still don’t know it all.
Finally being able to afford the car I want, the sewing machine I want…(the debt I don’t want, LOL!!)
Not being ashamed of mixing my personal life with my professional life and blogging about all of it.
So much better than 30 and even 20!

I’m sure I could think of many more if I tried. Here’s to more love, life and happiness in the next decade. 🙂

My Happy Family

Christa’s Soap Box – Modern Quilters Make Quilting Cool

August 9, 2013August 9, 20138 Comments

Well, actually, I have always thought quilting is awesome, but I love that the modern quilting movement has made quilting seem hip, urban, and ultimately cool. 🙂

Untitled by Kayli Taylor and Sarah Oviatt, Modern Quilt Shown at HMQS Exhibit 2013

In my recent blog posts here and here, there have a been a bunch of discussions about modern quilting. In fact several of my blog followers have asked me how I would define modern quilting, so I thought I would try. Remember, these are my opinions and of course you are also entitled to your own, even if we disagree. 🙂

Jumbo Star by Kati Spencer of Salt Lake MQG, Shown at HMQS 2013

To me, modern quilting is part attitude, part aesthetic. If you think you are a modern quilter then you are, no matter what “style” of quilts you like to make. I think technology plays a huge role in the spread of quilting in general because we are no longer limited geographically. I have sewing friends all over the world, and what one blogger may discover in the Netherlands, her fellow blogging buddy in Japan may carry over to her sewing friends in her (or his) country. How cool!

A-maze-ing by Karen Atkinson, Desert Quilters of Nevada Quilt Show 2013

As far as aesthetics, the look of modern quilting runs the gambit from highly traditional to very artistic. You can make hand pieced, hand quilted modern quilts as well as machine pieced, quilted, and bound modern quilts.

In Defense of Handmade by Thomas Knauer and Lisa Sipes, QuiltCon 2013

And whenever someone comes up with a “rule” for what modern quilting is, someone else is sure to break it. I have seen modern quilts with borders, made from low-contrast fabrics and small scale calicoes, the use of feather quilting and batiks; all characteristics that just a year ago modern quilting “wasn’t”.

New Star Rising by Ben Darby – Modern Traditionalism from QuiltCon 2013

I think modern quilting is very inclusive rather than exclusive. Sure, you can have wonky piecing and improvisational styles, but that is not an excuse for poor workmanship. Modern quilts are meant to be functional rather than being seen as priceless heirlooms, but that doesn’t mean a beautiful quilt hanging on a wall has no purpose – its function is art.

For those of you that would really feel better with a concrete definition, here is how the Modern Quilt Guild defines modern quilts. Notice that it is not an absolute, but rather an evolving definition.

“Modern quilts are primarily functional and inspired by modern design. Modern quilters work in different styles and define modern quilting in different ways, but several characteristics often appear which may help identify a modern quilt. These include, but are not limited to: the use of bold colors and prints, high contrast and graphic areas of solid color, improvisational piecing, minimalism, expansive negative space, and alternate grid work. “Modern traditionalism” or the updating of classic quilt designs is also often seen in modern quilting.”

Modern Quilt Blocks by Christa Watson, Pile O’Fabric Skillbuilder BOM

Not everyone is going to like all modern quilts, just as not everyone will like all quilt styles in general. The important things to remember is that there is room for everyone, and modern quilting is such a boon to the entire quilting industry which I, for one, am truly grateful for!

Christa’s Soap Box – An Anniversary Of Sorts…

August 3, 201324 Comments

I know everyone loves to celebrate their blogging anniversary or quilting anniversary or what have you. Today I’m celebrating my 1 year anniversary of officially considering myself a modern quilter. (Granted, I’ve been actually quilting more or less for the pass 18 years, but the 17 years prior to discovering modern quilting was just “practice!”)

It was just a year ago that I discovered the modern quilt movement, decided to attend QuiltCon and started blogging on a regular basis. I recently joined the Modern Quilt Guild and it’s so exciting to be part of such of a vibrant community.

I’ve been in love with quilting from the moment I picked up a needle and thread. But there’s just something about the clean lines, bold colors, and sleek aesthetic of modern quilting that really appeals to me.

Sure, I still love traditional quilts, art quilts, practical quilts, show quilts… heck ANY quilts! I love the stories behind the makers and the art of the cloth. Over the years I always had this inner voice telling me to “find my niche” with my quilting. Was it paper piecing? Decadent multi-pointed star quilts? How about retro and repro quilts? Easy quilts? Novelty quilts?

I liked them all, but none of the styles ever beckoned to me in such a way as modern quilting has done. Sure, my tastes may still lean a bit toward the “modern traditionalism” side of things, but even that is evolving.

I literally get a pounding in my heart when I think of all the possibilities of modern quilting. Part of the reason for me putting on the designer’s hat is because I just have to get all these ideas onto paper and made into cloth!

In fact, I’ve probably been more serious about my quilting in the last year than I have in the previous nearly 2 decades of sewing. Part of me wishes I had discovered modern quilting earlier. In the last year I’ve been able to tick off many of the quilting goals I set for myself and I can’t wait to accomplish more of them over the next year. 🙂

If I had known about modern quilting longer, just think what I could have accomplished the last few years! My solace is that modern quilting as a recognized movement is relatively new so I feel like I’m still on the cutting edge of something fantastic.

Where will it lead next? I’m not quite sure but I will definitely enjoy the ride!

A Few Changes in Store and Some Help Needed

July 27, 2013May 15, 201423 Comments

I’m not one to keep all my desires, goals and plans secret until they are all perfectly in place. The good thing about this is that I feel like I have a great support network to encourage me in anything I do. The downside is that sometimes things seem to take forever to accomplish!

With that said, I’ll let you in on some upcoming changes around here. For some time now, I’ve felt myself being drawn more and more into the modern quilting movement and my store is starting to reflect that. I’ve decided to completely revamp my online quilt shop which is a scary and slow process, but it feels like the right thing to do.

I want to focus more on fabrics that I actually use and become more of a niche shop rather than trying to appeal to everyone. This will allow me to streamline my business and free up much of my administrative time to do more of what I like best – making quilts!

It boils down to this: I want to clear out nearly half of my store’s current inventory so I can make way for more Kona, Kaufman, Kaffe, and Kits.

So here’s where you come in to help. Without trying to sound overly commercial here, please help me clear out my huge clearance section. I’ve spent the last week combing through my inventory and marking down nearly 700 different fabrics anywhere from 20% to 50% off!

I tried to be very generous on marking it down because I’d like to move it quickly. The sooner I clear it out, the quicker I can get in more of an eclectic mix of fresh, modern and fun fabrics!

For those of you wondering where all the precuts went, they are now on Amazon. I can now carry about 10x the amount of precuts that I used to because Amazon stores and ships them for me! You can visit ChristaQuilts on Amazon here.

As for more upcoming plans, I’ve mentioned a few times that you’ll start seeing some of my quilts in a few of your favorite quilting magazines this fall. If all goes well, I even may start writing a book.

I will have kits available for the magazine quilts once they’ve been published. Plus, I’m putting together kits for another popular blogger friend of mine whose quilt will be published in another big magazine in September/October, so please be on the lookout for that.

I’ve realized I love putting kits together almost as much as I love making the quilts because picking fabrics is half the fun. So I will expand my selection of kits, especially unique ones that you won’t find anywhere else.

One thing I will definitely continue doing is my series of Quilt Alongs. This has satisfied my need to create (on a schedule) so I already have more fun projects in the works!

It’s been very gratifying to sit down with Jason and really determine the direction we want to take with our business. Being your own boss is always a risk, but for the last few years that we’ve been doing this, it has its own rewards. 🙂

Christa’s Soapbox – Why I Press My Seams Open

July 9, 2013July 9, 201340 Comments

For those that have followed my last few quilt alongs, you will notice that I am a big advocate of pressing my seams open. So I thought I would let you know why.

For starters, it makes my blocks lie really, really flat. I used to rush though the quiltmaking process, ending up with less than ideal workmanship. Over the last couple of years, I’ve started slowing things down and have noticed how utilizing good techniques really improves the quality of my work.

Additionally, since I’m writing more pattern instructions and tutorials, I need to be able to take clear pictures with easy to follow diagrams. Quite honestly, it’s such a pain figuring out which way to press the seams ahead of time so they can abutt correctly. Pressing seams flat solves that problem, too!

I think it is an old wives’ tale (or perhaps old quilter’s tale?) that seams always need to be pressed to the light side of the fabric. Yes, the conventional wisdom is that it makes for easier hand quilting, if all you are doing is quilting 1/4″ away from the ditch. But since I machine quilt ~~the heck out of~~ everything, this is no longer a concern. Moreover, it’s pretty darn bulky to quilt through extra layers of fabric where the overlapping seams intersect.

Trust me, I’ve broken quite a few needles when trying to free motion quilt through an area where bulky seams were pressed to the side. Fortunately, when quilting the lines in my quilt above, I had pressed every stinking seam open so quilting was a breeze and the seam lines blended together.

Yes, it is time consuming to press all of the seams open, but the results are well worth the effort. I love to listen to audio books while I press and the time literally seems to fly by. 🙂

Also, I’ve gotten into the habit of opening the seams first with a wooden seam roller, then going back over them with a hot dry iron. It works for me!

Christa’s Soapbox – It’s Ok if You Don’t Quilt

July 2, 2013July 1, 201320 Comments

Really, it is! Some people are quilt makers, others are collectors, and some just like to enjoy the beauty and friendship of it all.

A recent blog reader emailed me to tell me that she likes reading my tutorials and learns a lot from them, even if she never makes the quilt. That got me to thinking, I actually subscribe to dozens of quilting magazines, own scores of books and follow ~~too many~~ lots and lots of blogs. But do I make all the quilts I see? Not even a fraction of them!

While it’s true that I usually like to design my own quilts, I absolutely love pouring over tutorials, books, patterns and magazines. Sometimes I just read them for the articles. Other times I love looking at all the deliciously decadent pictures!!

Immersing myself in the culture of quilting satisfies my soul. I remember a sweet elderly lady who attended our local quilting guild for many many years before she passed away. She never even made a quilt or knew how to sew – she was just there for the friendship.

So yes, you have my permission (not like you really need it), that it’s ok to just look at quilts, read tutorials, leave comments on quilt alongs or other blog posts, and never feel a need to make them. That’s fine by me!