Quilt Market Wrap Up Fall 2019 – Showcasing Gridwork

November 6, 2019November 4, 20193 Comments

I had an amazing time at fall quilt market last month. This is the semi-annual trade show where I get to debut my new fabric and patterns. I was able to share my newest fabric line, Gridwork which is shipping to shops in January of next year.

My Gridwork Booth

My booth featured two new quilt patterns that I released, plus fabulous quilts made by my friends: Charisma Horton, Heather Black, Annie Unrein and Linda Sullivan.

Here’s a closeup of the Gridwork fabrics displayed in my booth.

The Shoes!!! And Matching Outfits!!!

Each time I have a booth, I love creating something fun to wear from my fabrics. This year, I made 4 aprons and paired them up with fun pairs of Fluevog shoes. Each market I purchase a new pair that matches my fabric which is always a great excuse for shopping, right?

Day 1: I designed the Citron colorway of Gridwork to match my fave pair of shoes!!

Day 2: It’s so fun to match my outfit to my quilts!!

Day 3: I bought the blue pair this season and they are sooo comfy!!

Day 4: here’s a closer look at the purple patent leather shoes I got to wear twice.

I paired up the aprons and shoes with a matching Tshirts that I had custom printed with #gridworkfabric on the front and #benartex on the back. I figured I was the best walking advertisement for my fabrics, right??

The People!

It’s always fun to meet up with new friends at quilt market and make new connections with quilt shops who carry my fabric, and designers who want to work with my fabric. But the highlight of working with Benartex has been getting to know the other fabric designers. All of our looks are so different, yet they complement each other very well!

Benartex designers featured at fall quilt market included: Paula Nadelstern, Cherry Guidry, Shelley Cavanna, Ann Lauer, Weeks Ringle (& Bill Kerr), me and Amanda Murphy.

We roped our fearless leader, Benartex president David Lochner into posing with us and he was such a good sport! A you can tell, we like to have a good time!!

Over the 3 years since I’ve been with Benartex, I’m especially grateful to learn from superstars like Eleanor Burns and Paula Nadlestern. These ladies have been my heroes since I began quilting over 20 years ago and I pinch myself that I get to call them my colleagues and friends!!

Paula Nadelstern and I shared some fun moments on the show floor when I gave her some Instagram posting tips. She repaid the favor by recommending me for some upcoming teaching events, so stay tuned for more!

Another highlight of the show was the Benartex company dinner in which I got to sit next to Eleanor Burns. She made my night when she complimented me on my energy level. This is high praise from the energetic queen of quilting!!

The Projects!!

It was fun to spot my fabrics in other booths. I love it when designers want to showcase my fabrics in their new patterns because that exposes my fabrics to their customers who may not have seen it yet. And in turn, I get to share some talented designers with you all!!

By Annie had a wonderful display of bags, containers and other projects made from both Gridwork and Geo Pop. It was fun to see how great they looked next to colorful fabrics from Tula Pink!

Brewer is one of the distributors that also carries my fabric and patterns for shops to purchase all in one spot. I was thrilled that they wanted to hang two of my quilts in their booth to promote my current patterns: Infrastructure and Color Weave. This is a great example showing how well my fabrics from different collections mix and match with each other.

My friends Lynn and Pam from The Stitch TV Show created a fun new pattern called Dapper, featuring colorful bowtie blocks made from Gridwork + solids. They are always a hoot to listen to online and in person!!

Jenifer Dick from Everyday Stitches also debuted a new fun pattern in her booth at quilt market using Gridwork fat quarters + background fabric. I love seeing how others use my prints!

I had a fabulous, though exhausting time and I’m thrilled with how many more shops are getting interested in my fabric. If you want to share the fabric love, be sure to ask your local quilt shop to order Gridwork (and any of my other fabrics) from their Benartex sales rep. Now it’s time to make more quilts!!

Infrastructure Quilt Along Row 9

November 4, 2019October 31, 20192 Comments

This week we are making the last row of Infrastructure quilt – can you believe it??? Row 9 features simple pieced strips and it’s another great chance to fussy cut the Geo Pop fabric if desired.

First I’ll walk you through the process to piece this row, then you can take a look at the bonus YouTube video I created while making this row.

Cut the Strips

You want to cut nice straight strips according to the pattern instructions on page 6. If you are fussy cutting, you’ll want multiple strips of the same fabric to be cut at the same point so that you can match up the patterns.

For my strips below, I fussy cut the Mosaic Dots print and the Diamond Pop print. The Tiny Hex print was small enough that if the pattern doesn’t match up, it will still look ok.

Optional Pattern Matching

To match patterns, I found the same spot on the fabric and pinned it in place so that I could sew right where the design repeats. In the image below, that darker shadow in the photo is where I’ve folded over the fabric so that the pattern will be continuous.

Once I sew the seam from the backside, it won’t be noticeable on the actual quilt. The seam allowance will be larger on the back when I sew it; I’ll trim it down to 1/4″ after it’s sewn.

Sew in Opposite Directions

When sewing long skinny seams, they can bow or warp out of shape. So I make sure that I switch the sewing direction to compensate. Here’s how I do it. There are 6 rows here, so I sew two pairs at a time. The first pair will have the Grey Tiny Hex fabric on top. The next two pairs of strips will be sewn with the Black Tiny Hex fabric on top.

When I join the sewn rows, I’ll continue to sew with the black fabric on top, and that will automatically switch the sewing direction each time.

Don’t forget to sew with a shorter stitch length and press those seams open! I press each time I sew a seam so that task stays easily under control.

Bonus YouTube Video

I’ve prepared a 4 minute-long YouTube video walking you through the above steps, plus a couple of fussy cutting tips thrown in. Hopefully this will help you cut and sew long strips with ease. In this video, I’m narrating the entire time so you can follow along with what I’m doing. Be sure to subscribe to my channel. If there’s continued interest, I’ll make more videos in the future!

Click the “Play” button below to watch the video on YouTube.

Row 9 Finished

Row 9 is finished and now the entire quilt top is ready to assemble next week. As you prepare to join the pieced rows, check their length. You can use lots of pins to ease in any rows that aren’t exactly the same.

If some of your heavily pieced rows have ended up longer than they should be, go back and stitch wider seam allowances to shrink them up. You don’t have to rip out the original seam allowance to do this. You want all of the rows to be the same size before you sew them together.

GIVEAWAY & HEATHER’S Solids VERSION

Pop over to Heather Black’s blog at Quiltachusetts to see her version of Row 9 made from Benartex Superior Solids. While you are there, be sure to enter the giveaway. One lucky winner will receive some Hobbs batting – just in time to baste your quilt!

I use Hobbs batting in all of my quilts and I’m using Hobbs 80/20 Heirloom cotton/poly for this quilt. It will give me just the right amount of loft I need it doesn’t bunch up when you quilt it.

QUICK LINKS:

Be sure to show us your progress, too! Share on instagram #infrastructurequilt and tag us @christaquilts and @quiltachusetts.

Preorder Bundles of My New Gridwork Fabric – It ships in January!

October 25, 2019October 23, 2019Leave a comment

I’m at quilt market this weekend, showing off my newest fabric collection, Gridwork that will ship in January of 2020. I can’t believe it’s already my 5th fabric line with Benartex, and I’ve been having a blast designing fabrics and making colorful quilts from them.

All 27 prints of Gridwork in 3 colorways: Amethys, Breeze and Citron

This is a larger collection, consisting of 27 different prints in 3 coloways: Amethyst, Breeze and Citron. Of course they mix and match nicely with each other, but it’s also fun to create color-blocked projects with them. Here are some more beauty shots of the individual colorways.

Amethyst Bundle – Pretty in Purple and Pink

Click here to preorder the Amethyst Bundle in Fat Quarters, Half Yards or Full Yards

Breeze Bundle – Calm and Cool in Blues and Greens

Click here to preorder the Breeze Bundle in Fat Quarters, Half Yards or Full Yards

Citron Bundle – Edgy in Black, White, Navy & Citron

Click here to preorder the Citron Bundle in Fat Quarters, Half Yards or Full Yards

Each time I design a new line, I’m thinking about how it can relate to my previous collections but still stand on its own. It was really fun to do a larger line this time will a full range of light, mediums and darks that will make your quilts sparkle.

Click here to claim your Gridwork bundle – It ships in January!

Come See Me at Fall Quilt Market in Houston, Texas Oct 25-28, 2019

October 17, 2019October 16, 20191 Comment

It’s that time of year again when the quilting industry gears up for its semi-annual trade show for quilt shop owners, designers, and pretty much who’s who in the quilting industry. This year’s fall show takes place in Houston, Texas, October 25-28.

New FAbric coming in January!

I’ll be presenting my next quilt fabric collection (my 5th line!!) called Gridwork from Benartex and I can’t wait! It will ship to stores next January, so be on the lookout for more details soon.

MY QUILT MARKET SCHEDULE

Things kick off on Friday, October 25 with the Quilt Market schoolhouse: a full day of short educational presentations from designers, industry professionals, and quilting companies. They’ll be sharing sneak peeks of their latest and greatest.

Everyone who comes to my schoolhouse session (1:20-1:50 PM Room #370E) will receive a free swatch pack of my new fabric plus brand new quilt patterns!

The show floor will be open Saturday through Monday, October 26-28 starting at 9:30 each day. I will be in my booth #2234 in the Benartex area most of the time. This the perfect time for quilt shop owners and other prospective buyers and industry partners to stop by for an informal meet’n greet.

It’s a great opportunity to touch and feel the new fabric, see my latest patterns and quilts “in the cloth,” and chat with me about scheduling future events. No matter how hi-tech we get, nothing beats in person, face-to-face communication!

On Saturday and Sunday, Benartex will present their “Designer Showcase” – a chance to get up close and personal with all of the Benartex fabric designers who will be at the show. It’s another chance to get more freebies, rest your feet, and be inspired by all of the new fabric and patterns that will be released this season.

On Sunday, I’m pleased to be a presenter at the Inaugural “Threads of Success” event that will take place concurrently with Quilt Market. This is an event geared at those who want to break into the business of quilting.

The hope is that it’s successful enough to become an annual event each year. My topic I’ll be speaking about is titled, “Make it easy for them to say Yes!” and I’ll be sharing tips and tricks on how to work with others in the quilting industry to get what you want.

Last Spring Quilt Market – Geo Pop Booth

Above is a pic of me in my booth earlier this year at Spring quilt market when I introduced Geo Pop. Be on the lookout for more fun and colorful pics next week! Be sure to come say hi if you are planning to attend. If not – you can catch the action by following me on instagram @christaquilts.

It will be a busy time for sure, but I can’t wait!!

Geo Pop Yardage is Here!!

August 26, 2019August 25, 20193 Comments

I’m so excited to announce that bolts of Geo Pop have officially arrived to quilt shops nationwide! I encourage you to ask for it at your favorite shop first, but if you can’t find it there you can always order it directly from me at shop.ChristaQuilts.com.

Geo Pop includes 25 colorful geometric prints.

By now, you know that I love bold color mixed with unique geometric designs and it’s been such a thrill to see that you all love them, too!! Geo Pop includes 25 fun, modern prints in a rainbow of color plus black, white and gray. I think of it as my modern basic since there are only 4 different prints in the line, but they pack quite a punch!

Diamond Pop

Diamond Pop comes in 5 colors:
Grey/Yellow; Green/Blue; Red; Magenta; and Grey/Red

Diamond Pop above is my version of a contemporary stripe, but it also looks fabulous cut up into smaller pieces, too. How fabulous would these prints look in a kaleidoscope design, or a fussy-cut English paper piecing project??

Click here to purchase Diamond Pop by the yard.

Mosaic Dots

Mosaic Dots is available in 5 colors:
White/Gray; Blue/Green; Grey/Yellow; Fuchsia; and Black/Grey

Can you believe this amazing print is made entirely from dots? Mosaic Dots is my take on a modern polka dot and each complete circle is about 2″ in diameter. You can create some really nifty effects when using this print!

Click here to purchase Mosaic Dots by the yard.

Op Squares

Op Squares comes in 8 colors:
Red, Kelly, Orange, Turquoise, Yellow, Raspberry, White and Charcoal

Op Squares seems to vibrate and adds a lot of movement to your quilt, especially when used as a background print. The white and charcoal versions of this print are already top sellers, so I got a little extra – just in case!!

Click here to purchase Op Squares by the yard.

Tiny Hex

Tiny Hex comes in 7 colors:
Yellow, Lime, Gray, Sky, Black, Magenta, Orange

Tiny Hex is my blender print of the group and includes two fabulous neutrals: black and gray that you’ll definitely want to stock up on! It’s a nod to my very first collection, Modern Marks.

There was the hint of a hexy in the main print of my first line, but now that popular shape plays a starring role in this new collection. Grab a yard of each and see how well they work with other fabrics in your stash!

Click here to purchase Tiny Hex by the yard.

For your reference, here’s an image with sku’s of each print.
Click the image below to enlarge if needed:

Geo Pop by Christa Watson for Benartex

I sure hope you love these prints as much as I do. The best part is, they play nicely with my 3 previous lines so you can mix and match to your heart’s content!

Click here to purchase any of my fabrics by the yard.

The Geo Pop Precuts are Here!

August 14, 2019August 13, 20193 Comments

It’s always a happy mail day when my fabric arrives!! I’m excited that Geo Pop has finally started arriving at quilt shops around the country. Geo Pop is my 4th fabric line with Benartex/Contempo and it comes in all 4 standard precut sizes: Fat Quarters, 10×10’s, 5×5’s and Strip Rolls.

Geo Pop 10×10 (aka Layer Cake)

The 10×10 set includes a total of 42 squares that measure 10″ x 10″. It’s a great way to get a nice chunk of each fabric without breaking the bank. You can use them as is and make a nice throw size quilt from all 42 squares (set 6×7). Or you can cut them up into various smaller sized pieces.

Geo Pop 10x10

Click here to get your hands on a Geo Pop 10×10 pack.

Geo Pop 5×5 (aka Charm Pack)

The 5×5 charm squares include the exact same fabrics: 42 precut squares, 5″ x 5″. These are one of my favorite size precuts to collect because they are relatively inexpensive and you can make a baby sized quilt from just one pack! There are 25 fabrics in the line which means you get 1-2 squares of every print.

Geo Pop 5x5

Click here to get your hands on a Geo Pop 5×5 pack.

Geo Pop Strip-pie (AKA Jelly Roll)

Strip Rolls are everyone’s favorite precut. You can make a nice sized throw quilt from one bundle, or pair it up with some background fabric for a larger quilt! Each strip is 2 1/2″ x 42″ and there are a total of 40 strips per pack. I love the innovative packaging too. It’s easier to ship, and you don’t get all of that fabric lint that accumulates when they are folded round and round.

Geo Pop Strip-pie

Click here to get your hands on a Geo Pop Strip-pie

Here’s a bonus tip: when sewing with the precuts that have pinked edges, use the pointy side as your guideline for measuring. Benartex precuts are very accurate and a joy to work with!

Geo Pop Fat Quarters – 25 Prints

The fat quarter bundle includes all 25 fabrics from the line, cut into convenient 18″ x 22″ sizes. These are large enough to prewash if you choose, and enough fabric to make a fabulous scrappy quilt!

Geo Pop FQ bundle

Click here to get your hands on Geo Pop Fat Quarters

When I ship them to you, they’ll come packaged in a plastic bag for economical shipping rates. Take a look at all 25 prints included in Geo Pop below:

Geo Pop by Christa Watson for Benartex

Don’t they look so yummy piled up on top of each other?? I was thrilled to include black, white and gray with the bright rainbow of color in this line!

Geo Pop Fabric

If you can’t find Geo Pop at your favorite local quilt shop, click here to get them online from me.

Blooming Wallflowers Quilt Revisited – See 3 Different Versions

August 1, 2019July 30, 2019Leave a comment

I wanted to do a quick throwback to my Blooming Wallflowers quilt because I’ve made it twice and digitally recolored it a third time, using 3 of my fabric lines. When I design a quilt, I love iterating to see what it will look like in different fabric/color combos!

Blooming Wallflowers in Modern Marks

Blooming Wallflowers Modern Marks

Click here to get the Blooming Wallflowers quilt pattern – PDF version.

Above is the original version, made completely in Modern Marks fabric. I originally made it for a magazine to promote my first fabric line when it came out. I had fun selecting the 12 rainbow prints from the line and pairing them up the light blue accent and dark navy background.

Blooming Wallflowers in Abstract Garden

Blooming Wallflowers quilt

Click here to get the Blooming Wallflowers quilt pattern – print version.

Once the publishing rights reverted back to me, I decided to self-publish the pattern with a new cover to show case my third line of fabric, Abstract Garden. Again, it was fun to mix and match the prints and arrange them in a pleasing order. I used the navy herringbone print from Modern Marks again because it really made the other prints pop!

Blooming Wallflowers in Geo Pop

Blooming Wallflowers Quilt in Geo Pop

Click here for the free Blooming Wallflowers quilt along.

Now that my fourth line of fabric, Geo Pop officially releases next month, I wanted to see what the quilt would look like in the new fabric, with a different colored background. Thanks to Electric Quilt, I can upload jpegs of my fabric swatches and easily recolor it. It was fun to play around with different fabric combinations and I was happily surprised with how good it looks when pairing it with the yellow/gray Diamond Pop print and the charcoal Op Squares print for background. I may have to add this one to my “to make” list!!

What do you think? Which colorway is YOUR favorite?

Get the Supplies!

If you are new to the blog and haven’t seen this quilt before, click the links below for more info about the quilt pattern, fabric, and a recent quilt along to make it:

Pre-order Geo Pop Fat Quarters and Kits

July 6, 2019July 6, 20191 Comment

I’m super excited about my next fabric line which is coming soon! Geo Pop is a bold, bright, collection of 25 geometric prints in gorgeous rainbow color.

Geo Pop by Christa Watson for Benartex

Click here to preorder Geo Pop Fat Quarters

I’m really excited to add black, white, and gray to my mix of modern prints and hope you’ll enjoy working with them as much as I had fun creating them. Best of all, they mix and match with all 3 of my previous collections: Modern Marks, Fandangle, and Abstract Garden.

I’m also excited to offer several kits shown below:

Bling Quilt Kit: Fat Quarters + Background

This quick and easy quilt calls for one fat quarter bundle + 4 yards of white or black. You can even use the leftovers to make a scrappy binding! Choose your fave background: Op Squares in White or Tiny Hex in Black.

Bling Quilts with Geo Pop

Once the fabric arrives, I’ll share more about the making of both quilts shown above. Think of it as a “mini” quilt along!

Optical Illusion KIT: Made From Only 3 Fabrics

This “trippy” quilt kit creates the optical illusion using only 3 fabrics. The bold geometric prints in Geo Pop add such movement to this design. Scroll the image up and down to see it wiggle!

Optical Illusion Quilt

I’ll share more of my step-by-step process for making Optical Illusion soon, so stay tuned!

Infrastructure Quilt Kit – QAL Coming Soon!

I’m really excited to make this one, and it will be my next full length quilt along coming this fall. Pick up a quilt kit now, and stay tuned for more details!

Infrastructure Quilt

Infrastructure was designed by Heather Black and we are both going to be making two different versions of this quilt – one in prints and one in solids. I can’t wait!

Click here to preorder the Infrastructure quilt kit
Click here to get the Infrastructure quilt pattern – paper version
Click here to get the Infrastructure quilt pattern – PDF version

Geo Pop Fat Quarters – Preorder Now

Geo Pop Fabric

To ensure that you get in on the first printing of this collection, claim your fat quarter bundle now. Based on the reaction I’ve received so far, I think this will be my best-selling collection yet!

Click here to preorder Geo Pop Fat Quarters

I can’t wait until Geo Pop arrives, and I especially can’t wait to see what you all make with it!

I’m Off to BERNINA University!

June 7, 2019May 29, 20192 Comments

Tomorrow I fly out for my next fun event – setting up my booth and teaching a couple of classes to dealers at BERNINA University. BU is an industry event exclusively for BERNINA dealers that’s held in different locations around the country. This will be my third time attending and it’s been great for getting up close and personal with quilt shop owners who carry the brand.

BERNINA U 2018 My BU Booth last year when Fandangle fabric was released.
Click here to get the fabric, kits and quilt patterns shown.

At the show, I’m able to show off my newest line of fabric (which shops can order from Benartex), sell my latest patterns designed to support my fabrics, and talk one-on-one with shop owners.

No matter how huge the quilting industry is, it’s so important to create relationships with shops who carry my products. Many of them have also invited me to come teach at their shops, so I’m looking forward to traveling to new places over the next few years.

Big BERNINA at BU

Giant BERNINA on display at BU for their 125th anniversary last year.

If you’d like me to visit your local BERNINA dealer – be sure to have them contact me and I’ll be glad to add them to my teaching schedule. I’m currently booked through the end of 2020 but have just opened up my calendar for 2021 and it’s starting to fill.

Be sure to follow my adventures over the coming week on instagram @christaquilts and I’ll continue to share fun things here on the blog, too – so stay tuned!

Free Fat Quarter with $50 Purchase!

June 3, 2019June 1, 2019Leave a comment

I was cleaning and organizing my sewing room and realized I have a TON of leftover fat quarters from quilts in progress, bolt ends, and fat quarter bundles from all four of my fabric lines: Modern Marks, Fandangle, Abstract Garden, and Geo Pop.

Christa Watson FQ's

Don’t they look like colorful candy?? This is just a small sampling of my freebies for you!!

Rather than trying to cram them in somewhere and let them collect dust, I’d rather give them to you!! So from now on, all orders of $50 or more from my little online store at shop.ChristaQuilts.com will get one of these beauties as a surprise in their package!

Modern Marks Fabric swatches

Click here to shop all remaining Modern Marks fabric.

Fandangle fabrics

Click here to shop all remaining Fandangle fabric.

Abstract Garden by Christa Watson for Benartex Contempo

Click here to shop all remaining Abstract Garden fabric.

Geo Pop by Christa Watson

Click here to preorder bundles of Geo Pop fabric.

I’m very much a minimalist, and although I’m keeping plenty of yardage of all my collections on hand for personal use, I have a hard time storing smaller pieces of fabric. So I’m excited to send them your way instead! 🙂

Click here to shop my fabrics, patterns, books, and thread at Shop.ChristaQuilts.com.