Fabric Friday – The Patriotic Edition

July 3, 2015July 2, 20152 Comments

With all of the Independence Day celebrations this weekend, I thought it would be fun to showcase precuts in patriotic colors of red, white and blue!

Here’s a lovely grouping from Sandy Gervais called Red, White and Free. Don’t you just love the clever title? At last check I only had a couple of the fat quarter bundles left which includes one of each of the prints, plus the oversized panels (which would make a great quickie quilt!) I also have it in layer cakes and jelly rolls.

Red, White and Free bundle by Sandy Gervais for Moda

Fabri-Quilt’s version of Jelly Rolls are called Snack Packs. Isn’t that cute? Enjoy a high fiber-zero calorie “treat” when you try out this lovely color bundle below, aptly titled “Flags Forever.” I love the fact that the colors together are patriotic yet the individual fabric designs are very universal.

Flags Forever – Bella Casa Snack Pack from Fabri-Quilt.

Red is a great color any time of year, and Moda knows that! I love that they have put together several Bella Solids that are duplicates of the same solid color fabric. The gorgeous red below is 9900-16. Naturally the solids are also available in white and blue.

Bella solids in red from Moda

What are your holiday plans?

I’ll be sewing like crazy all weekend! Oh yeah, and shooting off some fireworks, too!

Fabric Friday – Sharing the Moda Love

April 3, 2015April 3, 20157 Comments

I try to balance my Fabric Fridays by sharing new arrivals from all of the different manufacturers we carry in our precut store. Sometimes I can’t help but go a little overboard with a certain company from time to time. Moda is definitely the top dog when it comes to precut offerings. They are our top-selling brand, I think because they have done such a fantastic job offering so many choices and getting the word out about their fabulous designers. So without further ado, I will share a little Moda precut love today:

Poems from Pebbles by fabulous designer (and new friend) Malka Dubrawsky

I’ve been a fan of Malka’s amazing geometrics even before I met her in person at quilt market last fall. We immediately hit it off and then were able to reconnect at QuiltCon earlier this year. Her style is so great and I’m actually working on a scrappy quilt now, incorporating some of her bright cheerful precuts. I just love them!

Malka Dubrawsky in her colorful booth at QuiltCon 2015.

Speaking of geometrics, I can’t get enough of Quattro! It comes in all the standard precuts we carry: charm packs, layer cakes, jelly rolls and fat quarter bundles. Isn’t it just heavenly?

Quattro – in 2 sizes by Studio M for Moda.

Another modern line I’m dyring to try out is Mixologie, also by Studio M. In addition to regular cotton, it also comes in a linen fat quarter bundle, shown below. I still have yet to try linen, but I just love the texture!!

Mixologie in linen – don’t you just love it?

Finally, take a look at Moxi. It’s the perfect springtime combination of reds, pinks, yellows, teals and greens! MMM that puts me in the mood for yummy Easter candy…..

Moxi by Studio M.

I don’t know what you have planned for the weekend, but I’m ready to sew (and maybe indulge in some sugary sweet treats)!

Fabric Friday – A Field Guide by Janet Clare

October 3, 2014October 2, 20147 Comments

Yay! It’s time for Fabric Friday – a day where I get to share with you what’s new in my precut store. I have to tell you how hard it is to decide which fabrics to feature. Sometimes I give sneak peeks on my instagram account as they arrive.

The tricky thing about that is that it may not get to my store for a week or more after I share! In fact, I already wrote another post for next Friday, hoping everything I want so show you will get there in time. 🙂

So for today, let’s take a look at A Field Guide by Janet Clare for Moda, all in stock and ready to ship (while supplies last):

Janet Clare and her children are collectors of pebbles, feathers, fossils and shells. So it was really only a matter of time before their nature collecting became the inspiration for a fabric collection. Much of her work is inspired by children and their purity of thought, their innocence and the joy they find in the simplicity of nature.

A Field Guide is available in these precuts:

A Field Guide Jelly Roll – 40 Strips, 2 1/2″ x 42″

A Field Guide Charm Pack – 42 Squares, 5″ x 5″

A Field Guide Layer Cake – 42 Squares, 10″ x 10″

A Field Guide – 28 Fat Quarters, 18″ x 21″

A Field Guide – 28 Fat Eighths, 9″ x 21″

Aren’t they pretty?

Fabric Friday – Quilt Market Arrivals

August 29, 2014August 29, 20146 Comments

Even though Jason and I didn’t attend quilt market this past spring, we were still able to order boxes and boxes of fabulous new precuts which are starting to arrive in stores now. (After an 8 year absence, we are headed to Fall Market again in the fall and I can’t wait!)

First let me tell you about Modern Neutrals by Amy Ellis. I love this line and I’ve been a long-time fan of Amy’s. In fact, I was able to get advanced yardage of some of this line for a special secret project I’m currently working on. My favorite print is the one on the top of the precut stack that reminds me of Star-Trek insignia. (Yeah – we are trekkies!!)

Here’s what Amy has to say about her debut line for Moda:

“While writing Modern Neutrals (the book), I fell in love with the calming sense that was found in each of the quilts. Later, when selecting a color palette for my first collection of fabric designs, I kept coming back to the neutral palettes and decided it was meant to be! I added a touch of color that can be used, if desired, in your quilts to liven up the subtle neutrals. I hope you enjoy the neutral palette as much as I do.”

Yes, Amy, I do!

Next, take a look at Best Day Ever by Amy’s pal and podcast co-host April Rosenthal. If you remember, I interviewed April about her experiences in becoming a fabric designer earlier on my blog.

I love the fun bright prints and the story behind them. Now that April’s fabrics are out, I think they would make some of the Best Quilts Ever!

Finally, I’d like to introduce you to LOL by dynamic duo Me and My Sister. This talented pair has been releasing fabulous collections as long as I’ve been in business and have consistently been one of our top sellers. 🙂

Their cheery bright pastels never fail to please!

This is just the tip of the iceberg of all the fabulous precuts that are arriving each week. Click here to see them all!

Time for a Giveaway – Win 8 Moda Charm Packs!

June 19, 2014June 19, 2014624 Comments

Just for some random fun – how about another giveaway? One lucky follower will win this bundle of 8 Moda Charm Packs!

8 Moda Charm Packs by Some of Your Favorite Fabric Designers

Win Them Before You Can Buy Them

The generous folks at Moda sent me a box full of charm packs from their upcoming collections so I could pick and choose fabrics for some future projects. How nice. 🙂 Now that I’ve made my selections, I have a bundle of charm packs to give away to one of you!

These are so new that they aren’t even available yet in my precut store.

Here’s How to Enter:

Leave your comment below letting me know your opinion on my weekly newsletter – would you rather receive it on Mondays or on Fridays?
If you aren’t currently a newsletter subscriber, you can join here.
Giveaway will run through the end of the day on Monday, June 23rd.
I will contact the winner via email and will post their name on my blog on Tuesday.
Giveaway is open to everyone worldwide. International winner is responsible for shipping costs.

A Bonus Instagram Giveaway, Too!

Now that I’ve joined the online community of Instagram, I’ve decided to spread the love over there, too. Just go to my feed @christaquilts for details on how to win an additional bundle over there! It’s a different set of 8 Moda charm packs. 🙂

Fabric Friday – Moda Preview

March 7, 2014May 15, 201428 Comments

For Fabric Friday I usually like to share what’s new in my store. However, this time around I thought I’d do something a little different. I just met with my awesome Moda sales rep. this week and she showed me all the super yummy deliciousness that will be coming out over the next few months. So I thought I’d share a few sneak peaks of what we ordered.

See that mess below? This is what working from home looks like! 🙂

Sonja, my Moda sales rep., scanning orders for me as fast as I can place them!

The latest line from Pat Sloan is called One for You – One for Me and is due out in August. She’s combined prints with batiks in this fun bright combo and I’m getting all the precuts from both groups.

Here’s a better closeup. Aren’t these great?

We have a very “scientific” way of determining how many precuts to order from each line. Each group falls into 1 of 3 categories: “Good”, “Awesome” and “Super Awesome.” Jason and I think Pat’s new collection is super awesome, so we have ordered tons! Let’s hope everyone else thinks it’s super awesome, too!

Next, we decided to scoop up precuts from Momo’s latest line called Avant Garden. I love her contemporary-modern aesthetic and her medium to large scale whimsical motifs. Moda is starting to add cotton/linen blends to the mix, so we grabbed a few of those to try. The cottons and linens are both due out in July.

See those coordinating solids? Those are linens!

We ordered some of the Linen Mochi Dot fat quarters last time Sonja came to visit, and those are available for purchase now. I haven’t tried any linen in my own quilts yet, but I keep hearing great things about it!

Linen Mochi Dot fat quarters are available now. Click here to purchase.

Jason and I are now focusing exclusively on precuts and thread (while clearing out all of our older yardage, kits and notions). We are pretty much trying to carry all the precuts we can. It’s a tall order, but the process sure has been fun!

BasicGrey is out with a new selection of 20 almost-solids. We picked up a healthy amount of fat quarters, layer cakes, jelly rolls and charm packs of these beauties which should arrive next month. If these do well for Moda, they will consider making them a “basic” which means they are indefinitely restockable. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!

I ordered about half a dozen more new groups, but only managed to get a picture of a few of them seen below. We were so busy chatting, I forgot to take more pics!

Native Sun by Abi Hall, shipping in July of this year.

Lulu by Chez Moi, due out in July.

Milk Cow by Mary Jane, also coming in July.

More of the Moda precuts we ordered earlier in the year are finally listed in the store. It’s so fun to order new fabrics, but so hard to wait for them to arrive!

Two of the new groups include April Showers by Bonnie and Camille plus Vanessa Christensen’s Color Me Happy. Doesn’t fabric just make you happy?

Kansas Troubles Quilt Contest – Enter to Win

August 2, 2013August 1, 2013Leave a comment

You know I love a good contest! I just heard about a nifty quilting contest sponsored by Moda and The Old Country Store, featuring Kansas Troubles fabrics (one of the most popular Moda designers ever).

Since the Kansas Troubles Favorites collection is on clearance right now in my store, I thought this would be a good time for you to stock up if you want to participate!

Here are the details:

The deadline for entering is October 15, 2013. Click here to enter.
The entry must be made exclusively of KT fabrics.
Any KT collection or mix of KT goods is fine!)
Entries may NOT exceed 60” x 60” (think small wall quilts, not bed-size quilts!)
Entries must be submitted online at www.KansasTroubles.com (contest rules can also be found there).
There are two terrific prizes! ($500 cash, 50-yard Moda shopping spree, autographed KT books)
Prizes are awarded to the People’s Choice and Judges’ Choice winners. (Smaller prizes for the ten finalists.)
The two winning quilts (People’s Choice and Judges’ Choice) will hang in the 2014 Quilt Museum exhibit!

Lil Rascals Charm Pack Quilt Part 2 – Machine Quilting

June 21, 2012February 16, 20156 Comments

Last Thursday I posted instructions on how to make this cute Li’l Rascals quilt top from just one charm pack and a yard of coordinating fabric.

If you are following along, feel free to post comments or ask questions about the project and I’ll do my best to answer!

This week I am working on machine quilting the 9 patch blocks with a free-motion wavy plaid design. Next Thursday, I’ll blog about marking and quilting the borders and sashing with a stencil.

I was really excited about doing something different with this quilt. I have stippled myself silly over the last 4-5 years and I’m ready to move on to new textures and designs.

I was inspired by Leah Day’s Loose Weave quilting from her Daisy to Paisley book of free motion fillers. I stitched out a practice sample on scrap fabric, then set to work on my quilt.

The long wiggly lines were easy to quilt without marking. My design is called “Wavy Plaid.”

First, I quilted long slightly wavy lines down the length of each 9-patch block. I used a thin polyester thread that seemed to blend in with most of the fabrics. I wanted the texture to show, not the thread! I quilted 4 sets of double rows per block and kept them sort of even.

Next, I quilted the same type of wavy lines going across the width of the blocks. I did have to rotate my quilt so that I was quilting either up or down the quilt the entire time. When I tried to quilt from side to side, my thread kept breaking.

I love the freedom this design gave me. Nothing had to be perfect and the quilting added lots of gorgeous texture!

To create the double lines, I quilted an echo outline with my free-motion foot, using the edge as my guide.

I dropped the feed dogs on my machine, used a Supreme Slider underneath the quilt to help it slide around smoothly, and stitched while wearing Machingers Quilting Gloves. The right tools make all the difference!

By the way, in case in case you need it, here are links to my mini-tutorials on pin basting, and sewing a pieced backing.