THIS SECTION IS KINDA LIKE A BLOG.  I TAKE THE MOST RECENT EMAILS  I HAVE SENT AND PASTE THEM IN HERE.

 October 13, 2011

West Suburban Shop Hop Starts tomorrow through Sunday.  Get your passport by clicking this link and then printing it. 

October 5, 2011

The good news is that the weather is fabulous.  The bad news (for me) is I am too old to be having to learn all this new computer stuff since my old computer crashed.  I don't know how I ever programmed when I was a youngster....I certainly could not do it now, I keep losing my place!

FEATURED KIT

We are one of the 12 shops certified to teach Judy Niemeyer's technique of the month.  We also carry almost all her other patterns and we kit many of them.  Reflections is easy, but striking.  Our fabrics are a little brighter than the original, but not too much (we do some things extrememely bright).  Here's a picture, and then if you are interested in more, a link to a video that will let you really see the fabrics.  Then, of course, you might want to order it ; ).




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQjKR41XOAY&feature=player_detailpage

JANOME 12000

We started showing it, and women started buying it, on Saturday.  This machine is great.  Every feature I ever liked on another machine is on it, and then some.  We are not allowed to talk price in emails or online but I just have one word for you and it is not "plastics" it is "trade-in".  You might be very surprised.  I'd love to talk more to you about it (630) 321-9051.  Sorry, we're not one of those big online sew and vac sellers run by men so we don't have an 800 number.  We made a few videos on Saturday as Susan saw it for the first time.  I hoped to have them uploaded to link here, but the technology has tripped me up.    Next time, or on our website where I have more info about it.   It really is incredible.




PRETTY QUILT PICTURES

I know some of you just love me for the pictures that I include, so here they are, and then local news follows:

These photos are from my "stash of photos" since I am still restoring from the computer that died.

This is a prize winning quilt by Sharon Schamber:





This is a detail shot of another Sharon Schamber quilt:



This is a detail shot of a quilt by the goddess of machine quilting (my name for her) Diane Gaudinski:



LOCAL NEWS

This THURSDAY's noon Lunch N Learn will be the Simple Striped Table runner.  This has been a pattern for several years, but because of the way  my mind works, I have improved on the efficiency of the pattern to give you two runners of the same length and an option to make the ends look like half an octogon, instead of pointed (if you can understand that).  Here's one I made three years ago (no, it never got quilted but it doesn't matter).  It is backed with pretty fall fabric.  Knowing what I have figured out now, I might have made the back side in a stripe too.  Actually, I would have made two table runners with two stripes, both reversible and kept one for me and given the other as a gift, or put it in a guild silent auction.

Show up by noon sharp with $10 cash in your hand.  Includes lunch and a handout.



NEW FABRIC

I might have mentioned we got in Kaffe Fassett fabric for the first time, but look how pretty, our new girl, Patti, made it look.  Some is by Paul Jacobs but is very similar to Kaffe's stuff (to me).





CHARITY QUILTING

In September of 2008 I taught a weekly beginner's class.  They became friends, and started a regular group to sew for charity.  I stopped in on their efforts yesterday at the Burr Ridge Park District building and it was really a great feeling to see the industriousness of about 20 quilters all going for the greater good.  Previously they made over 300 pillowcases.  All fabric donated from quiltfabric.com's sale area.  They have used up all the fabric and will be doing it again after they have a chance to pick more and get organized.




SHOP HOP's COMING

October 13th - 16th.  I hope to have the passports up on the website later today for you to download.  It is a ton of fun with a Halloween theme.  If you wear a costume (or at least a mask) you are eligible for coupons from the stores.  The costumes make it more fun for everyone.  If you have never been on a shop hop, grab a friend and try it.  If you don't have a quilting friend, come to the store early Thrusday or early Saturday, and one will be assigned to you (only half kidding).  The people who have the most fun are the ones who have something in mind that the are looking for in each shop (like fabric with cats on it, or a green batik). 

Participating shops are (besides quiltfabric.com):
The Quilt Basket, Pieceful Heart Fabrics, Prairie Quilt Shop, Prairie Stitches Quilt Shoppe, Roberts, and Thimbles.  If you don't know what a shop hop is, or you have never heard of the preceeding shops, then you cannot officially call yourself a quilter yet and you need to try it. (I'm teasing you).  Ask any of us for more information.

Chris Sass

September 27, 2011

The Janome  (pronounced Ja KNOW me) Horizon Memory Craft 12000 will be unveiled on Saturday.  I spent a lot of yesterday sewing on it.  Later today I am going to do some embroidery with it.  I had planned to make some samples to show you, but I was having so much fun just doing some paper piecing on it yesterday that the time got away from me, and I have nothing to show for it excptt a lot of "melons" that got to my double wedding ring.  I wanted to start out on a project just to get used to the new machine and I got carried away.  I'm making a list of cool things that it does but we are not supposed to unveil until Oct 1st so I am waiting until then to post it.

Sept 22, 2011

Hello Quilters!

The good news is that pictures are back.  But first....

Lunch TODAY I am going to teach Applique, a Bunch of Ways. I consider quilting broken into two types, piecing and applique. Applique is whenever you see shapes on top of a background, usually organic shapes.  The pictures at the end are of applique.

So if you don't know how to do applique, you are missing half my world. Although I don't do it often myself, I do know how to do it and I'll bet that at least one of my methods will appeal to you. One of the ways is fast and fusible which makes it very do-able to make something for your home in an afternoon or evening. I'll bring my Awesome Autumn from a Patrick Lose book as an example. There is also Machine Applique (several variations) and Hand Applique. It would be helpful timewise if you brought about 5 little pieces of fabric (about 5 inches square ish) and 5 shapes (circles, hearts, leaves) to applique on the aforementioned background pieces. This way everyone can have something to take home with them. Pins and *gasp* a needle and thread would be good, too.

Noon. $10  Includes lunch.

STRIP CLUB

The next session of three classes starts Saturday morning (the fourth Saturday) at 9 am.  This is a good class for beginners.  Meets Sept, Oct and November.  You get a different pattern to make with Strips (jelly rolls) every month, a 10% discount on fabric on meeting days, and a free half yard of fabric if you finish the top from the month before.  It's a nice bunch of people.  Join in.

NEW JANOME MACHINE

It's Great.  It's Big.  It does Everything.  Come see our unveiling on Saturday morning October 1st.  With a trade in, maybe it's your Christmas present :).  9 am. Free.  More details next week.

PICTURES

Take a look at some show and tell from today.  The third Wednesday of the month club is heavily into Judy Niemeyer's paper piecing patterns.  These were started on their trip to Judy's place in Montana, but now they are put together.  Now to quilt them....

Margo's Amazon Star (amazon means large, you know):

Karen's Prairie Star:

 

Deb's Glacier Star - I'm teaching this one again, starting a week from Friday, Sept 30th in the evening.  There are a couple openings.  $60 plus a lot of fabric and the pattern.


 

I want to share some pictures of a quilt that was made by two different women in vastly different color schemes but there were both fabulous.  Something about Brown Bear, or Little Brown Bird, or something.  Anyone know what this is?  I took these in Houston last year and deleted the picture that told me what it was.  Anyway, the workmanship is unbelievable.  The little circles were smaller than a dime.










And how about some insane quilting:




 

Sept 15, 2011

Hello Quilters!

Still having computer problems.  I did get Quickbooks reinstalled with Carbonite so that I can pay bills and do paychecks.  That's the most important thing.  Now I am working on the pictures..... So I will be brief.  Very brief.

Today's Lunch and Learn at noon is Intro to Long Arm Quilting.  $10 cash in hand.  I will show you how quilts are loaded and how basic designs are quilted.

Third Saturday of the month 9 am New Program.  Starts this Saturday. 

It's called Fun.  Seriously, I can't come up with a catchy name, but fun is the purpose.  There is too much depressing news out there.  We quilters just want to have fun.  So....9 am.  Free!  I will demo something and give tips, and you will bring Show and Tell.  For this Saturday, let's make the theme of Show and Tell be Fall andor Halloween.  Just come, no registration.  Door prizes and a free block pattern.

Quilt shows this weekend.

Faithful Circle Quilters Local Quilt Show at Jefferson Junior High in Woodridge.  From here you go east on 75th, over 355 and the next big street is Janes.  Turn right and it is a half a mile down on the left. 

This drives me crazy when these shows only happen every two years, and two guilds pick the same weekend, but the Northwest Suburban Quilt show is also this weekend, Friday and Saturday up in Hoffman Estates.

Sept 7, 2011

Hello Quilters!

There's nothing like coming back from a trip to find that your office computer won't turn on.  I thought I was being nice by turning it off for a few days, and this is the thanks I get.  The good news is that I have been using Carbonite backup, and I think I will be able to restore everything to another computer.

That's my explanation for no pictures today.

Today's Lunch and Learn is about strip piecing, and using it to make my favorite fast, but impressive quilts.  Depending on the color combinations you use, you get completely different quilts every time.  These truly are Quilt in a Day.

Next Thursday will be Intro to Quilting on a Long Arm Quilting Machine.  Let me take the mystery out of what those huge machines do and how they do it.

No registration necessary.  Just show up at noon with $10 cash.

JANOME

The new machine is terrific.  I think it is a fantastic sewing machine plus it happens to embroidery with large hoops.  We are not allowed to show it to you until October 1st, which is a Saturday, so we will have an unveiling that day.  None of us dealers have one yet, they are being shipped from the convention.

Reminder, if you see another JANOME dealer having a special on something, I am happy to beat it.

Thanks so much.  I'll have pictures again next time

August 28, 2011

Hello Quilters!

Yikes, it's the end of August already.  I do love the fall and the fall colors, but I can't believe my mother was right - about time going faster as you get older, I mean.  Anyway....

LAST MINUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS -

This afternoon (Wednesday) there's a fabric rep coming at 2 pm to show us batiks if you want to help.

Tomorrow morning a Christmas Tree skirt class starts at 9 am.  Uses Strips and a wedge ruler.

Lunch N Learn TOMORROW  (Thursday) will be on Tips and Tricks to make piecing faster and easier and next Thursday will be My Fastest, Best quilts to make with a Jelly Roll (those rolls of 40 strips) (someone wrote a book with these recently, but I make it simpler).  Bring something to take notes. Noon. $10 cash, includes lunch.

NEW FABRIC

In this business the fabric just arrives whenever it arrives.  Within about a six week time period of when the manufacturer said it would arrive.  At first that drove me crazy, but now I am used to it.  Some weeks there isn't much, and some weeks there is a ton.  This is starting out to be one of those weeks with a ton.

We got some odds and ends that I just couldn't resist like these red and black and pinks:


 

And a kinda funky funky group that reminds me of the impressionist painters. It has some unusual colors but they all work together.  It's called September Light by In the Beginning if you want to look it up.  I think it's cool, but at least one of the staff thinks it should go right to the sale corner!   There are a whole spectrum of colors (about 25 total) but here are a few:

And we just ordered this cool bunch of greens and blues and they got here right away:


 

We will be getting some Paula Nadelstern fabric because she's coming to teach on 9/11 but it is not here quite yet.

GLACIER STAR CLASS

I cannot find where I told you about this in past newsletters, and I know I did because people have signed up.  My mother also used to say that I would lose my head if it wasn't attached and she may be right about that, too. It meets on a series of Friday nights from 7 - 9 pm and we have room for just a couple more.

Here's another recently finished top from last session by Irene to inspire you to join this session:

LONG ARM RENTAL ANYONE?

I'm just asking if you are interested in renting the long arem for a 1/2 day for $80?  I want to gauge how much interest there is.  A half day being 4 hours, no prior class required.  Email me.

CLASSES

As you may or may not know, we were feature on Groupon in July.  It was a deal for a class.  Lost of people bought the Groupon, but very few have come through to use them yet.  So......I find myself in a situation where I have to teach the class but there is currently only two students at most signed up.  I'd really like to have some more people, and this is short notice, so if you use fabric from our store, you can sing up for the class for half off  (ie a $60 value for $30).  They all meet twice, on two Thursday mornings from 9 am to noon. All are suitable for beginners and will include being taught how to layer and quilt it, not just make the top.  There are pictures on our website under classes.  Here they are:

Christmas Tree Skirt 9/1 and 9/8 - uses a wedge ruler and fabric sewn together in "strata". 

Xanadu 9/15 and 9/22 - a Blue Underground pattern with every color of the rainbow.  We have a kit for it.

Toe the Lime  9/29 and 10/6 - another Blue Underground pattern that can be done in any color scheme.

CHARITY SEWING - QUILTING FOR A CAUSE

A nice bunch of women that met during one of our block of the month clubs became friends have continued to host gatherings to make pillowcases and quilts for the needy.  We donated the fabric, and they divided it into good looking kits that are ready to sew.  

Snuggling up with a warm quilt can help family members cope with problems they are facing. To help create these quilts, volunteers are needed.

 They would love to have you. Please sign up through our store. (630) 321-9051.

KIT for CIRCLE OF LIFE QUILT

I mentioned that we are putting together a kit of the 200+ fabrics that you need to make Be Colourful's Circle of Life Quilt.  The fabrics are finalized, and now we just have to cut them.  That shouldn't take too long (sarcasm).  We are taking names and when these kits are gone, they may be gone forever, so let us know now if you want one.  The price will be somewhere north of $100 and south of $300.  TBD (to be determined).



PRETTY PICTURES

Not sure if I sent this one before (since I can't find that stupid email):

This is our first new quilter created from the Groupon offer.  She came in a week later with it quilted as well!  Congratualtions Mary Jo.

Dr. Becky has been working on this huge quilt over the past two years.  All the pieces are hand buttonhole stitched.  It's on our back wall for a little while for all to admir.

A finished Bali Wedding Star from the class:

Sometimes the right background in not the color you expect.  Look how the colors pop on that pinky background!

More ideas on what to do with Minkee.  These two are actually looking forward to cool weather.

Look closely at this new fabric, and BTW our next shop hop is in October.

PERSONAL

I'll be off to the JANOME convention this Saturday through Tuesday.  I can't wait to see what they have come up with, and this time I am taking a list of questions and am going to try to get one of the engineers from Japan, and a translator if we need it, and ask WHY some things are they way they are - like the thing that's in the way when you have to unscrew the screw to change the feet on the 6600, does that really have to be there?  If you have some burning JANOME sewing machine questions, let me know and I'll ask them.

And finally, in the spirit of the best things in life are free, the sun sets into Lake Michigan last Sunday night. 

August 20,2011

Hello Quilters!

Got Baby?

We have some very, very cute new baby collections.  Yesterday I was forced to mark down many bolts of baby fabric (flannel and not) to make room for the new.  So if you have a baby quilt in your near future, this would be an excellent time to come scope out the new and the reduced.

JANOME NEWS

Over Labor Day weekend, I will be at Janome Institute (sounds better than "convention" doesn't it?).  They will be revealing a new wonderful embroidery machine.  If you have been thinking about one, please wait until at least Sept 7th when I will be back to tell you about it.  There is a Janome website that will televise the unveiling on Saturday evening about 5:30 pm our time if you want to be among the very first to see it.

JANOME CLEARANCE SALE

We have way too many of two models in particular.  These are not going to be discontinued, it's just an inventory reduction sale.

The 3160  A $999 value for $.  Save $

This model is fantastic for a quilter who wants all the features but wants to stay under $1000.  Joyce has one and loves it.  It even has a button you push that cuts the threads (scissors button third from the left).  You get used to that real fast!  Includes a hard cover not shown here.  Comes with the extension table shown.  Weighs less than 13 pounds.  Needle up/down (of course) start/stop button (can go with no foot pedal) and much more.

The 2011 A $699 value for $   .  Save $.  This is one of the most popular because of all it packs in for the price.  It has all of the above but not the extension table or scissors button or stop/start button, and the cover is soft.

Can you see why I say Janomes are a GREAT value and that no one should be buying a Bernina anymore?  Sorry, but it's IMHO (in my humble opinion)

Sale prices are good Saturday August 20 through Saturday August 27th.

PRETTY PICTURES

I mentioned that the Milwaukee show wasn't great.  But......I found pictures of the winning quilt that I took when I saw it in Houston last fall.  It is by Linda French.  Take a look at the quilting.

I love my job.

PERSONAL

Trevor started high school Wednesday!  He told me about rowdy seniors running through the halls before school started in togas.  I heard this morning on the radio that Naperville North is handing out suspensions to 20 kids that they think were drunk on the first day of school.  I'm thinking those two things are related.

August 10,2011

We're back after our brief break.  The girls had a great time in Montana and I enjoyed a few days hanging out with Michaela and Trevor.  One day I dropped Trevor and some friends off at Great America and continued on to the machine quilting show in Milwaukee.  I found the show very disappointing.  Very small. At least I hadn't made the trip just for that.  I didn't have my camera with me, but there were only a couple that I would have taken a picture of anyway.  

On a brighter note, here's a picture of the Innova for which we are a dealer.  While I am on the subject,  the INNOVA is on sale this month (that's through the 31st).  See the flyer after the picture.

Lunch N Learn Thursday the 18th

I really, really loved this quilt by Julie Karlak in the Plainfield Pride of the Praire 2008 quilt show .  It is a great example of Bargello and that's what this week's lunch and learn is about.  I will also explain how to make a Trip Around the World. 

Details - No reservations required, just show up with $10 cash in your hot little hand at a few minutes before noon.  We'll order some sandwiches from Pot Belly's and I'll do my lesson while we wait for them to be delivered.  I even have a handout for this one......I think.  Then we eat and talk about quilting topics.

Seriously, very beautiful quilts, very simple construction.  The 3rd quilt I ever made was a Trip Around the World and I have made several since.  Come find out how.  Here's a bargello I made, also in 2008.

NEW FABRIC EVERYWHERE!!!!

Now we know how much normally gets delivered over a week, because it all came today.  Yikes.  batiks, baby, and traditional.  We couldn't even get it all unpacked today.  Pictures later this week, but come on over.

PRETTY PICTURES

This is a quilt by nationally known, prize winning Sharon Schamber.  The detail is incredible.  I think I took these pictures in Houston last fall:


 

August 1, 2011

Hot enough for you?  I grew up here and I know I should never be surprised by our weather,  but I am.  Repeatedly. 

FIRST - WE'RE CLOSING FOR A FEW DAYS  TUESDAY AUG 9  THROUGH FRIDAY AUGUST 12TH.  Since we are closed on Mondays anyway, you can just think of it as "quiltfabric.com will be closed during the weekdays of the second week of August".

Nothing is wrong.  We have never done this before, but 60% of the staff is going on a vacation together
with some of the former staff and some customers to Judy Niemeyer's retreat center in Montana.  That's where I went last year to be certified in her techniques.  I guess maybe I shouldn't have made it sound so good after I came back last year (ooops).  But seriously, they will have a great time and learn a lot and when they return we will defnitely be the place for all things Judy Niemeyer and paper piecing in general!  The quilts that are coming from her patterns are just awesome. 

SEWING MACHINE SERVICE AND REPAIRS

Thanks to all of you who have been bring your machines in to Jim over the slower summer months for service.  BTW, if you are having to pull the fabric through as you are sewing, you might need an adjustmet of your feed dogs.  A COA (Clean Oil, and Adjust) is $75 if you got the machine from us, $85 if you didn't.

Jim is a retired guy who worked for Janome in service for 15 years. He can do any brand and age.  In fact I think he looks at the old ones as old friends (don't tell him I said that).   Jim is usually in our store on Thursdays and finishes all the machines brought in that week.

In a related story, DuPage Sew and Vac is closing after 35 years.  Sad but true.  I know some people are going to be shocked when they pull into the parking lot to take their machine for service and no one is there.  Would you please help them, by telling your friends that we are a good alternative for service?  And of course if they need a NEW sewing machine..... 

NEW SEWING MACHINE COMING IN SEPTEMBER

JANOME is introducing a new top of the line sewing machine at our convention over Labor Day weekend.  If you are thinking about trading up, please let me know. 

I am positive that it will be fabulous, and positive that it will be a better value than any other brand's top of the line.  We were Bernina dealers and Pfaff dealers in the past, so I have a basis for saying so.  They never tell us much beforehand.  To my surprise, sewing machine companies are much more secretive than the software companies that I used to work for, but when I know, you'll know.   There is a Janome website giving some hints:   http://www.janomespecials.com/the-journey-continues/

DID YOU SEE US ON GROUPON?

Wednesday the 20th, we were the featured offer for Groupon in this area.  It was so exciting to have the phone ringing off the hook and brand new sew-ers coming in to sign up for classes.  The first started yesterday morning with a Whip It Up class.  What good luck.  It also forced me to get some classes scheduled and up on our website.

 

June 23, 2011

Made you smile.

Hello Quilters!

Time keeps on (sing with me now) slippin', slippin', slippin' into the future.... Here we are just past the longest day of the year.  What a weird year we've had weatherwise, topped off by last night's violent winds.  On the way from my house to the store this morning, I saw a lot of huge tree limbs down.  I'm sure some of you have more dramatic things to worry about than what's new at quiltfabric.com, but on the other hand, maybe I can take your mind off it for a little while.  One customer told me the mystery quilt evenings were like an oasis for her during a difficult time and I took that as a great compliment.   So here goes.

Show and Tell is at the end of this email

ANIMAL PRINT - MASCULINE BUT SOFT AND CUDDLY 

Do you have a guy in your life who needs a quilt?  Here's an option. We have animal prints in cotton AND in Minkee (that's the buttery soft, furry fabric that feels great as the backing on a quilt).  In this case, Karen whipped up a Yellow Brick Road and keeps it handy for snuggling while watching TV.

CAT FABRIC



CHRISTMAS FABRIC

It is pouring in, even though I know some of it wasn't supposed to ship until June 30th.  We thought it would be fun to keep it all back this year until it has all arrived, and then reveal it like a present on Christmas morning.  Why should the little kids get all the fun?  Stay tuned for the reveal date.
 

KIT FOR CIRCLE OF LIFE QUILT

I know some of you are attempting to make the Circle of Life quilt by Be Colourful.  I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but rather than having tosearch all over for over 200 fabrics, we're making a kit!  Afterall, who better to put together the bright bright fabrics that the quilt demands. You only need strips so this will be a fraction of the cost that others have had to pay to collect enough different colors to make that quilt.  If you want one, it would be helpful to let us know asap so we know how many to cut.  Aren't they pretty?

Here's what the quilt looks like.  It's not the original off their website (which I have seen in person and is very bright).  This is someone else's:  If you really want to, we could do this as a class.  I have been reading the directions.  Speak up if you are interested.  The directions are not as complete as Judy Niemeyers, but at least the papers are included now (they didn't used to be and you had to go copy your own. 



SEWING MACHINE TUNE UPS

Jim is getting sad and lonely again.  If you don't sew as much during the summer, or, conversely, if you sew every day but you are going on a summer vacation this is a GREAT time to bring your machine in for a tune up.  $85 unless you bought it here, then it is $75.  No appointment necessary.  Just drop it off and Jim will do the work on Thursdays when he is here.

PRECUT FUSIBLE KITS

We got a few more of the kits - Bird of Paradise, Tulips, Daffodils:

COTTON CLUB BLOCK OF THE MONTH

I am very excited about this next Block of the Month, because ALL of us here at the store like it, even the ones who normally don't do reproduction fabric.  It has beautiful reds and browns.   I thought you might like to see the actual fabrics as well as the poster for what it looks like.  I would consider this a great quilt for intermediate quilters.  By that I mean everyone who has a few quilts under their belt and would like to advance their skills. These blocks finish at 5 inches so they are a little bit challenging.

There are 45 (!) blocks altogether.  The first month has five, then 4 a month for ten months, then the putting it all together kit in the twelth month. 





Having already said how pretty the reds and browns are, we are also going to offer it in bright batiks.

TWIST - Registration is $25 (goes toward the pattern)    I looked online and most places are charging $25 a month, plus there is shipping.  How about this?  We'll use a twist from the old $5 quilt idea.  If you show us (i.e. come in the store with them) your finished  blocks from the month before, your price will be $20 for the next month's kit.  Otherwise, $25.  A month's kit will be fabric and the pattern.  We'll need a credit card on file.  This gives you a little incentive to keep up.

I think that the Third Saturday of the Month  group that has been doing the Jo Morton little quilts, may do this quilt. So if you are the type who likes company and encouragement, you are welcome to join us.at 9 am starting in August for a year, although we'll probably want to meet through August of 2012 to see some of the finished quilts.   This will be a good way for to repeat the Many Many Ways to Make Triangles that was so popular in 2010.  I know at least 9 ways to make them, and this quilt has lots of half square triangles so you might as well learn something, as do the same method over and over and over.

Or you can just come pick up your packet anytime during the month.  This will also be offered online for those who live far away.

ESCAPE / RETREAT THIS FALL
Are these cool bags, or what?  Look at all those pockets.  The bag is about a foot tall.  Hey, you know what they would be great for?  Taking to a retreat.  I know.  Let's have a retreat.  OK, it's all set.  Nov 18 - 20th at the Marriott Burr Ridge.  The room to sew in is beautiful with natural light coming in through a wall of windows overlooking a pond and to menu sounds delicious.  One good thing about the poor economy is that the hotels are willing to deal, where they weren't before.  So the price is the same as it has been for years, but the setting is an upgrade.  $199 for the retreat.  Make your own ROOM reservation, but say you are with us.  It should be $99 a night double occupancy.

The only downside is we can't take as many people.  20 is the limit, so register with at least a deposit asap.



We also have bright bags for sewing machines now.  And look at that cute Uncle Sam to whip up for the 4th of July (remember, it comes again next year).

LUNCH and  LEARN CLASSES RETURN

The way this works is that I teach you a whole class in less than an hour and then we eat lunch (usually sandwiches from Pot Belly and talk about any questions, or whatever.  It keeps you from having to commit so much time to learn a new quilting skill. So rather than having to commit to multiple meetings, you can come find out how to do it in an hour and then try it at home on your own whenever you have the time.  This is also a very cheap (OK, frugal) way to find out whether you are interested in exploring something further.

Don't take this the wrong way, but recently I went to hear a speaker about machine quilting and I hardly heard anything I didn't already know.  I kept hearing audience members whispering "I didn't know that!" and I realized how much of a sponge I have been for the past fifteen years.  Take advantage of it.  I enjoy showing you the easier way to do things, and you get more confident and make more quilts. You're happy, I'm happy, it's a win win. Remember, if quilting was difficult, I wouldn't be doing it. 

Starting in August on Thursdays at noon

8/4 Show me how to have flat borders, as opposed to rippley ones.

8/11 Hunters Star the Rapid  Fire way.

8/18 Bargello and Trip Around the World 

8/25 Show me the things that make Machine Quilting Do-able

CHARITY OPPORTUNITY - SEW TO SUPPORT OUR TROOPS

Quilts of Valor is having a sewing session at St John the Baptist  0 s. 233 Church Street in Winfield Sat June 25th 9 am to 3 pm. It's 2 blocks south of Metra Station.  Call Donna kelley at 630-273-5681 or dfkkelley@sbcglobal.net

SHOW AND TELL INCLUDING GLACIER STARs

Finished quilts from the Judy Niemeyer Technique of the Month (aka Glacier Star) continue to trickle in for viewing.  Are these beautiful or what?  I'm going to have to teach it again in the fall because I love seeing these so much.

I love what happened to this one when Arlene used and accent color for the "feathers" on the star insteady of a dark:


Becky's:  Look at the way some of the colors pop.



I forgot whose a few of these are, I'm sorry!!!! :  That's why I usually try to get the maker in the photo!



Kari's:



And here's Voni's all finished, quilted and hung up!





Meanwhile, the "advanced" group has been working from one book but picked different things:


This is Margot's Tumble Weeds from last year.  She combined the Judy Niemeyer class with what she learned about color from Joen Wolfrom's class.



Cheri's final colors for the mariner's compasses in her quilt



And then there's Ruth which started as a wall hanging, but couldn't stop there.  I love it.

This Wedding Ring quilt is not the same one as the raffle quilt, this is on loan from Kris:






If you made it this far, you deserve to know that Paula Nadelstern will be teaching a class on 9/11 and you can sign up now.   If you are not familiar with her work, take a second and Google her.  And she is a very nice person.

Chris Sass

June 14, 2011

We have a new kit that I took a video of so you can see the fabrics up close.  Here it is:  It's called Reflections by Judy Niemeyer.  The pattern is $25 and the kit which  includes the pattern is $119.00.  It is 60 by 70.  All batiks.  Our model is a little brighter than her original.

 May 26, 2011

Hello Quilters!

We will be closed on SUNDAY May 29th and of course, Monday May 30th.

Is there any interest in a Monday during the day mystery?  Bobbi and Charlotte are willing to try that if there is interest.  This is where you get a meal, fabric, and mystery class all in one for $60.  Please let me know.

Speaking of Bobbi, we have a couple more places in Machine quilting class this Saturday morning and we have added several other classes in June.  
Free Motion Quilting Tuesday June 7th 9 am
Feathers Thursday June 10 9 am
Free Motion Quilting Saturday June 18 9 am
Finishing your Quilt  Tuesday June 21 1 pm
Fusible Applique Saturday June 25th 10 am


These are my favorite finds from Quilt Market:  These kits are PRE-CUT.  Allyou have to do is fuse and quilt.  No tracing, no cutting.  There are more that I don't have samples of.



Wide Backing Batiks:



Picnic anyone?

Music fabric and fall fabric:



An idea of what to do with the fruit fabric:



Zippers:



2 1/2 inch strips for 50 cents each.  Make your own "jelly roll" or use for applique:



Embroidery for July:




Fruit fabric:




SHOW AND TELL

Dar's Judy Niemeyer Technique of the Month:




Just Cool:



Embroidery of Chocolate on the left and Quilt labels on the right:



Newest Block of the Month.  Look closely at the letters until you see what they stand for (ie F is for Frog)



That's it for now.  Remember to come in Saturday if you need something because we will be closed this Sunday. 

Chris Sass

MAY 19,2011

Hello Quilters!
Pretty Pictures are at the end....

KIDS LEARN TO MAKE A QUILT CLASS

We have never done many children's classes, largely because of the danger involved with the cutting.   But I had a briliant idea for a class that will involves almost no cutting, so the teacher can do it, or they can use scissors, not rotary cutters.  And no complicated fabric picking since it uses a jelly roll!  (We have lots of choices there).  The top will get done so fast, we'll even teach them how to quilt it, even if we turn it like a pillowcase so they don't have to do binding.  

THE QUILT

In bright kids prints:



OR if you take a more sophisticated colored jelly roll and sew it all togetherand put borders on, and hang it sideways.   I am thinking of naming this quilt Ridiculous because it is ridiculously easy.  Looks good hanging above the teal batiks, doesn't it?




The kids will definitely be able to sew a straight line after this much practice.

ADULT AND CHILD CLASSES INCLUDING A SEWING MACHINE

We (Becky Huebler the teacher) and I thought we'd do some classes that are an adult with child as well as some that are just kids.  That way we don't have to say no to the excited parent, or grandparent of a child that might be on the young side (8 years old). But definitely no toddlers, OK?

We think this will be enough time to get the whole thing done, but if you are able to also do some work at home in between classes, it definitely will get done.  Even quilted.  JANOME makes a machine that would be wonderful for a child like this, especially if they learn how to use it with an adult.  You can use it during class and take it home with you.  $200 for class and machine.

First option: TUESDAY June 14th and FRIDAY June 17th  9 am to noon and

TUESDAY June 21th and FRIDAY June 24th  9 am to noon

second option: TUESDAY July 26th and FRIDAY July 29th 9 am to noon

TUESDAY August 2nd and FRIDAY August 5th  9 am to noon

CHILD ONLY CLASSES $50

These kids should be old enough to concentrate for a morning.

First option:
TUESDAY June 28th and FRIDAY July 1st 9 am to noon and

TUESDAY July 5th and FRIDAY July 8th  9 am to noon

second option:
TUESDAY July 12th and FRIDAY July15th 9 am to noon

TUESDAY July 19th and FRIDAY July 22th  9 am to noon

Third option:
TUESDAY August 9th and FRIDAY August 12th  9 am to noon and

TUESDAY August 16th and FRIDAY August 19th  9 am to noon

COLLEGE QUILTS

Now is the time to make a quilt to send a kid off to college with.  I would love for you to tell any friends or neighbors with high school seniors about these.  It's always good to get women (and men) involved in quilting for the first time.  I have even put ads in some of the local high school papers (LTHS, HCHS, and HSHS) to see we can attract some new quilters.  The quilt is really easy and long enough for the dorm beds.

Whip it up - This is one of my own designs and takes 12 half yards.  Guess what we have thousands of? - half yards.  It is on the long side so it is perfect for college dorm beds.  Here it is in two very different color selections:





 

First Option - Wednesday mornings JUNE 15th and 22nd, 9 am to noon $20

Second Option - Wednesday mornings JULY 13th and 20th, 9 am to noon $20

T-Shirt Classes - I have decided to postpone this as it would be must easier to teach a novice the Whip it up and have them have a great experience before tackling the stretchy T shirts.
 

REMINDER ON WEDDING STAR CLASS

The original is in the store now for your viewing pleasure.

TUESDAY MORNINGS May 24th and May 31st  9:30 am to noonish

SATURDAY MORNINGS June 4th (9 am to noon) and June 11th 10:30 until you want to leave.

Class will be free if you buy the pattern and fabric from us, otherwise $50.
We've already sold the first dozen patterns and I called for more yesterday.  That means you are not alone in loving it.   Come on, you know you want to.


PICTURES

Last email, I said I had quilted two Judy Niemeyer quilt but forgot to put the pictures in:

Pat Thiel's Autumn Splendor



Deb Janik's Fourth of July

UPDATE  A few people have finished their Judy Niemeyer Technique of the month. well, the top anyway -
What 's so cool, is that they start with one step, a New York Beauty block, and it leads to these results.  I hope you will be inspired to sign up the next time I teach it.  This was Jane's first block:




See it in the finished top:

Vonnie's



Kari Bauer's:





These next ones I forget who goes with who, I'm sorry:

















Claudia happened to come in while our weekday Advanced group was meeting.  They have been doing paper piecing from Judy Niemeyer and others, so it was a perfect time to see her Tumbleweeds and then Amazon star:






RAFFLE QUILT

You could win this!  We have tickets to sell this week.  I think this might also be from Judy Niemeyer's pattern but I am not sure.  The guild is from up in Lake Bluff, I believe, for their show in the fall.  It's needleturn applique.



PERSONAL

I had a very nice time in Salt Lake City for Market.  I did not let myself get stressed by having a bunch of appointments.  I mostly walked up and down the aisles, taking it all in.  I came home with lots of ideas. 

Salt Lake City is surrounded by mountains and very clean, and the people were nice.  I wish I knew more about geology - I am always surprised that the valleys in between the mountains are so flat.  Here's a picture from the airport looking back at the downtown which is only 10 minutes away.  You can just see the high rises between the food catering truck and the jetway.



 

April 15 2011,

Happy Spring!  I think.  Hard to tell some days.

Note - Jo Morton / Advanced  group is tomorrow (Saturday) morning at 9 am if you would like to join in.
 

Too much new fabric to fit in.  Hmmm, that means there must be some fabric that celebrated a birthday and needs to be marked down.  Yikes, there are.  That means.  SALE!!!   Quite a bit of it is on the traditional side, but there are also quite a few batiks in the sale area.  Here's what we pulled out yesterday:


 

We also found some kits that were buried in a cabinet in the office that we don't have models of anymore.  They are on sale too.  Christmas comes every year.

JANOME SALE  (BTW it's pronounced Ja KNOW me)

There is a wonderful Janome sewing machine that is light weight, designed for quilters and has a SCISSORS button.  That means with a touch of a button, it cuts both threads, and it works every time.  To get this feature on a machine for less than $1000 is amazing.  The MSRP is $999 but we have it on special for $799.

It comes with an extension table.  Joyce has one and loves it.  Ask her about it.  I think it may start to replace the Jems for people who have a big hunker machine at home that is too heavy to take to a class.

Take a look:  Mother's Day is coming (hint, hint):






Now for some of that new fabric - notice the fabric on the far right - it's CHICAGO fabric!!!!  We had a bolt that sold out in about 4 days but I was able to get some more.  Don't be slow about it if you want some.  Do not reply to this email saying you want some since there are days when I don't read email.  Come in.

Then there's the animal prints.  A yellow brick road of this with animal minkee on the back would be great for a boy.  There's also music, hot rods and trucks.




Next - very springy, notice the stripe that would be perfect for that table runner I taught you with the 60 degree ruler.



Something very bright from Michael Miller. 

More bright and summery:




Brand new, we haven't even found a shelf for this one yet.



This group is a little on the autumn side, but hey, it has purple.



The return of the great fruit prints.  Think fast, and easy, reversible placemats, or something more elaborate.   There are other garden prints, too.



EMBROIDERY
I know we are late for Easter this year, but I'll bet it will come around next year, too, and you might be ready.....This can be made as we show it or with applique instead of solid stitching.



HERE IS THE NEW LONG ARM FROM JANOME.  It moves very, very nicely and smoothly.  Don't be throw off by the frame that I have set up as 5 feet to fit in the store.  You would set it up as ten feet.  
I think quiltfabric.com is the only place around that you can come try two different long arms since we also have the Innova from ABM International.





MYSTERY CLASS

The next Mystery Class is Friday night May 13th (6 - 10) and Sunday afternoon May 15th. (2- 6).  Pick one - Friday or Sunday. $60 gets you a great meal by Charlotte and Bobbi, fabric for the quilt, and fun during the class.  These ladies can cook, and with their color sense, you know that the quilt will come out pretty.  That's the downfall with most mysteries, because you have to pick fabric without knowing what it will look like, and then you don't always like the way it comes out. 

But since Bobbi and Charlotte pick the colors and they know which colors will be next to each other, it always comes out great.  You get to pick from several colorways, and take the fabric home and do some cutting beforehand so you can  sew, sew, sew during class.  Oh, and eat. 

SUMMER CLASSES

This is really early for me to be thinking about summer classes.  It's a little scary, but here goes. 

COLLEGE QUILTS

Now is the time to make a quilt to send a kid off to college with.  We have a couple lined up that are targeted at very beginners (or just really fast for experienced quilters).  I would love for you to tell any friends or neighbors with high school seniors about these.  It's always good to get women (and men) involved in quilting for the first time.

Whip it up - This is one of my own designs and takes 12 half yards.  Guess what we have thousands of? - half yards.  It is on the long side so it is perfect for college dorm beds.

T-Shirt Classes - I generally dislike T shirt quilts, HOWEVER, this one is quite easy and looks happy, as opposed to just boring rows of quilts separated by sashing.  (No, offense to those who have done the row quilts) 

I'll have the exact dates in the next email.

KIDS QUILT CLASS

We have never done many children's classes, largely because of the danger involved with the cutting (I REALLY don't want to see any blood around here, especially children's blood).  But I had a briliant idea for a class that will involves almost no cutting, so the teacher can do it, or they can use scissors.  And no complicated fabric picking since it uses a jelly roll!  (We have lots of choices there).  The top will get done so fast, we'll even teach them how to quilt it.  It may end up being turned like a pillowcase, so they don't have to do binding.  

I would welcome some feedback on what days or times you would like kids classes to be.  And what ages.  I am also considering a adult/child class  and a class that would include a sewing machine for a child.

LUNCH CLASSES

I want to start the lunch hour demoes up again.  I have a list of them.  A few are repeats from the fall, but most are not.

The way this works is that I teach you a whole class in an hour.  So rather than having to commit to multiple meetings, you can come find out how to do it in an hour and then try it at home on your own whenever you have the time.  This is also a very cheap (OK, frugal) way to find out whether you are interested in exploring something further.

In some cases there might be a fantastic tool which helps, or it might be tips from me.  Don't take this the wrong way, but the other night I went to hear a speaker about machine quilting and I hardly heard anything I didn't already know.  I kept hearing audience members whispering "I didn't know that!" and I realized how much of a sponge I have been for the past fifteen years.  Take advantage of it.  I enjoy showing you the easier way to do things, and you get more confident and make more quilts. You're happy, I'm happy, it's a win win.  Remember, if quilting was difficult, I wouldn't be doing it.

Bargello and Trip Around the World

Lone Star and Mariner's Compass the Quilt Smart Way

Hunters Star

Triangles

Fast quilts

Tricks and Tips
 

Machine Quilting Overview

Applique, Overview

Paper Piecing Overview

Machine Binding

This has gotten a little long, and I am about to run off to another class with a famous teacher where I will learn more cool tricks to teach you.  So, dates in the next email.  That also gives you a little time to suggest a topic. 

PERSONAL

First of all, thank you for your support.  It is a wonder to me that in the fall, it will be ten years that you have been allowing me to do this (as opposed to selling software).  Which reminds me that to say again that Heart Disease is the number one killer of women. Do not ignore chest pain, or shortness of breath.  Which reminds me that Amy Barbera of Wheaton won the Featherweight sewing machine that raised $500 for the American Heart Association.  Anybody have another one you'd like to donate that we could raffle?

Hello Quilters!

March 23 2011

I have lots of pictures for you, of fabric, and of show and tell.  Let's get started:

This is just 2/3 yardage with a strip of orange on either side and a cute backing.  It's all summer themes.  There is NO piecing.  Two hours. Very cute for that grandchild.......

A lady donated a featherweight to me with the understanding that I would give any proceeds to charity.  Here's a picture of the machine, but it also has the black case and lots of accessories.  We are selling 100 tickets for $5 each.  We have about 35 tickets left.  Come and get them.

last chance for the Hungry Caterpillar panel - 2 left

I am using a new editor and it got away from me.  I cannot get spaces in between the pictures from here down, so just enjoy the new fabric, and the show and tell from our Jo Morton group that meets on the third Saturday at 9 am if you would like to join in.

New rolls and Bali pops: 
 

March 9, 2011

KAREN DEPARTS FRIDAY

Karen Oliver has decided that 8 years with me is enough.  Can you imagine?  Seriously, Karen is going to be spending more time making T shirt quilts and long arm quilting for people, and just generally enjoying life a little more.  She will be here Friday for her last day of work if you would like to come say goodby.  It's been so nice to have her steady assistance and we are both very proud of our How to Make Your First Quilt DVD that we made together almost 4 years ago - over 400 sold!   If I seem a little lost next week, you'll know why.


 

LONG ARM ENTHUSIASTS

Renae Haddadin has been converted to an Innova fan.  Have you watched her DVDs?  She's incredible and I am so happy she's an Innova girl now (switched from A1 I think).  I'm going to a class with her in April on the Autopilot. 

Janome is now selling a long arm called the Artisitc 18.  I think it is made by Tin Lizzie, but I am going to training later in March so I will know more then.  The great thing is that I will have both an Artistic 18 and the Innova here for people to compare in one place.

JANOME ENTHUSIASTS

Very special deal on the top of the line Embroidery MC11000. Now through Saturday $4999.  MSRP is $7999.  I'm not crazy, I have my motives.  Take advantage of it, or tell your friends to take advantage of it.

APPLIQUE  ENTHUSIASTS

I have been meaning to remind you that we have 2 1/2 inch strips cut from all the ends of the bolts.  You can get a huge range of fabrics for a very small price - 50 - 60 cents each!

We also just got some new "donuts from Superior thread.  They are filled with prewound bobbins in a myriad of colors in fine thread suitable for hand or machine applique.

SALE

I just went through the Batiks and pulled the ones that were over a year old - they are now on sale for $7 a yard.  Hurry on over as they will not last long at that price.  There were more than I thought when we put them all together on two tables.  The girls were surprised, but things are just overflowing, and this was why. 

 And a bucketful of half yards





NEW QUILTS

Here are the quilts from the last two STRIP CLUB meetings.  We have strips and patterns available to make them.

Oops, that picture above is the BACK - cheater fabric



The "piano key" border above is cheater fabric, too.

EMBRODERY LOVERS

Hold the date of July 17th.  That's a Sunday.  Lynda Howell of Stitch connection is coming for a lecture and trunk show.  She is the creator of Stitcher's Garden among other things.  That reminds me, I never showed you the pictures of the finished Stitcher's Garden quilts.....The detail is incredible.  Maybe we'll do it again after July if there is sufficient interest.






















Congratulations to everyone from those classes.

 

 January 26, 2011

Hello Quilters!

Time continues to fly.  It goes faster when you are busy and having fun, and that's what we have been doing here at the store.  We are short on staff, so if you like to be busy and laugh and touch fabric, let me know asap. 

For those of you who live far away, all the new fabric should be up on the website, soon
 

JANOME 6600 INVENTORY REDUCTION SALE Saturday 1/29

Sometimes I get a little over zealous in my machine ordering.  Right now we have way too many 6600s (the best machine for a quilter IMHO) so it's time for a sale.  This Saturday the 29th they will be $1399 plus a $200 gift certificate, making the effective price to you $1199.  MSRP is at least $2000   If you cannot make it in on Saturday (sorry this is such short notice), call me and we can arrange something!  Call before Saturday, or birght and early on Tuesday if you you read this late, and I'll see if we have any left over.  Look at this great machine.  You will get used to having a scissors cutter button very quickly!  It's the greatest new thing, like "needle down" used to be.

JANOME 11000 TRUCKLOAD SALE Saturday 2/5

Janome does this thing in the winter where a dealer can buy a "truckload" of machines and get a really good deal which we can then pass on to you.   So it will be a ridiculously good deal.  So good, I haven't quite decided yet.  Stay tuned, or contact me.   This is the top of the line embroidery machine that has lots of upgrades for quilters, like hoops that more easily hoop a quilt, and stippling that can fill in an area.  It can do an 8 inch square design, or larger with optional hoops.   

CHANGES

We rearranged the store (again) and it seems much more spacious.  We've gotten many positive comments, after the initial shock wears off.  I like it and think it will stay this way now.  You'll have a good chance to see it during the upcoming West Suburban Shop Hop.  This time the theme is Hearts and we are tying it in with donating to the American Heart Association.  Several women I know (including me) are survivors of heart attacks, so this is a cause that is near and dear to my heart (pun intended).  If your home and purse does not contain any real aspirin, not Tylenol etc., this might be a good time to buy some.  Taking aspirin and calling 911 could save your life if you are having a heart attack. Now, back to the Shop Hop details:

SHOP HOP - We Heart Hopping.

February 10th through the 13th.  Hours are 10 -8 on Thursday, 10 -5 on Friday and Saturday, and noon - 4 on Sunday.  All stores will keep at least those hours.  Pick up a "passport" at whatever shop you start at.  Take it with you to each shop.  Look for the gift basket in each store and note it's location on your passport.  We require this to force you to look around at least a little bit.  We will stamp your passport as you are checking out (since we hope you will have found something you have to have).  When you have finished at your last stop, turn in your passport to be eligible for prizes.  This year I am happy to say that Quilting Treasures, a great fabric company, has supplied the grand prize of 200 fat quarters!!!!  They are all fresh and new and in a lovely tote bag:

There are also gift baskets and gift certificates from each store to win.

Tip:  It seems to me that the people who have the most fun are on a mission to look for one thing - maybe purple batiks, or stripes, or a new ruler.  They seem to have fun with a purpose, as opposed to just being overwelmed by all we have to offer.  Going with someone is fun too.  If you bring a friend, they might get hooked, and you can get another passport entered for prizes.

Tip:  If you wear red or a heart, each store will give you a valuable coupon.

Suggestion:  Put spare singles or change in the American Heart Association containers that we will have.  It will make you feel good and help someone else.

NEW FABRIC

Yesterday we got three boxes of Hoffman batiks.  Oh darn (sarcasm).  We have more batiks than ever.  We all just finished cutting half yards and straightening.  They look as good now as they will ever look:

We have gotten several lines of bright, cheery fabric.  I must have ordered them when it was starting to be winter, but I am sure glad I did.  It's really nice to look at and I keep thinking about what to do with the fabric.

This line is by Lakehouse:



This is called Wisteria:









Some fabric for boys, and then fabric for DOG lovers;








THIS IS AN I SPY PANEL!!! the only way I am ever likely to do an I Spy quilt.



Even the sale fabric looks better in some racks:



Last, but not least - the INNOVA.  Price is going up Feb 1st. if you have been thinking about it.


 

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

Bob, of Superior Threads,  is going to be giving a lecture just for us on the afternoon of Wednesday Februrary 9th at 1:30 pm.  This guy knows just about everything about thread and needles.  You won't believe how much you didn't know that will make your quilting better, easier, and more enjoyable.  I thought we would just have this in the annex, but since I have been getting calls about it ever since Bob put it on the Superior Threads website, I think we better take reservations and we'll do it at the Holiday Inn (where we can have afternoon snacks).  So $10, make your reservations with us now.  It's only two weeks away.

All the Block of the Month classes got going in January (another big part of why I was busy) but that doesn't mean you couldn't join in February if you find you are looking for a good group of quilters to get together with once a month.

The second Saturday of the month is Beginners, the third Saturday is more advanced and we are doing small projects every month from Jo Morton's Clubs, the Fourth Saturday is Strip Club (besides a great quilt made from strips you never know what tips I will share) followed by an Embroidery group doing Goose Tracks by Hoopsisters.

REFLECTIONS

Thisi s the latest of our quilts from Judy Niemeyer.  We made a kit with a little bright colors.  And the original doesn't have any purple, so we had to fix that.  This one is VERY easy:



 

Jan 6 2011

It's time to start thinking about ourselves again.  I am referring to all the caretaking that quilters do during the holidays.  So, I'm here to present some fun things for you. It's always fun to meet other people that like to do what you like to do and to learn some new skills.

• These are the classes that are held in the store.  If you live far away, you could take the beginner class by video - reply and ask me how.  You might also be interested in our Judy Niemeyer Technique of the month class that only 12 shops in the country can teach.  This can be done by mail.  See classes on our website.
  
  Here's a recap before I get into the details:
  2nd Saturday 9 am Beginners BOM (This January only on the 3rd Sat 1/15)
  3rd Saturday 9 am Advanced - Jo Morton Club this year (This January only on the 3rd Saturday 1/15 at 10:30)
  4th Saturday 9 am Strip Club (1/22)
  4th Saturday 10:30 am Embroidery - Goose Tracks by Hoopsisters (1/22)
  
  STRIP CLUB
  
  The name of this one is fun. We do not take off any clothes, other than coats.  The Strips are 2 1/2 inch wide strips of fabric.  You may have noticed the "jelly rolls" of fabric that we sell.  There are a million quilts you can make with them.  The quilts are fun. They are usually fast, and there are usually some great tips to go along with them.  Here's one I whipped up for a wedding present:
  
  
  
  We ordered some great strips of Hoffman batiks to be ready for this class. The way it works is this. Every month there is a new quilt and you get the pattern for free. It's a surprise.  We have the strips that we used already cut for you. You can buy them at at discounted price. If you want to use fabrics of your own choosing, that's great, too. Then show and tell the next month has more variety.
  
  The next month if you have put together the top from the previous month, you get a free half yard of fabric.  You always get 10% off fabric on Strip Club day to encourage your to buy borders and backings to finish up projects.

BEGINNERS BLOCK OF THE MONTH

Back by popular demand.  Seriously.  I got the nicest compliment the other day.  A woman wanted to sign up for the beginner BOM because her friend who took it last year had learned so much.

It meets each month on the Second Saturday of each month at 9 am before the store opens. Each month we make a different block that teaches one or more of the skills  listed below.    You will make (learn):

• half square triangles
   paper piecing
   curve piecing
  quarter square triangles
  templates
   Applique
  partial seam
   flying geese

Goal - I want everyone to be more confident and able to tackle new projects in their quilting.

To encourage confidence in color, you pick your own fabrics.  We'll help you if you want help. You'll need to get one yard each of 5 different fabrics, from here.

Here are the pictures of some of the women who just finished up in December to inspire you.  Look at those happy faces!  Keep in mind, they are al using the same blocks, just different fabric choices and settings.

So, if you want to greatly expand your quilting ability, sign up!  This class is a bargain at $60 for the whole year (that's only $5 a month).  Another quilt store charges $177 for their beginner class.

ADVANCED GROUP

This is another monthly group that just finished up their quilts recently.  If you look closely, you see that each block is done in a 12 inch, 9 inch and 6 inch. 

They meet on the Third Saturday of the month at 9 am.  If you are upast beginner, and up for a challenge, you should come to this group.  They enjoy it so much they don't even care that much what the project is.  They said they'd just show up in Januraly and I would tell them what they are going to do.  Isn't that a great indication of how much fun they are having?  This year we are going to do a Jo Morton Club.  I guess they won't be surprised now, but  more about that after their pictures.








This next one is done in half the size of the others, so it's 6 inches, 5 1/2 inches and 3 inch blocks.  Kari shrinks everything down in Electric quilt because she doesn't have much wall space.  ISn't that a great idea?




And for extra credit, Jean brought in the previous year's Intermediate quilt finished: 



JO MORTON CLUB

Jo Morton designs fabric for Andover.  It is in the flavor of reproduction, but not strictly reproduction (ie, not copied from actual old quilts).  The colors appeal to me more than the real reproductions.  I think they are richer.  I started carrying her fabric about a year ago. 

Her club has a small project each month.  I have been making the first sample.  It has nine little blocks (4 1/2 inches finished) on point with setting blocks. The whole thing must be less than 20 inches. They are great for small decorations, or table toppers, or doll quilts.  It is a nice break from big things and makes you improve your piecing skills.  Plus there are some tips for that.

The rules are that you have to buy a stack of fat quarters of her fabric at the beginning (I can hear you asking how much? but I haven't made the stacks yet. Probably around $65).  Then each month you come and get the pattern for the next month.  I was going to refer you to our website for her fabrics, but I just looked and we are very far behind in loading them onto the website.  So come into the store, or look on Andover's website.     

http://www.andoverfabrics.com/SingleDesigner.php?Designer=Jo Morton

You can also get an idea of the projects Jo likes on her website www.jomortonquilts.com.  There is a poster with some of the projects in our front window but I don't have it in electronic format to send to you.  If you were skimming, you may have missed that this is the third Saturday of the month at 9 am.

If you don't embroider, you can stop reading now ;-)

HOOPSISTERS NEW BLOCK of the MONTH for EMBROIDERERS

We have a sample in the store for a few more days.  Here are some close ups.  What great stitching!

They found a better way to put all the pieces together without stitching showing on the front.

Pictures never do it justice, but some of these come close.

It's very different than last year's TNT.  No making the same block over and over.  Max is 4 times.

And the whole thing fits together into an interesting overall quilt. It's really very clever.  

Those little curly things are all stitching, not the fabric.  The above block is part of the optional border.

DETAILS

$70. Taught by me (Chris) with occasional help from others. Class meets 5 times.  Fee includes classes and designs.  There will be other things you will need/want to buy like fabric, thread and Battilizer (a combo of stabilizer and batting that works great). 

Meets Fourth Saturday of the month at 10:30 am. Stay as long as you like which means you can leave after I show you how to do it, or you can stay and sew it out step by step. 

Janome, Pfaff, or Bernina only (since those are the ones I have experience with).  Try before you buy opportunity - we can arrange for you to embroider on one of our JANOME 11000s with the nice 8 inch square hoop.

Limit ten embroiderers.  If we get more than that, we will have another section.  Call with a credit card or come in to reserve your space with payment. We have a few spots left.

Chris Sass  

12/23/10

Well, it's coming down to the wire for shopping.  I forgot that we have a lot of Christmas cross stitch samples in our "annex" from when that quilt store in Naperville closed.  We are putting them out to sell "as is".  All the Christmas fabric is also on sale for 50% off.  

12/18/10

As we get close to Christmas, it also means close to inventory.  This year I am going to be ready for it. Sound familiar?

So yesterday I went through all the notions and ended up with quite a pile that are clearance now - 50% off.  I feel kinda sad for some of them - they are good gadgets but they were probably hidden on the racks.  So, if you, or someone you love, needs a little something in their stocking to go along with the ever popular gift certificate, come on over.

Last night my husband seemed to realize that next Friday is Christmas Eve and most people will have it off from work this year because Christmas is on a Saturday.  He wanted to know what time we would be closing on that day - he was worried that all the last minute shoppers (I'm thinking men) might get here too late.   So, I hereby declare that we will be closing at 3 pm on Christams Eve and we will not be open on Christmas.  We will be open on the 26th.

We got to see a great Christmas skirt this morning by Marge Morris:  It's done with a wedge ruler.

Chris Sass
 

12/7/10

We recently took in some machines on trade.  We are often asked if we have used machines, and seldom do.  Jim, our service technician is going over them now so they will look bright and shiny and be all ready for a new home.  We have a JANOME 6500 in a table:

A JANOME 6600 with a Sew EZ table:



 

And a PFAFF 2046:

We also have a great promotion on the JANOME 6600 going on.

MACHINE SERVICE over the holidays. 

Speaking of Jim, service business often slows down around the holidays, and poor Jim is bored and lonely.  So this year, when  you have to pack the machine away for the holidays, don't pack it away, bring it over here.  Think of it as a spa treatment for your machine.  Special price too, of $70 (reduced to $60 if you got the machine here).  The service is known as COA, or Clean, Oil and Adjust.  That's more than just a cleaning.   Even if you take meticulous care of your machine, there are places inside that you cannot get to that need to be cleaned, and your feed dogs or other things may need to be adjusted back to their proper position.   He'll get them all done by New Years at the latest.  When all the hubbub is over, you'll have purring sewing machine to start the new year with.

FABRIC

The CAT in the HAT has been here for a month.  Now SPOT is here.  My kids and I loved Spot:





LAURA AND LAUREL

Who knew that Laura Ashley was designing quilt fabric?  And it's purple and green (my favorite):


And Laurel Burch has a new collection:


MERMAIDS

We have a small collection with a border fabric featuring mermaids that I love but couldn't figure out what to do with.  Well, here's a great example, as it was being quilted on our INNOVA log arm:


GIRLIE GIRLS
We got a small collection with the cutest fairies:



JUDY NIEMEYER
Our latest "trunk show" quilt from Judy Niemeyer is here.  It's called Cactus rose and we have the pattern for sale.




Deb did her 4th of July pattern in a much different color pallette:


STAFF PICKS

We have a shelf of fabrics that are some of our favorites all together.  Come take a look next time you are in.

CLASSES
2010's Block of the Month Classes are winding up.  Tomorrow is the last day for the beginners series.  If you are one of the class members who haven't been able to come for a few months, please come to be inspired to catch up and finish.  It's my favorite Saturday morning of the year!  Lots of show and tell.  9 am and 1:30.  I'll take pictures and put them in the next email.  I am going to modify it a little for next year but it is still for beginners who want to learn more.  

11/30/10

Hello Embroiderers!

If you don't embroider, you can just delete this now, unless you want to look at the pretty pictures.

HOOPSISTERS NEW BLOCK of the MONTH for EMBROIDERERS

We have a sample in the store for a few more days.  Here are some close ups.  What great stitching!

They found a better way to put all the pieces together without stitching showing on the front.

Pictures never do it justice, but some of these come close.

It's very different than last year's TNT.  No making the same block over and over.  Max is 4 times.

And the whole thing fits together into an interesting overall quilt. It's really very clever.  

Those little curly things are all stitching, not the fabric.  The above block is part of the optional border.

DETAILS

$70. Taught by me (Chris) with occasional help from others. Class meets 5 times.  Fee includes classes and designs.  There will be other things you will need/want to buy like fabric, thread and Battilizer (a combo of stabilizer and batting that works great). 

Meets Fourth Saturday of the month at 10:30 am. Stay as long as you like which means you can leave after I show you how to do it, or you can stay and sew it out step by step. 

Janome, Pfaff, or Bernina only (since those are the ones I have experience with).  Try before you buy opportunity - we can arrange for you to embroider on one of our JANOME 11000s with the nice 8 inch square hoop.

Limit ten embroiderers.  If we get more than that, we will have another section.  Call with a credit card or come in to reserve your space with payment. 

11/24/10

This is going to be very brief.  I am afraid if I don't send at least a quick note, I won't get back to it for a while.  And I know we are all getting busy at this time of year.... 

You asked us to put your name on a list of people interested in doing the Judy Niemeyer Technique of the month quilt.  It's time to decide for sure.  It's as easy as 1-2-3.

1. PICK YOUR FABRICS

It calls for over 15 yards (total) of 13 different fabrics.

We (Joyce and Debbi) picked out 5 different color schemes that we can kit for you:. They are:

Browns and golds, teals, blues and purples, green and purples with gold (my combination), greens and golds and yellows.   The bolts are laid out on the tables for you to look at.    If you would be so kind as to come by and see if one of those color schemes suits you, we can cut the kits during the slow time in December and be ready to go in January.

If you do not like any of the color schemes we picked out, we'd (Joyce et al) would be happy to help you or you can pick something yourself.  We are merely trying to make it easy for those who do not like to pick fabrics.  Some people love it, some people don't.

2. PICK A CLASS TIME

The choices are Friday afternoon, Friday evening, or Sunday afternoon.

 We'll have Friday afternoons & evenings and Sunday afternoons every three weeks starting January 14th (Feb 4 & 25th, March 18, April 8 & 29th, and May 20th).  This schedule allows us to be finished before summer turns our attention to other things, and avoids all the major vacations and holidays. 

The Sundays will be 2 days after the Fridays and I think you can figure out those dates ;-)   On Fridays, we'll start at 1:30 and you can stay as long as you want.  Friday Evening will start at 6:30 and end about 9 pm.  On the Sundays we'll start at 1 pm. 

It's designed to be seven classes - six for the techniques and the last for putting it all together. 

The pattern itself is $60 and if that's all you want, that's fine. If you want the advantage of  my teaching, that will be $10 each class.   If you have paper pieced before, you might not need, or want, all the classes, but you really should come to the first one to see how to use the template layouts. I'd also highly recommend the last one to put it all together.  If you need a class to make you do it, then you might need to come to all of them.  I will demo first and then you can either go home, or stay and sew.

Since I like to make classes easy, they will be the "bring $10 cash kind".  BUT I need to know if 95% of you all want the same time slot!  Or, no one plans to come to the evenings.  That's why you must pcik a section.

3. PAY FOR THE PATTERN $60, and at least a deposit on the kit if you order one

I need to order patterns (with the papers) from Judy, so I need an accurate head count by mid December. 

11/23/10

KIMEKOMI CLASS

This is a really cool, elegant ornament.  I must have forgotten to put this in an email before becuase if sold out last year but is not full this year.  It's this Sunday afternoon at 1 pm and the essentials will be supplied so you do not have to run around looking for them.  This is an ornament that looks like a million bucks and would be treasured for years.   Please call for more details.   (Sorry, I am in a hurry).

PERSONAL,

I am in a hurry to get my work done and go home since Michaela is coming home from college this evening for Thanksgiving.  She'll be here for the sale on Friday.  She's thrilled about that (sarcasm).

Speaking of Thanksgiving, THANK YOU for shopping here. 

Did you hear the radio commercial for the first "Shop Local on Black Saturday"?  Support your local quilt shop - send you family over for a gift certificate for you.

The store has been open for 9 years.  But what I am most thankful for is that December 2nd will be 10 years since my near fatal heart attack.  I didn't think I would still be here ten years later.  This is much less stressful than my old job.  Please remember that Heart Disease is the NUMBER ONE killer of women.  Do not ignore symptoms.  Take and aspirin and call 911 and you may be here to tell about it 10 years later, too.  

11/17/10

I'm back from Houston Quilt Market.  Actually it was two weeks ago already.  It always takes a while to catch up after being away.  I made time to go throught the quilt show this year and took hundreds of pictures so I have lots to put in emails.  I know you like the pictures.  What some quilters can create is just amazing.  I have the best job.

Keep reading to the end (or at least skim) because we have two great sales coming up....but first

ESCAPE next weekend the 19th - 21st.

We still have plenty of room for a few more people at our escape next weekend.  If you have never done this before you will be surprised at how much you can get done in a few days with no interuptions other than to eat and sleep.  One of my favorite parts is that when I do need to get up and stretch, there are plenty of interesting things to look at - I just walk around and see what everyone else is working on.  This would make a great Christmas present for yourself (hint hint).  $199 covers our sewing room (aka the ballroom) and lots of food.  Make your own room reservation (tell them you are with the quilters) or commute from home.

TURTLES

Amy Bradley does it again with the cute kid stuff: 

look closely, they are travelling turtles:

MACHINE EMBROIDERY

Hoop Sisters has a new Block of the Month that I really liked.  Could be the stars, or could be the flying geese a la Caryl Bryer Fallert.  Either way, I like it and we will have a sample here in the store starting Tuesday but here's a preview.   It will be divided into four months so you can be finished faster.

It can be made with 5 inch blocks or 8 inch blocks.  BTW, the JANOME 11000 has an 8 inch square hoop (hint hint).

DAY BEFORE THANKSGIVING SEWING MACHINE SPECIAL

By now, I hope you know that the Janome 7700 Horizon is the greatest thing since sliced bread.  I got a deal from Janome and I am passing it on to you, if you can act on that day.  Take a little time for you before you clean the house for Thanksgiving ;-) Note; I can already hear someone mumbling that they are going to be out of town that day, so you can "pre-shop" and set it up to go through that day.  OK?

The Horizon 7700, with 11 inches under the arm, automatic single needle plate, accufeed, great lighting, surround table and lots of feet is $2995.  For one day only, I will include a rolling case, box of thread, AND THE TABLE.  The new table is normally $499.  I (we) would be happy to let you take it for a test drive any time we are here.

DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING FABRIC SALE

Big fabric sale like we had in the spring.  $5 a yard.  That's right $5.  One day only.  9 am to 4 pm.  One yard minimums, but at this price, you should be thinking backings, backings, backings.  You have two weeks to go through the stack of UFOs that you have, and make a list of all the backings you need.  In general, a twin needs 5 yards, full 5.5 yards, queen 7.5 yards and a king needs 9. We will have numbers to give out so that it is not scary-crowded.  Sale will be in the "annex" which is the empty store on the other side of the chiropractor from us.  Put it on your calendar.

THANKS

It's been 9 years since I opened the old store, and 6 years in this store already.  Thank you for making it possible.

Dakota designs such as the one above are on sale for 25% off.

10/29/10

Hello Quilters!

I am heading to Houston tomorrow for Quilt Market (shop owners trade show).  So, while the cat's away, the mice will be clearing out the store of extra bolts.  We have too many bolts to fit in the color wall.  Too many are on the floor leaning up against the racks.  Too many are taking up space in the "office".  They have put the sale fabrics on the "classroom" table.  This is good stuff.  Look.  $5.99.  Tomorrow (Friday) after 11:00 am (this is a surprise to Deb and Karen and they will need a little time to breathe in the morning!) and Saturday (10 - 4).   There are also a lot of new things in the regular "sale corner".

We will be closed on Sunday for Halloween.

No Lunch class on Saturday.  Very sorry, I forgot I'd be in Houston.  I hope the sale will make up for any inconveniece.

SANTA CLASS

The Witch class went over so well, Bobbi is doing it again with the Santa.  This time it meets three times so we know you will finish it this year.  November 20, 27 and December 4th in the afternoon.

Thank you for shopping at quiltfabric.com. 

Hello Quilters!

CASH FOR CLUNKERS returns:

It's been over a year since we did the CASH for CLUNKERS promotion on sewing machines!  Time does fly.   Let's do it again.   This weekend only.  $500  off the MSRP of the 6600 or 7700 for your clunker.

To be a clunker, it must be old enough not to have the "needle down" feature.  If you don't know what the "needle down" feature is, you need a new sewing machine!  It means that every time you stop sewing, it stops with the needle down in the fabric.  No more reaching over with your right hand to turn the wheel.  Also new in the last 20 years, are thread cutters, needle threaders, and decorative stitches without cams.

As before, we will donate the old machines to a Mental Health Community Services charity that we have been working with in Chicago.  Turns out sewing helps your mental heath.  Who knew?  Answer: We did!

Here's the 6600:
 

We also have other great Janomes, but your clunker will not be worth $500 since many of them retail for under $400!

GREAT LUNCH Topic Saturday
 

Saturday's topic was to be announced, so here's the announcement:  Tricks and Tips #1 that was cancelled when I went to Kankakee.  Anyone who has been through the beginner BOM or Strip clubs with me, knows that I like to find the easiest way to do things.  I am also a voracious reader of quilt magazines, and watched Simply Quilts for years and years.  This means I have accumulated a LOT of tips and shorcuts.  Come learn some things to make your life easier.  You'll probably get some fast gift ideas, too.  Only $10 and it includes a sandwich and cookies from Pot Belly!   No reservation necessary, just be here promptly by 12:15 with cash in hand.

SEW on SUNDAYS

It's football season and the Bears are not even doing very well.  So let's sew instead.  We are moving the Thursday afternoon Sewing to Sundays.  What better way to avoid a football game at home than to be with like minded quilters, and do some quilting?  Bobbi Butler will be on hand to advise if you are stuck on a project (she can do about anything). We'll be in the "annex" classroom so you can spread out.  I certainly wouldn't mind if you brought some snacks.   $10

OTHER CLASSES

We still have spots in the classes coming up with Greg Barner - One Block Wonder, Stack the Deck, Curves, and Crazy Villages.  See past emails, or ask us.  They are all the weekend of Nov 12 - 14.

INNOVA LONG ARM

I got the new Lightening Stitch regulator installed.  It is so fabulous.  All the stitches are the same, even in and out of corners.  BTW, we do quilting for you.  By "we" I mean the computer and I.  Start thinking about bringing in your quilts so they will be ready for the holidays.  If they are in by Thanksgiving, I'll get them done by Christmas (or Hanukah or insert your holiday here).

HALLOWEEN - CLOSED

When Halloween falls on a Sunday not many of you come out shopping, so.....we are going to be closed on Halloween this year.  That's the bad news.  

SALE

The good news is recently marked down many pretty fabrics that were having there one year anniversary with us.  Now they are in the sale corner for $5.99 a yard.  If you used the Maywood Studios Romance line for  your block of the month, come get your binding and backing if you need it. 

FABRIC

We have gotten boxes and boxes of batiks lately.  I'm not even going to say they are pretty because that is redundant.  I will say that if you are going to do the Judy Niemeyer Technique of the month starting in January, next week would be a good time pick out fabrics.

Sorry not much in the way of pictures today.  I'll try to  make up for it next time. 
 

10/1/10

Hello Quilters!

Tomorrow's (Sat. Oct 2.) Lunch and Learn is Paper Piecing.  I hope to be teaching everyone and their sister how to paper piece tomorrow.  It is so easy once someone shows you how to start.  It really should be called Sew by Number.  I will have some hands on opportunities.  If you are planning to come, and you can, please bring a needle and thread and a glue stick or scotch tape.  That will be the most efficient way to do this if there are a lot of people.  I know you will remember it better if you do it and have something to take home with you.   No registration is necessary, just be here by 12:15 Saturday with $10 cash in your hand.

Once you know how easy paper piecing is, you might want to try some of the fabulous patterns we have by Judy Niemeyer.  Our trunk show series from her just started.  The first one just got here an hour ago.  It's called Amazon star (I think that it is called that because it is huge).  If you have a kingsize bed, it would be great.  It's 104 by 104 and has big pieces.  As usual, it is more stunning in person, than in this photo.  That's an 8 1/2 by 11 inch box on the table in front of it.   I'll be teaching this as a class all day on Saturday Nov 6th.   Tell you what, if you buy the pattern and fabric here, the class will be free to you.  The pattern is $50 (includes the papers) and it takes a lot of fabric, like about 20 yards.  If you already have the pattern, and or fabric, make me an offer.

Speaking of classes...

GUEST TEACHER GREG BARNER

Greg Barner is coming down from Michigan to teach for us over a three day weekend in November.  he likes REALLY bright fabrics, like a lot of us do.

Here's his One Block Wonder.  It was made from Laurel Burch horse fabric.  He'll be teaching this on Saturday Novebmer 13th from 9 am to noon. No, you won't get done in three hours, but you'll be able to go home and finish it.  Greg is going to bring one in various stages of completion for you to see on a design wall.   This is one of those quilts that is deceptive - in a good way.  It is very simple, but gives a complex looking result.

Here is an article about Greg with another of his creations behind him.

On Friday EVENING Nov 12th Greg will be teaching Quilted Curves.  This is the technique is what my idol, Caryl Bryer Fallert, uses to do her curves.  You can do a landscape, or any freeform shape you want.  Greg had a really cute ameoba (sp?) made like this but I didn't get a picture.

Then for the really free and fun, there is Crazy Villages on Sunday afternoon Nov. 14th from 1-4.  This has a little bit of prep work.  As I understand it, you bring your quilted background and the grass, and Greg brings boxes of scraps for you to play with making your Crazy Village.  He'll show you how to stitch them down with lots of fun effects.

 Each of his classes are $27 and last three hours.  We do not have them on the website yet, so register through the store, please.

 THE WEST SUBURBAN SHOP HOP IS NEXT WEEKEND from Thursday through Sunday. Oct. 7 - 10.  I think I have just learned a new trick and am sending the passport as an attachment.  You should be able to print it and be all ready to go with ALL the info you could possibly need.  If it doesn't work, I'm sure you'll let me know!

PERSONAL

How'd it get to be October already????????

Michaela is coming home from college for the weekend.  I think she is going to work here with me at the store on Sunday.  That took a little negotiating, but I think I won.   I didn't think I was going to see her much otherwise. 

 9/24/10

Hello Quilters!

First, I made a mistake on scheduling the Lunch classes - there will not be one tomorrow, as I will be vending at the quilt show in Kankakee.

BOOK SALE  40% off all books !!!

On the bright side, we have decided to have a sale on our books (there are way too many) this weekend, Saturday and Sunday.   All of them.  Get them while they're hot.

HELP WANTED

Phil, our token male, got a "real job" and Chris B. decided that working here was interfering with her newly retired status from teaching, so once again I am looking for a few good people to work here.   It only pays minimum wage to start, but you get a 20% discount.  Must be energetic and able to stand almost all day.  This is harder work physically, than you might think. That said, we like to have fun, and sing (mostly on Thursdays with the singing).  Benefits include opening the packages every day and being the first to see the new fabric.

The person does not need to be an experienced quilter. You'll learn a lot about quilting here.  It's more important that you like people, like to be busy, and are fun.  No whining allowed and you must not be bothered by teasing or sarcasm.

Please do not apply if you can only work weekends.  We need weekdays and weekends covered. 

Instead of spending a lot of time on emails and phone calls, I'm going to try something different - if you are interested, come over next Tuesday after 1:30 or anytime Thursday except 12:15 - 1 pm when I will be doing a class on sewing curves.  Bring something you have sewn if you can.

FUN

And here are some pictures from a machine quilting show in Kansas City circa 2008:

9/17/10

Hello Quilters!

It's beginning to look a lot like....Halloween:

Happy Friday afternoon.  Tomorrow's lunch class is the greatest table runner from striped fabric, Chris' way.  12:15   $10 cash.  Sandwiches from Pot Belly's.

INNOVA LONG ARM

I have the new Lightening Stitch regulator installed and it is awesome.  You cannot make it do big stitches and little stitches anymore - just perfect even stitches.

JANOME

This new Horizon just keeps getting better and better.  For $2995 if has everything a quilter could want.  I'd love to let you try it any time.

CLASSES

We have a few classes coming up that I don't think have been mentioned yet.  Well, maybe I mentioned them, but they are not full. Bobbi is teaching her Beginning Free Motion class on Saturday afternoon Oct 2 from 1 - 3:30.  Time goes so fast, we didn't realize it had been a year since we offered it.  Bobbi is great at this and very patient.  She will teach you several different designs that anyone can learn to do.  Hands On, bring your machine.  Call to sign up or do it through our website.

Any Seasonal Holiday Topper

Here is a class for any level of sewing. It is a fast and easy seasonal table topper or tree shirt.  Learn how to add decorative stitches and make it one of a kind project.  This can be made from seasonal fabrics and make it reversible. Learn techniques to make binding with piping. It is a great way to use some of those holiday embroidery designs in some of the sections. So wether you make a tree skirt or a tabletopper you will have lots of fun.   Choose from Saturday Oct 9th from 1 - 3 or Wednseday morning Oct 13th from 10:30 - 12:30.  Here's a picture of it in Halloween colors.   The pattern is by Terry Atkinson so you know it is good. Kathy Kunicki teaching

.

On Wednesday morning Oct 6th  10:30 - 12:30 am.  Kathy will be teaching a cute little zipper bag:  The foot is in the picture to show how cute and little the bag is.  Oh, look the toenail polish matches.  Who would have purple tonenails?

If you have never sewed in a zipper, this would be a painless way to try it.

Bobbi is also teaching a fusing and free motion top stitching class on Saturday afternoon Oct 16.  This is a great one to take if you want to be able to make all the great wall hangings you see at our store.  You'll use a very easy, popular pattern (Bright Christmas) to learn fusible applique and then Bobbi will teach you on samples, how to go around all the different kinds of shapes to stitch down the applique.

Saturday October 23rd is Make Difference Day and we are hosting anyone who wants to help make Quilts of Valor - they go to returning soldiers.  That's from 11 - 3 pm.  For more info or to sign up, please call Rita pennington at 630 897-7469.

Our next Pillowcase sew in is this coming Tuesday 9/21  from 11 - 2 pm.  Volunteers wanted.

JUDY NIEMEYER UPDATE

Our first Judy Niemeyer quilt on this year's trunk show will be the Amazon Star.  It is big. 104 by 104. I will be teaching it on Saturday November 6th.  As Judy's quilts go, this one is relatively simple.  And it could be stunning in various color choices. And you know we have the batiks to choose from.  If you signed up for our Escape in November, you'd have almost three more days to work on it, and I'd be there to help you if you need it.  The model should be in our store Oct. 1st so you can come in any time after that to see it, decide if you want to make it, and pick fabric.  

BTW, I realized on my trip to Montana, that we may have more batiks than just about any store in the country.  I have only seen one that had more.  If you know of another, tell me.

GOTTA HAVE NEW STUFF

Remember the tall stick santa from last year?  We have him again, but now he also has a buddy we call Stumpy: 

I know it's early, but I got some really nice Christmas cards with quilting designs:

SHOP  HOP

Mark your calendar - October 7th to the 10th is the West Suburban Shop Hop.  Get a free project instruction at each shop.  More detail to follow, and the passport will be on our website soon.

PERSONAL

I got a lot of comments on the picture of my sewing room, and many questions as to whether I had it put back together again yet.  Glad it got a laugh.  The cabinets are back up on the wll, but I am hesitant to put everything back in them!  It's forced me to do some weeding out.  I found three quilt guild library books that were missing for a couple years! 

9/8/10

Hello Quilters!

We just recently put all our little kits for Halloween together in one place, and there are quite a few.  Hopefully one says "boo" to you.

Tomorrow's Lunch Class will be on a fantastic table runner to make from striped fabric.  It's easiest with about an 8 inch wide stripe.   There has been a pattern out for a few years that uses a 60 degree triangle ruler to make this table runner.  BUT it always bothered me that it said you could get a second runner out of it, but in truth the second one came out about the size of a placemat.  It wasn't good for anything.  So, one day, I figured out how to get two placemats the same size out of the same about of material.  No waste.  Then, I was on a roll so I figured out how to do it with a 45 degree ruler so that the ends of the runner could be octagonal, not pointed.  Come see.  Food. $10  12:15.  Need I say more?

The parade of pretty Judy Niemeyer quilts continues:

Hello Quilters!  8/26/2010

I think I mentioned that I spent a week in Montana at a camp for shop owners to be certified to have the Judy Niemeyer Technique of the month program in our shop.  I have the top all put together.  Here's a picture.  This is the most pieces I have ever put in a quilt, but remember, if it was difficult, I wouldn't be doing it.  Someone just needs to show you how. If you are interested in this program, we are taking names, but no money yet.  I think it's also on our website on New Years Day.

The materials to teach it might not all be ready from Judy until January.  I don't want to get rusty on all the good stuff that I learned, so I think we will be doing a few of her quilts as demos, and as actual classes for those who want hands on, in the fall.  We are part of her trunk show starting in September again, so there will be a new quilt every six weeks that we could do a class on.

Indian Summer would be a good one to start with since it is fairly simple.  We did it last fall.  Here are two in completely different colors.  This always fascinates me.  The first one made great use of a batik border fabric that we had (we still have it in another color).

This one looks totally different because of the placement of the lights and darks.  It is the same pattern, really.

Just now, as I am drafting this, in comes a customer from out of town with her most recent Judy Niemeyer Prairie Star.  I really want to make this one.  It has most of the same techniques as mine above, so a class on it would teach the same things....and it has the advantage of being bed-size.

OK, enough of the impressive quilts, here are our newest models:

This is a small mat, about a foot across by Patrick Lose:

And another by patrick Lose.  Did you hear that he has a magazine coming out in about a month? 

Remember this witch?  Bobbi made another one and simplified it by not using a zillion different fabrics for the hair, just five.  Also, Bobbi learned to hand paint the faces and hands herself.  Isn't that great?  We are making kits.  Put your request in.  Halloween is about two months away.

Then there's that Bliss fabric that I really like.  There is a pattern that makes two quilts out of it.  Here they are:

LONG ARM QUILTING UPDATE & SPECIAL

This is exciting news.  The Autopilot on our large INNOVA by ABM International is working perfectly and we now have about 20 allover patterns for you to choose from.   Maybe you didn't realize that we are now accepting quilts from customers for quilting.  The price is 2 cents per square inch.  On a huge 100 by 100 quilt that would be $200 but on a 72 by 86 inch it comes out to $124.  I will waive the set up fee of $30 for the rest of the month of February.  That means your total price is 2 cents a square inch including thread. 

Advantages to the Autopilot include that takes out the human error, and the designs can be scaled up or down to the density that suits the quilt.  So say we have a design that you like, but it's really dense, and you prefer a more airy look, we can do that by enlarging the design.

Requirements for quilting:  Bring the top in pressed, the back pressed, and the back must be four inches bigger all the way around.  For example, for that 72 by 86 quilt the backing needs to be 80 by 94.  You can bring your own batting or buy it from us for convenience.  Right now there is very little wait.