Gail arrived home safe and sound from her trip with Angie to Houston Quilt Market. After 4 long days, Gail is home with lots of new great products and ideas. We'll be showcasing many of them on the blog over the next few weeks.
What is more adorable than a cat(kitten) at play? Laundry Basket Quilts has created a 16" x 21" raw edge applique quilt that will delight any cat-lover. You can almost see the mischief in this kittens eyes!
With fusible web as your friend, this project will be a breeze! Grab your batiks and start creating.
Have fun,
Kelly
Crazy Quilting is back in style. And there are great new tools to have on hand to walk you through the steps. The Queen of Crazy Quilting is still Judith Baker Montano. A number of her books are still available by C&T Publishing.
Opening this book, is like taking a trip down memory lane. Old-time classic patterns are given new twists. There are over 20 projects (bed, lap & wall quilts) included. Easy patchwork anbd fusible machine applique make this a great addition to any quilter's library.
7. Now that you have a ruler and a cutter, you need the proper mat to cut on. Again there are a variety of choices. Look for an 18" x 24" mat. This is the perfect size to travel with or to move room to room. We like both the Olfa and Omnimat brands of mats. The only difference is the brightness of the mat.
8. Glue - Always a necessity especially if you are dabbling in applique. Glues of choice - Fons & Porter Glue Pen and the Glue-Dab-A-Roo.
9. Hand Sewing Needles - Always a necessity. Look for a good quality needle that has a big eye. Remember the larger the size number the smaller the eye of the needle. Our most favorite needles are the Sharps # 10 by Clover.
10. No matter what type of needle you are working with a good needle threader eases the frustration factor. The best threader around is the Double Ended Needle Threader by Clover. It has two ends. The very finest end actually allows you to thread a size # 12 needle.
11. Marking pencils are an absolute must for any sew or quilter. Just like other notions, you get what you pay for. Invest in an Ultimate Marking Pencil or a Fons & Porter Mechanical pencil. Both come with the traditional grey colour lead. You will still want to have other pencils but we pretty well guarentee that you will be reaching for one of these pencils for all of your needs. As with any marking pencil you need to test any pencil on the fabric you are marking before marking a whole project.
12. And finally, we highly suggest a Tailor's Awl be included in your list of must haves. It's great for helping to guide the final bit of your seam through your sewing machine where fingers do not fit. Our choice is the White-Handle Tailor's Awl by Clover.
With less than 3 months to Christmas, it's time to start working on wish lists. Starting this month, we will have wish-lists available for you to fill out and we'll keep them on file. Let your loved ones know where to find your perfect gift. Sometimes it is very difficult for our loved ones to know what the perfect gift is for the quilter and sewer in their life. We're just trying to help them along.
On Christmas morning, everyone will be happy!!!
Kelly
Everyone at some point wants to wrap up, cuddle in and snuggle under a quilt.
Sunflowers are one of the most beautiful flowers around. Shades of yellow and gold glow in the early morning sun.
Bring that glow into your house with this 37" x 20" wallhanging.
retail - $7.00
Happy Gardening,
Kelly
, America's best loved quilting magazine.
Well the answer is they both have a place in the world of binding. Bias binding is normally used when you are working with curves or striped fabric (it looks cool when it spirals).
A great tool that has been around for years is the Strip Ticket from Q-Snap Corpotation. It walks you through the Bias Tube Construction steps. As an added bonus, it helps you with yardage requirements for a variety of width strips.
It's laminiated and bright so it won't get lost in your sewing room.
retail - $5.50
Until next time,
Kelly
