quiltology...

It’s that time of year again when we celebrate another anniversary.  Wow, how time flies. Blink.  Quiltology is turning 4 years old! 

To celebrate we’re having our annual anniversary sale—

10% off all half yard cuts online and in the shop!

Additional in shop only discounts—stop in and save even more—

20% off all one yard cuts or more!

Sale starts March 10 and runs through March 31^st… 

Fat Quarter Fridays continue...all fats just $2.50!

I got a very nice b-day surprise in yesterday’s mail.  My first published quilt pattern!   Fons & Porter’s Quilts for Kids edition features our Quiltology T-shirt quilt with our notes on tips and techniques for duplicating the design.  (see page 55!)

This is a special newsstand only issue.  I’ve ordered copies which will be available in the shop next week.   

Can’t wait?  Order online directly from F&P.

There’s a little drafting involved in duplicating this pattern—but it’s relatively easy and a great way to learn how to design your own patchwork top. 

We’re offering a class in April,  so we can help you create your own patchwork pattern based on the sizes of your shirts.  Call the shop to register.   

cu soon,

ccc



Oh my—pretty pretty paisleys!  I’m melting over the Kaffe Fassett Liberty of London fabrics.   This new grouping of prints is simply luscious—colorized by the master himself and printed on soft premium cotton—these fabrics are sure to please all of us touchy feeling types.

A little background here—Westminster Fibers teamed up with Liberty Art Fabrics to reproduce classic prints from the Liberty archives.   Kaffe added his magic to the deal by resizing the scale and colorizing each of the patterns.  The result is a grouping of 30 new Kaffe fabrics—primarily paisley with a hint of herringbones to provide some stylized textural relief. 

Fabric aficionados know the iconic Liberty of London (now Liberty Art Fabrics) brand.  Everybody else will soon join the design lovers club when Liberty prints get a big boost of mainstream exposure from Target.  (The Liberty home dec collection is expected to hit stores by mid-March!)

The Liberty store in London is a retail icon that was started by Arthur Lazenby in 1875 as an oriental import emporium.  Over the years the store collaborated with many influential artists and couture houses to create their own unique and eclectic brand.  Their products range from clothing to home furnishings, jewelry and scarves.  Oscar Wilde once described the store as “the chosen resort for the artistic shopper.”  (You get the picture.)

Fabric design still prevails, as does their fabric department which they call the Haberdashery. (How very British.)  This is a store within a store where they sell their classic prints, yarn, ribbons, buttons and rick-rack.  (Anybody up for a road trip?)

In the meantime I’m noodling around with ideas for using Kaffe’s new paisley prints.  There’s something about paisley that calls for a regal treatment.  The kidney shaped swirling design is reminiscent of a teardrop infused with color.  Its origin harkens back to Persia and India where they still weave golden threads through the prints and use them for formal occasions like weddings and funerals.

The name itself comes from Paisley Scotland which was once the hub of the weaving industry.  There they produced the classic paisley shawls popular in the late 1800s.  (Sounds like a side trip to me!) 

Oh reality intervenes—too far, too expensive, not enough frequent flyer miles.    

See you soon,

ccc

Start your new Liberty collection now with our fat quarter bundle—30 fat quarters—one of each of the 10 new prints 3 color ways.  ON SALE in the shop and online.

A group of local quilters and fiber artists is starting up a new guild that will meet on the third Thursday of each month.  Here are the details... 

The first meeting is February 18^th @ 6:30p. 

The group has reserved space at the Lincoln Park Branch of the Chicago located 2 blocks west of the Fullerton EL stop at 1150 W Fullerton. 

This month’s program features Jan Aaron, a Chicago-based quilter—

“Expanding Your Fiber Art Horizons.” 

An idea exchange for structuring the guild will follow Jan’s presentation.

Need more info?  Contact QLoopChicago@gmail.com.

Once upon a time, on an island way up in Door County, a now famous quilter taught me how to use a rotary cutter and piece patchwork.  She instilled in me the importance of sewing accurate quarter inch seams (yes, she actually measured my sad little blocks to show me what she meant) and she stressed the importance of pressing!  For someone with a wide toed presser foot and an allergy to ironing, this was quite enlightening.  

Did I mention that I also had really bad fabrics?  Yah, some of those nasty old polyester calicos from the 80s!  I was a mess.  But that teacher was Marianne Fons—yes, that Marianne from Fons & Porter—and she set me straight in a very diplomatic nurturing way (which of course is Marianne’s style.)  For this I am extremely grateful.  

Recently Marianne sent me a copy of a new DVD that she and her daughter Mary just released—Learn to Quilt with Marianne Fons and Mary Fons.  I watched it last night (seam ripper in hand—nothing like multitasking!) I just want to say to all you beginners—go buy this now!  

Classes are good because they give you the hands on instruction you need while learning new techniques—but reference guides and DVDs are also valuable because they reinforce the things we sometimes forget from class.  In this new video Marianne and Mary demonstrate it all from rotary cutting, to piecing (triangles no less!), setting your blocks in different designs, machine quilting and yes—finishing up with binding and quilt labels.  And they provide a nice little booklet with step-by-step photos as a quick reference guide as a bonus.  This is a good thing.   

Happy sewing everybody!

ccc

PS--we've still got two spaces left in our February class!