Picnic starts the year off!

Plan to join our modern quilt book giveaway...Picnic is here!!!  We've added it to our retail Pattern Shop and to our Wholesale Information.  Picnic has 38 full color interior pages.  It retails for just $19.95.  Let us know if you have any other questions for us.

Picnic Tartin

Now that we have actual copies we can start planning our fun giveaways.  Since many are busy with holiday activities we will start the contest next week, Tuesday January 8th.  Pass the word on please.

Here are some photos showing a bit more of Picnic.

Icons 

Sample Block Instructions

Sample Technique Diagrams

Peek at Picnic!

See you Tuesday...hope you win a copy.

Simple modern baby quilt featured!

Marny here...

I know it isn't Tuesday, our regular blogging day, but we've got something to tell you!

We are pleased to share some publication news!

We have a simple modern baby quilt in the current issue of McCall's Quick Quilts.  "Off the Grid" uses just three fabrics, and goes together very quickly.  It fits in well with the Quick Quilts concept of the magazine.  The woven effect of the aqua and orange on the dotted background adds a level of visual complexity without additional work.

The cover of McCall's Quick Quilts "Off the Grid" appears in.

Take a look here to see the "Off the Grid" feature page.  

Busy times here.  Picnic is due to arrive this week and then the shipping begins.  We'll be putting the retail and wholesale information in shortly.

May you all stay warm and safe with friends and family this holiday season.  Thank you for your support throughout the year!  

Picnic, our new book filled with modern quilts!!!

Marny here...

Picnic's front cover.  In keeping with our modern aesthetic, even the cover is asymmetric (although the white on white makes that a bit difficult to see).
The Picnic quilt is a sampler of six modern blocks.

Picnic is on its way!  We are thrilled with how it looks and can't wait to start shipping and sharing it with you all.  There were several hiccups along the way, but we couldn't be happier with the end product. 

You'll notice we have a tab in the bar above designated to Picnic.  Helpful content will be added once the book actually starts shipping.  We've been told we will have it by the end of this month.  Talk about a New Year's project...we resolve to start shipping by December 31st.  Keeping fingers crossed.

Picnic's back cover.  Each block is featured in two projects! 

We are so very pleased to present Picnic.  

• Six Modern Blocks
• Block of the Month Compatible
• Multiple Projects
• Design Discussions
• Unique techniques for cutting and piecing parallelograms
• Detailed diagrams
• Full color
• 38 page soft cover book
• Retails for $19.95

We'll be telling the story behind Picnic and all the helpful people involved throughout the month of January.  We will also be giving away copies of the book throughout the month!  Check back to enter!!!!  Pass the word along...

Instead of Tuesday, lets meet Monday instead. 

   

Quick gift idea is an eye opener!

jill here...The holidays are here again.  My little Christmas craft group met early and I had to come up with an idea that was easy......we talk a lot!  Perhaps some of you younger quilters don't need glasses on a daily basis but for sure, your sun glasses need a special home.  So here is a cute essential to carry and protect your glasses.

This project uses felted wool.  It's dense but soft on the inside and easy to sew through.

  

Cut a 16 "X 5" rectangle.   Trim out the corners of one end 2" down and 1" across.  This leaves an end  flap of 3 " across and 2" deep.  

Cut away the  corners of one end

Looks like this after  trimming.

Now is the time to embellish the outside.  There are endless possibilities with buttons, thread, wool scraps!

I added a trim strip of houndstooth, 1.5 " X 16". I stabilized it with a light weight fusible bond and pressed it on the front side of the fabric.  I placed it asymmetrically but it can go however you desire. Trim to meet the ends.

With a blanket stitch, the edge was overcast.  The machine (a Viking) was set at a stitch width of 6 x 3 length.  Only do the sides of the strip, not the ends.

Red thread was chosen for contrast.

Fold the strip in half with the flap coming over the end.  Gently press to identify landmarks.  Cut 1" X 1.5" pieces of loop and hook tape for your closures and sew one piece to the upper end, right side.  Sew the other piece to the underside of the flap, where they meet.

Use a regular stitch, close to the edge of the loop and hook piece.

Finish the non flap end with a blanket stitch, locking the threads. Press the 1" sides (these are the gussets) to the inside of the wool. (Don't press the closure tape or you'll melt it.  Did that once!)

With the gussets folded in and even with the flap, stitch the entire perimeter of the wool with a blanket stitch.  Lock your stitches.

This is an inside view: the gusset ends are free,
stitched 1" down on the fold.

Keeping the case inside out, fold at the bottom with the flap extended. Pull the sides of the gussets out to meet the edges and pin both sides.  Sew both sides with a straight stitch close to the edge.

Turn right side out. 

I added a red button and called it good.

Hope your season is a merry one.  'Til next week....

Phone Fabric from Spoonflower

jill here....Picnic is inching it's way closer to the printers!

Meanwhile, our friend Jane supplied us quilts that she is almost ready to send off to lucky recipients!  Cheddar, No Crackers is the pattern: perfect to feature her carefully selected "telephone " fabric from Spoonflower.

Jane chose the dark grey background to let the fabrics pop.

These phones actually had cords.
My haven't we come along way!

Cell phones have made it into the picture.

Check out the very abstract quilting.

Jane with her B and B made totally from leftovers.
It's so exciting to use those pieces in a fun way.

Next week I'll have a tutorial of a very useful holiday gift.  Now that its 60 outside I should go for a walk.  'Till then..

Modern fabric choices for Quiltcon

jill here...While we finish up Picnic we're looking ahead to the next challenge.  It's fun and filled with mystery as it's the first one. It's Quiltcon!  We'll be making LOTS of new samples so it was exciting to shop at market for new inspirations.  

We love Carolyn Friedlander's new Architextures collection from Robert Kaufman Fabrics.  They are perfect to feature many of our patterns.  You'll just have to wait and see!  Carolyn has done a spectacular job with her sketches, printography and pops-of -color textures.  And she's a really nice artist as well as she is talented.

Even the little squares are cute!

The tonal backgrounds work well with even just a few colors.

Two other favorite fabric collections are from Monaluna.  Jennifer Moore (equally nice and talented) has designed Havana and Modern Home that have wonderful prints, textures, large and small scale animals, icons and dots.

It's fun to mix and match!

The greens and pinks are fun.....

Don't you just love the llamas?  

Frances and Wagner are patiently waiting for their holiday treat!

Hope your season is filled with lots of sewing and fun time.  My annual sewing party is Thursday...guess I'd better get on that!

'Till next Tuesday....

Color lessons from dish towels...

Marny here...I received this delightful trio of dishtowels as a gift recently.  Would you take a look at the amazing set of colors?  Clear aqua, a bright orange red and an intense red violet really leap out at you.  I love intense colors.  Many of the designs tag (small t) brings out from year to year visually intrigue me.  Some of their paper products and small dishes are at home in my cupboards right now.

The towels come tied with red violet twill tape.  Look at the color story!

Why these colors?  Why group them this way?  While not sure these questions got answered, they certainly got examined.

From left to right, the clear aqua, the intense red violet and the bright orange red.

Wielding my Pocket Color Wheel and my curiosity here is what I discovered.  And all the following comes with a big disclaimer.  I am not an expert by any stretch of the imagination.  It is fun to learn and explore once curiosity strikes.

Ah ha!  An easy one.  A complementary color scheme.  Start with Red and cross over the wheel to Green.  They are directly across from one another on the color wheel or you could say opposite one another on the color wheel.  (Notice too that all the colors woven in come from one half of the color wheel.)  

Moving on to the next level in Color Wheel 101, we've got a split complementary color scheme.   Here Red-Violet was chosen to start.  Cross over the color wheel to find the complement (Yellow-green) and see the colors on each side of the complement, Green and Yellow.  The photo makes the greens in the dish towel just a bit yellower than they are in real life.  This is a true split complementary color scheme.  

Ok.  So this one stumped me.  I kept trying to make it fit to a tetrad, or a triad because those have little diagrams on the wheel.  This of course kept me from seeing how simple it was.  It starts with the Blue-green, has lots of Yellow-green and Yellow-orange.  Another ah ha...these are Diads.  Blue-green is two colors from Yellow-green and Yellow-green is two colors from yellow-orange.  Double diad anyone?  Of course the simplest answer is Analogous.  You can see Blue-Green at the top and all the colors heading counterclockwise to Yellow-orange and creeping into Orange.

It takes this cat no more than ten seconds to arrive when fabric gets put on the floor.  While dishtowels are not as comfy as a quilt spread out for photos they do require her always helpful attention.  What is it with pets and fabric/quilts/laundry on the floor?

It is fun to question what you see, explore and develop curiosity!  Three traits we have as children that should be nurtured throughout our lives.

Till Tuesday.... 

Kansa City Modern Quilt Guild

jill here....We had a fast and fun visit to the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild last Thursday. We tasted Bon Bon Atelier, a really cute storefront in Westport and found some unique fabrics and unusual gifts.  We walked the Plaza on an absolutely beautiful afternoon and shared  a quick dinner with some of the the guild officers.  With an exuberant gathering, we showed some of our quilts and discussed how they play a role in the ever present "modern".  This guild is an exciting group that is quilting and planning up a storm!

 Shea Henderson, owner and designer of "The Empty Bobbin".
She's  also the president of the guild and rules with a gentle and enthusiastic hand.

Below are some of the many quilts this group is completing.  My camera couldn't keep up with all the creations.

Thanks so much for having us, Kansas City.  Hope to see some of you at Quiltcon!

'Till next Tuesday....