Mark your calendars: Shop Hop!

Shop Hops. 
As quilters, we love 'em. An excuse to visit multiple quilt shops in a day or weekend--what could be better?

~Well, a chance to win prizes while visiting those quilt shops, and shop hops have those too--we'll call that icing on the cake!~

And speaking of "icing on the cake," we're sponsoring a Shop Hop in the Greater Kansas City area--the 1st Annual Great Plains Show Down Shop Hop, known as the Sugar Rush. Appealing name, isn't it?!?

That's right--a sugar shop hop! 
Mark your calendars! The hop, featuring seven shops, will run March 27th and 28th, 2015.

Each of the participating shops will be featuring a sugar-themed block, tasty (sugar) treats, and the chance to win a gift basket worth $100+! Any quilters who visit all seven shops will be included in a drawing for a Baby Lock Amelia machine. 


Kansas City quilters, mark your calendars! 
Non-Kansas City quilters, start planning a road trip! 

Find more details on the Hop's Facebook page here.

Learn more about the Sugar Rush shops:
Aunt Sadie's Quilt Shop
Sunflower Embroidery
I Don't Do Dishes
Modern Makers
The Quilted Sunflower
Quilted Memories
Meadows Quilting and Sewing

10 Valentine Designs for You

Valentine's Day is around the corner...pull out your favorite red and pink prints! Here are our top ten favorite valentine designs. See more ideas on our Valentine's Day pinterest board.

1. Patchwork heart table runner

Find the pin here.

2. Quick and easy: fabric hearts stitched on cards

Find the pin here.

3. A sweet mug rug

Find the pin here.

4. Remember these heart baskets from grade school? Make one from fabric!

Find the pin here.

5. Skinny striped heart

Find the pin here.

6. A pillow with 3D hearts

Find the pin here.

7. Romance for two!

Find the pin here.

8. Scrappy pillow

Find the pin here.

9. Kitchen love pot holder

Find the pin here.

10. Rhapsody in Reds zigzag quilt

Find the pin here.

Looking for more ideas? Visit our Valentine's Day pinterest board.

Graphix in action!

Have you seen our Graphix 3 line? 40 fun geometric prints in a rainbow of colors! 

Today we're plugging those prints into three classic quilt blocks, showing you how you can mix and match patterns and color palettes for a variety of looks. Let us know which one you like best!

The pinwheel block:

2 contrasting prints from the same colorway

2 different colors of the links print

2 contrasting prints in different colorways

2 contrasting prints from the same colorway

The star block:

3 contrasting prints from the same colorway

The same block, with the points turned inside out!

1 print, many colorways!

2 contrasting prints from the same colorway

The Jacob's Ladder block:

Plenty of contrast with 3 print in coordinating colors (actually from 2 colorways!)

Mixing black and brights to make it modern--different colorways and prints

What's black and white and red all over? Different prints in coordinating colorways

Monochromatic! 2 different prints from the same colorway

See the entire Graphix 3 collection here and ask for it at your local quilt shop. 

Graphic Appeal

If you're looking to add a little geometric variety to your stash, we think you'll love the Graphix 3 collection. With four patterns and ten different color combos, no matter what type of project you're planning, you'll find a print that works for you (or several!)

Here's a sampling of the Graphix 3 collection:

And then sorted by pattern:

Pentagons

Scrappy triangles

Links

Zig zags

Jessica Toye designed Stair Stepper using a Snack Pack of all the prints in this collection. Pre-cut 2-1/2" wide strips, plus a neutral solid--you can't get easier than that! The result? A quick, scrappy, modern looking quilt.

Download the free quilt pattern here.

See the entire Graphix 3 collection here and ask for it at your local quilt shop. 

And be sure to stop back soon for our next post, which will show how to mix and match these prints in different block combinations.

All Sports, All the Time

If you have a sports lover in the family, one (or more!) of these prints will come in handy for making a quilt he or she will love! Use all five ball prints in one design, paired with a black solid, or choose one sport to focus on and add in several solids or tonals. Any way you sew it, we guarantee the finished quilt will be a hit with your sports lover!

Find all Sports prints here and ask for them at your local quilt shop.

The Alternative Party: Soup-er Bowl Sunday

In case you missed the news in amongst all the stories about the East Coast snowstorm (how's the shoveling going, New Englanders?), the Super Bowl is this Sunday. If you're a Super Bowl or even just a Super Bowl party fan, we've got a Pinterest board just for you, with all kinds of fun, creative ideas for a party. You can find it here.

But...if the mere mention of the Super Bowl makes you want to curl up in a ball under a quilt and plug your ears for the ridiculous amount of time the game and commercials seem to last, we have a suggestion (and a Pinterest board!) for you too! 

It's not just about the football. Or the commericals.
Have a Non Super Bowl Sunday Party. 
Whether it's just you, you and a friend, or you and your ten closest sewing buddies, do the day up in style. How, you ask?

First, take inspiration from the name of this practically national holiday. Soup-er Bowl. That's right! 

1. Serve Soup. 
Here are a couple of our favorites:

Find the pin here.

Find the pin here.

2. Pick a Project
Keep with the soup theme and try one of these:

Find the pin here.

Find the pin here.

...or check out our Pinterest board for some other one-afternoon/evening projects like mug rugs, table runners, and more. Or just pull out your current project in the works--everyone else is watching football, so you have an afternoon and evening's worth of "free" time to sew on whatever you like. 

3. Don't watch the game.
Easy! You'll be sewing with your friends and eating soup...what more could you ask for on a winter Sunday evening?


There you go--a recipe for a non-Super Bowl Sunday Party with sewing friends! See more ideas here.

Paisley with Style

We've updated that classic paisley look with a fresh color combination: plum and olive. Four different paisley designs play nicely together in this new collection--Chelsea--supported by texture-rich tonals. Imagine a bedroom with bold plum-colored walls and a quilt made out of these Chelsea prints: luxurious, cozy, and out-of-the box, all in one!

Floral paisleys:

A tonal full of movement:

Lacy paisleys:

A more classic paisley, surrounded by leafy vines:

So much detail in each paisley shape:

Plaid and paisley...a perfect combination! 

Make your own "plaid" throw with this cool (and easy!) quilt pattern:

 "Heather Gem" by the Quilting Hen

Download this free pattern here.

See the entire Chelsea collection here.