Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Celebrating Kansas Day with quilts

Robert and I had a great time this afternoon hosting Mrs. Swearengen's 4th grade class from here in Bennington. They've been reading Little House on the Prairie to prepare for Kansas Day (Jan. 29)and were interested in 9-patch quilts. I just happened to have a few to share - old and new. I showed a few examples of 4-patches and 9-patches, then sent them into the bedroom with more than 30 quilts on beds, walls and chairs to hunt for more quilts with the same blocks. They spotted several right away and asked very intelligent questions. We moved on to the kitchen to check out the various tools they might have read about - butter churns & molds, cast iron skillet scrubbers and hand mixers & mashers. In the hall with the laundry collectibles, there were lots of questions about the sock stretchers and wash boards. So inquisitive! They were a delightful bunch - very polite, engaged and interested in all the old junk we have around the building. Definitely something we need to do every year. Kudos to Mrs. Swearengen for trying to bring history to life for her students.

Be sure to check out Moda's Designer Pillow Talk Blog Hop beginning Feb. 1st. Go to modafabrics.com for a complete list of participating designers and visit a different blog each day. Lots of fun and surprises! I'll be back for my Pillow Talk day on Feb. 7th. 'Til then, wishing you sunny skies and drinks with umbrellas!
Lynne

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Cheryl's quilt

I've been meaning to get your quilt on the blog, so your mention of all the different fabric lines you used reminded me. Thanks, Cheryl, for the pictures - love, love, love the quilt! What a lucky hubby you have. Mine likes it, too. I've been saving triangles, so maybe someday....

Send pics of quilts you've made with KT fabrics and we'll share them here. I always need stuff to talk about.
Lynne

Five & Dime Ruler

Brian has the Five & Dime info on our website under Products, then Rulers. We have a couple more rulers in the works for our Spiderweb block and a new project for market. Any requests? Have you seen a block you'd love to have a template for? The diamond shapes on the Twinkling Stars/Hunter's Star quilt? Let me know and we'll see what we can do.
Lynne

Monday, January 24, 2011

New Giveaway

Kelli, you're the winner of the KT Tin with 4 mini charm packs - just like the cruisin' quilters - congrats! Send your mailing address right away and Robert will ship it out before we leave.

I spent part of the weekend replacing elastic in a couple of skirts, hemming a too-long dress and making sure all my clothes are clean and ready to go for the cruise. Can't wait to catch some rays, catch up with my Moda buddies and play with all the quilters. I'm teaching the Five & Dime class to 3 groups of ladies on 3 different sailing days of the cruise. It will be just the second bunch to test out our new ruler designed for this project. Check out the step-by-step demo on our website under Rulers to see how easy it makes a really simple quilt. This is one quilt you can make in a day in any fabric combo for a college student, manly man or toddler's first big bed. Lois and I have stitched it up in everything from Nebraska logo fabrics to Harley-Davidson to pastels and, of course, several different KT collections.

Our giveaway over the next 2 weeks is a Five & Dime Ruler and Pattern (it's really hard to take a picture of something that's clear!!). Comment thru Feb.6th for a chance to win.

Hope to post one more time before we set sail.
Lynne

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Hunter's Star pattern?

We made the Hunter's Star block simpler by adding the points as raw edge applique in our pattern Twinkling Stars in reds, greens, golds and tans for the KT Stash Society. Check the list of participating quilt shops on our website @ ktquilts.com under the Stash link. Love the way it went together. Just might try it again as a charm pack pattern later this year.
Thanks for the inquiry!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

PS - Cure for the Winter Blahs

A little extra Vit. D this time of year can make all the difference in your outlook and mood. Try 4-5 drops of liquid Vitamin D each morning in a shot glass of your favorite juice (or water)for results in just a few days - magic! It's one of the cheapest and easiest fixes out there.

A New Year, A New Project

First of all, congratulations to Sarah for winning the Warm Memories scrap bag. It has magically turned into a fat 1/8 bundle since I can't find the pile of scraps I "put away" for the giveaway. I realized I had posted the wrong date (Jan. 23 instead of Jan. 16) - guess I just gained a week! So, we need another giveaway for this weeek. How about a KTQ tin with 4 mini (2 1/2" sq.) charm packs including Perennials, KT Favorites, Warm Memories and Summer's End? Each of the ladies on the cruise next week will get one, too, so you can pretend you're sailing with us to the Bahamas. Post here between now and Monday Jan. 24th (my Mom's 77th birthday) to win.

Now, for our latest project. One of my "plans" each January is to start a quilt I can work on throughout the year to finish by Christmas. Lois and I both loved making the KT Favorites BOM quilt, digging thru all the past KT fabrics. I actually cracked open a couple of fat quarter bundles I've been saving to steal the perfect piece for a block or two. In doing that, we decided I probably didn't need to save a fat quarter of everything I've ever designed - maybe a fat 1/8 would be just fine. So, we spent part of our sewing days taking 33 fat quarter bundles apart and cutting a fat 1/8 (for prosterity), a 5" x 22" strip, a 2 1/2" x 22" strip and a 1 1/2" x 22" strips. This would allow for alot of scrappy options later. But all those strips were calling to me - make a quilt, make a quilt. Yes! A quilt using all the fabric lines to date - one collection in each block to make a king size quilt for our bed. Lois was all for it! We both searched and searched over the holidays in magazines and books, trying to find the perfect block to showcase 40 prints from each line. Our favorite was Granny Squares by Lissa Alexander of Moda in the October 2010 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting magazine based on a knitted afgan - gorgeous. But as any designer knows, if you're going to take that much time to make a quilt, it might as well be an original design to sell the pattern. I loved the idea of using 1" finished squares to use as many prints as possible in each block, but didn't want to have to use so much fabric in the sashings. After several attempts, we got the blocks worked out yesterday - and I love it! From each fabric collection of 40 - 1 1/2" x 22" strips, we can make 2 blocks - one light, one dark. With 36 blocks that finish 12" each, we'll be on our way to a wonderful memory of the first 10 years of KT fabric for Moda. Keep watching for peeks of our progress as the months roll by. We're planning to have the pattern out for fall market.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Snowman Stitchery

Wanted to share the cute snowman stitchery Lois made for me for Christmas. Isn't it cool how our friends know us so well and pick/make the best presents? She usually whips up a small quilt or wool project - I look forward to it every year. I really enjoy the things I didn't have to make myself.

Still time to comment before the Warm Memories scrap bag finds a new home. We're adding to it everyday!
LMH

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Snow Day!

Congratulations to moosecraft - you're the winner of the Moda tin full of KT goodies. Enjoy!

This week, we'll be sharing a bag full of scraps from our recent Warm Memories projects. Comment before Sunday, Jan. 23rd for a chance to have some of the first of this collection (it isn't available at quilt shops until May!!).

It's official - our first snowfall of the year hit yesterday with several inches on the ground and more to come. I feel for those of you who have to get out in the weather to go to work, but am so grateful I can work at home and enjoy it from my window. The next few days are supposed to bring frigid temps - another good reason to stay home and sew. I'm trying to finish up the Warm Memories Feather Tree Advent Calendar quilt patterns (so many templates for the ornaments!).

Stay warm and have a cup of hot chocolate for me!
Lynne

First Giveaway of the New Year!

Happy 2011 to all of you! It's that time of year again - sort, purge, reorganize - as we put away the Christmas decorations and bring out the snowmen. When we were hosting retreats, I changed the decor every other month for the seasons - quilts on the walls, collections in the entryway, small vignettes on the bedside tables and in the bathrooms, as well as in the main gathering space with lampshades, table toppers and pillows - in fact, right down to the tissue box covers. Whew! Now that I no longer need to "foo foo" up 2000 sq. feet each month or so, I need to get rid of a TON of stuff. I spent last week sorting thru most of my Christmas decor and boxed up anything I did not use this year. The rest? Up for grabs! We're adding a new link on our website called KT's Attic. We'll have items for sale, mostly in groups by season, for you to decorate your home at flea market prices with a little bit of KTQ. (Christmas items will show up throughout the year.) Watch for the first items later this week. I just couldn't part with my collection of Deb Strain snowmen (pictured above), but I have plenty more for those of you who enjoy these seasonal friends as I do. One of our Attic offerings is a set of 3 wooden snowman boxes with a couple of adorable ceramic snowman head ornaments - all for just $4! We'll also have some antique sewing accessories such as bone needle cases and advertising thimbles, quilt tops and other collectibles.

Our first giveaway this year is an assortment of goodies found in the back room that were favors for retreats. In the Moda Designer tin is a pack of Kathy Schmitz notecards, a ceramic pie bird, several Ragspun appliques using KT Plaids, a sewing themed notepad and a wire basket that holds a special Easter egg perfectly. Comment here by noon, Sunday, Jan. 9th to win it! And who knows what else may find it's way into it before it's closed and sent. We have a few more of the Moda tins for sale in KT's Attic for $5 each if you missed them the first time.

Did you make a quilting resolution for this year? Finish UFO's? Take a quilting retreat? Make more gifts this year? I'd love to hear about them.
Lynne