Stuffed

We have our family Thanksgiving on the Sat. after the big day to avoid over-stuffing. The kids and grankids go to the in-laws on Thursday, take a break for a day, then come here on Saturday for, basically, Thanksgiving Day leftovers. I cook my bird and  it goes directly into turkey hash. We looooove stuffing, so I make a layered stuffing, turkey, gravy dish that we've always just called hash. It's super easy and yummy - after all, you just can't go wrong with turkey and stuffing covered in gravy. The usual sides accompany with green bean casserole, crock pot corn and cranberry/waldorf salad. I'm not much of a pie baker (and my Mom was out of town) so I cheated and made a pumpkin dessert with a crunchy topping and apple crisp. Bribed with a pile of Cool Whip on top, everyone swore they didn't miss the pie crust at all. My daughter, Nicole, brought her now famous chocolate/butterscotch chip cookies that are so fat and chewy and tender I'm not sure how she does it. As soon as she walked in the door, they disappeared (our family's version of an appetizer, I guess.) Anyway, I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend with all the people they love. If not, we have another shot at family bonding in just a few weeks.

Now, on to the business at hand. Congrats to ytsmom - you're the winner of the KT Retreat Gift Certificate! I hope you can grab some girlfriends and come see us this year. We're making lots of fun changes around here this winter and can't wait to share it with all you. For those of you who didn't win, watch for another chance before the year is done.

Here's a preview of one of my new projects for Pheasant Hill, Pheasant Feathers, featuring Moda's new precut, a Dessert Roll. A Dessert Roll consists of (20) different 5" x WOF strips from the Pheasant Hill fabric collection. It's a good chunk of fabric for blocks that have a bit larger pieces to cut, such as these modified star and square blocks. Each block starts with the same basic units. On the stars, a larger triangle is layered and stitched on each end of the dark squares; on the squares, 2 triangles are added. A mini charm square is centered and stitched onto each block.

The 4-patches in the corners are turned to make a secondary block in between. So fast, so easy! A Dessert Roll, a mini charm and 3-4 fabrics is all it takes to make this lovely lap quilt - big enough for two! A pillow with mini blocks and a runner are also included in the pattern.

I'm finishing up the pattern next week, but no Dessert Rolls available until March, so comment here and win the Pheasant Feathers booklet and a mini charm from Pheasant Hill. We'll do a Dessert Roll giveaway as soon as I have one.

Have a great Cyber Monday. Take a minute during this busy season to pamper yourself.
Lynne

More KT News

First of all, congratulations to Loris. You're the winner of the Point it Out pattern/kit this week. Thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting. I, too, am a stuffing/gravy addict. In fact, we forgo tradition and start with the leftovers! My kids all go to their in-laws on Thanksgiving Day, so we celebrate on the Saturday after. Everyone has had the traditional turkey dinner at least once by then, so I make our favorite - turkey hash. It's just basically MORE stuffing and gravy mixed up with chunks of turkey. We love it!

Thanks to all of you who emailed to say you'd love to be part of the new KT Collector's Club. I'm so excited to get started! It's not too late to sign up. We'll have a place on the website where you can purchase individual Club packs as long as supplies last, but your best bet is to email or call me so we can get your name on the auto-ship program before Jan.1st.

And now, on to another BIG ANNOUNCEMENT - Kansas Troubles Quilters' Retreat  will open again in March 2013!! Yes, you read correctly. We're opening the second story over the KT Studio to quilters once again for weekend (or week day) retreats - with a few changes. We have ample room for up to 8 quilters. The retreat space will be available for $250/night for up to 4 quilters with an additional $60/person per night over 4. Continental breakfast will be available in the retreat kitchen. All other meals will be at the quilters' expense. We have some new dining options in Bennington with the expanded menu at Westside Ventures - including hot breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. Just down the street, the new soda fountain, The Linger Longer, offers evening dinner specials and homemade shakes, floats and ice cream novelties. And of course, there's still the cafe with it's salad-plate-sized cinnamon rolls. Downstairs, we'll have KT books, fabrics and notions available for sale during store hours along with sewing collectibles, antiques, jewelry and other unique treasures. We're opening our doors beginning April 11th. Come for a few days to relax, quilt and laugh with your quilting friends. Here's a look at our KT Retreat from the lens of Pam Buda -

 You'll sleep dorm-style in vintage beds covered with antique quilts and linens.

 Our kitchen is fully equipped to host a party - and is a feast for the eyes!

After a long day of machine sewing, relax in the sitting area with some handwork or a magazine to unwind. There's plenty of room for everyone!

Ladies, I can't wait to meet each and every one of you. If I'm not traveling to teach at guilds or quilt shops, I'll stop in to visit while you're staying at the KT Retreat. My husband, Robert, will be your host during your stay. Hope to see you all soon!

To celebrate the new again KT Retreat, the giveaway this week is a $50 gift certificate for a group of 4 quilters for 2013. Grab some friends and make plans today!

Join our New KT Collectors Club

Congratulations to The Woolen Cellar! You're the winner this week of the Loose Change book, Five & Dime ruler & Spare Change ruler. Enjoy!

Have you made your deposit to quilt & sail with Pam Buda and I next September along the New England coast? Time - and space - is running out to make your reservation. Along with the beautiful scenery and lovely ports, we'll each offer 2 classes and a trunk show of our quilts during the week. Call me if you have any questions. We'd love to have you join us!

Do you wait impatiently for each KT fabric line to arrive at your local quilt shop? Do you love to pet and fondle each piece as you select the perfect ones for your next project? Wait no more! Announcing our new KT Collectors Club. Three times a year when our new fabric collections are released, you can be the first on your block to receive an assortment of the very newest prints. Beginning with Pheasant Hill in March,  Icicle Kisses in June and my new fall collection in September, you will receive (6) fat 1/6's, a mini charm pack with (40) 2 1/2" sq., and a pattern from our KT Stash Society using the new fabric. How fun is that? For just $25 for each collection (shipping included), we will automatically charge and send your package directly to your home. What a delightful surprise in your mailbox!

To sign up, email or call us with your mailing info and a Visa/MC and we'll add you to our list of KT fans who can't wait to get their hands on each collection. Do we really have to wait until March??????

For this week's giveaway, I have the November KT Stash Society pattern/kit for one lucky blogger. With just 2 fabrics and a mini charm pack, you can make a wonderfully simple runner to compliment your fall table decor. Comment on a favorite Thanksgiving dish to be eligible. I'm desperate for something a little different this year. Thanks for all your input, ladies. I love reading all your comments.

This weekend, I'm headed to Arthur, IL to meet up with my buddy, Pam Buda of Heartspun Quilts and friends to antique shop. Can't wait to see what's in store! Updates next week.

Market Update

First of all, thanks to Mary for naming the new Pheasant Hill charm pattern - Pheasant Crossing. Love it! For the winning submission, we'll be sending her the charm pattern and a charm & mini charm so she can start on the quilt. Thanks, Mary, and to all of you who offered names. Believe me, I've saved some for future reference. Be assured you'll receive a little something in the mail if your suggested name is used in the future. This is definitely the way to brainstorm!

From the last post, we've drawn 2 names for unclaimed Harvest Moon prizes - Terry @ a quilting blog has won the Harvest Moon scrap strip bundle and Becky wins the Harvest Moon charm/mini charm. Thanks for hanging out at my blog ladies.

Now, on to what's been going on the past week or so in my world. After a thoroughly hectic week before market - I received my final precuts 6 days before leaving for market. I made a quilt Thursday, got it to my quilter and back over the weekend (thank you, thank you Lori Kukuk for giving up your Sunday to quilt for me), photographed it on Monday with no binding, and bound it in the motel room the night before market. Whew! Such is the pace before market. Anyway, here's the quilt I threw together in about 3 hours using only  1 Dessert Roll [(20) 5" x WOF strips of Pheasant Hill] and 1 fabric for border/binding. So fast, fun and easy! I just cut an inch from one edge of the strip; layered them wide, skinny, wide, skinny; pinned them in place, kinda; then stitched close to the pinked edges. Some of them went a bit wonky, but it just adds to the movement and uniqueness of the quilt. Lori quilted it in horizontal rows with 3 different motifs for fun. For a quilt this fast, inexpensive and fun, I love it! I also threw together a bag and a pillow using the same technique with just a few strips. It's called Dessert for Two.

On Wednesday of last week, I headed south to Wichita and picked up my good buddy, Pam Buda of Heartspun Quilts who flew in to ride with me to market and help with my booth. Who could ask for a better friend? The only condition was we had to stop in Dallas at the Moda warehouse since she had yet to visit there. Once there, we found all kinds of goodies, including some "vintage" KT fabrics from over 10 years ago. I was in heaven! More on that in another post. Anyway, we shopped the warehouse and checked out the KT display with Loose Change and the many other titles they carry. It's still exciting to see my patterns & books at Moda!

We trekked on to Houston to unload the car and set up the booth. Lots of work, but so worth it. We showed all of the Loose Change projects, the new Pheasant Hill projects and some of the favorite KT Stash and Mini Table Treats from the last year, too. I demonstrated the Five & Dime ruler, showing how simple it is to center, stitch, cut and sew precuts into delightfully easy quilts in the Loose Change book. I did my demo so many times I think I was muttering it in my sleep that night! There's a YouTube video of the demo, too. I'll have that link for you soon.

Moda's booth won First Place in Multiple Booths! It was so clever and fun with the theme of "My favorite color is Moda". Paint cans, stir sticks, paint swatches and dripping paint made for a colorful and eye-catching display. Awesome!

 The highlight of the weekend is always the Moda party. Mark Dunn, owner of Moda/United Notions, throws a party and invites all his designers and customers to come eat, drink and play for the evening. He'a a truly generous businessman and we all appreciate his sense of fun. This year, the theme was Cowboys with cowboy hats, a country & western band, a Reba McIntyre impersonator and mechanical bull. What a hoot! I laughed so hard my cheeks hurt! The Moda party makes all the hard work of preparing for market worth every minute. Thanks to Mark Dunn, Lissa Alexander, Cheryl Freydeburg and the entire Moda family for making us all feel a part of theirs.

If you can't get enough of market, there are dozens of designers and shop owners taking pictures for their blogs and facebook. Check it out!

This week, we're giving away Loose Change and a set of rulers - Five & Dime and Spare Change - to one lucky winner. Comment on your favorite blog - other than KT, of course. I'd love to know who you follow and why. See ya Monday, Lynne