IT'S ALL ABOUT THE LETTER "K"

Welcome to KTQ's day of the Spell it with Fabric Blog Hop  

It's time for another Moda Blog Hop. Have you been following your A,B,C's? So here's the deal: each Moda designer was assigned a letter of the alphabet that best represented us and was asked to create the letter with our new spring fabric collections. I pieced a "K" and added a strip of KTQ twill tape. That was easy. So I made a "T" and "Q", too. But then I had alphabet fever and just couldn't stop! I added a few more letters to create a sign for the store advertising our website.It's embellished with odds and ends of sewing notions and trims for a one-of-a-kind sign for ktquilts.com.  

Piece the letters you desire, then embellish with buttons, a zipper, an old buckle, a pair of
vintage scissors, a "U" filled with safety pins and an old tape measure on the "T". 

Spell out anything you wish by stitching up letters and sewing them together in a vertical or horizontal row. How about WELCOME or QUILT or I LOVE YOU. What a delightfully personal gift with someone's name spelled out in fabric! Lissa Alexander of Moda, put all of the letters together to create a one-of-a-kind quilt that you can make, too. Hop on over to the other designer's blog pages for a complete collection of letters, A to Z. Click here for my contribution to the alphabet family.

For Kansas Troubles Quilters, my letter, of course, is K. At first I couldn't think of much that begins with the letter K except Kansas, which is pretty significant in my life. I was born and raised in Kansas and came back here to settle with Robert and KTQ about 13 years ago. We enjoy having our shop/studio in a small town and love living in the country (or, in the wild, as my grandaughter, Delainey claims). Here are few of my favorite K things:

Quilt Block - Kansas Troubles - I've always loved the intricately pieced half square triangles in several sizes that spin and twirl to provide movement and interest in a quilt. This one is made with a variety of KT fabrics.

Food - Kale - Robert and I are trying to eat much healthier swapping pasta for spaghetti squash and ice cream for coconut milk yogurt. We've discovered a great kale salad with edamame, shredded carrots, cashews, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, red onion and pomegranate viniagrette is awesome with or without grilled chicken. 

Favorite Shoes - Keen - I love their patchwork canvas Mary Janes with the rubber toe guard, but my fav for hard work are the 2-strap sneakers in camo. They're komfy, kasual and kool!

Favorite Quotes 

Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground. 

Franklin D Roosevelt

Knowing what you cannot do is more important than knowing 

what you can do.  Lucille Ball

Favorite People - Kids & Grankids- I may be going out on a limb here, but our best times are spent with the kids and grankids for holidays, game days, snow days, any days. I'm working on a new book for late spring that celebrates the Layers of Love in our family with a quilt dedicated to each of the grankids. It's been so much fun taking pictures and having them help name "their" quilts.(Sorry, no pictures, ya gotta wait for the book!)

Karma - If you've been really good lately - sharing fabric with fellow quilters in need or giving up the last yard on a bolt to a friend - you may be rewarded with a fat quarter bundle or Jelly Roll of my new line, Token of Friendship. Comment here on your favorite "K" word.

Tokens of Friendship fat 1/4 bundle and Jelly Roll.
You could be the lucky winners!

Watch for the quilt projects made with Tokens of Friendship on Feb. 27th when winners are announced.

Moda's Spell it with Fabric Designer Blog Hop

Giveaway Winner

Donna is the winner of our sweet giveaway of a KT Honeycomb ruler, pattern & precut. Congrats to you! What an adorable puppy. Too bad they don't stay little for long.

Don't miss the Moda Designer Blog Hop Spell it with Fabric beginning today with American Jane, Bunny Hill & Cotton Way. As always, there will be tons of fun from A to Z and loads of giveaways. Check back here on Feb. 20th for my post about the letter K. 

Cabin Fever

Tan Precuts Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Lisa Mikel - you're the winner of the KT tan precuts this week. Please send shipping info to lynne@ktquilts.com. and watch for another KT giveaway below!

KT Show 'n Tell

Thanks to everyone who's been sending in pictures of quilts and projects using KT fabrics. How fun to see what you're all working on! I love the variety and level of skill shown by all the quilters here. It's as good as show 'n tell at a guild meeting.

Jenny Pettinger's My Favorite Sewing Bag - cotton & wool by
KTQ & Starry Pines Designs (above & below). Great job on the blanketstitching!

Susan Virdon shared these 2 beauties - Birth of a Sampler (above) and Easy Street (below).
Perfectly pieced and wonderful fabric choices.

Here's Jo Jacobi with her almost-finished Stitches on the Oregon Trail quilt. This is the 3rd in the Quilter's Journal
series of quilts/stories from just about 14 years ago, but who's counting???

Great Girlfriend Getaway - Mackinaw City, MI Retreat

Speaking of retreats, Pam and I are hoping you can all join us in Mackinaw City, MI for another GGG retreat, September 8-12th. Click on the link here for more information. Limited space is available. I'll be teaching the new Bee's Knees projects featuring a Moda precut hexagon and our newest KT Honeycomb ruler. 

The Bee's Knees (above) and Sweet as Honey (below) are both created with a Layer Cake,
Honeycomb and a couple of fabrics for borders.

Want to play with a precut Honeycomb? Win The Bee's Knees pattern, KT Honeycomb ruler & a precut Honeycomb by commenting here by Feb. 19th.

A Wonderful Retreat

Great Girlfriend Getaway, St. Augustine, Florida Retreat

Pam Buda and I just missed the ice and snow in Atlanta driving home from our Florida retreat. We both had a wonderful time sharing our quilts and quilting techniques and spending time with this great bunch of women. The weather cooperated with beautiful 70 degree days when we arrived, then cooled off to more normal winter temps of 40-50 later in the week. What did we care - we were stitching away in cozy comfort.

Across the street from our Hilton home base.

The quilters were flying through their Windmills on the Plains pinwheel blocks
using my easy layered patchwork technique.

Windmills on the Plains

New! Assorted Tan Precuts by KTQ

 Many of the quilters opted to make this 48" square wall quilt into a lap quilt by adding just a few ingredients. With KT's new assorted tan Jelly Rolls, it's a snap! We chose (20) of our favorite tan tone-on-tones and prints and assembled them into pinked edge Jelly Rolls, Charm Packs and Mini Charm Packs. They're perfect for adding to a project to enlarge it since they match Moda's precut edges. A KT exclusive, now available on our website at KT Tan Precuts.

Pam and I are already busy working on our next retreat in Mackinaw City, MI in September. Check out the details at GGG Mackinaw City, MI Retreat at ktquilts.com. Sign ups are coming in fast so grab your girlfriends and call today! Be sure to plan an extra day or two to explore historic Mackinaw Island via ferry.

Giveaways

Mrs. H, formerly from Kansas is our winner this week of the stack of Sweet Pea scraps. Congrats! Email your mailing address to lynne@ktquilts.com.

For this week's giveaway, how about trying out our tan precuts? Who'd like to play with 20 tan charm and mini charm squares? Comment here by Thursday, Feb. 6th on what you love best about quilting retreats. Never been on a quilting retreat? Promise to treat yourself soon.

Retreating in Florida

KT Favorites II Scrap Winner

 Congratulations to Babareeba! You're the winner of the huge pile of KT Fav II scraps. We'd love to see a picture of what you do with them. Actually, anyone out there that wants to send a picture of a KT project, please send it my way via ktquilts2@twinvalley.net. I'd love to have a monthly showcase of quilts made by you.

Five & Dime/Loose Change Tutorial on Missouri Star Quilt Co

OMG! There are few times in my life when this expression really fits, but this is definitely one of them. I visited Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Co. a couple months ago to show her my Loose Change book and Five & Dime Ruler. We shot a video, laughed alot, had lunch and planned a retreat for March of this year. I came home to concentrate on preparations for market. October and November passed and the holidays are upon us. Robert and I decided to close the store the week between Christmas and New Year's for inventory and wished our employees a Happy New Year. The kids and grankids descended upon us to celebrate on the 27-28th of December. After the dust settled on the 29th, Robert pulled out his iPad to check his emails. There were hundreds of orders for books & rulers from the Missiouri Star tutorial that had gone online on the Dec 27, unbeknownst to us. Again, OMG! We had no employees, MSQC needed more rulers and books ASAP, and our ruler supplier was also closed for the holidays. Long story short, orders kept pouring in each day, and Robert had a minor panic attack, but the rulers have arrived and orders are shipping as fast as we can get them to the post office. By the end of this week, Robert and his exhausted but hearty crew (Linda & Jamie) will breath a sigh of relief and raise a glass to all of you quilters. If you've placed an order recently, thank you for your patience and understanding. If you haven't seen the tutorial yet, check it out at Missouri Star Quilt Co. 

Great Girlfriend Getaway

Pam Buda and I are off to St. Augustine, Florida to teach at a week long retreat with 43 lovely ladies next week. Wish you all could come with us for some much needed sun and fun this winter. I'll be teaching my Windmills on the Plains quilt, below, featuring a Jelly Roll from KT Favorites II. Pam's quilt is a beautifully pieced two-color pinwheel from her Pin Money collection. Maybe September would work better foryou for a little retreat to Mackinaw City, MI. Check out the details at both of our websites - ktquilts.com and heartspunquilts.com. Do you have a destination you'd love to visit and spend a week quilting ? Let us know and we'll put it on our bucket list.

Windmills on the Plains pattern - $7.95 at ktquilts.com

Sweet Pea Scrap Giveaway

Are you planning a project for 2014 that could use an infusion of KT 's Sweet Pea? Here's your chance! Joy got just a little carried away cutting 5" chunks from leftover scrap strips and I ended up with a knee high pile that needs a good home. Comment here on somewhere you'd like to visit for a quilting retreat by Wed. Jan. 28th. I've got my sunscreen packed. See you in a couple weeks!

Happy New Year!

Have you made your list of New Year's Promise to yourself? 

        I've enjoyed reading on the blogs about quilters selecting a word or phrase for the year instead of making resolutions. My phrase would be "Have more fun!" Although I enjoy what I do, it's always great fun to just hang out and sew with friends, no deadline, no cooking, no pressure. It clears the head, fills the soul, and inspires the mind. Who doesn't want more of that? Sooooo, here's a look at my promises to myself:
       * Finish xyz projects
       * Start abc projects
       * Buy new fabric collections/precuts/patterns
        * Make time to sew and play more with my quilting friends at a retreat
                - Great Girlfriend Getaways with Pam Buda of Heartspun Quilts
                - Weekend retreat with Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Co
                - Kansas Troubles Retreats at the KT Bernina Quilt Shop & Emporium

Whew! Lots to do this year! To help you get started on a new project, we're giving away some KT Favorites II leftovers. Interested?

There are more than 300 scrappy squares of all 40 KT Fav II prints
that are about 5" x 2 to 5" chunks. So fun to add to a charm quilt!

Here's the pile stacked vertically on our Hearts to You quilt, just in time for Valentine's Day this year. The charm quilt in the back by Heartspun Quilts, Summer's End, would be perfect for a pile of scrap squares like this!

So here's the deal. Just comment here about your New Year's promise to yourself and you could win this whole pile of squares to get you on your way to another wonderful quilt for 2014. Deadline: Wednesday, Jan. 15th. 

KT Quilt Contest Finalists

KT Quilt Contest

I was delighted and honored when The Old Country Store in Lancaster, PA invited me to showcase my quilts in their museum this past year. I was able to stop in and visit the store/museum as Pam Buda and I made our way to Brimfield, MA to the antique & textile show this past May. We were both so impressed by the professional displays, the wonderful finds in the gift shop and the cheerful staff in the shop. I was looking forward to returning later in the summer for a special book signing event at the museum, but my father-in-law's passing prevented me from attending. I stayed in close contact with the staff into the fall, excited to see the quilts entered in the KT Quilt Contest sponsored by The Old Country Store. Alas, with much sadness, we heard just a couple days before the winners were chosen that the store had closed it's doors. No winner was officially declared, but I'd like to share all of the finalists quilts with you here to show just how incredibly difficult that job would have been! Congrats to all of you and your beautiful quilts. I am awed by the talent and vision of all the entries. Great job ladies, one and all! Thanks so much for the gracious emails from each of you. Enjoy!

Allison Evrard
Simply stunning stars and scraps!
Great use of a border stripe to pull it all together.

Cindy Kostyak
What a delightful version of Cathedral windows. It shines like stained glass!

Cindy Thompson
I love the combo of log cabin and scrappy squares/strips -
too clever and not a bit wasted!

Gina Blanchard
Truly gorgeous applique is enhanced even further with intricate piecing
and soft scallops to frame it. Beautiful job!

Katy Hoess
Pieced and appliqued blocks blend beautifully to create
a perfectly balanced country cozy quilt.  

Kim Loar
Can you say CRAZY? The detail on this quilt is incredible!
What a work of love and patience.

Penny Lewis
What a fun collection of stars in a unique setting -
so interesting to discover all the differences - great job!

Rose Bullen
LOVE the appliqued medallion surrounded by simple pieced blocks that make it shine.
The half square border finishes it off perfectly!

Veronica Longobardi
What a cheery holiday quilt - love the basket of holly!
Really cool pieced stars married to appliqued vines in the corners!

Sandra Thurston
What a great idea for a Jelly Roll!
Love the twinkly movement and cool pattern.

 Thanks again to all 10 of the KT Quilt Contest finalists. I am humbled that you would choose KT fabrics to make such glorious quilts!

Check in Friday for our first giveaway of 2014!

Lynne