Staff Profile: Taylor

MLXLS​​SXLLM​​Hello my name is Taylor and I live in Coaldale with my 3 other siblings. I go to school with Carrie at CCS although I am in the grade below her. We are the best of friends and every day working with her is a new adventure! My plans for after school involve attending college for therapeutic recreation because I Love interacting with elderly. Most of my free time is spent babysitting for different families in church or working around the house for my mom.
I've been working at Chicken Feed Quilts for a little over a year now and I started with very little experience. I was very overwhelmed with all the amazing fabric that Esther has all throughout the store. I started working on a weekly basis with Kayla and she acted as my quilting mentor. I learned a lot of things from her such as the importance of fabric lines, and keeping areas organized and clean. Recently I have been putting in a lot of hours at the store working mainly with Carrie and Michelle who both have amazing taste in fabric. We have all been working to keep the store clean and organized as well as updating product inventory in order to get our online shop up and running. I love cutting out kits and precuts downstairs on the Accuquilt Go cutter because i don't have to worry about cutting my fingers on the rotary cutter. It also prevents the worry of a crooked cut.
The last big job I was given was to organize and better display the pattern wall. In the beginning I did not realize that this job would take so long. After a lot of arranging and sorting I finally finished the pattern wall with all the quilt patterns on display (Seriously come give it a look :) ) The store carries hundreds of patterns for everything from bags to quilts to mini’s.
Throughout the months of working I have learned so many things and have actually made a few projects myself (How could you not want to quilt after spending time in Esther’s store!) I recently just made a table runner out of Art Gallery fabrics and I am in love.

PhD Club

On Tuesday I mentioned that we would be starting a new club this September and that anyone falling behind on a project may be interested in it. 

We are calling this new club the PhD Club, for Projects Half Done. We want to motivate you to finish those started but never completed quilts that are piling up. 

This club will be free to join and we will provide lunch but there will be a catch, so keep reading to see what it is.

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How this club is going to work is that we will get together once a month to sew for the day. You are free to work on any project that you like and at the end of the day you will set a goal for yourself on what you want to have done by the next time we meet, your homework so to speak. I will record this goal and keep track of it. This could be the whole top, or maybe just a few blocks, everyone works at a different pace and some months may be busier than others. When we meet again you need to show proof that you finished your homework or you will have to pay a penalty fee of $10. This fee will go into pot that someone will win at the end of the year. If you finished it and show proof, you will not have a penalty fee, instead you will get a ticket into the draw bin, and this will give you a chance to win the money at the end of the season. There may even be some bonus tickets along the way for completed goals. 

MLXLS​​This club will run September through May, however we will skip the month of December because that month is usually fairly busy already.This gives us 8 full days of uninterrupted sewing plus some at home to complete our homework and should go a long ways in finishing up some of those projects that get pushed to the back burner. 

I have been putting out some feelers for this club for quite a while and there has been a lot of interest in having this club take place on a Saturday each month so we will start with that. If there are enough requests I am willing to lead another club on a weekday, I have a lot of projects that seem to be in various stages of completion and could use some days dedicated to finishing rather than starting new ones. You are welcome to join both sessions if you want to, but I will have you set different goals for each session.

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Remember this club is free to attend and can be free all year if you finish the homework you set for yourself each time. We want to give you some motivation to finish those PhDs and get them off your mind, and sewing in a group is always a lot of fun and extra encouraging. I can't wait to see what types of projects you have stored away, and am excited to pull out some of mine again!

To sign up send us an email, visit the store or give us a phone call during business hours. 

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The August Long Weekend is just around the corner. We will be open on Saturday, August 4 but will be closed Monday, August 6 to hang out with our family and celebrate a couple of birthdays.

There is also a new album on our Facebook Page dedicated to Quilts that we have for sale. Check it out and feel free to share the album with your friends as well.

Have a great weekend,

Kayla

Be My Neighbor: Block 10

SXLLM​​I am home once again from our family vacation last week. My husband, boys and myself spent five days with family and friends in Swan Lake Montana, a beautiful campground that we go to every year. We had wonderful weather and it was so nice to spend quality time together as a family. 

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This week we are working on the tenth house in our Quilt Along. I absolutely love star quilt blocks and so this house ranks pretty high on my list of favorites.  When I was putting the center portion together I had a slight moment of panic because my squares were smaller than my rectangles, I double checked all my measurements with the pattern, but it turns out this is how it is supposed to be. It gives a lovely floating star effect when the block is finished. 

MLXLS​​With this block I primarily used my 4.5" x 8.5" Creative Grids Ruler, it is such a handy size, it fits perfectly in my hand and in my ruler stand, and is a great length for trimming the triangles. 

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I have also been using my 18.5" square ruler from Creative Grids to square up each block before putting them aside to await the completion of the quilt. 

Speaking of triangles, my collection of Sherri and Chelsi HST's grew substantially with this block, and the tin that I keep them in is starting to fill up. I'm going to have to think of a project to use them for.

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If you are falling behind make sure you visit the blog on Friday for all the details on a new club that we will be starting in September.

Kayla

Bag Of The Month Details

We have decided on the dates for our Bag of the Month Club as well as the designers. The Club will have one session that runs on Saturdays and another that takes place on Tuesdays and will start at 10am and go until 4pm. 

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To kick off the club the first month will be a free pattern and the supplies will be included in the club fee. We will be making a pouch, and we will be focusing on using mesh and clear vinyl. The dates for this one are Tuesday, September 15 and Saturday, September 18. 

October is the Workshop and so there is just the one date, Thursday, October 18. We will be using bag frames this month, there is the free Retreat Bag pattern from Emmaline as one option, and we have a few other patterns as well that designers have written which use the frames from Emmaline. 

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November we are back to Saturday and Tuesday the 3rd and 6th respectively. We will be doing a pattern by Swoon this month and learning how to use the variety of Strap Anchors that Emmaline has developed. 

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On December 4 and 8 we will do a NoodleHead pattern and lean a little more about different interfacings and how they can change the look of your finished bag. 

As this is a lot of bags in a few short months and life can get in the way we have decided to use January for a makeup and finishing class, if you had to miss a class you can use January  to make the bag you missed and if you have been able to attend all the classes you have the option to work on any of the bags that you haven’t finished. 

February 5 and 9 we will be working on a wallet! We have a couple options on wallets and will discuss them more in the club and make a final decision with you. 

In March we will get together on Tuesday the 5th or Saturday the 9th and will be doing a pattern written by Andrie Designs. 

For the final month we will be making a backpack by Sassafrass lane. This class will feature some different rings.The dates for April are the 2nd and the 6th. 

The goal each month is to try out a new designer and learn new techniques and how to use the specialty Hardware that Emmaline offers. Esther and I have been working on all the bags and we have made small changes to each one.

Registration for this club is open now and we can hardly wait to get started. Sign up in store, through email or by phone. 

I will be going camping next week so there will be no blog posts on Tuesday or Friday. The next post will be on a Tuesday July 23. 

As a result the pair of the Be My Neighbor Quilt Block 10 will be postponed. This gives some of you a chance to catch up and for those that are caught up feel free to make Block 10, and if you have any tips for me please tell me about them. 

I am off to do some more packing, have a fantastic weekend, 

Kayla

Redecorating

SXLLM​​Today was the first time in a long while that Carrie and I were able to work a full day together. To share a whole day with my little sister doing something we are both passionate about is such a treat and we always inspire each other with new projects as well as new ideas.

When I walked in the door today I suggested to her that we redo the store. This way we could give it a good cleaning and organizing and at the same time freshen it up and change the displays some. Of course Carrie agreed, I taught her well growing up to just assume that I was right and she should do what I do ;) 

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We promptly made a plan and first thing was to move the Bag Hardware Bins to the new Hardware wall so it would all be together. The Hardware section is looking great and is very close to completion, I just have to finish barcoding the newest shipment and get it up and it will be finished. Already we have been receiving great feedback, on how much nicer it is to have it displayed on the wall. We are loving it as well, and it has made taking inventory of what we have and what we need so much easier! I must say that we have a lot more Hardware than I thought we did, from rings, and swivel hooks in numerous sizes and colors, to a whole rack of labels, tassel caps, zipper ends and other fun accessories, there is a wide variety of pieces to make your bag your own and truly unique.SXLLM​​MLXLS​​

After moving those Hardware bins we had an empty wall to use for a new fabric display.  We already knew what furniture pieces we wanted there so we started to take bolts off of them in order to move the furniture.

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In order to clean and organize we first needed to make a bigger mess, and I'm talking 100 bolts stacked on the counter and propped against each other. 

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We got the first display disassembled, and the furniture relocated and started putting fabric back on, however I can not just put the same fabric back onto each piece, I needed different fabric, so we found some lines that would work and soon the first display was complete. We repeated this process a total of 6 times and even took up some pieces from the basement that we haven't used in some time to create fresh arrangements to display all the gorgeous fabric on. We also moved several fabric lines around in existing shelf spaces to switch things up. 

Come in store soon to see all the changes!

Kayla

Updates

MXLLS​​Today I have got a little bit of information about several different things to share with you.

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SXLLM​​First up we received some beautiful fabric this week. We have 4 new Call of The Wild Digital Panels by Hoffman in store. These panels feature various wild animals and the detail in each print is breathtaking! Added to our growing collection this week was a cougar, moose, eagle and a new bear and cubs print. We also got in the second edition of High Adventure, this line is so fun, and perfect for either gender and any age! Sparkle and Fade was a popular line both with the first and second release, and this time around it is even more incredible, the designer has added a little gold to the mix and switched up the prints. This fabric would make a very rich looking quilt or a very classy bag and wallet combination.

Speaking of bags, our Bag Workshop and Trunkshow in October is filling up, so if you are hoping to join in on the fun sign up quickly! There is also a few spots left in the bag of the month club, and if you sign up for both by August 1, you are eligible for the discount.

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For the Retreat Bag portion of the Workshop we have found several different patterns that use the same Bag Frame and so there will be some different options to choose from. Esther and I have been deciding on patterns and sewing up the bags for the Bag of The Month Club, and there are a couple already in the store to see.

We have two more events in the plans for October and November and a new club starting in September so stay tuned for more details on those.

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I taught a Collage Class this week and it went really well. We had three cows, two dress forms and a pincushion this time around and everyone's collages were truly unique! These classes are always a blast, and very few people leave without making plans for their next collage.​

With Settler Days in Coaldale this weekend, we have decided to have a quilt sale in our parking lot. We have nearly 100 quilts for sale, and some bags too. We will set them up outside (if it's not too windy) and have more in our classroom. The quilts range in size from Baby to Queen size and prices start at $40. Quilts make great gifts and if you have friends or family members that don't quilt, let them know about our sale and bring them by to browse through the selection, and to check out all the new fabrics in the store.

 Kayla

Be My Neighbor: Block 9

We have reached Block 9 in our quilt. This is the first block in the third row and the beginning of the second half of our quilt along. 

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At this point it is a great idea to lay out all the blocks you have made so far and see what colors and patterns are proving to be more dominant and if others need to be focused on more. 

Block 9 is a great house to do some playing around with colors. For example you can do the house all one color, the roof another and the bow tie blocks a third. You could do a couple colors for the roof sections or each layer of the house. Another option would be to use a couple colors for the bow ties or change the background of the bow tie blocks as Esther did in both of her blocks.

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SXLLM​​When making my Sherri and Chelsi house I chose to do each bow tie a different color, and because the pattern gives cutting instructions for a single bow tie this was easy to do. I love the pops of color that result from this!

You may notice that Esther and I used the same fabric for our Art Gallery Blocks but used different placement. This was entirely coincidental as we sent pictures to each other after we were finished, though Esther did finish hers first and added more fabrics to the blocks than I did. 

When making the bow tie blocks I rotated every other block 180 degrees in order to have the seams nesting, and I pressed the seams between each one open, resulting in a nice flat row with great points. 

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I am having such a great time making both my quilts, choosing fabrics and sewing up each house is a great way to feel like I have finished something and can check off my mental to do list every other week. 

And getting inspiration from everyone else’s blocks is amazing to. What are your favorite parts of this QAL so far?

Kayla