New Fabric: August

 I hope everyone had a good weekend, Kayla and her family took off this week to go camping, and she left me here to do the blog this week. 

I just want to share with you some of the new collections that have come into the shop lately, there has been a few. 

I'm going to share my favorite new collection first. I'm pretty sure Esther, Kayla nd I all have a few projects planed out of this collection. Songbook by Fancy That Designs. I just love the classic hymns in this one. I plan to make a quilt for my fiance's grandma and also a few things for my new kitchen, like hot pads, a table runner, and valances. 

The Large Multi Panel

Small Multi Panel

Small Navy Panel. She also designed this one in the aqua

Another new fun line we got in is Magic of Serengeti by RJR Fabrics. 

This collection is so fun and wild when it is all put together, but the colors and prints are also accentuated when you break it down into the color groupings. Kayla plans to make a Tumbler quilt using all the prints and a couple solids. 

We have one more new collection from RJR, Pond Life. I just love the frogs in this line. Come into the store or check it out online to get a better look at all the prints and the colors.

The Christmas fabrics have started to trickle in, and it is always good to get a head start on those projects.  

First we have Starflower Christmas from Create Joy Project. I love this one because it is "Christmasy", but you can keep it out all winter, not just for the month of December. I know Esther has a table runner picked from this one. 

Next we have Christmas Morning from Lella Boutique. This collection is a very classy Christmas collection, having the reds and greens. I love the large panel that they have with this collection that looks to have a pieced border around it, but the blocks are actually just printed on the panel. This would make a super fast Christmas gift for a friend, the panel just needs to be quilted and bound. 

We also have a few more Christmas collections in early precuts. so keep checking that 'Early Release Precut' tab on the website.

We have precuts from Hustle and Bustle from Basic Grey and the yardage should be in the shop soon. 

And we also have early precuts from Home Sweet Holidays by Deb Strain. 

All these collections are so much more amazing in person, so be sure to stop in the store to check them out, or check our website to get a better look at all the individual lines. 

12 Days Of Christmas

Can you believe it is the last day of November? My husband and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary this weekend, although it was a little quieter than we had been planning, steak dinner at home as opposed to a tropical vacation. 

Our 12 Days of Christmas Event starts at the shop tomorrow, December 1st, so I thought I would just run through what you can expect on each of the 12 days. Each of the 12 days has a little theme and the deal of the day will coordinate with that. 

Day 1 is Tuesday December 1st.  Still time to get some sewing done for Christmas. All Christmas yardage is 25% off, this applies to all fabric on the bolt that we consider Christmas. This one is instore only, however we will happily help you out with an email or phone order and apply the discounts for you that way as well. 

Day 2, Wednesday December 2: Stationary. With the purchase of any notebook or planner you will receive a Chicken Feed Quilts pen and notepad free! This applies to any instore shopping or web orders, no codes needed. 

Day 3, Thursday December 3: LDH Scissors. Buy any pair of LDH Scissors and get a free pair of LDH Snips. This is available in store and online, again no coupon needed. We have been really happy with the products from this Canadian Company and their customer service has been excellent. 

Day 4, Friday December 4: Yardage at a steal. Buy 4 meters of fabric for $40, mix and match 1 meter cuts or choose just one 4 meter cut. Valid on 100% 42" wide cottons only. (Cuddle, Fireside, Gauze, 108: wide backings, denim and canvas are all exempt) Instore only, however we will honor the dicount over the phone or through an email order. 

Day 5, Saturday December 5: Thread, all threads buy 5 spools get the 6th free (the 6th must be of equal or lesser value) Valid instore and online, for online just put 5 in your cart and in the notes section tell us the color and weight of the one you would like as your 6th and we will add it in for you free of charge. 

Day 6, Monday December 7 (note that we skip Sunday because we are closed) Pattern Love. Buy and 2 patterns and we will give you a 3rd free. (The free pattern will be from a basket of our selections) this will automatically apply in store and online.

Day 7, Tuesday December 8: Get Organized. Stash n Store, regular and mini as well as our Chicken Feed Quilts Ruler Racks are all 15%. This is instore only, but again we will honor the discount if you call us or email us. 

Day 8, Wednesday December 9: Creative Grids Love. Get $8 off the purchase of one Creative Grids Ruler. We really love the quality of these Rulers, the markings are clear, they have non-slip grips on the back, and the variety of sizes is incredible! Valid Instore or through a phone or email order. 

Day 9, Thursday December 10: Staying Fueled. Get a free drink coupon to the Chrysalis Cafe with the purchase of any mug, wine glass or water bottle. If you were unaware the Chrysalis Cafe is located in the same building as we are, and serves specialty coffees and teas, baked goods, breakfast and lunch sandwiches and soup. This deal is instore only. 

Day 10, Friday December 11. Pressing Matters. Purchase any wool pressing mat or acorn pressing solution and get a free Chicken Feed Quilts Mister Bottle. This one is valid instore and online, no coupon needed. We find that the wool mats and the acorn pressing solution really makes a difference in how flat our seams get when pressing. 

Day 11, Saturday December 12. Gift It. Purchase a gift card valued at $50 or more and get a bonus card for 10% of the value. For example, buy one for $100 and get a bonus card of $10. Buy it for a friend, family member, or maybe stick it in your own stocking!

Day 12, Monday December 14. Final Day! Get 50% off one item of your choice. Valid instore and if you call the shop or send us an email we will honor the discount as well. 

I know this may be a little inconvenient for our online shoppers, however with our current website POS System we are unable to make the coupon codes very specific at all so this is the only way around it. 

Each day the deal is valid during business hours while supplies last. There is no rainchecks. 

Have a great week! 

Kayla

New Products / Gift Ideas

 I know a lot of you may not be ready to hear it yet, but Christmas is coming up quick. I took down all the fall decorations last week at our house and have been putting out the winter and Christmas decor. The boys all put their Christmas blankets on their beds last week too. I decided I needed to make a new Christmas quilt for my bed so I started that yesterday evening. Do you have Christmas quilts for the beds in your home?

Last Tuesday on Facebook Live I did a little walk through of some of our new products that would make great Christmas gifts for your quilt friends, or maybe for you to add to your own wish list. You can watch the video here, and I will go through some of them below as well. 

Jewelry is always a great gift and we have several different options in the shop. We have necklaces in different styles, finishes and lengths. These have been selling like crazy over the past couple weeks and there are more on order that should be here this week or next. We also have the ruler bracelets. These are available in 2 lengths 15" and 17" ( I wear the 15" and love it) They come in 5 or 6 different colors. 

We also had some fun quilty socks in stock, I think we were nearly cleared out of them on the weekend, but more are coming again. 

Notebooks and stationary are always a super useful gift. The Lori Holt Office Bundle Set includes pencils, a notebook, bookmarks, stickers, file folders, tape, dividers and more! 

We also have a variety of notebooks available, and we have some day planners on order that should be here any day now. 

There is several different styles of coffee mugs and a stemless wine glass too that would make great gifts. 

We also have a couple products that are designed to keep your notions safe. We have the rotary cutter cases in pink or green and the ruler safes in 4 colors and 2 sizes. These are great if you normally travel a lot to classes and retreats, it will keep your tools safe, and they make great storage for when your tools are not being used. 

Car coasters are a great stocking stuffer and we have a couple different designs available. 

Gift Cards always make a great gift, and we have them available in any dollar amount that you choose. 

Do you enjoy getting quilty gifts for yourself or for your friends?

Kayla

Midnight Clear Block of the Month: Block 1

Today is the first day of the Midnight Clear Block of the Month, so Carrie is here to share her block 1's, and her tips and tricks for making them easier. 

For this week we are making 2 block 1's. When I first opened my book to block 1 I was a bit intimidated by the look of the block, but the pattern is broken down really well. and you just have to make 3 components and then piece them together as a 9 patch. 

First for color placement. I followed the color placement exactly as they have it in the pattern. I just think that this gave the block a really cool effect, you could easily switch them up if you wanted to though. 

For cutting. Anytime there is an 1/8th measurement I round up, and trim later. That is what I did here as well. I cut 3" instead of 2 7/8"s so that after I piece the half square triangles I have more room to square them up. For the rest of the pieces I cut as the pattern said and then labeled them with my Alphabitties to keep them straight. 

Now for making the half square triangles. I don't know about you, but whenever I mark a line down the center I have a tendency to sew on the line instead of on either side. With my Creative Grids Marking Tool I can easily draw 1/4" on either side of the center and then sew on the line. If you haven't already noticed I am a fan of tools, so to square my half square triangles, I used my Creative Grids 4-in-1 Half Square Triangle Trim Tool. All markings on this tool are in finished sizes, so I put the 2" line on my seam and squared them up. Then you simply make the 4-patch Units. 

For the Pinwheel unit I followed the same steps as above to create my Half Square Triangles and then again simply assembled my 4 Patch Units.

The next unit is a Square in a Square block. To make these I put my red square down, then placed my white square and my black square in opposite corners. I used my Folded Corner Clipper to help me make these flip and stitch corners and this worked really well for me. Do this again with the other white square and green square. 

 

Now all that is left is assembling your units into blocks and you are finished. 

Have fun sewing up your blocks, I will be back with block 2 on September 3rd. 

Christmas Fabric 2020

I know its only the beginning of August but our newest Moda fabrics are all Christmas themed so I thought I would share them quick tonight. 

We have Holliberry By Corey Yoder. We also have the book a very Coriander Christmas which features a really fun Block Of The Month Pattern, and a bonus pattern. 

Tahoe Ski Week by Mara Penny has such fun prints and the colors are not Christmassy at all, it is actually much more winter themed. Esther is making a quilt called Norway by Thimble Blossoms with it. 

Chill by Zen Chic is also a winter collection.

Christmas Card by Sweetwater has been really popular in the shop!

Naughty or Nice by Basic Grey has also been really popular, we have already sold out of several bolts from this collection. 

Juniper by Kate and Birdie is a brushed cotton so it super soft. If you are curious brushed cotton just means it goes through an extra step in manufacturing called brushing which involves fine metal brushes rubbing the surface of the fabric to produce fine fibers from the woven pieces, which leaves the surface super soft. 

Holiday Lodge by Deb Strain. 

Chill Out is from Cotton and Steel (not Moda, but Trendtex is the distributor for both so I am including it today) I brought home fabrics today for a sample, but I have two other quilts that NEED to be finished before I can cut into it. 

Do you make quilts with Christmas Fabrics?

My boys all have Christmas Quilts that are on their beds from November-most of January. I am planning to make a new one for my bed this year, and I love displaying Christmas and winter themed quilts on the blanket ladder in my living room. 

Kayla

Upcoming Events: November is looking busy!

It is time again to share the events that are coming up in our Shop in the next few weeks.

This Friday is already the last Friday of the month, which means it is also Fat Quarter Friday, we will have a basket of assorted fat quarters, and each one in the basket will be $2.50, or pick 12 from the basket for only $25! If you like to make little Christmas Gifts, there are a lot of patterns out there that use Fat Quarters and to get them for only $2.50 each is a great deal. Remember the deal only applies to the basket, and goes from 10am-5pm Friday, October 25.

Friday, October 25 is also the first session of PhD Club. This club is great in that you get to come to our classroom and work for a full day on whatever project you choose. At the end of the day you set a homework goal for the next month, and if you finish your homework you get $10 of your commitment fee back, if not you forfeit the cash. It is a great motivator to finish some projects and without the distractions of housework, laundry and cooking you can accomplish a lot. You can sign up for this fun relaxed club here.
Esther leaves soon for Florida and will be gone the full month of November. For the full month of November any purchases over $25 will receive a bonus gift of a mini charm pack, while supplies last.

Also in November we are going to be doing our Pillowcase Challenge again. We did this last year and it was a great success and we donated over 300 pillowcases the the Pediatrics Ward of the Chinook Regional Hospital. This year we would like your help to sew 500 pillowcases, which we will than donate to the Coaldale Food Bank for their Christmas Food Hampers and again to the Hospital.
So how does this Challenge work? We are busy cutting kits for the pillowcases and we ask that you sew them for us. Their is no charge to participate, we will just record your name, phone number and how many kits you have signed out. When you return the finished pillowcase(s) we will make note of that as well, any kits not returned by Saturday, November 30 will be getting a phone call on Monday December 2. There are a number of tutorials to sew the pillowcases, and we do not mind which method you use, as long as they are neatly finished. The kits all contain a Main Fabric, a cuff and a little zinger piece as we like to call it, that goes between the cuff and the main fabric. Some of the fabrics may need to be squared off before sewing. You can sign out as many as you like as long as you get them finished. We encourage you to challenge your friends and or guilds to join as well.
This Challenge will start on November 1 and we ask that all pillowcases be returned by November 30. We want this to remain a 1 month challenge so no kits will be handed out before November 1. Let's see if we can hit our goal of 500!

Just as Jelly Roll Day occurred in September, we will be doing a Charm Pack day in November. This will take place on Saturday, November 16. During the week leading up to it, I will post inspiration photos on Instagram and Facebook. On November 16, Moda Charm Packs will be 25% off for the day, we will have a couple different free patterns available in store, as well as purchase patterns.

On December 4 at 7pm we will be hosting a Christmas Party. There is a $5 registration fee to attend which will be donated to the Coaldale and District Emergency Services. We will have snacks and drinks, and we ask that everyone brings a $10 gift to exchange, it can be quilty themed or not. You can sign up for this party here. Please note there will be no shopping available that evening, it is just a party, and Carrie, Esther and I will be joining in as well. There is limited spots available so sign up soon.
Have a Great Week, next Tuesday the second block for the Follow Your Heart QAL will be posted.
Kayla

Zipper Pouches

Zipper Pouches, I love them for so many reasons. They are quick and cheap to make and they are great for gifts especially at Christmas time. I love them to organize all my things everywhere.

I made a few NoodleHead pencil pouches the other night as Teacher Gifts for Christmas this year. I added the Teacher's initial to each one to make it a little more personal, and will get some chocolates to fill it, and Voila a super great, quick gift. You can find the tutorial here. 

Another great pouch pattern is this one by Minki Kim. It too goes together really quick and with the boxed bottom you get a great sized pouch the stands up nicely. It is great for wrangling all those little items in your purse that you always need handy but seem to get lost, like Kleenex, Lipstick, and hand lotion. This pouch filled with some of these items would be a great gift for a friend, and the handmade pouch adds a little love to the gift in my opinion.

I have four little boys and they always seem to be dragging something around with them to Grandma's, school, the quilt shop, or all those dentist and doctor appointments. Zipper pouches are a great way to keep all those little cars, crayons, legos, gameboys, and animals organized and easy to carry. They love getting a new pouch filled with goodies!
There are so many tutorials and purchase patterns available for zipper pouches, and they come in all shapes and sizes. The pouches generally take a fat quarter or less for the outside and one for the inside so they are quite cheap to make as well. Do you like to make zipper pouches? Whats your favorite pattern to use?
Due to the craziness in my house with kids in school, homework, hockey season starting up again and general life, I have decided to go down to one blog post a week. So from now on I will just post on Tuesday evenings.
Kayla

New Fabric: Christmas Edition

It is July, which for us as a quilt shop means that most of our Christmas Fabrics for this year have arrived and is out on the shelves.
We have a line by Gingiber from Moda, called Merriment. We got a little yardage for this line but mostly precuts and the panels. All three patterns we have with the collection use panels, a precut and some background fabrics. We also have a box kit from Moda that makes a super cute quilt of stockings.
Also from Moda is Holiday Lodge by Deb Strain. I love this collection, it feels so Western Canadian to me with the buffalo plaid, the snow flakes and the bears. We have some really fun patterns on the way for this one.


Basic Grey came out with a Christmas line again this year. It is called Kringle Claus.

We also have the new Christmas Collection from Lella Boutique. It is called Little Tree. It has some reds, greens, whites, blacks, and a great bit of aqua blue mixed in as well. There is also a huge panel that measures 56"x74", it can be quilted and bound or made bigger with borders. The panels came prepackaged and the rest is actually still in plastic so I did not get a photo of it.
From Robin Pickens is a traditional Red, Green, White and Black line called Splendid. I am currently working on a sampler quilt with this collection and I can't wait to get it all finished up.
We also have a collection from Art Gallery as well, it is called Merry and Bright. The free pattern download for this one, is a quilt made with 60 degree triangles laid out to form a Christmas Tree.
We have a few more collections that we are missing pieces yet from because they were backordered, but there is lots to get you started.
Do you do any Christmas or Holiday sewing, do you like to start early or do you tend to wait until its a little closer to winter?
I promised my 3 oldest boys Christmas Quilts for their beds this year, I have the fabrics and pattern chosen for 1 of the boys, but that's as far as I have gotten, but I should probably focus on it a little more when I get back from my upcoming camping trip.
Kayla
We will have a float in the Settler Days Parade tomorrow, and a tent sent up with some quilts for sale as well. Our store got several new displays this week, so be sure to stop in to see us.
Also there will be no blog posts next week.

Christmas Part 3

his evening's post is the final in our 3 part Christmas Series. Today I want to give you some ideas of what to buy for your quilty friends, or give you some ideas of what to put on your own list. Some of these gifts are useful notions and some are just fun.

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First up useful notions. I have put these all to the test and I highly recommend them all. The stash and store is a perfect organization tool to hold all those small things that always get lost under our piles, think scissors, marking pencils and the seam ripper, we have two colors in stock right now, but there are a few more colors on order. The ruler pad holds those small trimming rulers and cutting mats, getting them off your table but still easily accessible. We also got a new shipment of the Ruler Roundups today. I have one on my cutting table and it conveniently holds all the rulers I use everyday. These always sell out quick so if you want one come in store soon. The Alphabitties and Wonderclips make a great team, use them to keep your pieces organized and together throughout the cutting and sewing process. 

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The Moda Clipboards are great for planning projects and making lists, in addition to the board itself they come with a large pad of grid paper, six pencils and six binder clips. Esther is on her second as my sister-in-law adopted the first one a couple weeks ago, she loves it and she is not even a quilter. 

Esther ordered in these super fun Advent Calendar which contains 24 different notions. I think this is such a fun idea and they are priced at only $36, and I can guarantee that the gifts inside are of a much higher value than that. 

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Speaking of Calendars we also got the newest Inspiring Stitches Desk Calendar in today. Not only is a super cute calendar, it is also a block of the month, what a great two for one deal!

So aside from useful gifts that we don't usually buy for ourselves we also have the super fun treat ideas. 

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You know we carry socks which are always a big hit, but we also ordered in some more fun things with Christmas in mind. Everyone drinks some kind of beverage whether it be coffee, tea, hot chocolate, wine or water, and the new mugs and glasses that have come in will make those drinks seem a lot better. 

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These Riley Blake Bandages are perfect to prevent blood from getting on any of your projects, plus they are super adorable, and I have it on good authority that they stay on really well. 

If you are still stumped we also sell gift cards. 

I must say that December is one of my favorite months to work, and even though it is a full month away I am looking forward to it already. We have so many husbands, and non-quilters come in the store saying they are looking for something for so and so. I love helping them find something to suit you. And I love knowing what you are getting for Christmas. 

If you would love something from this list or anything else specific in our store, but when you start talking quilting and your families eyes glaze over, make a wish list at our store and leave it with us and just tell your family that you are registered at Chicken Feed and we will help with the rest. 

Tomorrow is our Saturday PhD Club session, yesterday we had three ladies pay the $10 fee for not completing their homework (one of them was me, oops), but we also had a couple that finished their goals which is so awesome. During yesterday's session I finished up one of my Be My Neighbor Quilt Tops and I hope to finish the second one tomorrow. The final post for that will be on Tuesday, so it is time to start planning our next Quilt Along. I picked some out today and will do a poll on our Facebook Page sometime in the next week to see where your interest lies. So far I have a quilt pattern, a row quilt that can be done as individual projects or combined into one quilt and a book of minis picked out, so think about what you would like to do and be sure to vote when the poll comes up. 

Next week is Quilt Market, we are missing this year for a couple of reasons. Esther leaves this Monday for her vacation so she can't make it, and my sons 7th birthday is next week, and though I love working at the quilt store and everything that goes along with it, my family still comes first and I cannot skip out on his birthday.  

Kayla