The Accuquilt System

Last blog post I mentioned that Accuquilt was having a Christmas in July sale and that many of the dies were up to 40% off. Today I want to share a little about the Accuquilt System as many people do not know much about it.
Accuquilt is a company that makes GO! fabric cutters and specialized dies to go with them.
The cutters come in a variety of sizes and range in price from $135 up to $810. The lower priced GO! machines are not lower quality you are just limited a little more in the number of dies that you can use on it, though there is still a large range to choose from. Most of the models work by turning a crank while the most expensive machine is electric and cuts your fabric at the touch of a button.
The dies are boards that have blades built in that cut your fabric in the shape specified. The blades are surrounded by a thick foam and only cut when pressure is applied.
The dies come in a wide variety of shapes, and many of them follow the standard precut sizes uses in quilting, there are the basic strips, squares, rectangles, triangles and circles. For quilting there is also half square triangle blocks and flying gees blocks again in a variety of sizes. Also available are a huge variety of applique dies in almost any shape that you can imagine, there are flowers, leaves, animals, vehicles, feathers, letters, and fun geometric shapes as well. Accuquilt also started producing dies that they call block on board dies. on these boards are all the pieces needed to make a single block, some of the ones included in this lineup are the drunkards path, pineapple block, Ohio star, wedding ring, blazing star and more.
There are also Go! Qubes which are sets of dies that make a specific quilt block size, specifically 6", 8", 9", 10" and 12". The Qubes come with a pattern book and the dies can be combined differently to make different blocks. On my never ending list of quilts to make is a sampler using one size of the Qubes, maybe I need to do a blogged sew along to complete it.
So how does the system work?
Step 1, place the fabric on the board ensuring it reaches past the darker toned area of the board
Step 2, cover with a mat
Step 3, turn handle of machine
Step 4, remove perfectly cut piece of fabric from the board and repeat.
It really is that easy, my 4 year old used it to cut felt shapes for his felt board, and my 5 and 7 year old boys have used it to make quilts for themselves.
So now that you know what I mean when I say GO! cutter and dies I will tell you why I think they are a great addition to your sewing room.
The GO! cutter and dies allow you to cut accurately and quickly. You can cut up to 6 layers of cotton fabric at one time and the dies can be used many times before the blades go dull. Because you are cutting on a set die you know each cut is going to be exactly the same every time. Starting off with accurate pieces can make the rest of your quilt assembly go a lot smoother.
The dies are two toned, the darker area is inside the blades and shows you where your fabric needs to lay, the lighter is just background on the board. This two tone allows you to quickly lay your fabrics down, and make good use of scraps that you have as well.
The piecing dies are made so that there is a 1/4" seam allowance included, and the dog ears are trimmed off.
The cutters fold for easy storage when not in use, and when folded they have a nice handle for easy transport too.
The cutter is a great way to introduce the younger generation into quilting and crafting as there are no sharp scissors or rotary blades to worry about.
I know of many people that use them because of arthritis or other ailments made rotary cutting difficult but turning a crank or pushing a button is a lot more doable.
Accuquilt has hundreds of free patterns on their website to go with the dies.
We carry a large number of dies in our shop and any that we do not have we can order in for you. We also have the machines available to purchase.
We have a GO! club that runs throughout the fall and winter months where we work on projects using the dies. You can learn more about this club on August 14 in our shop, and I will blog on it afterwards as well.
I am also planning on doing a little post each month featuring a newly released die, a new project for a die you may already have and some other tips.
Until the end of July there is a good selection of dies that are on sale at up to 40% off.
Kayla

Fall Events

For the past few weeks Esther and I have been finalizing the details on the fall events, clubs and classes that will be taking place in our shop this fall. We will send out a couple emails with them all listed for you later today, if you have signed up for emails but haven't been getting them check your spam, as we have heard from some people that this is where they found theirs.

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 The first class on the calendar is the Mini Pineapple make and take on August 30, there is still a few spots left in this class. We have kits available for the class, and it finishes up at 22" square.

The next class is a Laura Heine Collage Class on September 8. I have taught this class several times in the past year, and it is always fun and productive. You can do any of the Laura Heine patterns and learn a few tips and tricks along the way. There is seats open, and we need to have at least one more person register by August 31, or we will have to re-schedule this. Some prep work required, so if you are interested sign up soon. Class fee is $40 and supplies are an additional cost.

Esther's Violet Craft Paper Piecing Class is a four week session that begins on Wednesday, September 12 and takes place in the evenings. In this class you are free to do any of the Violet Craft Paper Pieced patterns, and Esther will share with you some tips and tricks to help you create your own masterpiece! Cost is $80 plus supplies.

We have three different clubs taking place this year.

GO Club which has been an ongoing club in the shop for several years will once again take place the second Tuesday of every month. The fee for this one is $80 and it runs from September through May. In this club you can share tips with each other and use a variety of GO dies over the season.

The PhD Club is a new club that has been designed to motivate you to finish off some of those projects that are half done. There is a weekday and a Saturday session available to join. Each sew day you will bring a project of yours that is incomplete, work on it for the day and set a goal for yourself to have done by the next months sew day, whether it a a few more blocks, the whole top, or binding it that is up you. I will record your goal, if your homework is not done you will pay a penalty of $10, if you are done you will get an entry into the bucket for the jackpot at the end of the year. There is no class fee, and you are able to join just one session or both of them. The more people that join the more fun it will be! This club runs September-May, but we will skip December.

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The third club is also a new one, it is the Bag of the Month Club, which I have mentioned several times over the summer. We still have some spots available in both the Tuesday and Saturday sessions and would love to have more people join us to make this club even more fun. Esther finished up one of the September projects this week, an ID lanyard, which turned out really cute and is already being put to good use by Carrie. Each month we will share tips and tricks on various parts of bag making, interfacing, different fabric choices, hardware, and accenting. This club is great for beginner bag sewists and will be fun for experienced bagineers!

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If you have checked out our events page recently, you will have seen that there is several different ones happening this fall.

First up is National Sew a Jelly Roll Day, on Saturday, September 15.  The purpose of this day is for you to sew a jelly roll, it doesn't matter what you make, just that you pull out a jelly roll and sew with it. We will be having a Jelly Roll Race in store that day, and stitch off is at 10:30am. We will also have jelly roll patterns, and jelly rolls on sale that day. There will also be giveaways, draws and freebies so come in store for this fun event, and be sure to register yourself for the race! Watch our Instagram page next week for some Jelly Roll Inspiration. Also start going through your Moda Jelly Roll stash and pull out the oldest one you own. We will be having a fun little contest with this as well.

Our Accuquilt Travelling Trunk show arrives on Monday September, 24. There will be projects made with the Accuquilt Dies and we will be doing demos all week on this amazing cutting system!

Later that week is the Annual Harvest Hop, pre-registration has already started for this, and ends on September 15. Our prizes from our distributors have started trickling in, and we have our gifts for getting your passport stamped all ready to go. The Hop runs September 27-29. 

Tuesday, October 2 we will be having an Aurifil Information Session in our store. The President of Aurifil as well as the Director of Marketing will be coming to our store to do a presentation on all things Aurifil, as well as hand out some swag! There are two time slots available, one at 3pm and the second at 7pm. There is a $5 fee to hold your place for this presentation, which will be given back to you after the event as Chicken Feed Cash to spend that day.

I have frequently mentioned the Bag Workshop and Trunk show which is taking place October 18-20. We would love to have a few more people join us for this. The workshop is beginner friendly, so don't be intimidated if you have never made a bag before. We will help you through the process! The workshop and the trunk show are two separate events and you may attend both or either if them. Even if you don't sew bag the Trunk show would still be a fun evening out with friends!

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 For our final event of the year we will be hosting a Zen Chic travelling Trunk show in partnership with Trend Tex fabrics. This will take place December 3-8. We will have a games evening on December 4, focusing on  Zen Chic. There will also be a contest to enter your projects made with Zen Chic fabrics. The projects must be brought in store by November 30, contain at least 75% Zen Chic fabric, and can be a quilt, wall hanging, topper or bag. We have had some representatives from Trend Tex offer to judge the entries, but don't be intimated as they are not quilters and are not critical at all! 

If you need some days set aside to make your Zen Chic project feel free to join the PhD club to finish one off, or join the Go or Bag Club to make a new project using Zen Chic!

These classes, clubs and events all have limited spaces available (aside from Shop Hop) and you need to be registered ahead of time to attend. To sign up, call the store, send us an email, or better yet come in store and see all the new fabric that arrives every week!

Kayla