Zen Chic Game Night: Recap

MLXLS​​We hosted our Zen Chic Themed Game Night this evening and as hosts we had a blast, thank you again to everyone that came out and joined us.There were snacks to munch on and hot apple cider and egg nog to drink. Once everyone had a plate of food and something to drink we started on the games. Our first game involved some trivia and was inspired by Jeopardy. We had three categories, Moda, Germany and Zen Chic, each with 4 questions. Each question was worth a prize and points. The two players with the highest number of points went to the final round, to compete for a White Christmas Layer Cake. There was a lot of laughter going on during this game, and we may have to do it again with new categories and questions in the New Year. 

MLXLS​​

We also played a Scavenger Hunt game in the shop. Earlier in the day we had mixed 12 Zen Chic bolts into lines from either designers and the challenge was to find as many of these bolts as possible. In addition to the mixed up bolts, there were also 8 notions hidden around the shop to find. This may sound easy but it turned out to be quite difficult, and no one was able to find all 20 items, although a few ladies came quite close. They all said that the other fabrics on the shelves were too distracting, and they started shopping and than would remember they were supposed to be searching. 

SXLLM​​

All the ladies that attended were given some shopping time and received a discount off their purchase of the night and some bonus goodies from our Trend Tex reps, Rob and Marqui, who were at our shop helping us out for the evening.  

Aside from helping us out with our Game Night, our Trend Tex reps also showed us a couple suitcases worth of new fabric lines. Needless to say we have some pretty fun new lines and Moda Kits coming next spring!

Carrie also received 18 boxes today, so there will be plenty of new fabrics coming out onto the shelves in the next little while. 

Our Zen Chic Trunk Show is on for the remainder of the week, and there are still some coupons hidden in some of the bolts. The brand new Backgrounds line from Zen Chic just came in, and not only is it good for backgrounds, they also make amazing quilt backings, so come on out and check out the new lines. 

 Kayla

Zen Chic

Our Zen Chic event is happening in just under a month. So I thought tonight I would give a little background information on the designer. 

Brigitte Heitland is the face behind Zen Chic. She is a designer for Moda and has been producing Fabric lines and Patterns since 2010. Brigitte lives in Germany with her family, she is married and has three children. Brigitte grew up sewing clothes, and went to school initially for interior design but ended up switching over to textile design. 

After discovering a book on Quilting she was hooked, and soon started her own online shop, and a long arm business. It wasn't long before she produced her first collection.

MLXLS​​

Her fabric lines are modern and sophisticated, with enough color to draw the eye in but simple enough to keep them there. Her patterns are simple and tend to have a lot of negative space, she likes to capture your attention but give somewhere for the eyes to focus, or give them a clear line to follow. 

White Christmas has been in our shop for a few months now and has been very popular, and the patterns that came with it as well. We sold out of the Tree Kit twice, and the mega star pattern has been reordered several times. 

Her latest line to be released is called Spotted. We received it in our store last week, with a load of other boxes, and Carrie is working as fast as she can with one arm to get it out into the shop for you. 

The trunk show is set for December 3-8 in our store. It is an open house type of event, we will have the quilts on display in our store all week, along with some in store specials focused around Zen Chic. The show is being done in partnership with Trend Tex Fabrics who are the Canadian Distributor for Moda, and it is being done in shops across the country. 

Tuesday, December 4 will be our Game Night. We have three time slots available, 5pm, 7pm and 9pm and there is still room in each one for you to attend. We will be doing some trivia, a hide and seek inspired game and have snacks and drinks as well. The fee to hold your seat is $10 but this will be returned to you as Chicken Feed Quilt cash when you attend the event (if you do not show up your money will not be returned to you.)

There is also a little contest going on just prior to the event. Any quilt, wall hanging, table topper or bag that is made using at least 75% Zen Chic fabric is eligible to be entered. We have a couple Representatives of Trend Tex willing to judge the entries, don't worry they are not quilters they just sell fabric, so they won't judge too harshly :)

I also got into contact with Brigitte and she has agreed to choose her favorite project as well via email.

The winner will be announced at the end of the show and will also receive a Gift Basket inspired by Zen Chic. 

SXLLM​​

All the projects need to be brought in store by November 30 for judging, I made the date on this a week later than I had originally published, as I will be on holidays that week and will not be sending photos off for judging while spending time in Florida with my family. 

We would love to see lots of projects be entered into the contest, you have a few weeks left to finish them off and bring them in store.

Now as you seen on Tuesday I have quite a few projects that need worked on so I better go and take care of some of those now. 

Tomorrow I will be spending my time at the hockey rink, watching my Husband play in a tournament.

The shop will be closed on Monday in honor of the soldiers who lost their lives and the veterans that have sacrificed so much to keep our country free.

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.

MLXLS​​

 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.

SXLLM​​

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!

MLXLS​​

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!

SXLLM​​

 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

Christmas Fabric 2018

It’s only the first weekend in August and yet we have Christmas fabric in the store already. 

We have several new lines from various companies this year to suit your style. 

If you like the metallics there is 2 neutral lines, a red and black collection, and a blue and purple set that could be used together or on their own. 

SXLLM​​

White Christmas is by Zen Chic, we have a couple kits in store for this and Esther is working on another one. 

Amazing stars and Starlight are both from Stof. 

MLXLS​​

Winters Grandeur is by Robert Kaufman. Winters Grandeur has a gorgeous Tree Panel that would make a quick and easy yet beautiful wall hanging, I'm sure we will have one made up like this and hanging in the store in the next few months.

SXLLM​​

For the rest it seams that the traditional colors of Green , Red, Black and Cream are again taking center stage. 

From Riley Blake we have a collection called Christmas Delivery, I love the little trucks and may have to make a sample out of this one, maybe something with trees, I will have to do some pattern searching at the store when I am working next. 

We also have a great collection from Makower, Silent Night. This line comes with an Advent Calendar as well as a free pattern for a runner and some place mats, perfect to adorn your table this Christmas Holiday Season. We will be making up some kits for this in the coming weeks.  

MLXLS​​

Also in the store we have Basic Greys new Christmas line called Winter Village and Tim Holtz new Christmas line as well. 

I encourage you to come check these collections out in person as it seems that pictures never do them justice, especially the metallics. Also in order to get all this Christmas Fabric out on display, Carrie and Taylor had to do a lot of rearranging, so the store has several new displays to check out as well. 

SXLLM​​

What kind of sewing do you like to do with winter and Christmas fabrics, do you do quilts, wall hangings, stockings or maybe just some runners for the tables in your home, and do you start early to get it done, or leave it until there is snow on the ground and sew like mad?

I made a queen size Christmas quilt last year for our bed, but our Christmas tree is still without a tree skirt, so I will be focusing on that this year and maybe a lap quilt for the couch to match, I will probably end up waiting until some cold weather is upon us for my own projects, but I will need to make up the store samples soon to inspire all of you.

Back to August now :) we will be open on Saturday from 10am-4pm and Closed on Monday, August 6. Our family will be celebrating the 5th birthday of one of my boys that day and he is super excited that it falls on the holiday and no one has to work on his birthday!

Have a safe and pleasant long weekend,

Kayla

New Samples

SXLLM​​These last few weeks everyone has been hard at work sewing up some fresh samples to hang in the shop. It’s time to get some different quilts up on the walls that feature the latest fabrics that have come into the store. MLXLS​​To go along with these new projects we have been cutting kits to go with them. 

We have done two different quilts using the Fourteen Squared Pattern by Hunters Design Studio. One is using the Blue Brilliance line and the other using Old Guys Rule. This pattern sews up quickly and makes a great lap sized quilt. 

SXLLM​​

Another pattern by Hunters Design Studio is the Faster Fourteen. It uses fourteen fat quarters to make this cool quilt that is easier to make than it looks. Indie Boheme is the line featured in this quilt. 

Although not one of our newest lines, this line is still great. Fragile by Zen Chic is sophisticated and modern. I love the simple look of this quilt and that pop of blue is amazing. 

MLXLS​​

SXLLM​​Kansas Troubles latest fabric line, Fresh Cut Flowers, is as beautiful as ever, and this quilt done out of is stunning! We used the cutouts for this which are precut and prefused for you, saving a lot of finnicky work for those of you that do not like to cut out all those little shapes. 

We have put together some more tumbler kits again as well which are always popular, they are all cut for you, and are super easy to put together. 

Come in store to see these quilts and fabrics in person. There is also more new fabric coming in all the time to check out. 

Our third shipment of Art Gallery Basics arrived this week, we have two shipments left and than we will have all of them.

With this weekends forecast I hope to finish off one of my projects and start working on a new wallet for me or a bag for the store, I will have to see which one is calling to me after soccer practice and groceries tomorrow.

Tomorrow is the last day to use the coupon that you were emailed earlier this week, so make sure you head out to the Quilt Show in Medicine Hat or visit us at our store.

Kayla