Background Fabrics

When making a quilt or table runner do you tend to have the background all one fabric, or a variety, and what about color, do you lean towards white and cream or do you like to switch it up and use a color?

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In the past I always chose one fabric for the background, and it was generally white or light grey. During the past year have been forcing myself out of that box and have worked on changing up both the color and the number of fabrics I use in the background. I have learned that a scrappy background can add interest and uniqueness to a quilt in a way that a single fabric background cannot. Also sometimes the blocks resting on a color are just what the quilt needs to pop! If you are scared to try out different backgrounds a great place to work on it is a sampler quilt or Block of The Month. Art gallery also has a great variety of low volume prints perfect for those scrappy backgrounds. Esther is using them in her Inspiring Stitches Block Of The Month.

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We just got a new line by Zen Chic in store that is perfect for scrappy backgrounds. It is called Modern Backgrounds Colorbox, and we have the porcelain colorway available. This line also includes a panel that makes a great cheater quilter. Just cut the desired length, quilt and bind it and ta-da one of the quickest baby quilts you have ever made!

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SXLLM​​This past Saturday was another of our Collage Classes. We had a great time and I always love seeing everyone's fabric choices, and the wide variety of florals that come out. One lady was doing the pattern called Garden Girl and the method is a little different than the floral collages so I decided to do it as well to learn the method. I am using Me and You Batiks for mine, she decided to make her flowers resemble sunflowers and so was sticking to mainly yellows, oranges and reds. Once again a simple change in fabric can change the look of the pattern so much. 

Bingo in February starts on Thursday, if you cannot make it in store before then, send us an email or a private message on Facebook and we will reply with a photo of a bingo card for you. This game is only taking place on Facebook and you must follow our page, Chicken Feed Quilts, to get the Bingo number every day. 

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Today Esther met with our reps from Trend-tex, this was the fifth meeting since last Monday, but she had to get them all in before her vacation. All I can say about these meetings is that there will be no shortage of fabric in our store this summer! We have also received multiple shipping notifications again, so watch our Instagram for pictures of new fabrics.

Also on Thursday it is a new month, already, and so on Friday I will do a blog post about the new ruler special. I wanted to finish the project for today's post, but for some reason the boys in my house thought that having clean clothes and supper was more important than my sewing!This also means that there is only 1 day left to get the Stripology at 20% off.

Kayla

Sewing Spaces

SLXLM​​I thought I would share some pictures of my sewing space today, as well as some tips on how I stay organized. 

I spent some of my Christmas break cleaning up my sewing corner. I did a lot of organizing of patterns, projects, books, and fabric. My space is not a large area, its actually just a small corner of the basement that I took over, so staying organized is important. It also happens to be in a section of the basement that everyone needs to walk through to get to our rec area and so it needs to be kept somewhat neat, I can't just close the door on it. I generally tidy up every time I complete a project. I also try to work on only a couple projects at a time and make sure the rest are put away so they don't get mixed up.

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 My thread is stored in most part in Aurifl Cases, with my most commonly used ones on a spool stand and the bobbins stuck on top with bobbinis. 

For my paper patterns I use binders. I currently have 3 on the go, one contains quilts, table runners and minis, the second all my bag patterns, and the third contains the instruction sheets that come with rulers as well as specific ruler patterns. My books are arranged on the shelf beside the binders along with a stack of magazines I have purchased for vacation reading over the years. 

My rulers are all on hung on nails on the wall, though I need to hang some more nails to accommodate them all. I also have an old ruler that I used vinyl letters to write Get A Grip on, but have yet to hang. 

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For my ongoing or upcoming projects I like to use shoebox totes. They are inexpensive, and they are clear, so its easy to see which in is each bin at a quick glance. The desk I work on is quite deep, so I can stack them all at the back and still have plenty of room for my sewing machine in front. The drawers in the desk work great for rarely used tools, sewing machine parts and manuals.

For my cutting table, I repurposed our old kitchen table. One day I hope to paint it a fun color, but that would mean no cutting table for awhile, so that likely won't happen anytime soon. A small end table with basket drawers works perfect for small trimming and keeping my current projects close at hand. 

I love my little tins for containing my small scissors and marking pens, my binding kit, extra needles, and other small things that can easily be lost. We have more of these tins on order, so if you want some they should be in store in about 2 weeks. 

My fabric scraps are stored in a large tote under the cutting table, while my treasured pieces are kept up high on small shelves.

As for decor, I don't have much, some cards with quilty sayings and all my row by row licence plates adorn one wall. I am hoping to make some minis to hang, but as always time is the issue. 

I love my little corner, and as one of my coffee mugs says, "My sewing room is my happy place."

Are you lucky enough to have your own sewing space, or do you have to set up and take down every time you want to spend some time on your hobby? How do you stay organized?

Kayla

Favorite Finishes of 2017

SXLLM​​It is the last weekend of 2017 already! On Tuesday I mentioned that I would share some of our favorite finishes of the year, so scroll through the pictures of Carrie’s, Esther’s and my favorite quilts and bags. 

First up Carrie. She made a quilt for a friend that moved here from Scotland this past year. She used the fabric collection called With Glowing Hearts. Carrie also did a Panda Quilt but believe it or not, neither of us happen to have a picture of it! She also really loves the two lunch kits she made and had a very hard time choosing which to use for school and which to display in the store. I can see why they both turned out so well!

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SXLLM​​Esther has several favourites. Two quilts that she made for gifts made the top of the list. The black and pink quilt was a super fun one that she made as a wedding gift for our ski coach in Florida. The other quilt us d the digital prints by Hoffman and was a gift for her cousin’s son who stayed with her last year. These digital panels are so fun and there is so many different ones to choose from now.

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She made a Penny Inn Wallet this spring and it definitely has been put to good use. In fact it is pretty much worn through! 

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One of my favourite quilts that I made this year is probably the one made using the Strippy Stars Ruler, in fact it is one of two that I couldn’t even put up for sale. The Keys To My Heart quilt and the collage quilts I did also top the list

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My favourite bag has to be the Range backpack that I finished this weekend.

We all have more quilts and bags that we love but I can only add so many pictures. Check out the gallery for pictures of more of our quilts, or come in store to see the latest ones!

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SXLLM​​As the year draws to a close it is also the time that everyone sets goals for themselves, making lists of things that they want to accomplish and tasks that need to be tackled. Do you make any quilting resolutions? Maybe you want to learn a new technique, finish a project thats been sitting around for awhile, clean up those scraps, or make a quilt just for yourself.This past year I pushed myself to try new techniques, rulers, patterns and color schemes. I worked out of my box many times, and though it was hard at first, it became easier and looking back I have grown as a quilter so much. Quilts I never thought I would be able to do, I have done or am currently working on. I only hope that I can learn and grow more in 2018. 

 Remember we are now closed until Wednesday, January 3. All of us at Chicken Feed Quilts wish you a Happy New Year, and thank you for your business in 2017. Your support is incredible and you make our jobs so much fun!

Until next year,

Kayla

Highlights of 2017

MLXLS​​As the end of the year approaches it seems to be the norm to look back over the year and reflect on what has all happened. 

A lot has happened at Chicken Feed Quilts since last December. Our computer system was set up last year during the Christmas break and though it has taken us all some time to adjust to it and it still beats us some days we do love it most days. 

I started writing this blog last January and so far it has been going well. It has been a great way for us to communicate with you without spamming your email and Facebook pages.  

In the spring we held our annual clear out sale and it was very well attended. 

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Rob from Trendtex Fabrics Cake for a visit in April and did a couple information sessions on Hoffman Batiks. These sessions were very interesting and I for one gained a vast amount of knowledge. Which reminds me that we should plan another of these information sessions maybe on a different topic. 

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In May we welcomed Martha Penner to Chicken Feed Quilts for two days of demos on paper piecing the Judy Niemeyer way. This resulted in both a one day class on the Cactus Flower table runner and a 6 month technique of the month class to make the Vintage  Rose. 

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We attended Quilt Festival in Lethbridge in June as a vendor and had so much fun.

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In July our store was in the Candy Parade in Coaldale. While making a float for the parade was tricky we succeeded in putting one together and even won first place in our category! 

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July also brought us Lynn Hagmeier from Kansas Troubles who came for a few workshops and a trunk show. It was so great to meet her and learn about her techniques and the stories behind each of her quilts. 

The annual Shop Hop in September was another highlight. It was once again well attended and we love seeing so many quilters in one weekend!

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October and November brought around some huge changes in our store in the way of a massive remodel. We removed walls, changed lighting and floors, repainted and reorganized. We are loving our new space and from your feedback we gather that you love it too! 

With the new year only a week away I can’t even begin to imagine what will happen at Chicken Feed Quilts in the next 365 days. 

Check back on Friday to see a post full of our favourite projects from this past year, as well as some of the ones we hope to accomplish. 

Kayla

 

 

Borders

SXLLM​​Tonight I have question for everyone. Do you cut your borders to the exact length and sew them to your quilt? If so do you pin them in place?  Or do you like to wing it, and trim the extra length afterwards. I admit I used to just make sure my border strip was longer than I needed, sew it on and trim it when I was done. I could not be bothered to spend the extra time measuring the quilt, measuring the border material, cutting and than pinning it in place, by the time I reached the borders I wanted to be done. The problem was I always ended up trimming a little more off of one side than the other and my quilts were not as square as they should have been, especially those with multiple borders. I never even attempted borders with fun set in corners or centers because I was certain they would not line up. 

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 I have mended my ways. I now diligently measure and cut the borders to size before they are stitched on. I start with the center of both my quilt and border strip, and clip this in place. Than I work outwards clipping every 10 inches or so, if needed I will ease extra fabric in so I stay square. I say clip because I use wonder clips, have I ever said how much I love these things! They are amazing, I have over hundred of them and use them all the time, if you do not have any you should definitely give the wonder clips a try! Anyways back to the borders. When you are clipping or pinning the strip in place you can be a lot more confident that your quilt will finish nice and square, and surprisingly it does not take that much extra time. As an added bonus if you have someone else do the longarming for you, they will love your quilt! I speak from experience here, quilting a quilt on which the edges are the same length is a lot easier than one that is out a couple of inches. 

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I can tell you with complete confidence that the last quilt I did would not have been square if I had not measured, cut to size, and pinned each strip. The quilt started with a panel that I added some blocks to and than after that is was border after border until it was the right size. The final border I decided use some extra blocks from the panel and put them in the corners knowing that the corners would line up neatly. If I had wung it I am sure that I would have one side at least 3 inches longer than the other. After all that's only half an inch additional each set of borders, it adds up quick. But it is exactly 101" on both sides and 96" on both top and bottom! Win!  

Now time for another question, if you were in the latter category at the beginning of this post will you jump over to the other side or keep going with winging it because it works for you? 

Esther has left on her trip, she is gone for a couple more weeks, which means there is lots more daily deals to come! Every day that we are open while she is gone we will post a new daily special on Facebook. The special is good for one day only and while supplies last, no rain checks. If you do not have Facebook feel free to call the store and ask what is. Don't ask about the upcoming ones though because we have no idea what they are. You can also place a phone order but it must be paid for by credit card at that time. 

I will be joining Esther next week and so there will be no blog posts Friday, November 17, Tuesday, November 21, and Friday, November 24. 

Also we will be closed tomorrow (Saturday, November 11) in honour of Remembrance Day. Have a great weekend everyone.

Kayla

Block Books

 

Have you heard of the Block Books? Technically these books are magazines published by the Missouri Star Quilt Company. However I think of them more as books. Each publication contains a total of 10 patterns for quilts, bags, table runners, pillow or other quilty projects. Each pattern also has an accompanying story to go with it, and if you search the pattern name on Youtube, there is a video tutorial as well. Best of all, in my opinion, there are no ads, it is just a book of patterns, stories and tips. 

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The Block Books feature precuts. We all tend to have a stash of layer cakes, charm packs, jelly rolls and mini charms (who can resist those cute little squares). The patterns in the Block Books give you some inspiration to either pull a precut from the ever growing stash, or head to the quilt store to pick a new one.

I love sewing quilts from these books. The instructions are written well, with lots of pictures. And if I ever get stuck, watching the short video clears the confusion right up. I have made several of the quilts, and though some of them look difficult they are easier than they appear.

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Occasionally the pattern calls for a specific tool or template, and we have several of the MSQC templates in stock. 

Esther just reordered every Book, so we have all 22 issues in stock right now. Issues 1-6 of Volume 1, 2 and 3, and the first 4 issues of Volume 4. So now is a really good time to go through the ones you have, make note of any you are missing and come in and complete your series. Or maybe you do not have any of these books, now is a good time to start your collection. Working out to less than $8 per book they are also very affordable. Plus they look really fun in your work space as well.

Kayla