Creative Grids Rulers

I often mention Creative Grids Rulers in my blog posts, but tonight I thought I would go into a little more detail about them, and why I love these rulers so much.

My first ruler when I started quilting about 7 years ago, was the standard 6"x24" Olfa ruler that my mom gave to me. It was a great ruler and served me well for a long time. I didn't think anything was wrong with my ruler, sure it had a piece missing in the corner, probably from being knocked off my table one too many times, but the numbers and lines were still mostly all there. Then a fellow quilter told me that rulers can cause knicks in rotary blades, I went home that day and ran my finger down the edge of my trusty ruler and it was like washboard on a gravel road. The old ruler was retired and a Creative Grids ruler made it my table, and it was love at first use. The old ruler was turned into a decor piece for my sewing room. 

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Creative Grids rulers are made in the USA, and all of them have easy to read markings and lines. The back of every single ruler is covered with built in grips, so there is no slip while cutting! 

Creative Grids has a basic range of rulers and a specialty line. The basic range consists of a variety of sizes, and they are all fantastic. I personally love the rulers with the extra 1/2", one side of the ruler has white whole numbers, and if you turn it 180 degrees there are black 1/2 numbers to

make cutting those 1/2" cuts so much easier, no more counting lines to make sure you are cutting on the right one and not accidentally making a 1/4" cut instead. My favourite size used to be the 6 1/2" by  24 1/2" size but that has recently changed and now my go to is the 6 1/2" by 18 1/2" ruler, as I rarely cut a full 21" piece of fabric at home, and the shorter ruler is easier to handle.  

The Specialty Rulers are just that, special rulers for specific blocks. Some of the rulers are made for one specific block and one size while others will make multiple blocks with one ruler. The thing that I love, is that most of the time the instructions on how to use the ruler are printed right on the ruler itself, there is also a pamphlet that comes with for a little more detail(which can be downloaded for free if you ever happen to lose yours), and many youtube videos for demonstrations or new

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ideas. Some of these rulers can look a little overwhelming or confusing but in reality they make a tricky or difficult block so much easier! My log cabin blocks are so much nicer now than they were before, and my square on square and snail trail blocks turn out perfect, which is definitely not the case when I don't use the ruler! More and more pattern designers are using Creative Grids as a basis for their patterns as well. Esther and I have both used many of the rulers, but there are new ones being made all the time and Chicken Feed Quilts is working towards getting all of them. We currently have over 60 different Creative Grids Rulers in store, and we are continually ordering and trying out new ones. If there is one that we don't have but you would like let us know we will order it!  If you have questions about the rulers or would like to see them for youself come in store. I will also be doing a demo on these rulers at the Festival Quilts in Lethbridge next week, more details to follow.

Kayla

Batik Presentation Recap

This past Wednesday we had a total of 60 ladies come to Chicken Feed Quilts for a presentation on Hoffman Batiks.

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During the presentation Rob gave us a little bit of history into how Rube Hoffman started Hoffman Fabrics, and how his two sons expanded the company and also added batiks. He explained the difference between quilting cottons, and batiks, mainly that batiks have a tighter weave, are dyed, that they are preshrunk, do not fray, and are all done by hand.

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We were also told about how Hoffman has installed a water treatment facility in their factory in Bali which filters and tests all water that was used in the extensive process, before they send it back out into the rivers. He also told of us how the designers and the craftsman work together to bring forth the beautiful fabrics.

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Not only does Hoffman make the classic Batiks they have also brought out a modern line of batiks. These fabrics are made using the same quality of materials and craftsmanship, but just skip the step that gives the mottled colors. They also have started producing digital prints, which have been very popular at our store.

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After Rob gave us all this information he had a small trunk show for us, he had several samples from Hoffman, as well as the ones the the staff at Chicken Feed Quilts have made. 

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 At the end of the show all the ladies were given a roll of fabric, a free pattern, and a challenge: to make something with Hoffman batiks and the free pattern and to bring it in store for judging between June 15 and July 1. The winner will receive a basket of goodies courtesy of Hoffman California!

To cap off the event everyone was given the opportunity to do some shopping!

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Thank you to all who were able to make it out to the event, and to Rob from Trendtex for all the information, displays of beautiful fabrics and quilts, as well as for the prizes and gifts!

For all those who were not able to attend, we do hope to do another session in the fall. 

Every week at Chicken Feed Quilts we have a different unadvertised special. Some of our previous ones have included sales on flannels and specific collections of fabric, buy one get one 50% off books, patterns, precuts, gift cards and draw entries. Next week Esther is going on a vacation and leaving me in charge, so in addition to our unadvertised special we will be having daily deals!

Come in store to see what these specials are, and also to see all the new fabrics. We have received shipping confirmations from four different companies today, so there will be lots of new fabrics and notions to check out next week!

Kayla

Double Gauze

Double Gauze has become quite popular in our store but we still often get questions about what it is and how to use it. Simply put double gauze is two layers of gauze tacked together. Two layers of a soft, loose weave fabric tacked together resulting in a fabric that is not so transparent.

The most common use is for swaddling and receiving blankets for babies, it's light, and breathable, which is perfect for summer. These blankets can be done in a single layer with a quick hem, or two layers with a simple blanket stitch. I have also used cuddle as a backing for the double gauze and bound around the edge for a quick gift for a friend.  

Baby blankets are not the only option though. I have seen people make sleep sacs out of double gauze because if it's airiness. 

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It also makes great infinity scarves, and other clothing as well, think about how soft these would be as pajama pants or shorts for the summer. 

If you like to add some texture to a quilt some double gauze is a great addition. 

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This past week we received 5 new bolts of double gauze from Shannon Fabrics. The prints are so fun, I love the pandas and the deer! We are getting quite the variety of double gauze in our store, come and check them out for yourself!

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 Kayla

 

Our Newest Endeavor

My name is Kayla, I have been working at Chicken Feed Quilts for only 8 months now, but I am enjoying every minute of it. I love to learn, and I love to share what I learn with others, especially when it comes to quilting. One of my favorite things is working with complete lines of fabric, though I am discovering how mixing them up to make a completely unique color scheme can also be a lot of fun. I enjoy creating new displays of fabric in the store, moving lines to new places, and keeping Chicken Feed Quilts fresh and interesting. 

Often while I’m unpacking boxes from our latest shipment, moving fabric from one place to another, or working on a new sample for the store I find myself wanting to share the fun with you. So after toying around with the idea for a little while, Esther and I have decided that the best way to do this would be to start a blog! This will prevent your Facebook feed and email inbox from being overwhelmed with pictures of what’s new at the store, but still give us the opportunity to share with you more of what happens behind the scenes at Chicken Feed Quilts.
I will be the primary author of this blog but am hoping that in time there will be others that guest post as well. My main goal is to share with you our newest fabric, notions, patterns, and GO! products, as well as some sneak peaks as to what is coming in to our stores before it actually does! On the blog I will also be sharing pictures and glimpses of new projects that everyone at Chicken Feed Quilts is working on for the store. This will include new kits, samples, class ideas, and clubs. 

Looking forward to putting the next post together and hearing what you think of our newest endeavor, 

Kayla