Open Hours and New Books

Open 
Thursday and Friday
1:00pm - 4:00pm

We are open by appointment Tuesday through Saturday for individual shopping (it's okay to bring a friend!) from 10:00am - 4:00pm (except as noted above Thursday/Friday).

Please use this link to reserve a time for individual in-store shopping that suits your schedule.   (there is no need to register or log in, just click on 'next' at the bottom right)

As our local COVID numbers continue to restrict business activity we will maintain this blend of available hours.  We feel it is important to be part of the solution and want to do our best to help mitigate the ongoing spread of COVID-19.  Now that we will be juggling home school again this Fall we'll see what shop hours we can support starting in September...things just don't stay the same!    

We have implemented a few changes to our shop layout and business practices to help maintain social distancing, upgraded sanitizing efforts and require that all customers wear facial coverings for the duration of their visit.  Shopping visits are limited to 30 minutes per state requirements and since we have limited staffing available, please reserve an appointment if you would like assistance with your project or shopping choices.  

With September quickly approaching, despite our current heatwave we are thinking of autumn foliage and new projects for longer evenings.  We've been combining fabrics and revisiting some favorite projects - are you ready for a fresh start or a supplement to the stash?  

Fall Favorites

Spiced Pear pincushion 

And if you want to get serious about a new project or skill or just enjoy some eye candy and inspiration overload - here are some great new arrivals!  Yes...we can arrange for curbside pick up - or ship these to you!  Give us a call 360 715 1629 / Tuesday - Saturday 10am-4pm.

Quiltmania books

Keep on stitching in isewlation!

Pin Cushion Redux

We recently decided to revisit this 8-pointed civil war star pincushion - it's a heavyweight contender for top marks as one of our all time favorite featured pincushions!  Do you remember this version from way back in 2011?  

Well our new option features a scrappy look and showcases a group of shirting prints from Marcus fabrics.  We saw a version Pam Buda (Heartspun Quilts) had created and decided we'd stitch one up in a similar fashion - we've added some trim and a vintage shell button to the top.  

We weighted this one down with the buckshot...and have a few kits ready to go.  The buckshot is much heavier than our typical crushed walnut pincushion filling and a bit of an effort to source but also makes this project unique!  If you want to make your own version the project pattern can be found on the Marcus Fabrics website here:  pincushion

Small Finishes

It seems since the beginning of the year there has been one distraction or another that has kept me from moving forward with any big project starts.  It's never a lack of ideas, just time to focus and give some time to planning and choosing.  Although our recent late winter did create a bit of extra sewing time!  I hope you took advantage of those snow days too and have some recent finishes or exciting starts to get your sewing mojo happening for 2019!  

We are working on some new class ideas and also gearing up for some new projects - here are a couple of our recent finishes!  

Compass Bag pattern by Noodlehead

I really enjoy using these bag patterns designed by Anna Graham / Noodlehead.  Lots of details and well written instructions!

Tin-Cushion pattern from Heart to Hand

Another great pin cushion pattern from Heart to Hand!  This one includes patterns for 3 different pin cushions designs. In addition to the patterns, we've got lots of wool and ribbon to get your creative juices flowing and if our store sample happens to speak your language...well, we've got a kit for you too!!

Favorite colors?

What's New

Aqua or Teal or somewhere in between

We have such a fun variety of new fabrics rolling in...we are certainly doing our part in trying to keep the UPS delivery trucks arriving daily!

Threads of Time

Old Jo's revisited

Jo Morton fans - run, don't walk...these are some of the old favorites that they reprinted...and you won't want to hesitate this time around.  

Follie by Lotta Jansdotter

Stuff your stocking with a few more goodies?  Here is the fabulous spray starch in a handy travel size of 6oz., perfect for your retreat or to gift to your favorite sewing buddies!

We found a few minutes to play - and created all these little 'charlie brown' trees to put in our pincushion kits.  The pattern also has a pumpkin pincushion ...and as much as we do love Halloween, we decided we'd go ahead and stitch up a snowman.  The kits contains all the flannel and wool and floss that you need, along with a pre-assembled tree, so you can't go wrong with this project!

Snowy Harvest Pincushion

Fall Favorites

We are gearing up for trick or treating...for example, quality control is well underway on the candy.  

But one of the best treats is our new wool pincushion.  We found an easy peasy free pattern online and there you go!  We have wool kits ready to go if you don't have a stash of fall colors to create one.  

Who loves candy corn? 

Here is the link for the pattern!

Curated Bundle Edition No. 5

Our latest curated bundle of 1800's fat quarters, Butternut blue, features a range of blues and butternut gold a perfect addition to a fall quilt?

Haberdashery

And here is a collection of Jo Morton, all light feathery prints with soft colors in gold, grey and brown.  These are lighter than some of the earlier 'toast' collections and are a nice addition!

Hope you have a chance to take in the La Conner Quilt & Fiber Arts Festival this weekend!

Red and White and Valentine's!

We like Valentines...mostly of the chocolate variety, but this felt garland was pretty fun to make. Our photography skills have not improved much, but you get the idea.  We used our new wool felt fabrics to create the garland and our pincushion this month.  For the garland you'll find a great tutorial here and you can get this project done in a flash!

wool felt by the yard

pincushion

Our little wool felt pincushion features lots of french knots - which could easily be switched out for beads...we have a little felt roll of these featured colors, and the pattern from American Homestead.  Yes, sadly - the empty polka dot heart box is just for background, no chocolates left....

Little Red Riding Hood

Do any of you have this fabric in your stash?  They have reprinted this fun storybook print, and now you can get more...so you can actually use what you've been saving?  Sounds about right to me!

We are getting ready for our next challenge project - so watch for more news on that soon....we have a few fabulous Lincoln's Sampler quilts on display from our last challenge.  And a big shout out to our dedicated participants for completing that project.  We'll have photos soon!

Wrap up in a quilt, stay warm and stitch something fun!

Something for everyone?

We have the latest copies of Primitive Quilts and Modern Patchwork in stock...and you can see from the cover photos, that these two magazines certainly cover both sides of our store!

And we'll get some additional pictures added to the blog soon - but you'll want to stop by this month and visit our little customer quilt show - we have 18 little quilts, all variations in scrappiness....everyone started with the great pattern from Quilts Remembered and we ended up with a wall full of quilts!!  Thank-you to everyone who participated and has been so gracious to loan us their quilt.  They are quite inspiring to see all gathered together.  

Here is the sample version that Leslie whipped up to get everyone inspired to start this project.  

Laura's 1870 Cradle Quilt 2T version

And to start off November...our little pincushion is a fabulous wool bead with an acorn top, sitting on a brown velvet patty.  We have a little kit of components all ready to take home if you want to craft one for yourself!  We are adding some fun wools and should have a new thread rack in by the end of the month so watch for more fun with textures and fibers of all types.  

Acorn Patty pincushion

Happy Stitching - fall is here!!

Clothes-Pincushion and New Fabric!

Vintage Seeds

We have some great new fabrics to take your mind of the wet and windy weather!  Some of these will even make you think about gardening again!  We've got vintage seeds and garden tools, spring green frogs at play, bright birds and polka dots....you name it!

We've even got charm packs of S'more love - all ready for a camping trip, or maybe just a makeover for your camper in preparation for next summer!

Briar Rose

Collage

S'more Love

And more in keeping with holiday planning - don't you love the Jan Brett books - well...it comes in fabric now!  This would be a fun addition for any little one to find under the tree!

The mitten fabric book

And...no, we didn't forget our pincushion this month - this little cutie will clip on to your project, your sewing basket...or your shirt.  You can have pins at the ready and on the go!  No sewing machine required!  Our photo doesn't show these well, but the 'pouf' is only about 1 1/2 inches in diameter - so this is a dainty one.  And yes, those are little monsters on the purple fabric....we are preparing for halloween and fall with some festive projects!  Stay tuned for some new fall treasures.

Clothes-pincushion

Happy Stitching!

It's a Hoot!!

September ....whooo knew fall was right around the corner?  We are running late with our pincushion this month, but here is what you can expect by the end of the week!  These little guys are pretty small, cute and easy to create!  Narrowing down the fabric choices is the hardest part!  

It's a Hoot!

We are open on Sunday's again, from 12-4pm so you can expand your weekend sewing options - stop by soon and see our latest creations in the works!  And it's not too soon to be planning your route for the upcoming 91-mile yard sale....that's happening on September 27th and 28th this year, so be sure to block out some travel time.

We've just added some gorgeous new hand dyed wool pieces and bundles, some fun bright colors of osnaburg, and odds n' ends to add to your art quilting fun!  More new fabric is coming in almost daily and we are working like crazy to get some fresh store samples on the walls too!

Happy Stitching!

Pincushion - Sewing Case and new projects

Time for a new pincushion! Well, not exactly a pin cushion, but something to coordinate with all those pin cushions you've collected?!  We went with some lovely French General fabrics to show off this hexagon sewing case from Fig Tree. It has just enough room for your stitching supplies...a little pair of scissors, a pack of needles and a spool of thread or two would tuck right in with some room to spare. There's a little pocket inside as well. We have some fat quarters ready to go, as well as the pattern and a bit of fusible fleece for sale if you don't have some in your stash.

Don't forget, the T-shirt class is coming up soon and we have lots of room left- you can find sample photos here!  We are just getting started with some fun fall projects...and finishing up some summer projects too....and we are working on some great new fall class ideas so keep an eye on our website for upcoming classes.  

Spooky fun fabrics!

Janey Jumper summer fun!

Just enough ruffles on this project?  This particular pattern features a few style variations and size ranges so you can use the pattern multiple times and create a new look each time!

Blueberry Skies Table Runner

This table runner starts with a square panel print - certainly a versatile method to create an easy block style quilt in a unique color palette.  We think a table runner like this and some blueberry muffins, or bottle of wine would make a great thank-you gift for someone special!


Happy Stitching!

Cherries for July

Hope you had a festive 4th...it is berry season here in Whatcom county, but we featured mini-cherries in our pincushion bowl.  The little metal label on the bowl reads...."PINS", not PITS!  We found a great tutorial online for this project and have some kits all prepared if you want to make your own and save yourself the step of collecting the materials.

We have some gorgeous black and pink and grey peony fabric but now that peony blooms are fading, we've moved onto something brighter.  This project features a dahlia print center panel and jewel bright complements - the pattern is versatile so if you've got a panel that you've been waiting to match up with a pattern...this could be the one!

Here's another quick project that starts with a liberty ridge flag panel.  We increased the size on this quilt and added a border - it now fits the donation size requirements for Quilts of Valor!

The Mill Book series by Moda features fabric circa 1835 - we have just a few pieces that we thought were especially unique from this first collection.  Stop by soon and check them out!

Happy Stitching!

Still June right?

Well with school graduations, finals and end of year projects and performances....the month has disappeared quickly!  We will be glad to get on with a 'summer' routine soon.  And of course, summer for us means we can sew all day and night right?  If you missed our announcement about the Sew-in scheduled for July 26th....we've still got a few spaces left in case you have any projects you want to get underway?  A 'retreat' day may be just the ticket!  Give us a call or stop in and we'll get you registered.

We finally have a show and tell pin cushion for the month of June...it was a bit of trial and error, as I followed a tutorial online, and thought perhaps it was sew simple, I really didn't need to follow any directions, pictures or hints...let's just say it took a bit longer to execute!  This project is english paper pieced and it can also be done by machine if you can master pivoting corners, etc.  Here is the tutorial link and our photo, featuring gorgeous william morris fabrics.  Pretty cool?!
http://abyquilt.blogspot.com.au/2007/04/pincushion-tutorial.html

We really love some of our anniversary edition doll quilts from the past...and wanted to do something a bit different this year.  I've attached some of the pictures below from our prior projects.  We still have a couple of kits available for one or two of these.  This year if you hadn't noticed, we're stretching our anniversary activities out to fit our ability to get things done.  Sounds reasonable right?

Vintage T - year 2

Sense of Direction - year 4

Four-Square - year 4 too!

Chocolate T - year 5

In honor of our 6th anniversary......over the next several weeks we'll provide a set of instructions to complete a medallion doll quilt.  Each 'frame' represents a year of blood, sweat and tears....mixed up with great customers, new friends and a few fabric scraps!  We hope you'll join in and make a little doll quilt along with us...and don't forget to send us comments and pictures of your progress...or drag it in for show and tell in person - we love to see your projects!

No worries if you can't join us now, we're working on a pattern and will have it available at a later date.    
That being said - if you want to join in the sew along - gather your favorite fabrics and finish up your works in progress so you'll be ready to start when we publish the first step on Tuesday the 18th... OR we have fabric kits available if you want to sew a quilt featuring our favorite color palette of chocolate and aqua.

And just a little hint...if you want to do it exactly like ours...you'll want to gather up some one inch thimble paper piece templates OR the Miss Rosie's Lil' Crumbler template.  We'll suggest some other options too if you're just not in a thimble mood.  We have both of these options in stock at the moment.

And to get you in the spirit for medallion quilts - here are a couple of great sources of inspiration!
http://pinterest.com/ctpublishing/liberty-love/

We love Gwen's book that came out last spring published by AQS.



Happy Stitching!