Thursday, November 26, 2015

Black Friday Savings & New Kits


Our lowest prices ever are happening now during our big Thanksgiving sale!  




New markdowns are in our sale section!


AND an EXTRA 25% off everything in Clearance - as low as $4.50 a yard

And ... we're teaming up with Clover & Violet and Michael Ann Made with kits for their Sew Along Duo ... 



Learn more about the Sew Along Duo here and pick up your favorite kit(s) here

Happy Sewing!  :-) 

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Thimble Blossoms Sampler Week 7 - Nantucket

Hi there!

I am finally back with the last block installment in this sampler project. This week, we are using the Nantucket pattern.  I've heard a few of you on Instagram share that this block is a little intimidating.  And while it certainly does look difficult, you can totally do it!  I photographed a few steps to share some tips with you all.


Before I go into the tips, I will say that this block is a little on the tedious side as you really need to pin carefully in each step.  I would consider myself a confident piecer, so I didn't draw the lines as Camille suggests in the pattern. So, if this is a little scary, I would suggest you definitely do that AND maybe make a test 1/4 of a block to get more comfortable with this block.

First ... you are going to need some pins! The finer the better.


I used pins in all the intersections as I pieced the strips and completed strip sets together.  Put the pin through each unit at 1/4" and this will help line everything up nicely.  (Remove pins as you sew!)
Side note:  be really gentle when pinning ... you don't want to pull or tug the fabric a lot since there is a lot of bias going on here!


Continue pinning as you join the larger pieced triangle units into the quarter blocks.  I used pins at every intersection as well as in the background triangles.


The pattern suggests that you may need to trim these quarter units.  I chose to do so here.  You can use the diagonal lines your mat if you have them to assist you, if needed. I didn't need to trim much ... especially in my 2nd and 3rd blocks where I was much more careful in handling and pressing my units.


Continue pinning when you join the quarter units together.


You'll make two halves of the block.  And I pressed the seams between the quarter units in opposite directions so they would nest when I joined the two halves.


The next thing I want to share has to do with pressing ... and I mean "press" as opposed to "iron." All the block pieces have bias edges, which means that they will stretch.  So you want to be very careful about pressing these blocks - in ALL stages of construction.  Sometimes I "iron" and really force fabric where I need it to go.  Here we want to press... so up and down (vertically) with the iron as opposed to doing more heavy-handed sliding of the iron on the seams, if that makes sense.  I also chose not to use steam here to try and minimize stretching & distortion.

Another tip related to pressing is to finger press seams before you press them with the iron.  I usually "set the seam" quickly with an iron and then gently press the seam open with my fingers before getting the iron involved.  This just helps to make sure I don't work the fabric too hard with my iron.
(My good friend Lee at May Chappell calls this "married seams" in her glossary of important terms.)


Overall, I am happy with how these blocks turned out.  They are not completely perfect, especially this first one that I made ....


You can see where I ended up trimming a little too much - which was possible because I had ironed a little more than I had pressed. :/


I will lose some points on the outer edge of my block.  BUT ... in general, I think they turned out pretty good and this quilt is for me.  Not for a show.  But for me to enjoy and once it is quilted I don't think it will be super noticeable unless you really look. So I decided to live with it. :-)


I can't really decide which I like best.  But I love the floral backgrounds.  I specifically chose these for this block in the kit because the seams would be less noticeable in the background.


Well, there you have them!  Good luck!  If you need help, just tag me on IG @sewlux and use #TBScrappySamplerQAL.

I will be back in a couple of days to share the layout process.  We'll start in the middle and work our way out, so hang tight on that step!

Happy Sewing!


Tuesday, November 10, 2015

New Collections are Here!


Several new collections have landed on our shelves in the last week!

We're thrilled to have Denyse's Legacy Reprint of Katie Jump Rope.  Classic designs in bold colors with some great basics.  We're loving all the browns and oranges for a fall-themed quilt.

And ... two new collections from Moda!  Basic Grey's new Mon Ami is so fun with mini tulips, rain drops, text prints, dots, and other great prints.  This one would play great with their older PB&J collection too!

And Erin Michael is back with more paint-by-number with Purebred.  We love the large florals, great low volumes, horses, and that painter's palette!

More is on the way too ... so stay tuned!

Happy Sewing! :-)

Holiday Hustle Kits & Tutorial

Hey there!

November seems to be moving by us as quickly as the wind is blowing the leaves off the trees!  If you are like me you are planning out your holiday sewing ... and I am sure another Holiday Hustle quilt will be on my list!

The original Holiday Hustle quilt from Kate Spain's Joy Collection. 

The "Holiday Hustle" quilt is simple and comes together in an afternoon!  The finished quilt measures 53" x 60", making it a great size lap quilt for the holidays (or anytime of year)!

We have few new kits to make it even easier here.



Find our tutorial for this great quilt here:

Happy Sewing! :)

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Thimble Blossoms Sampler Week 6 - Clambake

Hi again!

I am finally back with the latest in this sampler project.  I am so sorry for the delay!  But without further adieu, here it is ...

This week, we are using the Clambake quilt pattern.  We'll be making two rows to go under the Flower Patch & Summerville Houses.


For the top row, you'll use 9 full clams.  And for the bottom row, you'll use 8 full clams and cut the 9th in half to put on each end as you can see in the image above.


For the bottom row, you'll use white (or whatever you are using for the background) to create the curves in the clamshells.  I found it helpful to use my design wall to lay out my prints and would encourage you to do so also (the floor would also work if you don't have a design wall).


This strip is slightly longer than we will need, but we will trim it down in the final assembly.


I really love this Clambake pattern - its simple and easy to piece with a little planning.  I really want to mix some collections or maybe even a fun Christmas quilt with many of the prints I have collected over the years.

Thanks again for hanging in there with me!  The last set of blocks (Nantucket) will be shared this Friday and I've updated the original schedule here.

Happy Sewing!  :-)