CABIN FEVER

I have to give Old Man Winter a little credit for the success of our Cabin Fever Event that we held at the Hampton Community Center Ballroom on Tuesday evening. After the 8+ inches of snow that he dumped on us on Monday night, everyone was more than ready to get out of the house and have some fun.

Luckily that is just what we had planned!

Sixty of our most adventurous customers joined my entire staff for an evening of crafting fun. Sure, we are a quilt shop, but that doesn't mean we don't know how to do other things too!

Before opening the shop I spent many years as the Regional Craft Coordinator for a chain of craft stores. I can knit, crochet, needlepoint, decorate Ukrainian Eggs and teach calligraphy among other things. I'm also a certified Wilton Cake Decorator and that isn't all. As our guests can tell you, I can show you how to silk paint with Sharpie Markers. I can turn a Crate and Barrel candle holder into a pin cushion and take a fluffy flower idea and make it easier than anyone can imagine. Mix in the talents of my staff and you have a creative powerhouse capable of providing you with an evening of creative fun!

The spacious room and pleasant surroundings made it easy to move around to the different stations, including the food table and bar. Making a wine charm made it easy to keep track of your drink as you traveled from project to project.

Everyone stretched their creativity just a little beyond what they thought they were capable of and I think it felt good to spread those wings a little and get out of the winter doldrums.

Stash Management

BRRRRRR. The last few days have made a good argument for human hibernation. Would someone please reach inside Phil's snug little burrow and yank him out so that he can explain exactly what he meant by "early spring"? A quick thaw any minute now would be just fine with me.

On a more positive note, this weather does lend itself to staying inside and getting some sewing and quilting accomplished. You might even want to get a jump on the spring cleaning bug and organize your sewing space. My customers and friends are always telling me that they "need" to use up their stash. Well friends, it isn't going to go anywhere unless you dive into it and put it to use. Maybe it is time to put your big girl panties on and deal with it.

Quilting "stash" comes in many flavors. There are those pieces that you absolutely LOVE. Those are the pieces, no matter how big or small, that make your heart beat a little faster just looking at them. As silly as it sounds, you can't possibly "use" those pieces, because if you did, they would be "gone". I understand completely. Fondle those, refold and set those aside. Quilter-to-quilter, we get it.

At the opposite end of the stash spectrum are the "What the heck was I thinking?" fabrics. You know the ones. You have absolutely no idea what possessed you to purchase them. They don't work with anything else in your stash. They may even have been a beautiful green in the store that turned into baby puke yellow when you got it home. You know in your heart of hearts that you are never going to use them, but you paid good money for them and can't possibly throw them away. Here is the solution:

I Karen Montgomery here by grant _____(insert your name here)____ permission to donate any fabric of any length or size that they deem not worthy of their esteemed stash to a worthy cause.

There, that should do it. Take all of that unworthy fabric out of your sewing space and give it away! The Million Pillowcase Challenge is still going strong. There are inner city programs that teach kids to sew that are always looking for donations. Quilts of Valor groups all over the country are doing amazing things for our Vets. There are many, many more groups that would love to have your "ugly" stash. If you live local, give us a call, we can put you in touch with the people we know.

Now that just leaves the middle ground of stash. The pieces that you like and would love to see used, you just don't have the time to drag it out and put it to use. Why not use one of these frigid snowy days to grab a rotary cutter and put it to good use?

I suggest that you cut 10 inch squares, 2 1/2 inch strips and 5 inch squares. These are the standard cuts that are used in hundreds - maybe thousands of books and patterns. You don't have to know what you are going to make, just cut, sort by color and size and enjoy the feeling of "using up" some of your stash.

Once you have nice neat pre-cut pieces to play with, imagine the fun you will have! Grab a pattern, your pre-cut pieces and you will be ready to sew in minutes! Scrap quilts abound! You are ready for any Jelly Roll, Layer Cake or Charm Square pattern you see, including all of the ones pictured here.

Now don't you feel better about your stash?

You Can't Do This In Florida

I wouldn't exactly call our son "Mr Science". Brandon has always been attracted to off the wall crazy stunts because they are, well.... crazy... not because of the scientific properties involved. I spent much of his adolescence praying that he came home with limbs intact and hoping that he wasn't being escorted by the local police. Not that he was a "bad" kid, he just liked doing goofy stuff. If you get more than one boy with an attraction to goofy stuff in the same room, even if it is for just a few minutes, chances are you are going to need stain remover. Left unattended you may require a fire extinguisher or a new counter top. That only begins to explain why we have home video of what appears to be a flying vacuum cleaner. But I digress.

We have had a real cold snap here in the 'burg. Our overnight lows have been in the teens or even single digits for over a week. The windchill has been frigid by any standards. It was not enough to put a damper on Brandon and his now adult friends and their goofy antics.

It turns out that when the temperature is 5 degrees or below and you toss boiling water into the air - it vaporizes! It also makes a really cool sound! Scientific principals aside, it is fun!

Boiling tap water combine with frigid temperatures and you have what amounts to a poor mans version of fireworks. After the Steeler victory last night Brandon and his friends tossed several gallons of boiling water into the air to celebrate - and nobody lost a finger or shot their eye out.

Naturally I had to get Brandon to show me how it was done. Early this morning we boiled up some water in the microwave and whoosh! Vapor! How cool is that?

Ok, you had to know that Brandon got that "goofy" gene somewhere.

Home From the South

I did it. I managed to fly to Florida for the Ricky Tims Super Seminar, visit my friend and my daughter and return relatively unscathed. Five luke warm days in the somewhat Florida sunshine. Not exactly the perfect vacation...... but I would do it again in a minute!

My plan was to take my new, bright shocking pink, camera with me so that I could document my travels and share the photos with you here on the blog. That plan went awry when my purse fell over in the car on the way to the airport and that cute little camera slid out of my bag. I never even noticed the shocking pink camera on the car floor. Better in the car than in the bin at airport security, which is where I thought I had lost it until I phoned my husband.

No problem, I had my fancy schmancy phone with me. That would work just fine..... or not. If you want to see my photos of the trip, you will have to stop by and look at them on my phone. I've spent the last several hours emailing them to myself, but they never arrive. We will have to make do without my original photos

Flying for me is never easy, and I should have known better than to book a flight through Newark in any month where there is a chance of snow. When I tried to check in for my Wednesday morning flight, Continental informed me that my flights had been canceled. They had no options and their operators were very busy. They suggested I "try again later" before hanging up on me. I outsmarted them and booked a USAIRWAY one way ticket through Charlotte. I arrived at the airport very early for my flight so that I would have time to get my Continental refund before I left the burgh. With refund slip in hand, I checked the departure board and noticed that the 12:00 flight to Charlotte had been delayed. I headed straight for that gate and because other poor unfortunate travelers were going to miss their connections, they were rerouted and I was able to snag a seat on the earlier flight - the one that left so late that I actually arrived in Charlotte on schedule - instead of late, and made my connection for sunny Florida. Yippee!

After a night in West Palm, Bernie and I headed for Jacksonville, UNF, and the seminar. We found Lindsay, checked in to our hotel and registered for the seminar. That isn't a photo of the seminar building, that is the fancy new dorm at UNF with the lazy river. I couldn't find a photo of the University Center - work with me here....

There were over 370 women (and one man) attending. Ricky starts on time, stops on time and keeps things moving. Even though Bernie and I were just a few rows from the back, we had no problem seeing everything that was presented. The room was large, the presentations were on Power Point and shown on a large overhead screen. There were tight video shots of the "real life" demos and I don't think there was a bad seat in the house. I was impressed.

The days were paced to move quickly, but there were also generous breaks in the morning and afternoon. Lunch was an hour and a half, which was more than enough time to get out, eat and be back in your seat without having to rush. The doors opened at 7:30 am and the sessions started at 8:30. I would have preferred a later start and less break time, especially the morning that Bernie had to scrape ice from the windshield - in sunny Florida. Luckily the days got warmer the longer I stayed. The last night that I was there we actually ate outside on the patio! Now that I am home, I hear that Jacksonville is in the 70's. - figures......

The seminar days flew by. Alex Anderson did a segment on drawing your own hand quilting designs. As always, Alex made herself available at every break to sign autographs, take photos and listen to endless stories about how her fans have connected with her over the years. I was no different.

On Friday Lindsay joined us for the afternoon session. I specifically wanted her there to meet Alex. The quilt featured on the front cover of the Start Quilting book has a border on it made from fabric that I designed for Timeless Treasures. I named the fabric line after Lindsay. Lindsay's birthday is January 15th, Alex's birthday is January 14th. I now have a photo (on my phone) of Lindsay and Alex and the book which she autographed. Just for fun.

One absolutely delightful segment was presented by Libby Lehman. (that is Ricky's quilt, Libby does thread painting) Libby is a national treasure. She is hysterical, talented, more fun than you can imagine and a very good teacher. Her honest, down to earth comments about her work were great fun to listen to and I don't think anyone left the room thinking "I could never do that". On the contrary, I think everyone that possibly could, raced home to give it a try! I even considered giving it a try on the sewing machine that Lindsay took to school with her, but there just wasn't time.

Blending the seminar with a college visit required that we include Lindsay with meals, take her shoping to Target for "necessities" and spring for a very expensive birthday dinner. Bernie and I have been friends for over 20 years so there was lots of talking and laughing. There justs wasn't time for anything else.

Sunday morning we headed back to West Palm and stopped to vist with another of Bernies friends over lunch. Cindy's home was absolutely delightful, beautifully decorated with quilts - some of which are published and award winning. It was a perfect ending to a great weekend. Then I had to fly home. I left in the wee hours of the morning and other than a 5 hour layover in Atlanta due to mechanical dificulties, all went well.

Quilting weekend, daughter visit, warmer temperatures than we had at home. Steeler victory, New England loss, what else could a girl want? ...... I want to do it again!

I'm glad that is over......

There is nothing like the year end inventory to suck the fun out of having a retail store. It is not only a necessary evil, it is required by law. Weighing several thousand bolts of fabric, counting zippers and fat quarters and patterns and notions and thread (3,380 spools to be exact) and packages of pins and needles and ........ well you get the idea. Then comes the paperwork that inventory generates. The cross checking and verifying and correcting and when it is all done, it is TAX TIME. What kind of reward is that?

It is no wonder that after all of the numbers are put to bed I try to schedule some sort of treat for myself. A pedicure in the middle of winter, a shopping splurge for a special treat, anything that I can dangle as a carrot to help me get through the fact that I spend most of my holiday lifting, counting or answering paperwork questions.

This year I have gone a little overboard. Ricky Tim's is hosting one of his Super Quilting Seminars with special guests Alex Anderson and Libby Lehman in Jacksonville Florida. On the campus of the University of North Florida. Our youngest daughter attends UNF in Jacksonville and her birthday is next weekend - the same weekend as the seminar. When my BFF Bernie discovered this, she suggested we attend. I could not have agreed more.

I'm sure my daughter, who was just home for 3 weeks is dying to spend her 20th birthday with her Mom and her Mom's best friend. Although I have already been informed that we can take her out to dinner, but we aren't invited to the party her friends are throwing.... I can't imagine why.

Seeing Lindsay for her birthday is a bonus. My main reason, besides spending time with Bernie, in what I hope will be the Florida sunshine, is business related. This seminar is serious business. Day one starts at 2:30 and runs until 7:30 pm. Day two starts at 7:30 AM and doesn't finish until 5:30 and then there is an evening concert by Rick at 7:30 pm. Day three runs from 7:30 am until 5:30 pm. That is a lot of hours to fill. The entire thing is lecture demo style. No sewing, no cutting, no materials list. I know that I can be long winded. I once talked for 45 minutes on batting alone, but 2 1/2 days is a LONG time. What can they possibly tell us that will hold the interest of everyone for that long? I can't wait to find out, and then I will share it with you.

At least I hope I have the chance to find out. As I write this another storm is set to hit the New York area on Wednesday. Naturally I have to fly through Newark NJ to get to Florida - on Wednesday. I'm leaving a day early because it is not uncommon for my flights to go a bit haywire. Later this week I will either be able to tell you about the wonderful time I had at the Ricky Tims Seminar or you will be forced to listen to me whine about yet another airline disaster. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Holiday Sewing Help

As a pattern designer/instruction writer I get lots of feedback from consumers. Mostly in the form of phone calls and emails, because my name, address, email and every other bit of contact information possible is on everything I publish. I always cringe, just a little bit when the staff hands me the phone and says "It's a customer with a problem". I am human, and try as hard as I possibly can not to, I do make mistakes. We go above and beyond to correct an issue as quickly and efficiently as possible and do everything we possibly can to remedy the situation they create. I want you to be happy with our products. I also appreciate constructive criticism. It is nice to hear that you think another illustration or arrow or red line would help someone be more successful in the future.

Sometimes is isn't me with the problem. From time-to-time we get calls or emails from extremely irritated customers, that insist I am A COMPLETE MORON THAT SHOULD BE TAKEN OUT BACK AND SHOT for writing such horrid instructions. After walking them through the step-by-step instructions that I KNOW are correct because they have been followed hundreds of times, we discover the step they skipped or what they "think" they read and get them back on the right track. Most of customers are grateful for the personalized attention. Sometimes, much to my amusement, when the light bulb finally goes off in the consumers head, they are so embarrassed by the conversation they simply hang up on me!

Sometimes the messages are just plain funny. If you are stressed over holiday sewing, you are going to enjoy the following. Bernie is my BFF. She lives in Florida and has a degree in Family and Consumer Science - that's Home Ec. for us common folk. She recently had an issue with our Tea Towel Apron pattern and the following is the email she sent me. Enjoy!

"I want you to know, that despite your best intentions, your "Quick and Easy Apron" pattern directions are not idiot proof. I am living, almost breathing (despite a stuffy nose) example of it. May I suggest that in future printings you print the "finished edge" line in RED with the caption "Do NOT cut on this line, you Moron". I have already altered my directions in this way - too late. Never mind that I had already made one of these with great success. I'm blaming the cold meds for this disaster. It might also be helpful to suggest that the consumer use a "good quality" tea towel and not one with a rather loose weave that cost $2.

Of course the SMART thing to do, once I realized my cutting error, would have been to attach a casing out of "regular" fabric. I decided instead to sew the corners, that I had just lopped off, back on. Great idea, except that I sewed one of the corners, wrong sides together, instead of right sides together. I had to rip that one out, a nightmare on the loosely woven fabric. Except, I ripped out the one I had sewn correctly, so I ended up ripping them both out. It would have been "smarter yet" to sew them back on using the serger. Except the one I own has been buried in my closet since we did the kitchen remodel, seven years ago..... and it is threaded in black.

Despite ending up with a ravelled mess, I forged ahead. By the time I had everything sewn back on, trimmed correctly and top stitched, the bottom of the casing ended up too "high" on the sides. I decided to sew grosgrain ribbon loops further down to pull the ties through so that they were not right under my boobs. By the time I finished sewing the cute contrasting pocket on, it had been 2 1/2 hours since I started! I fully expect it to unravel the first time I wash it, but it looks SO cute hanging on the side of my fridge!

My plan was to make these for my quilt group for next Christmas. I have 12 months to make 7 aprons. I better get started."

Ho Ho Ho..............

Holiday Sewing

The Christmas crunch has started. We have hosted our first session of Handmade for the Holiday demonstrations at the shop. Fliers, ads and circulars have started to arrive at my house by the pound. There are turkeys in defrost mode in millions of refrigerators across the country. I have received catalogs for every food product that could possibly be shipped as a gift - and a few that you might not want to receive! It is time to turn on the sewing machine and get started on those gifts that I intend to give. That was today's plan. Get going. Check some gifts off that list......

I did get to sew for most of the day. First I had to prepare an email blast that will go out on Monday morning to our local customers. I try to send a sampling of photos of new fabrics and products to those that can walk into our store. Very few of our fabrics are uploaded to our website. Sometimes I make a suggestion for what the new fabric might be used for.

On Friday Jerry, our UPS man delivered the mother lode of novelty fabrics. Each one was more adorable than the last. Opening the boxes in a fabric delivery is like Christmas all year round. Judging by this shipment, we have been very good girls this year.

There were chef prints and daisies and stripes with fruit. PacMan looking ghosts and French postcards and knitting sheep. Adorable knitting sheep. I suggested to my email audience that the sheep would make a great looking knitting bag. Too cute. Back to sewing.

My oldest would love something made out of the French line. We can always use a new sample of the Easy Stripe Table Runner. My baby sister had those chef prints in her kitchen at one point. I wonder if she would like an apron, or maybe a table runner. I should get started....

Several hours later I had done a lot of sewing. No gifts to show for my time, just some class prep for next week and this adorable knitting bag. I don't need a knitting bag. Nobody on my gift list knits. I just couldn't resist. Those sheep, trimmed with a sweater print, stitched into my version of the Chinese Take-Out bag was just too perfect to not stitch up. I even made and added those great looking handles using the pattern from Aunties Too. I had a great time making that bag.

Anyone on my gift list want to learn to knit?