Sewing by the Sea Internet Newsletter for Winter 2007 Most People Have Marbles! Like most folks, I’ve been told that I’ve lost my marbles on more than one occasion. Well, I will state for the record that I haven’t had any marbles for years! Since I have been in this sewing business (and probably a few years prior), my marbles were replaced by numbers, and designs, and patterns. They are very much like the marbles, in that they roll around a lot, get frequently lost, and generally keep my brain cluttered. And, often, people want them! So, I have decided to share a few of my designs with you and maybe a few of your marbles will be replaced. This is how the plan developed: I am always creating little useful things for my life. I make them and use them. Then, someone sees them and “wants the pattern.” Well, you know where the pattern is?… juggling around in my brain—not on paper, not filed anywhere, not recorded for all to share. Sometimes the pattern makes it to paper, but most of the time it is “design clutter.” So, I plan to share some of these with the folks in Tuesday Night Quilters. If others would like to learn these techniques, they can come to Tuesday Night Quilters for that night only. (Of course, if you are a regular Tuesday Nighter, you can do your usual Tuesday Night thing ... playing with your marbles?) The first shared pattern on Jan. 16 will be Knitting Needle RollRoll-ups: a storage case for needles, paint brushes, screwdrivers, etc. On February 6th, I will share my backpack pattern. If you are not a member of Tuesday Night Quilters, you may join for the winter for only $35. Others may attend any one session for $10. Please call if you’d like to participate in the projects above so we can give you a list .. And don’t bother to ask “Can I just buy the pattern?” because, well ...you now know where it is! Classes for January and February Machine Owners Class: New machine owners will want to attend to learn the basics on their new machines. The first night is for all models of machines and the second session is for the new owner of a computerized machine. Jan. 10 & 17 from 6:00 to 8:30. Free to owners of new Pfaffs purchased here, $15 per session to others. Storage Case: Use the vinyl pockets of this hanging organizer to store jewelry or craft notions. Thurs. Jan. 18 from 1:00 to 4:00. $18.00 includes Kwik Sew pattern. Beginner Quilt:: Learn to rotary cut, piece a 1/4” seam, layer your quilt, and add a binding on this small wall quilt. If you have been quilting a while and maybe need to brush up on skills, this is a good class for you, too. May be “homework.” Sats. Jan. 20 & 27 from 10 to 4 and again on Feb. 21 & 22. $35 (See book Get Creative in our Shop with Ussection of the website to see the quilt for this class.) Flannel Circles: Circles: Make these fun circles and sew them together for a baby quilt. Use flannel or novelty fabric scraps. This class is good for beginners, too, but is not a conventional quilt: no binding, no quilting on top. Jan. 26 from 10 to 3 (we will not finish in class). $15 Tuscan Village: This Italian inspired log cabin using 1” strips was a big hit at the retreat this year, so we are offering it for everyone. Wed. Jan. 31 from 10:00 to 4:00 $20 Freddie’s Circles: I traveled with a few quilting friends to Jefferson, ME where we met Freddy Moran and made her “dot.com” quilt. It involves sewing in lots of curves. I added my own shortcuts, naturally, but it is still not beginner material. Come learn to make the quilt on Sat., Feb. 3 from 10 to 4. $20 Drawstring Bag: Take Two half-yards of fabric,, put in a couple of zippered pockets, webbing or twill tape for the drawstring, and you have an easy tote. Feb. 6 from 1 to 4 $15 includes Green Pepper pattern Diamond Weekend: Okay, we’ve done squares, rectangles, triangles, and circles—but what about a girl's best friends? You can most likely finish the top of this diamond quilt in our weekend event. Fri. Feb. 23 from 6 to 9 and then back on Sat. the 24th at 9:00 for 7 more hours of sewing. Snacks and a light lunch are included. $45 Finishing School: Come and use our space to finish projects. $5 per session.. Jan. 5, Jan. 19 and Feb. 2. Come as early as 9:30, leave by 5:30. (No instruction and minimal assistance.) Coloring with Thread by Ann Fahl If you are still of the mindset that machine quilting is not really quilting, skip this book. If, on the other hand, you are really ready to try something very different with your machine appliqué, then rush to Sewing by the Sea and pick this one up!! The first Foxy’s Book Review thing I did with this book was to look at all the wonderful photos in both of the gallery sections (one is quilts of the author’s; the other is students’ quilts—very clever, as it really makes you think you can do this!). Then I went back and read the book cover to cover…The section on tools and threads alone is worth the price of this book! And then there are the practice exercises — I am still having difficulty working with a hoop, but I WILL get there! By the time you have finished with the 5 practice exercises, you will be chomping at the bit to try it on a real piece. (Start small, would be my advice, but large enough to fit in the hoop!). The “Project” section has some easy samples to make with excellent directions. Having a wonderful Madeira thread box filled with lots of thread choices also helps...Pay close attention to the “tip” boxes, as I think the author saves you lots of time and headaches — sounds as if she made the mistakes for you! There is also a great “troubleshooting” section if you still have problems. All in all, I think this is one of those “must have” books for your quilting library. Internet Coupon Purchase 10 fat quarters (your choice) for only $15.00 Must purchase all 10 at same time 1 coupon per customer, please Expires Feb. 15, 2007 Rent-a-table Need help with your projects? Want to learn a technique not offered in the classes? Come to rent-atable! $10 per session January January 11: 10 to 1 and 2 to 5 February 16: 10 to 1 and 2 to 5 Pfaff Club Pfaff club meets monthly on the 4th Tuesday from 10 to 12 and from 6 to 8. New Pfaff owners receive this club free. Others pay $8. January 23: Heirloom Techniques February 27: TBA Quilt Clubs: Select one of our monthly clubs to keep you on target in making a full-size quilt. View the quilts at www.sewingbythesea.com. Click on “Shop with Us” and then on “Kit exclusives” to see photos of the quilts. Call or e-mail to have us mail you more information. Thimbleberries Club: We will meet monthly to complete a queen sized quilt designed by Thimbleberries that uses their own fabrics. Meetings begin Wed. Jan 24 from 1 to 4. Kits may be shipped. Cost depends on the payment plan selected. Block of the Month Club: Bold and bright Kaffe Fasset and Carla Miller fabrics are the theme for our pieced block-of-the-month qulit. Cost is only $10 per month and you do these blocks on your own Flower of the Month: Northcott is making “flower of the month” fabric. Come in on your birthday month and receive a free fat quarter of this lovely fabric! Did Santa forget to bring your PFAFF? We have several demo-model embroidery machines available at discounted prices as well as a few sale priced machines left and lower-priced activity machines. Remember, our prices start at $189 everyday and all machines come with free classes! Hurry in before we ship them to be sold in our Portland Store! Coming in March Project Runway: Mar. 8th Wedding Ring Vests Embroider & Embellish Coming to Portland We are establishing another store on Stevens Ave., Portland, ME. We will be a PFAFF Creative Sewing Center. Check the website as more info becomes available. New Fabrics We have received a lot of new spring fabrics. You can check out the entire groups on the manufacturer’s websites. Of course, we have not ordered every piece, but we have quite a selection! selection! Beatrix Potter Garden Tea: cranstonvillage.com Flower of the month and Nature’s Whimsy (in blue) by Laurie Godin for Northcott: northcott.net Tuscan Wildflower by Kaufman: robertkaufman.com Sweet Hearts by Moda: modafabrics.com Kiku by Makower: makoweruk.com River Bed by Benartex: benartex.com