Shop Update: Magazines!

We've just listed some great new magazines and some lovely Short Stack bundles. This is THE perfect gift for a Sewing Secret Santa gift. Just grab a short stack and a magazine to suit your buddy's tastes and you've got it all taken care of! For example:

PLUS

EQUALS: A great gift for a beginning sewista!

Do you have a young sewing enthusiast in your life? Someone who is interested in getting started but a little nervous about taking that first step? Why not pick out a fun and funky short stack from the Bloom and Grow collection or the Just Dreamy group and add to that the Fall issue of Quilts and More? I just can't say enough about Better Homes and Gardens' publication for the beginning sewista (or sewist), Quilts and More! The patterns are awesome and easy and always include more than just quilts. They have tote bags, pin cushions, pillows, table linens, and they always include a color photograph guide at the back of the magazine that explains terms that are used in sewing and quilting. That is a great go-to guide when you need a little reminder about cutting on the bias or how to put on binding. The Fall issue has lots of inspiration and a perfect pattern for using a fat quarter bundle.

Or perhaps you have some friends who are a little more experienced and would like to venture out a little more? Check out Quilting Arts for the artistic side or the Quilting Arts Holiday issue if you'd like to MAKE your gifts this year, you know there IS still time!

We've also got the Fall issue of stitch which has been all abuzz around blogland lately. Some of my favorite bloggers have patterns featured in this issue! This is a super duper issue and is jam packed with patterns, suggestions, ideas, and inspiration! The photography is amazing and it's a great way to stretch your quilting wings beyond quilting and explore the world of sewing. Our price on these special big issues is $4 less than regular retail because we know that we're an online store and you'll probably have to pay shipping, so we want to help out by offering a discount to our wonderful customers.

Last, but not least, we're happy to offer this commemorative issue of Quilt Scene that is all about the 35th annual International Quilt Festival that took place this year in Houston. 35 years and still going strong! This issue features all sort of wonderful photography of the quilts as well as projects that you can do and to inspire you in your quilting endeavors! We have 5 issues available and we hope you'll go grab one before they're all gone!

I hope you'll stop by and check out our new "magazine aisle" and perhaps consider adding a short stack to your order so that you can give someone you love not only beautiful fabric but the perfect inspiration to go with it! Until next time.

Happy Stitches to You,

Anna

Short Stacks Now Available!

Allow me to introduce you to a new idea we had, Short Stacks! What is a short stack? It's a bundle of some of our FABULOUS, DELICIOUS fabrics, pre-cut into Fat Quarters (18"x22") and beautifully coordinated just for your shopping pleasure! You don't have to think much, just see the one you love and buy it! We've kept these bundles close to 10 cuts, some have 9 some have 11, but they all have plenty of fabric to get you started on a lovely quilt top, or to make several cute tote bags, or pillows or table linens, without totally breaking your budget! It's up to you! Plus, right now, the Short Stacks we have are in the Mill House Inn line of fabrics (SOOO beautiful) and we DO have coordinating yardage which you will most likely need for borders, backing, sashing, or lining your totes. So, stop by the shop TODAY and get a short stack while you can! I am sure they are going to sell like hotcakes (hence, the name, short stack, get it? That's a little pancake humor there.)

Hey, did you notice? There's a NEW Secret Item over there!!! ------------------>

Remember, FREE Shipping on the Secret Item (even international, that's like saving $5!!)

Happy Stitches,

Anna

NEW Fabric Roll Call

Simple Abundance.....check

Mill House Inn ...........check

Aster Manor ..............check

Rouenneries ...............check

THEY ARE HERE! YIPPEE!!

What types of precuts do we have?

• Charm packs (5" squares)
  
• Jelly rolls (2 1/2" strips)
  
• Honey buns (1 1/2" strips)
  
• Fat quarters (18" x 22" cuts)

And guess what else? We also have plenty of patterns to go with these precuts.

So stop on by our shop and say hello! If you can't purchase today, that's alright, just mark our shop or the item you {heart} with a heart and be sure to tell your loved ones where they can find that list. We're also happy to make up a custom gift certificate if you would like, in any amount, NO SHIPPING required on the gift certificates! Until next time.

Happy Shopping and Happy Stitches to You,

Anna and Regina

The Crafty Girls

Pre Cut Fabrics

Hi All,
Well, I don't know about you, but I am completely in love with the pre-cut fabrics from Moda. When I first fell in love with sewing and quilting about five years ago (wow, has it already been five years?) I would just drool over the fat quarter packs because it meant I could get just a little bit of every fabric in a line. Unfortunately, I usually found it to be cost prohibitive, because $100 for fabric seemed like a lot (hasn't that changed!) Then, when they introduced the charm packs it was like a sign from above! Now I could get a piece of every fabric and only have to pay around $8 or $10! But what to do with those little collections? I've found a few projects to do with them, but I still have several untouched charm packs in my fabric stash. Well, I think you can guess where this is going, imagine my surprise when Jelly Rolls were introduced! I guess I am just a sucker for pre-cut fabrics. I mean, it seems to have really reduced the amount of time I have to spend cutting so I can spend more time quilting! The funny part is I have yet to really dig in and make anything from the Jelly Rolls or the Honey Buns. And I noticed that Moda has something new coming out soon called Petit Fours, which I believe are little tiny squares of each fabric, probably about 2-1/2" I am sure I'll love those too, even though I usually prefer to strip piece squares. That's why I haven't fallen in love with the Turnovers. I just can't imagine trying to sew all those triangles, I really just prefer to "cheat" by using two squares, draw a line down the middle and sew 1/4" on either side. I suppose that works if you're making half square triangles but if you want to do something like a snowball quilt, getting yourself a Layer Cake and a set of Turnovers would probably be easier. Recently I mentioned to a shop owner that although I love the Honey Buns and have been buying them like crazy, I still don't really know what to do with them. She suggested buying a charm pack and Honey Bun in the same line and using the strips to frame out the sqares. That sounded like a pretty good idea to me. So of course I bought the fabrics, but have yet to try the pattern! So, what do you think about pre-cuts? I mean, I'm giving away a charm pack so of course I have seen that over 150 people really like the idea of charm packs, but are you as smitten with them as I am? Please leave me a comment (this is still market research you know) if you are as in love with them as I am. We hope to have some new items to put in the shop soon. I've noticed that 25 people have responded to the poll on the sidebar. While that's great, I would love to have 50 or 60 responses to get a better feel for what I should offer on the Crafty Girls Workshop. Thank you to everyone who has commented to enter the drawing by the way. I feel like I'm making so many new friends!

Happy Stitches to You,
Anna
The Techy-Crafty Girl

P.S. Have you visited the Moda Bake Shop? It has tons of great "recipes" a.k.a. patterns and instructions for making cute things with all their pre-cut fabrics!