EChatter - December 2011

At this month's Thrifty we talked a lot about whats happening in 2012.  We recapped what we published in the newsletter that was emailed this weekend.  Most of you have already read the newsletter, if you haven't, click here:  http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/winternewsletter20112012.pdf .  There are a few things we want to specifically bring your attention to:

Holiday Hours/New Hours:  Don't forget that our new hours start Jan. 1st.  We will not be open on Christmas Eve, Monday the 26th, or New Years Eve

What's New - Our Thrifty weekends will be replaced by "What's New".  We realized that we have changed from the original concept of "Thrifty" and wanted to give it a name that reflected what the weekend is more about.  What's New we be on the 2nd weekend of every month.  (To see the calendar, click here http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/Calendar.html).  We want to invite you to bring show and tell, just like Thrifty, and you will get a special coupon you can use until the end of every month.  PLEASE NOTE:  There will not be a What's New in January because....

Inventory Reduction Sale - We need to make room for all of the fun stuff we have coming in 2012 from Fall Quilt Market.  We thought about adding on, but there's no room to grow.  :)  The sale will be January 12th - 14th with discounts on select merchandise.  Thursday will be 40% off, Friday 50% off, and Saturday 75% OFF!!!

Card Club - This is a BRAND NEW club that will be starting January 18th at 10am or 5:30pm.  It's not your traditional card club, we're not going to play Bridge.  If you like paper piecing, this is the club for you.  We will be using the "50 Little Paper-Pieced Blocks" book to create greeting cards.  For more details about the club, including the cost, click here:  http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/clubs.html

Row by Row Club & Block of the Month - As most of your know, Darlene Zimmerman's Clothesline Club has ended.  We loved her work and wish her all the best in her future adventures.  We needed a club to take the place of one of our customer's favorites.  With the help of Ruth Gess we will have the Row by Row Club. Ruth designed the patterns that we will explore during the club.  For more information click here: http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/clubs.html

We've decided to use Ruth's designs for our Common Threads Block of the Month.  You will receive the patterns each month...what you do with them is completely up to your creativity....make them into a sampler, recreate the block for a quilt, use them for a wall hanging...the possibilities are endless!  For more information about the Row by Row Block of the Month click here:  http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/blockofthemonth.html

Cattails in the Meadow Class - Judy and Brad Niemeyer designed the Cattails in the Meadow for foundation paper piecing. A collection of fabrics designed by Hoffman Fabrics were used to make the quilt and we have the exact fabrics for this class. The class will be taught by a certified Judy Niemeyer teacher, Catherine Erickson. We need at least 8 people to sign up.  For more information, click here: http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/classes.html

Events

Click here for details about any of our events: http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/events.html

Super Sew for Super Bowl - The first Sunday of February every year is reserved for beer, food, and football.....but not this year!!!  We invite you to join us sewing AND watching the Super Bowl.  There will be games and giveaways including a $50 gift certificate.
Leap Year Sales Event - It only comes once every 4 years, so we're gonna make the best of it.  Join us for open sewing and Leap Year discounts including 29% off or double punches on your card.  Play Leap Frog and get even more of a discount.
Relay for Life Auction - We have officially started our own Relay for Life team.  Our team name is "The Polka Dots" in honor of our father/grandpa who passed away from pancreatic cancer....he LOVED Polka music!  To help raise money we are having an auction in March.  The reason we are telling you about it so soon is because for every dollar you spend at the quilt shop between January 18 and March 23 you get 2 Quilt Bucks you can use during the auction.  You can also use real money, but your Quilt Bucks are just a valuable.  PLEASE invite everyone you know because we're not just going to be auctioning quilt stuff but gift certificates to area businesses and other fun things.  More details to come!

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Enough of the "public service announcements"...on to the new stuff!  If you're interested in purchasing any of the following items, go our online store.  (We apologize, the fabrics are not available through the online store yet.  If you are interested in purchasing them please call us at 320-834-2563.)  Click here for the online store: http://www.commonthreadsquilt.com/storefront_whatsnew.html

Kits

We know we're getting quite close to Christmas, but we couldn't help but show at least one Christmas project.  Using the Square-agonals technique (featured in last month's Teaching Thursday) we created kits for a table runner out of the Countdown to Christmas line.  We used the Accu Quilt to cut each piece so there's not much cutting needed, just sit down and start sewing!  The kit is only $14.99 (you will need to purchase the book as well - $24.95).

Using the same technique we created one with Hometown by Sweetwater so you can make one to display all year round!

Curio uses the Kaleido-Ruler (our only new notion this month - $17.00) to create the illusion of circles in this pretty quilt that reminds us of Paris, France.  Holly used the Statler to create individual patterns for each block and the borders, it was her first time trying this intense technique and it turned out beautifully, she can do it for you too!

Fabric

We added some more pieces to our color wall...it was looking kinda sad.  We filled it with "Tic Tac" and "Dimple" by Andover Fabrics.

Hoffman has some new, rich Batiks so we had to show some of them as well.

Holly Taylor is back to designing with "Birch Bark Lodge".  The line has patterned pieces and Batiks.  Mix and match for a modern rustic look.

Books

Square-agonals is a new method of creating diagonal set quilts without the complications of sewing setting corners and triangles.  The method is based on a well-known branch of mathematics called dissection. $27.95

Jelly Roll Quilt Magic introduces an entirely new design sense for Jelly Rolls, Layer Cakes, and Turnovers.  It really is a magical approach to using precuts.  She also introduces a 'shopping' list concept to make prepping for sewing a snap.  13 colorful projects give readers the opportunity to grasp her vision. $26.95

Reasons for Quilts showcases incredible quilts and touching stories about the inspiration of quilt making.  Edyta Sitar opens he personal trunk of handmade heirlooms.  This album goes from coverlets that capture childhood innocence to quilts that embrace the love of family.  It includes a disk for your home computer that can be used to print nine of the featured quilt patterns. $27.95

The new kids on the block!  Today's most talented modern quilts put a fresh and fun spin on 99 traditional block designs in Modern Blocks.  Chock full of step-by-step instructions, how-to photographs and helpful hints, this collection of inspiring projects makes it easy for any sewer, no matter what level of expertise, to quilt in a modern style with impressive results.  $24.95  (Katie will be writing up a pattern to enlarge one of her favorite blocks, we will post it here first!)

Just a Quilt? is a delightful story about six-year-old Chase and his imaginative uses of his prized quilt.  This tale celebrates the wonderful creativity of children.  In this story, his quilt is so much more than a quilt.  Whether his quilt is a superhero cape, a dark cave, or a magic carpet, it still provides the security of home.  Share this beautifully illustrated book with your child and imagine the possibilities. $16.00

Patterns

Shenandoah is a pattern designed by Deanne Quill of Creative Solutions.  It is a great pattern for fabrics in which you want to showcase the design of the fabric and don't want to cut up too much.  The finished quilt measures 54" x 70".

Big, beautiful flying geese weave a whimsical trail through this simple striated quilt top in Come Fly With Me.  The great contemporary look is equally effective with and without borders.  Size options: 55" a 75" without outer borders (large throw) and 69" x 89" with outer borders (twin).

Short Circuit certainly isn't short on style or pizzazz that's for sure.  The only "short" in sight is the short amount of time it'll take to make the blocks.  Use craps, charm packs, jelly rolls, anything goes in this fun bright quilt.  Finished siza 49" x 49".

Just throw the Potato Chip Bag over your shoulder and you're out the door.  With pockets on the outside and lined with pockets on the inside too.  Named because they're small and addictive, bet you can't make just one.  Finished size 6" x 7" x 2".

The Little Twister Tool is a lot of fun and when your projects are complete it looks as though you've spent hours working on these small projects.  "Patriotic Twist" and "Twisted Christmas".