What’s In a Name?

Happy 2018! It is a new year, and we have so many things on the agenda for the shop. I’m not a huge New Years Resolution person, but I am really hoping to find time to blog more this year.

 

With that said, I am also helping to continue learning more on Millie, and I started early learning new things this year. On Christmas Eve/Day, I quilted a custom quilt for my Brother-in-Law. Somehow, my two brother-in-laws have been able to convince me to only quilt custom for them. It has always been a large learning curve. Each time, I have learned new things, and thankfully the quilts always turn out great!

 

This particular quilt was a gift for the man officiating his wedding. The family’s last name starts with a G and they have three kids: Ellyn Beth, Jax Joseph, and Jones Dean. I promise we checked the spelling multiple times during this process, but it still made me nervous.

Devin, my brother-in-law, had the idea to quilt all of the childrens’ names into the quilt. It sounds easy, doesn’t it? Well… I couldn’t find an easy way to do it without a ton of jumps between every letter (A jump is when Millie stops sewing in one spot and moves to another spot. It leaves a stretch of loose thread that needs trimmed.), so I improvised. I spent quite a lot of time in PatternCad, a program in QuiltPath that allows a pattern to be “drawn”.

I grumbled quite often while “drawing” this pattern, but I love how it turned out. Now I want to do a similar quilt for my grandmother with all of the grandchildren’s names, but the idea of creating patterns for all of those names makes me worried.

 

See you at the machine,

Care

 

 

Happy St. Patrick’s Day- FREE PATTERN

Top O’ The Mornin’ To Ya!  (I just looked up different St. Patrick’s Day sayings and came out somewhat empty handed. Thanks Google…)

 

Happy St. Patrick’s day!  As I sat in the car this morning before work, I realized that I had walked out the door without any green today… Thankfully, I had a green hair-tie in my car, but does that really count? We could get into the nitty-gritty, or I could share with you a fun, green pattern.  Let’s get to it, and hopefully it will make up for my lack of green wardrobe.

You can mix and match your fabric or use all the same.

 

Prep:

Dig in your stash for green and cream fabric. Or whatever floats your fancy.

 

You will need:

1/4 yard of green {clover fabric}

1/4 yard of tan/cream {background fabric}

One fat quarter {backing}

One fat quarter of batting

Two 2” strips {binding}

*You could also use mix and match your fabric as I did.*
 

Chopping Block:

Cut two 2.5” strips of clover fabric.

Now, cut 24 2.5” squares from the clover strips.

Cut two 2.5” strips of background fabric.

Now, cut 32 2.5” squares from the background strips.

Depending on the width of your fabric, you might need three 2.5” strips.

*Note: If you are unable to get the full 34 squares from these strips, you could also cut down the scraps in the next step to get the remaining squares.

Cut one 3” strip of clover fabric.

Cut this into four 3” squares.

*If you were unable to cut all your squares earlier, use the scrap from this step to cut the remaining squares.

Cut one 3” strip of background fabric.

Cut this into four 3” squares.

*If you were unable to cut all your squares earlier, use the scrap from this step to cut the remaining squares.

 

 

Stitchin’ Time:

For this step you will be using the 3” squares of background fabric and 3″ squares of clover fabric.

Take one of each square and place them right sides together. Draw a diagonal line from corner to corner.

Now sew a quarter inch on both sides of this line.

Repeat for all 3” squares.

Cut along the line you drew and press seam.

 

Trim these down to 2.5” squares.

You should end with eight half square triangle squares.

 

Assemble your block using the diagram.  Once assembled decide whether you want a stem or not.  It is personal preference.  I decided to add one using a scrap from an earlier step.  To attach it to my quilt I sewed lines through the stem multiple times.  I wanted it to look like veins on a leaf or stem, but also to be something fairly simple.  There are no rules here, just have fun and make it your own.

If you press your seams opposite directions for each row, it will be much easier to next each corner and patch your points.

When the top is complete create the quilting sandwich:

Backing fat quarter—Batting fat quarter—Quilt top

Pin, spray baste, or thread baste the sandwich so you can quilt it together.

 

Quilt however you desire: stitch in the ditch, horizontal lines, meander, the options are endless.

After quilted, trim edges and attach binding.

Finish by sewing the binding, and you will have a completed clover mini quilt.

Finished size: 16.5″ x 16.5″.

 

 

Instructions Without Pictures:

LUCKY, LUCKY

Prep:

Dig in your stash for green and cream fabric. Or whatever floats your fancy.

 

You will need:

1/4 yard of green {clover fabric}

1/4 yard of tan/cream {background fabric}

One fat quarter {backing}

One fat quarter of batting

Two 2” strips {binding}

*You could also use mix and match your fabric as I did.*
Chopping Block:

Cut two 2.5” strips of clover fabric.

Now, cut 24 2.5” squares from the clover strips.

Cut two 2.5” strips of background fabric.

Now, cut 32 2.5” squares from the background strips.

Depending on the width of your fabric, you might need three 2.5” strips.

*Note: If you are unable to get the full 34 squares from these strips, you could also cut down the scraps in the next step to get the remaining squares.

Cut one 3” strip of clover fabric.

Cut this into four 3” squares.

*If you were unable to cut all your squares earlier, use the scrap from this step to cut the remaining squares.

Cut one 3” strip of background fabric.

Cut this into four 3” squares.

*If you were unable to cut all your squares earlier, use the scrap from this step to cut the remaining squares.

 

Stitchin’ Time:

For this step you will be using the 3” squares of background fabric and 3″ squares of clover fabric.

Take one of each square and place them right sides together. Draw a diagonal line from corner to corner.

Now sew a quarter inch on both sides of this line.

Repeat for all 3” squares.

Cut along the line you drew and press seam.

Trim these down to 2.5” squares.

You should end with eight half square triangle squares.

Assemble your block using the diagram.  Once assembled decide whether you want a stem or not.  It is personal preference.  I decided to add one using a scrap from an earlier step.  To attach it to my quilt I sewed lines through the stem multiple times.  I wanted it to look like veins on a leaf or stem, but also to be something fairly simple.  There are no rules here, just have fun and make it your own.

 

When the top is complete create the quilting sandwich:

Backing fat quarter—Batting fat quarter—Quilt top

Pin, spray baste, or thread baste the sandwich so you can quilt it together.

Quilt however you desire: stitch in the ditch, horizontal lines, meander, the options are endless

After quilted, trim edges and attach binding.

Finish by sewing the binding, and you will have a completed clover mini quilt.

Finished size: 16.5″ x 16.5″.

 

 

 

 

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

See you at the machine,

• Care

 

Moving, Quilting, & Sew Much More

2017 is the year we unlock the doors to Quilter’s Hideaway.  Every day we are one step closer and yesterday was no exception.

 

Millie moved into her new and final home at the shop yesterday.

 

Before we moved her I wanted to play with quilting a quilt using a custom design instead of edge-to-edge or a pantograph.  I still needed to quilt Playtime in the Past, so I decided it was the perfect starting point.

I knew what I wanted in the solid squares, but I wasn’t sure what to do in the pinwheel blocks.  I really liked the secondary circle created by the design I quilted first, so I decided to play off that with a circular design over the pinwheels.  The result was perfect for this fun, playtime quilt.

Once Millie was set up in the shop, I was able to finish two more quilts.  It felt amazing to be working in our quilt shop and imagining what is to come.

This quilt is a customer’s baby quilt for a little girl.  It will be washed quite a bit, so a dense pattern-meandering circles, was chosen.  I love how it adds to the playfulness of this quilt.

 

The second quilt was a Disappearing Hourglass Quilt done in blue and cream.  It was a gorgeous customer quilt.  I quilted this with a damask pattern.  It was the perfect, subtle touch to finish off the quilt. Look at those points!

Aside from quilting and moving Millie, we were able to finish this 20 foot design wall for use in the classroom. Who wants to be first to have their blocks hanging here?

 

 

This was a full and busy weekend: moving Millie, building design walls, quilting, and so much more.  We only have 32 days until our grand opening, and many surprises along the way! Make sure you are following us on Facebook and Instagram to be the first to know!

 

See you at the machine,

•Care

 

 

What’s In A Name?

This morning I’m going to share a few ginormous things happening. Have a seat, grab a drink, and let’s get to talking… or reading. 

Not too long ago, I came across a website full of different Quilt Blogs. I love reading and writing blog posts, and I of course love any blog that covers quilting, so I was in heaven. After reading different blogs and falling even more in love, I looked into how to get our slice of the world, Quilting with Care, included in this list of awesomeness. 

This morning I received the news that we were accepted! Make sure you go check it out. I’m even adding a new widget on the side of my posts that links directly to their site in the next couple days. It’s pretty fun.

Another bit of news: we have decided on our logo and have been working on branding the quilt shop, Quilter’s Hideaway. Things are really happening. 

When my mom and I sat down to discuss opening a shop, we started working on a name. Lists upon lists were made in an effort to find the perfect title to describe what we wanted to create.  Naming a quilt is daunting enough, but naming a business-our hopes and dreams in a real, tangible place-seemed unimaginable.

We originally discussed opening the shop in a house. It was an older house that my parents own and would have been cute, but this… this is a whole different ball game. This is the dream that seemed impossible.

 Anyways, since it was a house we came up with names such as “Quilt Cottage”, “Fabric Shack”, “The Stitchin’ Place”. They aren’t horrible names, but they are already used and never brought about the feeling we were searching for. The more we thought, the more we added to the list. Pages upon pages of names slightly different than the one before, but nothing jumping off the page.

We wanted something unique. It was important to me that our website link, or domain (?) as I am learning, would match what our store name was. I wanted a shop that wasn’t a duplicate of 20 other shops across the states. I wanted something all our own, but not crazy or random; something that made sense. A name that meant something. 

 Quilter’s Hideaway was born. It will be our hideaway, our getaway, our place to go and spend time with other like-minded friends while ignoring or getting away from the outside world. It will be a quilter’s hideaway.

With a name decided we had to start branding (I never knew anything like this existed a few months ago, but I am learning… slowly). 

My mom and I love Kentucky- partially because my “sisters” live there and partially because it is just so pretty. And the barns… Kentucky has what they call Quilt Barns. Other states have them too, but I have only seen them in Kentucky. They started long ago when a lady wanted to honor her mother by painting a quilt square on their barn in remembrance of the longtime quilter. It spread quickly and now quilt trails have been created and there are sites where you can map out trips to see many different Quilt Barns. The most fascinating part for me is that each square tells a story.

http://boonebarnquilts.com/

I wanted this for our shop. I wanted our logo, or branding, to tell a story, but also to resemble a Quilt Block or Quilt Barn. 

My mom loves the Road to Oklahoma quilt block, and our quilt shop is in Oklahoma. She purposed the idea to use this block as part of our brand and I loved it. With a few modifications, we finally settled on what you see now.

 

Thus far, I think deciding on the branding and the logo was the most difficult. We put a lot of added weight on it since it is the first thing a person sees. It can be the deciding factor for whether someone decides to drive and take a look, or whether they decide it isn’t worth the trip. I probably put way too much thought into this one piece, but we have now made the final decision and it is FINISHED.

We would not be this far without such amazing friends and family, though. After overthinking to the point of frustration people stepped up and helped guide us to come up with what you see. 

With all of this said, we have also settled on a grand opening date! February 4th from 10am-6pm we will be opening our doors, providing snacks, and having quite a few giveaways and activities. Mark it on your calendar and cross your fingers for good weather. We are beyond ready to ring in the New Year and unlock our doors. 



The countdown is on: 50 days!

See you at the machine,

•Care

Can You Watch TV & Sew?

Fun fact: I sew in silence. Occasionally I’ll listen to music, but mostly I sew without any noise except for the sewing machine. It’s my favorite way of losing myself and diving into a project. 

Last night while working on finishing up a table runner, My Love decided I needed to watch a movie, the new Dolly movie, on the tv. It wasn’t even 5 minutes later before I found myself sitting on the floor staring at the tv. Not much of anything was accomplished as soon as the tv was turned on. 
Now I know why I sew in silence, without distractions. 

Thankfully I only get this reaction with the tv. I can sew with friends and have music playing but goodness there is something up with the tv. 

I have come to the realization that it is DECEMBER first. Is anyone else freaking out? How can this be? 

My to do list is a mile long, but I’m chugging onwards and slowly marking things off. The problem is, I mark one thing off and add three more. 

Is anyone else in the same place? Piled high with Christmas projects and always adding more. I wouldn’t want it any other way though. I love making handmade gifts and there is nothing like laying on the couch under a quilt. 

Well, I better get back to sewing. Soon we will be having sew nights and parties at QH where all we will be able to hear is chatter and machines. It will be lovely, I cannot wait! 

See you at the machine, 

• Care

Quilter’s Hideaway Has Furniture!

Hi there everyone! It is raining outside and we are supposed to be decorating our house for Christmas, but instead I am sitting here with a half-assembled tree thinking about how wonderful this past weekend was and writing this blog. I sure hope no one realizes I’m slacking ;).

 

Did you have a fantastic Thanksgiving? We had everyone at our house for a late lunch/early dinner that was yummy. There was more food than we could finish, lots of laughter, and the kitchen was clean by the end of the day. I couldn’t ask for anything more. I love how both of our families (my husband’s and mine) get along so well.  It makes holidays easier and life greater.

After dinner we went out to a few shops to see what the big sales were. We didn’t purchase much at all, but we saw quite a few baskets piled high.

 

 

Friday morning I went to one store and spent over an hour in line. After that, I decided I was finished with Black Fridayshopping, and we headed to IKEA with an empty trailer.

 

We spent about an hour walking through the store seeking out different items and options. Then, we found a spot to sit and regroup. We wrote down what we needed to look for in the self service area.  We realized a few of our items were not in the self service area, and there were a couple things we wanted to look at again.

 

With our list organized and our plan set we marched through the showcase floor once more and found a lady named Rachel to help with our items that were not in the self-service area. She turned out to be an amazing help and organized our entire list for us based on aisles and checked inventory. This is when we realized a few things were out of stock. She walked with us to find other options and once again helped us to get a plan in place. She was fantastic!

 

This time, with our list in hand we scooted down to the first floor-the self service area. If you have never been to IKEA, almost all of their items come in flat packs. When you arrive at the store you walk around the second floor to see different rooms assembled with their furniture. Each item has a tag with an aisle number and bin number. You write down the information and when you finish you head down to the first floor and pull all of the furniture yourself. There are few exceptions where the staff will have items pulled for you to pick up after checking out (Rachel did this for us).

 

 

So with our LONG list, we found the elevator and headed downstairs. My parents laughed when I told them we would each need a cart, but it turns out we needed a total of 5 carts. It was crazy, but so fun and exciting.

 

We stuck to plan until we got to the chair aisle and my dad decided to mix it up. A last minute decision meant we had three different chairs on our cart. We also couldn’t find three of our originally planned chairs but it worked out for the best and we found an even better chair (in my opinion).

 

Loaded down and struggling to push the carts we headed to check out.

 

 

 

**I just got caught!! A certain someone just walked in and realized my tree is still only half assembled.**

 

After checking out, we waited on the last two carts with 11 more boxes then we headed for the elevator.

 

My dad decided we could fit everything into the elevator at once so it became a game and we won! We loaded the trailer and headed home.

 

When we arrived back in Bartlesville my husband and his family met us to help unload and start building. It was pretty late but we couldn’t wait.

 

Saturday morning I finished quilting another quilt just in time to head to the shop and finish assembling all of our IKEA items.

The shop is coming together and we cannot wait. It won’t be long before our doors will be open.

Remember, if you want to be the first with a calendar of classes, come see us at Gifts Marketplace on December 6th at Tri County Technology (Bartlesville, OK).

 

 

See you at the machine (but first I must finish this tree),

 

•Care

Weeks are Packed Around Here

Hello! Hello!

Let’s be honest with each other for just a moment.  I never expected the last post to be read by so many people.

We had hopes and wishes and dreams, but you all rock!  

With that said, I have been at a loss for what I should post next.  Nothing is quite like announcing the opening of a quilt shop.  Everything else I could say will pale in comparison, but I love writing and sharing what we have going on, so I will do just that.  

 

Today might be a bit of a ramble and somewhat on the jumpy side, but you deserve to know.  Plus, I just cannot contain my excitement.  Here we go!

Last weekend my mom and I walked through the building for the first time with the intention of opening the quilt shop.  Walking in and picturing where the fabric will go, where Millie will call home, the classroom, the notions, precuts and patterns- it is all there.  With every step we take it is turning more and more into a shop.  My hope is that when people walk through the door they feel at home- they feel that they can create in this space, and enjoy the company of other likeminded people.  A creative, warm, welcoming place with a touch of modern and a splash of randomness (after all, I can be pretty random). 

We are continuing to work on the calendar and schedule.  Our hope is to reveal the calendar at Gift’s Marketplace– a women owned, small business fair on December 6^th at Tri County Technology Center (Bartlesville, OK).  If you want to be the first to get your hands on our calendar, make sure you stop by and say “Hi!”

 

With the calendar in mind, do you have a specific class you want to take? A quilt you want to make? Something you want to see or learn more about? Would you like to know what on earth a sewing machine even is (I’m talking to all of you newbies! You have to start somewhere.).  Let me know in the comments below.

---

We have chatted about the building and the calendar, now let’s check in on what Millie has been doing.

A little snippet about something we learned this week: if Millie seems happy but is not sewing vertically, do not spend hours researching and trying everything you can think of.  Instead, check that the encoder is still plugged in.  It appears while I was cleaning and oiling her before sewing this weekend, I managed to unplug the encoder.  I spent hours trying to figure out what had happened and searching online for answers. I finally called in back up.  The dealer we bought Millie from (Brenda at Red Barn Quilting –She’s awesome!!) was able to pinpoint the problem over the phone.  Within seconds Millie was back to sewing like a dream.  If only I had made that phone call earlier on…

There are a few more quilts in line for quilting this week and even a few shopping adventures.  Opening a quilt shop brings an entire new meaning to Black Friday shopping.  I have even tried sweet talking a few of the guys in my life into coming along and bringing a trailer.  It will be quite the undertaking.  Make sure you are following along on Instagram (quiltershideaway & quiltingwithcare) and Facebook (Quilter’s Hideaway) to see what happens.

See you at the machine (or maybe in line on Black Friday),

•Care

Remember, if you want to be the first to see our Calendar, stop by and see us at Gift’s Marketplace on December 6^th!

Also, let me know what classes you are hoping to see on the calendar this spring.

Flying Away On Fabric

Does life seem like it is flying away without you? I sure feel that way some days. 

I’ve been working on a new quilt and pattern that has me flying with the fabric. It is an airplane block that I have been messing with different sizing, trying to come up with the “perfect” size of each section in the block. I have a certain little one in mind for an airplane quilt, so hopefully I am able to finish this up quickly. 

For now, I have been practicing and playing with scrap fabric. I never really understood the desire for mini quilts, but I am beginning to jump on board. Some of these trial blocks are just too cute to adios. I’m thinking they might get quilted up and turn into minis. I’m sure I can find a few homes for them.

What have you been working on?
Ever since we unboxed Millie, I have been dying to get my hands on her at every available moment. Keep in mind, Millie is at my parent’s house which is a little under an hour away from where I live. That doesn’t stop me. I spent most of last weekend standing behind her, and I even went up last night to get in a couple hours of playtime. 

This weekend, my mom and I are taking a two day quilt path class. Quilt Path is the computer system that APQS offers for their longarm machines. I expect to walk away with my mind blown. Hopefully I will be able to pick up the pieces and learn everything I can. Gosh I just cannot wait.

I will be sure to share different tricks and tips we learn. Sharing this journey from cutting the tape on the box to learning how to use Millie is something I plan to do.  I am planning on posting the good, the bad, and the ugly and dragging you along with me. Strap on that seatbelt, things could get crazy around here.
For now I will dream of flying away to a land of no clocks, no commitments, happy sewing machines, and full bobbins. Care to join me?

See you at the machine,

•Care

WIP Week-Breaking Up With My Seam Ripper

{WIP = Work In Progress} 

Good morning world! 

We are nearing the end of WIP Week. I always struggle with wanting to start new projects during the week I’m working on unfinished quilts, but this is a week to finish, or at least work on what has already been started. No new projects, although I’m sure I can come up with a few exceptions. 

How are your projects coming along? 
I managed to finish the middle part of my purple and teal, nameless quilt. I only had a few more dates with my seam ripper, too. Things are looking up. I may get to break up with him soon, but we will probably be back together by my next quilt. It’s a roller coaster relationship.  

Now onto the borders, but those may have to wait a while. 

See you at the machine, 

•Care