Favorite Fabric Stores

I haven't talked about fabric shopping in awhile so I figured it was time for an update. As my taste in fabric has developed, so have my choices in fabric stores. I started off shopping mostly at Hancocks-Paducah and Fabric Depot. Both are still great stores to shop at for more traditional prints and batiks, and both offer great discounts but for modern prints I've had to look elsewhere.

First up is Quilt Home. I love this store and can't say enough great things about it. They have a great selection of Anna Maria Horner, Amy Butler, Joel Dewberry, Heather Bailey, Erin McMorris, Heather Ross, and so many more great designers. They even carry designer specialty fabrics like laminate/oilcloth and pre-quilted.  I think I have bought a yard or two or three of almost every AMH print they carry to stash away for clothing and quilting projects.

I always take a peek at their daily specials section to see what's on sale. They offer free shipping on orders over $50! I never seem to have trouble filling up my cart to take advantage of that deal. I also love that they take the time to write a personal message on the invoice of each order. I definitely recommend signing up for their newsletter and reading it weekly. They always have great feature articles about designers or new lines and offer great discounts.They also do 2 great giveaways each newsletter!

I've also really enjoyed shopping at fabricworm (the are also on etsy here). I don't find super awesome deals at this shop like I do at Quilt Home but I do love their selection and their mixed bundles are so cute! I love the color combinations they come up with and the way they mix different lines together.

fabricworm is very good about blogging when they expect new lines to arrive or when out of stock items are back in. Unfortunately the first time I shopped with them, my package arrived opened and emptied. I am sure my beautiful Lizzy House Castle Peeps and orange scrap pack are stuck in Post Office limbo somewhere (makes me want to cry) unappreciated and lonely. Hopefully they will end up in a good home eventually! Happily, fabricworm was more than willing to re-cut and ship me my order again at no charge to me. That definitely made me want to shop with them again!

 

Last but not least, I am happy to announce that I found a local quilt shop I actually like and who actually likes me! The Artful Quilter in Burke, VA is filled with beautiful fabrics and friendly ladies just dying to know what you're working on and bend over backwards to help you. It's a little further out of my way than the shop I was going to but it's totally worth the extra 10 minutes. My most recent trip with fellow NOVA Modern Quilt Guild member Kate was very successful! We both brought home at least 5 yards each of Amy Butler Midwest Modern in aqua and cream (my all time favorite fabric) because it was on clearance and several other smaller cuts of various designs.

Happy Quilting!

The New Face of the NOVA Modern Quilt Guild

Check out the new face of the NOVA Modern Quilt Guild!

Our About Us page features useful information about Modern Quilting and The Modern Quilt Guild.

The Photos page will feature work from all of the NOVA Modern Quilt Guild members.

The Events page lists upcoming events for the next 3 months.

The Contact page allows potential members to contact us through the webpage.

 

In other news, I also purchased matching business cards for our guild from Moo.com:

Aren't they cute?!

I hope you like the changes!

Happy Quilting!

Calling All Crafters: Help With Making a Wrist Wallet

Hey fellow crafters--

I am having trouble figuring out how to make a wrist wallet. Have any of you seen patterns out there for an item like this:

It has a hidden zippered pocket for small items and cash and fits over the hand and on the wrist without snaps, buttons, or any other type of closure. In other words it's one continuous loop around the wrist. My step-mom Laurie saw them in a magazine and was hoping I could make some but I just can't figure it out! Help!

Car Seat Quilt for Baby Asa

Rebecca and I went to the Falling for Handmade craft show in Gaithersburg, MD on Saturday. On Friday night I whipped up a little car seat quilt as a gift for her newborn Asa. I used some of my favorite fabrics in orange, green, aqua, and yellow.

I cut them into 5x5 charm squares

 
I sewed 4 rows of 4 charms together and bordered them with 2 different colored 2.5" strips from a Kona solid jelly roll I had lying around. Next I selected my backing fabric and put my quilt sandwich together.

 

I decided to try straight line quilting which actually worked pretty well with my design and fabric selection. It was so easy working with this size quilt for a change! I chose a nice complementary aqua for both the thread and bobbin. 

In a matter of hours I was finished piecing, quilting, and was ready to put on my binding. I had a bit of extra backing fabric so I cut it into strips and used it for the binding as well which I think ties the two sides together nicely.

 

 

 

 

 

The finishing touch was a hexie label that I embroidered. I really should have drawn what I was going to embroider prior to stitching so I could get the spacing right. The embroidery reads 'for Asa by NMW'. 

Falling For Handmade Craft Show

If any of you NOVA Modern Quilt Guildies or quilters/crafters in the area would like to join in the fun, we will be going to the Falling for Handmade craft show this weekend. For anyone interested please contact me directly by email at nweaver529 (at) gmail (dot) com!