Shop Ravelings

Batting....

2011-09-04T11:16:00.000-07:00

Hi! This is Eula and though I am at the shop on Wednesdays I spend most of my work time at home quilting for many of you on my Gammill Longarm machine. I thought I would talk a little today about batting. Quilting Bits & Pieces carries mainly Quilters Dream products, we have been happy with the selection, quality and service this "Made in the USA" company provides. They have a wide variety of batting options, let me tell you about a few of my personal favorites.

Dream Orient--This is a blend of cotton, bamboo and silk and has become one of my very favorite battings. It has a wonderful soft hand and good drape. But my favorite feature of Dream Orient is the appearance it gives to a machine quilted quilt. Your quilt remains soft, flat and drapes nicely but the quilting really shows up with this batting, if you plan on fancy quilting this is my choice as the best batt to show it off. It is a bit more expensive than cotton but for a special prized quilt this is worth considering!

Dream Angel--This a a fire retardant fiber, not a fire retardant coating that can wash away like many sleepwear fabrics have. When this batt came out several years ago I was excited about the possibility of using it, especially for crib quilts and for those who are wheelchair bound. I took a piece of it out to the alley behind the store and proceeded to try to set it on fire. When I held the flame directly to it, it charrred just a bit and EXTINGUISHED the flame. I was impressed! (and I don't impress easily!)

Dream Blend--70% cotton and 30% polyester. Now I must tell you I am really a natural fiber fan so in most cases I prefer 100% cotton but I have found that the addition of the poly in this batt makes it very stable. The good part of that you ask? If your quilt is going to be hanging or is all on the bias and really needs to be stabilized, this batt is a great choice.

Dream Wool--Soft, strong, gives more of a "puffy" look to your quilt while still using a natural fiber, this batt makes a very warm quilt. My favorite part of this batt is that though I am allergic to wool (it makes me itch and sneeze) this is the one brand of wool batting that doesn't require me to take allergy pills followed by a shower when quilting with it!

Dream Cotton--we stock two weights--request and select--heavier weights are available by special order. These batts have been my standard for years. The Request weight is thinnest and my recommendation for hand quilting or for a very lightweight quilt. Select is a bit heavier and I prefer it for machine quilting. Both weights come in both white and natural. I recommend using white for white or very light pastel quilts or bright colors, it keeps your colors their sharpest.

I hope these thoughts help you out as you select batting for future quilts.

Eula

Quilt Camp!

2011-05-23T17:05:00.000-07:00

On April 29 & 30 we held Quilt Camp at QB&P. Approximately thirty-five ladies came with machines in tow to sew for two days! We just can't resist sharing photos of this great event. We had so much fun and made lots of progress on our various projects, that we plan to do it again.

Crusin’ Kansas Bus Trip

2011-04-18T21:39:00.000-07:00

On Sat April 16^th QB&P participated in a 5 shop bus trip. Bright and early a group of 29 customers joined bus hostesses Kaye and Barb at the Eudora store where they had a chance to shop at their “home” store before our 8:30 am departure. As the ladies boarded the bus their wallets were already a bit lighter and their shopping bags a bit heavier. Spirits were lively as our passengers looked forward to day of quilt shops, spending time with a special friend or family member and crusin’ across Kansas. So, let’s go!

First stop, a half hour or so away, was Overbrook Quilt Connection in Overbrook, KS. Shop owner, Roxane met us at the bus to welcome us to her shop. Snacks, drinks and demos were provided as well as lots of inspiration and shopping enjoyment! Efficient check out by Roxane and her staff had us loaded and ready for an on-time departure – destination: Severy, KS.

A Saturday drive through the Kansas countryside in early spring is not complete without an estate sale or two. Hostess intervention was required to keep the bus from stopping – after all, it was not on our agenda and we had a schedule to keep! As we drove past the farm we overheard someone say, “Surely we have room on this bus for that kitchen table!”

Quilters are in the know when it comes to the whereabouts of quilt shops so it was no surprise when we heard someone wonder out loud why we weren’t stopping at such and such shop. It is true that we drove right by with a great view out the big bus windows of a shop just longing for us to stop. Ev

en the hostesses wondered for a moment what might be inside …. But a deal is a deal so we stayed on task and saved that shop for another day.

Two hours of crossing gorgeous Kansas spring prairie finally brought us to Severy, KS home of Needle in the Haystack Quilt Shop. Shop owner Cynthia met the bus and let us know lunch would be served soon (deli sandwiches, giant chocolate chip cookies, fruit and chips). We unloaded to find much more than a quilt shop. Inside was a mini antique shop, (the shop owner’s husband is allowed one wall to display his antiques), crafts, baskets, completed quilts for sale plus the usual array of fabrics, patterns and inspiration. Porch benches provided comfy seating for the quick shopper to wait – the sun had broken out, the wind had died down and the day was turning out to be mighty fine in more ways than one.

By the time we departed Needle in the Haystack overhead bins on the bus were beginning to bulge as the serious shoppers settled in to business at hand – Note: this writer is not about to name names!

Bellies were full, new project ideas were swimming in heads and shopping check lists were updated as we pulled out and headed for Newton, KS. The bus was unusually quiet for the first time of the day. Hostesses Kaye and Barb wondered if the fun was running out but then it occurred to us that maybe the gals

were just doing math in their heads to see if they had enough money remaining or if an ATM stop was needed.

Was it a coincidence that the bus seemed to slow a little as we passed another farm sale or were our passengers chatting with the bus driver on the side? Laughter abound as bus driver, Dennis, receives hostess instructions to drive on. There is an agenda, ladies and sorry but this estate sale is not on it!

Curiosity as to how our home shop was fairing prompted text messages and brief phone calls home. Through the quick replies back we learned that the other shop’s buses were arriving, shopping and departing in the same timely fashion we were experiencing. The classroom was converted to a cafeteria where visiting buses were served either lunch or dinner of Cutter’s BBQ on a bun, potato salad, and baked beans with homemade pie for dessert. “Pie? Really? Oh, bye, we’ve gotta go, we are in Newton!”

Charlotte’s Sew Natural in Newton, KS compiled of several interconnected rooms and filled to the brim with goodies presents an environment that might cause us to lose passengers. Owner, Charlotte, and her staff help us with fabric, patterns, kits and a bottle of cold water. The ladies had plenty of time to shop and relax which made for another great stop. As we boarded the bus and asked if everyone had their bus buddy we noticed two empty seats. Darn. Oh wait, there they are! Giggling like school girls, they board last and we head off once again with another on-time departure!

Late in the day the bus cruised through the historic downtown district in Emporia. Quaint shops and restaurants line the street but are meaningless to this crowd! They have eyes for only one store in downtown Emporia! Prairie Pieces Quilt Shop! Owner, Sue, greets the bus and welcomes us with the wonderful news that supper is served. Fried chicken, ham, scalloped potatoes, green beans and chocolate or peanut butter cake with ice cream! Sue’s friendly helpers and delicious meal just seems to sum up the day perfectly for most. We do note that a few shoppers are showing sign of separation anxiety as realization sinks in that this is the final stop and it is nearly over. As we prepare to board the bus the hostesses make one last round through the store – oh dear, there are three ladies just beginning to eat! We are about to instruct them to ask for a to-go box when we realize it is the staff! Opps! They certainly earned their meal so we leave them to their supper! We corral our last few reluctant passengers aboard and have our first delayed departure of the day.

The sun sets behind us as our adventure wanes and we begin our trek home. The bus chatter softens to a low hum, a passenger here or there dozes off. As we near Eudora suddenly the chatter brightens as the passengers realize there IS one more chance to shop – after all their cars are parked at Quilting Bit’s & Pieces, right?

Kaye and Barb would like to thank all of the delightful ladies who joined us for our Cruisin’ Kansas Bus Trip. We had a great day and hope you did too!

Retreats and Lots of Show 'n Tell

2011-03-31T11:20:00.000-07:00

We’ve been busy! First we had a great mini-retreat at Quilting Bits & Pieces. Danetta came bringing two of her quilts that she has finished. She took the pineapple Littlefoot class some time ago and this is her finished quilt top! She also brought her finished Sashing Stars top that she started in a class using the Marti Michelle templates. Way to Go Danetta!

That same week, Ellen stopped in to show us her completed North Country quilt. Her husband spied this little quilt while we were still assembling it and it went home with them that day. I think he was pretty happy with Ellen’s quick quilting! (we still have kits - $35.00)

Last Thursday 16 of us traveled to Cedar Crest Lodge in Pleasanton, Ks for a retreat. With Laura’s great cooking and Evelyn, Shannon & Karla taking care of all of our needs, we interrupted our sewing only for snacks and meals!

Laura Cunningham of Cedar Crest B&B

Evelyn getting ready to serve lunch

Yummmmmm

We experienced many “Ta-Da’s” throughout the weekend. Here are a few :

Myrna, from Colorado Springs finished all three of these quilt tops – she had the prettiest scraps!

Breezy shows off her quilt top, but guess what, it wasn't in the final state – she finished it up after retreat using the Lil' Twister template and the look at the final result!

Step 1

Step 2 Ta-Da!

Jennifer came all the way from Georgia to sew and she finished two quilt tops!

Jennifer's version of Fire Escape

Jean spent many hours on this little miniature.

Christina shows off her Happy Daze quilt top.

Kaye finally got the borders on her Over the River quilt

Jeni worked on several Christmas projects

Daunita’s Park Lane quilt using the Lilly & Will fabric and she machine quilted a train quilt too

Barb probably finished more projects than anyone else. Here is a mystery quilt she finished putting together. She also learned how to knit so made a bag to hold her knitting projects

Kirsten also came from Colorado Springs for the retreat. This is her finished Colorado Quilt.

JoAnn made some progress her paper piecing -- Looks like she is auditioning for Lion King!

These soft pastel Bali Pops are just Deanna’s preference!

We hardly had any laughter at all with these two sitting together!

Hear no evil

Speak no evil

SMELL no evil???

National Quilting Day!

2011-03-16T14:30:00.000-07:00

Remember to come celebrate National Quilting Day with us at Quilting Bits & Pieces this Saturday, March 19th and choose one in stock item to receive 30% off! This is the perfect time to splurge on that FQ bundle, kit, ruler, batting or some other special item you've been eyeing. One cut of fabric counts, so backing fabric is always a popular item, too! We will be open from 9:30am - 4:00pm.

Looking forward to seeing you then,

All the shop gals

Another Convert!

2011-03-11T22:48:00.000-08:00

If you've ever tried to buy normal run-of-the-mill straight pins while I was working, you might have experienced a conversation something like this:

Nan: Do you mind if I ask what you're going to use those pins for?

Customer: Piecing, why?

Nan: You've got to try my favorite pins!!! Everything else will feel like nails after you've tried these! They're not for strength jobs, but for precision jobs they're the best! When you match seams to nestle, they don't distort the seam you've just matched like other pins will.

Well, one day Amy Bradley (with all the cute patterns from Amy Bradley Designs) went through my meddling about pins, decided to try my favorite pins, and now she's converted. Check out her blogpost from Thursday here

The next time you're in the shop, you might want to try my favorite pins, too!
Nan
P.S. A special thanks to my friend Linda J in OKC for first turning me onto these wonderful pins. We started carrying them after she gave me a few to try.

Bus Trip - last day for Early Bird Sign up!

2011-03-06T22:33:00.000-08:00

LAST DAY TO GET THE BUS TRIP EARLY BIRD RATE

Our bus trip is a one day event, Saturday, April 16. We will meet at Quilting Bits & Pieces at 8 in the morning and we will be visiting --

Charlotte's Sew Natural, Newton
Needle in a Haystack, Severy
Overbrook Quilt Connection, Overbrook
Prairie Pieces Quilt Shop, Emporia
and returning to Quilting Bits & Pieces, Eudora approx 8:30 pm

The Fee includes a continental breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, beverages, and chartered bus with bathroom. Tipping your bus driver is separate from this fee. You just bring yourself and money for shopping. Early Bird Rate gives you a discount if you register and pay by or on Monday, March 7 - $83.95. Registration and payment after March 7 is $93.95. Fees are non-refundable.

To register, call QB&P at 785/542-2080, come in to sign up, or email us at bitsnpieces@sunflower.com. Come cruising' with us to Kansas Quilt Shops – we are going to have a lot of fun!

March is upon us! It is beginning to feel and look like spring is really going to come. The crocuses are blooming! We have some big events planned for this month –

First of all, we have the Quilters Mini-Retreat on Wednesday, March 16. For just $20, we offer you a full day of sewing. It begins at 9:30 or whenever you arrive and will end at 4:30. We will provide you with a fun day with lots of SEWING! Bring your own projects or pick out a new one while you are here. We will have coffee and donuts in the morning, bring your sack lunch or order carry out from one of our local restaurants. As you work on your projects we are ready to assist you in any way we can AND there will be door prizes throughout the day. Sign up now for a day of POWER SEWING and fellowship. Don't delay as space is limited.

National Quilters Day will be on Saturday, March 19. Come in then to get 30% off any one (in stock) item!

Fire Escape

Over President’s weekend several of us managed to sneak away to a guild retreat at Tall Oaks. Deanna worked on a “Fire Escape” quilt (Atkinson’s Designs Pattern) and has it hanging on display already.

Deanna

Christina

Christina has been working on a Pineapple quilt for sometime and she finished it at the retreat. It is a darling little quilt and so easy to do with Little Foot Foundation paper. With this method of paper piecing you actually have the fabric on top of the paper. It is a beautiful little quilt for Christina's granddaughter, Olivia.

4" Pineapple blocks

1930's Churning Pennies

Amber

Here are the first blocks for the “Churning Pennies” Block of the Month using the 1930’s reproduction fabrics and varigated floss. Amber made a second set of twilled blocks using the same #5 pearl cotton floss, but just using the stem stitch instead of the twilling stitch. If you are not interested in twilling the blocks would look great done in regular embroidery stitches.

I, Kaye, managed to get all 30 churn dash blocks in the "Antique Fair" colorway sewn at retreat and am having lots of fun with the twilled blocks. I have added just a tiny bit of fused applique to my twilling – as many of the early Penny Squares included some applique. This block of the month will be starting on March 15 and continue to be ready by the 15^th of each month. It is $12 a month for eleven months and $29 for the floss kit.

March Monthly Twilling

The March Twilling Mini Block is kitted and ready. Christina twilled our spring flowers in yellow and a varigated spring green. Kits are $19 or just the pattern for $4.50.

Last but not least, mark your calendars for our Spring Sale, Thursday through Saturday, March 31, April 1 and 2. We will have 20% off all fabrics, kits, notions, patterns and books and also some 40% discounted items.

Don’t forget to send us a photo of any quilt you have finished that was started in one of our classes, or that you chose the fabric at our shop. Write a few lines about it...quilt name, approx. what year, your name and any other interesting details. We will post them here on our blog for a big "Show and Tell".

Until next time, happy stitching,

Kaye

Welcome to the Quilting Bits & Pieces Blog!

2011-02-18T14:59:00.000-08:00

Barb unpacking a new shipment

Hi there, we are excited about having this opportunity to give you a peek into the daily happenings here at Quilting Bits & Pieces in Eudora. Our plan is to keep you informed when we get cool new fabrics and notions or have fun and interesting things going on. We hope you will check in often so we can keep you "in the know".

Over the past 13 1/2 years that we have been in business, we have had lots of classes and helped many many customers choose fabric for some great quilts....are YOU one of those people? Send us a photo of any quilt you have finished that was started in one of our classes, or that you chose the fabric at our shop. Write a few lines about it...quilt name, approx. what year, your name and any other interesting details. We will post them here for a big "Show and Tell".

The big news for this week (in my opinion) is the arrival of all the fabric and "some" of the floss for the new Twilling BOM -- Churning Pennies. I will get real busy now making the first month's sample. I hope to have the first blocks ready to pick up on March 15. In the meantime, watch here for progress. Amber will be doing the same pattern in 1930's reproductions and my version is the Antique Fair line by Moda's Blackbird Designs. Call or email us to reserve your kit in either colorway.

New BOM fabrics ready to kit

By the way, February is National Embroidery Month! This week's shipment provided a re-supply of #5 pearl cotton and other floss, hoops, needle threaders & needles. Celebrate by choosing a new embroidery project!

Until next time "happy stitches",

Kaye