Just Arrived: Cambridge from Paint Brush Studios by Ro Gregg

Cambridge features Romatic roses 
by Ro Gregg for Fabri-quilt / Paintbrush Studios.

Ro creates a gorgeous signature rose pattern. 

The stunning rose wallpaper stripe measures 11” and would be a fantastic border. 

The coordinate fret offers a tropical New Orleans influence in stark black and white or subtle pink or green. 

The pinstripes provide interesting contrast for the rosebuds. 

The ombre scroll stripe would make fabulous binding. 

 Quilt kit TOP Cambridge Checkerboard Quilt by Ro Gregg + FREE PATTTERN

Designed by Lacey J. Hill of Golden Thyme Designs
The Cambridge fabric collection's black/pink colorway has a strong floral theme. The combination of pink and black is always beautiful but none quite like Ro Gregg's designs. The scrolls, stripes, interesting piecing, and fussy cut border all enhance the quilt design and the results are stunning.
The four center blocks each measure 24” finished.

Finished quilt size: 101" x 101"

 Skill level: Confident Beginner
The pattern is written with lots if instructions and pictures!

Included in kit: 11 1/2 yards for top,borders and binding.

Purchase your kit here for $124.00 + shipping:  Cambridge Checkerboard

Texting for Seniors!

Since more and more Seniors are texting and tweeting there appears to be a need for a STC (Senior Texting Code). If you qualify for Senior Discounts this is the code for you.
Please pass this on to your children and grandchildren so they can understand your texts.
ATD:	At The Doctor's
BFF:	Best Friend Fainted
BTW:	Bring The Wheelchair
BYOT:	Bring Your Own Teeth
CBM:	Covered By Medicare
CGU:	Can't get up
CUATSC:	See You At The Senior Center
DWI:	Driving While Incontinent
FWB:	Friend With Beta Blockers
FWIW:	Forgot Where I Was
FYI:	Found Your Insulin
GGPBL:	Gotta Go Pacemaker Battery Low!
GHA:	Got Heartburn Again
HGBM:	Had Good Bowel Movement
IMHO:	Is My Hearing-Aid On?
LMDO:	Laughing My Dentures Out
LOL:	Living On Lipitor
LWO:	Lawrence Welk's On
OMMR:	On My Massage Recliner
OMSG:	Oh My! Sorry Gas.
ROFL... CGU:	Rolling On The Floor Laughing... And Can't Get Up
TTYL:	Talk To You Louder
WAITT:	Who Am I Talking To?
WTFA:	Wet The Furniture Again
WTP:	Where's The Prunes?
WWNO:	Walker Wheels Need Oil
GGLKI:	(Gotta Go Laxative Kicking In)

As Seen In McCalls Quilting March/April 2012: Along the Garden Path

pg 80 by Dorothy Ann Weld

Dimensional flowers add must-touch details to this lovely feminine quilt. 

Prints and floral from the New London collection by Faye Burgos for Marcus Fabrics bring a tea-in-the-garden feel to this lovely, feminine quilt.

Dimensional flowers are easy to make using Dorothy Ann's fun technique.  She used Steam-A-Seam 2 to partially fuse them in place and then use detail quilting to secure them permanently while keeping their 3-D whimsy. You'll need to purchase 2 1/8 yards of Steam a Seam 2 to do this.

Finished size: 84 1/2" square

Block size: 15" square
Skill level: Easy piecing and fun appliqueing

This kit includes: 14 1/2 yards of fabric for top, borders & binding and sells for $149.00 + shipping.

Purchase kits here: Along the Garden Path

Sneak Peek some U-taupe-ia Blocks

In March, kits will be ready for sale for the new Marti Michell U-Taupe-ia quilt. I thought you might like to see how pretty some of these blocks are!

Yum Yum Beef Stroganoff for a day like today!

When it looks like this outside:

You might want to make this:

Your slow cooker does the heavy lifting in our classic beef dish. Just prep some pasta while hearty beef and fresh garlic, onions and mushrooms simmer away.






What You Need:
2 lb. beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
10 oz. fresh mushrooms, halved
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup beef broth
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. salt
1 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. GREY POUPON Dijon Mustard
1 pkg. (16 oz.) egg noodles, uncooked
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

PLACE meat, mushrooms, onions and garlic in slow cooker. Add broth, paprika and salt. Cover with lid. Cook on LOW 7 to 8 hours (or on HIGH 5 hours).

MIX sour cream, flour and mustard. Stir into ingredients in slow cooker until well blended. Cook, covered, on LOW 15 min. Meanwhile, cook noodles as directed on package.

DRAIN noodles; place in large serving bowl. Add meat mixture; mix lightly. Sprinkle with parsley.
This recipe came from Kraft Foods!

As Seen In Quilt, Feb/Mar 2012: Flowergate Crossings

 

As seen on pg 31, Flowergate Crossing by Sue Harvey and Sandy Boobar from Pine Tree Country Quilts uses Cape Cod fabrics from Paintbrush Studios.

Careful attention to color placement is all that is needed to make the woven ribbon effect of this 106" square bed-size quilt. The piecing is deceptively easy with strip segments and diagonal corners. The soft florals are reminiscent of the well-loved fabrics of summer cottages.

The quilt kit includes 14 1/4 yards fabric from Cape Cod  for the top, borders & binding.

Purchase your kit for $149.00 + shipping here:

Flowergate Crossings

Fabrics used in this quilt: 

We made one substitution for the navy print and used this:

Just Arrived: Caroline's Collection, Free Quilt Pattern

Caroline's Collection from Red Rooster by Jennifer Chiaverini Jennifer’s newest novel, The Wedding Quilt, inspired this soft and romantic fabric collection. Classic wedding flowers – roses and callalilies – are set against a creamy, white ground to create the exquisite focal print. The thematic stripe combines wide bands of same flowers separated by narrow trellis-style stripes. What wedding would be complete without a touch of lace!  There is a softly, flowing lace pattern in tonal shades of cream, muted sage and pink. The Double Wedding Ring quilt is the quintessential wedding design! This fabric collection uses that pattern to create a striking, small scale print that combines rose and green rings against a snowy background. A sweet, tiny rosebud is centered within each ring. What a lovely fabric to consider using not only for quilt borders and binding but also for wedding gift bags, cover of a wedding album or guest book, favor bags, tablecloth for shower or wedding luncheon, ring pillow or to make a basket for a flower girl to carry!  Caroline's Collection includes 9 patterns/19 skus Caroline's Quilt + Free Pattern Finished size: 64" square Skill level:  Confident Beginner Laura Blanchard designed a striking, 64" medallion-style quilt that perfectly complements this lovely fabric collection. Windblown Star blocks are used to create the straight-set center of the quilt. Large setting triangles enable the rest of the quilt to mimic a Trip Around the World design. Color placement of the small squares lends lots of visual motion and engages the eye. Kit includes 7 1/2 yards fabric for top, borders and binding. Purchase this kit for $85.50 + shipping:  Caroline's Quilt

Yum Yum 3.2.1 Cake

Genius idea - makes 1 serving!

These individual little cakes are amazing and ready to eat in one minute! They are perfect
for whenever you feel like a treat without all the fat and calories that cake can have.

INGREDIENTS:

1 box Angel Food Cake Mix

1 box Cake Mix - Any Flavor

2 Tbsp Water

DIRECTIONS:

In a ziploc bag, combine the two cake mixes together and mix well. For each individual cake serving, take out 3 Tablespoons of the cake mix combination and mix it with 2 tablespoons of water in a small microwave-safe container. Microwave on high for 1 minute, and you have your own instant individual little cake!

KEEP remaining cake mixture stored in the ziploc bag and use whenever you feel like a treat! You can top each cake with a dollop of fat free whipped topping and/or some fresh fruit.

Helpful Tips:

This recipe is called 3, 2, 1 Cake because all you need to remember is:

"3 tablespoons mix,
2 tablespoons water,
1 minute in the microwave!"

TRY various flavors of cake mix like carrot, red velvet, pineapple, lemon, orange, etc. Just remember that one of the mixes has to be the angel food mix; the other is your hoice.

The flavor possibilities are endless!

NOTES:
The best thing is, you open both cake mixes into a gallon storage bag, one that 'zip locks' or 'self-seals', or a container that seals tightly, shake the two cake mixes to blend and then make the recipe. Storage of mix is simple, put it on a shelf. No need to refrigerate, since the mix is dry Always remember, that one of the cake mixes MUST be Angel Food. The other can be any flavor. The Angel Food is the cake mix that has the eggs whites
in it.

So, if, anyone is allergic to egg whites, you can NOT serve this recipe.

More Peeking at new fabrics coming in January

Maywood Studios

 

Whisper of Roses

Red Rooster

 

Caroline's Collection

Finally a little snow!

"As Seen In" The Quilter Magazine Autumn Haze

Seen in the August / September 2011

Autumn Maze
by JEAN ANN WRIGHT

Classic fall colors lend texture to this easy-to-piece bed quilt.

Skill level: Intermediate
Block size sewn into quilt: 18" x 18"
Number of blocks: 9 (5 Block A, 4 Block B)
Finished quilt size: 82" x 82"

Quilt kit includes 8 1/4 yards of Chestnut & Vine fabric from Marcus Brothers.

Purchase quilt kit here: Autumn Maze

Coming in 2012!

We are excited about all the new projects and fabrics coming this year! Our new fabrics will be happy, bright, soft and pretty, cotton and flannels!  Shabbies, batiks, florals, dinosaurs, fairies and more... Not only do we have fabrics coming from our favorite manufacturers like Moda and Marcus Brothers, but also have new ones coming from Red Rooster, Anna Griffin and Henry Glass! Here are a few of our new collections coming in January:

 
Henry Glass Butterfields


   Anna Griffin   Believe





We'll have lots of new quilt kits, starting with these:

Whisper of Roses

Caroline's Collection

March 2012 we'll have a new 
Block of the Month from  Marti Michelle U-Taupe-ia  

See you soon.  We are excited to start the new year off with these fabrics and projects.   We would love to help you get started with your next project!

Waiting for snow..........

Living in West Michigan I would have expected to have at least 10" of snow on the ground and we don't have any. 
So, here is a picture just to remind us that winter is still right around the corner!

Exclusive Quilt Kit: Wild Goose Chase

tWe used a pattern from Painted Pony'n Quilts and gave it a fresh look!

Sue, our quilt pattern tester, really like this pattern and thought it was a lot of fun! She choose the these fabrics because of the rich corals and polka dots. The instructions were very good and she didn't have any problems with them.  This pattern is for a confident beginner because the blocks are large and easy to piece.

Included in kit:
 Pattern
14 fat quarters
2 1/2 yards ecru for backgrounds
2 1/2 yards outer border
Purchase your kits here for $75.95 + shipping: Wild Goose Chase

In line for breakfast

The Cardinal always gets in first place at the feeder and the smaller birds have to wait for their turn.

click on the picture to enlarge it

5 YARD BUNDLES ARE BACK IN STOCK

5 YARD BUNDLES ARE BACK IN STOCK!

 Now and until the end of the year Bundles are $25 each or 2 for $40  (**use coupon codes: 2for40 or 4for80)



Each Bundle includes a FREE PATTERN which was especially designed for use with these coordinated bundles!

The patterns were written to create a quilt of optimum size and fabric usage.  Sizes range from lap to twin (52 - 70" x  72 - 86")

Be creative! You can make more/less blocks and change the size and shape of your quilt.


**SHIPPING COSTS

	USA	CANADA	WORLD
One	$5.10	$12.45	$14.95
2 or more	$11.10	$27.95 (max 4 )	$29.95 (max 3)  4 or more $46.95

Idle Thoughts Of A Retiree's Wandering Mind

I planted some bird seed. A bird came up.  Now I don't know what to feed it
********************
I had amnesia once---or twice
********************
I went to San Francisco. I found someone's heart. Now what?
********************
Protons have mass? I didn't even know they were Catholic.
********************
All I ask is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy
********************
If the world  were a logical place, men would be the ones who ride  horses sidesaddle.
********************
What is a "free" gift? Aren't all gifts free?
********************
They told me I was gullible and I believed them.
********************
Teach a child to be polite and courteous in the home and, when he grows up, he'll never be able to merge his car onto the freeway.
********************
Experience is the thing you have left when everything else is gone.
********************
One nice thing about egotists: they don't talk about other people.
********************
My weight is perfect for my height--which varies.
********************
I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not sure.
********************
How can there be self-help "groups"?
********************
If swimming is so good for your figure, how do you explain whales?
********************
Show me a man with both feet firmly on the ground, and I'll show you a man who can't get his pants off
********************
Is it me --or do buffalo wings taste like chicken?
********************
TODAY  IS THE OLDEST YOU'VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU'LL EVER BE, SO ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS.

Stocking Stuffer Idea # 1: PILLOWCASE

How about a pillowcase! You can stitch one up in 15 minutes!
These pillowcases come in Cotton, Flannel, adults and Kids fabrics!

2012 BOM NORTHERN STAR: Month 1 Review

Our quilt kit tester Sue's thoughts about the Northern Star BOM fabric, quilt and pattern:

About the fabric: The colors are so much richer then the photograph.  

About the pattern: Sue loves the patterns from Wing & a Prayer Designs!  The directions are soooo easy with lots of visual diagrams.   The blocks are very accurate because you trim them down to the correct size, and having exact size of blocks makes the quilt go together better!

About the first blocks: Even though 4 segments of these blocks are paper pieced (and Sue's not a paper-piecer) once she got into the rhythm of doing it that this way - it was easy.

See our first beautiful blocks:

Toys for Tots at PALS 2011

Here's another good reason to join a quilt guild in your area:
Tonight our quilt guild PALS (Patchers at the Lakeshore) had our annual Christmas Potluck.

The primary focus of our December meeting is always a toy drive for the US Marines  "Toys for Tots".  It was a huge success and lots of toys were donated!

Three Marines came to accept these toys and we were treated to a special time of hugs and thank yous!

Semper Fi Marines!

Free Stocking pattern

from Maywood Studios

Click here for pattern; Stocking Snowflakes

Quilt & Pattern Review: CARDINAL in the PINES

We finished our quilt  Cardinal in the Pines  from Wing and a Prayer Designs and we love it!

 Finished size: 67" x 78"

Fabric: is from Timeless Treasures Cardinal Season. We loved working the these rich colors and the fabric has a very nice hand to it. 

Pattern: This was the 4th quilt we've made using their patterns and it was easy to read with lots of pictures. It includes easy instructions on how to fussy cut the center cardinal.

There was one big change we made and that was making two half squares at a time instead of using the grid included in the pattern.

Purchase your kits here for $99.95 + shipping Cardinal in the Pines (kit includes pattern and all fabrics for top, borders and binding)

It's off to the quilter now.  We are going to have it quilted edge to edge.

5 Yard QUICKIES FREE PATTERNS

5 YARD QUICKIES
Free patterns to use with our 5 Yard Bundles
Bundles are $25 for one or $40 for two + shipping!

Be creative! You can make more/less blocks and change the size!

These patterns were written to create a quilt of optimum size ranging from a lap size to twin size quilt (52 - 70" X 72 - 86") using only 5 yards of fabric.

Skill level: Beginner

Copyright 2009 Abbi May’s Fabric Shop

No part of this pattern may be copied or
reproduced in any manner!