Happy Halloween!

Trick or Treat!
Happy Halloween from Emma Jane the Pig......
And Sammy the Cow......
Have a fun Halloween!

Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - The Pattern Basket

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! I'm spending my day protecting the laundry basket from danger. And let's be honest.....it's also really comfy to lay on all these nice, warm, clean clothes in this cozy basket. And since I'm in such a "basket-y" mood I've picked some of my favorite patterns by The Pattern Basket to show you. The first one is Frosted Squares.......
Something about that pattern makes me feel like I'm in a luscious, dreamy candy shop. And this one is the Sugar Twist Pattern.....
I love the way the pieces in the blocks look like they're wrapping around each other. And this is the Green Tea Pattern. It looks great in green but I also think it would be beautiful in blue and it would give it such a nautical feel.....
I'm gonna go back to my basket now and take my 20th nap of the day. See ya next week.

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Packing My Bags.....Again

Hey there......it's me.....Emma Jane......and I'm pouting today. Mommy and Daddy just went away to D.C. a few weeks ago. And they're going to Quilt Market in two weeks. But a few days ago Daddy found out he had to go on some work trip and stay in some fancy hotel out in Tucson next week. And he asked Mommy to go stay at the fancy hotel and spa with him. So they're going away AGAIN! And I'm getting sent off to Grandma's house AGAIN! So, I think I deserve a new bag so I can properly pack up all my toys. I think the Sun &Surf Tote by Patty Young will be perfect.....
And Patty Young also has a new handbag pattern called the Stella. If I had credit cards, a lipstick and a cell phone I'd definitely want to carry them in this cutie......
I'm gonna go stare at Mommy and make sad puppy faces at her as she happily packs her suitcase. Sigh.....

XOXO,
Emma Jane

P.S. All orders placed after Midnight (CST) on Sunday, October 17, 2010 will be shipped on Monday, October 25, 2010. Thanks for your patience.

Bright New Fat Quarter Bundles

I just have to say thanks again for all the fabulous responses to my Survey last month. I was so glad to hear that you love bright fabrics because I LOVE bright fabrics too! It inspired me to create a few new Fat Quarter Bundles from some of our most popular bright fabrics.

This one is the Rainbow 2 Fat Quarter Bundle.....
And yes, there was a Rainbow 1 Fat Quarter Bundle but it sold out super fast. It's just like a Crayola Crayon box of fabric, isn't it?

And this is the Farmer's Market 2 Fat Quarter Bundle.....
If you're a big fan of Sandi Henderson's fabrics you may notice that one of those fabrics is from her Meadowsweet Collection, not her Farmer's Market Collection. I just needed one more orangey-yellow fabric to get a good mix of colors. Don't you just love the fresh and juicy colors in this collection? Don't you wanna go on a picnic with a basket of fruit in a field of flowers right now.....or is it just me?

And I actually added this one a few weeks ago but it's bright and happy and semi-new so we'll include it in this post! It's the Santorini Mini Fat Quarter Bundle and it's full of luscious, Greek Isles, garden inspired colors.....
I can't wait to show you more new fabrics......but right now it's Friday evening.....and the dogs are staring at me.....I think they want dinner.....and there's a glass of wine, a sofa, a t.v. and a sewing project that are all calling my name.

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Autumn Green

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Autumn is finally here! Are you as excited as I am? I love everything about autumn - the chill in the air, the pumpkins, the apples and all the rich, warm fall colors. The one thing I don't like is when I'm forced to dress up for Halloween.....but that's an issue for another day. Anyway, I found these fabrics from the Farmer's Market Collection that are perfect for Autumn. This Autumn Dahlia fabric is so beautiful.....
And I love the rows of apples on this Spring Apple Dot fabric......
And Peach Playful Paisley would also be great in autumn projects.....
And I must apologize for being absent the last few weeks. First, Mommy and Daddy went on vacation to DC (they had a great time, by the way). Then the computer broke, the car broke and Daddy had to get some major dental work done - Ouch! It's been a busy coupla weeks. And let's face it.....I'm a dog....I don't have thumbs.....I can't use the computer without some help!

Anyway, I'm gonna go dip those apples in some caramel and nom, nom, nom away. Will they still keep the doctor away if they're covered in caramel? I dunno but I'm gonna find out!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

The Results Are In......

Thank you so much to everyone who participated in the Survey last month! I had so much fun reading your answers and this is really going to help me make the shop even better! Here are the results and I've included my answers to the questions too.

Questions #1 was "What is your favorite type of item to sew?"

-Quilts was by far the number 1 answer. No surprise there! The distant second and third were Totes/Purses and Baby Clothes/Items. And an even more distant 4th and 5th were clothes and home decor items.

-And when it comes to the type of quilt....well....pieced quilts won by a landslide with 87% of the vote. Applique got about 13%. Paper Piecing and Art Quilts got 1 vote each.

-As for me......I like to sew a little of everything. Pieced quilts, applique, clothes, purses and home decor.

Question #2 was "What is your favorite style of fabric?"

-Modern was a clear winner with 32% of the vote. Traditional came in second place with 22% of the vote. And Batiks came in third with 11% of the vote (I've been meaning to add those to the shop and it's good to know that you like them!) Rounding out the top five were Romantic with about 5% and Colorful with about 5%. A lot of you also said that it depends on the project or you don't have a favorite style.

-I'd have to say that Modern is my favorite style too. But I'm definitely also a sucker for anything sweet and feminine and romantic in pink and green.

Question #3 was "Do you have a favorite fabric or pattern designer?"

-Well....the answer was "yes" but there was no clear cut front runner. Everyone seemed to vote for a different designer. But some of the ones that got votes from a few of you were Moda (no surprise there), Amy Butler (again....no surprise), Riley Blake, Fig Tree Quilts, Kaffe Fassett, Heather Ross and Michael Miller.

-And wow.....I guess I don't have a favorite designer either. I love so many of them it's hard to choose a favorite!

Question #4 was "What are your favorite colors to use in sewing projects?"

-It was a 3 way tie for first place. The winners were brights, blues and greens. Red was a very close second place. I was very surprised to see purple in third place! Pink, earth tones, aqua/teal and orange are also popular.

-My personal favorite is pink and green (which only got 1% of the vote!) I also like brights and beachy colors and pastels.

Question #5 was "Do you like to sew for the holidays? Which holidays?"

-2/3 of you like to sew for the holidays. And Christmas was a clear cut winner with 55% of the holiday vote. Halloween came in second with about 21%. Rounding out the top five were Fall/Thanksgiving, Easter and Patriotic/4th of July.

-Yup - I LOVE to sew holiday items for any holiday!

Question #6 was "Do you prefer to buy kits or do you want to choose fabrics and patterns for yourself?"

-This is where I was shocked. Totally shocked. 71% of you prefer to choose your own fabrics, 20% said that you do both and 9% of you said that you like to buy kits. I thought that kits would be the overwhelming winner!

-Well.....before I had my own quilt shop I always wanted to buy kits! I'd occasionally substitute some fabrics that came in the kit.....but I loved the feeling of buying a new kit and having it all right there in one nice little package.

Question #7 was "Do you prefer quick and easy projects or projects that are more detailed and complicated?"

-No surprise here - 47% of you prefer quick and easy projects. 34% of you said you like to do both. And 19% prefer the more complicated, detailed and challenging projects.

-As for me.....I like to do both. Sometimes it's fun to have a challenge.....sometimes I just want to get something done and move on to the next project.

Question #8 was "Is there anything else you'd like to tell me?"

-Well gosh.....I just love you guys! So many of you posted nice little compliments there. I'm blushing.....Thanks! I'd also like to say Happy 50th Anniversary to Mary who mentioned that she celebrated that big milestone in July! And a special thank you to the five of you who mentioned Emma in your comments! And Sheila even said that she wants to see MORE of Emma on the blog! I think that's a fabulous idea!

And here's a random picture of Emma in case you don't know who she is. And because a blog post without pictures is really boring.....
Thanks again for participating in this! It was so fun to read your answers and learn more about what you like. I'm definitely going to start doing occasional surveys (maybe every 6 months) since this one turned out so great. I love to know what you're thinking!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

October 2010 Giveaway - Fruitcake Bundle

WE HAVE A WINNER!
The winner is Mia's Cottage who said "Wonderful! I hope I win!! Donna" Congratulation Donna! The next Giveaway will be posted in a day or two - I need some extra time to put together my awesome new Giveaway plan!

Happy October! Fall is officially here which means Christmas is right around the corner! So this month we're giving away a 12 piece Fruitcake Fat Quarter Bundle to get that holiday mood started.

Please leave a comment on the blog to be entered to win. The winner will be announced on this blog post on November 1, 2010. The last day to enter is October 31, 2010. Don't forget to check this blog post on November 1 to see if you're the big winner.

And if you're not on the e-mail Newsletter list please send me an e-mail with the word Newsletter in the subject or text and I'll sign you up. The Newsletter has all the good info on the Giveaway and sales and new products and other fun stuff!

Good Luck and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. You can read about last months Giveaway here.

Vacation Sale - Washington Here We Come!

We're off on another vacation! Well......it's a vacation for me. John has to work for most of the trip. And I'm not quite sure if John actually invited me to go along on this trip.....or if I just volunteered myself as a travel companion! I love D.C. so I just had to tag along. We live in a very small town so I really like the change of pace in a big city. And my favorite restaurant in the whole world is there so I'm also going for the food. Oh....It's called Founding Farmers and you have to try it if you're ever in the area. It's kind of hard to describe - everything is homemade and home-style but very gourmet at the same time. And the atmosphere is very casual and homey but very modern and cool at the same time. I'm drooling already.....

And we'll also be stopping by this place.....
John is a pilot so I'm sure we'll be spending a lot of time at the Air and Space Museum. And I can't wait to go to the United States Botanic Garden and feast my eyes on the seemingly endless array of flowers and plants....
And I'm also realllllly hoping for some cool weather while I'm there! It's still steamy and hot in Florida during the day so anything under 80 degrees will be sweater weather to me.

Anyway, I should get to the point of this post. The shop will be closed from noon on Friday, September 17 and we'll reopen on Monday, September 27. So, we're having a vacation sale! You'll still be able to place orders, but they won't ship until we're back. Just use the Discount Code word Washington on the 2nd page of checkout to receive 10% off of your entire order. And orders will ship on Monday, September 27 and Tuesday, September 28.

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - More Schnibbles!

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Miss Rosie's Quilt Company has done it again! Their new Schnibbles Patterns are cuter than ever......just like me! I love 'em because they're fairly quick and easy. And let's face it.....I'm pretty lazy and I don't want to have to work that hard. This is "Joy Luck" and it does have some small triangle pieces but I heard that's it still pretty easy.....
And this is "Domino". It's just a bunch of squares and rectangles arranged in a really cool pattern......
I also love patterns like this because they'll look great in any color or style of fabric. But I think I'm going to go with Nicey Jane for mine.....
I'm gonna go pick my lazy, cute self up off of the ground and get started. These quilts won't make themselves, ya know!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Another Soon To Be Unfinished Project

I'd like to introduce Vintage Trick or Treat by Crabapple Hill. But I'm also calling it my next unfinished project. I'm great about starting projects......but I'm not always so great at finishing them! Please tell me I'm not the only "Queen of Unfinished Projects" out there? I'm trying to improve. I really am! Anyway, I fell in love with this quilt at Houston Quilt Market last fall and I tried to resist its charms. But once the mornings started getting cooler.....and people started talking about pumpkins.....and PetSmart started putting out doggie Halloween costumes.....well, I just couldn't resist anymore. I love cute, vintage Halloween stuff and I just HAD to have this.
I absolutely LOVE gathering supplies for a project and I found the perfect fabrics for this quilt. I'm using the Spooktacular Orange Scroll for the inner and outer border. It matches the bright orange DMC floss colors perfectly!
And I'm using White Lotta Dots by Lakehouse for the pieced blocks in the corners.....
I'm also using the whites and blacks from a Spooktacular Jelly Roll. I'm going to cut them up into the tiny squares that are part of the checkerboard inner border and outer pieced blocks. I also added a few black fabrics from my stash to mix it up a little bit.
And I'm using White Swirls by Moda for the embroidery background. This fabric is actually a pure white on white. It looks kinda light grey on the computer screen. But I promise you, it's white!
And did you notice all of the bright, vibrant, juicy DMC floss colors used in this quilt? It's total eye candy!

I have about a 0% chance of getting this done in time for Halloween this year. But that's not gonna stop me! Fall is in the air and I must do something Autumn-y right now!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny