Quilt Block of the Month Program

I am so excited to finally blogging about this. We are going to be running our first, of many we hope, Quilt Block of the Month Programs. It is called Starry Night, Sea of Tranquility by Swirly Girl Designs. The fabrics used are Michael Miller Krystals. Jeanne put the quilt top together and it is GORGEOUS! We have hung the quilt in the Quilt Shop, so stop in and see it for yourself.

Our program is going to be run rather uniquely. We will NOT be taking up any of your precious time by making you come in to sit and listen to a sales presentation monthly. Our program will be set up on an End-Cap in the Quilt Shop. Starting January 1st, block one will available to purchase for $9.99 white tag or $ 6.97 yellow tag. Then in February you can come in with your completed block from January, you will then be able to pick up February's block for only $3.97. Continue this process until you have all 12 blocks completed.

Something else I think is pretty important for us to mention is with the extra fabric left over from your monthly blocks you are able to use it to create the pinwheels for the quilt. You will need more of the Michael Miller Jet Black Fabric for the backgrounds. O.K. enough of the detail stuff. All I have left to say is Whoo Hoo!!!

Tea For Two Apron

I believe this is the cutest apron ever. Sandy in fabrics made this sample using Michael Miller fabric & the Two for Tea Apron pattern. The pattern includes the half apron as well as the full apron. I love the design of the apron & that it has pockets, making it one of my favorites.

Amy Butler is Here!

It has finally arrived! We have been working hard to get Amy Butler fabric for you. If you haven't heard of it, her new line Lotus is a collection of vintage fabrics. To learn more about Amy visit her website www.amybutlerdesign.com. We have carried her patterns for awhile and if you have been keeping up with recent blogs we are also getting her line of scrapbooking supplies as well (the possibilities!). I am already gearing up to make a duvet cover with the pink flowered pattern. I found a pattern in one of our new books, Simple Sewing with a French Twist by Celine Dupuy. It is perfect if you are a beginner sewer or are like me and know only the basics. It is a guide to tools, fabrics, how-to, as well as tons of modern "french inspired" patterns straight from Paris. Another cute fabric collection we just got in is Dick and Jane by Michael Miller, based on the popular Dick and Jane books. It is perfect for kids quilts, blankets, or even a funky pillow or tote for yourself! Okay I probably have you on "new stuff" overload so I am just going to have to recommend you check out the fabric department yourself because they are getting in so many fun things every week (if you get a chance check out our new trims!). Tiff

Spring Photo Board

Earlier I showed you a french inspired bulletin board but I said that there were so many other possibilities that I wanted to show you. I decided that this photo board was too cute to pass by! We started with a 16x20 canvas and covered it with batting and fabric using a staple gun on the back side of the canvas. For this board we used Michael Miller fabric. Then we created our grid pattern with a mixture of scrapbooking ribbon from American Crafts and basic craft ribbon. To secure the ribbon we also used a staple gun on the back frame of the canvas. Don't be afraid to layer patterns that coordinate with one another not just coordinating solid ribbon. To give added support to the ribbon as well as decoration we used Making Memories brads which were poked through the fabric, batting and canvas. You may need to use an X-acto knife to poke through all of the fibers together. We will be displaying the photo board shortly but make sure to ask our employees if you have any questions on how to put it together! Just to give you a heads up, some of my fellow employees will be joining us to blog about what is going on in their departments and what they are excited about. That way you don't have to hear from me all the time! I hope that you have a great weekend and I will be back Monday with some exciting news!! Tiff

National Craft Month Projects!

We are celebrating National Craft Month here at Crafts Direct the entire month of March. I just wanted to remind you that the deadline for entries for the first ever Crafting Contest is this Friday and also that our Free Craft Night is this Thursday from 6:30 to close. In honor of National Craft Month we are going to give you a new project idea every day for the rest of this month! Give us feed back and let us know if you like the projects and if you try them at home show us your pictures! Lately I have been a little obsessed with Adorn magazine. It is full of trendy new ideas for craft projects and my personal favorite, home decor projects. They had an entire section on "amping up your lamp". I had never realized how many different things that you could use to dress up a plain lampshade. In the samples that we did for the store we used fabric, trims, buttons, and ribbon. If you want to start fresh with a new lampshade instead on one you already have try out the self-adhesive lampshades that we have, it made putting fabric on my lampshade the easiest part of the process. The label on the shade is even a pattern for you to trace on your fabric. Otherwise you might want to use a hot glue gun, also works great just not as quick. We just got in another shipment of new fabric today from Michael Miller that would be perfect for home decor projects. You definitely don't have to be a seasoned crafter, it is as easy as gluing and tying knots. Have fun, hope to see some sassy shades soon!
Tiff