Some great ideas and more........

It's Friday night and it seems that Barb and I usually end up staying to sew at the store after closing, unless of course it is an official Friday night "Sit and Sew" then we mostly end up cooking, cleaning and cutting fabric......

So I was busy quilting the "Kitty" quilt I started before our trip to Pittsburgh and I turned around to find Barb making these little pillows..... Absolutely adorable but what are they????? They are "Kitty" pillows filled with catnip and a little fiberfill - the cats just love to bat them around. She made them with paw print fabric and used the wave rotary blade to finish off the edges. What a great idea!Our second great idea - Judith whipped up this little cloth book which we have in the store which tells the story of two kitties who go outside. It's a really cute little story and a great gift easily done in an afternoon.....completely washable and you can embellish the pages if you choose and do some additional quilting on it.......a really great gift for your favourite little boy or girl!

Of course I couldn't finish off the day without telling you all about the new fabric that came in.....luscious orientals!......and Nancy has displayed them quite nicely in a basket for you to see! These were absolutely irresistable so I had to pick them up!

We're happy to report that there's more where these came from and we should be seeing some new arrivals shortly.

In the meantime we have replenished our supply of Marti Michell templates and books, we have received our new monthly books from That Patchwork Place and we also have a new supply of rulers, rotary cutters and mats in all sizes which should be priced and out on the floor sometime this weekend!

Come on in and visit for awhile - the coffee's always on and we'll put the kettle on for tea if you prefer! Come in and say HI!

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann

10 days later........

I am really not sure how that happens! We got back from Pittsburgh on the 17th (very late Sunday night) and I turned around and it's the 28th of May! Somebody stole 10 days from me.....or it has taken me that long to catch up and recuperate! Chester is still sleeping it off at Barb's and George has taken off on his next adventure, this time to Paris.......(lucky Monkey!)

I meant to post the "parting shots" the day after we got back but best laid plans! The two pictures below are taken from the walkway above the "Quilt Market" floor on either side. There were literally hundreds of vendors there. Actually there were probably thousands. We saw a lot of stuff and Barb and I are just getting organized now to pick out the best of the best for you. We've already received some of our orders and we are beginning to price everything and get it out on the selling floor. We are looking forward to the next few months of orders coming in with all the new stuff......... We left Laurissa with a little project while we were gone and came back to find it done.....It's adorable and we are going to kit it! We just have to adjust the pattern to include cornerstones as they were not in the original, but it is perfect as a wallhanging or baby quilt!

We did come back with alot of great ideas and hopefully we will be bringing them to you shortly.....takes awhile to get organized (like 11 days)! I will also try to blog a little more often so that the news gets to you quickly......In the meantime,

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann

Jo-Ann opens her wallet....uh,oh!

The "boys" will soon need their own suitcases.....here they are getting ready to go out and donning their new hats!

Chester was not feeling 100% today so he decided to stay at the hotel and guard the "roost" (room) while George couldn't wait to head for the show.......

This picture is the interior of the Convention Centre, in between the parking garage and the actual convention floors. The sides are a waterfall which feed into steps at either side of a sidewalk running to the base of the building which is right on the river.

George, being the monkey that he is jumped onto the railing so that you could see the other side of the waterfall and the river.

Finally we got to the good stuff! I was blown away by this Amaryllis which is done with Copic pens and fusible ribbons as well as a few Swarovski crystals. Got all the goods to try this out....George likes it too (he's hanging on the bottom)!

Didn't take him long to find the baskets of chocolate and candies at all the booths......

Then he saw fabric - he literally pried the wallet from my hand to buy some of these Reproduction Prints........

We have to remember, he is owned by a quilter, he wanted to buy it all.......but when he saw the frogs he wouldn't get off until I placed the order.......

As we were walking the aisles George spotted some friends from Vancouver and had to get this photo op......

We got to another booth and I guess he was feeling hungry because out came the wallet again and this time it was fruit and veggies.......great stuff!

It was already six o'clock and we had to leave (one more day to go)....so we hopped in the car and George said he knew a great place for dinner - so he drove.....

This was one thirsty monkey - he drained my iced tea!

We had dinner at the Spaghetti Warehouse (they seem to just have Italian restaurants here!) Reminds me of the Spaghetti Factory in Toronto.

This is what the sky looked like when we came out of the restaurant.......very ominous!
Luckily we were only minutes away from the hotel - this picture is from the parking lot of our hotel - The Convention Centre.......

Look who followed us from Canada!

I wonder if he'll follow us home? We're off to the show again and then we will be on our way home.......until then!

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann and Barb

Just another day in Pittsburgh......

So, did we tell you our hotel is in the Strip District!?! We're not sure what that means but.......we have to follow the arrow to get to it.
Barb and I were up before the rooster crowed this morning to take a class with Lesley Riley on the uses of Lutradur. It's made by Pellon and you would best know it as the stuff they put on the bottom of your box spring or the underside of chair seats. Chester and George held up the wall while we did our projects.

It's neat stuff and if we can figure out something useful to do with it we'll consider getting some in the store. Certainly something to think about.

We spent the rest of the day checking out some great booths at the show and then went to a seminar with Charlotte Angotti.

She wasn't sure whether to have us locked up or just go with the flow as we got the boys comfortable on their chair to sit and listen to her lecture (pearls of wisdom).

Charlotte has a great sense of humour and if she ever wants to give up quilting (not likely) she would definitely make it in stand up comedy......we introduced her to Chester and George and she willingly posed with the boys and Barb.

By the time we got out of the Convention Centre we were all ready for dinner (8:30 P.M. - that would be the 8:30 Barb and I are familiar with - the P.M.). We decided to head for the OG again (Olive Garden). This time the boys were on their best behaviour and were allowed to come in. While we read the menu they drooled over the dessert offerings........

As soon as the salad arrived they jumped on the bowl.....

George wanted us to order another plate of the Stuffed Mushrooms......

Chester decided to stay on my side of the table to see if he could help me with my Steak Gorgonzola Fettucini......

.....and George has decided he loves Chicken - namely Stuffed Chicken Breast with Marsala Mushroom Sauce and Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes.......Chester is not impressed! George however is in heaven.......

Dessert was Lemon Cream Cake.......divine! The boys were rooting for one of those chocolate desserts but Barb and I got the final say......

Got back to the room around 10:30 P.M. and no sooner did we turn around but caught George raiding the cookie jar......

The T.V. went on, Barb got comfy on the couch and I lied down on the bed for a short nap and slept straight through until 6:30 A.M. - we are ready to go for another day!

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann & Barb

Back to school.........

First I would like to say - there is no place like home! I would have blogged last night if the internet worked faster than at a snails pace.....(at home it's like INSTANT!)


Thursday was School House at Quilt Market - this is when quilt store owners are bombarded with all the "NEW" products, ideas and marketing strategies of all the top Pattern, Notion, Book and Fabric companies. It is serious hard-sell time and it usually serves to excite and motivate store owners. Below Barb and I are sitting in on a session with Alex Anderson.

These sessions go on at 15 minute intervals all day. We managed to sit in on Debbie Caffrey and New Leaf Stitches and Martingale's Remembering Adelia Book session. By 2:00 P.M. we had been bombarded enough, Chester and George were getting restless and decided some much needed Q.S.V. (Quilt Store visiting) was needed.......so off to Allison Park, PA and The Quilt Company store......

Barb can't wait to get inside........

As is their M.O. - George and Chester jumped onto the cutting table to survey the terrain......George knowingly looks up at Chester - they know it's going to be awhile.

Barb's been caught red handed - there's stuff in the bag! What a great bag and there's fat quarters for Libby and a really neat cheater panel for Barb that Nancy's going to drool over!

My purchases will be mailed to the store......some really cool patterns by the owner - Karen Montgomery. I'll be seeing her either Friday or Saturday on the Quilt Market sales floor at her booth to check out her "new" patterns. Check them out at http://www.thequiltcompany.com/.

After a stop at Wal-Mart to get some munchies and a "throw-away" cell phone (Don't ever buy a TracPhone - they have no explanation as to why it takes 2 days - 48 hours - to be able to call Canada!!??!! Hmmmmm - could it be they can't get satellite access - never had this problem with any of the other pre-paid phone companies - I am not impressed!).....anyway - off we went to Olive Garden for dinner (the "boys" had to wait in the car because they were not behaving well!)

We rushed back to the Convention Centre to be in time for Sample Spree - we really should have taken a photo of the line up.....it was almost around the block.....we got in and it was a zoo! Suffice it to say that hundreds of women (quilters no less) are turned into viscious piranha! These women would eat their young - it is a feeding frenzy for fabric, patterns, notions, etc....We were lucky to escape with our lives and the wide pink ric- rac (there is a reason for this!)!

In the mayhem we found Eleanor Burns and Barb managed to get this photo of Eleanor and me......

Barb got the boa treatment and I took the picture..... Then I found Patsy Thompson, the woman who freed me from my fear of free motion! Her DVD's are my inspiration (we're bringing back a bunch of samples) DISCLAIMER - If Canada Customs is reading this blog - we are only kidding - there are no samples....... Patsy and I were both exhausted by this time but still managed to smile for the camera.......

The Sampler Spree experience was so exhausting for the "boys" they collapsed on the bed as soon as we got back to the room.....Chester opened up the Animal Crackers and they had their milk and cookies before bed.......

Friday morning 8:00 A.M. we have a date with Lesley Riley and Lutradur so we too are calling it an early night. Barb and I don't often see the 8:00 that occurs in the A.M. so we need to prepare for that early morning thing.....

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann & Barb

We're on our way......

After doing all the errands and packing up the car we buckled the "boys" in the back seat and set off on our adventure - Spring Market 2009.....look out Pittsburgh, PA.
Needless to say we stop at ALL quilt shops and our first stop was in St. Catherines, Ontario at Gone To Pieces. Nancy welcomed us all and we had a lovely chat......

The boys immediately jumped up onto the cutting board where they could survey all the gorgeous Moda and Hoffman fabrics first hand......George was lying down on the job while Chester crowed about all the great stuff in the store.....we saw some great Tea Cosy Patterns we'll be checking out when we get back. In the meantime you can check out their website at www.gonetopieces.ca.

Next stop Duty Free......the boys weren't impressed as Barb and I didn't buy much, not even snacks......and forgot to pick up coffee at Tim's......

Then in line to get over the border.....the green sign way up at the front says Welcome to New York....took us about 1/2 an hour to get across. Chester and George slept through the whole ordeal.

Woohoo another quilt store stop....Chester jumped into my purse and George hung onto the handle for dear life...they weren't gonna miss a trick!

The Quilt Farm in Boston, NY.....a little off the beaten track but well worth the drive.

It is on an old dairy farm and in the barn - 6,000 bolts of amazing fabrics of which, although tempting, I only let the boys pick one each......yeah right, they're mine!

......even though the temptation was there Barb was strong and walked out empty handed! The boys each got their own gift and Chester got a special gift......

Chester and George were very pleased when they ran into the whistling gorilla - he wolf whistles as you walk by him! What a hoot! Check out The Quilt Farm at www.bostonquiltfarm.com. ....and Chester is now sporting a Quilt Farm pin......

Using Google Maps we made our way back to I90 - on the long and winding back roads of Boston, NY. The scenery was amazing and the hills were fun but I had to stop for the one lane bridge to take this picture......

On the same corner where the bridge is was this really prettily painted house, the whole drive was like this and it was about 20 minutes back to the highway.....through Eden, NY. It was lovely but we really had to get a move on!

I'll bet you can't read the Welcome to Pennsylvania sign here because Barb pushed the OFF button by mistake and since we were moving there was no time for a retake - suffice it to say we got to Pennsylvania and we were starving.........

So, we stopped in Erie, PA at the Cracker Barrel (my favourite travel restaurant)....as you can see George was ready with the fork almost as soon as we sat down......

Chester and George switched sides of the table pretty quick when I ordered the Chicken Fried Chicken and Barb ordered the Meat Loaf - Chester wouldn't talk to me for the rest of the night.......

The wind was really whooping it up by the time we left the restaurant....we got coffee to go and got into the car. I opened the door to take this picture of the wind and it swept into the car dumping 1/2 a cup of coffee all over Barb....no pics, we were too busy laughing and cleaning it up (she cleaned, I laughed)..... seriously it was unintentional - her door was open too and the maps went flying out the door so she was busy chasing those for a few minutes too!

Finally we arrived at the hotel - we are literally steps away from the Convention Centre where the show is! George and Chester jumped on top of the luggage cart as soon as we put the suitcases on and up we went to the room!

The ROOM! Wow.......the front vestibule..........

..........the kitchen area!?! I honestly didn't know it had a kitchen area - it's great, fridge and microwave!

Chester got dibs on the sofa and George found himself a "tree" to climb......

The washroom is a dressing area with an enclosed toilet and jacuzzi tub.....did you hear that - jacuzzi! If only I didn't need a crane to be lifted out......maybe tomorrow!

......and finally the bed!

Barb and I are both looking forward to crawling into that great big king size bed and getting some much needed sleep so we will leave you now until tomorrow........

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann and Barb

Getting ready to go.......

You know we love to share the beautiful quilts that are made during Sit & Sew Monday's - this one is Rosalie's and it is an anniversary quilt for a friend. What a stunning gift.......

At Underground Railroad Club tonight we had a little Show and Share and Nancy showed off her Yo-Yo Table Runner from Kim Diehl's Simple Seasons book. It's almost finished - just a few more vines and leaves.

Chester and George are getting ready to go ...... George has his new sleeping bag and pillow which Barb made for him and Chester has his own quilt....

George has snuggled in for the night and Chester has gone to wait in the car for the long drive tomorrow......

We'll keep you posted on all our fun stops and starts and the trip too........

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann and Barb (Chester and George)

We've been busy.......

On Monday we got the cutest cat fabric in and Friday night I put together this little quilt top.....Mary added the two outside borders and Voila! I think we'll kit this - it's from the Out of the House fabric line from South Seas Imports and we've also made up the "soft book" that goes with it and tells the story.....

We got Bubblegum Basics in about 2 weeks ago and I have been very busy doing up the free quilt patterns. The first one uses the panel which is adorable and makes up into a good size lap quilt.........Mostly from the scraps of the lap quilt I made up the second one 1/4 the actual quilt size as a wallhanging and it is really nice.....just have to finish up the applique and I can quilt it. I am hand appliqueing so it may take a bit of time as I actually have to find the time to work on it but it should be done soon.......and for the first time I am using silk thread and it is an absolute dream to work with. Renske Helmuth swears by it and she certainly got me hooked! Borrowed a spool from Barb who also loves it and I haven't looked back!

We are now at our "countdown" stage and we have 3 days until we leave for Quilt Market in Pittsburgh....3 very busy days of course! Packing, classes, and everything that goes with that. We are taking a couple of freeloaders along with us and we'd like you to meet them as you will be seeing alot of them in our trip pics.....

First - meet George! George belongs to Elaine and he is already a seasoned world traveller with his own blog http://goergestravels.blogspot.com/. He's a little behind in his travel reports but trust me this guy has been all over the world but this is his first trip to Quilt Market. Barb and I plan on making him very comfortable.

Barb and I decided that George should have a travel buddy (not that we won't be his buddies but we thought he would like a friend to sit in the back seat with). Meet Chester Randolph Rooster III. Chester is the Cock A Doodle Quilts store mascot and has grown from a "baby chick" with Laurissa's nurturing to become a full "plumed" rooster......as you can see by those gorgeous tail feathers.....

This is Chester and George meeting for the first time....George seems a little in awe of Chester but after their first meeting they have settled down to become great friends......I think we are ALL going to have a great time! We will keep you posted.

In the meantime I have to go pack (trying to figure out where I can hide the Janome Gem so Barb won't see it - she said I'm not allowed to take my machine - Bah humbug!)....actually I have to do laundry first, like I said busy 3 days ahead.....

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann

Two places at once.......

This past Saturday and Sunday we were at the Brampton Quilt Show (still recovering) and I was also in the store Sunday because I had to cook lunch for our monthly "private" Sit & Sew.

We saw some awesome quilts at the show and Barb and I both wished we had taken more pictures but time was not on our side.....here's a few of what we managed to get pictures of - unfortunately we didn't get all of the names and info but if you were there and you have a program you will be able to find them.
Of late we are obsessed with table runners and table toppers so Barb found these and took some pics. They look amazing for a spring table.

This quilt was done by Linda Pierce (she was at our booth and mentioned she had a quilt in the show so I ran over to take a look). To say the very least, I was awe struck! This is her FIRST applique quilt! She also quilted it herself. It is just amazing and the details and embellishments are fabulous!

Naturally, I could not walk past this one - it is redwork and was staring me in the face the whole time we were at the show as it was facing our booth. Barb said, leave it to me to find a rooster!

This quilt has a history for me (it's not mine) but the label said it took 4 years. I can only say Congratulations!. I bought the "Block of the Month" at the Creative Sewing and Needlework Show in 2000 and I still haven't finished it - is that a record or what???? Maybe some day in between store samples, etc. I will get it done.......

No - we did not shrink this photo! This is a grandmother's garden in miniature and it is absolutely AWESOME! I believe it won 1st prize in the Challenge Quilts. Everything was right about this one, choice of fabric, embellishments, and amzing workmanship - KUDOS!

In the meantime I was back at the store.........

The girls showed up on time, 7 instead of the usual 4 and I was busy preparing their favourite lunch of Meatball Sandwiches and Salad. Chocolate Cake for dessert......I left shortly after lunch to head for the Brampton Quilt Show and help load up the car at the end of the day (Barb had help during the day from one of our favourite customers Libby who also spent some time shopping around).

Before I left we had Show and Share - these girls are so industrious! They just churn out quilts......one after the other. Here is one of Cathy's quilts with pillows (left top corner of quilt).

This one is Gail's and is made from the Lakehouse Hydrangea line. Hard to see but the border is pieced squares. It really is a beautiful quilt.

This one is a baby quilt from a "free" Thangles pattern for 6" Thangles. It really comes out nice. We actually had kitted this pattern for baby quilts. Gail picked her own fabrics and bought the Thangles. The group has made a couple of these great baby quilts. (In the background, on the design wall is a black and white that Christina is working on - can't wait to see that one finished...) Yes Elaine, those are still Libby's blocks on the design wall! It's a challenge to see how long they can stay there all alone.....will she do some more, will she finish that quilt!

Two years ago the "gang" did a Mystery Quilt Class at the store (I believe it was my first Mystery Quilt) and this is the result of Gail's Mystery Quilt......isn't it amazing! Trust me the picture does not do it justice.....

Last but not at all least is Cathy's "blue" quilt. I honestly cannot remember the name of the fabric line she used but it was a recent addition to our collections and it just came out beautiful! The border really finishes it off!

The month of April was so busy that I didn't even notice May sneak up! Three Quilt Shows and getting the newsletter out kept us pretty busy. I also finished the two quilt tops for Bubblegum Basics which are currently on our design wall. I will post some pics tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow - our Open House is tomorrow, Friday and Saturday and we certainly hope to see you all. We have a few surprises up our sleeves.... so don't miss it!

Happy Quilting!

Jo-Ann and all of my wonderful Chicks!