Sew Inspired "Snips & Pieces"

You all know that Sew Inspired is the place to go if your needs tend toward the quilting.  But, did you know that we are now expanding into clothing patterns and classes as well?  I know - pretty neat huh?  I've written before that we are now KwikSew dealers, and we've started up a garment sewing workshop to kick things off.

Karlie Lebatique, a Palmer/Pletsch Certified Sewing Instructor, is going to be our resident KwikSew expert.  She's going to run our workshops for us and we couldn't be happier.  Here's how it's going to work.

We have selected basic garment patterns for you to choose from: 2 skirt patterns, apron, and kids or adults lounge pants.  You choose one of the patterns and buy a "Sewing Pass" for $75.  This pass gives you access to 4 sewing classes.  Your first class will be one of Karlie's "kick off" classes.  This is where you will learn very basic garment sewing skills, such as taking measurements, reading the back of a pattern, and determing what size you are.  Once you've done the kick off event, you can attend any three open sewing sessions where you are free to work on your garments at your own pace.  Karlie will be there to assist you and will offer tips throught the sessions that can and will be used for almost any garment pattern. 

Once you finish your fourth sewing session, you should have the skills to tackle any basic garment pattern.  However, we know you'll simply fall in love with Karlie (I mean come on - she's wonderful - you'll see, it'll be hard to not fall in love!) and will want to come to even MORE sessions.  That's cool with us!  Sewing passes will continue to be $75 for four classes, but once you've done the kick off class, you don't need to repeat it, so you can simply pick four open sew sessions and again, work at your own speed on any beginner patterns.  I can see it now: skirts and pajama pants for the whole family!

Our kick off events will run every other month throughout the summer and fall, and open sewing sessions will run on Monday mornings, Wenesday evenings, and occasional Saturdays.  Spaces are filling up, so stop by or give us a call to reserve your spot!

Posted by sewinspired at 03:18 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Now, kids, you may not know this, but Auntie Blog Writer is a HUGE fan of Christmas.  And when I say a HUGE fan, I mean a HUGELY GINORMOUS fan.  So, I have to say that I am ridiculously excited about this whole Christmas in July thing.  Here's the scoop:

You may have noticed that we haven't put out our holiday fabric yet.  This is no mere oversight on our part.  We're going to keep everything together, then come the wee hours of July 17th, we are going to wrap all the holiday fabric and put it under our pretend Christmas tree (pretend because no real tree would be big enough to put all the fabric under).  No kidding - we really are going to wrap the fabric.  Then, the first customers in the shop will experience Christmas morning 5 months early when they unwrap all the fabric.

This will be your chance to see all the fabric collections together and in one place, with no missing pieces because your friend from the guild bought the last of the signature piece from that line.  We'll also be unveiling new holiday patterns and kits.  Plus, picking out fabric in July ensures you'll have plenty of time to finish your projects before Christmas.  Well, maybe "ensures" is too strong of a word, but at least it'll give you a good head start!

So mark your calendars ladies and come on by for some cookies, punch, and most importantly, Christmas fabric!

Posted by sewinspired at 02:27 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Yay for new block of the month clubs!  As many of you know, our Thangles Buck-A-Block program is ending this month.  So, we thought we'd follow it up with something similar, but a little different.  And thus the Starry Night block of the month program was born.

Here's the 411.  The quilts are made from Michael Miller's Krystal and Jet Black fabrics, a beautiful combination.  Each is 76 inches square, and is made up of 12 sampler blocks and 13 alternating star blocks.  The alternating blocks can be either pieced or appliqued.  We have two color ways to pick from - the calm sounding "Sea of Tranquilty" with its cool blues, greens, and purples, or "Super Nova" with its warm reds, yellows and oranges.  Sea has a black border, Super Nova a purple one.  Here, aren't they pretty?

We are taking sign ups now, and both color ways will be available the last week of June.  You'll purchase your Jet Black fabric up front, and then each month you'll come to the shop to pick up two fat quarters and a pattern that you'll use along with the black to make your blocks.  Keep your eyes open as we'll have finishing kits availalbe for the alternating blocks and borders a little further into the future.  Lastly, even though these quilts aren't specifically designed for Thangles, they are made up almost entirely of half square triangles, so you can certainly use Thangles if you so desire.  You can also use Triangles on a Roll or any of your favorite HST techniques.

Can't wait to have to come in and join us in our Starry Night! 

Posted by sewinspired at 02:01 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Don't know if you remember, but I wrote about the coming of the new Electric Quilt software a few weeks ago.  Well, it's now here Kats and Kittens!  If you didn't pre-order your copy, it's okay, as we have the software in stock in the shop.

And, of course, now that you own (or soon will) this super-cool software, don't you want to learn how to use it?  I'm sure you do.  Whether you're an EQ newbie or a hardened veteran, we have the class for you.

Sandy, our resident Gadget / Technology girl is set up downstairs to start an army of EQ users!  We have a big screen and a projector so you don't even need to bring a laptop to class to follow along, although that is certainly an encouraged option.  Here's the details for the classes:

• Starts in July
• Day and Evening classes
• Meets: 2nd Wednesday evening of the month from 6-8pm OR 2nd Friday of the month from 10 - Noon.  (July's class is Friday the 16th)
• Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced users are welcome!
  

Posted by sewinspired at 06:52 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Hold onto your hats you krazy kids, cause things are getting wild here at Sew Inspired: We've become a Kwik Sew dealer!  Kwik Sew is a line of clothing and accessory patterns that are designed to go together quickly but still look fantastic.  We've got a good selection of the patterns at the shop already - you should totally come by and take a look!

Here's the deal: we picked our favorite patterns and have them in stock in the shop.  However, we know that our favorites may not be your favorites, so we also have a HUGE catalog that you can browse through.  If you see something you like, we'll order it up quick as a blink and you'll be sewing before you know it!  We're also in the process of stocking up on the "sewist" notions you'll need for the patterns: elastic, zippers, etc. 

The patterns themselves are wonderful: the instructions are well written, clear, and best of all (in my opinion), the patterns are printed on real paper - none of that yucky tan tissue paper of days gone by!  You can be sure I'll be writing more about this whole adventure into KwikSew in the near future, but if you're super anxious, you can check out the website here, or stop by the shop ASAP!

Posted by sewinspired at 07:27 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)