September Light in Fabric Trends

The Fall 2011 issue of FabricTrends is now available!

Fabric Trends, Fall 2011

It’s full of quilt designs, weekend projects, designer interviews…and this:

September Light Quilt in FabricTrends magazine.

Jason designed this quilt using Lida Enche’s September Light collection, and Leah is currently sewing one up (the one you see here is made through the magic that is Photoshop). Leah’s version will be on display at In The Beginning’s booth at Quilt Market. If you plan to be at Market, please stop by and see it…it is going to be gorgeous.

And don’t forget to pick up a copy of FabricTrends magazine if you want to make one of these quilts for your very own!

~Wendy

Pretty Fabric Purses

Paula, our wonderful Wholesale Manager who keeps things running smoothly here at In The Beginning Fabrics, has been making some easy fabric purses in her spare time. Do you recognize this style of bag?

Autumn Gatherings Purse

It’s often called an “origami bag” and is usually seen as a smaller version, perfect for keeping jewelry or small treasures. Hooked on Needles has a good tutorial for making an origami bag using fat quarters. Paula wanted a bigger bag and instead of using two 18-inch squares, she used two 36-inch squares. The addition of straps makes a beautiful shoulder bag.

September Light Purse

Making these can obviously become a little addictive!

Botanica Purse

You can see how the choice of fabric really effects the “feel” of the purse. The fabrics Paula used are:

Autumn Gatherings, by Jessie Aller

September Light, by Lida Enche

Botanica, by Jason Yenter

When you’ve got the urge to sew, but don’t have a lot of time, this is the sort of project that can be tremendously satisfying. Not much cutting, simple sewing, and at the end, a beautiful (and useful!) bag. Do I even need to say what a great gift this would be?!

~Wendy

Jason Yenter at Pacific Fabrics

An Inside Look — Quilting Fabric A to Z

Jason is going to be appearing at several Pacific Fabrics locations over the next couple of weeks to talk about the entire process of fabric design and production. After his hour-long presentation, he’ll answer questions and, as an added bonus, you’ll get a 20% discount on your in-store In The Beginning fabric purchases that day.

Jason Yenter

This should be a really fun and informative event, and it’s a great opportunity for you to learn about fabric design from an industry expert!

A FEW of the Details:

• September 27, Everett store, with designer Julie Paschkis, 7:00 PM
• September 28, Bremerton store, with designer Lida Enche, 1:30 PM
• September 29, Bellevue store, with designer Lida Enche, 1:30 PM
• October 1, Northgate store, with designer Julie Paschkis, 1:30 PM

For ALL OF THE DETAILS:

Please visit Pacific Fabrics website, specifically this page.

I hope you’ll check it out!

~Wendy

Making Waves with September Light

A lot of you who used to shop at In The Beginning Fabrics retail store met Laurie Shifrin when she was the store manager. Others of you know her through the three batik books she has to her credit:  Batik Beauties, Batiks and Beyond, and Batik Gems. Or maybe you have taken a class from her. Laurie has always been a multi-talented multi-tasker! These days, she’s out on the road teaching a lot (she’ll soon be at sea, teaching on a ship), and busy designing her own line of patterns.

Here’s one of Laurie’s newest designs:

"Making Waves" pattern by Laurie Shifrin

When Laurie first made a set of her Making Waves tablerunner and placemats, she used Julie Paschkis’s Oceanica collection (as shown on the pattern cover above). Then she stopped by our offices one day and fell in love with the September Light collection by Lida Enche. A new Making Waves set was born:

"Making Waves" Placemats and Tablerunner by Laurie Shifrin

I think both sets are beautiful. I especially like how the placemats coordinate with each other without being identical. They’d look so pretty on my table!

~Wendy

Life On The Farm

Home To Roost is here!

Home To Roost Air Yardage

I’m so excited to see this fun fabric. One of my favorite memories of childhood is the year I lived on The Vanderhoof Farm outside of Woodlake, California. Since Dr. Vanderhoof was also the local veterinarian, as well as a rancher, the farm was a busy place with many different critters of various shapes and sizes. It remains a magical year and place in my mind. So imagine my delight when Heather DuPont, one of our new designers came up with Home To Roost- a fabric collection that depicts all the activity and fun that makes up life on the farm. I fit right in with this fabric…see…

Me...on the farm!

…that’s me on the farm with my favorite baby pig.  Whatever I do with this collection will have to involve the print with pigs, but my friend Becca is going to make “lamby jammies” out of the sheep print below and won’t that be so cozy!

sheeps in pink

What makes Home To Roost a great collection is the variety of things you can do with it.  The bright colorways blend easily with 40′s motifs and will spark up any kitchen table. The pastel colors are just a softer version. And the handout quilt (below) would be a great project for a budding quilter.

Home To Roost Quilt - white

With its big and easy pieces you get a big quilt without a lot of piecing.  So, take a closer look and let me know…what’s your favorite critter?

~Leah

Announcing the Winners!

Thank you to everyone who commented on our September Light Giveaway post! The response was tremendous, and I am so glad that I don’t have to pick the three winners myself. Instead, the winners were selected by the True Random Number Generator at random.org.

Each winner will receive a fat quarter bundle of September Light fabrics, designed by Lida Enche.

September Light Giveaway

And now…drumroll, please…the winners are:

• Betty Bland
• Gwen Olitsky
• Donna L. Taylor

I’ve emailed the winners so if you see your name here, please check your email and send me your mailing address. Prizes not claimed by September 30, 2011 will be forfeited. “Forfeited” in this context means “taken home by someone else.”

Congratulations to the winners and again, thank you to all who participated!

~Wendy

Autumn Gatherings: Free Pattern!

There’s a new free pattern on our website. Isn’t this excellent timing?! Just as leaves are starting to fall, and days are getting shorter, Jessie Aller’s Autumn Gatherings will be arriving in stores. This is a lovely collection, perfectly suited for the season.

Autumn Gatherings Pattern

The pattern has instructions for the quilt in three colorways (only two are shown here). I hope everyone is feeling inspired and getting some time to sew as summer winds down. I love this time of year. (As I write, it’s 80 degrees and sunny outside…late summer in Seattle is wonderful!)

~Wendy

P.S. Winners of the September Light Giveaway will be announced on Monday.

Three New Collections!

I’ve just finished putting our three newest collections on our website. Here’s a little preview of each one. First, Avalon:

Avalon by Jason Yenter

Avalon is part two of Jason’s “Legends” series of fabrics and books. (The first was Camelot.) While you’re checking out Avalon, take a look at Jason’s tonal collection Legendary Basics as well. These basic prints coordinate perfectly with Avalon…put them all together, and just think of the creative possibilities!

Next is Tussie Mussie, by Jennifer Heynen. Jennifer’s first collection was called “Happy,” and — really — she could just name all her collections that, because that’s what they are: fresh and whimsical and Happy!

Tussie Mussie by Jennifer Heynen

And finally, we have Musings, by Jason. The main print features quotes by prominent women. I pick a daily favorite depending on my mood, and today it’s “Housework can’t kill you, but why take a chance,” by Phyllis Diller.

Musings by Jason Yenter

So, I guess we know what I won’t be doing when I get home tonight!

~Wendy