Zink's Fabric on Off the Wall Friday

 So, this week I was blessed enough to spend a couple of days in Amish country, Holmes County, Ohio.  Since it's only a couple hours away, it's become a favorite when we need a quick getaway.  Plus, summer is hanging on nicely with 2 weeks now of sunny weather in low 80's.  Anybody who's ever lived on a Great Lake knows what a blessing that is.  What does one do in Holmes County?  Well mostly shop,
browse, explore, chat.  It's quiet and fun.  

The best part of it  - at least for me that is - is that there are several quilt shops in the area.  Now, I do take pity on my poor husband and don't drag him to all of them.  This trip I just asked to shop at Zink's Fabric

Outlet.  The thing about Zink's is that you're never quite sure what you are going to find there.  In the past, I haven't had much luck with finding quality quilt cotton but have found some AMAZING garment fabric that had great potential in art quilts.  Plus, they have decorator fabric, trims, notions, some thread and a big bin of discount patterns.  If it relates to sewing, you'll find it there.

This trip though there was a TON of quilt fabric.  They definitely have added more.  Plus, I saw some lines that I'm not seeing so much in the quilt shops like Benartrex and P&B and Marcus Brothers.  All bolts were $5-$8 a yard.  There was something for everyone's taste, but I was looking for the different.  With my fabric collection full of nice basics, I was on the hunt of interesting patterns. And I wasn't disappointed.  Here is what I found:

Cool huh?!  I have a rule that I can't buy fabric without buying a stripe, yellow, red, dark, light  - I did come home with a little of all of those...buttttt.... these patterns were what my stash has been craving.  I've been itchin' to do some improve piecing and a good pattern will make a world of difference in adding interest. Besides these, I brought home this huge bag of decorator fabric scraps for $5.  I have a collection going and I thought I would add these to it - plus it seems to be you should be able to cut them up to hook rugs too.  

One last thing...for all you panel sewers....Zinks has the largest collection of Panels I've ever seen.  I mean like hundreds large.  I'm not one for panels but seeing them all hung out like that and so many - well let's just say it got me thinking.  I saw this one Christmas panel with a 60's flair that caught my eye.  It reminded me that I've been wanting to make a big Advent Calendar wall hanging ... something a bit different than the normal Manger based ones.  Since the panel also had a matching set of blocks panels I thought it would be perfect.   I have a good idea of what I'm going to do with it but I'll keep it under wraps until I start it.

So What is Your favorite Get-Away Fabric Shop?  Do Share...I'm always looking for suggestions.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Mission: Pack 4 Class on Off the Wall Friday

Okay, show of hands, who out there gives a small groan when you get the supply list for a big quilting class?  25 years later and many, many 5-day quilting classes and I still get intiminadated when I first read the list.  You think to yourself, "Self!  Does she really want us to bring all this stuff?  Are we really going to use all of it? And how much fabric is actually enough?"  I mean nobody wants to get to class and think, "Gosh I wish I had  "insert the most perfect fabric here" with me."  But also you don't want to be THAT gal who brings her whole stash.

Now in all honesty, Veronica Hofman-Ortega, did a very good job with her supply list for my upcoming class in Improv Piecing.  Here is our mission ... if we chose to complete it...

Fabric

• Choose solids, textured and tonal blenders (fabrics that read as solid), hand-dyed fabrics (only if you have hand-dyed).

• Bring a good variety of fabrics in light, medium, and dark values. 

•  a minimum of a 1/2 yard piece of each fabric (cut selvedge to selvedge from the bolt).
• Try to have colors in values of at least a 5-step range from light to dark: lights, light mediums, mediums, dark mediums, darks.

• bring more yardage (2-4 yards) of fabrics you’ll use as a dominant color or background.

• 3-4 total yards of “zinger” fabrics: brights, saturated or neon-like colors (neon yellow, lime, turquoise, bright  red, bright orange, pink, etc.). Stripes, plaids, checks, and geometrics can be considered zingers and will add interest. Some of these zinger fabrics can be fat quarters or large scraps.

• 1-2 yards each of white, black, cool neutrals (greys) and warm neutrals (cream, beige, taupe)

• Optional, if time permits and you want to experiment: a larger scale print, orphan quilt blocks, or a UFO (unfinished project) you’re willing to cut up.

 Now when I first read the requirements, all I saw was the "a minimum of a 1/2 yard piece of each fabric (cut selvedge to selvedge from the bolt" part and thought  - Oh! Oh! - I mean I hardly EVER have half yard cuts.  I mean they might have been a half yard cut at one time but who knows if they are now.  Then I thought - well the class is Improv Piecing so if I really need a bigger cut I can always just sew a few quick seams and I'll have a bigger cut.  Right? 

Then after 2 weeks - yes 14 days  - hemmming and hawwwing  - I still couldn't make up my mind for a palette.  I originally was just going to pick an abstract quilt or painting I like and pull the colors from that or even go to my pinterest color board and pull from that.  But nope...couldn't make up mind.  The fabric supply list seems to imply that I will know what dominant color will be - sigh - it's like they haven't met me, ya know?  Sooooo I pulled all the colors!

Pulling from my stash by Hue and Value .... this is what I got

Let me just say that putting fabrics into 5 step value piles is harder than it looks when value is relative as well as color!  One thing I notices is that I own a LOT of Jennifer Sampou's gradated fabrics so I do have half yards that have like 3 values in them.  Anyways - I did my best!  Next was the neutrals so I added a full range of lights  - greys - blacks.  With that accomplished, I dove back into my stash and pulled any cool fabric I thought was interesting.  That way I won't get to class and regret leaving my most interesting fabrics home.

Now how to get it all to class.  I have two containers (I actually have 3 but that is truly an obnoxious amount of fabric!) I bought years ago just for that task...they fit nicely into the car and under your table.  And this is what I ended up with!

After getting it all done, ya know what I thought?  OMGoodness this is going to be a pain to get back into the right bins when I get home!  (PS...now that I'm looking at the picture - I have a lot of dark navy - that would make a nice dominant or background fabric! Gotta pull some more - 'cause ya know I got more)

I'll pack the rest of my supplies and I'll give my stash one good look through - that fabric goes into a smaller tub labeled .. "Just in Case".  Also, I like the idea of bringing UFO that I'm willing to cut up.  That sounds theraputic in the very least!

So How Do You Pack for Class?

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Stash Make Over Continues on Off the Wall Friday

 Why is it that an organizational project always looks worse before it gets better?  I knew this would be a big job but WoW it's a really big job.  I had no idea how much stuff I had stashed in that room over the years. I am taking it seriously though and as promised I'm documenting as I go.  I decided that I'm going to have three piles....fabric that is organized by color.....fabric that is organized by collection .... fabric that is going to be donated to the sewing programs at the Erie City Mission. The nice thing about sewing for 30 years is that you now realize what fabric you will use and what you won't use!  I'm blessed to find it a good home since the last time I sold it off it was a ton of work!

The first thing was emptying out the dressing room on the third floor....

Then stage it all down my 2nd floor hallway until it can be sorted ...

Then little by little...box by box...bin by bin...start sorting, organizing and purging!

Yes that's other end of my bedroom

Sooner or later it's bound to be done right?  One thing I've learned so far... I definitely have enough fabric!  

That's what I've been up to this week...

What Have You Been Up to Creatively?

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

The Stash Straightening Begins on Off the Wall Friday

 This blog has been a lot of things over the years.  It's been a creative journal.  It's been a way to connect with other quilters.  It's been a way to give back to the quilting community who have shared so much free knowledge online.  Through it all, I've tried to stay transparent.  I mean it's so easy to go to big quilt shows or read magazines and say "WoW!  They are so talented.  I could never do that!"  What we don't see are all the trials and failures that led to those masterpieces.  So I thought here would be one place where you see it all ...the good, the bad, and the ugly.

In that light....

This is what my stash shelves have deteriorated to....

The Before

Yeah, I know terrible right?!  In my defense, the fabric I use the most is neatly organized in my studio.  This dressing/stash room is right off my new master bath and acted as a staging spot while Paul did the remodel.  He promised he would remodel this room too but first he had to re-paint my Victorian which was no small task. But finally, it's my turn!  The room is going to get new flooring, shelving, and a paint job. (notice the nasty LIME green carpeting from the '70s remodel!)  I think I'll even convince him that it needs decent lighting. (It sits in the eaves of the former attic)

I decided that I didn't want anything too fancy but I did want it to be practical.  One thing that I learned over the last 30 years, is that open shelving does not work for me.  I am incapable of keeping all the varying lengths of fabric organized in any semblance of order. (Here it is in 2009 with me having the same problem!)  Plus getting at just the right piece of fabric is always a chore. Every few years I would have to day HOURS folding and straightening 

So I'm going to repeat the idea that I hit upon for my studio.  I'm going to use dish busing tubs.  They are 20" by 15" by 5" so they are big enough to hold a bunch of fabric but not too big that you can't easily carry them around.  I bought them at a restaurant supply store for the cheapie price of $4.80 each shipped.  They are definitely sturdy enough for fabric.  What I really love about the bin idea is that you can easily pull it down from the shelf, try out the fabrics you need and neatly pop it back to its rightful place.  If you get more fabric, you can easily reorganize it. I've been using them for two years in my studio and my fabric is always neat.   I figure that 24  28 of them will do the trick. (It's hard to believe that 12 years ago I sold off a quarter of my stash!)  

Getting the bins unboxed and taking a hard look at the stash shelves really was a wake-up call on how big a job this will be! The whole thing is compounded by the fact that the house is 3 stories so it will be a lot of up and down.  Not to mention that I have boxes of fabric throughout the room that I intend to organize into tubs.  I did recruit my friend Lisa to come over and help 'cause, ya know, why have friends if you can't put them to work?!

I keep reminding myself how much better I felt once  I got my studio into order and that was a bigger job than this one.  I promise to show you the after pictures!  

How do you store your fabric?  Has it been a struggle?

So What Have You Been Up to Creatively?

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Digital Printed Fabric on Off the Wall Friday

 

 So it's gettin' to be that time of year when my family asks me to fill in my Giftster list on what I want for Christmas.  This year it's harder than most since I really don't need anything.  I started looking through my studio and noticed how much digital fabric I bought this year.  Something about the vibrant colors and the funky abstract designs really appealed to me.  In the last 5 years, I haven't bought  much commercial fabric since #1 It's so Godawful expensive and #2 that midcentury "modern" design is not my jam!  Now that digital printed fabrics are becoming more main mainstream, it's captured my interest and my fabric budget!

When digital printed fabric was first introduced to the average quilter, most balked at the higher price and odd designs.  She wasn't used to the idea that with digital fabric, basically you can print any image that can be put into a digital file.  I mean really, how do you work some of those designs into a traditional quilt?

Screen Printing

Traditionally, quilting fabric is screen printed in Japan and Korea.  Due to the screen printing process it
is  limited to about 2 dozen colors in a design.  The screens need to be cleaned and the process is NOT environmentally friendly.  The fabric produced is high quality and color fast, but due to the process, it's time consuming.  The industry norm is an 8 month turn-around from when a design is submitted till when it's delivered back here in the States.  That means that re-runs of a certain designs is not the norm.  So once your favorite design is gone it's gone. 

Digital printing is much more environmentally friendly.   The printing process is continually evolving so that the quality of the prints are photo realistic.  Because of the process, there is no need for a large run size of specific print.  Design amounts can be order as needed. The designs are also not limited the repeat of the screen process.  So if you want a very big design repeat you can have it!

Robert Kaufman Fabric...Effervescence

 

That said, the industry is still slowly investing in quality equipment to produce enough fabric to meet  the demand.  As this is happening prices on digital fabric have come down.  (I can attest to that.  I bought all of mine for under $9/yd).

Over the years, I've heard concerns from quilters about color fastness of their digital fabric.  I  think that all the fabric that I've bought in the last 3 years has held its color fine (but I haven't tested it in continual direct sunlight).  I might or might not prewash my quilt fabric but haven't had any big difference in the hand of the fabric.  What I have noticed is that I find the digital fabric dyes intense so they need to be carefully worked in with my traditional screen printed fabrics.  Their designs have a crisp strong look to them.

 

 

From what I've read, the digital printing of fabric is definitely where the industry is headed.  Michael Miller  Fabrics has already switched all their fabrics to digital.  Hoffman (gasp!) and Robert Kaufman both  have  invested in several collections.  Both companies are touting the environmental concerns, but it also makes better business sense.  With digital printing, a manufacturer has better control of the quantities needed to meet sales.  This eliminates overstock of prints that would end up being put on clearance.  

I found this whole foray into the world of fabric design interesting.  I have tried spoon flower with lack luster results.  Although I thought it was great that I could get any design I wanted, I thought the cost was too high for everyday quilting and the fabric quality not up to par.  But the Hoffman and RJR digital prints I bought this year were fabulous and I definitely can see myself buying more.  

So what are your thoughts on digital fabrics?   Let me know  your opinions and experiences!

 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Dyeing During the Dog Days of Summer

You seriously didn't think I could get through a post on dyeing without some puns on the word dyeing did you?  Anyways, it was a perfect day to dye on my old Victorian porch.   Well almost perfect, if you don't count the dueling lawnmowers from my two adjacent neighbors and my husband using his chainsaw to cut this year's wood.  I did manage to really have a pleasant time working up a batch of hand dyes. 

You see I treated myself to 5 yards of PFD at QBL this year and I was itchin' to get after it.  So I set up my make-shift dye station on the porch complete with me sitting on a bucket.   My porch is a super convienant place to dye - well if you ignore the mail carrier navigating through all the paraphanlia strewn all over.  He must have done it successfully though, 'cause there were bills in my box as always.

New Use for the trusty red Beer cup

I once again used the helpful methods put forth on Fabric Dyeing 101 with the addition of Linda Johansen's new book a Fabric Dyer's Dictionary.  Its super useful with its 900 recipes to get just the color you are looking for.

Still that wasn't my problem.  I tend to just sorta guess at what colors I need thinking over my stash.  It seems right now I have a lot of saturated pure colors so I need more murky muted colors to round it out.  Also I need some decent dark darks and light lights.   Leaving them sitting all night gave them a really cool molted effect that adds the needed texture in my work.  Next time, though I think I'll take them out and rotate them a bit.
So,dyeing is so much fun, I can see how people can get addicted.  I don't see that happening to me anytime soon though.  Working at a station which includes me sitting on a bucket and dyeing in beer cups doesn't sound like the making of the next Jane Dunnewold.  Right now though, I'm just having fun dyeing!

Stash Clean Out Complete

Yes - drum roll please - I did manage to complete cleaning my stash yesterday! I keep it up on the third floor of my aging Victorian house. We have a big dressing room that has two closets and walls of shelving. One side holds our clothes while the other holds all my fabric. Its dark and ventilated so its been the perfect spot to store it. Still it was always a mess since there was too much fabric there for the space. With the recent sell-off (which is still going on if anybody wants any - cheapie!), I've managed to really organize the fabric I really wanted to use. Here it is. I grouped the commercial fabrics together by color and put the top shelves with hand dyeds by color - sort of! Its hard to actually get that exactly right when the hand dyeds are sometimes equally one color and another. I do have two closets of little boxes. They are boxes of odds and ends like - tatting trims, left over blocks, vintage patterns, etc. etc. Still they are now labeled and easy to get at. I also found out that I don't need to buy any batting for a while with at least 4 queen size batts in reserve! I also have nice collections of William Morris fabrics, Rose and Hubble fairy fabrics, two boxes of Japanese fabrics, a box of Liberty of London AND more 30's reproduction fabrics than I ever wanted to look at. I only found 3 or 4 UFO's and a couple of tops needing quilting so I was happy with that!

One thing that this venture has shown is what hand dyeds colors I need to dye. I need the neutrals and the muddy colors. I have a lot of intense green and blues but no reds - like what's wrong with red that I never have it in hand dyeds? I also found a big box of solids from years ago that I'm going to try to over dye and see if I can come up with some nice muddy colors.

So I guess my fall cleaning is done and I can get back - happily - to the sewing hole. My family is very impressed with me - I'm just glad to get it all pretty and organized!




These are the "mid clean" pictures of the process - I meant to get before shots but I forgot~!

Stash Sell Off!

Okay, I finally made the decision. I am going to take half of my stash and sell it off - cheapie! cheapie! It was just cluttering up my shelves and taking away room from the fabric that I actually did want to use.

Now I own a lot of fabric - although I would not say an obscene amount but respectable for a long time quilter. I never was a quilter who bought fabric for a project. I would buy fabric because I had to have it and if I found a project that it would go into that was fine. I would always use my overtime money for it so it wasn't a big deal to my husband. Besides, I'm not like other women you know - I don't want expensive shoes or purses or a nice car or even a nice Bernina - I just liked to have a decent stash of fabric. Over the years its been a blessing too since I now only work when my daughter's in school and fabric is soooooooo expensive.

But lately I've found that its been more of a hindrance then a help. It seems like my stash was always in a mess and I couldn't find anything that I wanted. Plus, I needed to find a place for my hand dyed collection which is getting bigger. I also wanted to find the fabric in my stash that could be over dyed. So I started cleaning.

And clean I did - to the tune of over 500 yards - and counting! There is also a big bin of fabric sample cards I want to get rid of. I decided that I would start the sell off at a garage sale that I'm having. I just casually let some quilter friends know that I'm going to do a big stash sell off at $2/yard. I did manage to get rid of nearly 100 yards yesterday but still there is a ton more. I'm going to run the garage sale one more day because its been raining on and off both days - sigh!

Also I got serious today - I listed it on Craiglist, I contacted the heads of the quilt guilds I know or could find online and really just tried to reach anybody who might want quilt shop fabric cheap! I'll keep you updated. Plus I do a blog on my pretty - organized - remaining stash.

One quilter asked if it was hard to let go and the answer was a huge NO! I still have at least that much fabric in my stash and now I can actually get at it - plus its nice to bless another quilter with cheapie good fabric!