Market Wrap Up

After a whirlwind in Houston, I have returned back to the shop.

Top 5 things I have seen:
1. Green
2. Birds
3. Fairies
4. More pre-cuts
5. Everything homemade

Green
From soothing sage to electric lime, all things green are hot!

Birds
Birds, birds and more birds - even some owls. Birds are still hot. Mostly "contemporary" representations of birds over true images.

Fairies
Alexander Henry was a bit ahead of the trend with some showing last market. Fairies were everywhere.

Pre-cuts
Some new language for you:
Turnover: 6 inch squares cut on the diagonal
Honey Buns: 1 1/2" strips cut width of fabric

More and more patterns using combinations of pre-cuts instead of only one cut.

Everything Homemade
I haven't been going to these things for too long, however there seems to be more of a focus on creating homemade everything. Easy home decorating ideas, more totes (if that is possible), aprons, and lots of little gifty items.

Lots of the newer designers are talking about ETSY. (A crafter's EBAY type online community. www.etsy.com)

I can't wait to see you tomorrow night for the big Post Market Review!

Julie

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Another busy day of shopping!

As I downloaded my pics today I realized I had "dim light setting" on my camera for most of the day. So we have only a few pictures to share today.

I started the day running into the one and only Mark Lipinski. (quilt media mogul, personality, a.k.a. the quilt god) . He blogspotted us the other day! HA! After a fun chat I rushed off to my appointment to buy his upcoming fabric line "krakow" from Northcott. As a note of clarification - his lecture the other day would not have made a truck driver blush, just my mother. :-) She would have thought it was entertaining nonetheless.




Lots of fun finds today at Northcott! Trick or Treat Street for Halloween 2009 (okay okay my weakness is Halloween).



The Sisterhood of Quilting which is a a fun Quiltie Lady find. Jody Haughton is the artist and has teamed up with Mattie from QuiltSmart for a great quilt!



Speaking of QuiltSmart, we have some great finds to share with you. Caren has been teaching the QS Lonestar for months now, however that is just the beginning. I have a sampling of products to share with you when I return. The apple core pattern and tumbling blocks are my favorite new discoveries.

I also love the fact that they have some great new product packaging and standalone instructions to match up with additional bolt yardage.




I finally had my appointment to order the "Fish Lips" from the Kaffe Collective at Westminster. The polka dot on the left is a different print from the collection.

New from Quilting Treasures - the new installment of Wizard of Oz is on it's way and I Love Lucy will be making it's way into the quilting world as well. Lucy's Chocolate Factory is absolutely spectacular! They have coordinated a new Lucy's Chocolate Factory chocolate line from Rocky Mountain Chocolates as well. I got a WHOLE bar to sample today. OMG - it was so yummy - no skimping on quality there. I have a great Lucy apron as one of our doorprizes on Friday.

I got to meet Keri Beyer from In the Beginning. I got some flair - real flair - I LOVE flair! She has a cool new "rocket scientist" line. I wish I lived in a dorm again! Girls can be Rocket Scientists - WE CAN!! WE CAN!!

I have a final day tomorrow. I still have more to share. If you are local make sure you sign up to come in on Friday night for our Post-Market Review.

Happy Quilting!

Julie

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Day One has come to a close.

So last night it seemed like I really didn't know anyone here. Starting the day at 8:15 a.m., breakfast in the hotel lobby became a who's who of the quilt world. Me & My Sister's invited me over to their table, but I had already finished my bowl of corn flakes, so I declined - maybe tomorrow. Off to the show...

I have some really awesome fabric reps... one of my favorites got me in early this morning - before start of the show with coffee (shh don't tell anyone) Everything is so nice and peaceful right before the doors officially open. There are sales meetings at some of the booths, other booths are still "roped off" as the vendors have not all yet arrived.

I got to survey a few booths without the crowd and then it was down to business. At the Free Spirit booth, some the designers are lurking about the booth. Unbeknownst to me, Jenean was standing behind me with other members of the design team while I viewed her debut line. I started petting the fabric and I heard some giddy giggling. I turned around, saw her nametag and said "are you...?" We briefly chatted and she graciously posed for a picture with me. This is the absolute best part of market. The designers being just like you and me. They design fabric like we experiment with quilts. Market for them is like show and tell for us... with the small difference that their livelihood depends on us liking (hence buying) their fabric.

Keeping a tight appointment schedule, I saw all the new fabric offerings at Kaufman, Hoffman, Free Spirit, Andover, Benartex, Alexander Henry today. I had just enough time to walk around a bit.

Me and Nicole (Designer for Alexander Henry)

New fabrics from Hoffman

Fun "Lights, Camera, Action" from Andover - will be just in time for those Oscar parties.

Kim Schaefer's new line

Brown Bear - a followup to Hungary Catapillar

Something a little different was the amount of "contemporary funky" panel type pieces. These are 45" pieces that are appropriate for duvet covers or "convenience" quilts.

I found this really fun company Sweetwater (we carry some of thier black and white fabrics). She has some really fun "Pottery Barny" (yes that is a new word) patterns. We will be incorporating the ornaments in our after Thanksgiving workshops. I just think they are so FUN!!!

I picked up some great goodies today as well. Authors with book signings, Kim Schaefer got me a tote bag for her new fabric line, Anna Maria Horner autographed a book for me and gave me some other goodies.

Anna Maria Horner signing her new book for us!

Linda from Craftapple chatted with us and her new purse the chemisette.

Kaari at the Moda booth (she is originally from Milwaukee and will be a future fabric designer)

Tonight is the night for party hopping. Moda always has a great spread and Kaufman has a sophisticated intimate soirée. At the Kaufman party I had a great time connecting with different shops and chatting up the corporate execs and fabric designers. I had a really great chat with Debra and Michael from the Artisan Batik line. They have heard about all you batik club ladies and were asking what else they can do to help our club along! I don't know if you know it, but you ladies were the impetus behind getting that trunk show out and about to different stores!

Lots more stories and pictures tomorrow!

Julie

What a day!?!?!

Wow! What a day!

The day before market is dedicated to education and promotion. We have 15-30 minute segments from many vendors.

Each of the time slots offers over 10 unique sessions so there is absolutely no way to take in everything... but I try.

First Highlight: Black & White & Red All Over

Cindy Hershy hosted a trend session discussing the continuation of Black and White with a splash of color. We have seen black/white/red, black/white/yellow, and black/white/pink for several seasons now. This classic combination is still strong with new fabric offerings. I love the use of red ric rac on this sample of charm party totes. Remember you can make "charm" patterns with fabric you cut yourself!

Second Highlight: Fresh Ideas from Fig Tree & Co.

Joanna dazzles again. Fig & Plum debuted at the store last week for Moda University. Fig Tree has published a great new series of "Fig Tree Threads" patterns that focus on quick projects. I am absolutely in love with her slipper and duffle bag patterns. Her upcoming fabric line Patisserie, will be shipped in all the latest Pre-cut shapes (Honey Buns and Turnovers). She has a great vision for using precuts in a sophisticated way.

Third Highlight: The Kaffe Collective - Kaffe, Liza, Brandon & Philip

Kaffe's debuts his new concept book "Country Garden Quilts" and welcomes Brandon into the Kaffe Collective. Brandon had been a Kaffe understudy and now debuts his first line. For the first time Westminster Fibers is marketing the Kaffe, Brandon and Philip lines together. While textures are very different, the look and feel is very fluid between the groups. My favorite new fabric is "Fish Lips" by Brandon Mably (I think I just like it because of the name and he made a fish lip face when he shared how he conceived of the design.)

Kaffe also took a moment in this extended session to discuss his quilt design process. He uses a single shape (a diamond in this case), 300+ cuts of this shape from various fabrics, and a twin size sage flannel sheet. Playing with fabric placement he focuses on the aesthetics of fabric placement before a single seam is sewn.

Fourth Highlight: Edyta Sitar - Spectacular Fusible Applique

I have seen Edyta before and I am awe struck EVERY time. She can make fusible web dance! In this session she discussed her upcoming book as well as her upcoming fabric lines. In addition to pattern designing, she designs batiks for Moda under the label Laundry Basket Quilts. She is the designer of the fabulous "Let it Snow" collection. Her upcoming "Dreaming in Color" is so yummy as well.

Fifth Highlight: Quilt-O-Grams

A twist on quilted postcards - this new book by C&T focuses on playing with surface embellishments to create personalized cards to share while learning a new technique and playing with different mediums.

Just announced C&T is bringing back Timtex!

Sixth Highlight: A Chat with Mark Lipinski (Creator of Quilter's Home Magazine)

Mark is such a radical... he told stories which would make a truck driver blush. Humor and business savvy makes Mark a great addition to the quilting world. Love him or hate him, he is turning the quilt world upside down. Less of a consumer session, this shopowner meeting focused on how we need to keep up with the changing complexion of the "average" quilter. This "ain't" your great-grandmother's quilt world anymore.

Seventh Highlight: Best of Show Product Review

An Oprah style presentation, a top trade magazine reviewed their top 30 picks for market. At the end of the session, we all left with a goodie bag!!! More to come from this session...

The day ends with what is called Sample Spree. This is where shop owners have the opportunity to buy "designer cuts" of fabric to make our samples before the fabric lines are shipped. We also can buy special packs of patterns from pattern vendors. Then there are a few sought after booths that actually sell samples with a group of patterns!

A true madhouse... it is rumored that fights have broken out in previous years. I waited in the hall for 70 minutes to experience this venue. Chatting with shopowners and designers, the wait seems hardly more than 5 minutes.

Tomorrow - the trade show floor opens and buying begins...

Signing off until tomorrow!

Julie

Fall Quilt Market in Houston

Hello fellow quilters...

Let the Quilt Market Adventures begin again!

I am getting ready to go to Sample Spree. I have lots to post from today's informative Schoolhouse sessions.

More in a few hours :-)

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Market has been spectacular. A little bit of history - Obama stayed in our hotel last night and Chelsey Clinton was in the hotel across the street. Quite interesting to be in the middle of the political hype while attending our tiny little quilt market in comparison.

It has been exhausting and exhilerating.

Check out all the goodies I am stuffing in my suitcase!

I will finish posting my finds on Monday.

Make sure to make your reservation to attend the post-Market wrap-up at the store on Wednesday evening, May 28 at 6:30. I will have new patterns and books to show you. Some fabrics to preview as well I will be able to answer all of your questions. They sent me home with some good bling - it will be worth your while to come!

Saturday, May 17, 2008

Day 2 on the trade show floor.

An early breakfast in the hotel, a merchandising session with Mark Dunn, President of Moda, before the show - we start the morning running at 9 a.m. at the Moda Booth. (I think I need more coffee)Sooo many pretty lines. I shop for the Moda U lines through November! :-) I was treated to the delightful ginger snaps we serve at our Moda U club at my appointment. However I must be careful to not start the sugar rush too early!




11 a.m. - time to run over to Timeless Treasures. Much to my surprise our favorite hot designers from Blue Underground have teamed with Timeless Tonga Batiks for a great quilt program. SOOO of course we had to order that program! Black, white and yellow are the latest hot twist on Black & White. Taxi (or as I like to call it "Yellow Pages") will debut early this fall... it is stunning!








At noon, I hit Benartex. For those of you who liked Baby Genius... Baby Genius Grows Up! The great educational brights have a sequel. Black and White are HOT this spring!





Not too many pictures this afternoon as I was on a speed mission...


Island Batik, Clothworks, Andover, Michael Miller.


As we are relaxing in our room tonight - much is going on in the city of Portland. Our hotel is hosting a local high school prom and the Presidential candidates are floating around town! All in all a very eventful night!



I must get a good nights rest.. only one more day. Tomorrow the focus shifts from fabric to pattern and books. I have already found a few really cool things. However I have a HUGE to do list... wish me luck!

Friday, May 16, 2008

WOW! I have done this a few times and this is still overwhelming. There is a record number of vendors this year and the convention center is huge. I got lost more than once - where is my GPS :-) The one really great thing is that while there are alot of people here, it is not chaotic like Rosemont. I am able to walk the aisles without fighting crowds to get in an out of booths. My appointment schedule is pretty hectic so I we have to view and pick pretty quickly.


I programmed my phone to keep me on task this weekend. I got snuck in before the show at 9:00 a.m. with my rep Margaret. She is too shy to have her picture taken. We had a whirlwind tour of Wilmington, Alexander Henry, Kaufman, and Free Spirit all before 10:30 a.m.! I planned to just walk the show until noon before I saw any rep, but time is too precious and I had to cave and make appointments right from the start.

I spoke with Kaye England about her newest quilt program. Check out this really cute suitcase for the full size quilt kit!


At the Robert Kaufman Fabric booth I had a special treat. I met Debra Lunn! The one from Schoolhouse yesterday. Margaret helped talked to her and she is going to help us with our August Batik Club. THIS IS SOOO AWESOME!!! She will send us more information on her design process and we should have a trunk show of at least a couple of her FABULOUS quilts! Who knows what goodies the company might send us for club!

Next up, Hoffmann! MORE yummy batiks. They cam out with a fabulous new product "Bali Pops" (rhymes with lollipops). 40 - 2 1/2 strips wrapped in cellophane. Due out this summer, the reps tell me to hop back on Sunday to see if there might be one or two I might be able to bring back to show you.

After a little bit to eat, back to the trade show floor. At the P&B booth, Jennifer shows me Alex Anderson's latest Redwork fabric line. I don't know how many of you remember Janine's fabulous Red - "Blue Willow" quilt with the FABULOUS red and white toile? WELL I found some red and white toille!!! WOOHOO!

A few more fabric manufacturers and a sneak peak at some pattern booths before the show closes.

I found these really cute aprons from Apron Lady Designs. I have a couple samples to bring home to show you! I got the Flirty Skirt Apron in Fresh Squeezed the great new Sandy Gervais line (check out her booth).

Now that my work is done for the day I am off to a couple cocktail parties. Unfortunately I do not have a full photo journal of the parties... what do they say... "what happens at Quilt Market STAYS at Quilt Market" ahahahahaha

I did run into our friend Lisa Swenson Ruble (right) and her colleagues. Lisa moved to Harris Publications from Fabric Trends Magazine. She is with Marilen Forneas and Elaine Sexton.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Schoolhouse

It’s a bright sunny day in Portland and Quiltie Ladies (and men) from all over the world have converged on the Portland Convention Center. The ballroom is a buzz as we wait for the opening session of our Schoolhouse Day.

Schoolhouse is a day where shop owners get a preview of all the new goodies from designers and manufacturers. A chance to hob-knob with the quilt elite while we elbow for chairs in each mini-session. A total of 226 classes are offered between 15 sessions. You can’t possibly hit them all in this day of stimulation overload.

First Up Me & My Sister Designs

We learned about their mini-charm tablet patterns. You can make mini table runners or crib quilts to make the pattern to size or you can expand the size by making multiples of the quilts.

Amanda is a great pattern to make out of holiday fabric to make a quick and easy decoration! They have been making patterns with Layer Cakes as well. We will visit them at their booth!

Ooh – I ran into Alex Anderson in the hall – she said “Good Morning” to me.

Next up Darlene Zimmerman fabric designer, author, and gadget maker.

I’ve met Darlene before so we caught up in the hall. She will be talking about her latest 30’s line from Kaufmann. We will be joining her Clothesline Club, so this will be exciting!!! I got a really fun sweet treat fabric goodie just for coming to her class!

Check out these awesome projects!

We got bumped out of Mark Lipinski’s class (he is the crazy Quilter’s Home magazine guy). SOOOO many shops here, there must have been about 100 of us that didn’t get in. He is such the rock star! We will see him tomorrow in his booth. He has a great new fabric collection with Northcott. I can’t wait to get it!

Instead I popped into Eleanor Burns’ Victory Quilts session. OHH what a treat! Eleanor was in classic style and had a whole multimedia spectacle put together to showcase her new book. She was in costume as Rosie the Riveter. A little history, a little song and dance… and 20 great blocks make for some awesome quilts.

After lunch, Erin McMorris introduced her new line with Free Spirit, Park Slope Inspirations. A textile designer for over 15 years, Erin is breaking out on her own with her second fabric line. I love her use of fabric. It is such a great way to get those non-sewers into quilting. She uses raw edge appliqué without fusible web to create soft “organic” designs with pillows, wall art and other home dec items.

Local favorite Kim Schaefer was featured in the Andover classroom. Andover Fabrics has one of the best classrooms, each attendee receives a great fabric goodie bag out of the class featured fabric designer. Her husband Gary did most of the talking while she showed off her latest fabrics and patterns. I just LOVE her snowmen. Her latest is Cottage Blooms (which we have in the store right now). Plus we got a preview of her winter and upcoming children’s line. I didn’t win the door prize of a fat quarter bundle… better luck next time.

We saw the coolest thing with the latest from Lunn Studios Artisan Batiks. Using simply the elements of the fabric, foundation piecing 6" diagonal strips of ONE fabric side by side, they created a quilt. No horizontal seams in this quilt. It is unbelievable! I can't wait to make one.

Last but not least we made sure we stopped by the Blue Underground Ladies session. Janine and Amy have great new designs to share with us! I can't wait to show you!!! The quilt shown is done in Dupioni Silks.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008


It’s Wednesday in Portland. Today is the day before festivities begin at the Lloyd Convention Center. Walking the streets downtown you run into quilters from all over the world. Everyone is so friendly! I am rooming with Rosemary from Bigsby’s and we have hit the famous Button Emporium. Vintage and new buttons, ribbons and trims. So many yummy things! I HAD to get some Halloween trims and buttons. I still have no clue what I will do with them but I had to pick them up!

Next we traveled to this decadent coffee and chocolate shop. We indulged in a Mexican Mocha to hold us over until dinner. Fresh cinnamon and nutmeg dancing with the chocolate caffeinated concoction hit the spot.