Jaybird Quilts

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Cascade Fabric Collection + A Giveaway!

Today is my stop on the Cascade fabric collection blog tour and I'm so excited to share this collection with you! My friend Jessica Levitt, the fabric designer, is beyond creative. She can make Pinterest jealous with her crafty talents and parties. So when she asked me to be a part of her blog tour, I had to say 'Yes!'.

Cascade comes in two well-named colorways, Pond and Glacier.

Jenn Nevitt of knit 'n lit made this soothing Chopsticks quilt in Cascade.

Chopsticks is always great for featuring full and charming prints.

Jenn also made a Seaside table runner featuring Cascade.

And she made a Rock Candy table topper in Cascade.

Jessica also has a great sewing and quilting book available, too:

Modern Mix: 16 Sewing Projects that Combine Designer Prints & Solid Fabrics, 7 Quilts + Pillows, Bags & More

Here are the other stops on the Cascade blog tour that you can check out this week:

Monday October 13th - Jessica Levitt - Juicy Bits / Windham Fabrics

Tuesday October 14th - Julie Herman - Jaybird Quilts / Jenn Nevitt -knit ’n lit

Wednesday October 15th - Amanda Kattner - What the Bobbin / Andy Knowlton - a bright corner

Thursday October 16th - Marci Debataz - Marci Girl Designs / Jennifer Auh Chon - Sunny in Cal

Friday October 17th - Angela Walters - Quilting is my Therapy / Rachel Gander - Imagine Gnats

Saturday October 18th - Elizabeth Timmons - and pins / Andrea Taddicken - knitty bitties

Sunday October 19th - Erin Erickson - Dog Under my Desk / Jessica Skultety - Quilty Habitt

Monday October 20th - Caroline Press - Trillium Design / Karin Jordan - Leigh Laurel Studios

And you can see more of Cascade here, too.
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Ready for the giveaway?
Windham Fabrics offering a fat quarter bundle of Cascade to one lucky Jaybird Quilts reader!

The Rules

1. Leave ONE comment to enter. Make sure your contact info is in your profile or that you leave it in the comment.

2. In your comment tell us about a project you're inspired to make with Cascade fabric.

3. Comment entries must be left on this blog, www.jaybirdquilts.com, to be valid. Comments sent via E-mail, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any other social media will not be counted.

4. Simple as that!!

~~You have till 9PM PST on Tuesday, October 21st to enter.~~

~~Winner will be selected by~~

~~True Random Number Generator.~~

~~Good luck!~~ The giveaway is now closed. A winner will be announced soon. Thanks so much to everyone who entered!

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Where you can find me at Fall 2014 Quilt Market - Booth 1357

The fall International Quilt Market is coming up in Houston, TX, and once again I'll be hosting a Jaybird Quilts booth! You can find me in Booth 1357 with all things Jaybird Quilts rulers + patterns.

Shop owners and buyers are welcome to stop by to personally experience my latest designs and product releases. There will be demos of the Jaybird Quilts family of rulers. You can check out samples of brand new and best selling patterns. We'll also share with you how you can add a block of month or mini of the month program to your shop.

October 25-27, 2014

George R. Brown Convention Center

Houston, Texas

*Trade show only. Not open to the general public.

Show Dates & Hours:

Saturday, October 25 — 9:30AM to 6:00PM

Sunday, October 26 — 9:30AM to 6:00PM

Monday, October 27 — 9:30AM to 4:00PM

Classes begin on Friday, October 24

Gravity - New Block of the Month pattern coming soon.

Join me at Sample Spree for great deals on select Jaybird Quilts pattern + ruler collections!

Jaybird Quilts

Table 136

October 24, 2014

George R. Brown Convention Center

Houston, Texas

8:00PM to 10:00PM

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I'll also be presenting at Schoolhouses + A Take & Teach Class!

Hex N More, Sidekick, Mini Hex N More, & the new Super Sidekick Ruler!

The Martingale Fun-Size Quilts Schoolhouse will be held Friday, October 24th, from 3:10-3:40pm in room 371F.

Come on down! See projects that are sure to start a fat-quarter frenzy in your shop. The price is right from start to finish on these fun projects from 17 popular designers. You’ll meet a few. Chocolate and fat quarters for all!

Shapes for your Shop with Jaybird Quilts Rulers, Friday, October 24th from 4:20-4:50pm in room 362C

Let Jaybird Quilts rulers shape up your shop. Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts shares how to use the Hex N' More, Mini Hex N' More AND Sidekick Rulers together to create a dynamic sewing sensation for your customers. Giveaways, including a Jaybird Quilts ruler, for all!

Join me for a Take & Teach class on Saturday, October 25, 8:00AM to 9:30AM.

318. Rock the Rulers: Precuts, Projects & Programs for Rewarding Returns

Play with Jaybird Quilts rulers and create a perfect in-store sample! Keep your customers engaged with precuts, patterns, programs and more! Giveaways, including a Jaybird Quilts ruler, for all! Click here to register.

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And I'll be at the Fun-Size Quilt book signing at the Martingale booth, #2113, on Saturday, October 25, from 3:30PM to 4:30PM.

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ALSO OF NOTE

Would you like to carry Jaybird Quilts patterns + rulers in your shop OR do you have them on offer already? Create your wholesale account, request to have your shop listed on my 'Where to Buy' page or request a Jaybird Quilts trunk show by contacting rachael@jaybirdquilts.com.

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See you soon in Houston!

Saturday, October 4, 2014

#ParkBenchQuilt Block 6 - Card Game

Early this year, my latest Block of the Month (BOM) design, Park Bench, hit stores, and I started a series of posts showing off the blocks you have been making of each design. Each of the blocks is named for favorite memories and moments in parks. Block 6 is Card Game. The half triangle pattern reminds me of cards flipping between friends during a game in the park.

I've been collecting pictures of blocks as quilters share them on Instagram. I'm loving how your blocks are coming together and the fabrics you choose to make your quilt unique.

Of all of the posts I've shared from Instagram, which finished quilt are you most looking forward to seeing? Which one has inspired you to start working on a Park Bench quilt? (Instagram user names are above the images in blue lettering.)

Post pictures of your blocks, top and finished quilt using #ParkBenchQuilt and you might find your work featured in a future blog post. (Add those #ParkBenchQuilt tags soon, there's only a few posts left!)

Do you have a favorite card game memory?
Share which Instagrammer has inspired your Park Bench quilt or a favorite card game moment in the comments!

Saturday, September 20, 2014

#ParkBenchQuilt Block 5 - Festival

Early this year, my latest Block of the Month (BOM) design, Park Bench, hit stores, and I've started a series of posts showing off the blocks you have been making of each design. Each of the blocks is named for favorite memories and moments in parks. Block 5 is Festival. There's a lot happening here and this one can get pretty busy, kind of like a festival!

I've been collecting pictures of blocks as quilters share them on Instagram. I'm loving how your blocks are coming together and the fabrics you choose to make your quilt unique.

Which block has been your favorite one to work on so far? Which one are you most looking forward to making?

Post pictures of your blocks, top and finished quilt using #ParkBenchQuilt and you might find your work featured in a future blog post.

Do you have a favorite festival memory?
Share a favorite Park Bench block so far or a favorite festival memory in the comments!

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Beyond Neutral Book Tour Stop + Giveaway!

When John Adams, aka Quilt Dad, asked me to be a part of his blog book tour for his new book, Beyond Neutral, I didn't hesitate for a moment. I instantly knew I absolutely wanted to be a part of it as soon as I saw the cover of the book. I know you should never "judge a book by it's cover," but I can't fight love at first sight when it comes to quilts. It's just not possible for me.

Initially, I had misread the title of the book and for a hot minute I thought it was titled, "Beyond Nature," and a few of the images inside kept me thinking that was the title until I took a second, longer look at the cover. And it's definitely titled Beyond Neutral.

Katmai quilt image courtesy of Martingale. Photographed by Brent Kane. The quilts are so beautifully presented in a coordinating natural environment, it's hard not to love all of them.

Cayucos quilt image courtesy of Martingale. Photographed by Brent Kane.

This book is full of stunning quilts that look incredibly dynamic, if not challenging, but John's instructions on how to use standard piecing methods, good design elements and out of the box fabric placement make all of these quilts far more approachable to the average quilter than you might think they are when you first look at them. He even makes room to show you how the quilting can really set a design apart and be the star, not just the pattern design or the fabric choices.

Pinnacles quilt image courtesy of Martingale. Photographed by Brent Kane. I am still totally head over heals for book cover quilt, Pacific Crest. It's my favorite quilt in the entire book, and there are some great winners in here.

Pacific Crest quilt image courtesy of Martingale. Photographed by Brent Kane.

And then I spotted the Triton Cove quilt and I found my favorite fabric combination that John put together.

Of course, out came my Tula Pink Neptune scraps.

I bugged John to find out what the greenish shot cotton was that he used in the Triton Cove quilt. It's Kaffe Fassett's Woven in Spruce. John is a master at mixing designers and fabric collections. I tend to stick with making my quilts from one fabric collection, but John really challenged my standard process here and it was a nice break from the norm for me.

I pressed my Neptune scraps to see what I had on hand to work with.

The sewing was quick. In no time I had a pile of HSTs (aka Half-Square Triangles) ready to go onto my design wall.

And up on my design wall they went.

This quilt design and fabric combination has the amazing ability to flow around the room when you look at it from different angles.

I was also super-flattered by John's shout out to me in the acknowledgements of his book. It's no small honor to find your name in print like that. It truly means the world to me, John.

And John really challenges you to reconsider quilt background fabrics other than whites, cremes and other neutrals. He demonstrates an incredible skill for fabric placement throughout the book. It's fun to simply page through it and daydream about your next quilt project.

Glimmerglass quilt image courtesy of Martingale. Photographed by Brent Kane.

---- And you can win your own Beyond Neutral eBook!

The Rules

1. Leave ONE comment to enter. Make sure your contact info is in your profile or that you leave it in the comment.

2. In your comment tell us which Beyond Neutral quilt you're inspired to make from the book.

3. Comment entries must be left on this blog, www.jaybirdquilts.com, to be valid. Comments sent via E-mail, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any other social media will not be counted.

4. Simple as that!!

You have till 9PM PST on Wednesday, September 24th to enter.

Winner will be selected by

True Random Number Generator.

Good luck!