Colour of the Year for 2009

Pantone, the global authority on colour and provider of professional colour standards for the design industries, has named Mimosa as the colour of the year for 2009. This warm and engaging colour was chosen for its ability to deliver hope and reassurance during times of economic uncertainty.

Leatrice Eiserman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, says that Mimosa speaks to enlightenment, as it is a hue that sparks imagination and innovation. "The colour yellow exemplifies the warmth and nurturing quality of the sun, properties we as humans are naturally dran to for reassurance," she adds.

Check out the Pantone web site for more information on colour.

African Embroidery: The Rejected Wife

On January 15 and 16 I wrote about the African embroideries I had received from Ina le Roux who is working with a group of Venda women in South Africa. Ina has taught the women to embroider and now they can sell their work and have funds to support their families.

This design is called "The Rejected Wife" and was created by Sani.

I added a simple border of African-style fabrics to the embroidery to create this little wall hanging.

Each embroidery comes with the complete Venda folk tale and a picture and story of the embroiderer. I added a fabric pocket on the back to hold this information.

"The Rejected Wife" is the story of a woman who was sent away by her husband and his second wife because she had 5 sons. The husband knew the sons would marry and leave his farm and would not be of any use to him. The wife started her own farm with the help of her sons and soon had a more profitable farm than her husband. Although the husband tried to win her back again, the first wife just said "Phfutseke" , a Venda word which means "Get Lost!".

New Pattern #3: Strippy Table Set

I published 3 new patterns this week and they are now all available on my web site. Click here for more information.

I am having a special sale of these 3 new patterns: Buy 2 of the new patterns and you get the third one for free! After you place your order, just e-mail me and quote this code FPFEB09 to make sure you get your free pattern.

Strippy Table Set (Pattern #230 ) is another Jelly-Roll Friendly pattern. You can also use fat quarters or any of your scraps that can be cut into 2 1/2" strips. The table topper (30" x 30") and placemats (12" x 18") are quick and easy to make and would make great gift items for someone special.

I used Mark Lipinski's Califon fabric by Northcott to make this black and white set.

I used the Bistro fabric line from Moda to make this placemat. There are so many great kitchen prints in the quilt shops now and they are perfect for this table set.

New Pattern #2: Wonky Strips

I published 3 new patterns this week and they are now all available on my web site. Click here for more information.

I am having a special sale of these 3 new patterns: Buy 2 of the new patterns and you get the third one for free! After you place your order, just e-mail me and quote this code FPFEB09 to make sure you get your free pattern.

Wonky Strips (Pattern #229 ) is another Jelly-Roll Friendly pattern. You can also use fat quarters or any of your scraps that can be cut into 2 1/2" strips. This little quilt is quick and easy to make and would make a great gift for a special child if you use a variety of bright fabrics. Instructions for making an 18" pillow are also included in the pattern.

Wonky Strips Quilt 40" x 50" Pattern #229

Wonky Strips Pillow 18" x 18"

New Pattern #1: Wonky Squares

I published 3 new patterns this week and they are now all available on my web site. Click here for more information.

I am having a special sale of these 3 new patterns: Buy 2 of the new patterns and you get the third one for free! After you place your order, just e-mail me and quote this code FPFEB09 to make sure you get your free pattern.

Wonky Squares (#228) is a Jelly Roll - friendly pattern. (Jelly Rolls are those wonderful 2 1/2" x 40" strips of fabric that are distributed by several fabric companies.) You can also use fat quarters or any of your scraps that can be cut into 2 1/2" strips.

Instructions are given for 2 different versions of this design. The centre square in each block is perfect for fussy-cutting a special fabric or using a photo printed on fabric. I used the Kaleidoscope Kreator program to design the centre squares in this quilt.

The second version has an extra row of blocks to make a quilt that is 39" x 58" - a perfect size for a lap quilt or a child's bed. I used rick-rack to frame the outer borders. Have you noticed how cotton rick-rack is becoming popular again? It comes in many colours and widths and adds a new interest to our projects.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Our Fibre Friends group met yesterday and Dyane provided a wonderful Valentine lunch for us. We also exchanged fat quarters for the quilts that we will be making for each other. We have been doing this for 7 years now and every December we exchange the finished quilts.

Dyane found this picture frame to display her fabric Valentine post cards. What a great idea!

Superior School of Threadology: Graduation and Heading Home

Graduation, complete with caps and Pomp and Circumstance playing in the background, was held after lunch on Day 3. Here are Dr. Bob and Mother Superior presenting my friend Anita with her Doctor of Threadology Certificate.

One man and 59 women in the class!

Here are Janet and Anita at Las Vegas airport. Why did we think it would be such a good idea to take the midnight flight home?

Be sure to check out the Superior Threads Blog for even more pictures of our classes at the Seminar.

More from the School of Threadology: Warehouse Visit

After class on Day 2 we went to visit the Superior Threads warehouse. We were welcomed by the staff with this huge banner.

Shelves and shelves of thread! I wanted some of everything!

Bob Purcell, owner of the company is ringing up sales while holding his granddaughter, Avilyn. The baby visits the warehouse almost every day - no such thing as learning the business too early!

My friend Janet went rock hunting on the Superior property after shopping.

The company has just started construction on a new building which will house the School of Threadology next time. Be sure to check out their blog for more pictures from our Seminar.

More from the School of Threadology: Show and Tell

Show and Tell was held after dinner on Day 1. What a treat to see everyone's work!

My friend, Janet Rice-Bredin, showed her new Hibiscus quilt. This is a new pattern that Janet has just published.

Then we met Janett Rice, who showed her "Harry Potter Book of Quilts" project. Every page in this fabric book contains a quote from one of the Harry Potter books.

Karen Jurek from Calgary showed her prize winning car quilt. Karen is the co-ordinator for Quilt Canada 2010 which will be held in Calgary, Alberta.

More from the School of Threadology: Day 1

All the class members received this wonderful bag of Superior threads. There was a spool of almost every product made by the company. Then we got to play with the threads and learn how to use them correctly.



The classrooms were all very well supplied with the basic food group - chocolate!


60 hungry quilters descended on the Cracker Barrel Restaurant across the street from the hotel. Here we got to meet Margaret, who lives in Las Vegas about 2 hours from St. George. She was able to give us lots of interesting information about the area.


Cindy Needham was one of our instructors. Cindy specializes in creating whole cloth quilts from vintage linens. Her work is absolutely beautiful. Now I have even more projects in mind for my collection of linens!


Be sure to look at the creative machine stitching and use of embellishments.

Back to the Land of Ice and Snow

I have just returned from my Superior School of Threadology Seminar in St. George, Utah. It was so nice to have warm weather and no snow or ice for a few days! Have a look a some of the spectacular scenery we saw every day!

Graduation Day

We have just returned from our Graduation Ceremonies at the Superior School of Threadology. Everyone received a certificate granting us our PHD in Threadology. We even had appropriate graduation music throughout the event.

Thanks to Bob and Heather Purcell, owners of Superior Threads, and all their staff for an absolutely amazing 3 day seminar. I never knew there was so much to learn about thread!

Check out the Superior Threads Blog to see all the pictures from our last 3 days.

Show and Tell at the Superior School of Threadology

Jean Merle of Green Valley Arizona had her "Doorways" quilt.


Anita Zobens, one of the Superior Threads educators, showed her threadwork scarf.

Nancy Goldsworthy from Portland, Oregon showed her amazing pieced quilt.

Superior School of Threadology: Day 2

Yesterday we spent the day playing with the wonderful variety of threads manufactured by Superior Threads. What a great experience! I had no idea there were so many different threads out there. What was even more important, we learned how to adjust tension settings and choose the correct needles for all the different threads.

Today's class focused on using a new product called Texture Magic. By stitching on it, you can create instant texture on your fabric. Pictures coming soon!

Greetings from St. George, Utah

We have just arrived here in Utah for the Superior School of Threadology Seminar. The scenery is breath-taking! We had a 2 hour drive from Las Vegas to St. George through desert and mountains. Pictures coming soon!

We even had time this afternoon to visit the Scrap Apple Quilt Shop here. They are celebrating their 3rd anniversary and are having a big sale of everything in the shop. Needless to say, we found a few fabrics we just couldn't live without! Shirley, the shop owner, even drove us back to our hotel after we finished shopping so we wouldn't have to call a taxi. Now, that is service! You can check out Shirley's web site here to see some pictures of this wonderful shop.

Classes start tomorrow. Watch for a daily update of what we are learning!

The Superior School of Threadology

Next week I will be heading for Saint George, Utah, to attend the Superior School of Threadology sponsored by the Superior Thread Company. It will be so nice to get away from the snow, cold and ice for a few days!

Superior has just started a Blog, so be sure to check it out and learn more about this great company. Here is a picture of their head office in Utah.

Watch for more information and pictures from this exciting event on my Blog during the next few days.