Orange Night!

So all you blog followers, we can safely establish that I am a crappy blogger!! I know this will come as a complete and utter shock to lots of you (especially those who know me well....) but I just had nothing to say. I know, I know.....shocking.

So Orange Night. First of all, as you know (or not so I'm going to tell you!) Jeanne and I have our fingers in a lot of pies! (I love pie......) We own and operate The Quilt Patch. We write books for Martingale and Co. We design and publish our own line of patterns under the Quilt Patch Pattern Co. label. We have a wholesale division for our pattern company. We create a new collection of quilts and patterns each spring and each fall. We do a TON of shows, both retail and wholesale. And we design fabric. Oh ya....and we try to maintain a normal life while doing all this.

Soooooo.....what's the real secret behind our juggling ability.....are you ready for this big secret??

OUR STAFF!!

Yep. That's it. That's our secret weapon. That's how we can accomplish as much as we do. And so while we pay like crap, (but we're a lot of fun!) we do try to make sure we throw in a few perks for them along the way! Cause well, we know that to keep them with us, they must be happy!!

Which brings me to Orange Night.

And I don't mean Orange, like the fruit. I mean......

Orange....like the fabric.....

Jeanne bought and scrounged and saved and stashed a HUGE amount of Orange fabrics during the spring show season! Enough to make 8 quilts!!! Thats 8 quilts x 15 fat quarters per quilt!!

AND.....she took the time to precut all this fabric for our staff!! (I want you to know that I ordered the pizza, and that was incredibly hard work!!!) 

So we picked a night and our staff brought their sewing machines in, we ordered pizza for dinner, drank orange drinks (the adult kind!) and had a sew in!

Jeanne, Edna (Jeanne's Mom!) Jo and Yvonne

Flo - teacher extrordinare!

Jo - our office manager and resident 'know what's going on' girl!

Yvonne - second in command to Jo!

Everyone was pretty darn thrilled! We opened our packages and got down to business! Most of us completed a quilt top that evening. Some of us... (me and Yvonne) just didn't make it all the way!

Young Jeri! We'll be sorry to see her head off the University!

Jeri's ironing

Colleen - she headed up the Outdoor Quilt Festival!!

Jeanne had saved up sooooo incredibly many oranges - everything from bright orange to cheddar to pale yellowy orange and everything in between! Everyone left with an orange but different and unique quilt top!

It was a great evening! A little thank you to our hard working staff! 

I wish I had a picture of the finished quilts - but the ones that did complete theirs, whipped them away to be long arm quilted! I guess they were scared we'd change our minds......

But this is the quilt we all made:

Oversized Hopscotch

But Orange!

So the next time you are in the store, or call the store, or pick up a beautifully packaged kit....take a moment to thank our staff for doing an amazing job...they would really appreciate that. And so would we, cause we know we couldn't keep doing what we do without them!!

Big Weekend!!

Our Crescent Park Quilt Festival has been growing with every year that passes, and this year is no exception!! We have been planning and getting ready for weeks! Our staff have been cutting kits and packing the goody bags for the surprise party class!

Jo getting Goody Bag stuff ready!

Goody Bags for the Surprise Party class!

Not sure what Yvonne is doing but it looks important!!

Jeri cutting kits

Jeanne's packing area!

Jeanne has been packing lots of great stuff for display over at the park on Sunday! We have new quilts and kits, which is always exciting!

Our newest!!

Little Hoot

Close up! So cute!

We have stacks and stacks of quilts just waiting to be hung in the park on Sunday! Thank you to everyone who brought quilts!! It wouldn't be a quilts show in the park without your quilts to display!!

Stacks of quilts ready to be hung!!

Thank you Nikki!

And lots of red and white quilts!!

Our Red and White section should look pretty darn impressive! Be sure to look for the Where's Waldo quilt that will be on display!! It's pretty fun!
So remember - Sunday, July 22, 2012 - 10am - 4pm - in beautiful downtown Moose Jaw, SK. come and see the quilts hung in Crescent Park, among the trees, shop the merchant mall. A wonderful day!
And for those of you who can't make it....no worries! I will take spectacular pics and post them here!

Deadlines!!

Holy crap!! This deadline didn't sneak up on us....it ran after us, dragged us down kicking and screaming!! I'm talking about book number 3. The manuscript is due into the Martingale offices Tuesday! We are scrambling here!

I'm not as much of a last minute person as Jeanne is, so I think I may be feeling the pressure just a bit more than her at the moment! Jeanne works best under pressure, and I fall completely apart! So, after she's picked me up off the floor the last few days, lived with my crankiness, and assured me numerous times we can do this, we are sailing into the final moments! Jeanne is now furiously editing my writings and illustrations. The projects are all done...well...ok...maybe not quite all.....
Our amazing staff has graciously stepped in and hand sewn many many bindings in the last few days so that we can meet this deadline. Thank you Flo and Yvonne!!

Wendy, who has long arm quilted a large portion of the quilts in this book, has graciously put our quilts ahead of her other customers in order for this deadline to be met! Thank you Wendy!

Now, while I can't show you the quilts in the book (you gotta wait!) I think I can give you a few hints!
First off....let me just say, that if you liked Tis the Season and you enjoyed Urban Country Quilts, then you will love this book!! I can't say if the name will remain the same, but it has been tentatively titled, A Bumper Crop of Quilts. It will have a fall flavour with the easy projects, warm earthy tones and chunky applique that you've come to recognize from us!

And surprise, surprise....flowers! And that beige, brown, red, green combo we love so much!!

And when we proposed this book, we said we wouldn't be putting in any pumpkins! Can you believe WE said that!! So it might just come as a surprise when we send everything to Martingale........

and there ARE pumpkins!
So watch for book number 3 coming out in the Spring of 2013! We promise.....it's a good one!

A little facelift!!

There used to be a time when Jeanne and I would come into work and decide the shop needed a facelift! We'd spend a day or 2 moving things around, re hanging quilts, changing displays, making new ones.....well, that was 10 years ago! Before we were doing all the shows we do, writing books, attending quilt market twice a year, designing fabric and wholesaling our patterns!!
Today, if we want something like that to happen - it has to be done when the shop is closed.
Hence a Sunday! Jeanne spent all day yesterday ripping apart, moving around and rearranging the back of our shop!

We have so much stock at this point, and more on it's way....and we can't knock out walls! Good thing Jeanne is a master of using our space to it's full potential! However.....while it's happening, it does look like a bomb has gone off!

But when she completed.....it look's so fresh and new back there! It was a huge surprise for our staff to wander into work and have their world turned upside down!

So now where was I when this huge transformation was taking place?? Well, I'm a pretty smart cookie....I wisely stayed in my office - did a little book work.....then I sewed on some book projects....then I went home! So the next time you are in the shop, and you think our shop looks amazing....stop and tell Jeanne that the Sunday she worked her butt off.....really paid off!

Ever wondered?

Jeanne and I recently returned from our very final show of the Spring season. Ok... a show we have to pack the cargo van and travel too!

Red Deer, Alberta - last travelled to show of the season!

And as we were doing the show, a few people kept popping there heads over the counter we have at out till table, asking, "what's back there?"

Counter top where we have our till / checkout

Sooooooo.....I took a few pics! So I can show all of you what we keep back there!! (I'm not sure if the world is ready for this!)

Water. Actually - we bring a case of water with us!
Coffee mugs for coffee...and other things.
Kleenex - For Jeanne!
And as always - extra pamphlets!

Black licorice - strictly Jeanne's - yuck!
Chocolate......totally mine!
Sesame snaps - remember those?
Tic Tacs and Mentos - to hide the coffee breath!
Banana and baby tomatoes!

And....cherries!! Yum!
A girl has to keep her strength up during these shows!

So there you have it folks.....what's usually hiding under our counter top! Sometimes you'll also find crackers and cheese, almonds, baby carrots or maybe snap peas.
We do try when at all possible to hit a grocery store before each show to stock up on snack items to keep us going when we can't leave our booth! So if you happen to be passing our booth and my eyes are downcast....I'm not tired....I'm assessing what I can eat next!