Online End of the Year BlowOut Event

 My shop is participating in FabShop's End of the Year Online BlowOut Event.

The sale doesn't officially begin until the 26th, but all of the items are already up on the website and ready to go so you can shop now if you want.

My physical shop will be closed December 25, 2022 - January 2, 2023 so orders won't ship until January 3, 2023, but you should shop early to be sure that you have the best selection. Click to following link to go directly to my clearance section: BlowOut Event Clearance Section

Most of our clearance section is older, under-appreciated fabrics listed at $9 per yard but there are also some canvas fabrics, books, patterns, notions, and quilt kits too. The discounts range from 30% to 75% off regular price.

Do you like Mystery Boxes?

 There are mystery boxes and subscription boxes available from all kinds of shops and Alamosa Quilt Company is jumping on the bandwagon in 2023. Our first mystery box is ready for pre-order purchase. It will not be available for pick-up and shipping until January 15, 2023, but if you want one you need to buy it now.

To purchase one you can click this link, Mystery Box, and purchase through our website, call the shop at (719) 937-2555 to purchase over the phone, or stop into the shop to purchase in-person. Remember though, no one gets their box until January 15th to make sure it's a mystery for as long as possible.

Mystery Box for January 2023 from Alamosa Quilt Company

What is a mystery box? Well ... it's a mystery! But seriously, while the contents will remain a mystery until you open your box I can tell you a little bit about our boxes. Our mystery boxes will all contain a pattern and fabric to make it (a kit). There will also be other goodies or notions too. The price of our first box will be $49.99 and I will try very hard to keep it at that price all year. You can collect them all or pick and choose. Most of the time all of the boxes will be exactly the same, but if I know you and know your fabric and color preferences, I just might do some custom boxes too.

This first box contains 2 3/4 yards of fabric to make the included pattern. You are getting all of the fabric required for the project - all the fabric for piecing the top, the binding fabric and the backing fabric. It also includes 3 to 4 notions and other fun stuff.

If you want to sign up and just have me charge your card on the 15th of every month I can do that, but you will need to come in, email me or call me so I can set that up. Please do not send me your credit card info in an email though! I will call you when I am ready to add your card information.

Charity Finish

 I did a big clean out of my office at my shop last week. I threw out a bunch of junk and found a few treasures.

I found a one yard piece of convenience fabric (cheater cloth). I also found a scrap of batting that was the perfect size, left over backing fabric from a shop sample that was the perfect size and leftover binding fabric from my binding leftovers stash at home. So this project cost me nothing!

Not sure if I will just donate this to my local guild for them to do whatever they want with it or if I donate it elsewhere.

Eclipse Quilt :: A Finish

 My Eclipse shop sample is all done. 

I used all Australian Aboriginal Fabrics for this. I love these 5 yard patterns! They are all so well written and easy to follow. 

The details

Finished size: 58" by 70"

Pattern: Eclipse

Fabrics used: Kangaroo Path Blue, Plum Seeds Orange, Bush Spinifex Green, Bambilla, Untitled Neutral

Buying Fabric for an Entire Store

 Have you ever wondered how a shop owner buys fabric for her shop? It's a question I get asked often so I made a little video to give you an overview of the process and how I do it.

Buying fabric, notions, books, patterns and all the stuff I have in my shop for customers to buy is a big job. I hope the video gives you an idea of what it is like to buy fabric for a shop. If you would like to check out my shop click the following link: Alamosa Quilt Company

Sew Along Update (Photo Heavy)

 I hosted my very first Sew Along through my shop the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving (November 25 & 26, 2022). We made Potato Chip blocks. I thought I would share the clues here with you in case you want to make some too. It won't be a mystery like it was for my participants, but it's still fun.

To get started you need to cut a bunch of 2" by 3.5" pieces from scraps. Don't worry about color or value. If you can get at least one 2" by 3.5" piece from the scrap use it! You will need (32) 2" by 3.5" pieces per block. The finished block size is 12" by 12".

Press the seam to one side. I pressed to the darker fabric. However, if you prefer to press your seams open, go for it. Pressing really doesn't matter that much for this block as long as the seams are nicely pressed.

Press all seams one direction. It really doesn't matter which direction.

From here on, press seams away from the center.

When you sew your blocks together, if you alternate the direction of the center pieces then none of the seams from one block to the next line up. You can just sew the blocks together or you could put sashing between them - your choice. I haven't decided what I am going to do yet. I only have these two blocks finished. I was too busy doing other shop stuff during the Sew Along to actually be able to sew - oh well!

Alternate versions: You can do the same thing with 2 1/2" by 4 1/2" pieces but you only need 18 pieces to make a 12" by 12" finished size block. If you do this, Clue 8 is the LAST clue for this size of piece.

If you do pay attention to value you can make something like this. Note: this is not my quilt. I just found the photo online with no name or link. If you know whose quilt this is I would love to be able to give the maker credit.

This quilt used 2 1/2" by 4 1/2" pieces. The maker made two sets of blocks. One set had dark center pieces and she alternated the value of each round. The second set had light center pieces and again, she alternated the value of each round. When you put them together you alternate the two sets of blocks.

If you decide to make any potato chip blocks I'd love to see photos of your blocks. You can leave them in the comments or email them to me. My email is in my profile.

By the way, they are called potato chip blocks because "you can't make just one," or so they say.

Splendid Split Stars

 I got a new pattern in my shop called Splendid Split Stars.

We made up some kits for this project. We kitted the throw size (54.5" by 72.5") in the batik fabrics below, which should mimic the quilt on the pattern cover pretty closely.

If you like a kit, here is the link: Splendid Split Stars Quilt Kit

Cutting out this quilt can seem a bit daunting as there are 24 different fabrics in this quilt. However, once you get over the 2 1/2 pages of cutting information, you realize that you are only cutting three different sizes of squares from each fabric. Not too bad really. But you need to be organized. If I was going to travel anywhere with this project I would put my pieces in labeled zip bags. But I'm not taking it any where so I used sheets of paper folded in half. I wrote the letter of the fabric on the outside and tucked the cut pieces on the inside.

I only have three blocks made so far. The piecing is not hard, just plain squares, half square triangles and quarter square triangles, but again, you have to be organized.

I'm lovin' it so far. If you want a kit don't wait too long. We only had enough of these fabrics for a few kits. 

Splendid Split Stars Quilt Kit 

All the fabrics in our kits are labeled for you so you don't have to guess which fabric goes where. The pattern is very good and even included pressing instructions for each block which I find super helpful.

A Shop Tour

 I know that most of you who read my blog don't live close enough to stop in to my shop. I did a short shop tour video yesterday morning so I thought I would share that with you today.

If the embedded video above doesn't play for you, you can just click the following link to watch it on my YouTube Channel :: Shop Tour Video

Want to join me in a Sew Along?

 I am doing a Sew Along at my shop and on Facebook the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 25 & 26, 2022. Anyone, anywhere can participate. You just need to join the Facebook group, "Alamosa Quilt Company Sew Along Group". All you need to do is search for the group on Facebook and ask to join. If you want to come sew at the shop you do need to reserve your spot ahead of time. There is no charge to come sew at the shop for this, but I don't have unlimited seating so reserve your spot as soon as you can.

You don't NEED to participate live. You can just join the group, see what's up and sew when you can. The videos and posts will be available in the Facebook group as long as I leave it active. At this point, I don't have any plans to close the group. It's free to join the group and participate in the Sew Along. There is no kit or pattern to purchase.

The first project we will do is a great scrap buster. It's a mystery project so I can't share any photos with you yet. There are no specific fabric requirements I can give you because it's a scrap project. There is no "background" fabric for this block. It's all scraps. What I can tell you is that you will need thirty-two 2" by 3.5" rectangles per block. You can make just one block to try out the concept, or 3-4 blocks for a table runner, 12 blocks would make a nice baby quilt, 20 blocks makes a great lap quilt or do as many blocks as you like. The blocks will finish at 12" by 12".

I will give you a couple of setting and finishing options on Saturday, November 26, 2022. You might need yardage for sashing, borders, binding and, of course, the backing. How much will depend on how many blocks you make.

This is a beginner friendly project. You just need to be able to cut 2" by 3.5" rectangles and sew a 1/4" seam allowance. There are no specialty rulers or fancy techniques required for this project.

The first clue will be released in the Facebook group around 10 am Mountain Time (USA) with the other clues following every hour or so until I close at 5 pm Mountain Time. We'll start back up on Saturday around 10 am. I close at 3pm on Saturdays so the last clue will be given before then.

I want to start offering more hybrid and virtual events and classes. I am using this Sew Along as a test for me to learn how to do this. I doubt everything will go smoothly because technology always seems to have some sort of snag to it. I will do my best, but like I said, I'm learning.

So if you are interested in participating, go to Facebook and search for the group, "Alamosa Quilt Company Sew Along Group." I understand that not everyone uses Facebook. I do have plans to use other platforms too, but one thing at a time! Facebook makes this kind of thing pretty easy for me so I am starting with it.

Eclipse :: A 5 Yard Pattern

 This is another fun 5 Yard Quilt pattern called Eclipse. All of these patterns are so well written and easy to follow!

I used 5 Australian Fabrics from my shop to make up a shop sample.

I need to get this to my long arm quilter this week then decide what fabric I want to use for binding. Decisions, decisions ... only made harder by the fact that I have over 100 Australian Aboriginal fabrics to choose from!

Animal Magic Quilt :: A Finish

 Still in love with this one!

The finished size is 54" by 73". It is so warm and snuggly! I enjoyed sitting under it while hand sewing the binding to the back. I still have a few kits left for this quilt and not enough of the fabrics left to make more. Oh well! If you would like a kit you can purchase it here: Animal Magic Quilt Kit

If you just want some of the fabrics, then you can view what I have left here: Animal Magic Fabrics

I'm kind of anxious for the kits to sell out so I can bring the sample back home to continue enjoying it myself!

It's Turkey Month

 One of my customers, Corky P., found this adorable turkey pattern online and has been making some. 

The block pattern was from a quilt along. If you want to get the pattern it is available from the designer as a PDF download for only $3.50.

Postage Stamp Turkey Block

Corky is turning these into table runners for family members. Below is the first one she has finished.

Completely Smitten with this One

 These fabrics arrived on Tuesday of last week. The collection is called Animal Magic from Dashwood Studios.

On Wednesday I picked a pattern and cut everything out. On Thursday morning I pieced this quilt top.

The backing is the adorable fabric on the left and the binding is the mustard strips on the left. If you want to see a better photo of the backing fabric click the following link: Winter Nap Sleepy Friends on Cream. The pattern is called Addison by Villa Rosa Designs. I kitted the quilt up too, Animal Magic Quilt Kit. It will finish at 54" by 73" - a nice twin size. Order it soon if you want one! These fabrics are selling rapidly because they are just way too cute.

Crimson Tweed Update

 Last weekend I had a small SIYOB Retreat at my shop. SIYOB stands for Sleep In Your Own Bed. I got to work on my Crimson Tweed the whole time, except when I was helping customers.

I started quilting the center snowflake block. When the retreat started I had less than a 1/4 of that block quilted. Now I have about 1/4 left to go. See below for a detail shot of this section.

Seed stitching is slow going but I really like the effect. This is going to take a while, which is why I decided that every Thursday afternoon at my shop is hand sewing group. That may be the only time I get to work on this but eventually it will be done if I stick with it!

Home Sweet Holidays Sample :: A Finish

 It's all quilted, labeled and bound now.

The panel is from the Home Sweet Holidays collection as are three of the five fabrics that surround the panel. This collection is a Moda collection from last Christmas. It arrived really late last year (the week before Thanksgiving) so I didn't even bother making a sample with the collection last year. I have a few kits available using the exact fabrics shown in the photo above - no substitutions. 

The quilt finishes at 47 1/2" by 67 1/2". The pattern used is called Panel Squared Quilt. If you purchase the kit from me then the pattern is included so don't purchase it again!

The pattern is well-written and easy to follow. I had to adjust the inner border dimensions to fit this particular panel. If you purchase the kit from me then I include this information in the pattern so you don't need to figure it out yourself. 

A "Ghastlie" Quilt

 While I was searching for patterns that feature panels, I came across this one. It doesn't feature a panel, but does feature large scale prints. It's called Sidelines.

It's by the same company that wrote the pattern for the quilt I shared in my previous post. Again, I only ordered one copy because I wasn't sure if the pattern would be good or not. It is great! The quilt looks very complicated but it is really easy to put together.

I used the Ghastlie Getaway collection for this sample, plus two basics from my shop.

This is one of the other 4 quilts I recently took to my long arm quilter. It is quilted now but I am working on getting the binding sewn on. I'll share a photo of the finished quilt when I get it done and post links to the pattern and the kit. Yep, gonna kit this one because it's just too cute. I had several customers ask for a kit while I was working on it!

Panel Pattern :: Diva 5

 I have been on a mission lately to find some new patterns that feature a panel. This one is a "keeper."

I don't yet have any of these patterns in stock in my shop. I only got one copy since I was not familiar with this pattern company. Lots of folks have great ideas for quilt patterns, but it is a lot harder to write a good quilt pattern than most folks realize. I am happy to report that this is a great pattern! 

Here is my version of this pattern.

Unfortunately, I don't have this panel listed on my website! Sheesh! I will fix that soon, but not today. When I do, I will update this post with a link to this particular panel. I have lots of other panels on my website though. You can view all the panels I have on my website by clicking the following link: Panels at Alamosa Quilt Company I've got several that would be awesome made up in this pattern.

I have already ordered copies of this panel for my shop. When they arrive I will list them for sale online as well as in store. If you want me to contact you when the patterns arrive and send you a link to them on my website, just let me know.

The quilt is currently being quilted by my local long arm quilter. When I get the binding on I will share a photo of the finished quilt and post links to the panel and the pattern. I took 4 quilts to her recently so I will soon have 4 finished quilts to share with you.