Minneapolis Airport Didn’t Want Me To Blog. You Did Me Dirty, Minneapolis.

May 21, 2013May 21, 20132 Comments

So all along I thought that as I was leaving Portland, I’d have time on my layover in Minneapolis to put together more photos from Quilt Market to share but the concourse hike I took in Minneapolis didn’t see it that way. You did me dirty, Minneapolis. In the end I was overjoyed at being able to enjoy a cup of Caribou Coffee after a 20 minute hoofing from one side of the airport to the other. When I lived in Northern Minnesota (Duluth to be exact) just a few years ago, we’d spend the morning in Canal Park drinking Caribou. Ohhhh it’s so good. The waters of Lake Superior make THE WORLD’S BEST COFFEE. Le sigh.

Back to Quilt Market.

Are you familiar with Blend? It’s the licensing division of Anna Griffin Designs. What it boils down to is that Anna Griffin wanted to showcase her arty friends’ talents under a different label. Blend was born. What I thought was INCREDIBLY noteworthy was the holiday selections Blend has for Halloween and Christmas.

Photo above taken from BLEND website. How did I not get a close-up of these dudes?

Here’s a closer look at just how cute the holiday fabrics are.

Look at those cars with Christmas trees attached! We totally play that game around my house at the holidays. We keep statistics on how many xmas trees we see strapped to the the top of cars. It’s exciting when the daily count reaches the teens or when the game begins well before Thanksgiving. Yesssss!!!

Violet Craft‘s newest line for Michael Miller is totally worthy. She’s so warm. When I had the fortune of attending QuiltCon, the Modern Quilt Guild’s conference, Violet was taking the same class I was which was Patchwork Skirt with Jay McCarroll. We giggled the entire way through. (Jay McCarroll smells really good. More about that some other time.) Here’s Violet’s booth with the Portland inspired collection.

The domino print is pretty sweet and reminiscent to the rivets found along the surface of the Portland bridges. This was no accident, I’m sure. Violet?!

Also found in the Michael Miller suite was Patty Young‘s typography inspired fabric. Here’s the lovely Patty sitting inside the swan paddle boat trying to act like she wasn’t being caught on film. Who me? I’m fabulous. Rumor was that the swan boat was totes for sale. Violet Craft threatened to put it in her yard to grow tomatoes out of it. How great would that be?

Finally for this post, I leave you with T.J. Lane, artist and giggler. She designs and crafts sterling silver thimbles that are AMAZING. We have had a selection at Crimson Tate for a year now and we loaded back up this time with a few with gems, a few with bees, and a few delicate hearts. Here’s our girl T.J. as she realized she charged my credit card SIX TIMES for one transaction. Get it together, T.J.!! 😉 I love her dearly. Look at these amazing pincushion rings. I wore one the entire time I sat in her booth with her. Sooooo good.

Here she is after she charged my card six times. HAHAHAHAHA. Jokes on me! 😉

And then when I told her to be serious, this is what she gave me:

Yea right!

It might take me a month to get through all of these photos. Stay with me. I’ve got a lot to share.

xoxo

Heather

Karen LePage of One Girl Circus will be sewing with us on Friday Night

August 15, 2012Leave a comment

Friday, August 17, Karen LePage of One Girl Circus will be joining us during a special Friday night edition of Downtown Sewcial. Come hang out with the author of SEWING FOR BOYS and sew with her. We are honored to have her in attendance. She is hanging out in Downtown Indianapolis during the Indianapolis GP Motorcycle Races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (Her husband has a gig! She’s along for the sewing ride).

I had the great fortune of meeting Karen in an aisle of the Kansas City Quilt Market while she was hanging out with Rashida Coleman Hale and Heather Braunlin Jones. We became instant friends and I’m excited to host here in Downtown Indianapolis. How cool is she to come hang with us?! Love it!!

Call the store or email me if you want a reservation to sew at Friday Night’s Sewcial. Otherwise, just drop by and say hey to Ms Karen!! We’ll be glad to have you.

Yuwa Japanese fabric is found Downtown & Liberty of London is crossing the big pond!!

August 9, 2012Leave a comment

This past week, Yuwa Japanese fabric crossed our threshold. It’s so beautiful in its retro color scheme. Several quilts are being constructed using this fabric. It’s beautiful.

LIBERTY OF LONDON

Also, Liberty of London rang, our collections of their new Lifestyle fabrics are crossing the big pond as I type. I can hardly wait. Check out the link to peep it and read more about it. Quilting weight cotton in amazing designs!!

http://www.liberty.co.uk/lifestyle-fabrics/article/fcp-content

More soon!

🙂 HEATHER

Mayor Ballard Takes Advantage of Mass Ave’s Cultural Trail

April 16, 2012Leave a comment

Being on the Cultural Trail in Downtown Indianapolis along Mass Ave is GREAT! We are constantly entertaining cyclists on century rides, runners training for the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon, and babies in strollers who prefer to be pushed along the brick path laid by the city of Indianapolis. On Saturday morning during Camp Sew and Sew, Crimson Tate’s sewing club for kids, we spotted Mayor Greg Ballard as he hopped on his bike to take the Cultural Trail north to the Monon. From the 800 block of Mass Ave, it’s a simple jaunt to 10th Street and away you go. Thanks Mayor Ballard for entertaining us by posing with Crimson Tate’s sign after your bike ride. He looks good, don’t you think, considering he had just returned from a long bike ride along the best Cultural District in the city, Mass Ave. Perhaps his next adventure, a quilting class at Crimson Tate?!? Come on in!!!

Working on Three Twin Quilts for Triplets

March 27, 2012Leave a comment

Three grand kids who have a lovely grandmother, will be receiving a twin sized quilt: one for each of them. Knowing that they are all built from the same DNA but hold individual personalities, we all agreed that the fabrics used in each one should relate but there should be a pop of uniqueness for each one. Here’s the first. I’ll let you peek in at more as the tops are sewn together. I love projects like this!!

New Class List is Available! Go to www.crimsontate.com/classschedule.html

January 7, 2012Leave a comment

Small Business Saturday for Sewing Maniacs

November 19, 2011Leave a comment

Big News! Looking for gifts for loved ones? Crimson Tate :: Modern Quilter has two kinds of gift certificates. We’ve got the run of the mill gift certificates that can be used for store merchandise, notions, and even classes and whatnots. Plus, we are offering gift certificates specifically for sewing classes. In the spirit of holiday gift giving, we are running a one day special on gift certificates to be used for sewing classes. Purchase a gift certificate* for sewing classes or lessons at a 10% discount. $45 gets you $50 in classes! Exciting, hey? It’s a pretty swell gift for the person in your life that wants to learn to sew or perhaps they sew already but want to construct a specific project, like a baby quilt, in an awesome atmosphere picking up helpful tips here and there. C’mon by! We’ll hook you up on Small Business Saturday, November 26th.

*Sewing gift certificates purchased at a discounted rate may only be used toward sewing classes or lessons throughout 2012. General merchandise gift certificates purchased at Crimson Tate are not eligible for discounts at initial purchase but are able to be used for all goods and services Crimson Tate provides.

Taking the Long Way Home

October 24, 2011October 24, 2011Leave a comment

It is the rare occasion that I spend the day riding in the car with both of my parents, as I am 37 and they are divorced. Being reminded of fall Sunday afternoon drives, root beer, and pumpkin patches, today I got to ride in the back seat of my mom’s car while my mom made my dad tell stories of when I was little. I feel so fortunate to have this moment with them.

They are very hardworking and have encouraged me to dig deep and labor in my life doing the things that bring me the most happiness. They both wanted to ride along with me today when I went to see my dear friend Ginny who does long arm quilting for me when I’m overwhelmed. This moment seems right. It is slow, easy, and mindful as I drop off an armload of quilts that will end up in the hands of new friends that desire to pass along an heirloom of their worlds. My legacy is love. I love my job. I love my world. I am incredibly grateful.

The Yellow Brick Road to Japan

October 20, 2011October 20, 2011Leave a comment

Sweet Heather Ross fabric rendered in the Yellow Brick Road quilt pattern. So sweet, it kills me. You can sign up for the Yellow Brick Road quilt class and find all of these Japanese fabrics in store at Crimson Tate :: Modern Quilter, Downtown Indianapolis.