The Bucket Brigade

Last Saturday we had a class session to make our Bucket Brigade masterpieces!

We had a great group that wanted to take on the challenge and learn to sew with Stiff Stuff to make a 3-dimensional "quilt" for a change.

We had some buckets all the way done by 4:00 and the rest were closing in on the finish line.

All the ladies were good sports and ready to learn something new, which makes for a fun group.

I really liked the variety of colors and fabrics chosen.  These were the large size of the 4 included in the pattern.  They are big enough to hold the cat that will lay claim to the front bucket!

And no, no one had a hole in their bucket and no one kicked the bucket!

Bucket Brigade pattern and Stiff Stuff available at the store!

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, there is much work going on to get kits ready for the Quilt MN Shop Hop (starts 7/31).  Debbie found these great burlap bags to package some of the kits, don't they look great?!  Can't wait for the "big reveal" when Shop Hop begins, we have some great samples and inspiration for you!

Little Miss Muffet's Tuffet

I have a cute new pin cushion to share!

It is called the Color Wheel Pin Cushion.  It comes in a neat little package containing the pattern, wooden base, screws, cord, foam cushion, walnut shells and felt.  I supplied my own fabric and buttons (one for the top and one hidden underneath.  Oh--it includes the directions, too!

Color Wheel Pin Cushion from License to Quilt.

I had most of it done in an afternoon while enjoying our employee sew session last Thursday.  But it took me a little searching to find something for the legs.  They don't show in this picture, I just used little black 1/2" wooden beads painted black.  The directions called for wooden knobs, like drawer pulls, but I could find nothing like that and get it to fit onto the screws provided.  So I resorted to little beads because they had a 1/8" hole to fit the screw.  And since I couldn't find any craft paints in the jumbled up mess that has invaded my sewing space while we are doing a little renovation, I used a black Sharpie.

The kit costs $18, but includes almost everything you need.  And I found out there are refill kits available so I will be ordering those, too.  And yes, we do mail orders, and charge only the amount of the required postage to get it to your mailbox!

Call 651-429-1039 to order!

The Gypsy Wife Is Back!

These are the blocks that I assigned myself for May, following the schedule I started in February.  I also fixed up a few problems I had with the colors and blocks for April.  Pretty soon I will be able to get to the June blocks, hopefully before the calendar flips to July!  We have copies of the Gypsy Wife Quilt book at the store, so give us a call (651-429-1039) if you want to sew-a-long!  You can start anytime it fits into your schedule.

The Temptations

It's time to start tempting you with our Quilt MN projects!  We have numerous samples in the works that highlight the possibilities with this group of fabric.  Here are a couple for starters:

Mary of MH Designs has 2 embroidery designs that are pure Minnesota (even though she lives across the river in Wisconsin!).  The Lady's Slipper is a makeover of a previous design, now using the fabric that is printed all over with the flowers.  A perfect combo!  

And since there are loons on some of the prints, she went to the drawing board and created a picture for embroidery for the loon lovers!  This one even has the little baby loon on the back of the adult, and this is exactly how they take care of their little ones.  I've been reading up on the loons, and found out that the baby loons have poor body temp control, and because the northern lakes tend to stay quite cold, they get heat from the mother or father by riding on their back in between swims.  Other loon trivia:  they don't necessarily mate for life, but they do usually migrate back to the same lake; they have only 1 or 2 eggs each year; survival rate of the chicks is 0.7 chicks per adult pair per year.  Anyone who has heard the wail of the loon echoing across a still lake knows that it is a special experience.  There are some recordings of their various calls on the wikipedia site in the link above.

I have succeeded in getting all of the blocks for my new quilt design sewn together and borders attached!  Yeah!  Now to get that quilting and binding done, write the directions and get some patterns printed!  This is a pretty simple block, very achievable for anyone who wants to give it a try.  I will include a class for it on the fall schedule.  The borders are mitered to get the best effect from the printed fabric, and the technique really isn't intimidating.  But for anyone who doesn't feel up to the challenge, I will include tips on making the border without miters.  I have several different size quilts that can be made like this, so it can go anywhere from a tablerunner to a queen size bed.

Some of the Quilt MN Shop Hop "swag" this year--

shopping bag, t-shirt and pins are all available.

More projects will be shared with you as I collect pictures from our sample makers.  Many of them will be available in kits, so you can pre-order (call 651-429-1039) the kits or yardage or pre-cut packs (5" squares, 10" squares, 2 1/2" strips) anytime you want, and they will be ready for pickup when the Hop starts July 31.  It will be a fun time at the Patch!

Row by Row Shop Hop Exclusive Keepsakes!

 The Row By Row Shop Hop starts across the nation in just a few days.  The official start date is Sunday, 6/21, but since that is Father's Day we will not be open.  We will kick off on Monday AM at 9:00.  Our pattern, designed by Laurel, is called Walleye Chop.  It fits in well with the "Water" theme.  The pattern is our gift to you, but you must be physically present in the store to claim it.  That is part of the Row by Row Book of Law for all shops.  Kits are available for purchase if you want the same fabrics that were used in our sample.  They are packaged in this nice little zipper bag.

And in case you aren't familiar with what Walleye Chop means, I have to tell you that it's not some kind of chopped fish meal!  It's a reference to the somewhat choppy waters on a lake that are favorable for catching walleyes, quite possibly the best fish to come out of a Minnesota lake!

If you are traveling to Minnesota from another state, try to find a place that serves some good walleye.  I had a great walleye meal at Gluek's Brewery in downtown Minneapolis before a Twins' game, it's real close to the stadium, so you could have walleye and a Twins game all at once!  Anyway, back to the Shop Hop!

We have some Row By Row souvenir pins, and a special acrylic ruler that is a very handy size (you might want more than 1, so get yours soon!).  And tshirts and caps will be on hand very soon, so you can be fully outfitted in proper Row by Row attire!

Of course, we have the official Row by Row fabric on hand--

I have to say that for me, personally, these prints are so much more appealing than last year's.  They would go so well with the fabrics in our row!

And finally, our license plate!  Our order for these plates is still being printed, and we will need to take orders for them so they can be mailed out once the shipment arrives.  I think the slogan says it all!  Happy stitchin' to all of you, and enjoy the Row by Row Shop Hop!

The Row by Row Experience

Do you know about the nationwide quilt shop hop?  It's called the Row By Row Experience and runs from June 21 to September 8.  It is an organization of shops from all 50 states and Canada, too, that have signed up to participate.  As a participating shop, we have created our unique row design, only available when you come to Bear Patch.  The pattern is free, one per customer.  We will also have kits available to purchase for our row.  The goal is to collect the patterns and create your own quilt of at least 8 different rows.  There are prizes for winners who bring their completed quilt to a participating shop.  All of those details are explained on the Row By Row website, as well as a directory of shops.

Another fun feature of this experience is the chance to collect fabric vanity license plates from each of the stores.  Can't wait to see what all of the fun quips on the plates will be!  

Our regular summer store hours will apply:
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday 9am-9pm
Thursday*, Friday, Saturday  9am-5pm
Sunday 12 noon-4pm

*After July 30 we will return to our usual 9-9 Thursday hours.

Show and Tell by Alice

Last Tuesday, we had a special treat in the store.  One of our fave ladies brought something unique for "show and tell"!  This work of art was made by Alice from 1/2" hexagons with the English Paper Piecing method.  That's a lot of little pieces!  I didn't measure it, but I think it was about 4 feet tall.  It was framed under glass, so that's why you see some reflections in it.  The frame itself was another part of the art, since it was made from floor board planks from her grandma's 125 year old farmhouse.  Thank you so much for sharing, Alice!