Sweets For The Sweet

 Is your sweet tooth needing a fix?  We have the remedy!

Debbie and Laurel made their annual pilgrimage to the Pearson Candy Co. in St. Paul.  Now we have cases of mini-Salted Nut Rolls and Chocolate Covered Mints stashed in the storeroom instead of fabric!  So you need to help us out and take a few off our hands!  We offer them free to anyone visiting during Shop Hop.

Plus, you can win this whole jumbo jarful of goodies if you guess correctly!  I can tell you right now that "several" will not be the winning guess!

Exclusively at Bear Patch!

A sweet little memento of your Shop Hop experiences--

an embroidered coin purse made by our own friend, Phyllis.

She also branches out into other themes, like owls, Vikings, other necessities!

The talent behind the embroidery machine...

Thanks, Phyllis!

The Flag Shows the Way

Lookin' for a good time?

Find the flag at our front door!

This is our front entry, right on the corner of 4th and Banning.  We have on-street parking as well as a lot right out our backdoor.  By the way, the backdoor is handicap accessible, so you can roll on in!  Really, we are easy to find--north of 694, east of 35E, just a few short blocks west of the lake (White Bear Lake, that is).

We have wonderful hours of business for you, because we know how important it is to fit in your fabric fix around all of the other demands of your lives.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday

9 AM - 9 PM

Friday and Saturday

9 AM - 5 PM

Sunday

12 noon - 4 PM

extended to 5 PM during Shop Hop!

And while you are here, check this out--

beautiful plush Cuddle fabrics in chevrons!

And darn cute ribbons from Riley Blake Designs, coordinating with their fabric lines!

Just 2 quick examples of the joy of shopping at Bear Patch!

Did you know....
Quilt MN not only has a website full of information about the state and stores, but there is also a blog and Facebook page?

Great places to look for more details and ideas.

It's a Mod Podge Thing!

Debbie has been working on a new and unique project for our large panel of Quilt MN fabric.  She used her talent with a foam brush and Mod Podge to create a great floormat! 

It is on a base of RocLon Multi-Purpose Cloth, which we have on hand along with the lovely Mod Podge.  You don't want to miss out on this one!

Just a little Mod Podge trivia, because I know you are having flashbacks to some of your early craft projects!  The name comes from "Modern Decoupage" back in the early 60's when decoupage was a big trend, but was created with coats of varnish.  A clever and crafty woman developed her own formula for an improved product, and the rest is history!

Here are the directions from Debbie:

Decoupage Floor Cloth

Supplies:

 Mod Podge   
Fine grit sandpaper or steel wool    
Multi Purpose Cloth    
Fabric for the front and back

   Foam Brush   
Plastic Drop Cloth to protect work surface

Directions:

1.  Cut the main fabric and the backing one inch larger than the desired finished size of the floor cloth.

2.  Cut the Multi Purpose Cloth to the desired finished size.

3.  Apply Mod Podge to one side of the Multi Purpose Cloth. 

Immediately attach backing fabric to the Mod Podged surface, smoothing out wrinkles and bubbles.

4.  Apply Mod Podge to the backing fabric.  Let dry 1-2 hours.

5.  Trim backing fabric even with the Multi Purpose Cloth. Use your rotary cutter for an even trim.

6.  Turn the floor cloth over and apply Mod Podge to the other side of the floor cloth.  Center the main fabric on the floor cloth so that you will have fabric to wrap to the wrong side of the cloth.  Smooth out wrinkles and bubbles. Let dry.

7.  Sand lightly with steel wool or fine grit sand paper, if desired.

8.  Repeat so that you have 4-5 layers of Mod Podge on the front and 3-4 layers on the back, sanding between coats.

9.  Wrap excess front fabric to the back side and apply Mod Podge under the fabric to hold it to the floor cloth and over the fabric so that it will also be finished.  If desired, Mod Podge one inch strips of fabric  to cover the raw edges of the wrap around fabric for a more finished look.

10.  Apply Mod Podge to the back side one more time.

Let your creativity run wild!  Cover floor cloth with charm squares, applique shapes.
Add trim or rick rack for even more variety!

So dip a brush in your mod podge bottle and see what you can create!  Come in the store and walk all over our floormat!

Cook's Delight

Linda made us a new apron sample, and Eileen was a very good sport to model it for us.

  Linda did a great job of using the direction of the words on the fabric to line up straight.  It's a little hard to see from my professional-quality photo (NOT), but there is a big front pocket on there.  Perfect for a hotpad, tongs, oven mitt, candy bar, etc.  One should never cook without a little chocolate nearby!   This pattern is My Favorite Apron and comes from Perkins Dry Goods.

Slug Bug

Were you maybe expecting a VW?

Nope, this Slug Bug is another of my own new patterns for 

Quilt MN.

This uses the large panel print in the center.  The striped fabric makes 4 of the borders look a lot more complicated than they really are.  And the chevrons are easy to make especially with 4" Thangles.  We have kits and patterns on hand!  Call now before they are gone with the wind!

651-429-1039

SHHH--Don't Tell!

The Shop Hop Law Book says that the fabric can't leave the store until 8/2.  But the Quilt Police might be after me because I have violated the law.  This morning I was looking at the stacks of bolts in the storeroom, and thinking about how long they have been cooped up in there in hiding.  So I took a few out for a walk!  Seems like the humane thing to do, don't you think?  They got a wee bit of Vitamin D, and then it was back to the storeroom for them!  Waiting for you until Friday!  But getting very impatient!

Laurel brought in another new sample yesterday.  It is from Fast & Furious Home by GE Designs--I told you a couple days ago about Gudrun's great quilt-as-you-go technique.

Makes great use of a striped fabric, offset by the solid strips and corners.  You should give it a try!