2016 Christmas in July Retreat Recap

MSQC Retreat Recap on the Blog!

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Merry Christmas (in July) from Santa and Mrs. Claus at Missouri Star Quilt Company! July is the perfect time of the year for quilters to start preparing for holiday gift giving. It makes us feel like we’re ahead of the game for a while, and then by the time Christmas rolls around we’ll be scrambling to finish up a few less quilts on Christmas Eve. 😉

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Show and tell time at retreats is one of our favorites. It’s always fun to see what others have been working on, what fabrics they’ve chosen and how one pattern can have look so different when made in various fabric lines. Isn’t this blue, yellow and white Dresden Flower Quilt darling??

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Michele Schneider made the same Dresden Flower pattern using Christmas fabrics and it turned out so cute as well!

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Patrcia Jackson made her Dresden Flower Quilt in blue and white snowflake fabric for a fun quilt that will be great to cuddle up in all winter!

Jackie Smith from TX

Jackie Smith worked on this Jelly Roll Race Quilt that’s going to be a Christmas gift for her grandson. He’s going to love it! She used two Jelly Rolls and doubled the size of the quilt. Find out how you can do that same HERE.

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We absolutely loved this shirt! It’s too cute and so true!

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A huge thanks to everyone who came and participated in our Christmas in July Retreats this year, it was a blast having you all here and we hope to see you again soon!

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For more information on events and retreats at Missouri Star Quilt Company click HERE!

Valentines Party! {show and tell}

Look at all these great Valentines inspired projects you’ve been working on!!

Barbara sent this to us! Love it!
I think this Northcote Range fabric, by Cabbages and Roses is very romantic.

 

 

This quilt and accessories are AWESOME!   In Jean’s email she said that she was inspired from the heart block video, and put this together!!

I absolutley love it!

I’m so glad you all shared!!

Do you have any specific Valentines day traditions?  Or things that make it memorable for you?  Growing up, my Dad always gave us each a little heart with chocolates, and we felt so special.  (he still gives us our own boxes of chocolates.  Such a sweet guy!)

As a Mom, i had to come up with something to do, that included everyone and would be the least painful. (as far as putting it together, and making everyone happy) LOL.

 So, I came up with one dinner I could make that ALL my kids would eat (without complaining.)

With 5 kids, that is a tough bill!  That is when I started the traditional Valentines dinner of French Toast.  (I make a few, stuffed french toasts, mmm) and the rest plain.  You see, I wanted to have a nice dinner and be able to express love to each other, with no whining!

The first time we started this, I think we only had three kids.  I had each one of them go around the table and tell one thing about each member of the family that they loved.  It is truly the sweetest thing.  They were all crying by the time it was over, because they realized how much they loved each other.  Such sweet moments, I hope I never forget.  I look forward to it every year, and it’s kind of fun to have our own little tradition.

If you have a chance to comment, I’d love to hear what you do with your family.

If you haven’t today, tell someone you love them.  There is never a bad time to say those words.

Come back tomorrow, I have one more absolutely adorable wall hanging to share.

~Sarah

Use Your Stash for a Good Cause

Hey everyone! I have some exciting news. The MSQC can now add Quilts for Kids– Kansas City Chapter to it’s list of undertakings! If you’re not familiar with the charity, let me give you a little rundown!

Quilts for Kids is a non-profit organization started in 2000. The whole idea is to use up your stash to make fun and happy quilts for kids who are in the hospital for extended stays. (Ex. Kids with cancer or Babies in NICU) They are partnered with the Children’s Miracle Network and Downy’s Touch of Comfort to provide children who are staying in CMN Hospitals (like Children’s Mercy for you KC folks) with something special to call their own while having to stay in such a sterile environment.

However, because the quilts have to hold up to Hospital standards, there are a few guidelines…

SIZE: 36″ Square NICU quilts or approximately 38″ x 45″ crib/lap quilts.

FABRICS: 100% cotton (regular or flannel). NO polar fleece. The kids love brightly colored, kid friendly fabrics. Remember, some of these kids are going through chemo, so please try to color coordinate your quilts.

BATTING: 1/8″ – 1/4″ LOW LOFT batting – can be polyester, cotton or a blend as long as it is LOW LOFT!

All quilts must be machine pieced and machine quilted. The quilts require a lot of machine quilting since they go through a washer and dryer cycle daily. Don’t forget to quilt in the borders!

PLEASE DO NOT HAND TIE THE QUILTS. Hand tied quilts can be a potential choking hazard and do not hold up to the daily washings they go through.

WASH AND DRY ALL QUILTS before submitting them for delivery.

We will be having a night every month devoted to making quilts for this cause but I wanted to give you the info just in case you wanted to get started now since the date isn’t set yet. Also, I know there is a special tag that has to be sewn on to the back before quilting to ensure the hospitals that it meets the Q4K guidelines. We will have those for you at the shop soon!

I’m so excited to be a part of this and can’t wait to get together and do some good doing what we love!

~Misty

P.S. If you’re interested in making a cash donation to Q4K go HERE.

Our March Friday night sew….

img_6517img_6518img_6519img_6520I just had to get a picture (or4) to show you how much fun we have at our Friday night sew!!  We all get together, working on whatever project we need to finish and hang out.  Eat. Tell jokes.  Help each other. Eat.  Have fun.  Oh did I mention that we sew a little too. (and eat)    🙂       We all bring a snack to share and these ladies DO NOT disappoint!! We have had to ask for recipes for most of the things brought in!   I am thinking we should publish the quilters Friday night sew recipe book!!  Wouldn’t that be fun!??!  Even Mom braved it…..She just wouldn’t stay home knowing we were all having fun.   Anyway, I hope you are all crazy busy quilting.  We have some great things coming down the pipe-line.  (you know, that virtual-web-Internet pipeline)  🙂

Be good.  (or be good at it)

Sarah

We’re all about projects!

And because fabric can be used for lot’s of things besides quilting (although nothing BETTER) I thought I’d share my most recent project. I give you the Tale of the Kitchen Chairs.

BEFORE: Sad, I know. Poor old chairs with lots of hope for the future. It wasn’t your choice to be upholstered in the ugliest gold fabric known to man. You just had to take it. “But look at me! I’ve got character… I deserve more!” you cry. And luckily those cries were heard.100_2777

AFTER: This is you now, in all the glory you so rightfully deserve!

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Let’s be honest. With a little Heather Bailey fabric and A LOT of red spray paint, any old thing can look new! See… I did my WHOLE TABLE!

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* I covered the fabric in clear vinyl to keep it looking pretty and easy to clean. This whole project including spray paint from the whole dang thing came in at less than $50. Now, if your chairs are prettier to begin with, imagine what a new cushion could do! Check out our Fabric by the Yard and go make something better!

~Misty