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Dear Much-Appreciated Customers,
March is National Quilting Month. Treat yo’self, as my Seattle daughter likes to say, to something new, perhaps a class, or a ruler you’ve had your eye on, or a new book, or fabric: we’ve just gotten in a shipment of Kaffe fabrics!
Don’t forget to turn your clocks ahead this weekend. Daylight savings begins on Sunday, March 14. One less hour to quilt, but we’ll get it back in the fall.
Kat wishes to apologize for the lack of a newsletter last week. She had foot surgery on the first of March, and recovery is a bit slower than she anticipated. Today was her first day in the shop this month, and she is so happy to finally be able to get out for a few hours!
ByAnnie’s Local Quilt Shop Contest is over now. Capital Quilts came in 11th. Not the top dog, but an impressive showing in a world-wide contest! Many thank yous to all of you who voted and made such nice comments about the shop. It is very heart-warming to read through them.
Join in the fun at our Handi Quilter event, by Zoom, the last weekend in March! This 3-day event focuses on Pro-Stitcher and Pro-Stitcher Designer. Diane Henry, Handi Quilter National Educator and Pro-Stitcher wiz, is our instructor. The first day, Thursday, March 25, Diane will have two classes about Pro-Stitcher. The 1st, an introduction to Pro-Stitcher, is a prerequisite for the 2nd one, which goes into more depth about the program. The second and third days, March 26 & 27, are dedicated to Pro-Stitcher Designer; you must take the 1st, introductory class on Friday morning in order to take any or all of the other three classes. In addition, Diane will teach a one-hour long class on Pro-Stitcher Catalog, HQ’s new software for organizing and retrieving your collection of quilting designs, on Friday, and a one-hour long class on how to lay out a quilting design over your entire quilt top and then stitch it out on Saturday. Diane has found that Zoom is the perfect medium for software classes. You will be able to see her screen clearly and up close as she talks about the program. You don’t have to worry about weather or traffic or wearing a mask! Each of the 2-hour classes is $30, and each of the 1-hour classes is $15. Class size is limited to 20. More detailed information about the classes is available on our website: go to the Calendar and click on March 25, 26, and 27.
Do you need a break from sewing? Take some time to read a book. Schmetz has put together a list of books that include sewing in the story line. Click here to view online or here to download and print a PDF version.
Horn of America, maker of sewing cabinets, has 7 models that all fit the new larger sewing and embroidery machines. The 8000 and 9000 series of cabinets feature a cut out of 31” x 15.5” that fits Janome’s 15000 and M7 machines, as well as other manufacturer’s machines, such as Brother’s Luminaire 2 and Bernina’s 880. These cabinets also feature the extra-smooth “Whisper Quiet” electric lift, so positioning your machine can be done at the touch of a button. When closed, use the large surface for cutting, layouts, and other table top projects. Choose from 4 different finishes: white, gray, light maple, or dark maple. There are options for drawers, thread storage, an extension for your serger or cutting mat, and caddies. Many of the cabinets come with storage for your extension table and or hoops. Once you’ve enjoyed sewing on a Horn cabinet, you’ll wonder how you managed to sew on your kitchen table for so long!
Our next Complete Course of Quilting via Zoom for beginning quilters starts on April 21. This is a 10-week long course designed for those who are new to quilting or who feel they would like to brush up on their basic skills. This one meets from 6:30 to 8:30 on Wednesday evenings and is taught by Betsy Kulamer. Sign up online, in the shop, or by calling 301-527-0598.
SEW STEADY/WESTALEE QUILTING CLASSES
The Sew Steady Ruler Work for Beginners class two Tuesdays ago was very informative and fun. If you registered for the class, don’t forget that you have until March 30th to view the class as often as you like and until March 16th to get 10% off items purchased through the link and using the code CQRW101SR.
Our next virtual Sew Steady class is Wednesday, April 7, 12-2 Eastern Daylight Time. It is called “Ribbons & Bows”, taught by Sew Steady Educator Donna McCauley. Donna will be teaching several new designs, including Ribbon Candy, designs you can make with the Bow template, Crosshatch, and a wreath. Directions for all of these are provided in a 30-page download that you will receive when you register for the class, along with a pattern for a wholecloth quilt. Win prizes and learn a lot! The class fee of $20 includes the $30 pattern and lots of information, tips, and tricks plus the opportunity to review the class anytime for the following 30 days. It’s a good deal!
• Click here to learn more and register for this event:
• See and purchase the items on the Supply List here:
• A discount code to use during class and 2 weeks following the class will be provided closer to the class date.
Due to technical difficulties, our Flying Geese class with Donna McCauley, scheduled for March 10, was postponed to April 27, 5-7pm. In this class, Donna shows us 4 ruler work designs, including Bishops Fan, for Flying Geese quilts. We will also learn amazing all over quilt designs for Flying Geese projects. Each design uses different templates, so we’ll learn how to use several new templates. Combine them with designs you already have in your library! We’ll also get a pattern for a Flying Geese quilt. Win prizes and learn a lot in this class, too! Class fee of $20 includes the pattern and lots of information, tips, and tricks, plus the opportunity to review the class anytime for the following 30 days. You also have the opportunity to save 10% on items purchased using the code below.
• Click here to learn more and register for this event.
• Use coupon code FGDMQVE21 to get 10% off when you purchase from the class sales page at Sew Steady.
If the date and time of a Sew Steady class are inconvenient for you, register for the class anyway; you have the ability then to watch the class as often as you like for the 30 days following the class, plus you’ll get the discounts and downloads.
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Day of the Dead CHALLENGE!
It seems I have inadvertently ordered 2 bolts of Day of the Dead Dog fabric. Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) is celebrated on November 1 & 2. Google tells us “Assured that the dead would be insulted by mourning or sadness, the day celebrates the lives of the deceased with food, drink, parties, and activities the dead enjoyed in life.” I am issuing a Challenge to all you quilters out there: $8 gets you a yard of Day of the Dead Dog fabric. Make a quilt that is at least 20” square that speaks to the Day of the Dead holiday. How do you honor the lives of deceased loved ones? Perhaps you would remember a deceased pet. Quilts are due October 15. Please be sure to put a hanging sleeve on the back, either sewn on or pinned on with safety pins. The sleeve should be at least 4” wide and one inch shorter than the width of the quilt.
Click HERE to join the fun!
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Shopping at Capital Quilts: Please give us a call at 301-527-0598 if you’d like to make an appointment to come shop in the store. You can usually get in the same day. We are making appointments only by phone. I’d like to be able to open the shop entirely, but I still feel the need to control the number of people in it in order to protect both you and us. There seem to be new, more transmissible mutations around, and we want to reduce the odds anybody in our quilting and sewing community gets COVID-19. Remember that if anybody on the CQ Staff comes down with the virus, we will have to completely close the shop for at least 10 days, as we will all have been exposed.
If you are exposed to the virus and/or get a positive COVID-19 test result, please do not come to the shop, and if you have been to the shop while you may have been infectious, please call the shop so that we may let others know. There is nothing political about this, and there is no judgment from us. We just want to do our best to help stop the virus from spreading and protect our friends and families and community.
We really and truly appreciate your continued patronage and your patience through this pandemic. Your support has been, and continues to be, awesome. You are truly loyal friends! Keep wearing those masks! Get vaccinated as soon as you can; you will feel a lot less stressed, take it from me! Stay safe.
Go ‘n’ Piece,
Alison
CLASSES and CLUBS
We are having most classes via Zoom, and, to a limited degree, in the shop. We will make the virtual classes as easy as we can for you, sending you a link to the Zoom class. All you have to do is add the Zoom app to your computer, iPad, or other device so that you can open the link and participate in the class.
Class size will be limited. As before COVID, you can sign up online, by phone, or in the shop if you are here on a shopping appointment. Class descriptions are found below and on our website. Each class will have a supply list; look for this on our website: click on “Class Calendar in the blue bar at the top of the home page. Find the class on the calendar and click on that, then scroll down to the bottom left of the page to find “Supply List” and click on that.
For classes we may have in the shop, we require that you wear a mask during the class and social distance as much as possible. Each person will have their own table. We will also take your temperature when you enter the shop and ask that you use hand sanitizer or wash your hands with soap and water.
CLUBS:
The Longarm and Pro-Stitcher Clubs will meet on the first Saturday of each month in 2021. We will continue to meet via Zoom, until such time as we can once again meet in the shop. Barbara Bean and Elyse Turkeltaub have done a great job of continuing the clubs during the COVID crisis. Thank you, ladies! Members of the clubs enjoy a 10% discount on Handi Quilter items purchased in the shop on the first weekend of each month. If you can’t make it into the shop, please call us at 301-527-0598 to make your purchase.
NEW! Pro-Stitcher Design Club This new club will begin meeting via Zoom in April. It is designed for people who own Pro-Stitcher Designer and are looking for an exchange of ideas, answers to questions, the forum to ask questions, and the opportunity to learn new skills and techniques. It is open to quilters of all levels. The club will meet on the third Saturday of each month from 10 to 12. Elyse Turkletaub is hosting. Sign up online, in the shop, or by calling 301-527-0598. Members of the club enjoy a 10% discount on Handi Quilter items purchased in the shop on the first weekend of each month. If you can’t make it into the shop, please call us at 301-517-0598 to make your purchase. Whether in-shop or by phone, please remind us about the club discount before paying.
QUILTING CLASSES: I am scheduling classes, both via Zoom and in-store, for March, April, and May. Some are listed below. To see more of what is scheduled, go to thecalendar on our website. Look through the calendar to see what interests you, then click on the name of the class for more information.
You must download the Zoom app/client, and you will need a camera/webcam, microphone, and speakers as well as an internet connection. You will receive an email with the Zoom link on or the day before the class. Please confirm that Capital Quilts has your current email address and phone number.
Sew Together: Ask an Expert Tired of sewing alone? Join fellow quilters for a virtual quilting bee. Settle into your favorite sewing space with your favorite Zoom-compatible technology for 2-1/2 hours of stitching and chatting. Everyone will have a chance to talk about what they’ve been working on and pose questions to the other quilters. No masks required! Each month, we are inviting a guest who is expert in some aspect of quilting and needlework to join us to answer questions about his or her specialty.
April 2: Sue Fierston, president of the Nature Printing Society, talks about leaf and fish printing on fabric.
May 14: SherriJoyce King immerses us in the world of Dear Jane quilts, where blocks from an 1863 sampler inspire classic and modern expression.
June 4: Beth Morningstar, an accomplished longarm quilter, answers questions about sending quilt tops to be quilted on a longarm machine.
July 2: Marianne Losey, one of Capital Quilts’ sewing machine technicians, provides tips to help you be your sewing machine’s best friend.
Skill Level: any
Instructor/Moderator: Betsy Kulamer
Class Size: max. 18
Cost: $8
Time and Date: 6:30-9 on dates listed above.
Flash Story Quilts In this hands-on quilt workshop inspired by the “6 Word Memoir” project, we will capture quick images of personal stories in quilted wall hangings. Before class, select a moment in your life to portray, and write several very short word stories about it. Keep it very simple and focus on an object that is part of your story. Take a picture of that object and print it out. Fusing will allow you to applique shapes quickly. Embroidered details will emphasize essential ideas. You may choose to include found objects like jewelry or trinkets. For more information on the 6 word story, see www.sixwordmemoirs.com.
This class will be taught in the shop (not Zoom). Well-fitted masks must be worn.
Instructor: Lauren Kingsland
Class Size: Max. 5
Cost: $25
Time and Date: 1-2:30 on Saturday, April 10.
T-Shirt Quilt Make a t-shirt quilt using beloved and/or new t-shirts. You’ll learn how to stabilize your t-shirts, determine how best to cut them for blocks, and how to put them into a design for your quilt top. Great for graduation presents or memory quilts!
This class will be taught in the shop (not Zoom). Well-fitted masks must be worn.
Instructor: Deb Ball
Class Size: Max. 5
Cost: $45
Time and Date: 11:30-1:30 on Wednesday, April 13 and 27.
 Walk About This is the perfect pattern for highlighting your favorite large print fabric. It is fast and straightforward, great for beginners and for making a quick gift. The darker sashing resembles a pathway set among garden blocks, or take a walk on the wild side and use an animal print. Make a child’s quilt and applique animals in the large blocks. It would also be wonderful for unusual fabrics, such as the Aboriginals. The possibilities are endless!
Skill Level: Intermediate
Instructor: Julie Taylor
Class Size: max. 20
Cost: $65
Time and Dates: 9-12, Saturday, April 24
SOFTWARE CLASSES:
Demystifying EQ8 Learn how to design your own quilts using computer software. Import existing fabrics, make or modify blocks, resize, add borders, play with color…there is so much you can do! In this class, meant for beginners, you’ll learn the basics of how the program works and what the various buttons and functions are.
This is a ZOOM class. You must be comfortable using a computer, and you must have the EQ8 program loaded on your computer. Please contact the shop to purchase EQ8, as I do not stock them and must order one for you. Allow a couple of weeks at least. Thanks!
Skill Level: beginner
Instructor: Elyse Turkletaub
Class Size: max. 6
Cost: $45
Time and Dates: 12-3 on March 20
NEW AND NOTEWORTHY
From Kansas Studio, we have Unicorn Magic. Who can resist a little white unicorn prancing across the sky? Or those delightful little rainbows? It’s hard! Just think of all the projects you could make with this collection. Too cute! $12.99 per yard.
Staying in a fantasy theme, we have Dancing Flower Fairies and coordinates from Michael Miller. Most are $13.99 per yard; the Fairy Frost is $12.99 per yard.
Hook, Line & Sinker from Dear Sella is a fun, whimsical, ocean-themed collection. Choose from crabs, lobsters, whales, anchors, seagulls —we’ve even got ships in bottles! $12.50 per yard.
JANOME
Enjoy Shamrock Savings from March 1-31! Score one of these great deals:
MC 15000: Save $2,000. Includes the following gifts: Horizon Rolling Cart, Hilos Iris 100 best polyester thread, and the Janome Artistic Digitizer together valued at $2,065. Total Savings: $4,065!
Continental M7 Professional: Save $1,000. Includes the gift of an M7 table, a $699 value, for a total savings of $1,699.
MC 9450: Save $1,500. Includes the gift of a Universal table, a $599 value. Total Savings: $2,099
AirThread 2000D: Save $300. This is the newest Janome serger, with a built-in one-push air threading system an 8-piece feed dog, and a built-in needle threader. We have these in stock.
Contact the shop to purchase any of these machines.
ARTISTIC DIGITIZER: Are you the proud owner of an Artistic Digitizer? Janome has announced an update, to version 1.6. You can download the update from the Artistic Digitizer page on Janome.com.
HANDI QUILTER
Would you like to quilt your own quilt on the shop’s Amara or Moxie? They are available to rent. Take a one-on-one class with Carmen Sesvold for $50 to get certified or re-certified. The rental fee for the machine is $20/hour. Please call me at 301-527-0598 to make arrangements for the certification. If you have been longarm quilting all during the last year at other locations and do not feel that you need to be recertified, please contact me at the same number.
Tune in to the Handi Quilter Facebook page every Tuesday at 2pm EDT for Handi Quilter’s Watch and Learn Quilting Show, which features tips, tricks, and tutorials on Handi Quilter products with limited-time special pricing and a give-away to a random live attendee. They announce a special on a different machine or accessory each week. If you can’t watch the Tuesday show, go to the HQ website and enjoy the “And I Quilt” series of videos. You can still get the special pricing on the week’s product through Sunday.
Specials:
March 10-16, buy a new Handi Quilter machine or Pro-Stitcher with $0 down and 0% interest with approved credit and 48-month terms. Click here to see the flyer. Machines are delivered right to your home, usually with a week to 10 days. Everything you need to start quilting the same day is in the box! Call the shop for more details.
March 12-22, receive a Bounce Back Gift Certificate to use at Capital Quilts with the purchase of a new HQ machine package. Click here to see the flyer.
March 16-21, take 15% off Couching Feet.
Longarm quilters: there is a new website you should check out! It’s www.quiltable.com and it is all quilting designs to view and purchase. The digital products include several file types and are intended for robotic quilting systems (not just Handi Quilter). There is an option to join a club and automatically receive new designs every month plus get a discount on other designs throughout the site.
Handi Quilter has launched a new program called Pro-Stitcher Catalog. Get it through the Handi Quilter website. The program will store, organize, and give you a quick way to find your designs. Heaven on Earth! Use the code HQ1498 to get a $10 discount. You’ll also be supporting Capital Quilts, as we will then get a commission from Handi Quilter. Diane Henry will be teaching a class on this software on Friday, March 26, 3:15-4:15.
Our Handi Quilter Moxie is now fully functional and ready for you to come try. I’ve sold one to a quilter who already owns a Fusion. She said she wants to use it for free motion quilting while the ProStitcher on her Fusion is working on another project. The Moxie is very light compared to the bigger machines and is easy to move around, with less stress to your joints.
Like the Simply Sixteen machine but don’t like the hoop frame? Get the Simply Sixteen on the Loft frame! You’ll get more quilting space and a longer frame. If you already have a Simply Sixteen and want to move up to the Loft frame, you can do that.
Also on display is the Handi Quilter Capri, a stationary, sit-down quilting machine. It is right next to the registers. This machine has the smallest footprint of the longarm machines and is most like your sewing machine in terms of feel. Rather than move the machine over the fabric as you do on the machines that have a frame, you move the fabric under the needle on the Capri. Have a seat and give it a try!
SEW STEADY
Wish Table Sale: Buy a Wish Table and get the Grid Glider for just $1! The table is 22.5” x 25.5”, with beveled edges, a blue drawer for notions, holes and a tool for circle sewing, and a table lock. The Grid Glider, valued at $25, offers all the right markings to make sewing easier and adds a slick sewing surface, especially good for free motion quilting. MSRP: $224. Capital Quilts price: $199 plus $1 for the Grid Glider.
CAPITAL QUILTS CARES The next QOV Workshop is on Friday, March 19, 1-4. This is a free in-shop event limited to 5 people.
Thanks to those who have donated kennel quilts in the last few weeks! Keep them coming. We just sent out 60 to Hawaii. If you are willing to help, please make more for us! Find the directions here.
Please be careful of the dimensions of the little quilts; too big or too small and we can’t send them. Also, serged edges and binding are too easily removed by animals. Drop them off “curbside” at the shop; no need to make an appointment (unless you want to shop, of course!). We have both pillowcase and kennel quilt kits available, free. Make them at home and return the completed project to us for distribution.
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