Monday 14 December 2015

Awesome Quilt!...

It's here! The newest edition of Quilter's Connection!


And why is Mrs P's so excited?...



This marvellous quilt (in the background) ... 'Clare & Argyle' is one of the patterns featured!  Created (that means designed, physically made, pattern written, quilted, bound, magazine article written, photos taken and more) by Karen Neary; it on display at Mrs P's in Amherst until this Saturday!  


The fabric used in the quilt is Indah Dyed Solids by Hoffman and Mrs P's has a few colours in stock...




Kudos, Karen!  It is a beautiful quilt with bold and vibrant quilting!  I think it is a pattern that is very 'now' and yet will still be a classic in years to come! 

Remember, if you get the chance, please drop in and see the quilt and the magazine it is featured in!

Mrs P's also reminds you that we will be closing this Sat, Dec 19th 2015 for our annual Christmas Vacation.  We will re open as usual on January 5th 2016 at 1pm.  Happy Holidays to one and all!  



Saturday 21 November 2015

A Christmas Surprise for You...

A nifty idea, just in time for you to make for Christmas!

Remember the Roll Up Pillowcase? ...
How about a Roll Up Christmas Sock?!



First, you need a pattern for the sock part.  I originally made a full size sock instead of a pillowcase, but that had a lot of waste fabric ( I used 1/2m of fabric!) and was a bit bigger than I needed (above).  So, instead, using a Fat Quarter, I started to work on a sock that would look right using one FQ for the main sock and 2 other FQ's as accent colours. Scraps for the accent colours would work, too.



The 1st one was a bit too narrow in the opening and the heel looked funny.  The next was much better, but I still wasn't happy with the heel and so on.  Finally, I arrived at the finished product...



I think it's functional and pretty! It finishes 17.5 inches long plus about 2 inches for the hanger. The top is almost 7 inches wide and the width of the toe to the side is around 10 inches. All the seams were stitched using a 1/4 inch seam allowance.  Since the sock seams are all enclosed when done, there is no need to line the sock. 

Are you ready to make one? Off we go!

For a printed pattern, please email directly to mrspsamherst@gmail.com  Please put 'Roll up Sock' in the subject line.  I am working on getting the files to open here, but so far, the quickest way is to email me.  The pattern is not fancy and is 2 pages.  You will need to tape the pattern pieces together- do not try to match the lines- just tape the edges of the papers together.  A 1/4 inch seam line is factored into the pattern. 



For a Christmas Sock - the toe tips down a bit, it's not just stuck out sideways.  Also, when you are sketching one out, keep the curves large- you will have to sew them.  Christmas socks tend to curve up and around at heel.  Another useful hint: cut to the outside of your pattern so you can use it again. 

If you don't print a pattern... you can make the pattern with parchment paper and a pencil. You will need a piece about 16 or 17 inches long and trimmed to the width of the folded FQ, about 11 inches.  The sock pattern is about 7 & 1/2 inch at the top and it is 10 & 5/8 inch on the widest part of the toe.  The length is 15 & 3/8 inch. 



If you look at the picture, you will see where the curves are in relation to the squares, so you can follow and make your own pattern. You can also draw a pattern off your favourite sock.  




Fold your FQ (fat quarter) so the selvedge  is on the top and place the pattern so the fold line is on the fold of fabric.  Remember, we do not cut the fold line.



Once you are happy with the placement, pin and then cut around the pattern. It's okay if you are into the salvedge as it will end up in the seam.   



Next, for the trim/band colour cut a 2&1/2 inch wide strip that is 15 inches long or the width of a FQ if you want.  The cuff is cut 8 inches wide and the width of a FQ. The extra here will be used to make the hanger.



Fold these 2 pieces of fabric in half lengthwise and press. (different sock)



Open out the 8 inch piece (cuff) and lay right side up.  Next place the main sock opened up, also face up, and match the raw edges together. As a hint, if you have a directional fabric, place the fabric so the directional print is upside down if you are pinning it the way in the picture.  If you learned to pin with the raw edges away, there is no need to turn the fabric upside down.  Next, the small trim piece gets laid on, keeping all the raw edges together.   




Flip the toes of the sock in and roll the sock up toward the raw edges. This keeps the toes out of the way, as now is a good time to trim the band to the actual sock top width. 

Bring the cuff over and pin into place. This will give a 3.5 inch finished band. 




Pin, starting in the centre and work outward.  Sew a 1/4 inch seam along the pinned edge, remembering to backstitch the edges.




Turn the finished tube, bringing the inside out and the magic begins!  The seam is enclosed.  



Press the back of seam; then, flip over to press the front of the seam and trim, finishing with a nice sharp top edge on the cuff. Any wonky edges can be trimmed up straight here.


 ( Remember not to press on your cutting mat! )



Press the sock with wrong sides together; yes, right sides will be facing you.  Pin, matching the cuff seams and continue with a few pins down around the sock.  

Taking a deep breath, gently lower your presser foot and sew the seam.  If there is a lot of bulk under the pressure foot or its not behaving how you would like, start sewing about an 1/2 inch down the cuff, or so, and then reverse and sew back down the seam (the sock should backstitched at the beginning & this is just another way to do that). 




The seam you are sewing is a gentle curve, sew slow and ease the fabric around when sewing. Try to keep it a 1/4 inch seam.  After you have it sewn, trim the 1/4 inch seam back a bit.  I actually trimmed it back to about 1/8th inch. Sometimes, in sewing the curves, they get a bit wide.  It's up to you to decide if  you want to remove the seam and try again.  Sewing slowly is the best advice!   


Inside your finished Roll Up Sock- no raw edges.  See how the seam follows the curve of the heel and finishes a bit on the actual fold of the fabric.  
Turn the sock and push the seam edges out with a stick (wooden spoon/paint stir stick), or a proper sewing tool,  or the flat of your scissors (my fav until I get in a rush and poke a hole through the seam- oops!) and press the seam flat.  This 'pressed' seam should show the curve of the sock. Normally, you don't need pins at this stage but I needed to put a pin in at the heel so when I got the heel, I remembered to gently sew the curve up and off the fold of fabric to give a nicer look. You are making a french seam, so all your seams in the sock are enclosed and you get a nice finished product.   Sew along the pressed seam, again working slowly and paying attention to the heel.

You are almost done.  Next, turn the sock right side out and again using something to push the seam out from inside, carefully press the seam. This is the finished sock but we need to attach a hanger.



Remember, that piece of the cuff that was set aside? It's about 8 inches long by 3 or 4 inches? Press the short ends in about 1/2 inch and fold/press this piece in half lengthways.  Using the centre press line as a guide, press each side into the centre and press in 1/2 again.  No raw edges should be showing.  Sounds very complicated- but its not. Stitch the ends and along the open finished edge.  This will make the hanger for the sock.







Fold the hanger in 1/2 and pin in place at the side edges of the sock. I liked putting the sewing lines to the back of the sock and positioned the ends about an inch down on either side of the side fold and stitched around the hanger from the inside.  That finishes your sock!  




If you wished,  you could make button holes in the cuff and put buttons on the end of the tabs giving another design element to your sock! Or, use jumbo ric-rack or a cool ribbon for the accent band. 

So there is our Christmas Magic for you!  

Please feel free to send pictures to Mrs P's - we'd love to see them.  mrspsamherst@gmail.com  
{We will be posting some pics here, so if you do not want yours posted, please let us know and we will not post them.}

Surprises can be the best part of Christmas!

Thank you to Karen (Neary) who allowed me to sit for another hour (or two) at her table and for offering her encouragement and enthusiasm!


Monday 16 November 2015

Whoops! or Whoopee! ?...

Mrs Pugsley's Emporium Inc had ordered some new bright batiks from Batik Textiles in July to come in for the Annual Nova Scotia Fibre Festival in October ... but the fabric did not arrive until ... November! Whoops!










Batiks for $10/metre*
Friday Nov 20th,2015
Mrs P's Amherst, NS 



They are very bright and pretty, but a bit too much stock for the shop to handle right now, so we are putting all the Batiks currently in stock, including the new ones, on sale this Friday, Nov 20th during regular business hours from 10 am till 4 pm only.  Whoopee!

*You may buy smaller than a metre cuts off any batik bolt at this time, but you will be charged the full retail price.  If you buy a metre or more from the same bolt, the cost per metre will be $10.00 plus tax.  This is a special one day event and not our regular price so no discounts will be allowed.  This applies to all in-stock bolted batiks only and will include our Hoffman batiks. Whoopee!



  

To get Amherst in the Christmas (Holiday) Spirit, The Tree for Boston ( Nova Scotia sends every year) will be near Victoria Square on Wed, November 18th around 4:30 pm.  It stopped in Fort Lawrence last year for the 1st time.  The Tree is sent to say thank you to Boston for sending help to Halifax and Nova Scotia when we needed it in 1917.

On Thursday, the new Police Station has its opening ceremonies getting underway around 1:30pm.  Tours will be given then and also between 4 and 7 pm. 

On Friday, there is a tea at The First Baptist Church from 11;30am 'til 1:30pm and the annual Light-Up will be in Victoria Square starting around 7pm .

On Sat, Nov 21st, Christ Church, (Anglican) is holding a Christmas Bazaar from 10 'til 1pm and the Santa Claus Parade is expected to step off at 6pm and be approaching Victoria Square around 6:50/7pm or so.  And yes, Mrs P's will be open Sat from 10 am to 1pm :) Deanne Fitzpatrick will be hosting her popular -9 artists in 1 studio- on Sat as well.

Like all small communities, retailers pull together to give potential customers a reason to come to our community.  That is why this Friday was chosen as our day for the special Batik price/metre.  

Don't forget to check out what your community is doing and make an effort to participate.  Participation in your community is a priceless commodity.  Your community will be be stronger with your participation.  This applies anytime during the year, not just in the run up to the holidays.  



What a Paris evening should look like.... Aug 2014

Tuesday 10 November 2015

Remembrance Day...

Mrs P's is closed on Wednesday, Nov 11, 2015 for Remembrance Day.


We will reopen Thurs morning at 10 am. 

Saturday 7 November 2015

Open Saturday! ...

We are open Saturday's from 10am until 1pm! 



We now have YLI hand-quilting thread in both solid and variegated shades. 


New fabric has also come in.


Stof's Quilter's History


French General by Moda.


And 'Power Up'- part of Man Cave Series by Benartex- as are the Workboots! 


Tuesday 27 October 2015

Just Catching Up....

The NS Fibre Festival is over for another year!  Here are a few pictures of some of the different quilts seen at a variety of quilt shows...



From the Maritime Modern Quilt Guild show....fun idea with newsprint behind the solids and gray paper pieced flags. 





The Cumberland County Quilt Guild had their show in the Baptist Church.  Their challenge of Black Dresses was fabulous!



And Quilt Expressions 'starred' at the Anglican Church

The shows were all wonderful to see.  Congratulations and thank you to all that participated in the quilt shows. They happen with a lot of work and countless volunteer hours besides the time and joy in creating the quilts. 

The winners from Mrs P's daily draws during Fibrefest 2015 were...

Tues- Hoffman panel and a pair of scissors....Lauri from Maine
Wed- Felicity Pattern by Karen Neary and fabric ... Mary from Amherst
Thurs- small Quilt and Go Pattern by Hoffman ... Linda from New Brunswick
Fri- large Quilt & Go Pattern by Hoffman ....Eva from PEI
Sat- Jinny Beyer Kit by RJR fabric ... Anne from New Hampshire

Thank you to all who entered your name in the white pumpkin. :)  To give an idea of how busy the week was for us...this picture shows the draws Monday to Sat from left to right.  Friday's draw stacks up 2 inches tall! 



Friday 16 October 2015

Open this Sat from 10am until 4pm...

This is the week of the 8th Annual Nova Scotia Fibre Arts Festival!  Actually, tomorrow (Sat) is the last day but it is jam packed full of events! 

There are 3 quilt shows on, including one at the Town Hall which is also the NS Fibre Arts Festival Headquarters.  Drop n there to find out about the 'pin it' draw and locations of the activities.  

This festival celebrates the fibre arts from quilting, felting, knitting, rug hooking, cross stitch and more! 

On Sat, the Zonta Club of Amherst, hosts the Fibre Bazaar!  It's on Sat instead of Friday this year and the location has changed!  Be sure to stop in the town hall to get updates and/or visit the NS Fibrefest web site! 

Thank you to all those that visited the shop this week!  We hope you had fun.  Mrs Pugsley's Emporium Inc is open this Sat from 10am until 4/4:30pm.  Normally, we are there from 10am until 1pm.

This week, a lady was seen with this bag- a Green Man Bag!  ...


And in the shop this morning, Chubbies ( Just 2 metre cuts) were waiting for their new owners ...




Monday 5 October 2015

A Little of This and That...

Preparations are well under way at Mrs Pugsley's Emporium Inc for the Nova Scotia Fibre Arts Festival beginning Tues Oct 13th and running until Sat Oct 17th!  

Although, there is nothing in the official schedule for Mrs P's, drop in and enjoy the fabric and quilting related notions!  There are new items/fabrics, fingers crossed, that will just arrive in time for Fibrefest! 
We will also be having a draw or two, so drop in to enter.  

There are at least 2 confirmed bus tours arriving for the quilt shows on Friday, so the town should be just a hopping!  Quilt shows include, Quilting Modern Show at the town hall: Cumberland Quilter's Guild Quilt Show at the Baptist Church: Quilt Expressions at Christ Church!  New for this year, the quilt shows run on both Friday and Saturday! 

Do not forget, the Zonta Fibre Bazaar is now on the Sat from from 10am to 5pm at the Armouries. New day, new location! 

On Thursday, Oct 15th, you can create your own...Miss Fibrefest or Chilly the Snowman !  This workshop costs $60 and everything is provided including the pattern! Yes, it is hand sewing and at the end, you will have made...


Miss Fibrefest or...


Chilly, the snowman!  

Beth equally fun!  I think there is still room left in this class and if you are a bit interested, I urge you to contact the instructor directly at diannmcdonald@gmail.com for more info or to register!  

Check out the classes at www.fibreartsfestival.com  Again, if at all interested, contact the instructors directly, to see if there is room- you may be surprised and learn something new about yourself!  

Mrs P's will be open Fibrefest week as much as possible.  Officially, 10am to 5pm for Tues to Friday and 10am til 4pm on Sat but may be longer hours as requested!  


New in, Misty Fuse...  a very lightweight fusible stabilizer, great for sheer fabrics or for some appliqué.
 
And remember those blue, white and cream half square triangles from awhile ago?  


They've been percolating and now resemble this...


But as its only laid out... It may look different next week!