Barbara Jones of Quilt Soup...update from her blog

Got the winter doldrums? We are heading to sunny Southern California and the Road to California Quilt Show on January 15-18, 2009. Why don’t you meet us there? I am a big fan of this event. The people are terrific and we always have a great time. We are teaching a Learn to Needleturn appliqué class on Friday and Saturday night and have been getting gift bags together for our students. All I can tell you is that they will be very spoiled!!!! Look for photos on our blog http://www.quiltsoupblog.com/. If you are attending “Road” stop by and say hello. If you have made one of our quilts, please bring it by for show and tell.

“Bubblegum Basics”, our new fabric line for Henry Glass and Co. is almost here! We have received strike-offs and are anxiously awaiting our yardage. We have some very fun ideas in mind. You can see the entire collection online at http://www.henryglassfabrics.com/

The recipe box needs replenishing. Submit your best soup recipe by January 30, 2009. We will also accept entries in person at Road to California. We will put your name and recipe in the hat and draw 3 winners on Feb 1. You might just win a little free fabric!
The soup recipe this time is a Hamburger Vegetable Tortellini Soup. http://www.quiltsoup.com/soup_to_nuts.html
New Year’s Resolutions? I plan to update the blog on a regular basis (I have done a pitiful job so far) and slim myself down a little bit. Now that I have publicity committed to do these things, it should be a snap, right?!!!!!!
Until next time,
Barbara

Designer Michelle Engel Bencsko blogs

Michelle Engel Bencsko—one of our very own HG designers wrote a blog especially for YOU lovely Henry Glass fabric followers! Scroll down to the bottom for her website and contact info!
Enjoy!

So, how excited am I?! Dogwood is finally released and in my mind, the only other thing on earth I have been this anxious for was the birth of my sons. So, I exaggerate a little... the point is, I'm impatient and thought the day would never come. Then it got delayed, and I got more anxious and now it's here and I'm happy. See Larry? :)

I have been designing print patterns for nearly 15 years now, most of which for the not-so-glamorous mens and boys boxer industry. It was a living... a good one, but not very self-fulfilling, if you can imagine. This past September I finally quit my day job to work for myself and make patterns I actually like- and would use! My company name is Cicada Studio. It's a small, independent company and under this tent I do exclusive designs on linen/cotton blends as well as paper products and gift items and I even toss in some graphic design on the side. While, it's lovely to do my own work for my own company, I can't really express how exciting it was to design a collection for the world-wide quilt market and cater to a slightly different customer, thus branching my budding business goals and filling my mind with all sorts of creative ideas.

Is it OK that I admit I'm not a quilter? I do sew- more for home decorating and smaller crafty projects. And I do appreciate quilts and quilting a lot. I am literally amazed at the skills of people like you, who can take pieces of fabric, sew them together, make stunning and intricate designs that flow, move, communicate and inspire. Pieces that are loved and cuddled or hung and probably handed down from one generation to the next... It was important to me to balance what was necessary for you as well as what would feel right to me. And guess what? I have actually designed a quilt! And you can make it, just like the talented lady who is making mine for me, LOL.


When I began the process of designing Dogwood, I really took heed to what Karen, Design Director at HG, was trying to teach me about the balance, scale and content of the work and how it will play into the quilter's design. Merchandising is really an important factor in creating almost any line, and because I've done that for other markets I suddenly realized how much I can draw on that experience for this project. Armed with a new perspective and confidence, I set out to make quilt-worthy patterns that would mesh with my vision, home and aesthetic. I've already made some small projects here and there with my initial samples of Dogwood: like these cute little tote bags, a retro-inspired apron (tute available on my blog) and this adorable little stuffed elephant who still needs his butt sewn up, poor thing (tute coming soon). I have more plans.. more plans than time, it seems. Already, we're working on my next HG collection and hopefully I won't pass out from anxiety while we wait!

I hope you'll be as inspired to work with Dogwood, as I was in creating it! I've got a snazzy little Flickr group going for those of you who would like to share projects with me. Please do hurry, because I'm feeling lonely in there all by myself. The fabric just hit the stores, so you can rush right out and buy some. No pressure or anything...

It's been a pleasure to write for the HG blog- until next time!

Blog- http://cicadadaydream.blogspot.com/
Website- http://cicadastudio.net/
Shop Cicada Studio- http://www.cicadastudio.etsy.com/

Heather Mulder Peterson Previews New Line

Heather Mulder Peterson previews her new line Rebel Roses and her inspiration for it!

Rebel Roses by Heather Mulder Peterson and Deb Mulder

This line was inspired by my (our) love of roses, painted in an impressionist-type style. They represent the traditional side of this line. We also introduced some trendy prints - with the funky flowers, stripes and plaids. I think it turned out as the perfect combination of my two favorite styles.

There is a nice mix of scales, with the large roses being the large-scale stand-out print, but also includes some smaller scaled prints that are perfect for piecing quilts.

The colors are very fresh and combine some of my favorite colors to decorate with. I think the quilters will really enjoy this aspect of the line because many of the fun, large-scale lines out right now are pretty wild and can be a challenge to decorate with. With this line, you get the best of both worlds! I hope you enjoy using them as much as we enjoyed making them.

For more information and a sneak peek at some designs please check out Heather’s blog at www.ankastreasures.com

Debbie Taylor-Kerman previews her new Christmas Line

Hi there, As everyone is now getting well into the Holiday Groove, I’m about to embark on packing up our home – we’re moving on December 21st (yes I know it’s crazy.) But I wanted my kids to be in our new home for Christmas – we’ve been renovating our place for two years!!!
(Debbie with Jules & Eli)

Fortunately I’m a bit of a maniac when it comes to unpacking and I’m already spilling over with ideas on how to bring the magic of Christmas to our new home – especially what to do with the fabric from my “Tis the Season” collection and from my new, soon to be released collection, “Winter Wonderland”. I’m so excited about this new collection - there’s dancing penguins, frolicking polar bears, city skaters and Santa and his elves delivering gifts in assorted trucks and cars, as well as some fabulous bold co-ordinating stripes and dots.

I know there’s going to be limits on my time, but I’d be so thrilled if I managed to have Santa and his helpers delivering presents draped on the windows as makeshift curtains as Jules first opens his eyes on Christmas morning and cover Eli’s bed with the city skaters, as he dreams of skating in Central Park this coming winter. Who knows, I may only manage to wrap the gifts and decorate the tree, and that will be okay too, because I’m so fortunate that my home is filled with so much love, excitement, joy and Christmas spirit, and that’s all that really matters. And you know what - there’s always next year……….

Have a joy filled, love filled and peace filled Holiday everyone!

Debbie Click here to see Debbie's own blog for more information http://www.debbietaylorkerman.com/

Stay tuned to our HG website to see Debbie's full line of Winter Wonderland...coming soon!

Designer Lynette Anderson blogs for HG

It’s very exciting to be here as a guest today on the Henry Glass blog, thanks for inviting me.
Today I wanted to tell you a bit about my personal journey and how it has led me to where I am today, it’s a long story so maybe you should make yourself a cuppa tea, grab a cookie, sit back and enjoy the journey with me.
Let’s begin....
I finished school at 16 as I really did not enjoy school very much, although of course I loved art and craft. My parents who were not happy that I was leaving school found me a job with a good friend in a craft shop where many things were made on the premises, hand thrown and painted pottery, hand-printed clothing and in the loft space there was a Dutch lady by the name of Ans Fredericks who wove cloth on a huge old Huguenot loom, it was Ans I went to work with. Here I am threading the loom with the warp threads ready for weaving. (yes, I do look young and yes, my hair has changed color!)

During the few years that I worked in the store I learnt alot not only about spinning and weaving but also about customer relations and how to run a successful business, things that have stood me in good stead throughout the years.
By the end of the 70's I was enjoying a variety of crafts, including bobbin lacemaking, spinning and weaving, Fair Isle knitting and of course macrame! The birth of my first son in 1981 heralded the end of my fancy knitting and lacemaking as baby David could undo hours of work in a moment! I needed a craft that was portable, produced something to treasure and use, patchwork was the answer. I took an evening class and produced a traditional sampler quilt and this lovely spiders web quilt which apart from the white with tiny roses background was made entirely from my dressmaking friends scrap box. Whenever I show this quilt it makes everyone smile as most people know I dont work with pink fabric but back then I was just grateful for the fabric!

Baby Michael arrived in 1983 and we moved to the Channel Islands, from the mainland in 1984. I held classes for patchwork and quilting from our home weekly for almost 40 ladies. Never one to sit still for too long, Mum and I opened what was to be a very busy gift and clothing store in the bustling high street of St Peter Port, Guernsey. Heres the shop window the day after the birth of my third son, Edward (Eddie) who many ladies got to meet at the recent quilt market in Houston.

In 1990 we moved to Australia, my father had lived here in his early teens and had always wanted to return. In 1995 I produced my very first patterns, they were marketed under the label Lynette Anderson for The Patchwork Angel, the name angel was chosen as my Dad always called my brother and I his angels (which we were not). The patterns were an immediate success, some of the early patterns are as popular today as they were back then. Heres couple of my all time favourites, On The Farm and Waiting For Santa.

In 1997 with the help of my Mum, Ruth we opened a quilt store, The Patchwork Angel in an old church, on Queenslands Sunshine Coast. Many people would be forgiven for thinking that the trading name was chosen because of the old church that now housed the quilt store but in fact that name had been chosen two years prior when I released my first patterns.

After almost ten wonderful, busy years both in my design business and in the retail business I decided it was time to focus full time on my designing and The Patchwork Angel was sold to one of my long time employees.

These days I work from my home studio (aka spare bedroom), I love working from home although I have to admit the first 6 months after I sold the shop was a disaster as I was very undisciplined with my time, these days I am more focussed and am enjoying setting myself some new goals and achieving some new dreams, one of which was to design fabrics.

This year I have had the extra excitement of working with Henry Glass & Co producing two fabric lines. Anne Sutton from Bunny Hill who designs fabric for henry Glass was responsible for introducing me to the wonderful Larry, thanks Anne. It has been a wonderful experience, from posting off my little paintings to seeing how their design team interpreted them to seeing the fabrics on paper and now I am trying to be patient waiting to see the fabric!
Where does my inspiration come from? Everywhere, there is something inspiring at every turn of my head, alot of my ideas are stored memories from my childhood. I grew up in the English countryside, my summers were filled with playing hide and seek with my brother in the hedgerows around our home, bringing Mum bouquets of wild flowers and learning the names of the wildflowers, insects and animals that shared lives.
Here's an early peek at a couple of the prints from my Hedgerow line of fabric.

This sneek peek is from my line called Christmas Magic which is for Christmas 2009, I am so excited about working with my very own fabrics, my sketch pad is full of ideas for quilts, aprons, stockings and more! Be sure to check your local quilt shops for Henry Glass fabrics and maybe your local store will have my fabrics on their shelves next year.

My latest block of the month quilt, 'A Kittens Tale' is inspired by two of our very lovable if a little mischievous house mates, Hugo and Felix who are an inseparable duo who's daily antics keep us and my regular blog readers in stitches!

I have recently launched two new, very cute buttons to my handpainted button range.

Can you see a Hugo and Felix fabric line emerging soon? I think I can!

Well, I hope that you have enjoyed not only your cuppa and cookie but also a bit of an insight into my life, I would love you to come and visit me at www.lynetteandersondesigns.typepad.com

Talk soon, bye for now!

Barbara Jones Update- Bubblegum Basics Are In!

Barbara Jones writes for HG BLOG... "The strike offs of Bubblegum Basics have all arrived! Most of you know that strike-offs are little test samples for each fabric in a collection that the textile mill prepares. The textile mill sends strike-offs to the design director (in my case it is Karen see her in our market photos) at the fabric company (Henry Glass & Co). This person looks the fabric over carefully to be certain there are no problems with the printing and they send a set of strike-offs back to the designer (me) for review. It is always an exciting time because this is the first time I see the designs on actual fabric! There can be some surprises and sometimes there are minor changes that need to be made before the mill makes oodles of yards of a particular design".

"Bubblegum Basics has a really cute hanky panel included in the line. They aren't really hankies but that panel reminds me of them. We have 7 1/2" pre-printed squares with sayings for today's teen girls (and their moms and grandmas) like "Oh my Gosh", "Laugh out Loud", etc. (read these with a valley girl accent...like totally, you know!) Our Mall Doll quilt pattern (free with purchase of the fabric) uses these squares in a quick and easy quilt pattern designed for "hip chicks!"More on the fabric on the next post..." If you can't wait till then, you can see them all online at Henry Glass & Company at www.henryglassfabrics.com

Linda Lum Debono is one of our special HG Designers. She is also a quilt, knitwear, fabric and scrapbooking designer and author. She recently went to Quilt Market in Houston and she took some wonderful photographs of some of our other designers and HG employees. To see her complete blog-- click here http://lindalumdebono.blogspot.com/

"It was a whirlwind weekend and it was awesome. I was in Houston at Quilt Market. I worked more than I played this time. I really got my creative groove back at this show. I could really feel it this time. I didn't get a lot of photos of all that was going on but I did stop by a few booths. It was nice chatting around the Henry Glass booths. I got to meet the other designers who work with them. Lynette Andersen [right] is from Australia! She had her son working really hard! Karen [middle] keeps me in line! I also saw Bunny Hill Designs and met Quilt Soup, and Michelle Engel Bencsko of the beautiful Cicada Studios".

"Here are Scott and Joel from Henry Glass at their table at Sample Spree before the madness. They look calm because Sample Spree hadn't started yet".

To contact Linda directly you can send her an e-mail: lindalumdebono@att.net
or check out her website: http://www.lindalumdebono.com/
or check out her blog: http://lindalumdebono.blogspot.com/