January Newsletter & SALE!
Hello Quilting Friends!!
The first month of the New Year! Here in Colorado we have been in an Arctic blast for the last 2 weeks! We are waking up to subzero or temperatures in the single digits every morning of late.
Some of my favorite things to do in the month of January are cleaning and re-arranging my quilting room and sewing supplies. It feels so refreshing to walk into my quilting room and have everything newly organized and ready for all those new projects I’ve been collecting and haven’t yet started. Another thing I love to do is pull out old quilting magazines and books that have patterns and fabrics I wanted to try but never got around to. Some of these are patterns for flannel quilts.
Flannel quilts are so warm and cozy to wrap up in to watch a great movie and throw on top of your bed for some extra warmth through the winter. This month we are focusing on flannels starting with a great sale on our flannel fabrics. I’m sharing a beautiful quilt pattern that works great with flannels, and we’ll wrap it all up with Tips, Tricks & Techniques for working with flannels. So, let’s get started.
New Monthly Sale
To begin the New Year, we’re offering 20% OFF on all flannel fabrics in stock, when you purchase $75 or more. This is available to our Newsletter recipients only so use PROMOCODE: Flannel20 at checkout. The sale begins today January 28th and runs through February 2nd! Remember you get FREE SHIPPING on orders of $75 or more, too.
This link will take you directly to our great flannel fabrics:
Featured Product(s)
We are highlighting batik fabrics this month. Batiks are different from standard quilting cottons in that they are handmade Indonesian fabrics using dies and wax. These hand-dyed prints go through both sides of the fabric, so you can use either side of your fabric, unlike cotton fabrics which have a right and wrong side. The colors are gorgeous, vibrant and unique. I’ve watched the evolution of batik fabrics and in recent years, more colors are available from pastels to rich, darker hues, and a wider spectrum of prints are available.
Finally, because batiks are hand-dyed, you may have noticed that batik fabrics are almost twice as expensive as a standard 44-45” wide quilter’s cotton. At Log Cabin Quilt’N Sew, you can keep your costs down by purchasing less and getting more!! Because 1 yard of 108” wide fabric is equivalent to 3 yards of 44-45” wide, you can purchase 1/3-yard of our wide fabric and have the equivalent 1 yard you need for your project for about $8.99!
Culinary Corner
Here is a nice hot soup that is so good on these cold winter days of January.
Old Fashioned Potato Soup
Ingredients
· ¼ cup butter
· 1 large onion, chopped
· 6 potatoes, peeled and diced
· 2 carrots, diced
· 3 cups water
· 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon powder
· ground black pepper to taste
· 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
· 3 cups milk
· 1 tablespoon dried parsley
Directions
1. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onion; cook and stir until onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes.
2. While onions are cooking, place diced potatoes, carrots, water, and chicken bouillon in another pot and bring to a boil. Cook until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Do not overcook. Season with ground black pepper to taste.
3. Add flour to cooked onions to make a paste. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Gradually add milk and stir well. Cook over low heat stirring constantly until warmed through.
4. Add potato and carrot mixture.
5. Stir in parsley and thyme and heat through. Serve hot.
Free Quilt Pattern
Plaid Stars Flannel Quilt
DESIGNERS BARBARA GROVES AND MARY JACOBSON
Dimension: 40 x 40”
Note: to make as a lap quilt, just double yardage required for the pattern and attach 2 more blocks on the width and length. Voila!!
LONG-ARM QUILTING SERVICES
We are now accepting new intakes for the 2025 year. Please allow two to three weeks for completion.
TODAY’S TIPS, TRICKS & TECHNIQUES
Tips for sewing with flannel fabrics:
1.Use “quilter’s” flannel fabrics: Why? What’s the difference?
There are BIG differences! Quilter’s flannels are more tightly woven, have a much shorter cut pile, and are made from superior cotton fibers. All of these features mean quilter’s flannel fabrics are more durable for utility wear-and-tear, do not pill, shrink far less, fray less, and maintain their structure.
2.How much to buy?
If you plan to pre-wash the fabric, “do” purchase ¼-yard more to allow for shrinkage.
3.Should I pre-wash flannel fabrics?
When working with flannel fabrics, I prewash them for two reasons: a) to pre-shrink them, and 2) to soften them. Quilter’s flannel fabrics are less soft right off the bolt because of all the great features outlined above. To soften them, I prewash in very hot water and add 1 cup of “liquid” softener. Granular softener does not work nearly as well. Some quilters are afraid to take this step because the flannels they worked with in the past fray horribly in the dryer and come out a heap of strings and wrinkles. Here at Log Cabin Quilt’N Sew, our flannels are “quilter’s flannels, so they come out of the dryer beautifully with little wrinkling or fraying. Most of the time, I can begin cutting and sewing mine without even ironing, if I’ve taken it out warm and hang it over the bannister railing!
4.Tips for sewing with flannel:
a) Needle: Use a new, sharp needle, size 90/14.
b) Thread: Use a good polyester, 50 weight thread, to ensure long-term durability and avoid skipped stitches.
c) Stitch Size: Use 3 or 3.5 (10 stitches per inch) to avoid puckering.
d) Foot Type: Use either a standard, all-purpose foot, or choose a walking foot if you notice the fabric shifting and slipping when using a standard foot.
e) Seam Allowance: Use ½” if possible which will lay flatter after pressing.
f) Pressing: Press seams open for beautiful, flat joints.
These are the techniques I use when working with flannel fabrics and the outcome is a flannel quilt gift that will hold up to hard-use for generations!
Happy Quilting
Linda
Log Cabin Quilt’N Sew
703-586-3265