Interview: Connecting Threads Designer Jenni Calo (With Giveaway!)

19 Sep 2012 | Other RSS posts by

I’m really excited about today’s interview with Portland designer Jenni Calo of Connecting Threads not only because I love her work and admire her versatility, but because it will be very interesting for those of you interested in fabric design as a career. The in-house fabric designer is a rare breed — as I write in the book, it’s tough to make a living in the field, but being an in-house designer full-time is a different ballgame. So Jenni is living the dream perhaps she’ll inspire the same in you.

I



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Category: Connecting Threads, Designer Interviews, Giveaways, interviews, jenni calo, laminates, surface pattern design  Tags: , , , , , ,

Connecting Threads Giveaway!

17 Feb 2012 | Other RSS posts by

{ Pearadise by Jenni Calo }

We’re topping off the Connecting Threads mini-series with a giveaway! Connecting Threads has three brand-new collections out: Pearadise, Tulane, and Sweetgrass Prairie. They also have 33 new colors of thread and 10 new Thread Sets. Just leave a comment on this post letting us know your favorite fabric collection of the three, AND your favorite thread set. I’ll randomly select one winner for each fabric collection, and a fourth winner will get a thread set! Comments will close



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Category: Connecting Threads, fabric collections, Giveaways, Meet the Sponsors, winter 2012  Tags: , , , ,

More Connecting Threads

17 Feb 2012 | Other RSS posts by

Wow! Based on the response to yesterday’s post, Connecting Threads does have a lot of fans — I’m glad to hear it! You readers are vouching for the quality of fabrics, and the fast shipping. Here of some more of their current collections, more of the folky/vintage/repro/traditional genre. First is my absolute favorite, Hope Chest by Mama’s Cottons, which if not a feedsack reproduction collection, does certainly have that feeling. I misplaced my photo of the whole collection, but here at least are



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Category: Connecting Threads, country essentials, Designer and Store Spotlights, Feedsacks, Folk, jenni calo, mama's cottons, Meet the Sponsors, reproduction fabric  Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Meet the Sponsors: Connecting Threads

16 Feb 2012 | Other RSS posts by

{ Dancing Daisies from Montecito by Jenni Calo }

I think I first learned of Connecting Threads a while back when I was knitting more than I was sewing. If you’re a knitter you certainly know Knitpicks, a company offering affordable, quality yarns and knitting supplies. Connecting Threads is actually Knitpicks’ sister company, under parent company Crafts Americana, and they are to the quilt world what Knitpicks is to the knitting world. Quality goods at budget prices, and they achieve this by being a manufacturer that sells



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Category: Connecting Threads, Designer and Store Spotlights, fabric collections, flannel, jenny calo, Meet the Sponsors  Tags: , , , , ,

Quilting Solids Roundup

15 Feb 2012 | Other RSS posts by

Solids have gained (re-gained, maybe) a lot of respect as a quilting fabric in recent years. There’s no better proof of that than the abundance of choices on the market now. Manufacturers small and large are offering their own unique palettes. I thought a little overview of what’s available these days might be useful for color fanatics who are looking for just the right shade of this or that color. For this post, I am listing plain weave quilting weight cottons only — we’ll leave twills, voiles, sateens, lawns, flannels, etc. for another day. I’ve also included the number of



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Category: art gallery fabrics, basics, birch, clothworks, cloud 9, Connecting Threads, dear stella, Fabric Study, freespirit, marcus fabrics, michael miller, Moda, northcott, organic fabric, p&b textiles, Riley Blake, RJR, robert kaufman, solids  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Connecting Threads Fabric Design Contest: Voting Is Open!

16 Aug 2011 | Other RSS posts by

The submissions to Connecting Threads’ Fabric Design Contest are closed and the voting has begun! There are a lot of amazing designs here. The entries are divided up into Characters/Animals, Floral/Botanical, Geometric/Decorative, and Novelty, so be sure to look through them all. You can vote for as many as you like. Feel free to campaign for your designs, or your friends’ designs, or your favorite designs by a complete stranger, in the comments!

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Category: Connecting Threads, Contests, scraps, surface pattern design  Tags: , , ,

Fabric Design Contest at Connecting Threads — Deadline Tomorrow!

09 Aug 2011 | Other RSS posts by

Are you familiar with Connecting Threads? They are the only fabric manufacturer I know of that sells their fabrics retail directly to the public, rather than opting for wholesale distribution. No middleman = lower prices, and they’ve got a wide variety of styles represented in their collections (including some beautiful modern designs). And now, they want YOU to design a future collection — they’re holding a fabric design contest. The deadline is tomorrow, August 10 (sorry for not pointing to it sooner) but if



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Category: Connecting Threads, Contests, fabric design, Fabric News, surface pattern design  Tags: , , , ,

Hooterville Baby Quilt

18 Apr 2011 | Other RSS posts by

I love owls, which is funny because in real life I don’t much care for anything that flies.  I don’t like birds, butterflies, owls – anything that can swoop at me.  I know butterflies?  But it is true, they freak me out, which is why I don’t go in butterfly houses at the zoo.

Anyways, owls and little cute birds in quilting and sewing projects I love.  So does a friend of mine, Karen.  She is having a baby, any day now in fact and decided to do her nursery in owls.



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Category: baby quilt, Connecting Threads, Everyday Life, free motion quilting, Hooterville Quilt, Owl Quilts, quilting, sewing