Sample Spree and Lots of Fun Goodies

I know I said that you couldn't really purchase individual yards of fabric, trim, ect. at International Quilt Market, but there is one event that is held before market opens where you can and it's called Sample Spree.  Again, this event isn't open to the public, but it's about the only chance that one has to purchase lines of fabric that have yet to be released and may not be released for up to five more months.  It happens around 8:00PM the night before market and goes until 10:00PM.  Not every fabric manufacturer participates, but a lot of them do.  There is a lot of fabric as well as trims, patterns, notions, ect. that can all be purchased at wholesale cost (without the huge minimums that generally come with ordering wholesale). 

Sample spree is nuts!!  Seriously.  Imagine all the chaos that goes along with the running of the bulls, but instead you have hundreds of ladies obsessed with fabric all running to grab the new lines.  And once it's gone, it's gone, so I'm sure you can imagine the madness.  Mom and I signed up for Sample Spree last spring which was our first time, but we skipped it this past fall, so we thought it would be fun to do it again.  Luckily for us, there are no fabric lines we just MUST have, so we are much more relaxed about the whole event.  Some people would not find sample spree fun at all.  Certainly if you don't like crowds, you would not like this event.  But we like the excitement and hub-bub of it all, yes, we are the type that actually like shopping the day after Thanksgiving.

People start lining up for Sample Spree up to four-five hours before they even open the doors.  Mom and I arrived about 45 minutes before it started and this (picture above) was what the line looked like and we ended up pretty much in the middle.  It seems kind of nutty to wait in line that early since once the doors opened we were all in there in about 5 minutes, but to each his own.

So here are some of the things we brought home from sample spree and some freebies from different people at market..........

I firmly believe that you can never have too much rickrack, especially in pretty colors such as these!

I picked up pretty much the whole collection of 'Rhapsodia' by Art Gallery Fabrics (which has already been released).  These are all 1 yard cuts and I am in love with this line.  Feminine and girly, yet still modern.  And if you've never felt Art Gallery Fabrics, you are definitely missing out.  They are dreamy and wash better than any of my other quilting cotton.  Perfect for garments!

And while we were at the Art Gallery Fabrics table, I picked up one more bundle of fabric that I might love even more than 'Rhapsodia'......this one is called 'LillyBelle' by Bari J. for Art Gallery Fabrics.  This line will be released in June which is just around the corner.  This is only half of the collection as the other half was already sold out by the time we made our way to this stop at sample spree.

I have been waiting for this line from Riley Blake Designs to come out for about 6 months now.  It's called 'Seaside' and it is just perfect.  Yes, Riley Blake Designs sends me fabric for all my design team projects but I wanted to have all of these fat quarters of each print so I picked up this fat quarter bundle at sample spree.  I'm seeing a quilt here with this set.  Although, I may have to get some yardage as well because a few of these prints are begging to be made into children's clothing.

I don't have very much seasonal fabric in my stash, so I picked up this fun Christmas collection from Anna Griffin.  I like that it incorporates some pink and blue into the traditional red and green color scheme.

Here is a little freebie from the folks at Windham Fabrics.  This is Lotta Jansdotter's new line 'Bella'.

 

Some free, super-cute 2.5 inch pre-cut squares.

I picked up a Kona Cotton Color Card that they were giving out for free.  It's a great thing to have because it gives you an actual swatch of each solid fabric that is much easier to coordinate than just looking on your computer.  This card is also great when you are trying to pair a solid with a patterned fabric.

This was a cute bundle of embroidery patterns that I picked up.  I have been embroidering a lot lately and I am really enjoying it.  I may have a little embroidery up my sleeve coming out soon, so these sweet little designs really caught my eye.

Here are some pictures I took in our hotel room with some of mom's fabric too.......

And that's a wrap.  We had so much fun picking up these goodies at quilt market.  It's so nice that Mom and I both love sewing and fabric and can bond over fun experiences like quilt market. 

I think we both have A LOT of sewing ahead of us with all this gorgeous fabric!

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International Quilt Market ~ Spring 2012

A week ago today, we packed up the family and drove from Chicago down to Kansas City for Spring International Quilt Market.  Typically I wouldn't bring the whole family to a work related trade show, but I'm still nursing my little guy so there really was no other option.  Luckily, I have a super-amazing husband who was willing to entertain the kids during the day while I was busy at market.  And my mom (Grandma Jane) and her husband, Pepo, agreed to fly in from Texas as well.  That meant mom and I could focus on market while the guys and the kids did fun things like the aquarium and lego land.

What is International Quilt Market?  International Quilt Market is a trade show for the quilting and fabric industry.  It is where the designers / manufacturers debut their new lines and where most quilt shops and store owners place their orders for new lines of fabrics, patterns, notions, trims, ect.  Fabric is ordered by the bolt and most everything is sold at wholesale pricing.  The show is not open to the public and you need to present credentials to get in.  There are hundreds of booths showing off all things related to fabrics and quilting.

The pictures I am about to share with you are from the types of booths that interest me, but there is truly something for everyone.  Lots of reproduction fabrics and very traditional quilting and sewing as well.  I didn't take as many pictures as I would normally and we skipped some of our regular stops at market as we were focused on scouting some fabrics for an upcoming project I have in the works.  But I definitely think I got enough eye candy to give you a little taste of our experience.

So I'll take you on a little tour.......let's start at the very beginning........

Our first appointment with with my rep. from Moda and after we met with her we stopped by Bonnie and Camille's darling booth to check out their new line 'Marmalade'.  They always have such a fresh sense of style and I've been wanting to meet Camille in person for some time.  They were lovely, just as I had expected.

Mom and I stopped off at Lauren and Jessi's booth (another Moda designer).  I used some of their new line 'Birds and Berries' for a sample of one of my patterns that was displayed in the United Notions booth.  I adore this apron and the pencil quilt, which they said is done with just a jelly roll of fabric.

More pretty quilts at the Moda booth.

Beautiful things at the Fig Tree & Co. booth.

Pat Sloan her new line 'Eat Your Fruits & Veggies'

Vanessa Christenson (V & Co.) with her new line Simply Color for Moda Fabrics.  Really gorgeous, unique line.  I especially like the ombre fabrics and the white with color dots (shown on the pillowcase dresses in the picture).

Simply Color Quilts

Fun stuff at the American Jane booth.

I'm a big fan of Anna Griffin and her booth is always stunning.  She has a newer division of the company called 'Blend' where they have a bunch of different new designers working with them.  Their work is always top-notch and gorgeous.  On the first day of market Anna was there so we were able to show her the cover of the new Charlotte Apron Dress pattern which was done in one of her previous fabric lines 'Carmen'.

The lovely ladies from Izzy & Ivy.  Their line of girls patterns is always totally adorable and they were just lovely.  So glad I finally got to meet them in person!

The Izzy & Ivy crew has a new line of patterns for boys call 'Muddy Maxx Designs' that focuses mainly on accessories.  They had the most adorable backpack (seen in the first picture) and all these cute items for the bedroom as well as some adorable appliques.  If you have a little guy, I recommend checking out these patterns.

I had to take a lot of pictures at the Birch Organic Fabrics booth because I had so many pieces on display with them.  Not only did I have a big display, but my friend Shannon from Luvinthemommyhood had lots of pieces on display too!

Look familiar?  That's my Run Around Romper pattern in the shorts variation.

There's the girl variation of the Run Around Romper.  I just think that fabric is so sweet.

Here is one of Shannon's (Luvinthemommyhood) dresses with the adorable heart cut out in the back.  This was a huge hit and that bike fabric is too cute!

And look over here!!  Cynthia (owner) did such a nice display of the garments and photographs from The Cottage Mama.  She also had a handout promoting the sewing patterns.  How sweet was that?  I just absolutely love working with them!

More Run Around Rompers

Here is Cynthia (owner) and I posing at the Birch Organic Fabrics booth.  I know I'm probably a little bias, but I thought their booth was one of the most beautiful.  So many bright colors and more eye candy than you can even imagine.  Again, so happy to be working with these great people!

I didn't get a ton of pictures of the Riley Blake Designs booth......I think I was too busy chatting with Cindy (owner) and Jina (Design Director).  But I did manage to take a few.  Above you can see my Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress pattern.  I did not actually sew this one......the lovely Julia from Riley Blake Designs made it, but it was still fun to see it on display!

I'm really excited about Tasha's new line coming out soon ~ The Simple Life.

I was fortunate enough to be invited to dinner with the Riley Blake Designs team after the second day of market.  It was really fun getting to know a lot of the designers and the owners since we had never met in person.  I was seated next to Shari Butler and Carina Gardner, both of which were wonderful to chat with during dinner!  Shari's line 'Dress Up Days' was what I just used for my most recent Design Team project ~ The Lolly Dolly Pillow.  And Carina.......well, she is just an amazing woman entrepreneur with a scrapbooking, fabric, clothing pattern, and possibly an upcoming wallpaper line.  Remember when we did the 'Sew Along' for her pattern the Playdate Outfit?  So much fun!  

Sarah Jane Studios new line was one I was so excited to see in person!  I loved her first line so I was quite certain I would love her second and it did not disappoint.  'Out To Sea' is so uncontrollably cute!  I have a thing for nautical lately (after all, we did name our son Caspian after the Caspian Sea).  Isn't her booth design amazing?  Sarah Jane drew out the design and her sweet husband constructed it for her.  He was also there helping promote her line.  Gotta love a supportive hubby!

New Embroidery Designs

Love this ship!

This dress was actually designed by Sarah Jane and she had a friend sew it up for her.  I think she might have a future in clothing design, don't you think?

Here's Sarah Jane and I.  We just talked and talked........we could definitely hang out if we lived near each other.  I met Sarah a year ago in Salt Lake City and we've kind of stayed in touch since then.  We've got a lot in common and it's so great to be able to talk to another mama of three who is in a creative business.......we could definitely relate on many different levels.

Here's Bonnie from Fishsticks patterns.  She was so nice and we talked a lot about the world of children's sewing patterns.  She specializes in boys patterns and had some really great tips and tricks for sewing with knits.  She was just as sweet as can be and I can see why people love her!

Here I am with Emily Herrick and her line 'Shore Thing' for Michael Miller Fabrics which is another nautical inspired fabric line.  Check out her dad's shirt, isn't it so stylin'?

Also, Emily Herrick (Crazy Old Ladies Quilts) has come out with this awesome quilting book for guys.  Sometimes it's hard to come up with a masculine looking quilt, but Emily has come up with a ton in her new book, Geared for Guys.

Anna Maria Horner's new line 'Field Study'.

The always super-cool, Tula Pink.  She was promoting two different lines that were quite different from one another.  'Nightshade' is definitely on the darker side and the bright and cheery line called 'The Birds and The Bees'.

Whew!  I'm exhausted just looking at all of the pictures.  And can you believe that isn't even half of everything we saw?  I know, stimulation overload......but of the best kind......fabric!

If you are in the sewing business and are looking to start purchasing your fabric wholesale, quilt market is definitely an event you should attend.  It is held in Houston, TX every Fall and rotates around the country for Spring market (which will be held in Portland, Oregon next year).  People are not purchasing a yard of fabric here and there, when we order, we are ordering bolts of 15 yards, so again, it's definitely something to consider if you are doing a serious amount of business.

There is one even during market where you can purchase smaller amounts of fabrics and pre-cuts called sample spree.  Mom and I didn't attend sample spree in Houston, but we thought it would be fun this time.  It's a little bit crazy.......picture ladies running and grabbing for fabric, but I kind of like it.  I'll share more about sample spree in another post as I think this one has gotten a bit long.

But one last thing........I absolutely could not do what I do without my amazing husband and the support from my Mom and her husband, Pepo.  

Mom (Grandma Jane), the girls and Pepo in Kansas City

Caspian Finn and Grandma Jane

We met up and took a lunch break at the fanciest burger king we have ever been to.....never seen anything quit like it.  But the girls loved their crowns and are sporting the sunglasses from Riley Blake Designs.

Thank you Brett, Mom and Pepo for all you do for me.  I would not be where I am today without your love and support during this wild ride called The Cottage Mama.

If you would like to read about my previous market experiences, you can click HERE to read about Spring 2011 and HERE to read about Fall 2011.

Also, if you have any questions about International Quilt Market, feel free to ask and I'm happy to help!

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