FOURTH & MAIN FABRICS

July 2012

What’s New? Happy Independence Day! We hope that every-

one had a very fun and safe July 4 holiday. Fourth

& Main with be closed Wednesday, July 4, but

will be open as usual for the rest of the week.

We are so excited to be a part of the Sizzling Sum-

mer Shop Hop, taking place July 26 through Au-

gust 2. Our shops worked together to create a

pattern book to go along with our hop, and the

patterns are quite pretty (if we don’t mind saying

so). Hoppers visiting each shop will receive a bun-

dle of 14 half yards of Bella Solids! For more infor-

mation turn to page 7.

Hop on a bus during the Sizzling Summer Shop

Hop to receive a great deal! Bus Hoppers will re-

ceive our 14 half yards of Bella Solids, plus a copy

of our book, and a boxed lunch, all included in the

bus price of just $49! Call Firefly Quilt Shop to

reserve your space 507.344.0441.

We have begun scheduling our fall classes and

are excited about what we will be offering. Check

out our schedule of upcoming events to see what

we have nailed down so far. And keep your eyes

out for the class list which will be available in late

August.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our

first annual Summer Swap Meet. The event was a

huge success, and we look forward to hosting it

again in the future! Check out pictures on pg.4.

Volume 4, Issue 3 - July 1, 2012

Page 2 JUNE-JULY NEWSLETTER

Modern Quilting

At Spring Quilt Market we no-

ticed the overwhelming pres-

ence of the new catch phrase

“modern quilting”. Something

that we found interesting at

Market, was the way in which

designers are blending tradi-

tional techniques with the mod-

ern styles. Blocks using ap-

plique, paper-piecing, and sim-

ilar techniques, are set in large

spaces of solids, or deconstructed

to create a fragmented and un-

expected pattern.

Next February, the Modern

Quilt Guild will be hosting its

first annual show, Quilt Con, in

Austin, Texas. So what exactly is

this new trend, and how is it dif-

ferent from what’s been done for

centuries? We set out to find

some answers.

According to the Modern Quilt

Guild, modern quilts and quilt-

ers share some of the following

characteristics:

Quilts are functional rather

than decorative.

Designs are often asymmet-

rical.

The focus is on interaction

between quilt blocks vs. rep-

etition of block motifs.

Traditional blocks are often

reinterpreted.

Simplicity and minimalism

are embraced.

There is an increased use of

negative space.

Gray and white are used as

neutrals.

There is a consistent pres-

ence of bold colors, trendy

color combinations and

graphic prints.

Frequent use of solids.

Quilters often finish projects

on their home sewing ma-

chines instead of sending

them to a longarm quilter.

This rang quite true: modern

quilting, like quilting as a

whole, has its roots in “women of

the day using colors and styles

of their time to express them-

selves creatively while finding

friendship and community

along the way.”

For more information on the

Modern Quilt Guild and Quilt

Con, please visit

themodernquiltguild.com.

Some blogs and websites to visit:

QuiltDad.com

FatQuarterly.com

InColorOrder.blogspot.com

From Left: Kingdom Courtyards by J. Adams

aka Quilt Dad. Mother’s Day Quilt using

vintage quilt blocks by Jeni of In Color Order.

Swoon Pillow by Katy for Fat Quarterly.

Page 3 JUNE-JULY NEWSLETTER

We love this time of year. It

seems like all of this wonderful

fabric we forgot we ordered

starts to make its way to the

store and onto our shelves.

Dear Stella is our newest fabric

line. It is a division of Timeless

Treasures, and each group is

more beautiful than the one be-

fore. Pictured are Maasai Mara

and Petal Pusher.

Robert Kaufman’s new sewing

line Cut and Sew, combines ret-

ro colors with fun and funky im-

ages of some of our most neces-

sary notions.

Just in, a new group from Red

Rooster fabrics, Reflection, a

lovely summer group by Gud-

run Erla of GE Designs.

Moving and Shaking, an adora-

ble juvenile group in navy and

brown, just arrived as well. This

would make such a sweet pro-

ject for a little boy’s room.

For those of you who enjoy get-

ting into the Halloween spirit,

we have a few festive collec-

tions, including Delightfully

Frightful from Henry Glass.

New Fabrics & Books

In addition to fabric, we have

lots of new book titles to choose

from as well.

If you are interested in some of

the modern quilting techniques

and styles, check out Modern

Patchwork by Elizabeth Hart-

man.

If you enjoy working with

precuts, Pam Lintott has come

out with a new title in their se-

ries, Jelly Roll Dreams, with 12

new projects shown in both tra-

ditional and contemporary

styles.

Page 4 JUNE-JULY NEWSLETTER

Clear Vinyl - Tips and Tricks

Clear vinyl has been available

for a long time, but it seems only

recently that it has become a

strong presence in patterns. It is

a fabulous product to use in or-

ganizers, and that is where we

have seen it most.

Classmate is one of the newest

releases from Atkinson Designs

and features

vinyl pockets

that are perfect

for transporting

your sewing

tools and pat-

terns.

Sew Serendipity’s Artist Portfo-

lio would be a great carry-along

when taking kids out and about,

and features a convenient pock-

et for markers and crayons.

So here are some tips and tricks

for having a successful experi-

ence with this product.

Use a Teflon foot, walking foot

or a rolling foot, to avoid hav-

ing the vinyl stick while sew-

ing.

If you do not have one of these

special feet, use painter’s tape

under the foot, or tape tissue

paper, wax paper or parch-

ment paper onto the vinyl

wherever it will come in con-

tact with the machine to elim-

inate resistance.

A little chapstick along the

seam line will also do the trick.

Use only a little.

The vinyl has a slight tenden-

cy to stretch, so for the best

result, stitch side seams in the

same direction to avoid warp-

ing.

Use a longer stitch, 3.0 will

work.

Summer Swap Meet - Photos

Page 5 JUNE-JULY NEWSLETTER

Check us out online!

Fourth & Main has entered the

world of social media! Maybe

you are feeling a little over-

whelmed by all of the talk

about social media. Maybe the

tweets, and the pins and posts all

seem like a foreign language.

But we are finding that some of

it can be pretty fun. So here are

some ways that social media is

great for a sewist.

Pinterest:

This site lets you create a scrap-

book of all of your favorite pic-

tures, recipes, patterns, and

more. And it recommends imag-

es of other things that you might

like. It is a great way to find in-

spiration from people who share

your interests. [Follow us:

FourthandMain]

Twitter:

This one confused us for a while,

but now that we have a twitter

account, we’re starting to get it.

All of our favorite designers

tweet tidbits about their inspi-

ration, their products, and their

lives. It is a great way to interact

with other people and also to

get a heads up or sneak peak of

what our favorite designers are

working on. [Follow us:

@4thMainFabrics]

Facebook:

We have had a facebook ac-

count for a while, and it has been

a great forum for us to share our

newest fabric lines, upcoming

events, fun photographs, and

more. And, because of recent

changes, facebook is working to

improve the site for business

owners, making it easier for us to

create offers and coupons, (hint

hint). [Like us: Fourth & Main

Fabrics]

We hope that some of you will

like/follow/join us on any or all

of these forums. We would love

to share/tweet/chat with you!

Page 6 JUNE-JULY NEWSLETTER

Page 7 JUNE-JULY NEWSLETTER

Stop by Fourth & Main during

your summer travels!

Bring this advertisement into

the store to receive

30% off your purchase!

August 3 - August 17

Cannot be combined with any other offer or coupon.

Not valid on sale items. One per customer.

Single use only.

Calendar of Upcoming Events

July 21 - 10am-4pm Radio Way Scrappy Quilt Class

Taught by Shelly Schroeder $25

July 26-August 2 Sizzling Summer Shop Hop

Participating Shops: All in Stitches - Zumbrota,

All in Stitches - Stewartville, Calico Hutch,

Firefly Quilt Shop, Fourth & Main,

Pine Needles Quilt Shop

September 17 - 10am-3pm Quilt as you Go - Scrappy Quilt

Taught by Val Haggstrom $25

December 1 - 11am-1pm Back from Market Luncheon $15

December 1 - 2pm-4pm Back from Market Sweet Event $12

FOURTH & MAIN FABRICS

103 So. Fourth Street

Cannon Falls, Minnesota 55009

Phone: 507.263.7000

Fax: 507.263.9200

Web: FourthandMainFabrics.com