I was so pleased when Jay McCarroll stopped by the shop this week now that he’s back in town after filming his latest reality show in L.A. Not only did he bring lots of silly glasses to try on, but he also let me know he’s ready to teach another class at Spool! Jay is Project Runway’s first season winner and designer of our favorite fabric lines: Garden Friends, Woodland Wonderland, and the new Germania. Jay is known for his amazing sense of color, unique point of view, and fun loving nature.

It has been a treat to get to know Jay this past year, and we are thrilled to offer you an opportunity to do the same. Jay will be teaching a mystery class in creativity on January 16. Intrigued? I thought so!

When you come to class, Jay will hand you a “mystery bag” full of materials to make a top secret project. (Here’s a hint: Whenever you see Jay around town, he is carrying a huge tote bag!) Jay will be your guide, sharing his methods of design, embellishment, and fabric selection. It promises to be a wonderful class in experimentation and color, so be prepared for an adventure!

Here’s the details:

Saturday, January 16: 1-5PM. $80
Materials: Mystery Materials included. You will need to purchase or bring one yard of fabric and thread. Use of our sewing machines, rotary cutters, scissors, mats, and rulers are included for the class session.

Class size is limited, so please call the shop to reserve your space.

Heather Bailey’s new line, Nicey Jane has arrived! Isn’t it just so darned pretty? I love how the graphic prints contrast with the softer florals to create a delightful vintage feel. I can definitely see myself in a Liverpool Dress made from the barkcloth inspired stripe with a Parisian Purse in the leafy print to match. Or, I would cut lots of strips and make a perfectly girly Roman Stripes Quilt. Lovely!

Fat quarter bundles are now available in the shop in two colorways. What would you make?

Our class schedule is now up and ready through March 2010! Take a little time for yourself in the New Year to learn to sew, make your first quilt, or stitch up a pretty purse. We have new dates of our most popular sessions, as well as all new offerings. Classes are a fun way to improve your skills and enjoy crafty company!

Still wondering what to gift to give the sewing enthusiast in your life? I’ll bet that a gift certificate to one of our classes would be well received. Better yet, you could take a class as well and spend some creative time together. We are happy to mail gift certificates anywhere they need to go, so please call the shop for details.

See you in class!

Kaffe Fassett’s Shot Cottons are some of my most favorite fabrics. Soft, lightweight, and rich in color, they match up wonderfully with my preferred accessory: scarves! Our Scarf Kits are now back in the shop, just in time for last minute holiday sewing.

If you’re unfamiliar with Shot Cotton, this project is a great way to get acquainted. There is no “wrong side” to this fabric, because the warp and weft are dyed different colors and then woven together to create an amazing depth of color. Our scarves show this feature to it’s best advantage, by leaving the edges raw for fraying. The scarf will have two distinct bright colors running along the edges. Lovely!

Plaids are everywhere this season, so we matched our favorite colors with Kaffe’s woven checks in our scarf kits. Each kit contains two 22″ x 36″ cuts of fabric. Stitch them together along the short ends and press the seam allowance open. Then stitch the seam allowance down with a brightly colored thread. Run through washer & dryer and you have created a super stylish scarf! We have a gorgeous range of colors that will work (quickly!) for everyone on your gift list. Happy stitching!

We are having our first sample sale! Our sample storage is overflowing, so it’s time to part with some of our favorite pieces. We have all manner of quilts, purses, and housewares, not to mention beautiful clothes for women and babies. Each item was made by a Spool staffer and has been very well priced! This is a wonderful opportunity to give handmade holiday gifts, even if you don’t have time to make them yourself!

The sale starts in our bricks & mortar shop today and runs through the end of the year. See you soon!

It’s true! Every sewist eyes up these beautiful Gingher scissors, and then maybe thinks, “Next time I’ll get them. For now, my kitchen scissors will do.” This is where you, the gift giver, will reign supreme! This one purchase lasts a lifetime and makes sewing much more enjoyable. Any of these scissors will please a stitcher so much, don’t be surprised if suddenly there a plethora of sewn goods with your name on them!!

Located in North Carolina, Gingher has been the premier brand of scissors for over 50 years. The blades are forged from high carbon cutlery steel, and are then ground and polished by hand. The points, blades and tension are also hand tuned to ensure the best quality in each pair. Should the blades dull, which is bound to happen after years of use, you can send the scissors back to them for sharpening. Each pair comes in a brushed metal gift box, with a point protecting sheath.

The Gingher 8″ Dressmaker Shear is the best all purpose scissor. The bent handle makes for easy cutting along any flat surface. Perfect for working with multiple layers of fabric in long, clean cuts, this scissor is a must for garment sewers. Plus, the handle design is so pretty!

For the all around crafter, the 5″ knife edge scissor is the best. It has a strong blade that can cut through multiple layers of felt & fabric, and can even cut through leather. Small enough to trim threads in tight corners, and to fit into your on the go sewing kit.

These 4″ embroidery scissors will live right next to the sewing machine. They are invaluable throughout a sewing project for clipping all those pesky threads as you go. Tiny and portable, these keep all your needlework projects nice and tidy.

Help point your loved ones in the right direction, or treat yourself! All styles are available in the shop and online. Happy Sewing!

All of us here at Spool want to wish you a very happy holiday! It’s been another creative, fun and fabric filled year. We are so thankful to have so many wonderful customers we can count as friends. You guys are the best!

Spool will be closed Thanksgiving day, but we will be open our regular hours of 11-6 throughout the weekend. Do stop in and say hello! If you have family visiting, we’d love to meet them.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It’s the new Liverpool Dress from Amy Butler! Elizabeth did a lovely job stitching this up in a new Brandon Mably print. Fortunately for me, our shop mannequin just happens to wear a size Medium as well! I love a shirt dress, and I have to say I think this one is pretty close to perfect. A dress is the easiest thing to wear. It makes you look well put together, and all you have to think about is accessories. I can see myself wearing this to work (would everyday be too much?) or running errands. Pair it with boots and a pretty scarf and I’d be ready for a party!

As usual, Ms. Butler, gives us many options for this dress. It can be a shirt, a tunic, a short dress, or a long dress. Set-in sleeves can be short, elbow length, 3/4 length, or long. Ours is a long dress with elbow length sleeves. Each version has a tab collar and button placket with double dart shaping in the front and back, and a self tie belt stitched into the side seams. These options will easily take you through the seasons. If you made it in a home dec weight fabric, it would be a handsome jacket!

We are having a class in the Liverpool Dress in January. This will be a fun, workshop style class, in which we will demonstrate the crucial parts of the pattern, while you sew at your own pace. Here’s the details:

Liverpool Dress Class- $80 plus materials
Saturday, January 23 & 30: 10AM- 2PM

We recommend that you have previously made garments using a pattern, and that you come to class with all of your fabric pieces cut out and ready to sew.

Materials: Pattern, thread, 2.25- 4.75 yards fabric depending on size and style chosen. 4-7 buttons. 1/4 yard fusible interfacing.

Please call the shop to reserve your space. See you there!

With everything that’s going on this time of year, it’s fun to have a quick project that can give you a little crafting time and make your holiday table look lovely all at once. Placemats are just the thing! We just got a shipment of Shot Cottons and new prints from Kaffe Fassett. These soft hues are so autumnal, all I wanted to do was see them them all next to each other, arranging and rearranging the perfect color combinations. There was only one thing to do- make up some design rolls STAT!

A Design Roll is collection of fabrics each precut into 2.5″ strips by the width of fabric, and rolled up into a neat little package. Don’t worry, I use a fabric die cutter to ensure accuracy! Ours contain 30 strips of fabric, 5 of each print. Once the cutting is taken care of, the sewing can commence. I put together these placements in the blink of an eye. One Design Roll will make 8 placemat tops!

Here’s what I did:

1. Using a 1/4 ” seam allowance, I sewed together 9 strips- making an 18.5″ x 44″ strip set for each.

2. Then, I cut each set into 14″ blocks along the long edge, creating the perfect 18.5″ x 14″ placemat size. I got 3 mats from each strip set.

3. I cut a backing & heavy weight fusible interfacing to 18.5 ” x 14″ for each placemat, and fused the interfacing to the backings. To make 8 placemats, you’ll need 1.5 yards of each.

4. I layered and pinned the fronts and backs, then machine quilted through all the layers. I did a different random design for each and used a few different thread colors.

5. I bound each placemat with premade bias binding. You will need 2 yards for each mat. We have a slightly iridescent one at the shop that gives a little holiday shine.

Done and done! I love how pretty they are, but love how fast they were to make even more. My Kaffe Design Rolls are available in the shop and online. Now, which one to play with next?!

We had an amazing Saturday in our Jump Rope Dress workshop with Oliver + S designer, Liesl Gibson. Look at all those cuties and their dresses! The students had a wonderful time with Liesl, who is so knowledgeable and so sweet. Her stitching expertise got our eager seamstresses well on their way to creating truly beautiful garments.

Liesl did demonstrations throughout the day, to illustrate the crucial points in making this adorable dress. She covered button plackets, collars, set in sleeves, and gathered pockets. Whew! The ladies in class got to work!

Everyone had amazing focus and it really paid off. Here’s Eve working on the dress placket. She is using one of my favorite new Kaffe Fassett prints. I can’t wait to see a photo of her niece wearing this beauty.

Even though we all worked hard, there were plenty of laughs, as shown by Julie with her Lady Gaga-style ironing!

It was really fun for me to see everyone have their own “Eureka!” moments with their sewing after having Liesl’s careful instruction. Seeing Liesl is always a pleasure for me, and I feel as though I could talk to her forever about sewing, business, and life in general. If you missed this weekend’s workshop, never fear! We are already talking about having her back in 2010. Thanks so much to Liesl and everyone who came and made her feel welcome!