EcoluxLighting Sewing Machine White LED Sewing Light

Testimonial - Read what Karen Fox said about her new White LED Strip Lighting: "I sewed with my new sewing machine light last night and LOVE it! I can't believe
how dark it was where I was sewing before I had this light. Thanks for carrying this
item."

All of these years the head of the machine has been shading the area where we most need light. No wonder we were adding lights to our ceilings and buying lights for behind the machine and behind our shoulder and trying to direct it to that area.

The machine (above) lights up the faces of our fellow Quilters when we demonstrate it. And, even though, the Featherweight, because of its large bulb and narrow head has better light than newer machines, the change to white light makes a huge difference. If you already have the Bendable Bright Light, you will still want this one!

There is one to fit any machine, including Featherweights and Longarms. Introductory pricing and satisfaction guaranteed!

Just measure the mostly flat space under the head and buy what will fit. Most home sewing machines use the 4” long 6 light strip. Featherweights use the 3 Light Strip and Longarms vary. If you have more than one machine, you only have to buy one Light Kit, then buy additional Light Strips for your other machines and just move the Power Source from one machine to the other.

Until you see it, you will not believe the difference the White Light LEDs make. And you will love that they are cool. The lights last an estimated 100,000 hours which if you sew 8 hours a day, means they will last 34 years. And, it uses 98% less power. Remember we have added them to our machines and like Karen Fox, we are in love!

For more information about the light, Click here.

Patternista by Paula Nadelstern for Benartex

It is finally time to officially introduce Kaleidoscope Queen Paula Nadelstern's newest fabric line, Patternista. If you click on Patternista you will see the entire line on one page. It is quite a feast for the eyes. In fact, it is better than seeing it on the shelf. Dragon Feathers is the theme or focus fabric in the line. It is bilaterally symmetrical, has a 24" repeat and comes in 4 different color combinations. To really appreciate all of the color you really have to look at the large images. Below you are seeing an 8 1/2" square cut out of the same place on each color combination. If you click individually on the images below you will see in a 3x5" scan 8 1/2" by 14" of the 24" repeat. It is dynamic and just think it is only part of it!



Four other bilaterally symmetrical designs support Dragon Feathers. They are Chorus Line, Hills and Valleys, Scribbles (8 colors) and the Patternista Kaleidoscope Panels which have become rather famous and useful in a number of pattern designers' work.



This is what Paula said about the line: "I am a Patternista. Patternistas perceive both the outer beauty and the inner logic of the fabrics we collect. Patternistas bring both an esthetic and an intellectual appreciation to what we do, constructing, as well as consuming. This eclectic collection is filled with visual Paulaisms, the point of view I have cultivated about complex fabrics ... Patternista is more than a fabric line that took a very long time: its a bridge to quilts made of simple shapes that read as complex, thoughtful acts of creativity." What a beautiful way to think about our quilts - "...simple shapes that read as complex, thoughtful acts of creativity." Love it!

Recently, Paula said she was looking for maybe miles of a Deep Marbled Black made by Michael Miller a couple of years ago. We looked into it and it was still being printed so we added it to our Kaleidoscope Miscellaneous Category. If Paula thinks it is terrific, we believe her and since it arrived, we know she is right. You, too, can have some. We are hoping the scan on your monitor looks as good as ours. If it does, you will want it. If you place an order and want a sample, just mention it in the Special Instructions of the Order Form and we will include a 4" square with your order.



In addition to the black, since we last posted to Scope News months ago, we have added a number of other fabrics to our Kaleidoscope Miscellaneous Category, so while you are looking at the black, be sure and scroll down to see the others.

For Paula's, all-over designs, see her Prismaglass colors, Click Here.

And, to see her Sunstone colors, go to, Click Here.

Paula's Giclee prints are still available. With Valentine's Day coming, it might be the perfect time to treat yourself or someone you love to one:



To visit the prints, Click Here.


Also, from this collection of blocks, we still have a good stock of the beautiful notecards, Click Here.

And Paula's Nuance line though still available, as we reorder many are now discontinued. If there are any you especially wanted, pick them up soon. To see what remains, Click Here.

As well as, previous fabric lines books, patterns and supplies, Click Here.

Our goal is to be your best source for Kaleidoscopic fabrics. To visit our Kaleidoscope Category, Click Here.

If you want to receive our weekly Cotton Club updates, Click Here.

If you want to be on our Scope News Email Roster, to which we post occassionally, just send us an email:
cotton@cottonclub.com

Hope you have fun exploring the new line and look forward to hearing from you.
Cheryl - The Cotton Club
http://www.cottonclub.com/

Boise Basin Quilters 2011 Raffle Quilt

Boise Basin Quilters has once again collaborated for a wonderful raffle quilt. This one was more than many years in the making but great things sometimes take time. Ten years ago, Patty Hinkel of The Quilt Crossing in Boise, Idaho made the top, then took it to Empty Spools Seminars and Fall Quilt Market for signatures of well known people in the quilt industry. In 2010, the applique border was added by members of the guild. Cheryl Little of The Cotton Club and Patty Hinkel then returned to Empty Spools and Fall Quilt Market to add additional signatures on the vine around the entire border.

Now, over 100 signatures, including such celebrities as: Alex Anderson, Judith Baker Montano, Jinny Beyer, Caryl Bryer Fallert, Eleanor Burns, Amy Butler, Hollis Chatelain, Nancy Crow, John Flynn, Marianne Fons, Diane Gaudynski, Anita Grossman Solomon, Roberta Horton, Doreen Speckmann, Patrick Lose, Paula Nadelstern, McKenna Ryan, Judy Niemeyer, Robyn Pandolph, Eleanor Peace Bailey, Mark Lipinski, Nancy Pearson, Paul D Pilgrim, Yvonne Porcella, Liz Porter, Kim Schaefer, Elly Sienkiewiez, Edyta Sitar, Ricky Tims, Kim Schaefer, Jean Wells, Phillip Hoffman and many more. The complete list is on Boise Basin Quilters website. (If in bold, now deceased.)

If you want to buy tickets they are $1.00 each or 6 for $5.00. You can send a check to Boise Basin Quilters or to Cheryl Little, c/o The Cotton Club, 106 N 6th, B5, Boise, Idaho 83702 . If possible, please enclose address labels for your tickets. For your ticket stubbs, please include a SASE or an email address and we will email you for your donation. Or better yet, come to the show the end of June.

Cat Acatemy BOM Block of the Month

We think Cat Acatemy is one of the cutest quilts we have seen in a long time. The artist, Karen Brow, has done a wonderful job of expressing the personality of cats with cloth. In making our kit we tried to duplicate her choices with the most current fabrics available. The blue and neutral batiks are just beautiful. Can you tell, we LOVE our kit! And, it is ready to ship!

Although you can use the applique method of your choice, she uses our favorite freezer paper, spray starch and iron method and gives directions in the pattern. Like us, for preparation, she loves a mini iron for the pressing and our favorite is the new Clover iron, because it is hotter and has an on/off switch on the cord. We actually lower our ironing board, pull up a chair and make ourselves comfortable while we prepare our pieces.

She also uses another product we love - Roxanne's Glue-Baste-It. In addition to the original 2 oz. size, now, it also comes in a small travel size and a refill.

If you want to take a look at it and other applique products in our Online Catalog, Click here.

And, if you want to see Cat Academy, Click here.

Really, when it comes to the hand applique, we can't say enough good things about AURIfil 50 weight 2 ply thread. Prior to it we pretty mostly used silk, but it was somewhat of a struggle. It would wear through quickly and become unthreaded easily. AURIfil is a dream and for us applique people, whether by hand or machine, it is fabulous to have all the colors.

If you want to know more about how to join a club and receive all the colors, Click here.

January Silk Pincushion

To celebrate the New Year, Mary Jo Hiney designed this beautiful Globe Pincushion and a new silk packet too. She continues to astound us with her new creation each month. Isn't it beautiful. Although, she made it in both silk and cotton, she is known for her use of silk. Really, with her helpful hints anyone could work with silk. Her secret is to back the silk with a lightweight fusible.

For more information on the Globe Pincushion and the Pincushions On Parade Club, Click here.

Pincushion on Parade - Victorian Boot

Here is the second of Mary Jo Hiney's Pincushions on Parade Club mailings. The Victorian boot is done both in silk and cotton and called Travelin Boot and uses the Sweet Silk Packet or fabrics from the July/August, 2010 Issue of The Cotton Club. If you join the club now you would receive the current mailing.

When we introduced Mary Jo's Silk Club, she designed a new project for every month. We expected it to be some little project to give you ideas on how to use silk, but instead, they were these fabulous projects: scarves, purses, pincushions, pillows, eyeglass holders and more. We are so excited about the pincushion club, because it gives us a chance to see another new design from her every month for another 12 months. Mary Jo will choose a theme for each month and if you sign up now, you will receive the first shipment now. The next one will be sent in October. These are keepsake pincushions and will be treasured for years to come!

Also, when you sign up for the silk club, we will enclose an information sheet on how to work with silk and some facts about it. Mary Jo backs hers with a lightweight Fusible Interfacing which we have available. From her Silk Fun Facts, did you know that according to legend, in 2640 BCE, Chinese Prinsess Xi Ling Shi was the first to reel silk from a cocoon that had dropped into her cut of tea, so they say. It could have been her bath water... Silk farming, harvesting and weaving processes became a closely guarded secret for the next 3000 years, known only to the Chinese.

For more information on Pincushions on Parade, Click here and scroll down to see the entire Silk Catogory.

To see all of our clubs, Click here.

1/16" Round Hole Punch

We have been selling this tool since 1984. We ran it in our first display ad in Quilter's Newsletter Magazine. At that time, we thought it was extravagantly expensive at $16.95, but, we were all making our own templates, drawing around them, cutting them out and "marking the intersections" so we could hand piece. We loved to get it just right and this tool allowed us to punch a hole in the intersection of template plastic, the exact size we needed it. Every year the tool goes up in price, a little and now, in 2010, it is $39.95. When you consider that cars and houses are 10 times more expensive than they were then, I guess it isn't too bad.

Sally Collins, of miniature quilt fame, still recommends this notion and Debra Wagner recommended it too. The truth is, even now it is one of those tools that is always there when I need it. Recently, I had finished 8 wedges that had to be sewn together in a 360 degree circle and it came in very handy. I made a template of my triangle with the 1/4" seam allowance added then punched the intersections. I laid it on my wedges, marked the intersections, then drew sewing lines to connect the dots. I then was able to sew them together with confidence. I used a method I learned from Marsha McClosky years ago, when we first started piecing on the machine which she called, Precision Machine Piecing. I just sewed from dot to dot, leaving the 1/4" free at the ends, so they could be ironed any direction. It was her pinning method along the drawn lines and those dots that made it go together so easily.

To go to the 1/16" Round Hole Punch in our Online Catalog, Click here.

We carry a very extensive collection of notions and supplies. All of our favorites and the new ones as they prove themselves as useful.