Barbara Rorabaugh

Look what Barbara came into the Quilt Store wearing! Barbara Rorabaugh came into the Quilt Store for the Bella Bella Show & Tell wearing a Zerba Bag! She made hers up in black and gold batiks and added a jumbo antique gold textured paisley button to the pocket. It looks gorgeous! The button is by Hillcreek Designs and they add a little pizzazz to every project! She was hesitant to take a photo but she is just darling! Thank you Barbara for letting us take your photo and share it with the world!

Fons & Porter's Easy Quilts

We have been featured in Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting's Winter 2011 Easy Quilts Issue! (WOW that was a mouthful!) We made a fun whimsical tree table topper! It is made in Sue's Caterwauling Tales line for RJR. In the issue they show it made up in some traditional green and read fabrics and it is just as cute! There are 19 quick, simple, fun and easy-to-make weekend projects in this issue! Check it out!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Since we will be spending time with our families for the rest of the week we decided to say Happy Thanksgiving to you all today!

What we are most thankful for here at Whistlepig is you! Our amazing customers! So, Thank YOU! We hope you all have a wonderful long weekend filled with delicious food, family, football, fabric and shopping! Happy Thanksgiving!

Claudia Mielinski

Claudia has been a customer of Whistlepig's for years, and boy does she have a story to tell! This amazing women has had some ups and downs with the quilting world but a love of fabric has kept bringing her back! The bag Claudia was wearing at Market is the E-Cozy Carrier! " It is the perfect size for a wallet, keys, cards and cell phone. We sell the pattern to ladies for bags to use on a cruise too! Even with all the essentials I still had plenty of room for my Nook, Claudia says."


Claudia has a shop, Accent on Quilting, that is about 14 months old and they have already moved into a larger location! They are located in Orange City, Florida just off of Interstate-4 between Daytona Beach and Orlando. If you are in the area you have to stop by! They are a full service quilt shop carrying 3000 bolts of fabric, notions, books, pattern and gift items, plus they have classes and long arm services! 


"Accent On Quilting grew out of a love of fabric.  I had a shop in Pass Christian, MS that was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. My husband and I stuck it out in MS for about 6 months, then moved to Central Florida.  It took me a while but I just could not stay away from the quilting business. Retirement is not for me! So, I started a website. In about a year I ran out of space in the house and starting looking for a warehouse space.  I found a retail space that was wonderful (and cheaper). Ever get the feeling you are being pushed by 'the big guy upstairs?' Ya just can't say 'no.' So, the physical shop was opened and we have been doing great ever since." - Claudia Mielinski

Thanks Claudia for the wonderful photos ans story! If I ever find myself in Florida, I am stopping by!

Peggy Nehring

Peggy came walking into our booth wearing an animal print Flip Flap Bag! This wildly fun over-the-shoulder fat-quarter friendly bag has two hidden pockets which proved to be perfect for business cards and credit cards at market! Peggy was at Market representing Quilt N' Sew Connection, a large and lovely quilt shop in Prescott Valley, Arizona. They are "Prescott Valley's best resource for quilting, machine embroidery and sewing!" So next time you are in the area, stop by for some fun! They also have a very fun and active Facebook page, so go check it out and see what they have been up to! Thank you Peggy for the beautiful shot with your fun Flip Flap Bag!

Julie & Lenore

Julie and Lenore were sitting across from our booth at RJR, picking out fabric for their store Miles of Stitches! Kristy spotted the Sweet Retreat bags and pulled them into the for a photo after their meeting! We LOVE how they turned out! Julie's blue and orange (Go Broncos!) geckos are great! And Lenore's blue and brown scrappy bag make us smile! Miles of Stitches is Quilt Store in Mid-Michigan with everything a quilter could ever want! They have a large selection of batiks, backing fabrics, brights, children's, civil war and many more collections! Plus they have a long-arm quilting service, batting by the yard and package, notions, patterns and books! Stop in if you are ever near Hemlock, Michigan. Thanks girls for letting us take your picture! The bags turned out amazing!

Kathy Regan

Kathy came strolling into our booth at Market sporting a Six Pack Stack bag. This pattern takes 6 fat quarters and turns them into a 14" x 18" reversible tote! On the outside Kathy used “Housework Whenever” fabric by Sharon Yenter for In the Beginning Fabrics and some fun color coordinating polka dots. Kathy and her husband own The Cotton Cabin Quilt Shop in historical downtown Dubuque, Iowa. The shop has just about everything a quilter could ask for: Fabric, Wool, Kits, Stitcheries, Longarm Quilting, Retreats and More!

Sally De La Haye

The BEST part of Market was seeing ladies walking around with Whistlepig Bags! Sally De La Haye was commandeered by Kristy during Sample Spree when she walked by wearing an adorable Zerba Bag! Kristy was very excited because she designed the Zerba and Sally was more than happy to show it off! She made it up in Lime and Black Batiks! It looks great! We then saw Sally again in our booth sporting a BYOB II! Monogrammed with an 'S' for Sally and made up in all gorgeous Fall themed Batiks, the bag stood out! We begged for another picture! Sally has been teaching at Calico Cats Sewing Center in Lake Jackson, Texas since 2006! She also has a degree in Art Education, this explains the beautiful color combinations in her bags! Thanks for wearing the Whistlepig Bags Sally! We hope to see you again in the near future! (Spring Market perhaps?)

Quilt Market 2011 - 4

There are many awesome things about Quilt Market, but up there on the list is getting to make and hangout with great people! Everyone in the quilting world is so genuine and sweet, it is easy to make a potful of new friends with each Market! Below is a little collage of some friends, new and old! Not everyone is featured below because for some reason I didn't always have my camera (silly me!). But we still love you too!!

• A. Moda Fabrics featured 3 of our patterns in their booth this Market, Sweet Retreat's Little Sister, Leyvie Bag and Hot Pad Hot Bowl. Thanks Moda!
• B. Gayle Camarge from Shannon Fabrics is one of Sue's first Market friends! We are loving the Dr. Seuss Hat!
• C. Tristate Printing is where we get our pattern covers printed and we love the team. Richard Pflug Jr. and Jane Melville are a delight to work with!
• D. Lee Nakamoto from Accuquilt came to visit us in the booth. He can sew! Everyone at Accuquilt learns to sew when they start working there! We gave him a 'Color Me Mine' pattern to make for his 3 little girls!
• E. Kay Whitt, the charm and talent behind Serendipity Studio has been a Market friend for a few years and we can't get enough of her! 
• F. Hoffman Fabrics featured 3 of our patterns in their booth this Market, Sweet Retreat's Little Sister, Leyvie Bag and Mosaic de Mer. 
• G. Brewer Distributors displayed 2 of our patterns in their booth this Market, the Foofala Poofala and the Pooch Organizer.
• H. We have always been a fan of Buggy Barn! And now we have a direct link! Shayla's grandma, MaryEllen Laughary is working out there now! 
• I. Adam Goodson of Cheep Trims noticed his ric-rac on the aprons we were wearing and begged to wear one for the show! 
• J. RJR Fabrics has been distributing Sue's fabric for a long time! We love those guys! They were perfect neighbors to have for the show!

Not Pictured: Hillcreek Designs! I am not sure how I didn't get a single picture of these girls! We even went out to Pappasitos for dinner and margaritas one night! I must have been having too much fun to take pictures! These girls are the sweetest things and make adorable buttons! 

Quilt Market 2011 - 3

I have to admit that I was so completely entranced by Market that I didn't even make it to the Quilt Show until the very last day! But I am sure glad I did! There was some amazing work being featured! Below is a little collage of some of my favorites! It was a real treat! There are a few being featured on the Market Website and  the award winners were featured in 'International Quilt Festival: Quilt Scene Magazine.'

To Enlarge the photo click HERE

Quilt Market 2011 - 2

So this was my (Shayla, not Sue or Whistlepig) first time at Quilt Market. I have been told for years I would love it, and I sure did! It was a sensory overload. Colors and Creativity EVERYWHERE! When I would go out exploring I kept my camera locked and loaded in my hands! There was just an immense amount of stuff to see! Each time I would leave our booth I saw something new and fun! Below is a collage of some fun things I snapped pictures of while exploring.

to enlarge photo click HERE

Most of the booths I took photos of during Sample Spree ended up being the winners of Best Booth Awards! (I like to think I have good taste =P) Here are the booth winners:

Single Booth First Place: Jennifer Sampou

Single Booth Second Place: Valori Wells

Double Booth First Place: Lazy Daisy Cottage

Double Booth Second Place: Pat Bravo

Multiple Booth First Place: Alexander Henry

Multiple Booth Second Place: Anna Griffin

Best Merchandising Booth: Tina Givens

Best Creativity Booth: Jeanean Morrison

Best New Exhibitor Booth: Dear Stella

For pictures of all the winners and their booths check out the Quilt Market Facebook Page. They have a special album dedicated to this years winners. 

Winners!

Here are the winners of the Quiltmaker 100 Blocks Volume 4 Magazine Giveaway:

If your post is featured above, please email us your mailing information to blog@wpcreek.com and we will get these magazines in the mail as fast as possible!

Thank you to everyone who participated! Keep up on the Blog Hop! There is some amazing stuff out there!

Quilt Market 2011

Well it took a little while, but I have officially gone through ALL the pictures from Market! There are going to be a total of 4 post about Market. They are mostly collages of pictures. This is the first one! It mainly focuses on Whistlepig's Market! We had a blast! There were ups and downs but the good heavily out-weighed the bad! We had a blast! (Click Here to Enlarge Photo)

Some of the challenges included:

• Houston's awful traffic! Avoid being on the roads on week day between 4 and 8 PM! We were stuck in traffic for an hour and a half and on the way back it took 15 minutes! 
• Very little sleep. But this is expected! It is an exciting and hair pulling experience getting everything ready and where it should be! The little things keep you up at night.
• A large mass of electrical cords that we found in our booth! But instead of freaking out, we put the tables over them! =] Quick fix. 
• BROCHURES!!! We ran out of brochures! On the first reprint, the print ran out of toner.... so we were 50ish short on the third page! On the second reprint we mixed up which ones we need double of, so we ended up with a lot of one page and very few of the other! But we gave away EVERY SINGLE ONE! We are hoping that is a good sign! That as our biggest struggle, and if that is as bad as it gets.... we are doing well!
• Forgetting a few samples... oops.

Some of the highlights include:

• Dinner at Pappasitos with the Hillcreek Designs Ladies! We were given a free pitcher of Margaritas by a birthday group!
• Dinner at Maggianos with Jane & Richy from Tristate Printing and Heather & Elissa Willms from Hopscotch Quilts. Can't beat good food and good company!
• Dinner (are you seeing a trend =]) at the Post Oak Grill. Best food in Houston! Plus Ruben, the waiter was amazing! We will be going back and bringing all our friends!
• Meeting Adam Goodson from Cheep Trims who requested to wear one of our aprons! That was a hoot!
• Having the booth come together perfectly! No planning and no missing goods (except a few samples)! 
• Meeting Lee Nakamoto from Accuquilt. Such a nice and interesting man! He played professional soccer for 7 years and can quilt! 
• Getting to see all of our old friends and make many many more!
• And the BEST THING about market was seeing all the Whistlepig bags walking around! I will be doing features on each lady wearing a bag made from a WPC pattern later this week and into next week! It is a good feeling actually seeing what others have done with your patterns! Thanks to everyone!

All in all, We LOVED Fall Market! Stay tuned for more pictures and goodies!

100 Blocks Blog Tour

We were very excited when the Quiltmaker girls contacted us to create a block for their 100 Blocks Issue! In addition to the great collecter's issue, the Quiltmaker girls also do a fun blog tour for the designers. Some of the designers, us included, will do a special blog about our block (its below!!) and a giveaway for your very own copy of the magazine (enter below)! Sue designed a very versatile block featuring her 'Pound Hounds' line she designed for RJR Fabrics. This block creates a fun scrapbook-inspired frame around a panel. Here is the featured block!

Here is an example of how the block would look put together. Alternating the accent colored dot could add some complexity to the quick and easy block! 

Here are some mock-ups of additional color & character options! All of the example below feature lines of fabric designed y Sue Marsh for RJR Fabrics, but any panel or big print would look great!

Colorful 'Pound Hounds'

'Monsters In The Closet'

'Caterwauling Tales' Pink

'Caterwauling Tales' Purple 

We are doing a giveaway for a chance to get your very own free copy of the magazine! We have 5 issues to giveaway! It is super easy to enter! All you have to do is comment on this post. Please include your email address is in your message and make sure to get your comment in today! The cut off is November 8th at 12:00 AM MST. Comment away!!

Contest is Closed! Thanks for all the comments!

the 'Loot' !! You could win one! 

Now go check out the other Blogs and fun blocks on this Hop! It is always fun to see the inspiration behind the designs... Plus there will be other giveaways including a big one by Quiltmaker on the 'Quilty Pleasures' Blog! Enjoy!