Visit us at the International Spring Quilt Market in Salt Lake City, UT!

Spring Quilt Market is in Salt Lake City, Utah this year and FreeSpirit is excited to present our designer's newest collections that will begin shipping in the coming months. As always, we will be showcasing beautiful quilts, apparel, accessories and more featuring designs from your favorite fabric designers!

Our newest designer Juliana Horner, daughter of Anna Maria Horner, will be at the show presenting her first FreeSpirit collection, Fast Friends. And many of our designers are participating in the schoolhouse sessions - be sure to come to room 255E to hear them share all the details behind their newest collections. Featured speakers are Amy Butler, Anna Maria Horner, Joel Dewberry, Kathy Daughty, Tula Pink, and Juliana Horner.

We are honored to be a part of Tula Pink's 20th Collection celebration featuring 'Slow & Steady' shipping to stores in September of this year. The collection features Tula's favorite animal features, this time including the story of the 'Tortoise and the Hare'.  Keep an eye out in the coming weeks for more around this wonderful celebration and if you are lucky enough to be visiting us at Quilt Market be sure to swing by the our booth for a chance to win special bundles of Tula fabric!

Amy Butler and David Butler will be in their own booth, #2717, located near the FreeSpirit booth. Amy is hosting a book signing on Friday May 20th at 2:00pm for her newest book 'Piece Keeping' as well as Blossom.

Be sure to visit our booth (2701 & 2709) for more details on everything you've read about here. And, if you can't make it Market, don't worry, we will be sharing pictures on social media so you can feel like you're a part of all the fun!

International Quilt Market 2015

Despite the wet weather in Houston last week we had a great time at the fall International Quilt Market! Even Hurricane Patricia couldn't keep everyone away from their love of quilting and fabric! The FreeSpirit booth was on full display with our designers' upcoming collections, showcasing their wildly different and creative personalities!

Schoolhouses were the start to a successful show with presentations from Denyse Schmidt, Anna Maria Horner, Jane Sassaman, Tula Pink, Kaffe Fassett and our newest designer, Kathy Doughty! They each spoke about their newest collections and showed what they've been busy making with the fabric. The crowds were obviously excited to see all the new lines!

The floor opened on Saturday and continued into Monday where we sat and spoke with quilt shops, magazine editors and bloggers to discuss what they will offer from FreeSpirit. Tula Pink, Anna Maria Horner, Tim Holtz and Kaffe Fassett all entertained visitors in their booths which were situated next to FreeSpirit's. We hope those of you who attended had a fun and successful market! We look forward to Spring's market in Salt Lake City! See you all there!

Mr. February, Parson Gray

Editor's Note: This is the second installment of our Designer Guest Blog series.  Each month in 2012 we will feature an artist, followed by a tutorial and then a giveaway. Mr. February is Parson Gray introduced at October Quilt Market. His fabrics offer a masculine edge yet appeal to anyone looking for a modern touch. Curious Nature by Parson Gray in 24 cotton and 12 cotton sateen fabrics will hit the stores this month.  Let the creativity, and man cave decorating, begin!


Hello all! Getting excited as the Curious Nature fabric (for FreeSpirit) line ships out this month. Much to do! I have some models lined up and I'm getting prepped for a photo shoot that will be taking place in mid-February. When I'm not working on my prints, graphic design or photography for Amy Butler (by the way, in case you did not know I am Amy's husband), I am busy with my band - Black Owls. We're planning some touring dates for 2012 and the release of a new double album as well. Phew.

As this is my first fabric line, it's been pretty exciting to develop ideas to "show it off." I'm not a fantastic sewer, I must admit. I'm fair. But I love coming up with ideas from the edges of craft. I knew I wanted to do some 'guy friendly' projects. I'm heavy into music and the great outdoors, so I'm always thinking from that perspective.

I went to my local army surplus store and I found the coolest hardware and cording, grommets, bags, straps and duffles. This kind of set me to thinking about how I could integrate my fabrics with some of these heavier canvases and hardware to make some great gifts for guys. My prints are not "dude specific" by any means, and I've heard from a lot of women who are excited to have this new kind of palette and print in their quiver.

But I am a guy, and I think like a guy. So I made up a few laundry duffles for my nephews in college, and am working on some simple throws, ties and other cool and easy projects like bandannas, scarves and pillows. Tons of people came up to me at Fall Quilt Market and requested laminates, which are coming out this year (available in May)! I can see messenger bags, ditty bags, cases for phones and glasses, that kind of thing.

I think it's a bit interesting for a lot of folks, that I would come out from behind the curtain (working with the amazing Amy Butler!) and create this line. Amy's always been so great about thinking way outside the lines, and it's served us both very well. Curiosity. Never lose it! We're both always trying new ideas and directions and we're not afraid to take some risks. Fresh perspective feeds our soul, and it's that constant thirst for knowledge and experimentation that keeps us motivated to get out there and make our art. We have different styles that work very, very well together.



Make this Curious Nature Quilt

If you're reading this then you're aware of how FreeSpirit really gives creative wing to its artists. We get to create the visions that we hold close. I look at it like I'm simply making a big box of crayons for YOU to color with. I'm creating the 'raw materials' for a much greater vision - YOURS. So dig in! Cheers,
David

To Market, To Market

Phew! Another Spring International Quilt Market has come and gone and we are certain you are going to love, love, love the fabrics we have created with our Designer's. This market found some of your favorite designers introducing new substrates, new designs, new Lifestyle products plus new patterns and books. So much newness, you will be overwhelmingly inspired to sew, quilt, organize and hand stitch everything you own.

For instance, Anna Maria Horner introduced her LouLouthi line. Greek for the name flower, LouLouthi includes cottons, voiles, laminates and her special new needlework (printed cross stitch) fabric. To go along with these gorgeous fabrics whose colorways are named after her daughters, are her four collections of hand-picked colors of size 8 Anchor Pearl Cottons and six-strand Anchor embroidery flosses as well as fabric covered sewing and lifestyle covered craft boxes. Edging all of this, were spools of LouLouthi single-fold bias binding in 1 1/8" and 2 1/4" widths, perfect for easily binding a quilt or edging any sewing project. All these new products deserved a celebration . . . cupcakes iced in the perfect LouLouthi colors, of course.







Leaping into our hearts, and almost certain yours is Tula Pink's Prince Charming. Now you don't have to kiss a lot of frogs to find your true Prince Charming,Tula has done that for you. Do, though, look for Tula's signature hidden surprises in her new collection. By the way, Tula's booth won an award for best decorated single booth.

Verna Mosquera's Tea Cakes created the perfect tea party atmosphere. Complete with cupcake pin cushions and appliqued candy canes and sweet treats, Tea Cakes will give you that feminine touch.

Valori Wells once again wows us with her Wrenly Collection. Showing these cottons, sateens and voiles in a comfy suite-like setting, you'll love the clean bold prints and all over florals. Wrenly is also great for combining with Val's linen collection Jenaveve.

New FreeSpirit designer Mark Cesarik enlisted Etsy sewers to create a special occassion dress as well as children's clothing, purses, tote bags and more to display in Calypso Swing fabricated booth. Mark also introduced a second collection Morning Tides due out in July.

Rowan designer Amy Butler brought new popular Soul Blossom collection to market in some gorgeous new substrates; rayon, corduroy, voile and organic cotton. Each of these new substrates are incredibly soft, including the corduroy, perfect for clothing or a summer quilt.

Joel and Laurie Dewberry were on hand to introduce Joel's new Heirloom collection, available in cotton, sateen, laminate and voile. Laurie designed fashionable patterns to accompany this beautiful collection which is Joel's take on his mother's, famous crafter Donna Dewberry, signature flower, the cabbage rose.

Also on hand to promote their fabrics where Jennifer Paganelli who also launched her new book A Girl's world; Erin McMorris with her colorful Summersault fabrics and Jenenean Morrison's retro-looking Silent Cinema.

Pernilla's Journey from Tina Givens was introduced. Featuing whimsical sea horses and child like elephants, Tina's new cotton and linen collection was inspired by a story book she used to read over and over when she was a child.

Heather Bailey introduced a new substrate, canvas, in her Garden District collection. The canvas is a nice weight suitable for home dec projects. Also in sateen, Garden District will be available in August.

But that's not all. George Mendoza's Color of the Wind, Nel Whatmore's Sleeping Beauty, Jazz City from Art of Possibilities, Dena Fishbein's Taza, Donna Dewberry's Glorious Garden plus two Holiday collections; Kathy Davis Ambrosia and Dena Fishbein's Kumari Holiday were some of the other collections seen on fabric for the first time at Market.

Rounding out these awesome collections were a plethora of finished products including Designer Essential fabric bundles and Ty Pennington Impressions fabric kits, panels and lifestyle fabric covered boxes.

It was a hetic but very exciting three days and we wish all of you could have been there to meet our designers, shop the show and just have plain old quilting fun!

More from Houston Quilt Market

Jane Sassaman's booth

Jane Sassman herself showing off her great booth!

These are some of her new patterns she had displayed. Don't you love the tea cozy?

Loved her black mannequins. She added black skirts to all of them which was a great touch.

Anna Maria Horner's booth

Don't you love the new substrates? She showed many ways you could use the voile and dobby prints.

Most of the booth in this shot. Oh how pretty

Heather Bailey's booth. These are one of her new patterns. How cute!

Everyone was obsessed with this dress at market and there was a unanimous vote that this should be a new pattern from Heather!

'Clothes Line' in the booth!

Very inviting booth!

Hey everyone! Now that we are back from quilt market, we have lots to share! We want to hear all about your opinions, likes/dislikes as well! All of our pictures will take a few posts so make sure to stop back by for more eye candy! Also, some of the pictures are not the best quality so we apologize in advance!

Are you as obsessed with this chair as much as we are?? Let's just say we were trying to slip it in to the Westminster Fibers crates to take home but we could not get it past Kaffe.

Heather Bailey showing off her new collection, Nicey Jane. Did we mention she won best booth? More pictures of her goodies to come.

Mrs. Anna Maria Horner! A great booth with inspiring ideas and exciting new substrates.

Juliana and Allie, two of Anna's helpers. Juliana, on the left, is Anna's oldest child and Allie works for Anna. Two great girls that were an awesome help to Anna during the show.

This is Ketra who works with Art of Possibility. A great lady and sported some great outfits from the new Wise Tree collection.

Amy Butler (a little fuzzy) who had an amazing booth! She is wearing one of her newest patterns made out of her new collection Love. More to come!

The Westminster Fibers Finished Product booth with lots of new products coming out soon. If you go to the TrueUp blog here they are giving away a Finished Product kaffe bag until next Wednesday, the 28th that could be yours! So get over there and enter!