Mariner's Compass

Shedding Some Pounds

2012-01-04T15:24:00.001-05:00

It's not what you think! It's better. While arranging and fixing in our after holiday blitz we came across thousands of 5" charm squares. So.... we've packaged them up in one pound bundles. Each bundle has approximately 200 assorted charms. Some repeats but not many. Mix of regular and batik fabrics. There is a limited supply of these and at only $9.99 they won't last long. We also have a limited number of batik scraps in one pound bags for only $5.99. Don't wait for these great deals!

Sit 'n Sew 2012

2012-01-03T19:50:00.000-05:00

We hope you can join us this Thursday for the first meeting of our 2012 Sit 'n Sew quilt! We always meet on the first Thursday of the month and this year are making a beautiful quilt called "On Point" by Bits 'n Pieces.
This is a 9-month BOM program. During months 1-7 we'll make 2 blocks per month. Month 8 is dedicated to the center which can be pieced or appliqued. Month 9 is finishing.
Here's what you should bring to our first session:
Block piecing: A wide variety of fabrics to total about 6 yards. Fat quarters, scraps or yardage will do. The more the merrier!
Background: 2 yards (can be scrappy too).
You will also need fabrics for setting triangles, frames and borders, but don't worry about them now.
This first meeting will be mostly organizational, I don't anticipate actually sewing or even cutting until the February meeting. We'll take it easy and have fun with this one. No special rulers, just plain old cutting and sewing!
Check the class calendar on the website for dates if you need them.
The one time $40 fee covers class times for the entire year and your pattern pack.
See you Thursday!

deva's discount daze

2011-12-29T11:55:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is the last day of deva's discount daze and our last business day of 2011! All of our regularly priced fabrics are now only $7.95/yard, through tomorrow at 5pm. We hope to see you soon and again in the new year!
We will be closed Saturday 12/31/11 and will reopen for business on 1/3/12.
Happy New Year!

Make it Today and Gift it Tomorrow!

2011-12-06T12:49:00.000-05:00

You have plenty of time to start and finish these projects for holiday giving. We've picked great little items that work well for hostess gifts, teachers, quilty friends, or anyone!

The Candle Cradle - a customer favorite! The prairie points cradle your candle!
$5 pattern and 3 fat quarters.

This great holiday themed apron comes printed on a panel. I recommend wearing it up and down and not sideways like this photo. $10.99 panel. We also used a coordinating 1 yard lining.

Tree shaped coctail napkins are a big hit at parties!
$2.50 pattern and 2 fat quarters!

We love Valori Wells when it comes to small projects!
The Cell Phone Wallet and Little Wallet can be made in minutes! Great to put gift cards in.
Cell pattern is $5 and 2 FQ. Little Wallet is $3 and scraps or fat eighths.

Simply Ho Ho Ho pattern includes directions for these great draw string bags, a tablerunner and small quilt.
$10 pattern and 2 FQ for the bags.

It's never too late to start on homemade gifts. Keep watching the blog and Facebook for more ideas!

WonderFil is WonderFul!

2011-11-29T16:17:00.000-05:00

It's here, it's here! The new beautiful thread from WonderFil is here and available! Stop by today to see this great new product. All cotton threads available in 50-wt all purpose Konfetti and 12-wt Spaghetti.

Stackable Button Wool Ornaments

2011-11-25T16:37:00.001-05:00

Can't make it to our Advent Workshop tomorrow? No problem! Call the shop to order your kit for $4.99 (includes shipping). Or order three for only $10.99 and free shipping! Let us choose a style.

2011 Top Ten Gift List

2011-11-23T10:42:00.000-05:00

Stop by the shop today to pick up your copy of our Top Ten Gift Suggestions! Our two-listed handout includes our suggestions and a place for you to list your own! Simply hand it off to your elf, have them bring it it and we'll help put it all together. We'll even wrap it all!
Here we go...
10. Replacement blades and machine needles
9. Sewline Marking Tools
8. Quilting Calendar
7. Charm Pack, Jelly Roll, Bali Pop, Tonga Treat
6. Ten Spool Wrapped Thread Pack (a great value)
5. Mighty Travel Iron (#1 on my list!)
4. Five Yard Wrapped Bundle
3. Bendable Bright Light LED for Machine
2. Gift Certificate ($100 or more gets an additional $10 from us!)
1. APQS Longarm Quilting Machine (c'mon, you know you want one!)
We also have lots of fun stocking stuffer ideas and small gifties for your quilting friends. Hope to see you soon!

Ooh Ribbon!

2011-11-17T15:01:00.001-05:00

Here are the new ribbons we just brought in. Yummy! The cotton grosgrain is absolutely beautiful And soft as soft can be.

Sweet and Sassy

2011-10-29T22:17:00.001-04:00

Our class today was super duper fun and even better since the teacher is an old friend! Phyllis (now PJ) Anderson had a quilt shop and did shows for many years. Now she's designing, has written a quilting book, created a set of templates for Creative Grids and a new fabric line. We created this small quilt using her Sweet and Sassy templates. AWESOME! In the photo Marcia is pointing to one of the 3 templates from the set that created the 4-patch diamonds. This will definitely be a class at the shop so stay tuned!

Sample Spree

2011-10-28T23:29:00.001-04:00

Well...we didn't attend as many schoolhouse sessions as usual, but are happy with what we learned. Our photo shows our haul from SS. Originally, SS was meant as a way for shop owners to purchase finished samples and not have to make one. That's exactly what we did tonight. See anything you like?
Some folks down the hall at the hotel had to use a luggage cart to drag all their stuff to their room. And we thought our 5 bags was bad!

A Wee Bit Askew...

2011-10-28T18:12:00.001-04:00

Here are photos of mom's little quilt and the handout we got at the Timeless Treasures schoolhouse session.

The Greatest Show on Earth

2011-10-27T22:18:00.001-04:00

There are many folks out there who will argue that Ringling Brothers is the greatest show on earth. And on any normal day I would agree. But during the last week of October the greatest show is International Quilt Market in Houston, Texas. Starting tomorrow we'll post the rules for our annual market contest both here and on Facebook. If you haven't already liked our page, now would be a good time!

Backroads Part 2

2011-10-23T09:43:00.001-04:00

Here's a photo of the Backroads Quilters raffle quilt. I'll let you know if I win!

Backroads Quilters

2011-10-22T10:40:00.001-04:00

Today is the first of a two day quilt show in West Gardiner hosted by the local guild, The Backroads Quilters.
Here's a pic of our booth. Tomorrow I'll show their raffle quilt.

My 2nd favorite place...

2011-10-15T13:35:00.001-04:00

I was invited to teach for the Friends and Needles quilt guild this weekend in Houlton, Maine. The County is one of my favorite places for many reasons. We used the Square Me Up ruler to make half square triangles. A great technique, great class, great girls and a great time!

Stamping Away the Weekend

2011-10-01T15:35:00.001-04:00

We're having a blast paper crafting this weekend. Here are some photos of what we've done. The photo of all the cards are the ones we're donating to the Cancer Treatment Center in South Portland. Also our table center and the craft block pumpkins. Fun!

WOW!

2011-09-30T10:50:00.001-04:00

There is no better description for this amazing quilt. Machine appliqued by Ruth G from Bath. She used a pattern in a book of William Morris designs. Awesome!

Lazy...

2011-09-24T14:41:00.001-04:00

We're lazy and loving it today at MCQS! Take a look at the blocks our class made today using the Lazy Angle Ruler. Fun!

Our ever helpful Mirabelle.

2011-09-08T14:21:00.001-04:00

Here's Mirabelle helping apply a binding. Isn't she funny?

Celebrity Sighting

2011-08-21T14:03:00.001-04:00

Just look who showed up in Houlton and tried out Lenni!

Houlton Friends and Needles Annual Quilt Show

2011-08-19T15:07:00.001-04:00

Here are some photos of our Booth and the other shops here.
Mariner's Compass in Bath
The Fabric Garden in Madison
Garden Gate Fabrics in Chapman
Stitches Fabric and Yarn in Newport
Rather 'B Quilting in Hodgdon

Rooftop Garden

2011-08-17T18:04:00.001-04:00

This new fabric is just in at MCQS. Its beautiful! Charm packs and coordinates available now.

Mysterious

2011-08-13T13:53:00.001-04:00

Maybe Mirabelle actually knows the solution to today's mystery quilt pattern but I doubt it! Here she is in Peggy's fabric strips!

Sapphire

2011-08-03T11:28:00.001-04:00

This new line from Clothworks is so yummy! The photo only shows part of this 15 piece group and the rest are just as fun. I've got a sample all picked out using my new favorite Lazy Angle Ruler!

Maine Quilts Shop Hop Exhibit

2011-07-30T14:28:00.001-04:00

Here's a photo of part of the exhibit showing all the samples from the State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop.

More quilts...

2011-07-29T17:08:00.001-04:00

Two of our customers and machine quilters scored "honorable mention" ribbons for their work. Juliana Cliffe's "Silver Celebration Three Generations" was half hand quilted by Juliana and machine quilted by Barbara Belanger. Marty Helman's "Grandad's Garden" was machine quilted by Marcia O'Donnell. Here's a peek.

Best of Show at Maine Quilts

2011-07-29T15:39:00.001-04:00

Here's a pic of the winning quilt this year. "Cartoline da Venezia" was created by Margaret Gunn from Gorham! Amazing machine quilting.

Maine Quilts Champagne Preview

2011-07-28T18:58:00.001-04:00

We open in 7 minutes for the official opening of Maine Quilts 2011. Here's a peek at our booth.

Maine Quilts 2011

2011-07-26T09:10:00.000-04:00

It's that time of year again! The Pine Tree Quilter's Guild will once again host their annual quilt show at the August Civic Center this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Visit http://www.mainequilts.org/ for all the details.

APQS & MCQS at Maine Quilts 2011!

Don't miss this great show. Marcia O'Donnell will be available with all the APQS machines - Millennium, Freedom, Lenni and George (and great deals on all of them!). Her booth is just inside the auditorium doors to the left. Amanda and both Molly's will be in the MCQS booth featuring new samples, kits, fabrics, notions, patterns and more. Our booth is in the same location it's been since we started at Maine Quilts - left side of the auditorium, right in the middle. Maine Quilts is a fun weekend and a great place to see good friends. Will we see you?

The Grouchy Ladybug

2011-07-22T14:54:00.000-04:00

This new fabric line featuring characters from Eric Carle's classic books is in the house! We just received the Grouchy Ladybug from Andover Fabrics and it is adorable! The pattern is for a "big kid bed" which I guessed to be a twin-ish quilt. This is just adorable and will be a fun sample to make. Look for it after the quilt show next weekend. Hope to see you there! Visit http://www.mainequilts.org/ for more information!

Block of the Month 2012

2011-07-19T19:54:00.000-04:00

Starting in January 2012 MCQS will host the Cotton Club BOM program from Bonnie Blue Quilts and Marcus Brothers Fabrics. If you've already seen this advertised, it's because most retailers are starting their programs in September 2011. Since we're already hosting so many BOM programs, we decided to wait until January and Marcus was kind enough to support that decision! See the image below for a complete view of the quilt (which, by the way, doesn't do the fabrics justice). Stop by to see the sample in progress! The blocks are 5" finished and super fun to sew. I'm having a blast! The 12-month program will include all the patterns and fabrics to make the 78" x 83" quilt as you see it in the image for only $23.99 per month. I am finalizing details for a monthly demo morning and workday for club members and Bonnie Blue will be providing us with monthly bonus projects available for attendees. There is a list already started of folks who have enrolled and if you'd like to add your name, just give us a jingle!

Holiday House Party

2011-06-28T14:08:00.000-04:00

On Saturday we celebrated Christmas early and started the six month countdown! Now is the time to start on the holiday projects. If you didn't have a chance to come down before, stop by now to see all the 2011 Holiday fabrics on display in our classroom. Get a sneak peek in the photo below and we hope to see you soon!

"Flurry" by Kate Spain for Moda. Free pattern sheet.

Who Knew?

2011-06-22T13:33:00.000-04:00

This morning we had a revelation when we came into work. Did you know that the City of Bath has a recognized group of sewers? They even have a vehicle! The only problem was, when we asked them in to quilt with us, their stitching was really stinky.

Huh.

Turns out they are the City sewer people. As in poopy. Like wastewater. No wonder their quilting was crappy. Hee hee hee!

Fun with the fabrics!

2011-05-27T11:08:00.000-04:00

This past Tuesday and Wednesday we got to meet with two of our favorite sales reps - Sandy Kamins and Julie Manning. Their company, JM Fabric Sales represents very many of the fabric companies that we carry. They are fun girls and since they were both "buyers" in their former jobs, they know what it's like to be me when it's time to shop for fabrics.
So, we ordered new batiks, fun prints and a new block-of-the-month program to start in January 2012. We'll have a sample by fall and will take sign-ups then. In the meanwhile, we're receiving new fabrics almost daily and are workin hard to get ready for our Christmas in June event on June 25th. Hope to see you soon!

New fabrics, same cat!

2011-05-19T12:42:00.000-04:00

Mirabelle seems to like these new fabrics! Sweet Sixteen is a beautiful combo group of cotton prints and batiks designed by Edyta Sitar for Moda. Ella is a gorgeous black country floral designed by Kathy Brown (she designed the "Take 5" pattern) for Red Rooster. Stop by soon to see these great fabrics!

Spring has Sprung at MCQS

2011-05-18T14:27:00.000-04:00

So, updating the blog clearly isn't my forte. But since finding the fun little button that automatically uploads this post to facebook should make it easier! It also helps to remember your login and password to actually get to the blog! So all those items aside, we're preparing for a great late spring and summer here at MCQS. We hope you'll be able to join us and five of your other favorite quilt shops on June 3, 4, 5 for the Spring into Summer Shop Hop. Prizes include a Janome sewing machine, $300 in Gift Certificates, $150 in Gift Certificates plus a $25 Gift Certificate door prize drawing at each shop, each day! The passports are available at any participating shop for $7.50 and you get a fabulous insulated tote bag as a sign up gift! Click the link to the left to get to the hop facebook page and like us to get automatic updates!

New Pre-Quilted Fabrics

2010-12-10T09:32:00.000-05:00

We just received an order of pre-quilted fabrics and already have 3 samples to show you! We used Quick Casserole Cover by Legacy Patterns, the Three Pocket Tote by Quilt Company and The Sebago Tote by Aunties Two to make these quick projects (shown left to right below). Seriously, any of these could still be started and finished in time for the holidays. Don't forget our adopted holiday family and our wrapping party for their gifts on Friday night December 17th! See you soon!

Our Christmas Family

2010-12-08T12:51:00.000-05:00

This year will be our second opportunity to help a local family have a nice Christmas holiday. Our family was contacted by the local elementary school and asked if they would be interested in having a little help. The father they spoke with was very emotional and appreciative.
Our family is a hardworking mom and dad, a 6-year old boy, and 11-year old boy and a kitty.
The items on the wish lists provided to us by the parents are listed individually on ornaments hanging on our shop Christmas tree. If you'd like to purchase one of the items, stop by and choose an ornament. If you'd like to send us a donation to go towards the purchase of the items, please send it to the shop (190 Front Street, Bath, ME 04530). The parents did not give us any suggestions for themselves, so we're going to be creative! And we won't forget the kitty.
If you are able to help us, please choose and bring back your gift by Friday 12/17. We'll be wrapping all the gifts on Friday night (all local businesses will be open until 8PM). You're invited to join us for an evening of wrapping, food and holiday cheer!

Festival of Trees

2010-12-07T15:12:00.000-05:00

Today is the opening of the YMCA fundraiser, the Festival of Trees. The festival is held this year at the Sewall House on Washington Street in Bath and the house is bursting at the seams with decorated Christmas trees! Each tree has been "sponsored" and decorated by a local business or non-profit organization. Our shop decorated the dining room mantle with quilted and paper crafted items.
The theme this year is "A Deep Blue Christmas."

The Gala reception is Wednesday night from 6-8pm and the $25 tickets can be purchased at the YMCA and various downtown locations. Thanks for supporting the YMCA!

Tip of the Day Tuesday

2010-11-30T16:15:00.000-05:00

Here's another great tip from the MCQS brain!
Ever have the ucky gunk on the soleplate of your iron? If it's not taken care of, you can actually ruin projects by continuing to iron with the gunk. Here are some suggestions:

* Use a teflon Applique Pressing Sheet over items that you're ironing that may have fusibles to prevent the sticky from even coming in contact with your iron.
*OR - use kitchen parchment paper or a thin towel as a cost saving measure.

* If the gunk appears anyway, use a product we recommend called Iron Clean, which is formulated specifically to remove the gunk. It's a sheet that you place on top of a paper towel and simply iron the gunk away.
* OR - use a fabric softener dryer sheet in the same manner as above for a cost saving measure.

Remember, every penny saved is fabric earned!

Amanda's Other Hobby

2010-11-26T11:15:00.000-05:00

Most of you probably don't know that in addition to all the sewing and crafty things I love, I LOVE to cook! My whole family looked at me funny 2 weeks ago when I announced that I wanted to cook the Thanksgiving meal. But what a meal it was! Grilled turkey (yes, the whole turkey in a pan on the grill), sweet potatoes complete with marshmallows, Grandma's corn casserole, Aunt Kimmie's green beans, Grandma's orange jello salad, frozen cranberry salad (that thaws in the bowl while you're putting everything else on the table), rolls, stuffing muffins (what a hoot they were to make!), pumpkin pie and shoofly pie. A tradtional Pennsylvania Dutch Thankgiving Dinner! From our family to yours, Happy Holidays!

Tip-of-the-Day Tuesday

2010-11-23T15:16:00.000-05:00

Tired of your cutting ruler slipping around on you while you're cutting? Instead of spending hard earned fabric money on tools to help with cutting, simply use your leftover small pieces of fusible webbing!
You know you have lots of small pieces of Steam-a-Seam fusible webbing leftover from your fusible applique projects, so simply peel off the paper and stick it to the wrong side of your ruler. Webbing won't harm your fabric or your ruler and will keep your ruler nice and secure while you cut.

Small Business Saturday

2010-11-19T09:46:00.000-05:00

This year, the retail world will be promoting the world of independent businesses with Small Business Saturday. Shop locally on Saturday November 27th to be part of the wave! We'll have some special deals on Black Friday and Small Business Saturday so stayed tuned.

Our Top 10 Quilting Gifts list is now available as well as a wish list that you can fill out for the elf in your life. Stop by to pick one up today! You elf will receive a special coupon towards purchases made for you!

We have an exclusive item on our gift list - Stocking Stuffer Assortments! Perfect for quilting friends, people just getting in to sewing, and for all of us who know that we have those notions in a very safe place but can't remember the place!

Three different assortments priced at $15, $25 and $35.

Assortment 1 includes a seam ripper, tape measure, machine needles, thread and scissors.
Assortment 2 includes all of the above plus a rotary cutter and a charm pattern.
Assortment 3 includes all of the above plus a charm pack and hand sewing needles.

Hope to see you soon!

Back to the Blog

2010-11-18T11:21:00.003-05:00

Let us know what you think of the new format here and tell your Facebook friends to follow the blog in addition to liking us on Facebook. Stay tuned for more frequent posts - it's a goal for me!

Ah, the Joys of Marketing

2010-05-22T22:00:00.002-04:00

Quilt Marketing, that is!
What a whirlwind it's been! We spent all day Friday walking through the vendors from aisle 1100 through aisle 2900. Not sure about the total number of vendors, but we'll just say it's a lot. I had already purchased a few things at Sample Spree on Thursday night, so we went onto the market floor with fresh eyes, ready for everything.
Here's the word from market this time: APPLIQUE! There are so many fun things I'm going to share, but for me the summary of this market is applique. Cotton, wool, cotton AND wool together and an exciting block of the month for a wonderful cause.
So, here's a summary of the things we found (some are repeats from the last post):
The Twister - an awesome technique using an awesome ruler to make funky pinwheels;
Crazy Curves - also awesome rulers for cutting and sewing curved blocks;
ZIPPERS - This is so awesome you'll have to see the NEW 36 COLORS in the shop when we get home and all the new little bag patterns we've got to go with them;
Bali Pop Patterns - new for placemats/tablerunners and 2 full size quilts;
Double Stitch - this is actually a very old hand sewing technique from Appalachia;
Fabric Crochet Rugs - an easy, user friendly pattern for quilters who don't already crochet;
MYSTERIES - 3 brand new mysteries from Debbie Caffrey;
NEW PATTERNS - new from our favorite designers GE Designs, Atkinson, Debbie's Creative Moments, Quilt Moments (kaleidoscope), Marlous Designs (bags), Teacher's Pet (Take 5) and more!
And so many other great things that if my brain wasn't totally fried, I'm sure I could remember.
So, prepare yourselves for some fun new classes, MCQS-U sessions and demos to come in the next few weeks and months. ALSO we picked up great things that you won't get to see or hear about until our Christmas in June Open House on Saturday 6/19/2010, so make sure you've got your calendar marked!
Tomorrow is Wendy's book signing for Zero, Zilch, Nada - Counting to None, her third children's book, at the Red Balloon in St. Paul. Visit mom's blog next week for info about her books and ways to have her visit an elementary school near you.
More to come tomorrow!

To Market, To Market (a fun contest)!

2010-05-21T07:15:00.003-04:00

So, we're psyched to be here and run this fun little contest again! We'll offer 2 drawings this time, each for a market gift. One will be drawn from the comments made to the blog posts today (Friday), Saturday and Sunday. The other drawing will be from comments left on our Facebook page. This means you can enter both if you use both programs. ALSO, don't forget that we'll have a third drawing of all our Facebook fans, once we reach 100 fans! Just leave a comment to enter the drawings. One comment, per post, per person, per program, per day.

Yesterday we attended Schoolhouse -the day-long cram session of 30-minute presentations made by designers, fabric companies, authors and famous folk. It's a really big shameless self promotion event (which you all know I think is the best way to build business!). After 12 sessions our brains were pretty well fried. But we learned and saw some great things including: a new "double stitch" technique to make it look like you handquilted your project; new ethnic fabrics and a contact with folks who produce fabrics in New Zealand; Eleanor Burns' new book featuring Barn Quilts and her son wearing a flying pig outfit (seriously); Valori Wells' new fabrics from Westminster called Nest; a new book from the woman who designed the 4-Patch Kaleidoscope technique and a block of the month to go with; new charm patterns from This & That and a new BOM; a GORGEOUS applique BOM done with Island Batiks-maybe it's time to bring our shop into the age of applique; and more, but I'd have to find my notes and everyone is still asleep...

After Schoolhouse, we sat in line, on a cold, hard floor for 2 1/2 hours waiting for Sample Spree. Imagine the release of the Cabbage Patch Kids and Macy's $99 Wedding Dress Sale all with a quilting twist. MAYHEM. People are crazy! And how, with no prior info, can everyone know where the Moda booth is? So, Sample Spree is a way for the vendors to get a jump start on their sales and offer their latest and greatest at a better deal than they will offer on the show floor. We found new fabrics by Paula Nadelstern, fun holiday embroideries, an awesome quilt-as-you-go batik tablerunner/placemat pattern and already made sample (woohoo!), wonderful bitty bag patterns with AMAZING ZIPPERS that anyone can use (I promise), and more.

So today we're off to walk the floor. Over 2000 booths to see. We'll do our recon mission today, make notes and then make purchases tomorrow. I'll also be attending a buyer's meeting with Timeless Treasures tomorrow and an appointment with our Moda rep.

Here's the best thing I learned yesterday...My customers perceive my shop differently than I do. Shop owners need to take time to step back and pretend to be a customer. And if you're a scrapbooking store, it's really important that the S in your sign is always lit!
I'll report back later tonight with our findings!

Back from MQX!

2010-04-21T12:22:00.002-04:00

Howdy folks!
We're back from MQX in Providence and are getting back into the groove. I can't believe how many shop hoppers there have been! We've already passed the total number of hoppers from 2009.
The quilts on display in Providence were absolutely beautiful and amazing. We're super proud that the quilt that won best of show was done on an APQS Millennium! Visit APQS to learn about the new Bliss System, a fabulous upgrade to the tables and wheels for Millennium and Freedom SR Machines.
We had planned on updating everyone on our travels while we were in Providence, but the internet in the hotel was Wi but not Fi. Can you imagine? I am too frugal to pay $10 a day for internet...
Anyway, we're back now and loooking forward to Leslie Muir-Volpe's class this weekend, Basics of Miniature Quiltmaking. Not signed up? We can squeeze a couple more, or stay tuned for her next class scheduled in June.
Our adventures in May will include a trip to Houlton to teach a 4-Patch Kaleidoscope class to the girls from the Friends and Needles Quilt Guild and then to Minneapolis for Spring Quilt Market. Thanks for following - more photos next time of the newest fabrics and classes!

Be an MCQS fan!

2010-04-06T14:05:00.004-04:00

You can now join in the MCQS fun by becoming a fan on our Facebook page! This is a great way to get fast updates on new arrivals and classes. We have a full schedule of classes and events that you can view on the website. Stop by the shop to see class samples and pick up a calendar of your own! Check out these new fabrics that have just arrived.

Martinique from Moda

Harvest Town from Red Rooster

Watch for our next post with new fabric photos and a new quilt using Olivia from Red Rooster!

Don't forget that April is the only month when you can participate in the 7th Annual State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop! Visit the hop website for all the details and to download your passport today!

It's Shop Hop Time Again!

2010-04-01T10:56:00.003-04:00

I can't believe that it's already April 1st! Now is the time to begin hopping! Visit the official Shop Hop Website to download your passport and get all the info you need about hopping. Many thanks to Kala and Celia at the Fabric Garden in Madison for all their hard work on the 2010 hop - please be sure to thank them when you hop to their store.

Our shop quilt, Hop Around the Kaleidoscope was made using a fun 4-patch kaleidoscope technique (watch for a class at MCQS later this summer). Marcia O'Donnell quilted our sample using her APQS Millennium longarm quilting machine.

We're looking forward to seeing you all this month and hope you enjoy this year's hop.

Happy Hopping!

Snow again!

2010-02-16T14:14:00.002-05:00

So, let's be safe and not sorry! We've re-scheduled our Tuesday night clubs to next week. The Winter Sampler at 5PM, Stash Pot Pie at 5:30 and the Bath Quilt Club at 6PM. If you can join us for those events next week, that will be great. If you've joined the sampler and SPP and can't make it next week, call me, or stop by and we'll get you squared away. Try to come before the end of February so you have enough time to complete your items for the March meetings (which are 3/16).

Coming right up:
MCQS-U 106 Hand Embroidery, Saturday 1/20 at 10:30
Stamp-a-Stack with Molly B., Saturday 1/20 at 12:30
MCQS-U 110 Last Minute Tablerunner, Saturday 1/27 at 10:30

Join our Triangle Exchange program today and make fun half square triangle units to exchange! Make something with your new triangles for us to display! Stop by today for the details.

Stay safe and hope to see you soon!

$910 for Haiti Relief!

2010-01-26T09:30:00.003-05:00

After a week's collecting, we've totalled up $910 in donations! Thank you for your generous support. In the next few weeks we'll have information about a couple of sew-ins, hosted by one of our customers, to make baby and toddler blankets that will get sent to a specific orphanage in Haiti. We all saw the moving images of those lucky babies coming home to their American families. That joy here is equal to the sorrow remaining in Haiti as many more children have now become orphans.
Our two recipients of the donations we collected are the American Red Cross Haiti Relief and Development Fund and the Kombit Sante Earthquake Response Fund. If you haven't already made a donation we encourage you to support one of these organizations.

American Red Cross of Southern Maine
2401 Congress Street-Portland, Maine 04102
Be sure to put "Haiti Relief and Development Fund" and the Code # AP2885 in the memo.

Kombit Sante Earthquake Response Fund
P.O. Box 11281 - Portland, Maine 04104
Put Earthquake Response Fund in the memo

Thank you!

Haiti Support at MCQS

2010-01-19T09:26:00.002-05:00

Thanks to everyone who has donated so far! We've already collected over $400 in just two days. Make your donation at MCQS today and we'll thank you with 10%, 20% or 40% off your purchase! One time per quilter, but feel free to donate as much as you like. Our donations will be pooled into one bank check and sent to the American Red Cross, speifically memo-ed for Haiti relief. We also have a customer working on arranging a program to send quilts and baby blankets to one of the orphanages - which sadly will now probably have more children to care for. Keep the donations coming - we'll post a final total after Saturday, the last day we'll collect!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-04T13:56:00.002-05:00

So, writing 2010 will take a little getting used to, but I think I'll manage. We had a wonderful time with our family over the holiday break and appreciate your understanding that being closed for those few days was important! Connor and Tucker had a great time in PA with their Big Poppi, Grammy Sue, Great Grandma and all their aunts, uncles and cousins. So - thank you for the wonderful gift! And a surprise extra day on Saturday. We came in long enough to shovel a little and feed Mirabelle, but went right home. I hope you all were safe during the storm.

We're back in the swing and ready to open on Tuesday 1/5 and hear about all your wonderful holidays. Classes start soon so check the website class page for a complete listing and the newsletter page for other fun events and clubs. We have a lot to offer and are so thankful for the opportunity to have a great new classroom to do it!

Email me if you don't receive our e-news, I'll send you the current email with a 10% off coupon!

See you soon!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-23T15:50:00.003-05:00

Thanks to everyone who helped us with our adopted family. We got everything on their lists! The new class list for winter and early spring is now on our website and I've included a picture here of the Blue Moon quilt that we fell in love with at market and is in the class lineup for January! We've reinstated the Sampler and lots of other fun clubs and programs. Check the newsletter page of the website for clubs and programs and the class page for classes. We also have new MCQS-University courses, fun learning in an hour for only $5! Blue Moon Class - Wednesdays January 13, 20, 27
1-4pm. $35.

Mariner's Compass will be closed 12/24 at 1PM through New Year's Day. We are taking Connor and Tucker to see our family in PA and they are very excited to go see Big Poppi! Regular business hours will resume on Saturday 1/2/2010 at 10AM. We invite you to stop in and see all the new goodies and sign up for a class! We're extending the $5 savings offer through 1/2 - sign up then and we'll deduct $5 from the enrollment fee for selected classes! Happy New Year!

Down to the Holiday Wire

2009-12-15T09:09:00.002-05:00

I'm as excited about our adopted family's Christmas as I am for our own family! Scroll down to the previous post for a current list of items still needed - we really need boots and snowpants! We'll be wrapping like crazy on Saturday 12/19 at 10:30 - hope you can stop by!

Every year at Mariner's Compass I thank each of you for your continued support of our business and to show our appreciation (and have less to count for our inventory...) we're having a holiday savings blitz this Thursday, Friday and Saturday!
Cotton fabrics just $7 per yard and Batiks just $8 per yard with a full yard minimum please. We'll also have select kits and batik precut items on sale. Some of these would make great last minute gifts for yourself or your quilting buddies!

Downtown Bath is hosting a Holiday Open House this Friday night 12/18 and shops will be open until 8PM. Bath has been featured in the local media on both WSCH6 and the Maine Sunday Telegram - come down this weekend to see what we're all about!

MCQS Community Christmas

2009-12-03T08:01:00.006-05:00

FOLKS THIS IS GREAT! WE'VE DONE WELL WITH THE ITEMS ON THE LIST - ALL WE REALLY NEED IS SNOWPANTS AND BOOTS - PLEASE HELP US OUT! THANKS!

UPDATED FOR YOUR SHOPPING CONVENIENCE ON 12/15/09
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE SO FAR WHO HAS DONATED AN ITEM OR CASH! KEEP IT COMING AND WE HOPE YOU'LL JOIN US ON 12/19 FOR A WRAPPING PARTY!

So, I really wanted us as a shop community to do something special this year to help folks who might not have such a great holiday. Wendy volunteers in a 2nd grade classroom at Dike Newell, with a wonderful teacher, Sue Michaud, with whom I used to work. Phew - now that we have that straight. The staff at DN adopted some families for the holidays and we asked if we could as well! We have been given a wonderful little family and I'm hoping you'll help me spoil them rotten!
So, here's the specifics. I have a wish list from Mom, Daughter #1, Son, and Daughter #2. I will list each item here as well as on a tree in the shop. If you choose something, either in shop or through an email, I will mark it on the list here and remove it from the tree. If you'd like to donate cash to help us purchase the items on the list, that would be welcome also. We will accept unwrapped items through Friday 12/18 and on Saturday 12/19 we hope you'll join us for a fun wrapping party. Wendy will deliver all the goodies to Dike Newell on Monday 12/21.
Here's the list (some items already spoken for)
Daughter #1, 8 years old
Shirt Size 7/8, Pants size 8/9 slim, Shoes 13/14 kids or 1 Girls
Long sleeve shirts, snowpants, boots
3rd grade chapter books
Puzzles
Anything Hannah Montana or Wizards of Waverly Place
Tinkerbell doll
Twitches movies
Son, 6 years old
Shirt size 7, pants size 7/8 slim, Shoes 13/14 kids or 1 Boys
Long sleeve shirts, snowpants and boots
Anything Nascar #88, RedSox or Patriots
Baseball and glove
Disney movies and items from Cars movie
Transformers
Arts and crafts
Daughter #2, 5 1/2 years old
Shirt size 5/6, Pants size 6, Shoe size 10/11
Long sleeve shirts, snowpants, boots, socks
Puzzles
Don't Spill the Beans game
Movies: Shark Tales, Cinderella, Garfield
Baby Ah-choo
This little girl loves to dance - a dance class?
Mother, 30 years old
Shirt size XL, Pants size 18/20, Shoes 9W
Black jeans, snowpants, socks
Gas card
Games-SkipBo, Yahtzee, Scrabble, Phase Ten
Ice skates
Movies: Disney Family, Twilight
I've highlighted in pink the items already spoken for. Obviously they can use more than one pair of socks and other clothes, so don't worry if they're already marked and that's what you want to get. Please help us! Anything handmade would also be welcome. I think I have a quilt for each person (might need one for the little boy). Please call with any questions or if you'd like to claim an item - or email to claim at item too. THANK YOU AND MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Last Minute Class / Great Gift Add-Ons!

2009-12-03T07:54:00.004-05:00

Howdy folks - this Saturday is the last official class of 2009 at Mariner's Compass. We have a great lineup scheduled starting in January, so stay tuned! On Saturday 12/5 we're making 3D Ornaments, which can also be used as pins or package tie-ons. We made three dozen to use as the decorations for our tree at the Festival of Trees, a fundraising event for the Bath YMCA. Here's a pic of the tree and a close up of the star ornament.

A big thankyou to Sharon, Verne, Barbara Jo, Peggy and Fotini for sewing and donating fabrics for our ornaments! We made stars, hearts and flowers.

Class is from 10:30-12. There is a $5 class fee and then you can make unlimited ornaments for $2 each - all materials provided! Bring your machine if you want to stitch them up, or just cut them and take them home to finish. And, oh by the way, we're cutting them all on the AccuQuilt GO! Plus, Molly will have her Sizzix Big Shot for an extra special flower shape! Give us a shout if you'd like to come! See you soon!

Happy Holidays!

2009-11-26T17:44:00.003-05:00

So, the season has begun and we celebrated in full force today with a meal at my house for lunch and dessert at Mom's in the evening. YUM!
The newly expanded classroom space at MCQS is fab! If you haven't stopped by to see our new space, we hope you'll do so soon. Watch for a great list of class and club offerings starting in January (there's a preview on the website).
So, as promised, here's my list:
Amanda's Top 10 Quilting Gifts
10. Gift Certificates - any amount available, can be used for merchandise or a class.
9. Calendars - be reminded of your favorite hobby every day, all year!
8.Notions make great stocking stuffers - blades, threads, pins etc...
7.Charm Packs - precut, coordinated 5" squares are an instant project and great gift!
6.Fat Quarters - tell your shopper your style, we'll help choose and make them pretty!
5.Clover Bobbin Towers - store all your bobbins neatly!
4.Wright's SideWinder - wind your bobbins without your machine.
3.LED Brightlight Machine Light - clips on for great light at your machine.
2.AccuQuilt GO! Buy a machine and become an official MCQS GoGo Girl! Dies make great gifts if you already have the machine!
1. LENNI - in any capacity! Buy or rent, he's a great date. Gift certificates available for rentals. Get more info about Lenni in the shop or call Marcia at 437-4177.
Our holiday hours are listed on our website, please make a note that we will be closed between Christmas and New Year's.

Our New Education Center

2009-11-02T09:51:00.005-05:00

It's almost done and will open this Saturday 11/7 with a Grand Opening Open House from 8-10AM. Our new education center will house our classroom (outfit to comfortably seat 8 now and more in the future); the APQS Longarm GPS Studio with Lenni and our longarm supplies; and a quilt gallery which will feature rotating quilt related exhibits. I'll also get a brand new office-yippee!

So, here are the important details:

Saturday 11/7 is Downtown Bath's Annual Early Bird Sales. We'll open at 6AM. Our Early Bird Special will be 20% off by-the-yard fabrics from 6-8AM. There will also be Early Bird Coupons available all day from 6AM-3PM. If you receive my shop emails, you'll get the coupons this week. If you don't, you can pick them up in-store anytime this week, or simply get them on Saturday. There will be an official ribbon cutting ceremony at 8AM to open the new space. We have lovingly named the new space Pollyanna's Parlor, in memory of our good friend Judy whose business, Pollyanna's Antiques, used to occupy the space. Between 8-10AM we will have some great events happening in the Parlor.

* Demos & Make/Take with Independent Stampin' Up Demonstrator Molly Barter

* Demos of Superior Threads' Texture Magic with Demonstrator Mary Chick

* Demos & Test Drives on Lenni with Deb Boucher

* After-Market New Product Showcase - samples of the goodies we brought from Houston

* Demonstrations of new market products with Marcia O'Donnell and Barbara Jo Belanger

* FREE GIFT to the first 25 people through the door

* Door prize drawings at each demonstration

* MCQS Family Quilt Exhibit

These are the last photos you'll get before the Grand Opening - if you want to see the rest, you'll have to come to the shop on Saturday 11/7!

It's Coming Along

2009-10-28T08:07:00.010-04:00

Our new expansion is well under way and should be completed in time for our Grand Opening on Saturday 11/7/09. Here are some pics of the progress.

So - new doorway through the old classroom into the new! The stairs are built and the carpet will be installed on Thursday. Stop by to check on our progress! We'll have another post with all the details of the Grand Opening on 11/7.

Congratulations & MCQS News

2009-10-15T14:33:00.006-04:00

Thankyou to everyone who participated in our fun market blog challenge. The lucky winner is DonnaCME (not sure who you are, so let me know...) and Donna won an autographed copy of Out of the Box by MaryLou Wiedman, a funny pin of MaryLou's artwork and 2 tickets to the Dash of Diva Girl's Night Out event in Portland on Thursday 10/29. Congratulations! Donna, please contact me to collect your prizes!

You can still purchase tickets for the Dash of Diva event by clicking on the link above. This is going to be a fun event with great vendors who cater to mostly women customers. We'll be there in a booth showing off our wares and educating people about quilting and our shop!

Our newest news is our expansion! We've begun remodeling the retail space next to our shop which used to be Pollyanna's Antiques. When Judy died in January we were left with a gaping hole in our little neighborhood and we miss her terribly. However, we believe that she's been following along from that great antique mall in the sky and has approved our move. We hope to have the new space open for the downtown Bath Early Bird Sales on Saturday 11/7. Our hours are still to be determined but we will feature an Open House/Grand Opening of our new space. The addition will be called Pollyanna's Parlor (in honor and memory of Judy) and will house our newly improved classroom, longarm studio, a gallery and my office. Sign up to receive our e-news and you'll get an automatic invitation to the event. Here are some pics:

Stay tuned for more photo updates and watch your email for an Early Bird invitation!

Market Photo Gallery

2009-10-13T11:57:00.014-04:00

Thanks for following along - here's the photo gallery! We'll give you through tomorrow to make your comments and then on Thursday we'll announce the winner and give you details about another exciting event coming up at MCQS! Summary of photos below...

Photos in order:

Blue Moon quilt using the new Timeless batiks; Sexy Hexy quilt from Amy Butler's new LOVE fabrics; Magic Carpet quilt using new Australian prints; Amanda and Jayme Crow of Bella Nonna designs, the designer of the Down Under Wonder (still in stock at MCQS); Baby Chibi; our sample spree mother lode; Marcia enjoying a LOL moment after stealing Baby Chibi; the market floor compared with the earlier post photo; Amanda and Marcia toasting market at the 30th Anniversary cake and champagne party!

Thanks again for following. Check back on Thursday for an announcement of the winner and more fun happenings at the shop!

We made our list...

2009-10-11T21:20:00.002-04:00

...and checked it twice and then headed for the final stretch. Marcia attended a fun class today on creating spiral log cabin blocks. Really a cool technique that you can be sure will be a future class. The Timeless Treasures rountable was really cool and we got to see fabric strikeoffs for possible future groups and gave our feedback on the color selection, pattern designs and whether or not we liked it. It's a very interesting process how the fabric is created from artwork done by someone who is an artist, not a quilter.
So - Amy Butler:ordered; M&S Australian prints:ordered; Timeless Blue Moon batiks: ordered. The Block of the Month search was successful and I'm really psyched abour our selection. More on the timetable for the BOM later. We stocked up on new patterns, bought fat quarters of fun juvenile-ish fabrics to make our fun new critters and (drumroll please)...WOOL. So many folks have been asking for wool lately that we've decided to give it another try. Now, this is wool in small manageable and affordable pieces intended for small and manageable projects. It should arrive in about 3 weeks. Our moda appointment was this morning and we ordered some fun new groups for spring 2010 deliveries. Moda told us that Wiscasset is due to start shipping this week, so no more hassling me folks! We made tentative calendar dates with McKenna Ryan for her visit to Maine next August (yippee!) and chatted with Heidi Kaisand about her return too.
We're ready to head home and as I scanned through the photos on the camera can't wait to show them all to you. Our shuttle arrives ar 4:05 AM for our 6:45 flight. We're looking foward to seeing our families and all of you! Thanks for following along!

This #$!^( Computer

2009-10-10T21:23:00.002-04:00

So, here's the thing...evidently this little computer doesn't have enough memory to handle all the pictures I want to show you. This is my plan - I'll keep posting our finds in dialogue and then on Monday when we're home I'll do a completely photo post. And to sweeten the deal and keep you checking, comments to the photo post will count twice in our drawing. Stick with me, it's worth it I promise.
I attended a business class this morning hosted by a panel of other shop owners who are very successful and willing to share great tips. Marcia did a great bag class with Pat Sloan using her new fabric line from P&B Textiles, Georgia.
At 9:30 the exhibits and vendors opened and the long walk began. We saw lots of new things. I found more adorable stuffed creatures today that we just had to have. I envision the kid's tent in our shop full of them to play with! I'm on the hunt for a new Block of the Month pattern to begin at the shop as well as new bags and, of course, quilts. We mostly look this first day, evaluate all the literature we picked up tonight, and then complete purchases tomorrow.
I'm planning to write orders tomorrow for new Australian Aboriginal fabrics from M&S Textiles for a new pattern called Magic Carpet; the blue and white batiks from Timeless Treasures for Karen Montgomery's Blue Moon pattern as well as Amy Butler's new line LOVE to make her Sexy Hexy quilt.
I've been invited to attend a sales roundtable meeting tomorrow with the folks at Timeless Treasures - I'm one of 10 shop owners across the country to be invited. Not sure exactly what the meeting is about but I'm sure it will be informative and I'm honored to have been invited. We have a 10AM moda appointment and then the rest of the day will be spent gathering up all the goodies we looked at today.
We're tired after party hopping tonight! We started at the 30th Anniversary Reception at the convention center, moved to the Robert Kaufman party for dinner and on to the Timeless Party for dessert. Good times, good times.
Thanks for following - tomorrow a full run down of what we got. We'll be home soon!

It's a Stampede Y'all

2009-10-09T23:36:00.002-04:00

Howdy quiltingfolk.
So, here's the bogus deal - our little computer apparently has a little brain and is taking forever to upload the pics from today's fun and games. So, just a brief summary for y'all and then pics tomorrow (or much later tonight when maybe not so many folk are surfing the WiFi).
We attended some great Schoolhouse Sessions including many that will probably result in a class or MCQS-U session. We met the designer of the Down Under Wonder, the Australian quilt that we kitted for Quilt magazine. If you scroll back through our blog posts, you'll see an image of it. Kits ARE available for this quilt. We saw Amy Butler's new line of fabric LOVE and heard Ricky Tims talk about the new kits available using his fabulous fabrics. I went to a session sponsored by Free Spirit that focused on a new line of fabric based on the paintings by a blind artist. Amazing. Marcia is loving a new book available later this fall for 3D designs. And I got to hear my favorite business man Jim Salinas.
After Marcia sat in line for 3 hours holding out spots while I was in class, it was finally time at 8PM for Sample Spree. We opted to not rush the moda booth and instead found awesome other things. I'm in love with my new Baby Chibi doll and patterns and some other adorable stuffed critter patterns that we found. We picked up FQ bundles of many groups we've already ordered and will be shipping soon, so now we can make our samples ahead of delivery. I even bought fabrics for Christmas 2010. AH!
So, it's late and we must rest before classes tomorrow at 8AM. Pics to follow, I promise. This new fangled technology is sometimes more trouble than it's worth! Thanks for the comments. We walk the floor tomorrow, we'll report back. Y'all come back now, ya hear?

It Begins...Market that is!

2009-10-08T18:57:00.006-04:00

So, we're here after a very uneventful flight with a connection in Philly. We caught up with Evelyn and her gang from The Cotton Cupboard in Bangor at the Philly airport and took the same flight the rest of the way. It's 85 degrees and WINDY! The landing was a bit rocky but I was sucked into a good book and didn't really notice. We checked in to the Holiday Inn Express (about a football field away from the convention center) and then went out to pick up our buyer's guides. This booklet is a listing off all the exhibitors and what they'll be showing. Tonight's job is to read through and make a plan of what we want to see when the show opens. Tomorrow is Schoolhouse - a grown-up version of Step-Up Day from elementary school. We attend mini-sessions lasting anywhere from 15-30 minutes, all day, with 15 to choose from in each time frame. This is when Market Mush Brain begins.

When we were last in Houston (2007) the land directly across from the convention center was a big old construction mess which has been turned into the Discovery Green featuring sculptures, colorful artwork, an entertainment stage, restaurants, a pond and underground parking beneath it all. The pics are some of the items that caught our eye.

After Schoolhouse I'll attend a business class and Marcia will sit in line for Sample Spree, the quilting version of Cabbage Patch Kids meets Macy's $99 Wedding Dress Sale. I have yet to decide if we'll tackle the moda booth or bypass it altogether and see everything else...

Some exhibitors began setting up their booths today but the only shot I could get of the action was as I was going up the escalator. It was an interesting task - here's the photo. I'll try and take the same one tomorrow to show progress.

So - don't forget the rules. Make a comment for each post to be entered to win a market prize, complete rules are on yesterday's post. Our post tomorrow night will be LATE because Sample Spree is from 8-10PM (it's only 6:19PM central time right now and we're already in our pj's here)!

Thanks to all the new followers. I'm flattered that you're interested enough in the goings-on of my shop to follow along!

Houston Quilt Market Contest

2009-10-07T09:01:00.002-04:00

So folks, it's that time of year when every shop owner congragates in the great city of Houston, Texas for the fall edition of International Quilt Market. Imagine it like a quilt show for quilt shop owners. We get to see all the latest and greatest products and fabrics plus take classes with awesome quilt folk!

Our contest is easy - we'll bring back a fun give-away that you can qualify to win, just by following us on the blog! We will make a post with photos of our trip each night after we've trudged through the aisles and listened to more than our brains can absorb. Simply make a comment to the post and you're automatically entered to win the prize. There may be more than one prize (depends what we find) and every post counts as an entry. You may comment on each post we make, but please only comment once per post. When we return, we'll put all the posts in a basket and Connor will draw out the winner!

Our first market post will be tomorrow night (Thursday 10/8) after we arrive in Houston and check in. In the meantime, go to www.visithoustontexas.com for a fun preview of this great city! Click on VIDEO at the top of the homepage and then EXPERIENCE HOUSTON to see a two minute summary video of what Houston has to offer.

Our flight leaves bright and early Thursday morning and we are scheduled to arrive in Houston at 1PM Central time. We'll post tomorrow night - we hope you'll follow along!

Oh, and, PS...there are fun things happening at MCQS in the next few weeks that are very exciting. If you haven't heard the news, we'll just say that we'll be EXPANDING our horizons!

Cool stuff at MCQS

2009-09-30T11:08:00.005-04:00

This is a quick update with photos of the classes coming right up here at the shop and some fun non-quilting info!

This Saturday 10/3 we're holding a MCQS-University on bag accessories and closures from 10:30-11:30. MCQS-U classes are only $5 and you learn everything you need to finish those little extras. Immediately following at 12:30 is our Slouchy Sack class which includes a nifty zipper (which we'll demo in the U session). Here's the bag:

Bag pattern includes two sizes (we'll have a sample of each) and a front pocket that goes on forever! Still some room in class so sign up today!

Our next weekday class starts on Wednesday 10/14 at 1:00and is a fascinating mix of curved piecing and large scale prints. Never fear - still accessible to you beginners. Moon Dance is a 3-session class - here's the pic:

Our instructor has offered time this coming Wednesday 10/7 to help folks choose their fabrics if needed. Meet at 1PM at the shop.

And last but not least, check out this awesome bracelet I received yesterday! One of our snow-bird customers had one on two weeks ago while I was cutting her fabrics and I stopped mid-cut to talk about it! Turns out she makes them - including making the beads! I'm including her name and email address so you can contact her directly to order one for yourself!

Creations by SuMilo - Susan Loebs - sueloebs@columbus.rr.com

Tell her you saw the bracelet on our blog!

Stay tuned early next week for our next Market Blog Candy challenge. We'll post our experiences each day of our trip to International Quilt Market in Houston and will have a fun contest for those of you who follow along. Check back next week!

See our complete class list and calendar of events on the website! www.marinerscompass.com

Lenni is a-rockin'!

2009-09-23T09:15:00.005-04:00

If you haven't had the opportunity to try our APQS longarm Lenni, you should treat yourself! After a two hour introductory class you can rent time with Lenni and finish your own quilts! It's great fun and a wonderful feeling of accomplishment! We do have two warning statements.

#1- Don't expect after your first rental to go home with a beautiful masterpiece full of feathers and custom quilting. NOT GONNA HAPPEN.

#2 - Lenni has a way with women - you'll be addicted to his charm before you know it!Peggy F. from Bath is already deep into a relationship with Lenni - see what she's already done!

Deb B. from Edgecomb and Jennifer S. from Bowdoin are also both in love with Lenni!

THIS COULD BE YOU! CALL TODAY TO SCHEDULE YOUR INTRO CLASS AND RENTAL!

If you'd like more info about rentals and classes in our Longarm GPS Studio at MCQS, visit the Longarm Quilting page of our website. If you'd like more info about investing in an APQS longarm quilting machine call the shop; call our local sales rep Marcia O'Donnell at 437-4177; or visit www.apqs.com .

Sagadahoc Preservation Website

2009-09-15T14:26:00.001-04:00

Here's the website for Sagadahoc Preservation, Inc. If you're interested in becoming a member or making a donation I know it would be greatly appreciated!
www.sagadahocpreservation.org

Thank You Heidi!

2009-09-15T11:44:00.002-04:00

Wow - it's been an outrageously busy summer and early fall (and the calendar doesn't make it look like it's going to slow down any time soon!) With the close of this past weekend, we can at least stop and take a breath.

Many, many thanks to Heidi Kaisand for joining us this past weekend to offer us a quilting presentation and APQS Roadshow. The lecture was educational and entertaining and the roadshow a huge success. Heidi has posted some of her Maine trip experiences to her blog, which you can link to from her website, www.heidikaisand.com . We're making plans for a return visit next fall which we hope will include another roadshow and possibly a weekend retreat!

Our presentations were held at the Winter Street Center in Bath which is owned and maintained by Sagadahoc Preservation, Inc., a local group that saves, restores and maintains local historical landmarks. We met in the parish hall and collected donations to be applied to the restoration of the sanctuary (which is a perfect place for a future quilt show!) Through the generosity of our attendees we collected over $100 in donations. Thanks! I need to look up the website for SPI so you can learn about this important organization, I'll post it later today. They are always looking for members and volunteers.

Our new class schedule in on the class page of our website, we hope you'll find something interesting - don't miss our new MCQS-U, university classes!

We hope to see you soon in Downtown Bath!

Maine Quilts 2009

2009-07-23T06:39:00.002-04:00

Here we come Augusta! The 2009 quilt show sponsored by the Pine Tree Quilter's Guild is sure to be a hit this year with over 500 quilts on display and all your favorite quilt shops there as vendors. Quilt shows are a great way to boost our economy! We hope to see you there and we hope the exhibits and energy are inspiring. Our MCQS booth will be in our usual spot on the left side of the auditorium. And be sure to stop by and say hello to Marcia and her APQS machines - she's got prime real estate right inside the auditorium door! This is Lenni's first road trip, but it certainly won't be his last!
Happy Quilting!
Visit www.mainequilts.org for more show and general guild information!

And the winners are...

2009-05-19T18:11:00.002-04:00

Here is a list of the winners from the 6th Annual State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop!
FREE Night at Quilt Inn Rangeley Retreat Center - Bonnie Gerstley
Janome Heart Truth - Bethany Ober
Elna Quilter's Companion - Barbara Sprague
Queen Quilt Kit - Mary Ann Anton
Fat Quarter Bundle - Sandra Hopkins
Machine Quilting Package - Patsy Husson
6 Quilter's Baskets - Donna Lane, Deborah Holmes, Judith Turcotte, Christine Haehnel, Mary Nye and Sharon Sirido
Bendable LED Brightlight - Kathryn Taylor
Fat Quarter Bundle - Tasha Pomelow
Maine Quilts '09 Admission Package - Andrea Dill
Quilter's Tote - Deanna Philbrick
Quilter's Project Basket - Marilyn Kinne
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL AND THANKS FOR PARTICIPATING!
Visit www.MaineShopHop.com later this year for info about Hop 2010!

The winner of our market candy was "Pegola" and her post about "lusting after" the new fusible webbing we found at market. We'll be sharing the fusible and all the other goodies at the After Market Breakfast on Saturday May 30th. If you haven't RSVP'd, give us a call. Pegola's prize is a new book from Martingale & Co. Thanks for posting!

Thank You Pittsburgh!

2009-05-17T08:58:00.005-04:00

So, it's approximately 9am on Sunday morning and Marcia and I are waiting at JFK in New York for our flight home. Market was great and I've enjoyed reading all your comments. We sincerely hope you'll join us on Saturday May 30th at 9am for the After Market Breakfast - we brought home some really fun, innovative and exciting things to share. None of it will be shown before the breakfast (since we have a lot of samples to get made before then!). I've included the last of our celebrity photos in this post (including a shot of me with my market fling - I hope nobody tells Lenni...)! This is Alex Anderson and me showing off the GO! personal cutters. We're down to just one machine in the shop again! Below is Pat Sloan and me at the APQS booth. Stay tuned for an email later this week outlining our Aniversary Specials - if you're not already receiving our emails you can sign up below. Thanks for following along!

Remember George from the Fons and Porter magazine ads? This is the real APQS George. SWEET MACHINE just for those of you who enjoy machine quilting but don't want a longarm. Marcia can sell you this one too (but only after I get mine)!

Market - Is it #3 Already?

2009-05-15T21:28:00.002-04:00

Well, we thought we were tired yesterday... Today was the official start of market and our first chance to "walk the floor" and see all the new items from the participating vendors. Marcia and I were remembering that when we attended our very first market, in Pittsburgh in 2004, Quilt Market was the very first convention to take place in the brand new David Lawrence Convention Center. It's a beautiful facility and almost totally "green". This is Mom's first market ever and she was impressed with all the "famous" faces that were out and about. We've seen and/or talked with Alex Anderson, Pat Sloan, Kaffe Fassett, Mark Lipinski, Amy Butler, McKenna Ryan, Valori Wells and many other folks whose patterns or fabrics you might recognize, even if you don't know them by name.
Lots of fun new things - new patterns from the Strip Club Queen (which of course will use the new Bali Pops we bought last night); 8 new dies for the AccuQuilt GO! machines; an amazing new fusible webbing product that feels almost like it isn't there; awesome new bag patterns; and absolutely beautiful fabrics everywhere you look.
I don't usually make appointments to see fabrics at market, with the exception of Moda. Our appointment is tomorrow afternoon and we've already decided on one new line by Laurie Simpson and Polly Minick called Wiscasset. Yup - as in Wiscasset, MAINE. It's an October delivery and it's absolutely beautiful.
Sorry about no pictures this time, my eyes are droopy and this WI-FI is a tad bit unreliable. I'm not sure I can handle losing a whole post again and having to redo it! We'll have more tomorrow - comments for all posts relating to market will be eligible to win our market candy. We'll let you know tomorrow what the prize will be! Thanks for reading, hope you're enjoying it!

Market Post #2

2009-05-14T22:01:00.006-04:00

Wow are we tired! Today was the unofficial beginning of market with a day-long program called "Schoolhouse" where we all rush around to mini classes that last 15-30 minutes each and enjoy that mushy brain feeling when it's over. It ends just in time for us to sit in a line until 8pm for the start of Sample Spree, where vendors who choose can give a little preview and special deals. Imagine the Filene's Basement wedding dress event quilt show style. Or cabbage patch kids. You get the idea. The most exciting thing for me personally was that the Hoffman folks had the 6 NEW BALI POPS! We got one of each to drool over and make new samples. Our orders were placed weeks ago with an expected delivery in June - you're going to want to preorder these people. YUM!

So, this picture is the "before" image of half of the exhibit hall. This picture was taken about 8am today. The next picture is as close to the same image as I could get at about 5pm. They made great progress and the show floor will open tomorrow for us to browse all their wares.

No quilt market would be complete without some quality entertainment and we knew only one special lady would do. She serenaded us with Frank Sinatra, the Beatles, and others while promoting her new book.

Eleanor Burns was kind enough to take time for a photo op when we told her you all were following along on the blog. We hope you're enjoying our adventures as much as we are. We found lots of fun new things at Sample Spree and are sure to find more on the show floor starting tomorrow. Have a great day and stay tuned!

Market Candy Post #1

2009-05-13T19:31:00.004-04:00

So we've safely arrived in Pittsburgh and are ready to go on Thursday! We've picked up our buyer's guides and are reading through the hundreds of vendors who will be sharing their goodies. It's a lot to see and do, but the best way to bring all the newest info to you! We visited a quilt shop, The Quilt Company, today. Karen Montgomery, the owner, is the lady who came up with the 60 degree triangle ruler tablerunner that uses the border stripes. If you haven't seen this runner made, stop by for a great demo! We'll have more pictures in the next post of Pittsburgh and the events at market on Thursday. Remember to leave your comments to be entered to win our market candy prize!

This is the beautiful riverboat Duchess happily "steaming" down the Allegheny River. We saw the Princess earlier taking another load of happy folks. The river comes right up to the convention center with a lovely walkway and viewing area to see the river traffic.

To Market We Will Go...

2009-05-11T12:43:00.002-04:00

So, Tuesday night we'll head off to the airport and fly out bright and early Wednesday morning for Pittsburgh, PA and the 2009 Spring Quilt Market! You can only imagine how excited I am to be going (especially since we made the very last minute decision to NOT go to Houston last fall). On Wednesday there will be info about a fun contest that the MCQS Blog will host - we invite everyone to visit the blog then and get all the details - we promise you'll like it! Also, mark your calendars for Saturday May 30th- our After Market Breakfast will be a great time to get a recap of all the fun things we saw, found and did at market! If you haven't already RSVP'd for the breakfast, you still can. The $7 fee includes refreshments and a market gift. RSVP by email or call the shop at 1-207-443-2900. Carol and Jennifer will be holding down the fort - stop in to see them while we're gone! And check back on Wednesday for all the skinny on our market blog contest!

Finally...

2009-04-29T16:22:00.004-04:00

After some technical difficulties, we are finally back to the blog! The 6th Annual State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop is coming to a close and it's been great! This was our sample, made with the charm squares of Bonnie Blue Basics and Backgrounds - hoppers collected a charm square at each participating shop. For a list of all shops visit the shop hop page of our website, or go to the new hop website, http://www.maineshophop.com/. We also have a great blog there.

We are happy to annouce another class with Susan Carlson here at Mariner's Compass (image above). Susan will join us on Saturday June 6th for "Something's Fishy", a class in her "no-rules, freestyle approach" to quilting. You will look at fabric in ways you haven't before. Class is 9-4 and costs $90. Space is limited, so if you're interested, call ASAP.

Mariner's Compass is currently the only retailer north of Connecticut to carry the AccuQuilt GO! personal sized die-cutting machine. I am amazed at the response to this product! It's a great way to cut more accurately! You've seen it in all the magazines, now you can see it in person. Stop by for a demo or visit www.accuquilt.com to see a video of the machine. We are trying our best to keep everything in stock - I've sold two machines this week already and had to re-order. If we don't have it, it's coming! If you like the idea of cutting but not owning the machine, you can come and rent our Studio machine and cut as much as you like. We'll demo that machine for you too!

Hope to see you soon in downtown Bath - this weekend is Mayfair, our city wide yard sales and fun events downtown. Get specifics at www.visitbath.com . Happy Quilting!

Down Under Wonder Quilt Kits

2009-01-10T08:00:00.002-05:00

Down Under Wonder

Down Under Wonder quilt kit : $94 plus $10 shipping and 5% tax in Maine.

ETA: These kits sold out but check back for the the next Aussie Quilt kit offered by MCQS.

This quilt is featured in the Feb/March issue of Quilt (magazine now available at MCQS).

Watch for the next issue of Quilt and another Aussie quilt from MCQS!

Classes in the Longarm GPS Studio at MCQS

2009-01-09T14:20:00.002-05:00

Introduction to Longarm Quilting
This class is designed for anyone who owns a mid- or long-arm machine similar in size to Lenni or anyone who has an interest in longarm quilting. Learn the basics of loading a quilt, winding and loading bobbins, threading the machine, thread tension, basic machine operation and basic quilting techniques from the front of the machine. If you’re interested in renting time and using Lenni to quilt your own quilts, this class is a pre-requisite to any rentals (the rental agreement will be discussed). The information provided in this class will be suitable to anyone who quilts using a Lenni or Lucey from APQS, FunQuilter, HQ16, TinLizzie, etc.. If you have questions about your specific machine set-up, give us a call. This class is mostly demonstration to include as much information as possible. Attendance is limited, please call FMI.

Saturday January 17th OR Saturday March 14th 1:00 – 3:00pm. $55

APQS Beginner Class in Longarm Machine Quilting
The goal of this class is to teach you the skills needed to accomplish a typical quilting project on your longarm machine. Whether for a business or personal use, you’ll learn valuable information and techniques to accomplish your projects creatively and efficiently. This class is mostly demonstration and we will cover some specific topics, but want you to come armed with a list of questions! Also bring a pad of paper, pencil and your camera to document all you learn. The topics we’ll cover include: supply sources; machine functions; maintenance; business and customer relations tips; quilt loading options; beginning with pantographs; and basic custom skills like borders, blocks and stitch in the ditch.

The beginner class is free within one year of the purchase of a new or certified used APQS machine. Please call to verify eligibility.
Not an APQS owner or need a refresher? Join us anyway!

Saturday February 14, 2009.
Class time: 10:30am – 4:30pm with a break for lunch.
Class is free to APQS owners who qualify or $125 for non-APQS owners or anyone interested in taking the class.

Sun Portrait Mini-Course with Susan Carlson

2009-01-09T14:19:00.003-05:00

In celebration of the New Year and it’s increasingly longer daylight hours, Susan Carlson will be offering a winter course creating a fabric-collaged Sun Portrait. Susan has devised a no-pressure "cutting loose" approach creating a personified sun's face and will walk students through each step of creating this colorful wall-hanging. This course of three classes will be presented January through March - one Saturday each month. The arrangement of the three-month course allows students the time to work on each step at home, at their own pace, before returning to class for feedback and further instruction. An image of the portrait may be seen at the shop or online at Susan's website at: www.susancarlson.com. Keep in mind that the "Cutting Loose" process inherently creates a unique arrangement of fabrics in eachcollage. No two portraits will be alike in the end - an extremely serendipitous, fun and freeing process. Perfect for warming up cold days in our winter months!

Dates: 3 Saturdays, Jan. 31st, Feb. 28th, and Mar. 28thTime: 12:30pm – 4:30pmCourse fee: $180 – 12 total hours of instruction(Fee can be payable in installments through a credit card.)For further info please contact the shop at 443-2900 orSusan at 207-833-5665. You can get more information about Susan and this quilt at http://www.susancarlson.com/

New Class Schedule!

2009-01-09T13:55:00.002-05:00

The Winter 2009 MCQS Class Schedule is here. Call today to reserve your space.

Strip Therapy with Barbara
Jo Join Barb for these two classes that utilize your collection of 2½” strips. Purchase a prepackaged jelly roll or bali pop, or you can use our new AccuQuilt Studio to cut your stash into strips! Sign up for both classes and receive a special price.
*Insomnia – Wednesdays January 14, 21, 28 from 1-4pm. $35 plus book and materials
*Hot Flash – Wednesdays March 11, 18, 25 from 1-4pm. $35 plus book and materials.
Special Sign up for both classes only $60 (please sign up for both at once to receive discount).

It’s A Wrap – Fabric Baskets
One of our most popular classes! Learn this fun technique to make fabric wrapped clothesline baskets, bags, tablemats and more! Make an 8” bowl in class with only a half yard of fabric, and go home with it finished! You’ll look at fabrics in a whole new way. This is a great way to use up your stash. Your sewing machine must be able to zig-zag for this class. Choose from one of our two workshops. Saturday January 24th OR Saturday March 21st. 10:30 – 3:00. $30 plus book and materials.

Raw-Edge Fusible Applique Workshop
Find the fun in fusing during this workshop while making a beautiful art quilt wallhanging. We have dozens of patterns to choose from (some with kits available). Fusing technique will be the focus of this class and finishing techniques will be discussed. No machine required for this class. Saturday February 7th. 10:30-2:30. $25 plus pattern and materials.

KWIK-SEW (non quilting sewing)
Our beautiful cotton fabrics can be used for so much more than quilting! Browse the winter Kwik-Sew catalog to choose your pattern and learn the basics of everyday sewing. Patterns include garments, bags, home décor and more. Please choose your pattern by 1/24/09 to guarantee delivery for class (fabric requirements and more can be viewed on the Kwik-Sew website for patterns we don’t already carry). Wednesdays February 11, 18, 25. 1-4pm. $35 plus pattern and materials

MYSTERY!
Join in the fun of not knowing what you’re doing! Receive your fabric requirements and cutting directions at registration and then come to class ready to sew. We’ll help you with fabric selection (since we know what you’re making!). Bring a potluck dish to share (tell us what when you register). Saturday February 14th. 10-5. $40 includes pattern and complimentary ironing! Some pre-class homework required.

Log Cabin ABC’s
Using the great log cabin ruler, make the most accurate log cabin blocks ever! You’ll never strip piece a log cabin again. Great for beginners or anyone who wants more practice in accurate cutting. (Use a bali pop like our sample and have enough of each strip left to make an It’s A Wrap bowl!) This class teaches the technique only – make whatever you want with your practice blocks after class. Saturday February 21st. 10:30-3:30. $30 plus book, ruler and materials.

X-Blocks
This fun new ruler makes “random” a little easier. Practice mixing colors and making fun and different blocks. This technique class shows you all the features of the ruler – make your blocks into something fun after class (ideas included with the ruler). Saturday March 7th. 10:30-3:30. $30 plus ruler set. Some pre-class homework required.

Please see our website for class registraion policies.

Finally...

2008-08-29T08:20:00.002-04:00

Well, the website has been updated, class lists are new and fresh and we've got lots of exciting activities planned for the fall and holiday season at MCQS. Please take a minute to check out our newsletter and class pages on the website for all the new info! We're moving the place around in anticipation of our new "tenant", Lenni, who is due to arrive later this fall. The new longarm from APQS will be a great addition to our space and we hope that having him here in the shop will help Marcia sell lots of machines! Stay tuned for more updates about our new Longarm Support Program and how Lenni might be able to help you!
Classes coming right up:
Picture Perfect from Let the Good Times Roll (jelly roll friendly)
Bow Tucks Bag (mini or full size - your choice)
Christmas Club starts in September
Reversible Valance

Hope to see you soon at MCQS!

And the winners are...

2008-05-29T07:56:00.002-04:00

...Listed on my website! Thanks so much to everyone who hopped. We had 287 tickets turned in (up 200% from '07). It was a great time and we hope you'll hop in '09.
Our new summer class list is also posted on the website as of this morning. Fun new classes are scheduled including general sewing, fabric coil bowls, a great "go-green" tote bag and more! Registrations are being accepted now. Summer is busy busy and MCQS - we hope to see you soon!

A Fun Visit

2008-05-06T05:50:00.002-04:00

Well, about 300 hoppers later, we're about ready to tie it all together. At the end of this week, I will draw the winners and post their lucky names here and on the Shop Hop page of our website. I hope all of you who hopped enjoyed your visit at Mariner's Compass and all the other shops.

Speaking of visits, Connor and Tucker got to spend the weekend with their Big Poppi from Pennsylvania and had a blast! Photo to come.

There's lots of new everything at MCQS - some gorgeous new Hoffman batiks and lots more. We have fabrics scheduled to arrive right up through August. We're gearing up for a fun group of summer classes. The Jelly Bargelly ended up being a little more involved and will require more than one session, so if you are interested, it will be re-scheduled to accomodate a more appropriate timeframe. Marcia's sample is awesome and will be in-store this Saturday. Let us know if you have a class request!

Stay tuned for the hop results (and don't miss tonight's results on Dancing with the Stars - yeah, I'm hooked.)

Happy Quilting!

Happy Hoppers and More...

2008-04-28T13:05:00.002-04:00

Well, with only 2 days left of the 5th Annual State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop, I for one am breathing a sigh of relief! We had so many more hoppers than we expected that I could barely keep up with them! Thanks to all you happy hoppers - I can't wait to call you when you've won!

Upcoming Classes at MCQS (see our website class page for full descriptions)
Wonder Wallet - Wednesday 5/7, 1-3pm
Pine Needles Workshop - Saturday 5/10, 1:30-2:30
Strip Delight - Wednesdays starting 5/14, 1-4pm
Jelly Bargelly - Saturday 5/17, 10:30-4:30

This weekend will be full of fun in downtown Bath as we all celebrate May Day with Mayfair! In addition to the city-wide yard sales, downtown merchants will have specials. We will have amazing fabric deals that you won't believe and won't want to miss. Twelve merchants are also participating in a scavenger hunt on Saturday 5/3. Find all twelve hidden items at the participating shops to be entered to win a $120 Gift of Bath gift certificate! (We are one of the 12). Go to the visitbath.com website for more info.

As always we hope to see you soon in Downtown Bath!
Happy Quilting!

Happy Hoppers

2008-04-10T07:39:00.002-04:00

The 5th Annual State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop is well into the second week and we've already had as many hoppers as all of last year! Thank you all for supporting this fun idea and supporting your local quilt shops.

We've had many new fabrics arrive including much sought after 3Sisters favorites from moda which are on their way to retirement. This is you last chance to stock up on favorites from previous groups like Seaside Rose, Hollywood and Vine and others. They won't last folks. Stop in soon. Also new is Jitterbug from Andover, designed by a scrapbooking paper company. We're hoping our local scrapbooking shop might carry the coordinating papers!

Next week is our monthly Stash Pot Pie and Bath Quilter's Group on Tuesday 4/15 (done your taxes folks?). Please RSVP for Stash Pot Pie at 5:30 if you're not already on the list. See our previous post for all the specifics about this next meeting. Join the quilters at 6:00 for their informal and casual jaunt through the quilting world. Plus out Quilter's Happy Hour, an unadvertised special, from 4-8pm.

New classes are now posted on the class page of the website - more to come.

If you're looking for a copy of my mom's book, A Isn't for Fox, good luck! All the distributors and warehouses in our end of the world are out of stock! Her book is already in a second printing. When you do get copies, don't forget that you can have them signed right here at Mariner's Compass. Visit mom's blog for her current list of appearances (there's a link on the right side of his blog).

All for now (I hear a "mama?" from afar).
Happy Quilting & Happy Hopping!

Spring into Quilting!

2008-03-26T08:22:00.004-04:00

No one ever mentioned that accomplishing even the simplest tasks would be ten times more difficult with the continued strains of "MAMA" in the background. My springtime goal is to be better about posting!

Fabrics are arriving and they are so beautiful it's hard to know what project to start first! Mary Englebreit's Friends and Flowers has an adorable panel and we've also received the panel and corrdinates for Eric Carle's Very Hungry Caterpillar, one of Connor's favorites! The image below is the new Prarie Paisley by Polly Minick and Laurie Simpson for moda - you may remember that they taught for us a few years ago! We have yardage, charm packs, layer cakes and fun accessories on the way. The new group Enduring Blooms from P&B is a beautiful black background with white lilly-like flowers and exceptional coordinates. See what I mean, where do I start!

Next Tuesday, 4/1, marks the official start of the 5th Annual State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop! Passports are available now at any participating shop so you can start planning your trip. A complete list of shops, prizes and driving directions is available on my website - just click on Shop Hop.

We hope you can join us for the next session of Stash Pot Pie on Tuesday 4/15 at 5:30. Get your stash pattern, pie recipe and more! If you're not already on the list, just give me a call so I have enough pie. Please bring two copies of your favorite pie recipe on 4/15 - one to swap and one for me to compile into a Stash Pot Pie Cookbook! $7 per session.
Stay after pie for the Bath Quilter's Group - slowly deciding on the focus of their group (if they really want one - I'm all for hanging out, personally). Next time, 4/15 from 6-8, two members have offered to show techniques that they know well. Have something fun to share, bring it along!

Hope to see you soon (and post even sooner next time)!
Happy Quilting

Leap into flu season with Mariner's Compass!

2008-02-25T14:57:00.002-05:00

It's been real. It's been fun. It's been real fun. NOT. Yup, we got the flu in the quiltlady household - yeah, all of us. So, sorry for not updating sooner. Thanks to everyone who joined us for the book signing on 2/16 - all the books are gone! We hope to have more in stock soon. If you don't receive our emails, use the handy sign-up link at the bottom of this page. We send out updates, coupons and other fun info. Today's email includes a Leap Day Savings Coupon for 29% off one item (minimum $20 purchase) good ONLY on Leap Day, Friday February 29th. If you didn't get the email, simply print this page and we'll call it good!
New fabrics are scheduled to arrive and with any luck they'll all come on the same day! So, leap down to Mariner's Compass soon!

How sweet it is...

2008-02-13T19:36:00.009-05:00

...To have our shop featured in the current issue of Quilt magazine! MCQS is one of 4 shops in the Shop Hop section, starting on page 96. Now available on newsstands!

Don't forget our book signing with Wendy Ulmer this Saturday February 16th from 11am-1pm. She'll be signing copies of her new book A Isn't for Fox. See our earlier post, or the website, for all the information. http://www.marinerscompass.com/

Bath Quilter's Group meets again this coming Tuesday, February 19th from 6-8pm. Very casual! Bring a show and tell project and a snack to share. Call the shop FMI, 443-2900.

And speaking of sweet, check out these tasty little morsels...

Here's Connor and Tucky (Connor's cousin of 9 months). Happy Valentine's Day!

Lovely quilting weather, eh?

2008-02-09T21:37:00.000-05:00

Well, Connor would rather play anyway! Can you believe he's already 15 months old!

New fabrics at MCQS are pictured here...

Rain Garden from Windham Fabrics is actually a reproduction group of fabrics circa 1915! Those of you who know me will appreciate this line since you know I don't usually do repro or peach! It's beautiful!

Our ladies in class certainly had fun playing today! Our Changeables class, taught by Marcia O'Donnell, was a big hit because it gave our quilters so many choices! Cut your fabrics and choose from four different settings - from one set of cutting directions! Sound intriguing? Join us on 3/22 for our next Mystery! session with Barbara Jo Belanger. Similar set-up except you only see your project one step at a time. Always a good time - currently 3 spaces left. Call today!

Enjoy the snow - hunker down and sew!

Happy Quilting!

The Maiden Voyage

2008-02-06T06:45:00.000-05:00

Well folks, welcome to our newest venture into the 21st century! I hope that as time passes our blog becomes a favorite resource for news, quilting info and other fun stuff! Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

A Book Signing

2008-02-04T19:31:00.001-05:00

Mariner’s Compass Quilt Shop & Bath Book Shop are happy to co-host a very special book signing on Saturday February 16th at MCQS from 11am – 1pm.

Children’s author Wendy Ulmer (aka Amanda’s mom) will be on hand to sign copies of her second children’s book,

A Isn’t for Fox – An Isn’t Alphabet.

This new book has been described as “jaunty” and “out of the box”, a valuable teaching tool – and it’s just downright fun! We hope you’ll join us in the celebration.

Copies of A Isn’t for Fox will be available for purchase at the signing. To guarantee a copy of your own, you can pre-order by calling Connie at Bath Book Shop at 443-9338. For more information call MCQS at 443-2900.

Mariner's Compass

Shedding Some Pounds

Sit 'n Sew 2012

deva's discount daze

Make it Today and Gift it Tomorrow!

Wonder*Fil is Wonder*Ful!

Stackable Button Wool Ornaments

2011 Top Ten Gift List

Ooh Ribbon!

Sweet and Sassy

Sample Spree

A Wee Bit Askew...

The Greatest Show on Earth

Backroads Part 2

Backroads Quilters

My 2nd favorite place...

Stamping Away the Weekend

WOW!

Lazy...

Our ever helpful Mirabelle.

Celebrity Sighting

Houlton Friends and Needles Annual Quilt Show

Rooftop Garden

Mysterious

Sapphire

Maine Quilts Shop Hop Exhibit

More quilts...

Best of Show at Maine Quilts

Maine Quilts Champagne Preview

Maine Quilts 2011

The Grouchy Ladybug

Block of the Month 2012

Holiday House Party

Who Knew?

Fun with the fabrics!

New fabrics, same cat!

Spring has Sprung at MCQS

New Pre-Quilted Fabrics

Our Christmas Family

Festival of Trees

Tip of the Day Tuesday

Amanda's Other Hobby

Tip-of-the-Day Tuesday

Small Business Saturday

Back to the Blog

Ah, the Joys of Marketing

To Market, To Market (a fun contest)!

Back from MQX!

Be an MCQS fan!

It's Shop Hop Time Again!

Snow again!

$910 for Haiti Relief!

Haiti Support at MCQS

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

Down to the Holiday Wire

MCQS Community Christmas

Last Minute Class / Great Gift Add-Ons!

Happy Holidays!

Our New Education Center

It's Coming Along

Congratulations & MCQS News

Market Photo Gallery

We made our list...

This *#$!^*( Computer

It's a Stampede Y'all

It Begins...Market that is!

Houston Quilt Market Contest

Cool stuff at MCQS

Lenni is a-rockin'!

Sagadahoc Preservation Website

Thank You Heidi!

Maine Quilts 2009

And the winners are...

Thank You Pittsburgh!

Market - Is it #3 Already?

Market Post #2

Market Candy Post #1

To Market We Will Go...

Finally...

WonderFil is WonderFul!

This #$!^( Computer