Hey gang – happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I know many of you are anxiously waiting for the details on this year’s “Summer Blocks of the Week“ so I thought I’d pop in to talk about that for a minute. This is a lot of information, so bear with me!

First, I wanted to let you know that due to the ever-increasing cost of postage, we’ve had to re-think how we go about doing – well, pretty much everything around here lately! Because of that, this year we are doing our “Summer Blocks of the Week“ a little bit differently than we have in the past. We have decided to switch to monthly shipping for EVERYONE! Our goal is to distribute these projects in the most economic way possible for both you, and for us. In order to accomplish that, we will be shipping all four weeks worth of “Summer Blocks of the Week“ projects together in one shipment, rather than each block separately (similar to how we have done it in the past for our international “Block of the Week” customers). This plan allows for a lower shipping rate for everyone overall.

Secondly, for this year’s “Summer Blocks of the Week“ I’m excited to tell you that I actually have three ongoing projects lined up! First up is a pieced block called, “Stars All Around.“ I want this quilt to be a bit of a mystery so I’m not going to give away too many of the details, or show you the completed quilt right off the bat. I will tell you that finished it will be approximately 88″ x 88″. You can also take a look at the fabrics we’re using below. You will get your first “clue” in your first shipment along with all of your fabric. New clues will then be sent out individually as we go along. Now, I know it’s tough to start a project without a finished product in mind but, trust me –  you don’t want to miss out on this one! If you like stars like I do, your love for this quilt is pretty much inevitable.

I always love a quilt with multiple options to consider. There are two versions of “Stars All Around“ to choose from including Contemporary and Traditional designs. The Contemporary version uses only 33 fabrics to create this amazing quilt, including Moda’s Ombre Fairy Dust line. These clever fabrics make the quilt appear as though there are more fabrics being used than what there really is. Pretty cool, right!? In addition, for the 7 yards of background required we are using the White Ombre Fairy Dust fabric (when ordering, you will notice that there is not a choice of background offered for this selection).

Unlike the Contemporary version of “Stars All Around,” the Traditional design uses 208 different Reproduction fabrics to create the blocks in this quilt. Even better, you get to choose which 7 yards of background fabric you would like to use!!! For mine, I used our Primitive Gatherings Cream Muslin 1040-22 or a White Bella Solid.

Just an FYI! We are only offering “Stars All Around“ as a PAID IN FULL option this year. This will help to reduce the cost of shipping because it allows us to send you the project directions just once monthly instead of multiple times throughout (meaning a $48 decrease in the price for our domestic customers and an $84 decrease in pricing for our International customers – wow!). PLEASE NOTE: You will be charged immediately when you place your order for “Stars All Around.” Shipping will begin around the END of MAY.

ALSO – PLEASE REMEMBER: When ordering from our website you must select “YES” for the options that you would like, and “NO” to the options that you do not want. ALL questions marked with the red * asterisk need to be answered before you can add the item to your cart. If you do not answer all the required questions, the item will not be added to your cart. Instead the system will alert you by saying there is a “Backing Required” or “Essentials Required in red letters depending on which question you did not answer. In other words, a choice of YES or NO is required to move forward. Even if you are not purchasing that particular item you must still answer NO.

The second project I have for you is called, “Tennessee Hummingbird.” This impressive quilt is done with English Paper Piecing. We will be using 30’s fabrics for the blocks, and a White Bella Solid for the 5 yards of background fabric needed to make “Tennessee Hummingbird.” Look at all those beautiful colors – amazing!

We are offering “Tennessee Hummingbird“ with two different payment options this year. If you pay in full, you will receive the full kit in your first shipment. If you are paying monthly, you will receive 4 monthly installments of fabrics. You will be charged immediately for either option you choose. If you pay monthly, the first month will be charged right away to allow us to start shipping each installment as they are ready. That way, we don’t have to wait for the billing cycle and you get it faster! “Tennessee Hummingbird“ will start to ship MID to the END of MAY.

Last but certainly not least is an awesome Halloween-themed wool appliqué project I call, “Carving Contest.” How cute is this! This was so much fun to sketch and design. I am beyond happy with how it turned out. I love the different personalities of every single one of them! It’s the perfect size for a lap quilt or to display for holiday décor around your home. Finished, “Carving Contest” measures 51″ x 58″.

Alright everyone, hang on tight because I’m going to throw you all for a bit of a loop on this one. For “Carving Contest,” we will be doing things like we normally do for our Blocks of the Month, except for this one you have the option of pay in full. The reason for this is that there is A LOT of wool in the “Carving Contest Kit“ so there is no real practical way for us to ship you everything at once. If you chose to pay in full, as a way to say thank you we have discounted shipping costs by one shipment. You will be receiving a row of pumpkins to create for all six months of the program.

No Finishing Kit will be needed to complete the quilt, however, there will be one offered if you desire to finish it the same way I’m doing mine (the option to sign up for a Finishing Kit will be offered later in the program). We have a limited number of kits that are available in the 6 yards of Grunge Star Background that is shown in the sample, so the first people to sign up for the program will receive that background. It is on a first come, first serve basis and when it’s gone it’s gone! After those are exhausted, we will be switching to the same color Grunge as the Grunge Star, but without the Stars on it.

There are also Essentials that go with “Carving Contest.” Essentials includes the 6 yards of Grunge fabric needed for the background. This is a separate charge from the quilt Blocks. You will receive ALL 6 yards up-front in your first shipment. PLEASE NOTE! You need to add “Essentials” to your cart first in order for any of the “Carving Contest” options to be added.

Alright, now for the fun stuff – FREEBIES! I know you are all wondering what we are going to be for the Freebie this year. Of course we will be having one, but we are changing it up a little. This year’s Freebie will be offered only to those of you who are participating in the Summer Block Quilts Program. In other words, we are no longer giving a Freebie away with a general online or in-store purchase this summer because we want to make it more exclusive to those of you who are participating in our Summer Quilts Program.

HOW SUMMER 2022 FREEBIES WORK: If you are choosing to pay in full and will be receiving your entire project upfront, you are also going to get ALL of your Freebies along with your first shipment. If you chose a monthly payment option, you will get four blocks of Freebies each month, for the first three months of the program that you are participating in. I know you’re probably dying to know what this year’s Freebies look like by now, so we will be showing them off tomorrow during “Shop Talk with Shelley!” Yet another reason to watch – don’t miss it!

In addition, we have also created a Thread Kit designated to the Freebie blocks, which retails at $44.00. The kit also includes a FREE Embellishment Needle with your Thread Kit purchase. Woo hoo!

Whew! That WAS a lot of information – thanks for sticking with me! I sure hope these awesome projects have sparked your interest enough to join me for this year’s “Summer Blocks of the Week.” My team and I work long and hard on trying to come up with something a little different each summer and honestly, I think we knocked it out of the park this year!

If you’d like to hear me talk a little bit more about each project you can watch the replay of last week’s, “Stitch with Lisa Bongean“ by clicking the link below.

Jess and I cover all the details on the “Summer Blocks of the Week,” along with some other announcements and updates as usual. If you liked “Shop Talk with Shelley“ last week, don’t forget it will be LIVE on our YouTube channel weekly on Tuesdays at 9AM CST! If you haven’t noticed, we LOVE to give away prizes around here! If you’d like to be our next lucky winner be sure to leave me a comment here on the blog and also during “Shop Talk with Shelley!” You can tune in by following the link below. Until then, take care! I will see you all in the morning. ~Lisa