July 2013 Fabric Newsletter

Summer is often synonymous with colorful. We break out our rainbow beach towels, Hawaiian shirts, bright sun dresses...the list goes on and on. But let's face it, summer isn't always about outdoing the sun in terms of brightness, and sometimes it is nice to bask in the full spectrum of colors, including the more muted, neutral hues. Of course toning down our color choices doesn't mean we don't love summer! Mark Cesarik's Summer Camp collection is the perfect example of summer appreciation and relaxing color combos. The camping-related prints include a fantastic design featuring Campers, as well as a shop favorite using Fishing Lures. Of course this collection doesn't leave out the Wildflowers and Ferns you might enjoy while out camping with your friends and family!

These classic prints provide plenty of versatility in terms of project potential. Use your favorite prints to create an awesome picnic quilt, use one or two for a handy grocery or beach bag for a favorite outdoorsman or outdoorswoman. Make lightweight lounge pants or shorts, or a comfy pillow for long drives up to the lake, the possibilities are endless! Whatever you choose to make with the Summer Camp collection, we're sure it will become a favorite!

Annette Tatum Mod Fabric Collection: 57% Off! We love the bold strokes of the Mod collection from Annette Tatum. Use these intense new hues of excitement to create minimal effects or go for a style that is daring and edgy. Mod has options for all kinds of possibilities with prints that range from the soft ripples - like the Mod Stripe - to bursts of color, as seen in the Chain Link print. Choose colors from soft pink and powder blues to bright tangerines and teals. We think these prints would make a great choice for the Change Your Mind Slipcover Bag from the Straight Stitch Society. At only $4.50 per yard, you really can't go wrong!

Tula Pink Prince Charming Voile: 9% Off! Jimmy Beans has Tula Pink Voile on sale. That may just be my favorite sentence in the English language! With prints that make you yearn for a good fairy tale, these fabrics from Tula Pink's ever-popular Prince Charming collection will surely look lovely in your next sewing project. If you need some inspiration for what to do with these whimsical voiles, look no further than the Mobius Cowl Wrap from the Sew Red book (designed by our very own bean, Kristen!), which uses one yard each of two different voile prints. We think the Hex Box and Snail Scallop prints in coordinating colors would make one awesome cowl!

Valori Wells Wrenly Collection: 9% Off! Here's your chance to get the luscious prints from Valori Wells' Wrenly collection at a great price! Wrenly combines overgrown tapestry blooms, sun kissed leaves, a stylized bird, and oscillating botanical medallions for a truly whimsical mélange of designs. The prints come in a range of rich, refined hues including mandarin, cobalt, citrus, violet and cherry, so there's something for everyone in these bright, fun prints. They would make wonderful Mommy and Me Aprons. Choose one colorway for mommy and one for the little one to create matching aprons without being identical. Or, spice up your back to school planning by making some Wrenly patterned Journal Covers.

The results are in, and we have our Beans for Brains Scholarship winners for 2013! The competition was steep this year; we received a record number of applications from talented knitters, crocheters, and sewist pursuing funding for their higher education endeavors. Thank you to all who applied! We really enjoyed hearing your stories and seeing your projects.

And of course, we want to congratulate the recipients! These 5 finalists come from 4 different corners of the US and the 5th is from here at home in the Reno/Tahoe area. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to help these talented students work towards their goals in higher education and wish them all the best!

Western Region: Jessica from the University of Denver
Currently studying for a Bachelors in Environmental Studies at the University of Denver, Jessica plans to apply to law school to become and Environmental and Animal Rights Attorney. A lover of natural fibers like wool, organic cotton and flax, the project Jessica submitted for this scholarship was a hand beaded hemp and silk charmeuse cocktail dress that she designed, drafted the pattern for, and sewed herself!
Midwest Region: Madison from Ohio State
Madison's project that he created for this scholarship was a set of mythological-themed dolls she calls the "My First Medusa and Mercury" dolls. She not only did she sew the dolls and their cloths, she also designed and wrote the patterns for them! A Pre-Med student majoring in Biology at Ohio State Madison is also enrolled in the honors program.
Southern Region: Omar from Columbia University
Omar attends Columbia University and is studying negotiation and conflict management. He taught himself to knit and crochet as a way to relax while he was deployed overseas with the US Air Force. He's received several medals and is currently ranked as a Captain. His project was a crochet baby blanket that he recently made for his newborn niece.
Northeast Region: Cassie from Harvard
Cassie is attending Harvard College and majoring in Bio-engineering. She plans to continue on to graduate school and pursue her ABET certification in engineering. For her project she created a "historically accurate" Ariel dress from Disney's The Little Mermaid drafted from her own pattern and complete with hand stitched gold seashell appliques and pearl beading!
Reno/Tahoe: Farah from the University of Nevada, Reno
Farah attends the University of Nevada, Reno and is majoring in Human Development and Family Studies. She plans to get her Master's Degree in Social Work, and she is actively involved in many on-campus organizations and volunteers locally as well. Farah crocheted her project using yarn that was given to her by friends and family.

If you would like to read more about this year's winners, be sure to check out our blog post. For those of you who are looking to learn more about Beans for Brains, and/or hope to apply next year, please visit our Beans for Brains website!