New Fabrics Soon From 'Inspiring' Quilt Market

The 2013 International Quilt Market in Texas proved the industry is going from strength from strength.

And many of the stylish new fabrics which debuted at the recent event in Houston will be on the shelves at Owl & Drum in the coming weeks and months.

"It was a very inspiring event," said Bianca Howell, the co-owner of Owl & Drum in midtown Tulsa.

 Fox Field quilt by Tula Pink

"I was very happy to see the evolution of the modern fabric industry - and the great work that the companies and designers are creating. I think our customers are going to love the new designs for the new season."

Sylvia collection by Lotta Jansdotter

About 600 exhibitors representing dozens of different companies and designers staffed about 1,200 booths - with the annual event attracting hundreds of buyers from across the country, plus buyers from as far afield as Australia, England and Japan.

Mary Perisho, Owl & Drum's sewing instructor, was thrilled to attend her first International Quilt Market.

"Mary is a seamstress, not a quilter, but after attending the Quilt Market she can't wait to now start her first quilt. After all the inspiring quilts she saw, she will have a hard time figuring out which pattern will be her first!"

"We really enjoyed attending the Schoolhouse Series, which were day-long previews of new fabric collections, as well as sewing and quilting supplies," Howell said.

Wee Wander by Sarah Jane

"And the best part was hearing first-hand from the designers about where the inspirations came from for the colors, prints and meanings in their new collections.

"Among my favorite lines I saw at the Quilt Market were new collections from Anna Maria Horner for Free Spirit, Leah Duncan for Art Gallery Fabrics, and Amy Butler for Rowan Fabrics."

Dowry by Anna Maria Horner

Meadow by Leah Duncan

Quilt by Leah Duncan for Art Gallery Fabrics

Hapi by Amy Butler

"We also got to see the curated quilt exhibit for the International Quilt Festival before it opened to the public the following week. The quilts that people created from around the world were truly impressive."

Here are a photos of a couple of quilts that were part of the 2013 Modern Quilt Guild exhibit:

The fun-packed event was staged from Oct. 26-28 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston.

The International Quilt Market is a wholesale trade show that was started in 1979 at the request of many quilt shop owners across the U.S. to provide one central marketplace for quilt shops and their suppliers.

Produced by Quilts Inc., it features all the major fabric, batting, publishing, stencil and pattern companies.

The annual fall edition of market is always held in Houston.

In 1981, the first spring edition of Quilt Market was held in San Francisco. Subsequent spring markets have been held in Williamsburg, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Boston, Nashville, Chicago, Denver, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Charlotte, Providence, Portland and Atlantic City.

For more information, visit www.quilts.com.

For more details about Owl & Drum - which carries about 300 fabrics made by many different designers, crafts supplies and tools, plus numerous unique gifts - visit www.owlanddrum.com.

The 2810 E. 15th St. store also sells many other items made by Tulsans, Oklahomans and artisans from Portland, Oregon, plus a wide variety of craft books.

Owl & Drum is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday. The store is closed on Sundays and Mondays, but it's open every day online at www.owlanddrum.etsy.com.

For more information, call Bianca at 918-742-1404, send an email to owlanddrum@gmail.com, or follow us on Facebook, Blogger.com, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.

Owl & Drum Set For Tulsa Mini Maker Faire On Sept. 28

A fun, new creative showcase is just around the corner . . .

Owl & Drum is happy to announce it has been selected to take part in the inaugural Tulsa Mini Maker Faire.

The brand-new event is set for 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, at Guthrie Green in the Brady Arts District.

More than 50 "makers" and 1,000 attendees are expected to flock to downtown Tulsa for the event, which is being hosted by the Hardesty Center for Fab Lab Tulsa.

"I'd heard about it before in other cities, so I was excited when I heard that Tulsa was going to have a Mini Maker Faire of its own!" said Bianca Howell, the co-owner of Owl & Drum.

"I thought that Owl & Drum should definitely be a part of this fun event, being that we are 'makers' as well. We are really look forward to it - especially to see all the wonderful things that people create."

The Tulsa Mini Maker Faire is described as a fun and engaging, community-based learning event that aims to inspire everyone to become a maker and to connect to people and projects in their local communities.

The faire will include artists, engineers, scientists, hobbyists, crafters, students, educators and many others. The idea is to provide a venue for all kinds - and ages - of makers to showcase their impressive work and to interact with interested local people.

The event bills itself as the "Greatest Show (and Tell) on Earth - a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity, resourcefulness and a celebration of the 'Maker Movement.'"

The original Maker Faire was held in San Mateo, Calif., and its seventh annual event in 2012 showcased 800 makers and was attended by a whopping 110,000 people.

World Maker Faire New York - the other flagship event - has grown in three years to 500-plus makers and 55,000 attendees. Other events are staged in Detroit, Kansas City, Newcastle, England, and Tokyo.  

Mini Maker Faires are popping up all over the U.S., including in Tulsa for the first time on Sept. 28!

Maker Faire is organized by Make, the first magazine devoted entirely to DIY technology projects, and is supported by O'Reilly Media.

"Make unites, inspires, informs and entertains a growing community of resourceful people who undertake amazing projects in their backyards, basements and garages," the magazine says. "Make celebrates your right to tweak, hack and bend any technology to your will."

For more details, visit www.blog.makezine.com.

Owl & Drum's 1st Birthday Party on Sept. 14

It's our birthday!

. . . and we're having a party to celebrate.

Owl & Drum celebrates its first anniversary in business on Saturday, Sept. 14.

From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., we've got a day choc-ful of in-store events and discounts.

Okie Traders, a new local company which specializes in leather handbags and accessories, will stage a "trunk show" all-day-long in our store at 2810 E. 15th Ave. in midtown Tulsa.

Sacha Matheos will have her special handmade handbags and accessories - such as key rings, hair bows and bracelets - for sale.

She will also offer people the opportunity to create their own custom leather handbags, featuring fabrics that people can chose from among the 300 bolts on the shelves at Owl & Drum.

Plus, "Angora Jane" Deason, who teaches classes at Owl & Drum, will be in the store from 1-4 p.m. to give yarn-spinning demonstrations on her spinning wheel.

Also scheduled for Sept. 14 are:

* A "make-and-take" table from 1-4 p.m. will see Mary Perisho teach interested children and adults how to make a variety of simple sewing crafts that they can take home and show to family and friends.

* 10% off all regularly priced fabric.

* 25% off already marked-down fabric and gifts.

* 25% off sewing patterns and craft books.  

"We are really excited for our first birthday party!" said Bianca Howell, the co-owner of Owl & Drum.

"We can't wait! It's going to be a fun day - and we hope customers, new and old, will stop by and see what's going on."

"We have had a great first year in Tulsa - and we look forward to, hopefully, having many more! Thanks to everybody for their support."

Located near the corner of Delaware Avenue and 15th Street, Owl & Drum is Tulsa's one-stop shop for fabric, craft supplies, books and handmade gifts.

For more details, send an email to owlanddrum@gmail.com or call us at 918-742-1404.

So, stop by our store on Sept. 14 and help us celebrate our first birthday. It should be a real hoot!

Leah Duncan Fabrics Debut At Owl & Drum

Leah Duncan has many arrows to her creative bow.

And fabric - her latest artistic endeavor - is sure to hit the bulls-eye, too!

Already a successful greeting card and tea towel designer-illustrator-printer, her first-ever range of fabrics for Art Gallery Fabrics have just been released - and Owl & Drum is thrilled to have five different bolts of Duncan's debut designs.

"After seeing lots of bright colors in fabric collections, I was delighted to find these pastel hues in Leah Duncan's collection," said Bianca Howell, the co-owner of Owl & Drum.

"When I was living in Portland, I saw her cards in a little shop on Belmont Street and was inspired by her organic illustrations. The cards are beautifully illustrated and she uses a wonderful range of colors."

Duncan's collection of 100 percent premium cotton fabrics - titled "Tule" - feature interesting symmetrical and geometric shapes in distinctive colorways.

The five fabric bolts that have just been put on Owl & Drum's shelves are:

Terrain Cactus - featuring pale green spots on a white background, interspersed with orange and yellow dots;

Mojave Illuminated - featuring dark blue triangles on a white background, complemented by smaller green, orange and yellow triangles;

Windmarks Arid - featuring a chevron design of blue, peach, yellow and silver-gray dots on a white background;

Mojave Opaque - featuring white triangles on a peach background, plus random pea green, peach and silver-gray triangles;

and Native Fringe Solar - featuring geometric lines of orange, white and peach shapes in a Southwestern style.

Duncan is an Austin-based illustrator and textile designer who creates artwork inspired by nature, folk art and her love of children's illustrations. Each of her archival prints are created with pigment inks for long-lasting quality.

"Leah's collections are influenced by her Native American roots, mixing hand-drawn details with bright, eye-catching color combinations that will bring you to a world where folk meets modern," according to www.artgalleryfabrics.com.

Her wide range of greeting cards - depicting different types of flowers, as well as rabbits, buffalo, deer, whales, quails and other animals - are printed on entirely recycled paper.

Duncan also makes limited edition cotton tea towels that have proved popular with Owl & Drum customers since the store opened in midtown Tulsa a year ago.

"People just seem to love Leah's style," Howell said. "She's a very talented artist and designer."

For more details about Duncan and her creations, check out her website at www.leahduncan.com.

For more details about Hollywood, Fla.-based Art Gallery Fabrics, visit www.artgalleryfabrics.com.

For more details about Owl & Drum - which carries about 300 fabrics made by many different designers, crafts supplies and tools, plus numerous unique gifts - visit www.owlanddrum.com.

The 2810 E. 15th St. store also sells many other items made by Tulsans, Oklahomans and artisans from Portland, Oregon, plus a wide variety of craft books.

Owl & Drum is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday. The store is closed on Sundays and Mondays, but it's open every day online at www.owlanddrum.etsy.com.

For more information, call Bianca at 918-742-1404, send an email to owlanddrum@gmail.com, or follow us on Facebook, Blogger.com, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.

Scandinavia Style by Westex Fabric

We have fallen in love with our latest Japanese imports from Westex fabrics. The collection is called Scandinavia Style and they are printed oxford cottons. 

This lightweight canvas fabric is perfect for home decor, handbags, and kitchen accessories. How fun would these prints be in your kitchen! They are so cheerful.

You can find these fabrics, as well as other Japanese offerings at our store in Tulsa, OK and in our Etsy shop. Click here to check them out!

New Heather Ross Fabrics Arrive At Owl & Drum

Heather Ross' debut collection for Windham Fabrics is here!

"Briar Rose" features a fun blend of summertime scenes, animals and fruits - from a family of happy frogs playing on logs on a pond to juicy strawberries, from a field of yellow daisies and orange poppies to a meadow of green four-leaf clovers.

Ross - a talented New York-based author, artist and designer - uses a pastel color palette of light greens, yellows, pinks and red hues for her cool collection.

The colorful and beautifully-drawn designs are printed on 100 percent quilting-weight cotton and are perfect for patchwork, bedding, decor, baby clothes or decorating a child’s nursery.

And five bolts of the stylish fabric have just arrived at Owl & Drum's store in midtown Tulsa, OK!

Nanny Bee

Hex Bee 

Calico

Strawberry

Cricket Clover

"I love Heather Ross' style," said Bianca Howell, the co-owner of Owl & Drum.

"I like her vintage-inspired illustrations and her whimsical use of color. And I know I'm not alone - a lot of my friends and Owl & Drum customers really like her fabrics. They have such a great look."

Ross' cool collection is close to her heart.

"In my family, summers are sacred," she writes on her website, www.heatherross.squarespace.com.

"They are about sun and rain and mud and frogs and strawberries and dirty feet. Of falling asleep on porches under piles of quilts as the air turns chilly and the crickets begin to sing.

"And of never, ever brushing your hair (but maybe your teeth!). And swimming. Lots and lots of swimming.

"Briar Rose is inspired by summers: past and present; and by families: mine and yours."

Ross has also had published a number of craft books, including the popular Heather Ross Prints, which contains a step-by-step tutorial on how to create your own fabric prints. Ross also illustrated a children’s book called “Crafty Chloe,” which was published in 2011.

For more details about Ross and her creations, check out her informative blog on her website.

For more details about her first-ever fabric line for the Jersey City, N.J., company, visit www.windhamfabrics.com.

For more details about Owl & Drum - which carries about 300 fabrics made by many different designers, crafts supplies and tools, plus numerous unique gifts - visit www.owlanddrum.com.

The 2810 E. 15th St. store also sells many other items made by Tulsans, Oklahomans and artisans from Portland, Oregon, plus a wide variety of craft books.

Owl & Drum is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday. The store is closed on Sundays and Mondays, but it's open every day online at www.owlanddrum.etsy.com.

For more information, call Bianca at 918-742-1404, send an email to owlanddrum@gmail.com, or follow us on Facebook, Blogger.com, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

Liberty Lifestyle Fabrics Arrive At Owl & Drum

They're here!

Liberty of London's Liberty Lifestyle fabrics have just arrived at Owl & Drum.

Stile, the historic British company's newest collection, is inspired by the Art Nouveau movement, specifically the work of influential Scottish architect and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

Mackintosh

Rennire

Liberty's designs at the time were influenced by the progressive art movement that swept through Britain and Europe.

"In fact, Liberty designs captured the moment so well that, in Italy, the Art Nouveau movement is known as 'Stile Liberty,'" the company said on its website, liberty.co.uk.

Cranston

Herbert

"To reverse it seemed the perfect name for our (fabric) collection."

The new Stile Collection features eight designs and four color palettes.

Wells

Leonard

Prior to designing the fabrics, Liberty staff researched the historic company's enormous archive of designs, references and images.

They then travelled to Glasgow to research the work of Mackintosh.

"His work seemed like a perfect fit as he was such an important representative of Art Nouveau in the United Kingdom," Liberty reported.

"While in Glasgow, we took photos and visited iconic buildings (Mackintosh designed) such as the Glasgow School of Art, the Willow Tea Rooms and the Hunterian Museum, where they have reassembled the interiors of Mackintosh's Glasgow home.

"These images were then used to produce new designs to sit alongside the wonderful archive prints."

Liberty - which was established in central London in 1875 - is one of the world's last great emporiums for innovative and eclectic designs.

The company prides itself on combining its rich heritage with cutting-edge and avant garde designs and products.

For more details, visit www.liberty.co.uk.

Owl & Drum, located at 2810 E. 15th St. in Tulsa, is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday, and from 12-4 p.m. Sundays. It is closed on Mondays.

For more details about Owl & Drum – which stocks more than 250 different bolts of fabric, unique handmade gifts, craft books and equipment/supplies – visit www.owlanddrum.com or call Bianca at 918-742-1404.