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Coast & Country Crafts and Quilts Newsletter
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Old favourites -
Good day. How are you coping with the heat? Cornwall has seen some muggy weather rather than bikini times but the sun is streaming in today and we know that many of you have been struggling with the heat the past week or two. We are sure that you are not needing a quilt at the moment! Of course we do have customers world wide including Australia, so maybe your winter is cool enough for you to need layers right now.
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This week in our deliveries we have received more of our gorgeous natural linen and white linen. These are staple fabrics for Coast and Country. Linen is so versatile and can be used for stitchery backgrounds, cushions, toy making, quilts and clothes.
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Two other staple fabrics have arrived in the shape of calico and osnaburg. These are also beautiful fabrics that can be used for stitcheries, backing, toys and linings. The calico comes in two widths and weights. The extra wide 120" wide has a delicious high thread count making it lightweight and soft, smoother like a good cotton sheet. The 45" wide is a 60 x 60 thread count with a slight fleck. The osnaburg is popular with it's natural look and speckles of seed pods through it. It is a great fabric to use for the country or vintage look.
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Our wire hangers have also been restocked. We have heard that the manufacturer is closing down so we are stocking up whilst we can! These hangers are ideal for finishing wall hangings and giving them an ooooh factor! We especially love the heart topped ones to spread the love, and the garden hangers that look great with floral stitcheries and wall hangings.
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More basics are the ultrafine micron pens which give such a delicate line when tracing patterns for stitcheries. They are so fine that a single strand of DMC thread covers the line made. They are permanent so be sure to take your time when using them or get used to stitching over any imperfections! We also have new Stencils for tracing quilting designs. We don't recommend the micron pen for this but rather the Clover white marker, the erasable pens, pencils or the water erasable blue pens from Milward and Hemline.
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Thank you for your custom. We literally do happy dances when we fulfil your orders. It is exciting to see what everyone is making and it inspires us to revisit patterns and fabrics we may not have thought about in a while. We have been making bespoke fabric packs this week and that always lights us up to know that there will be a customer at the other end doing an equally happy dance when their fabric arrives.
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We look forward to continuing to help you with all things sewing related. It is our pleasure to provide a more personal service for our customers.
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With our Very Best wishes
Sally & the girls
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PS Apologies once again if you've tried to reach us by phone this week, we've just reinstalled broadband & it caused a few issues with our phones which have now been fixed. If we're unable to answer, please leave us a voice message and we'll get back to you.
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Our linen is comfortable and breathable, allowing you to stay cool and comfortable in warm weather when used for clothing. Most of our linen is 150 cm wide and made from a blend of linen and cotton. This means it is both strong and durable, while feeling soft and luxurious against the skin. The blend makes it less likely to fray and stretch like a pure linen is liable to.
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If you are using the linen for a stitchery background then we recommend backing your fabric with a lightweight fusible stabiliser like our ultrasoft Vilene 308. It helps to stabilise the fabric and stops rogue threads showing through to the front of your work and can be used with any fabric for the same purpose.
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Sligo linen, or ramie, is not made from flax or cotton but from nettles and is classified as a cellulose fiber, just like cotton, linen and rayon. Ramie fibers comes from the stem of a nettle plant called China grass (Boehmeria nivea). It looks similar to European nettle but it does not have prickles & is twice as strong as linen.
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This fabric has a slight texture to it as it arrives prewashed and preshrunk. It makes wonderful clothes as well as great quilts, bags and cushions.
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Of course we don't just have plain linens. We also have some beautiful patterned linens that are gorgeous for clothes, bags and storage baskets or pods. Love From Beth has some great pod patterns that would look great in linen.
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The Natural Muslin calicos are both a beautiful soft quality which are a delight to sew with.
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Perfect for using on many projects, from quilt backgrounds and backing to doll making. It is lighter in colour than the natural linen and osnaburg.
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Osnaburg is a more textured and loose weave fabric but is beautiful to work with for embroidery and rustic country look projects. It is not rough like hessian even though it has a similar colour and natural flecks irregularities in the weave.
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It is ideal for backgrounds and doll/animal bodies.
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Pocket and Floss from Melly & Me, and Bippity and Bruce from Hatched & Patched, look beautiful made with either Linen, calico or osnaburg. Then use some pretty fabrics for their outfits.
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A great way to use plain linen, calico or osnaburg is for stitchery backgrounds. They all have different qualities and looks depending on the desired look.
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Acrylic Stencils are for tracing your perfect quilting pattern. Use them with our variety of marking pens and pencils. Everyone tends to have their favourites. We are happy to advise on which is suitable for your particular project.
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Wire hangers have been a main stock item since we opened as a mobile shop 23 years ago. They really do finish off hangings beautifully. We have a good range including heart topped hangers and seasonal hangers. Stock up while you can as the manufacturer is sadly closing down. We have just one more delivery from them, then that's it.
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A reminder about our Summer Get Together organised by our lovely Mary Vague. She already has several booked in but there is room for a few more.
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Tuesday 29th July 2025 from 10.00 am to 3.30 pm at the Stithians Centre. £15 per person.
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As it is World Embroidery Day on the following day, Mary has designed a new hand stitched project especially for this event, although you are welcome to bring your own project to work on if you prefer. Sally will also be bringing a pop up shop for your extra supplies.
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For full details and booking info on this event please click on the photo.
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