I adore Cool Cottons (especially since I can walk there from my house!) — the owners, Pam and Marie, are both so sweet, and their fall line-up looks pretty amazing.

Here are some of the highlights of the current schedule from their newsletter:

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Beginning Sunday October 7th… every Sunday afternoon from 12:30p – 2:30p is Sit and Sew at cool cottons. Bring in any hand sewing project to work on… embroidery, appliqué, binding to attach, hand quilting…heck, even mending! Whatever you’re working on and need some uninterrupted time to complete, bring it in! It will be very informal… just sitting around and sewing… oh and homemade cookies too!

Thursday Oct. 11th. 2 sessions…3p-4p and 630p-730p. We are looking forward to the start of the first cool cottons Block of the Month Quilt Club. For those of you who are interested in trying quilting, or if you are already “hooked” this will be great! For just $10 you will receive your first block kit (fabric and pattern) and a demonstration from Jolyn Buhl on how to construct it, along with other tips. We meet again each month on the 2nd Thursday of the month, same two time slots. As long as you bring in your completed (9inch) block from the previous month you will receive the next month’s block kit at no charge. Let us know by email, phone, or in person if you think you’re interested so we can have enough kits ready! You can also stop by the shop to see the patterns and pick up an information sheet.

Saturday Oct. 13th, 10am – 12noon. Buttons and Embellishment… a workshop put on by the Portland Chapter of American Sewing Guild. Cost is just $7.50. ASG members will teach you how to make button jewelry and/or how to apply buttons and trim to your favorite pair of jeans or bag! Hmmmm…could be another holiday gift idea!

Thursday Nov. 29th, 230p-430p or 630p-830p. Beginning Embroidery… Cost is $25, taught by Jolyn Buhl. Learn some basic embroidery stitches to embellish tea towels, pillow cases, whatever! You got it, yet another holiday gift idea!

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I love the quilt block of the month project, and it’s so cool that each month’s kit is free if you’ve completed the last one in time — such a great incentive! Speaking of quilting, as I’ve mentioned before, Pam and Marie were kind enough to let me baste my entire quilt on their big, beautiful cutting table, saving me hours of crawling around on the floor at home. Their shop is such a lovely place to work and the sit-and-sew Sundays sound like a plan to me.

If you go:

cool cottons
2417 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland
503-232-0417