On my Reno trip, I also went to Windy Moon Quilts #2. They have two locations and we went to the newer one, which is located in an old school building in (or near, maybe) Sparks, NV.
Windy Moon: Views towards the Front
The shop was packed. They had a lot of fabric, notions, tools, kits, thread -everything. The shop is also a Bernina dealer and does repairs.
The shop really had an amazing amount of items available for purchase. Some of the stuff was a little hard to see because of how much there was and how it was displayed. Despite the layering of materials, I found quite a bit of nice stuff to buy. Dots. They had great dots. I thought I had them all, but no.
I also liked the pillowcase kits they had. Very elegant fabric combinations. They ran about $12.99.
I thought the color the walls were painted was nice in this context. I can see where it might make me a little sick if it were the color in my office or in a school classroom.
Windy Moon: Classroom
The shop had lots of great light because of the large windows and that was true in the big classroom as well.
The classroom was large and had a number of class samples on the walls. We were able to walk around and look at everything, including covet yardage from that stack of greys on the table.
The classroom looked comfortable to learn in and not too crowded.
One of the things about the shop residing in an old school building is the great molding. I love that thick, white molding around the windows and the doors.
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
Windy Moon Quilts
They had a lot of samples, which was fun to look at. Not everything was in one style, which was nice.
I visited Going Batty last Monday while I was visiting Kathleen in Reno. It is a clean and new looking shop in a strip mall. It is large with a variety of products and is a Bernina dealer.
I was looking for my favorite ruler (Creative Grids 4.5″x8.5″ – CGR48), because Kathleen really needed this ruler. Actually, everyone needs this ruler. It is really great for trimming. They had a good selection of rulers, but, sadly, not this one.
The shop did have the Quick Curves Ruler and several patterns using that ruler.
One of the things I really liked about the shop was the sample quilts on the walls. They had one quilt that made me want to go out and make a Feathered Star. The Feathered Star quilt is a Marsha McCloskey pattern called Star of Chamblie and it looked so great in all solids with a bright white background. Sadly, the photo I took was blurry. 🙁
Walls of Going Batty
The other quilts on the walls were just as great. There is one quilt that I have seen in other shops. It is a Block of the Month called Color of Love. It reminds me of the Star Sampler. I am tempted to make the BOM just because I like stars and I like the varying sizes of blocks. I do wonder how many star quilts I should make.
I was kind of amazed at the sewing machine and furniture display at the shop. the entire front of the store was full of all the best Berninas available. The furniture was sewing machine furniture and it was gorgeous. Some of it wasn’t very useful (sewing machine cabinet with a round flip-out table-WTH?), but the items I saw that I would buy were gorgeous and useful. One was a cutting table with a few drawers and an open space at the top. On top was a cutting table with sides that flip up to make it the size of a very large Olfa mat.
Going Batty front of store
I liked the fabric, too, though they didn’t have tons. They had a respectable amount, but not tons. There was some modern stuff, but not tons. The shop didn’t seem to have fat quarters for their bolt fabric. Usually that means they only have FQs for end of bolts, but I didn’t ask, so I don’t know. GB also didn’t have very many pre-cuts. I wanted some more of that Zen Chic background mini-charms, but couldn’t find them. The shop had a few pre-cuts, but not many.
The displays were really great and the shop was light and airy. They had an up to date system for checking customers out, though it was a bit slow when we were there. The shop offered Bernina service and sold the new-ish Bernina longarms. This shop is definitely worth a visit.
Contact the shop:
Going Batty
9744 S Virginia St, Reno, NV 89511
(775) 351-2424
The Russian Rubix was accepted into the New Quilts of Northern California. I had to drop off it off this week and took the time to make the drive to New Pieces yesterday. I could have sent it, but decided that if I went sometime late morning – mid-afternoon I could miss most of the traffic and it would be less hassle than cramming it into a box and sending it.
I did my normal morning routine and then headed out.
I don’t go over there that often. The bridge is such a barrier, for some reason. I didn’t grow up with bridges and when I was in college I thought nothing of crossing the bridge every weekend for some adventure. I brought a sandwich just to be on the safe side. 😉
I was pleased to go to New Pieces again. It has been while and, after I had been there for a few minutes, turning in the quilt, I took some time to look around the store. I was really impressed with the selection of fabrics. They had so much fabric – more fabric than I have seen in a shop since I went to QuiltWorks Northwest several years ago. I distinctly remember practically tripping over bolts as we walked around at that shop. It wasn’t quite that bad at New Pieces, but there was a lot of fabric. There was fabric that I had never seen before, which I LOVE! They have lots of Asian fabric, which is not my favorite, but it was more than I had ever seen before.
I was trying to be strict with myself about fabric purchases since the ‘fabric cup’ in my workroom runneth over. I did find a couple of fabrics – one I never expected to find and the same motif in a different colorway – that needed to come home with me. I also found a grey and a fabric for a gift.
Some bits and bobs from New Pieces
The shop is large and they had a good selection of notions, rulers (Creative Grids), books and thread. It was great.
Here is irony: the last time I went to this shop was when the Young Man was a baby. He was in some kind of carrier or sling. I went last week on my way back from dropping him off at college.
This is a small shop, but it is right on the main square of Healdsburg and it is crammed with fabric. I found a few pieces that will work for the Improv quilt.
By this time I was getting into the fabric equivalent of a diabetic coma, but it was fun to stop in this shop and realize how close it is to me (about 2 hours) and worth the drive, because there are other nice shops and good places to eat nearby.
Fabrications, Healdsburg, Calif.
Fabrications, Healdsburg, Calif.
Fabrications, Healdsburg, Calif.
There were two people working and they were watching us the whole time, but they weren’t unfriendly. I meant to ask about the local quilt people around, but I forgot. I wondered if this shop was mainly visited by tourists or if there was a thriving quilt community. Oh well. Next time.
This store is RIGHT next door to an ice cream shop. Kids and spouses can have a nice time there while you browse. 😉
This shop has a lot of panels and kits. A LOT. The panels are great and I bought a couple to make Thanksgiving decorations. I had better get on it!
They had fabric, but not the tons that other shops had. I bought a few pieces.
The store has a lot of gifts, which is what tourist town shops have and that was great. Some of the fabrics were novelty sea related fabrics, which I had never seen before.
‘Pastel’ room
The shop also had a lot of interesting patterns.
I think the strength of the shop was really the panels. They had lots and lots of panels, especially in the Thanksgiving realm (it is nice to see that some retail isn’t going straight from Hallowe’en to Christmas!). I bought two panels with which to make some Thanksgiving table runners. Am I trying to fill my time now that my YM is gone? Probably, at least mentally.
Pumpkins and Gourds tablerunner
Thanksgiving, as you may remember, is ‘my’ holiday in the family. Lately, I have been feeling a bit of a slacker, because I really don’t have any Thanksgiving decorations. One of my SILs sends a flower arrangement every year, which is the sum total of my decorations. I have wanted to make napkins, but the thought of sewing 24+ brown and beige napkins makes me run away from the sewing machine screaming. When I saw the panel with the pumpkins and gourds, I could imagine having it in my house. The colors are a little brighter than normal Thanksgiving colors and it isn’t boring. It is also a bit arty. It also doesn’t need much piecing, so almost all I would need to do is quilt it. STOP laughing! 😉
The one panel will make two table runners. I might piece the leaves to the end of one to make it a little longer. They are supposed to be coasters, but I am not making coasters as we have about 30 sets of coasters. We will see.
Second panel
I set up three tables at Thanksgiving and I don’t want the ‘kids’ table to feel bad, especially since they usually don’t get china, so I bought another panel for them. What I will do with this one is cut off the smaller panels and sew them together in a long line, then quilt it. If I have time, I will quilt the wreath and make it into a table mat for the coffee table.
These panels are already washed so there is hope for me to finish them.
Like some of the other shops Forget Me Knots was participating in the Row by Row Experience. The lady helping pushed us hard to get the kit. Not my jam so I resisted.
They had a lot of notions, a large classroom and generally a large space. I found this store to have a lot to look at and it took me awhile to figure out that there weren’t as many fabric bolts as I originally thought.
I liked this shop. The lady was friendly, they had fabric and notions I hadn’t seen before and the location was convenient. Look for the ice cream shop. It is huge and that is what we noticed. The quilt shop is in a large building, but they need better signage.
Forget Me Knots interior
Forget Me Knots interior
Forget Me Knots interior
Location: 640 2nd St SE, Bandon, OR 97411
(541) 347-9021
I have visited the Fat Quail Quilt Shop before. The last few times DH and I have driven to the North Coast, we haven’t stopped. Absence makes the heart grow fonder? As Mom and I drove south from Portland it turned out to be a good place to stop for a stretch. Laytonville is a small town after Leggett and before Willets as you drive south on Hwy 101.
When we visited several ladies were having a sew-in. The ladies were sewing away on their own projects and asking for advice as needed (by their own words). I was glad to see that they were there. Those small towns look so small, I always wonder how they can support a quilt population. My mom and I discussed this quite a bit in the car and her theory is that crafts are popular because of the lack of big city distractions. She could be right.
Fat Quail interior
Fat Quail probably has the most ‘country’ style of the stores we visited. The colors of the decor tend more towards sage, beige, cream and rust. The shop is light filled and there are plenty of pinks and turquoises for people like me. They also have some more modern patterns, such as the Time for Tea pattern, which makes me think of the Mad Hatter.
“Time for Tea”
I don’t know that I will make it as a quilt, but I do like the clock being half off the quilt. It is a good reminder that design elements do not need to be complete. I also like the stylized coffee pot. Both are interesting design elements. The pattern is Time For Tea (CSD-110- 13″x 35″) from Creative Space Designs. They have other interesting, including more Mad Hatter-ish, patterns as well as flowers and animals. You can buy it from their website or call Fat Quail.
Fat Quail interior
They brightened things up quite a bit from last time. The room with the card catalog drawers holding fat quarters held a lot of Stonehenge last time. This time there was the cat quilt and that green, cream and rust quilt. The room was a lot brighter. No Stonehenge. Sorry Sandy!
I also saw some 1930s fabrics as well as some aqua and turquoise hiding in that room. 😉
Fat Quail front room
As at the Quilter’s Corner, this shop had some specialty quail items. The quail is the state bird of California and this shop had a pattern for s stuffed version and some prints that could be added to a quilt. You can see them hanging on the fabric shelf to the left in the middle of the picture.
Autumn was in full swing in all of these quilt shops so there was a lot of Thanksgiving: reds, golds and browns. You can see those fabrics on the left in the back of the picture.
Fat Quail front room
While fabric wasn’t everywhere, which I didn’t see in any shop I visited, there was plenty to choose from. I also found that a lot of different styles were represented even if there weren’t samples using every fabric.
I still think this shop is worth a visit and there is a coffee shop down the road a little where the family can relax while you look at fabric
Location:
44550 US-101, Laytonville, CA 95454
(707) 984-6966
I went to a number of shops, but some of them are not getting their own post because I didn’t buy enough, take enough pictures or I had been there before pretty recently.
The best thing about visiting all the quilt shops I visited, aside from being distracted from leaving my Y.M. in a strange city all alone, was that I saw a lot of different stuff. Different colorways, different fabrics, different motifs. It made me realize how much fabric I never see. I suppose that is a good thing.
I found a big list of all the quilt shops in Oregon and we kind of followed that one.
Ocean Waves, Eureka, California
Ocean Waves, Eureka, Calif.
I usually visit this store when I am on the North Coast and this trip was no exception. The last time I visited was in February.
The Young Man and I drove up on Tuesday and we had kind of short driving day. We should have driven farther, but we didn’t. We arrived in Eureka, checked into the hotel and I called the quilt store. They were open for another half and hour so I hightailed over there and looked around. While I was there, I texted the Y.M. with a picture of a not-too-juvenile back-to-school print and asked if he wanted a pillowcase out of it. He said YES so I bought it. I also bought some more dress fabrics. You know those Philip Jacobs will be on body in the not too distant future. 😉
Ruth’s Family Fabric, Waldport, Oregon
Riley Blake Awning Stripe
This is an upholstery shop and quilt fabric store. I may just bring my wing chairs there to be recovered. It will force me to drive by. The price is right and the Fabric Depot in Portland had some great upholstery fabric.
I may have found the perfect fabric at this store. I have never seen this Riley Blake Awning Stripe before. The stripes are about an inch wide. I would upholster an entire room in this fabric if I had a sunroom or a boudoir. I love this fabric so much. It is an older fabric from the La Creme Basics line. This should seriously be in their lineup all the time. And WHY did I have to go to Southern Oregon to find this fabric? Why didn’t I ever see it before? WHY?
It was also in red and another version in black, but I restrained myself. I have to make something that I will use all the time. I don’t know what yet, but something great.
By My Hand, Brookings, Oregon
The lady who was manning the store (pretty sure she was the owner) was super nice. Mom barely looked at anything in this shop because she really hit off with the owner and they just chatted the whole time.
By My Hand light grey
The store is yarn and fabric, but more yarn. I looked for light greys for my Flying Geese project throughout the trip and found a good one here.
This shop was hard to find. It is in a kind of strip mall, but the sign is impossible to see if you are driving. Quilt and fabric shops MUST have a giant sign near the road if they want out-of-towners to visit.
We passed about 3 shops up because we simply couldn’t find them. One was in the same town as this shop and we drove by where it should have been twice and we still couldn’t find it. Another thing, shops should have navigation tips on their websites. If they are near a giant department store their website should say “we are just before Super Giant Department Store if you are going south.”
We did stop at a wonderful cafe in Brookings called Blue Water cafe. It was down by the water and little hard to find, but totally worth it. They had gluten free bread and the service was excellent. The lady was very friendly. The place was also clean and had a very interesting Hawaiian/surfing/tropical theme.
Missed Shops
I drove right by Cool Cotton, Portland. It is, supposedly, a modern quilt shop. I was looking for exit, but didn’t see it. I’ll make it there next time.
Country Keepsakes was impossible to find.
We were shopped out when we passed the Quilted Angel. It isn’t that far from my house so, theoretically, I can go almost any time.
We found a list of Oregon quilt shops ** on the web and used it quite a bit. Mom was really good at directing me to the various shops. I think I have a bit of DH in me (he has trained me, more likely) after all these years of traveling together. I tend to stay in the car far too long whereas mom needs to get out and walk around. I have to say that getting out of the car was easier when we did it more often. I didn’t feel like I needed a crowbar to get myself out of the car.
There are a lot of quilt shops on the Southern Oregon coast! It is amazing that every hour or so you can get out and take a look around a quilt shop.
Quilter’s Corner – no life sucking beige
Quilter’s Corner was bright and cheerful. I love the paint on the outside of the shop. I am not particularly fond of the color on its own, but with the white, yellow and stainless steel flower tubs, it really works. It looks so welcoming and cheerful.
The inside of the shop was bright and cheerful as well. The people were friendly. They had a great selection of notions and fabric.
Quilter’s Corner batiks wall
To the left when we walked in was a wall of batiks. There were a lot of bright and cheerful, clear colors.
I think the light along the southern Oregon coast must be similar to the light we have at home, because I didn’t see a lot of country/Civil War themed shops. Most of the shops had bright and cheerful colors. Granted, we did not visit most of the shops on the list.
Quilter’s Corner notions etc
You know I love looking at notions and this shop, as I mentioned, had a lot of interesting notions. I had seen, that morning, a post on Instagram from Moda Fabrics about a finger light for handstitching. Before I left I had been working on the Food Quilt #2 binding, and stitching black on black was hard to see, so I was interested. They were on my mind when I was checking out. There was a basket of the lights on the counter, so I picked out one for me and one for my mom. It is so awesome that I didn’t have to hunt around for weeks for one to try. They were only $2 and the counter lady said she liked them. DH has been out of town so I haven’t been sitting with him and stitching, but I will give a full report on this little light later.
Quilter’s Corner books etc
There is a certain ruler for which I am looking. I don’t know if it exists, but it is about 5″ or 6″ x 12″. I looked at all the shops we visited, but haven’t yet found exactly the ruler for which I am looking. They had a good selection of rulers at this shop. I spent some time looking at them and really wanting to get back to the sewing machine. I envy OzzyPip for taking her machine with her on her trips. Of course, I would not have had time to machine sew on this trip. I did have some handwork with me, but as I drove most of the time, I didn’t work on the project (EPP). Not making much progress there.
Quilter’s Corner fabrics
One thing I noticed in a lot of these shops was the sea theme. They didn’t have it all over the shop, but had a section of fabrics with a sea theme or panels (such as the lighthouse panels you see, right). I didn’t buy any of these, but it made me think of the Michael Miller Ocean fabric I bought a few years ago. I think these must be for tourist quiltmakers who come and want a little something to remember their trip.
I also saw the nationwide row by row challenge in full force in many of these Oregon shops. Daisy mentioned this challenge experience in one of her recent podcasts. The theme there is something about the sea and each shop had a pattern for a row. These were free, but they also had kitted up the pattern with fabrics and those seem to run around $15.
I am not one for challenges, but I do like the idea of getting different rows from different shops and putting the rows together in your own way. It seems like a very neighborly thing to do, especially if people were doing it together. I could have collected a lot of rows on this trip, but, again, not my thing.
Quilter’s Corner fabric displays
The shop really had a lot packed into a little space and they still had the opportunity for displays using antiques like the sewing machine. Sometimes I feel like such displays are taking away valuable space from fabric, but I didn’t in this case.
After we had been there for a few minutes other ladies started to trickle in. We found out that the local quilt group was coming to meet and 30 ladies would be there in about 30 minutes. We didn’t rush, but since we were almost done anyway we finished up and got out so someone else could have our parking space. I do like it when quilt shops offer space to quilt groups. It is worth their while as, in this particular instance, several ladies handed over bolts of fabric to be cut and bought fat quarters for an exchange they were having.
I never cease to be amazed at how different quilt shops can look. This shop is well worth a stop if you are heading to the Oregon Coast.
Location: 335 7th St, Port Orford, OR 97465
(541) 332-0502
**Nota bene: both shops on this list in Tualatin are closed, as in no longer exist.
I stopped in Corvallis, Oregon on my way home at a shop called Quiltwork Patches. This wasn’t the largest store I visited, but it was one with a very good selection of fabric etc. Their excellent selection of fabric also included colorways that I hadn’t seen. They had some of the latest Moda charm packs and mini charm packs and really great selection of sale fabrics.
The ladies in the shop were friendly, but not too pushy, so I felt ok looking around, which was great, because I wasn’t feeling that well*.
There was a ton of fabric in this shop and half of it was sale fabric. The other part was really different, as I mentioned.
Quiltwork Patches front to back of the store
I liked the displays as well. They weren’t too cutesy and didn’t get in the way of the fabric. The displays facilitated the display of the fabric.
This was the first time I really liked those little benches in a quilt store. They, again, facilitated the display rather than overwhelming the display.
Quiltwork Patches back to front of store
Quiltwork Patches FQs and Sale Fabric
If this looks like a lot of fabric, it is because there was a lot of fabric in this store. Their website says 4000 bolts and I believe it.
Quiltwork Patches across the front of the store
Location:
212 SW 3rd St, Corvallis, OR 97333
(541) 752-4820
I kept catching Mom in my photos!
*Nota bene: Mom and I ended up with what we think was food poisoning. We can’t figure out where we got it, but I was sicker than she and it was unpleasant.
If you have been playing along you know that I was in Portland (Oregon) with my DH over the weekend dropping our Y.M. off at college. It was a whirlwind adventure filled with moving in, then 2 days of orientation, some picking up the slack and then letting him go off on his new adventure living somewhere else and fending for himself. Sending children off to college is weird! One day they live with you and you are telling them to pick up their socks and the next day they live somewhere else.
Fabric Depot, Portland, Oregon
My mom flew up to drive back with me and while I was waiting to pick her up at the airport, I went to a shop that Tanesha mentioned, in one of her podcasts, called Fabric Depot.
OMG! This place is so enormous, I couldn’t even, while I was in the store, understand how large it was. Conservatively it was the size of 3 Safeways. I think. It was so big that I couldn’t even begin to think about seeing everything. Truly. I am not exaggerating.
Truly enormousTruly enormousTruly enormous
The three pictures above are the view from where I was standing when I walked in and got past the husband area. The three pictures show the vastness of the space. It is a store you have to go to with a bag lunch and plan out to look at one corner, then go back that next week with the same idea in mind.
They had everything new that I have been hearing about. I saw April Rosenthal’s Meadowbrook line, which I thought I would buy, but I ended up not buying any. They had charm packs and layer cakes, but I didn’t like it enough to have the desire to make something with it.
Draping fabric
The other thing I noticed is that they drape the fabric like House of Fabrics, etc used to do. It is a great idea, because you can really see a lot of the motifs on the fabric.
The fabric shown left is a row of batiks. There were about 10 rows of batiks that I saw.
Hallowe’en fabrics
Julie would be thrilled with the Hallowe’en selection they had. I never saw so many interesting Hallowe’en fabrics! I bought some panels to make the Young Man and his two (yes, TWO, count ’em two!) college roommates Hallowe’en pillowcases. I already made the YM a Hallowe’en pillowcase, but hopefully he will change his sheets more than once in October.
There was a little boy with a 4 week old puppy walking around the store showing off his puppy. He wanted everyone to pat the puppy. I got to pat the puppy twice. The boy was about 4. OMG! They were both so cute.
Color Kits
In addition to a zillion pre-cuts, they also kits made up from their own designs or from local designers.
There were a lot of different ideas in this area and they all used solids.
The store had an excellent selection of solids. They had the ubiquitous Moda Bella solids as well as the Kona Solids. They also had the Michael Miller Cotton Couture solids and a few of the American Made Brands solids. It was great to see such a selection of solids.
There were also packs of solid colors with color related patterns prepackaged and ready to grab and go.
Moda Modern Mixers
I saw a group of fabrics called Modern Mixers. I love the name of these fabrics and wanted them all. They reminded me of Half Moon Modern (and that I have to find something to do with those fabrics!). There may have been some that were in the Half Moon Modern group.
I did buy a couple for some more Political Wifery/work outfits.
The store also had some great displays. I loved the quilts they had hanging up including one from Dr. Who.
Dr. Who etc Display QuiltsFabric Depot Display Quilts
I have noticed the Jack’s Chain pattern (above quilt with green background) showing up in shops and on the web lately. I have loved that pattern since I saw it in the Cotton Patch a thousand years ago. Perhaps it is time to make it?
Fabric Depot Purchases
I didn’t have a lot of time, but it is probably good since I would have spent more money. I bought a few things, mostly they are earmarked for projects. Fabric Depot had a great selection of zippers, which were on sale. I took the opportunity to stock up on a few for dresses so I don’t have to go rushing around when I need them.
The store was definitely worth a visit and I will go there again when I am in Portland another time.
I was in Boston for the Special Libraries Association conference. On my last day in Boston, I walked over to a fabric store called Grey’s Fabric and Notions. I had looked at their website and saw a number of blog posts on garment making including lingerie, so I was on the fence about visiting.
Building with interesting colored windows
My conference buddy encouraged me so we walked over there together. We got there off of Summer, A Street, 4th and finally Harrison.
Summer Street was a main road and to get to A Street we had to go down a set of metal stairs to the street below. It was kind of like the Stockton Tunnel street madness here in SF. The neighborhood looked yup and coming, but also very much in transition.
It was a bit of a long walk, but we enjoyed it. We took pictures of interesting architecture and things we don’t see at home or interested us. The neighborhood is definitely changing.
Pretty alley housing Grey’s Fabrics
Grey’s was a little hard to find, but worth the trip and in a charming little alley with other art galleries and creative spaces, including a bead and fiber store.
The store itself is great. It is a good size without being huge. They had plenty of quilt fabric; a very respectable selection and I liked what they had. I indulged in a couple of pieces. One will be a dress for a future NSGW event. They had a fair selection of Philip Jacobs (my man!!!), considering the size of the store. They also had notions, patterns, embroidery floss and a lot of gift items.
Front of Grey’s
One thing I really liked was the table in the front with lots of little things, including gifts. If that “Be Nice or Leave” pouch had been a sign I would have bought it. I need to tape such a sign to my forehead.
I bought a piece of flannel to make future receiving blankets. Ashley, the store manager, introduced me to double gauze, which she said fluffs up a little after it is washed. It came up after I told her about the receiving blankets I make as gifts for babies. The double gauze, apparently, makes very soft receiving blankets. I didn’t buy any, though it might be good for lighter weight receiving blankets. They have an online shop and it is made by Cotton + Steel so I maybe able to find it locally as well.
The store had lots and LOTS of the independent pattern company garment patterns, such as Colette. I was tempted by one, but restrained myself because I want to look at the Vogue patterns before I buy any other patterns.
The other thing I saw that I liked were the Sublime Stitching embroidery patterns. Of course, I have heard about them and seen them online, but I have never seen them in person. There was one called Sexy Librarian that would make a great raffle prize for my library association, if made up into a pillow or something.
All in all, visiting Grey’s was a worthwhile activity and I would visit again. I wish it was near my house as I would love to take classes there.
You can find Grey’s Fabric and Notions at:
450 Harrison Ave, Boston, MA 02118
(617) 338-4739
Last weekend we headed up to the North Coast again for an annual NSGW event. Normally there is an event Friday evening, an event in the late morning on Saturday and a big dinner on Saturday night. This year the Saturday late morning event fell through, so DH and I had the whole day until 5pm to spend together. It was nice. Not having the normal day-to-day to deal with for a little while makes spending time together quite enjoyable.
We took the opportunity to spend some time in the Eureka/Arcata area. The Young Man got accepted to Humboldt State so we went to take a look at it. We did offer to pay for him to come with us and he decided to go visit his grandma and grandpa instead. We tortured him by sending him a bunch of photos of various parts of the campus in a running commentary.
After the campus visit, we had lunch at The Lost Coast Brewery and it was AWESOME! They had gluten free buns, so I took the opportunity to have my first French Dip in, probably, 15 years. It wasn’t as good as I remember a French Dip being, but I still enjoyed it. The restaurant had fun decorations, too. There was a pulley system with a giant spider at the end of it and when the door opened and closed the spider when up and down. They also had a number of paper mache animals hanging from the ceiling. It was a little loud, though.
Ocean Waves Quilts
After lunch we headed up to Ocean Wave Quilts. DH actually came into the store with me. I really like it when he comes in with me. I told him to pick out some shirt fabric, but he didn’t see any that he liked enough to buy. He was interested in everything and looked around. I didn’t buy much as I really don’t need anything. I just bought a couple of fabrics for projects in process and some of the new rainbow Wonder Clips. I bought the latter because they are so fabulous. I think I spent around $23. You might remember my posts from last year?
Lincoln’s Hearse full view
Not too far from Ocean Waves is the Blue Ox Millworks. Over the weekend they had an open house to show off a replica of Abraham Lincoln’s hearse that they are building. Creepy, I know.
Next year (I think) is the 100th anniversary of Lincoln’s death. I don’t know what it is about death anniversaries… Media hype?
The original hearse was destroyed in a fire in about 1870. For some reason that I don’t know since didn’t read in the article very carefully, the Blue Ox is making the replica. Their shop has some amazing tools and fabulously HUGE work tables. I think safety was good in terms of the machinery, but the place felt old and messy and dilapidated. Still, I like the idea of a place that can replicate Victorian ornamentation and where woodworking is a valued art and craft.
Still DH was interested and he slogged through the quilt store with me, so we went. Also, it is historical, and probably once in a lifetime opportunity. I have to remember to tell SIL#2 not to go near the place with her husband. He will be working in that shop and they will be living in Eureka in a heartbeat if he hears about it.
Google notice
We also went to Scottie Dog Quilts. Shockingly, the shop is closed, as in no longer containing anything much less fabric and notions. The property looks abandoned. I finally saw a small note in Google (mobile) that said ‘permanently closed’. I didn’t notice that before. I didn’t really believe it because the website looks completely normal. Finally, I tracked down what was going on on Brenda Lou’s blog. She said that they closed the retail shop last June! So, we drove on and didn’t stop. I hadn’t researched any other quilt shops and one had to be enough for this trip.
I took a quilt look at Google when we returned to the hotel and found Bunny Hop Quilt Shop also in Eureka. We drove pretty close to it, but not right by. It only has a Facebook page, but looks like a real place. If we head up there next year, I will look into quilt shops more exactly.
I really am a most demanding houseguest. All I want to do is sew or look at fabric and quilt shops when I travel. Fortunately, my SIL was willing and able to feed my frenzy. She came and picked me up on Saturday morning from the hotel in Baltimore and then we headed back to her house to sew. On the way we stopped at a new shop, Prints Charming.
I liked this shop. In general, I thought the feel was good. They had a lot of nice fabrics in my style and colors. They had a good assortment of tools, notions, patterns and books and a longarm that people could rent. The shop is in a new mall, so the building is brand,spanking new and that adds to the feeling of fresh and clean.
Prints Charming front of shop
In the corner near the window is a lighthouse quilt that we also saw at Patches in Mt. Airy. There is a sea theme that pervades quilt shops in Maryland. They are on the Atlantic and seafaring, as well as various Navy related activities go on there, so it makes sense. Plus the whole crab thing.
Anyway, that lighthouse quilt is interesting (not interesting enough for me to make, but interesting) and I enjoyed seeing two different versions. I liked the one at PC fine, but I thought the background used in the Patches version added more interest. In the front of the shop photo, you can see the longarm (Handiquilter, perhaps?) and some of the patterns and books. If you are working at the longarm, you have your back to the front window of the shop, which is seen in the top photo.
The shop still had some of their Christmas stuff out. Mostly it was panels around the counter. Good idea to start early, if you are planning Christmas gifts IMO.
Prints Charming: front to back of shop
I stood near the longarm, kind of in front of the main door, to take this photo, which looks to the back of the shop. The table in the bottom left of the photo has kits and panel kits.
I am kind of interested in this resurgence of panel quilts. I got a panel when I bought some Kate Spain Christmas fabric, but I didn’t think that much of it. You might recall that I didn’t want to waste it, so I put it on the back of the Frosted Stars Leftovers Quilt. I have seen some really pretty panels lately. There was a peacock one that was very tempting. I don’t really begrudge people for wanting a quick quilt and using a panel. I think it is interesting and wonder if there is an AQSG article about it?
I didn’t get a good photo of their featured, new fabric, which you can see part of in the middle right (above). They had great fabrics in that section. I found a paintbox print that I plan to use for a set of gifts. (famous last words, right?).
Prints Charming Back of Shop
I really liked the self made jelly rolls and pre-cuts that Capital Quilts had. The colors were just so fantastic. Prints Charming had a nice array of the kind shops buy from Moda as well. I am always so tempted by the small cute little bundles of pre-cuts, but I rarely use them so I let the shop keep their Jelly Rolls.
The area shown in the picture with the pre-cuts was in a bit of disarray. it wasn’t terrible, just not as tidy as the rest of the store, which was VERY tidy. One of the ladies said that they needed, desperately, to get rid of something and clean up that area. I can’t fault them. Every space (house, shop, cubicle) has a junk drawer. 😉
Prints Charming: Fabric
I guess what I want in a quilt shop is fabric. We have already established that I don’t need more fabric, but I do enjoy having a wide variety of colors and patterns from which to choose.
Prints Charming had a good amount of fabric. Not only did the have a good number of bolts, but they also had a wide variety: 2 brands of solids (not American Made Brands), batiks, novelty, tone-on-tones, flannels, modern, baby/kid fabrics, some 30s, I think and a section of nautical/ocean fabric.
I didn’t ask about whether they cut fat quarters. They had plenty out. I thought the range of colors they had tended towards brighter rather than muted, though I did see a small section of browns. I don’t know if there were other Civil War-colored prints there as I zoomed right by after looking at a coffee print.
One fabric we found was an architectural drawing of boat plans. SIL bought enough to make a shirt for her DH. We discussed cutting it out, but decided we had better finish the other shirts first.
Prints Charming: looking towards the back
I also noticed that they had a lot of examples and class samples hanging in the shop. I thought the hanging quilts made the shop look warm and friendly.
You can see some of the class samples on the back wall. That is their pattern section as well.
Back by the patterns were two more exits and another cutting table. One exit (right) led to a nice clean restroom and connected the shop in some way (I didn’t explore) to the condos above. Can you imagine having a quilt shop right downstairs? I would love it and be totally doomed. DOOMED!
If you are heading to Maryland, I would recommend a visit to this shop. I found some nice stuff to buy and I am sure you would as well. (says your personal Temptress!)
A few days ago I wrote about the Ocean Waves quilt shop, which was actually the second shop I visited on our trip to the North Coast last weekend. The first shop, which I really like was Scottie Dog Quilts. For the first time since I have been going there, one of the owners was there and we chatted for awhile while she cut my fabric. I heard her answer the phone “Redwood Sewing Center” and thought “huh?”, so I asked. She said they have a different, affiliated business called Scottie Dog Quilts, but officially the shop was called Redwood Sewing Center. Hhmm. Who knew?
Cafe Apron Sample
One thing I bought was a kit with a pattern for a ‘cafe’ apron. It was one of those postcard patterns. They only had them in kit form (no patterns alone) and the kits were more my colors (pink, yellow, etc). I have plenty of fabric to make a few of these cafe aprons, but had to buy the kit in order to get the pattern. Frankly, what appealed to me was the Eiffel Tower fabric, but they were out and they didn’t have dark kits. I bought some yardage of the neutrals/blacks from the Little Black Dress collection to make one as a gift. I may have some Eiffel Tower fabric leftover from my sister’s quilt, but I don’t think so. I think I used the leftovers for the back. Now I have the fabric for two and hope to make them soon, so the fabric doesn’t get lost or used for something else. I have another short apron I wear in my workroom (it was a gift), so I don’t need one, but, depending on how difficult they are, I think these would make nice gifts and, perhaps, a giveaway or officer gift at BAMQG. We’ll see.
Little Black Dress & Lozenge Quilt
It is a small shop, but they have a lot of fabric. I didn’t think I was in the mood to buy fabric, but I did buy a few pieces. They have a small batik wall and I picked out a few pieces just to freshen up my batik options.
I always like the quilt samples they have in this shop as well. I have been, for a long time, toying with the idea of lozenge quilt and the one in the photo is an interesting variation. It is not actually made from a lozenge shaped patch, but from squares, HSTs and rectangles. I am not that fond of the colors of the sample, but that is no problem.
The fabrics I discussed for the apron are shown above the quilt.
Fabric at Scottie Dog
they had a small, segregated selection of modern fabrics, one Heather Bailey I saw this time was also there last year (used it for the Petrillo Bag). It made me wonder if Free Spirit is reprinting that particular print of if the shop does not sell many modern fabrics?
They also had Mary Ellen’s Best Press in the regular size and a lot of different fragrances as well as a lot of charm packs.
You can also see more of their samples. I don’t remember if those were just decorations or if they were class samples. There was actually a class gong on when I was there. I went into the classroom to look at the quilts hanging there. I listened to the discussion and could only get that I think that was some kind of finishing class – bring your half finished project and someone would help you finish it. There were a couple of ladies doing applique’ so it could have been an applique’ class as well.
Notions Wall – Scottie Dog
There was a nice selection of notions. I bought another pack of True Grips. A few of my rulers still need them, especially the specialty templates.
I definitely think that the notions wall is a telling sign of the type of shop. Some shops just seem to have a bunch fo Dritz notions and that is it. Other shops seem to have a varied selection of useful notions. Scottie Dog/Redwood Sewing Center is a shop that has a variety. It was a small-medium selection, but I think they picked what they thought would be useful rather than ordering a ‘notions kit’, if such a thing exists.
I think I have mentioned before that they sell machines – Pfaffs (perhaps that is why they are officially called Redwood Sewing Center??). I looked at the Pfaffs they had available – about 6 machines – just out of curiosity. I couldn’t tell anything from what I saw and I didn’t ask for a demo.
Towards 30s and Dots Wall
Straight ahead and to the left as you walk in is the 1930s fabrics and dots wall. If you turn left from the notions wall, you will also see it. I didn’t see anything that jumped out at me for TFQ, but there were a few dots that tempted me.
The cabinets on the left of the picture are covered with Bali Pops, Tonga Treats, etc. I rummaged through them and was very tempted, but I have a few slated for projects that I have not used yet, so I restrained myself.
Right to the right of the dots and 1930s fabrics was a large display of Bonnie & Camille fabrics. They had charm packs of Scrumptious, but yardage from a variety of their different lines, even Ruby.
You can really see how this shop is just crammed with fabric and everything. I found that to be the case with Ocean Waves, too. I didn’t really get a sense of the vibrancy of the quilting community, but it must be strong to support two quilt shops which are almost within walking distance of each other in the same town.
More notions, patterns & batiks
Taking this picture, the Little Black Dress and lozenge quilt display were on my left.
I liked the Bonnie & Camille quilt and was very tempted by that ruffled bag hanging above the notions. I have a number of bag patterns yet to make, so I refrained from buying that one.
The photo to the right gives more examples of the sample quilts and there is a wide variety.
I visited Ocean Waves Quilt Shop again over the weekend on a break from the Native Sons Events. I have visited this shop twice before.
First of all, I forgot to take photos of the inside this year. It looks much the same as last year, so go look at those photos. 😉
This shop has a great selection of FQs, also a good selection of notions and books. I bought a Sewline glue pen to use for the Serendipity Quilt.
In their book section, they had at least three books by Eleanor Burns. I thought about buying the one with the cooking theme, Quilts from El’s Kitchen. I ended up not buying it, because a lot of the blocks were blocks for which I already had patterns. The attraction was the layout and colors she used for her quilts.
I also really liked a quilt, made with Robyn Pandolph’s Notting Hill line from Eleanor Burns book, Quilts Through the Seasons. It was a combination of Four Patches and Flying Geese. The colors were nice and soft. This is a line that I love when I see it all together. If I bought pieces and parts, I would never know what to do with and it wouldn’t play nicely with any of the other fabrics I own. I did buy 2 FQs of the greys, because I couldn’t resist. They are beigy greys, though and wouldn’t look good with the other greys I am working with.
I bought a nice selection of batiks that went together really well once I saw them stacked on the counter. I also replenished my supply of turquoise-as-background fabric. It was a fun outing, but I kind of missed having a friend with me.
Ocean Waves Quilt Shop
305 V Street
Eureka, CA 995501
(707) 444-0252
https://www.facebook.com/OceanWaveQuilts/info
