Saturday 26 February 2011

Definition of a good skiing holiday

In theory it should just look like this...


or this...

Now at this point I should just say that if you are within popping distance of a quilt shop this post may not be of particular interest to you. However, if, like me, you have to get on a plane to see a quilt shop in the flesh - enjoy the next few images...



Love that birdy quilt.

Look at all that yummy fabric.
And this is the owner and her son - he built her website

And then there was this:
It was like stepping into a log-cabin inside
There were quilts for sale
And although the shop was beautifully laid out...

...the fabrics were quite dark - a lot of reproductions, batiks and traditional prints and I was looking for something a bit more light and funky. So I used it as an opportunity to buy 'unable to buy where I live' things such as fusible fleece, pellon and insulated fleece.

Then there was this:
Very friendly people:
I liked the way the fabrics were displayed in this shop...

I think you gravitate more towards attractive displays of fabric and perhaps consider things that you hadn't looked at before.





And then it was on to here:

(No, that's not me!)


I think by this stage it would be fair to say that my traveling companions were perhaps all quilted out. Lucky for them there was an 'I'm not in to quilting area' with colouring for the kids and free tea and coffee and they were made to feel just as welcome as me.
So while they snapped the wildlife outside...
...I concentrated on what was inside:




Was really enjoyable to see what is to buy in a 'real' quilt shop as opposed to an online one. My only comment would be (and some of the owners know I am doing this blog post) would be for more fresh, funky, modern fabrics please - I saw no Heather Bailey, Amy Butler, Anna Marie Horner or Tula Pink, not a huge amount of Robert Kaufman or Michael Miller but loads of Moda. Appreciate these are my personal preferences though.

Oh, and on the way to the airport I spotted a Jo-Anns but it was on the wrong side of the freeway/dual-carriage way and I wasn't the driver. Had I been the driver and there hadn't been a barrier dividing the two flows of traffic, rest assured, I'd have done a swift U-turn.

And what fabric did I buy?

That and a little (oh OK, big) bit more ;-)

6 comments:

  1. Oh, that looks SO FUN! I agree, while I buy most of my fabric online,it is so nice to see it (and pet it) in person. You do notice things you wouldn't normally see.

    Love that Bliss quilt with the flowers!

    Glad you had fun and got a bit of skiing in as well ;)

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  2. Oh! how I envy the choice american quilters have. I am lucky that there are several quilting shops in striking distance of my home but none offer the size and choice of these shops!

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  3. Who cares about skiing! You seemed to find some great shops. I agree that our shops here in the States sometimes don't carry the latest greatest designers. Thankfully there is online shopping to be had. Hope you had a great trip!

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  4. How fun! I have such a hard time buying fabric if I can't see it first, although that being said I have rarely been disappointed in my online purchases.

    I went to a quilt show last fall and was disappointed with what I saw there too. Lots of Moda and reproduction fabric, but not the variety I was hoping for. Oh, well... I'm glad you were able to pick up some stuff and look forward to seeing what you make!

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  5. Ha ha this post made me laugh so much. I am in a hotel in Vancouver at the moment and we go to Whistler skiing for 10 days on Monday. I dragged my husband to a quilt shop this afternoon. Not as good value as US but I found some Moda Wonderland which in itself made it worth the trip. Hope you enjoyed the skiing too!

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  6. Always a bonus to be able to go into a proper bricks and mortar store. I thought it was just in the UK you tended to find the traditional stuff - that's if you can find a fabric store at all!

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