June is Here..... Cogratulation Graduates, and the mommies that got them there!

It is hard to believe that June is here already. Summer is here and I am not sure what happen to spring. It seems like it was just yesterday that I was stuck in 4 feet of snow trying to get to Kroger and Bob Evans. I laugh everytime I drive over the spot where we were stuck.





Congratulations to Curtis, Mark, Jenna, Christopher, Marco, Travis, Kyle, Margaret, and from college, Brooke, Lyndsay & Andy, and to all of my friends and neighbors who sat at graduation holding back tears. DON'T BLINK!, I always want to tell new moms that.... it goes so fast! It makes me sad!





I have been very busy.... we are changing the shop around and getting ready for Shop Hop. Cutting kits and setting up new displays, getting ready for our new blocks of the month, updating the website....... The "Book" Guild in the Granary is in the final edit phase and we are working on the cover. The quilts used in the cover photo are from our ancestors. Isn't that cool! We are very excited about the progresss of the book and will keep you posted.


Here is a note from Brooke.... she has been crazy busy too!, but had time to make a visit to the local tatoo parlor. Stop in and ask to see her new tatoo! You true blue quilters will love it (no... it is not on her rear-end)

Well I am finally finished with school...praise the Lord! I have been busy making purses and quilts for the shop and I am excited to have more time to maybe make something for myself. I can't wait until the line of Dandelion girl comes in... that will be my next huge purchase. I am also excited for Amy Butler's new fabric to arrive it's funky and I love it. Its not hard to find ways to spend my money when I work here! Well I better get back to folding fabric. Seeyabye.

Everyone have a great weekend!

Stop in and say Hi!

Mary

Happy Friday!

Hey, It's Friday, and I am not sure what happen to the week. Last week Mom and I went with the Goodtime Quilters on a bus trip to Mary Jo's - A cloth store in the Carolinas. The weather was beautiful as was the scenery. The bus ride was fun and I really enjoyed the trip. Along the way we stopped at Sew What Batiks in Wythville Va. Carol Brit, the owner has owned the shop for over 25 years. I love to go into shops that have been around that long, I try to pick the owners brains for that secret that kas kept them in the business so long.... Today (changes daily) I think it is passion, passion for fabric, for the chance to sew, for the chance to finish something. Anyway, Carol was awesome, it appeared she still has the passion, her shop was great and if you are on your way to the beach you should stop in and take a peak. I hope after 25 years we have as much fabric she does and that Always In Stitches will be as great as Sew What Batiks.





We have been busy in the store getting samples and kits ready for Shop Hop. In case you didn't know the Shop Hop starts July 17th. On July 16th we will have a preview party from 6 - 8. Amy Butler will again be our guest. She has a new book coming out Sew Baby and a handful of new patterns. We will also have 2 buses leaving our shop, one on Saturday, and one on Tuesday.


Call the shop for details or check out the website. http://www.ohioshophop.com/.





This week in the shop we received the Hemming House & Prairie Paisley layer cakes and some supporting cast of fabrics. We also received some Quilt Diva fabric and charm square bundles. We are looking forward to some basics for our color wall, which we have been struggling keeping full.



Tomorow is the annual Race for the Cure. We have 30 people on our team this year and Brooke has tye-dyed our annual T shirt! Our theme this year is Piece, Love and Find A Cure!, with a big piece sign on the front of the shirt! I am looking forward to the walk, it is always so moving and emotional, it is a fun experience to be part of.

Here is a picture of part of our team from last year. I will post pictures from this years race later this weekend.

Stop in to say hello!, find some time to sew and have a great weekend!

Mary

Happy May..... What Happen to April??

They say the older you get the faster time flies... In that case I am very old.
What happen to April?

We have a busy week coming up at the shop. Tuesday is the Stitching Sisters day, come and help. Anytime, all day, they do break for lunch.

Finally, here are some pictures from the Chicago trip. We had a great time!
I will add captions and more pictures soon.







Deb Rammelsburg treated the bus to Krispie Kreme Donuts, so Chuck (bus driver) obliged cause the "HOT NOW" light was on. Here is Deb, heading to the bus to feed the troops... Keep in mind we are on our way home from dinner... lol

Here is Alex and I, she is so nice and personable...

These girls, Joellen, Vicky, Deb and Joan, are all smiling, but inside they are saying.... ouch my feet hurt, and I am broke...let get out of here..

In an effort to save money next year I will be leading the games, serving water, and driving the bus.... all at the same time of course. (Chuck let me practice...)

I saw this in Houston last fall and was amazed, check it out...

FRONT OF QUILT
BACK OF QUILT!
More later! Stop in and say Hi!

Mary

Time is flying by, Summer will be here soon!

Whew, where did April go?, Next week May is here, and next thing you know summer will be here. I love this time of year. I always want to go out and get some pansies and want to get started spreading mulch. It feels more like the end of May instead of the end of April. While I want to get out and garden I still have the desire to do nothing better than sit and sew.

The Bus trip to Chicago was so fun. I took many pictures and I promise I will get them posted to the blog very soon. We will definitely do the Chicago trip next year and promise to make it better than ever. We have been moving the store around and doing some spring cleaning to make room for a couple new fabric lines heading our way. Busy weekend ahead. Check back for photos and updates. Have a great weekend.

Mary

Oh my gosh, We are tired!

This has been a very hectic couple of weeks. Brooke and I went to the Goodtime Quilters retreat down in Piketon. We vended and sewed and laughed and ate and sewed some more. It was alot of fun! Here are some pictures of the Goodtimers quilting having fun!

Here are some great pictures of the Columbus Metropolitan Quilters Show from last weekend. Mom, Joyce, Terry and Kathy vended at this show. I helped set up on Thursday and helped tear down on Sunday. The CMQ girls are extremly talented and there were so many cool quilts that I couldn't decide which ones to photograph.

Ok, so this is not an award winning quilt, but this is my quilt!, and it is done, (yes it was a whopping 36 x 36). It was for the Kids Quilts Challange. My goal this year is to have a quilt in every guild that I belong to. (that would be three, finished, bound with no strings attached)

This was the opportunity quilt, and yes, I did the middle peach colored block.... notice I didn't photograph it too close. Since I am not yet an expert on hand applique I had to do a couple of blocks to practice. I think I just may make my own queen size quilt with all of my practice blocks....lol , don't hold your breath... I'll keep you posted.

This pretty quilt was done by my friend Ann Timms.

This weekend we have our mystery quilt sew in, and next Thursday Janet, Sharon and I are taking the busload to Chicago!! Woo hoo! we are going to have a great time!

Expect some great Chicago pictures!

Plan on coming to the shop on May 20th for the CMQ Kids Quilt Sew In. We will serve sloppy joes, bring a snack to share!

Have a great weekend!

Mary

Happy Friday... Happy Easter!

Hey,

We have had a busy week at the shop this week. Last weekend we had Dear Jane on Saturday morning, Saturday night was the Irish Mystery. Sunday was the Book Club, and Brooke had a Twist and Shout Tote Bag class. Monday morning began with the Quilt Club investigating different types of batting. The green sale was going on, and we were busy. By Wednesday we were tired.

We are preparing for a busy week next week and a busy weekend starting the 28th. Aunt GiGi and Sharon will be holding down the shop. Brooke and I are going to Piketon with the Goodtime Quilters. We will be vending, working on samples, eating, laughing, having fun and hopefully, not doing much ripping. Mom, Joyce, Terry and Kathy will be vending at the CMQ (Columbus Metropolitan Quilters) show at the Whitehall Community Center. (Don't think they will be working, working working, they will be chatting, chatting, chatting... LOL) . On a serious note, there are many talented quilters in this guild. You should definitely check out this show.

We got a handful of new fabrics in the shop this week including some new Aunt Gracie fabrics, two bolts of cream colored buttons, some great Fusions by Robert Kaufman, and some Krystals by Michael Miller.


We got the C&T auto ship in, this is an automatic monthly shipment of the newest books from C&T Publishers. We received Ricky Tims new book: Feathers and Urns, Jennifer Chiaverini's More Elm Creek Quilts, and from an author I am not familiar with, Anna Faustino, Simply Stunning Woven Quilts. This is a stunning book.


Please put in your prayers, Denise and Holly, two of our employees. Denise is Holly's mom and she has recently restarted chemo treatments. They will be working from home for awhile, helping us with packaging our kits and other things that are portable. Also say a prayer for Joy Egan who recently lost her brother.


Have a great Easter weekend, we will be closed on Sunday so that we can spend the day with our families. Stop in and say hi!


Mary

Friday, March 14, 2008

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S Weekend !


March 15th, 16th, and 17th is our Luck of the Irish Sale. If it is GREEN, it is 20% off !



Last Wednesday we had our Weekday mystery and it had an Irish theme. I hope everyone had fun! At the end of the day Molly and Kate came in and did some Irish step dancing for us. They were adorable.... pictures to the right. We will do another weekday mystery on April 16th. Call the shop for details.



We have received more of the At Waters Edge fabric line from Moda. A new fabric line that Brooke and Holly picked out at fall market has arrived, its from Benartex and called City Girl and the fabric that Aunt Gigi's neices Christine and Bethany picked out called Woodstock has arrived. Woodstock is a groovy combination of blues and greens. City Girl has jumbo flowers, paisley prints, dots in teal, green and brown. They both are very hip and will be made into some very cool bags soon.






This is City Girl!








This is Woodstock!






Have a great weekend! We all need to slow down a little bit.... (I am qualified to say this because yesterday I got a $70 speeding ticket...lol) and enjoy the journey.


More later

Mary, Sharon, Brooke, etc...etc...etc