Sad Goodbyes

 We met at Kosmos, a Greek fast food restaurant, to say goodbye to our dear friends Susan and Pat, who are moving away. We wore our "Sassy Quilter" t-shirts in their honor.

 One last chance to talk before they closed on the sale of their house, and took to the road.

 We will miss these two dear friends, who have brought us so much fun and laughter over the years.

 As you can see, Pat fitted right in with our group .

 Iris was our photographer; you can see her snapping the photo with her remote in the photo below.

Pat was wishing he had a chair to sit in, but Sheila didn't mind holding him up.

We wish them all the best in their new home, and we know they will make new friends immediately!

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March Road Trip!

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On March 25th and 26, four of us went on a major road trip to Hamilton, MO., home of Jenny Doan and the Missouri Star Quilt Company. We stopped at Blue Top Quilt Shop in Lamar, MO for a warmup, since you never go into any athletic endeavor without warming up first! We then traveled northward to Hamilton, which is a little northeast of Kansas City.

Hamilton is a small midwest town whose major claim to fame in years past was that it was the boyhood home of J.C. Penney. Now it is better known for Jenny Doan and her efforts in revitalizing the small downtown area with quilt shops.  Currently there are 6 shops within a 2 block area, and another building is being renovated. She has stated that her ultimate goal is 12 shops.  Signs already are proclaiming Hamilton as Quilt Town, USA.

We all appreciated that the original storefronts were pretty much unchanged, just spruced up with new paint and signage. The interiors are also kept true to the original stores.

 Sew Seasonal is the place to go for holiday fabrics, from a large stock of Christmas fabrics to smaller selections for Easter, July 4th, Halloween, etc.

 Batik Boutique is self-explanatory. We all could get in some real trouble in there.

The old J.C. Penney's store retains the name.  It now contains two stores; one sells licensed fabrics such as Disney, Pixar, Marvel Comics, etc. The other carries Civil War reproduction fabrics and similar lines.

The old tin ceilings and wood floors are complemented by the freshly painted walls and quilts hung over the shelves of fabric bolts.  Although most of the shops are small, each carries different notions, patterns, and specials which makes it fun to browse.

 Each store is spacious and just filled with eye candy!

Each wall sample has a notation of what pattern was used, and whether it was published and in which magazine so you could find it easily.

The fifth store is the Mercantile, which carries solids and blenders. There are also full sized quilts displayed at floor level here for close-up examination.  They encourage visitors to take photos wherever they please.

This quilt was a favorite of ours.

The sixth store is the main store, which carries a mix of fabrics, and other supplies, including batting and interfacings. The longarm quilting machines are there as well.

 Unfortunately we did not get to meet Jenny, as she was teaching a class in their retreat center down the street, but we did have our photo taken with her representation! It stands inside the main store, along with a screen that continuously shows her tutorials.  Chairs are provided so you can sit and watch if you choose.

Every employee is extremely helpful and friendly (many are Jenny's family members.) One nice employee even took our photo outside the main shop--several times.  We had a wonderful time there!

We stayed in nearby Cameron, MO, where we also visited Crossroads Quilters, a very nice shop, well worth a visit. The proprietor was very friendly and helpful, and offered us cookies and coffee.  She had a lovely fabric selection, a room of purse patterns and notions, and lots of books to choose from.

We also stopped in Quilter's Harvest in Higginsville, MO, which was a small shop chock full of women sewing at a day retreat.  It looked like they were having a lot of fun, and greeted us warmly.

We then stopped at two stores in Springfield, FM Store and Fabric Outlet, where we put the biggest dent in our wallets! Those two stores alone are worth a day trip.

We enjoyed supper at Fazoli's--delicious pasta and breadsticks. We stopped for dessert at a DQ in Bella Vista, AR. before making it home as darkness was falling.

Susan's vehicle was groaning with our purchases!  We had so much fun together, we wish others had been with us but we really had a blast!

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March

 Cyndi showed this gorgeous batik quilt (above) and the beautiful watercolor quilt (below.)

Meg made this lovely baby quilt for her great-niece's baby shower.  

Meg also pieced these table runners for future gifts.

 

Susan pieced the quilts above and below for siblings, using the same fabrics but very different patterns.  Both are very bright and cheerful--the kids will love them!

We hope to have more photos next week!

February Part 2

 Betty finished her first quilt, and it's a beauty!

 Cyndi made this cute owl quilt for her granddaughter.  The backing has an owl print.

 Susan made these greeting cards.  The lower one is 3 dimensional.

 Meg put this quilt together with scraps she had on hand.  It's really bright and cheerful!

Marcia calls her quilt "A Dash of Insanity" because each block is four concentric Churn Dashes.
 

February

February Show-and-Tell

 

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 Sheila made this striking red quilt, even matching the stripes when possible.

 

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 Cyndi made these two table runners. Very pretty!

 

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Cyndi finished this top that she bought at our auction. It's just the right size for a card table.

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This is the front of Cyndi's quilt that has the fish fabric on the back. It's a beautiful fall print.

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Iris made this lovely table-runner. The blues and golds are a striking contrast.

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January 22nd, 2015

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This week we tried out a new Italian restaurant and were very impressed with the food and the service.  We enjoy checking out different restaurants, we add the really good ones to our rotation of lunch spots.  This one was added unanimously!

Cyndi finished this quilt top from an auction purchase, and she donated it for someone in need.

Sheila made this small quilt from a pack of  5" x 18" precuts.  Lovely jewel tones!

Sheila also finished this Jelly Roll Race quilt with beautiful borders that really set off the colors.

Cyndi used two fish prints to make a quilt backing.  This quilt will be reversible!

Sheila got a head start on next Christmas' decorating with this panel quilt.

Cyndi Made a lovely Alphabet quilt, in which each letter is made from a print that corresponds to it. It is also a matching game, since she used the same print in another block in the interior of the quilt.

Marcia put together this Disappearing Nine-Patch quilt with florals and solids. It is a couch throw size.

Marcia also made this Melon quilt as a gift for one of her grand-nieces. The melons are made of vintage fabrics from the 60's and 70's.

Keep those photos coming! We all love Show-and-Tell!

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New Year, New Directions

We had been having a monthly meeting at night because two of our members could not meet with us during the day, but both those members have resigned from our group and are starting a group of their own.  We wish them much success and many new friends!

There is now no reason to have a monthly nightime meeting, so we have dropped it.  This will make things easier for the rest of us, as we will not need to provide refreshments or prepare a program. Some of us are also reluctant to get out at night.

This blog will be kept open as a place for us to show our finished projects and share news.  In that spirit, Cyndi shares a photo of the doll quilts she made for Christmas gifts for some very lucky little girls!

We hope to keep photos like this coming! Please submit all photos via email, if possible. Thanks!