The Quilter’s Alley is moving

Starting the day after Christmas, we will be packing up fat quarter packs and bolts to move our shop a mile north to a better location. We have been enduring more than a year of watching the site of our current shop, decline into a landscape of rubble.  No one feels more sympathetic than we do for the folks who lost their businesses to an arson in October 2008.  We reported on it back then, thankful to this day that we did not experience the same loss – having at one time occupied the burned out building.

But enough time and patience have  been spent waiting for unfulfilled promises of construction timelines. The site has been shut down by the state as I write this.

They can't get to our shop

Foreboding signage about danger and hard hats blends into an attempt to direct people to our store with matching red ink and arrows.  Ironically, this is the most signage we’ve had since we opened, not that it can be deciphered as a welcome to the colorfully space we have lovingly carved out for the last three years. We have seen a steady decline in traffic since the demolition began a month ago, in perfect synch with the holiday season.   No consideration for small business is evident in the actions of our landlords.

So without regret, we are moving ahead in an effort to recapture some of the business we’ve inevitably lost because it looks like we’re closed.

We’re looking forward to the new shape of our business within a vibrant retail community.  We have lots simmering to ease the chill of Winter 2010.  We’re inviting even non-sewists to experience a project with fabric.  Our Tuesday drop-in sewing studio is expanding to Wednesdays as folks who do sew, continue to enjoy the company of others being creative.

See you at the Grand Re-Opening at 103 Danbury Rd. Ridgefield on January 2.  Yes, we will make it happen that fast!

 

Holiday Season

I received the most pleasant gift today, via email.  All the free and downloadable, beautiful illustration work by Marliyn Scott-Waters.  It has inspired me to prepare the shop for the holidays with some of her incredible work. Her children characters, one of whom is named Pip, will enliven our paper doll theme in the Kid’s Corner of the shop.  Pip, short for Pippin, is the name of our lovely old (15) Jack Russell Terrier.  Pip paper doll will be dressed up as a pumpkin-skeleton. The rest of the characters  in an assortment of adorable illustrated costumes.  I printed them on matte photo paper so they would be more lasting.  The colors also show up better on photo paper.

Our circus them, ala Brimfield’s vintage fabric find will be enhanced by a mini circus book.  I love that Marilyn’s circus has dogs in it.

And yes, I’m also working on quilts and will be up until the time I board the plane for Israel.

Commissioned by Art Gallery Fabrics

Alexa's Quilt

My newest pattern is finished! Weave Gauche

I know how much work applique is...

 

I finished a few more…

August is quiet at the shop; everybody’s savoring the last few summer days on a beach blanket and  aren’t the least bit interested in being at the sewing machine with a blanket in their lap.  However, they’ve  brought a few projects my way to be finished at the last minute, so I’ve been quilting alot under pressure.  I’m thankful for this in August.

And while I’ve been stitching….

 

MQX

A few shots from the Machine Quilters Expo of this week.  Many models of long arm quilters converged upon Manchester, New Hampshire for the big show and all the different ways you can make feather patterns (among other things). I didn’t realize that this was the scene of my very first quilt-show-shop-vending experience from two+ years back.  I was especially glad to be on the “other side of the booth” this week, feeling like an explorer  of all things long arm.

Ally stopped by for some mom-girl time.

Mary, Laura and I took numerous classes and Nancy was sorely missed but ever so busy building Dorms on a Drawstring.
The Quilter’s Alley has many new pantograph patterns and thread colors for our customers quilts.  Bring them on!

 

Classes on everything from templates to tension kept us occupied and bleary-eyed  for most of our visit.  My head is spinning with ideas and all the new possibilities for making quilts into signature works of art.  Each instructor had a spin, and the truth that emerged was to find our own spins: editing from these industry masters what works for us.  

 

 

What happened for me is the realization that I love stitching on my Gammill (I already knew this) but just watching someone else is not as much fun. It’s like: ” If Mary had the only spoon to the warm apple crisp with vanilla ice cream.”

 

Until we return

I want to bring the blog up to date before we take a week off for our trip to Israel, to visit Shara.  The three weeks since we made our reservations have hurried us to this point, with loads of  projects and preparations that have kept me busy, busy.  We have continued to quilt, some of the very largest kings in the last week and I’ve finally got to record the exciting results on my camera for your pleasure and enjoyment.  

 

I have collected lots of request items to pack in our luggage to bring Shara  the tastes of the States that she misses most: cheese macaroni, goldfish and ring pops.  An entire suitcase overflows into our bags with boxes borrowing room not available in the original one bag we allocated for her treats.  It’s like visiting your kid  at sleep away camp, except they aren’t coming home in a couple of weeks.

I have  gathered the longest skirt I own,  a shade of persimmon, a kerchief (eggplant and gold), special kippot, a pad for my prayers, film and batteries for my camera, a bathing suit (!) and walking, walking, walking shoes. I’m preparing the hand applique project for the 10 hour plane ride, although we both hope to sleep through the night – not likely.

I’m putting the finishing touches on an apron for Shara, full bib and ruffles at her request.  There are a few loose ends with store projects, like the new pattern sample I finished and the Molly Story Quilt that I would like to start quilting.  But  I’m at the point when some things must now wait…

 

Deluge

…and  I’m not referring to the incessant snowing this Winter has performed in Connecticut this year.  While I’m a bit tired of ice under foot and being cold most of the time, I’m thrilled when January comes.  The orders from October’s Quilt Market start arriving and it has been,  like I said, a deluge.  I hardly know where to start.

Well  backwards, part of our Art Gallery Fabrics order arrived yesterday.

The KOKKA jacquards and preciously drawn floral are spilling from their bolts in a lucious rainbow.

Aprons are awaiting  this adorable Andover collection of graphically arranged kitchen utensils.

Tote Bags are in heaven with the newly released Alexander Henry canvas-weight prints.

 

 

We are also  in serious prep mode for our first show of the season. Samples and kits are being produced assembly-line style by my trusty team of worker bees.

 

The Gammill is also buzzing constantly.  Not the alarm,  just the beautifully tuned mechanics of  quiltedness.  I am in love  with this machine.  There is a constant flow of quilt projects that keep us going.  The best part is that they are all so different, so it stays interesting.

Stay tuned  for more…

 

Our Gammill is here!

This is the story…

I won’t bore you with the five hours of training that followed, that is still not all the training involved.

Brian, our guide, was very patient with his trainees, even on only a couple of hours of sleep the night before.  He and Stu had gotten up at 6am to drive an hour west to the freight warehouse.  There was no forklift for our delivery that day.  So they delivered it themselves,  all 1100 pounds of it, pulling pieces of crating wood from its staples to uncover the welded steel beauty of our 14 foot frame, one piece at a time.

Brian is an assembly expert and in no time, it was standing, waiting for the mother ship to land.  I can’t believe after a full day, he proceeded to return to Vermont, five hours away that evening.  He left our heads spinning with instructions, which we are now unraveling at a steady pace.  A hefty thank you to Julie Cowles who orchestrated this in record time from headquarters in Vermont.  You’re the best!

The quilts have started to arrive and we are on it.

If you want hand guided artistry applied to your quilt top, the Quilter’s Alley is the place.

 

Long Arming

 

We’ve blogged, we’ve skyed and now we’ll be long arming.  We are sad to see our fellow business, Little Red Quilt House, close operations as a resource for machine quilting this week. Because it leaves a hole in our service to customers, we’ve decided to purchase our own long arm and start offering machine quilting services at The Quilter’s Alley.  The details are forthcoming as we make the necessary decisions.  Our website will contain a special area for this information.

 

We have set up an area for Specialty Fabrics that lend themselves perfectly to children’s clothing.  Our selection of patterns for kids is growing, with the addition of some of Oliver + S fall line in larger sizes and classic heirloom style clothing from Michelle Designs and others. These have places on the fabric to embellish with embroidery. We have ordered 22 delightful bolts of Lecien fabrics in bright miniature prints.  Some of it will be sliced into Sushi Rolls (3 inch strips) and some will be available for making garments, accessories and quilts.
Look at the sumptuous colors on the horizon.

 

 

We continue to have wonderful projects coming to life at our shop.

Ohio Star is so popular at our shop, especially the witch pattern.

 

Nice free motion quilting

My Tuesday Girls

Kaci finished in one session

The next project for Start Sewing Series

Irish Chain, just back from the quilter

Some projects on their way. See next post!

One of my sidelines: Personalizing Pillowcases

 

Christian Lane Brunches The Quilter’s Alley

That’s Christian Lane Quilters  Berlin, CT  and The Quilter’s Alley  Ridgefield, CT

Would you believe that no one had a camera, but we still had a great time catching up over omelets.  We met at a show in New Milford, CT over a year ago (feels like we know them forever.  Actually they visited our very new shop three years ago for a minute.) and chose the town again for our second reunion.   It is charming on a gorgeous summer morning and after we finished eating, we walked and talked and joked (a lot- thanks, Jim.  Stu may have met his match.)

 

There are a few things, like meeting great people with similar interests, that really stand out about among the hard work of owning a business and doing shows.  When all the goods are finally lugged in, and you can sit for a minute, you may end up finding your new best friends behind the quilt in the booth next door.  

Wilma is an award-winning long arm quilter, and well known in these parts and elsewhere.  I’m a humble shop owner who loves art and fabric.  Jim and Stu have found their niches as comic relief. (Jim is an amazing long-arm quilter as well and Stu brings Viking Sewing Machines to their full potential.)

I am most excited to have left my 1930’s quilt top with her for quilting.  I can close my eyes and imaging how beautiful it will be with Wilma’s lines of thread. What a great collaboration!