I really don't have time for this but I'm doing it anyway! Our guest bed needs a new quilt.
I have no illusions that I will be able to keep up. My goal is to make 12 of each clue each week. Then I will make the rest as time allows.
The details of this mystery quilt can be found by clicking here. The next clue will be revealed tomorrow sometime.
They aren't all completed but I do have some finished.
I'm working on a series of simple patterns for panels. This is the first one.
The quilt top is made. Now I'm working on writing the pattern so we can kit this up.
I left Thursday morning and got back late Monday night (actually I got back early Tuesday morning since it was after midnight when I arrived back in Alamosa) from Market.
Before I became a shop owner I thought about how much fun it must be to get to go to Market. Seeing all the quilting celebrities,
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| Alex Anderson and me |
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| Sue Spargo and me |
getting free swag, seeing all the new stuff, ... And yes, all that is fun.
But really it is a trade show. I'm there for work. I don't own a shop because "it seemed like a fun job." It is WORK. I don't go to Market to buy stuff at wholesale price to put in my personal stash. Everything I buy is for the shop in some way. It will either be a product that I put out on the shop floor for sale or something I want to test myself before purchasing in large quantities for the shop or to make a sample for shop so that when the stuff arrives I already have the sample done.
My income from the shop helps to pay bills for my family, buy groceries for my family, pay our mortgage, ... you get the idea. Going to Market is work and something I need to do for my business.
My mission for this Market was to seek out new products. I went with a list. I wanted to talk with the designer, see the items in person, learn how they work directly from the source and decide if it is something I think my customers would like.
I can't show you what I bought because most of it is either being shipped later (lots of Market purchases are pre-order situations) or being shipped to me later this week in the box I sent myself so I wouldn't have to pay extra to the airlines to bring it home with me.
I took lots of photos of various booths, mainly getting display ideas I might be able to use in my shop or just because they were so colorful or cool or creative. I've only shared a few here.
And I think I found my new motto too:
"Be a pineapple. Wear a crown. Stand tall and be sweet on the inside." I love that!
I made this last week as a store sample.
The pattern has been around for a while but it's a new one for in the shop. I only ordered black mesh to start with to try out the pattern. I like the pattern so as the budget allows I will order the mesh in more colors. This was easy to make and it stands up nicely on its own thanks to the sturdy vinyl mesh. I wish I had had black cotton webbing when making this but we were out. The natural looks good with the fabrics I used, but I still wish it were black. We have black back in stock but I'm not changing them out now!
I'm making progress on my ornaments for this year.
I have two appliqued and embroidered, the top two. I have 16 more that are appliqued and ready for embroidery. Not shown, I have about 10 more that are pinned waiting to be appliqued.
I'm planning to take these with me to Fall Market at the end of the month to work on in my hotel room at night.
I found a new basket pattern.
I put the spool of thread in the photo for scale.
Unfortunately, I didn't really like the pattern. It wasn't particularly difficult, but the results were less than stellar. This side looks okay, but the other side ... not so much. Oh well! Sometimes that's what you get with a free pattern. At least I didn't spend any money a pattern I don't like.
