Breakfast

After a bit of fabric binging last summer, quilty friend C and I both decided to go on a self-imposed fabric fast with the goal of not buying any new fabric until January 1, 2017. We both stayed true to the fast...well, sort of. When Alison Glass Seventy-Six went on sale, C was losing her mind over not being able to buy it. I gave her my blessing. And we both agreed that pre-ordered Alison Glass Sunprint 2017 did not count because even though we ordered in December it won't come until quite some time into 2017.

My husband and I received a trip to Niagara on the Lake, a quaint little town for tourists, as a gift over Christmas. He told me to pick out all the fabric stops we needed to make on the way down. He is awesome.

I definitely engaged in a serious breakfast (break- fast) on this trip!

At the Quilted Cardinal I picked up these Moda Mixologie basics. I love the colour saturation.

Those purples and the top teal are already claimed by my daughter for a quilt she wants me to make her.

I also had a gift certificate for Greenwood Quiltery which announced at the end of December it is going to be permanently closing because the owner is retiring. It will leave a major hole in the local quilt store options as it was by far my favourite local(ish) store.

Two Elizabeth Hartman patterns, that sweet basic grey print, a Cloud 9 organic bear fabric that already is claimed for a baby quilt, some Kona Charcoal for my Snail Along and a bunch of other goodies. All of this was at least 30% off!

I also made a stop at Modern Bee in Virgil, an awesome, quaint little shop with the nicest owners. If only it was closer!

From bottom to top: Kona Silver, Kona Shadow and a 1/2 yard of Priory Square that I wanted and figured I would never get because it was very limited edition and quite old. The Silver is for my Snail quilt and the Shadow is for my daughter's teacher's end of year gift.

I also made a trip to Len's Mills in Guelph. My husband had never been and it is an experience, let me tell you. The front of the store (which is HUGE) is filled with the most random things. He was wandering around while I was fabric shopping texting me with questions like "Do you want a pair of bright yellow high-heeled rain boots?" or "Did you know they have an entire aisle dedicated to hot sauce?" I specifically needed to come to this store because my Lizzy House Snail quilt needs backing and I knew they still had some VERY OLD, VERY OOP Lizzy House 1001 Peeps. It is from 2009!! And it is $10/yard. A steal!

Expect to see these in my snail quilt. That purple print on the far left will be the backing.

Truly, though, I broke my fast three days earlier on January 5th at Needlework when I went shopping with two friends because friend A is making my other friend some pillows and we needed to select fabric. I was dying to get my hands on this pin of their logo! That green print will be for my Christmas quilt but those squid and octopi? They were just too cute to resist!!

Isn't that pin awesome?

So when I break a fast, I really go ALL IN.

Which of my purchases was your favourite?

Shop Hop & Some New Acquisitions

A couple of weeks ago, over March Break, I was fortunate enough to have a day to go on a mini shop hop with quilty friends A and C. I wanted to go the Quilter's Nine Patch because I have no idea how to even get there on my own (A always leads the way!) and it is a bit far to be considered "local."

It is on this corner in what seems like the middle of nowhere, attached to a gift store and a little restaurant.

The store is really interesting because they have catered to both modern and traditional quilters. The thing is, looking at the traditional area with the sample quilts and muted, flowery fabrics had me reflecting on my own quilting obsession.

I think it is safe to say that most people picture this sort of thing when you mention quilting.

Looking at this dark, muted area of the store I know that I would not be such an enthusiastic quilter if these were my only options.

Part of the appeal of quilting for me are the modern fabrics and colours that I associate with the modern quilting movement. I have always admired quilts and quilting, but my own enthusiasm came from finding beautiful fabric that I felt was modern and clean and crisp, not the browns and maroons and flowers that used to dominate the quilting world.

You would think that this was a different store from the change in aesthetic, right?

So I am so glad that I came to quilting when I did, when the modern quilting world is huge and present on Instagram, Facebook, blogs and, most importantly, visible through the fabric lines being produced by people like Carolyn Friedlander, Lizzy House, Tula Pink, Violet Craft and more.

We also went to another quilt store, Greenwood Quiltery, and to Triangle Sewing for some notions.

Here is my very reasonable haul:

Kona Black (for the Quilt of Belonging) and some new fine, glasshead pins were things I actually needed. Some Tula navy, Elizabeth Olwen and Elizabeth Hartman Rhoda Ruth also followed me home.

Also, A was making a trip into the north end of Toronto a few days before our shop hop and planned to stop at Sew Sisters. She kindly asked if there was anything I needed or wanted her to pick up. I quickly got in touch with Judy, who runs (and owns?) Sew Sisters and arranged for there to be a bolt of Kona White for A to pick up for me! I'm so glad since my last bolt was finished a few weeks ago and it was going to get hard to keep going soon!

Only 16 yards? I'll need more next week!

Not a huge stack of pretty purchased, and I didn't get any batting which I need desperately, but it was an awesome day with friends who are easy to spend time with, and I got things I did need like the Black and the pins. Worthwhile for sure!

Now I wait for my two must-have orders to arrive in the mail/coming home to me from Florida with my mother-in-law. A very low Canadian dollar and obscene shipping rates sure help from splurging on fabric too much lately!

Don't Take Someone on a Diet to a Buffet

I have been working really hard to do all my quilting from my stash. I felt like the excess was unhealthy and I felt rewarded every time I finished a quilt without having to have purchased a thing.

Then on Friday I pre-ordered a fat quarter bundle of Tiger Lily by Heather Ross because this line is so gorgeous and just to my taste (I was not so thrilled with all that strawberry and frog stuff from her last line). Somehow that broke the gates because when I went on a shop hop with my friend A this weekend I showed progressively less restraint as we went from store to store.

We started at a new shop, the Village Square Quilt Shop, which is about 20 minutes away from my house.

The store was actually a bit hard to find but in a very charming location.

The inside was quite small but charming and the prints were not to my taste much at all (I would classify them as more traditional fabrics) but they were all carefully chosen, well-organized and nice to look at it.

The Miss Kate caught my eye but I showed restraint. I like it but don't love it.

I like this Math print (by Sweetwater I think?) except that brown is just so yuck. So I didn't get any.

The store actually doesn't carry Kona on the bolt (can you IMAGINE?) but this beautiful pre-packaged bundle set my heart fluttering.

I liked these pillows that were on display, and there was a free pattern attached!

I bought some Aurafil from here- something actually on my shopping list- because it was a great price ($10.50 a spool!). Then we headed into Hamilton which was about another 25 minutes away. We decided to visit Needlework Hamilton because I had never been there and A had not seen it since they remodeled earlier this year.

It is located in this really hipster, charming neighbourhood.

The store is small but so gorgeous! The newly exposed brick wall is stunning, the space is open and beautiful...I could stay here and work for sure!

Check out this Cotton+Steel dress on display! Love!

And I loved this modern Flying Geese quilt.

This pattern spoke to me right away. It is Amy Butler and I knew my friend C would be proud. I was on a real emerald kick on this day- I was drawn to all the emerald I saw.

This store is a careful curation of modern fabrics, arranged by colour instead of designer or manufacturer. It was not really A's style but it was so definitely mine. I wanted to BUY ALL THE THINGS. I saw so many prints I wanted. Could I have a 1/2 meter of everything you own please?

One wall of quilting fabric.

The other wall of quilting fabric.

I bought two fat quarters and two 1/2 meters of fabric here and thought I was being very restrained. Then A and I went to have lunch at the most awesome tiny restaurant called The Burnt Tongue where they have this tiny menu of soups that changes daily. We both had sweet potato and bacon soup and it was DELICIOUS. I also had a grilled cheese and A had fries. The restaurant was busy and cold but it was worth it for the great food!

Then we wandered next door to check out this yarn studio, handknit. (A knits but I don't).

It was beautiful and we made sure to pet all the wool (turns out I have expensive Baby Alpaca and Cashmere taste. Who knew?)

And we couldn't head back to the car without going into this cool little paper store.

Again, so awesome. Very hipster and cool. I could have bought lots of things but held back.

We made one more stop before heading to the car at The Mulberry Cafe which was again so cool and young. A wanted a peppermint tea and we liked the vibe of this place.

We then headed to Greenwood Quiltery, a go-to standard for both of us because A wanted to find some greys and yellows for her sister's wedding quilt and we hadn't found all that much that would work at the other stores.

I headed to my favourite spot, the remnant wall, and checked out the options. I did find a remnant of light grey Pearl Bracelets that worked perfectly for the quilt A is making but I didn't find anything for myself here.

I love the deals you can find on this rainbow wall!

This display of Kona solids had me thinking about the colourful I-Spy quilt I wanted to make my youngest daughter this year.

I lost my mind at Greenwood and bought SO MUCH FABRIC (keep going to see my end haul). I couldn't stop scooping up fabric. It was like I had lost my mind, and the  more I looked the more I picked up. It started with finding Violet Craft Waterfront Park fat quarters in the $2 bin. Um, score! And then apparently I needed to buy everything my heart desired. Sigh. Bad for the bank account.

When we finished at Greenwood (fortunately A found all the grey and yellow she needed) we went to Len's Mill because I had never been and because A wanted some old lady lavender backing for a wall hanging.

I didn't know what to expect.

A described it as a Bi-Way with lots of fabric. It was pretty disorganized, huge and with lots of crap. Her description was perfect.

They had some horrendous fabric. This gem was in the 50% off pile. WHY IS THIS A FABRIC??

Incredibly disorganized but rows and rows and rows of fabric. I think he buys fabrics that are two or three (or more!) out of season, and doesn't differentiated between quality. It was loosely organized by manufacturer and theme, but it was overwhelming how much crap fabric was there.

But we came across this bin of laminated cotton- Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett and Tula Pink! $10 a meter!

I thought this Robert Kaufman zombie print would appeal to my hubby. I showed him the picture afterwards and he agreed it was awesome.

They have tons of licensed prints. I know where I will get superhero fabric from now on!

And then, amongst all the garbage and ugly (with the occasional designer print that was nice, like some Parson Grey) I found a jackpot! Lizzy House Peeps- pretty much every print from that line! This line is from 2009, so old, and impossible pretty much to find online. I wanted to buy two yards from every bolt. I'm not kidding. But I had just bought soooooooooo much at Greenwood so I narrowed it down to three prints. I'm telling you, though, I might have to head back. Also, if I ever come across Lizzy House Outfoxed in the wild like this I may buy the whole bolt. I so wish I had bought tons of that when it was out.

Isn't it pretty? I posted this picture on Instagram and Lizzy House herself commented. It is very strange to see all this old line in such a complete form on a shelf!

The neighbour hood was sketchy. This was on the wall on the side of the building. It is a drug tag. Need to buy any magic mushrooms?

These were the three I settled on. That middle one I think for sure is going to go in the I-Spy quilt I want to make.

This was the result of my binging at Greenwood (all the stuff in the first two rows) and the stuff from Needlework Hamilton on the far right.

I picked up one yard of this Olaf print from Len's Mill to make my elder daughter a pillowcase. She was thrilled.

And here is the result. What was I thinking? What happened to shopping my stash, which I have been enjoying? I love these prints and I'm so glad I have them but I certainly didn't need them. Ah, well, I'll chalk it up to a little splurge and go back to trying to shop my stash...which is a little bit bigger now. :)

Yummy fabric stack.

And so you can see why I titled my blog today Don't Take Someone on a Diet to a Buffet. :)

Lynn

Another Bolt Already?

I feel like I should be in a ten step program for my fabric addiction.

I ran out of Kona White (or, rather, I had less than a yard left of Kona White and I needed at least five more yards in the next couple of weeks). I bought a bolt for the first time a few months ago and I'm sort of shocked I went through it that fast. I mean, come on.

I ordered it from a LQS, Greenwood Quiltery, who was able to get it lickety split. This necessitated a trip out to pick up my Kona and indulge in some fabric petting. Oh, and buying. Because apparently I can't just look at fabric.

They had Lotus Pond on display at the front. This is why I love this shop- they have really new stuff as it is in season, something very hard to find in Ontario.

They also had Leah Duncan's Meadow which I had been eyeing. I bought some of the greens because GORGEOUS.

I also made a beeline for their remnant wall where there can be great deals.

Before reading further, can you guess what I went straight for?

I bought some delicious Amy Butler for my quilty friend C. It is so her. It was waiting for her that day, I swear.

Soul Blossoms. Bright and beautiful.

And if you guessed I grabbed that on sale remnant of Pearl Bracelets you would be right! I also bought a few other things...

Some white on white that is crisp white enough to finish my red and white quilt. That navy deliciousness was in the clearance section for $7/metre. I bought the bright pink Squared Elements as the binding for the quilt my friend's mother is making my youngest daughter, and those Pearl Bracelets wanted to come home with me. I already have plans for it (just waiting to find out the sex of some babies!)

I also loved these Fort Firefly organic prints:

They are so sweet. Those fireflies!

I also grabbed some fat quarters. Many of them were in the $2 bin. How could I resist? I have plans for those pinks (again, waiting to here sex announcements from two different people).

I also grabbed some more navy prints because I can't seem to get enough navy lately.

I sent this shot via text to quilty friend C. She asked if I had cleared out the store. I countered that I thought I showed great restraint!

Stacks of fabric=happiness

I feel like I need a sign that says "I haven't bought fabric in ____ days" and every time I fall off the wagon the count goes back to zero. I think zero would show up a lot. Yikes.

Oh, and I got my bolt of Kona White. And some white Aurafil. And some new 80/12 Microtex needles (they're the best).

Now back to sewing!

Lynn