the mason jar...

i had the privilege

of spending

an entire weekend...

.

 

with my youngest son

at a soccer showcase

in xenia, ohio

it's an event designed

for college coaches to

observe potential players

that in itself

seems nearly impossible

how he can be sixteen

already is mind numbing

time is flying by

much. too. fast

in the middle of the

afternoon

i let him have the room

 to himself

wink, wink...

 

...and i took off in pursuit

of nearby quilt shops

 discovered three in a short radius

i just knew as soon as i

pulled in the parking lot

this would be a good one

the mason jar quilt shoppe

located in beavercreek, ohio

a suburb of the dayton area

quite close to wright state university

and the air force base

charming in every way

the owner, michele mason

love her play on words

has created an inspiring

 and relaxing venue

full of antiques

 and reproduction fabric

i've definately decided when

it comes to quilt shops

bigger is not always better

same thing holds true

 for soccer players

i've observed

as we were driving home

late last night

my son said to me

he really enjoyed

 our time together

me too matt

me too

we might just have to plan

another little excursion

especially now that we have

katrina and kelsey

ready and willing to hold down

the shop for the day

so very grateful

for all

 that has come my way

cottonpickers purple...

early this morning

i received a phone call

from a fellow...

.

quilt shop owner

wow

did i just say

fellow quilt shop owner

i'm still getting used to that

she called to wish me good luck

a special group

these quilt shop gals

i'm proud

and excited to be among them

the funny thing is

i was planning to

visit her shop this afternoon

after dropping sarah off

at a music camp close by

i didn't tell her though

i just walked in

to surprise her

cottonpicker's

located in historic madison, ohio

charming and endearing

friendly beyond measure

and look what i found

purple

lots and lots of purple

sorry this is fuzzy

i had my son's camera

and have yet to figure out

how to operate it

yet i did not want to miss

posting this

for memory sake

meeting beth is like seeing
a long lost friend

you'll feel like

you've known her for years

be sure to stop in

if you're out her way

quilt beginnings

our spring break

shop hop

is about to end...

.

one more stop at

quilt beginnings east

on broad street

not too far from the capital building

i've been here a few times

always find something i like

it's also my columbus connection to pfaff

i've been a pfaff lover for many years

mostly because of their

integrated dual feed
perfect for bridal fabrics

even more suited for quilting

.

sarah found two more bolts

for her project

marble swirls in royal

and

marbles in flag red

i think she is fast becoming a moda girl

she told the sales associate

she would like 1/2 yard of each please

you know at that moment

i was proud as a peacock

calico cupboard

in our quest to discover

quilt shops

in central ohio...

.

...we hopped on I-270 from grove city

heading east

way east to a place called pataskala

the further we drove

the more i wondered

if we truly needed to go this far

we finally arrived

at the rural shopping center

to find calico cupboard

inside...

a charming collection

displayed in crisp white shelving

just like our plans

the store helper seemed friendly

we shared typical quilt store chit-chat

then she told me she is retired

from the

state office of mr/dd

where she started her career in

one of ohio's

former institutions

for the mentally challenged

a place where

some would have wanted to put my sarah

not that long ago

i can't imagine that

i told her what the services

were like today with the cuts in funding

and that sarah and i are opening

a quilt store in cleveland

to create an opportunity

for her and her friends

she told me of another mom

in southern ohio doing the same

for her son with Down syndrome

by opening a small machine shop

i felt empowered by that

knowing i'm not alone in this

journey

as sarah ages out of the school system

.

while we were chatting

sarah went to look for fabric

she picked a red and a blue

for her stampin' for america project

we talked of using fabric this year

her selections were right on

moda marble stars

and one I did not recognize

it is by cheri strole

dinosour skin in royal

.

i'm so glad we made that drive

to pataskala

always in stitches

it's day three

of our shop hop

across central ohio

.

our first stop is in grove city

at the

charming, charming, charming

always in stitches

sarah immediately took to the book corner

sew hip by shannon mullen

caught her eye

i love when she finds something

that really interests her

it is an awesome sewing 101 manual

with some great projects

that will be perfect for her stitching level

.

we continued to mill

around the store

finding fun samples and displays

tucked here and there

i discovered a pattern line

little scraps from this and that

i had not seen before

it was a shame we had to move on

i could have stayed in this store

all afternoon

and i should mention it is connected

to an equally charming

scrapbook store

quilt trends

at first glance

it's pure

eyecandy

.

like sugar cane sweetness

the best collection

of contemporary fabrics

i've ever seen

gathered in one place

you can see over my shoulder

the entire line of amy butler

located right off of I-71 on 161

near historic worthington

quilt trends is a must visit

if you enjoy fresh and funky

or simply to expand your vision

glass thimble

if one is patient

the rewards

in life are priceless...

.

back in 1982

while working on a masters in social work

i often came to this store

to purchase fabric

to take with me to my job

as a midnight to 8am case manager

at the battered women's shelter in columbus

quilting kept my hands and mind occupied

while waiting for the next call to come

in the middle of the night

from a terrified woman

seeking refuge and safety

i found on more than one occasion

that once she arrived

my fabric served as a distraction

to the evil lurking in her life

i began to teach a stitching class during the day

to give the women pained by violence

an outlet

for peaceful thought

and now

here i stand with my daughter

in the same glass thimble

working to share the same sewing skills

with her

for the very same reason...

peaceful thought

creations sewclever

a beautiful sunny day

for a drive

to chillicothe...

.

to visit Rita's
creations sewclever quilt shop
we bought the backing to finish
cabins in the stars
that i started last week in class
then we arranged a pick up
from linda
in a parking lot in circleville
all for the beloved
oh buckeyes
in quilt form that is