Day 2 Road Back to Missouri

I didn't get quite the start I had intended as I was messing around putting the blog post up and I forgot about the time change so instead of getting to Edgewood New Mexico at about 9:30 I didn't get there until about 12:30 p.m. No harm really just made getting to the hotel Wednesday night later than I had intended.

I liked Busy Bee Quilts in Edgewood very much.  They are a small shop but they have some really nice things and some beautiful quilts.  I was especially drawn to the paper pieced block of the month.  I talked to the owner about it and she said they had 50 people signed up for the first round and cut it off there.  They are starting it again this month and already have 25 people participating.  It costs about $25 or $28 per month for 13 months plus you have to pay for the first and last month to start.  I decided against it because I already have so much on my plate.

I was impressed that they have youtube videos up how to do one of their sampler quilts which was pretty impressive.  You might want to check out their youtube channel.
There were a number of patterns from the shop which is always special.

The store is run by a couple.  Both the husband and wife were extremely helpful and chatty.  I enjoyed talking to both.    There were several quilts hanging up I found very attractive and they had a nice selection of fabric: batiks, 30's, Civil War, and novelty too.  

They also have one of the best row by row designs I've seen so far so I had to get the kit.  Even though the shop is small I would recommend getting off the highway and checking them out.

Then I was back on the road toward Tucumcari to stop at Dessert Rose Center.  The best think about this shop was the art quilt they are raffling off.  It was hanging in the window so I couldn't get a very good picture but it captured the Route 66 vibe that I love.

This shop didn't have a lot of fabric or patterns but they had some marvelous displays and a huge class room.  They did have a nice selection of southwest fabric and a lot of cute displays and antiques but as a quilt shop it was not my favorite.  But if I were a local I would consider myself lucky since the classroom set up was roomy and had everything you could possibly need.

I did buy a row by row pattern kit because the design was dependent upon the fabric.  This birds nest was so fun.  The owner told me this has the little strips she cuts off when she is cutting fat quarters and there is some from every fat quarter she has done during the 8 years they've been open.

Day 1 on the Road Back to Missouri

I'm headed home after a fantastic month in California with the kidlet.  We had such a nice time but I need to give Bre her bed back and reintroduce myself to my cat, Hilary.  So having packed the car the night before, I was able to get on the road by 5 a.m. but only after a teary goodbye.  I like to get on the road early to beat the traffic when leaving the L. A. area.  A very successful strategy this time.

I listened to the final chapters of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on the way to Phoenix which was exciting and the drive itself was pretty breath taking in spots. I decided to go through Phoenix rather than through San Bernardino to check out a few more quilt shops and meet up with my friend Barb for lunch.

Since I got such an early start I was at Mulqueen Sewing Center in Mesa by 11:30 a.m.  My friend Karen recommended this shop and I'm glad she did this place is huge, probably 5 or 6 times bigger than your normal strip mall quilt shop.  After meeting up with Barb in the parking lot and getting a hug we walked into this huge shop which had a plethora of just about everything.

They are a Janome, Brother, Juki and Singer dealer with plenty of machines on display and some gorgeous machine embroidery samples.

I loved the Hoop Sisters quilt that was on display .

There was a large selection of fabric but I thought a lot of it was discounted fabric that may not have met with the expectations of many fabric snobs but they had a huge selection of $6.95 per yard.  

Their huge selection of thread and tons and tons of quilt patterns as well as bag patterns and hardware including this really cute little dog coin purse.  Notions were also in plentiful supply.

There were 3 long arms on display which I thought was pretty impressive.

Mulqueen's had  lots and lots of samples throughout the store.  It was just an impressive store all around.  Did I mention it is huge.  We talked to a gentleman and he told us about the store expansion that is happening so they are going to be even bigger.  How many shops do you know of that are big enough to have their own wrapped van.  I would definitely go back even though I didn't buy anything.  Oh by the way they are a Row by Row participant.

Then we headed to The Quilt's Ranch over in Tempe which was maybe 20 minutes away and another shop recommended by Karen.  Walked into this shop and I was immediately drooling over some of the indigo fabric they had on display.  Also got my first look at the new Bernina Long Arm machines.  Preeeetttty!!!!!!!    One of the employees gave us the lowdown about the machine and it was pretty impressive but no robot at this time. Oh and by the way I'm not in the market for a new long arm, Don't get panicky, Mom.

There were a number of striking quilts on display that had kits to go along with them.  I was drawn to their reflection patterns.  Their class room was big and there were several classes they offered that I would have signed up for if I lived in the area.  How about this cute cute Quilt Diva doll?

The store's fabric selection was very nice, high quality stuff but nothing I had to have.  Next time I'm in Phoenix, this shop will be a stop.

Next up was lunch at Garcia's and even though the food was mediocre compared to the great Mexican I'd had in California over the last month, lunch was a great success because Barb and I got to catch up on the last year.

The last 150 miles of the day took me to Holbrook AZ.   On the ride I listened to Miranda Hart's "Is It Just Me"  I LOVE HER!!!!  She is this fun English comedian/actress that Bre and I have been bonding over during my stay in CA.  We watched all the episodes of her show "Miranda" on Acorn TV while I was visiting.  I love my kid cuz she enjoys some of the crazy shows I do.  I also watched her in "Call the Midwife" on Netflix while visiting.  What an excellent show.

Not The Day I'd Planned

Yesterday I'd had quite a day planned.  My friend Sue K. was talking about Terry Pratchett and how much she admired him.  I've never read any of his books and thought I might give him a shot.  He wrote 40 books set in his discworld and just figuring out a good place to start reading is cause for debate.  How could I have missed out on this phenomena for so long.  So I was headed to a couple of used book stores and a few quilt shops that I'd found on the Row By Row site.

First stop was Gatsby's Used Book Store, a nice shop and I asked the young man for the Fantasy/Sci-Fi section.  He pointed it out and went to move a cart that was in the way, I backed up and ended up stepping on his foot.  Mortification!!!!!!!  I apologized profusely and he was very gracious about the whole thing.  They didn't have any of Terry Pratchett's more than 40 books which was very disappointing but there are a few more used book stores in the area to check out.  I apologized to the clerk one more time on the way out.

Then I headed over to the first quilt shop on my list, Tranquility Quilts in Cypress.  Closed!!!!!!  It had been on the Row by Row Experience map but apparently it had moved recently to Buena Park and according to their website they were closed on Tuesday so that was a complete bust.  I found out later in the day that apparently they were now closed entirely.  I had been to the shop previously and it was a nice little shop.  Nothing special but nice.  It struck me as odd the last time I was there because there was another shop just down the road a couple of miles and a large discount fabric shop within a mile that carries a huge selection of quilting cotton.  I wondered how two quilt shops could thrive in such a small area.

Next stop was The Quilting Cupboard just down the same road a few miles in Garden Grove.  NOOOO!!!! This one had moved too, to Placentia which was like 20 miles away.  Two strikes.  ARRRRRGGG.  I used the GPS to find other quilt shops in the area and came up with Bear Quilts which was also in Garden Grove.  I had been there a few years ago, it didn't have a ton of stuff but I was getting desperate so off I went.  I parked and headed into the shop which had no sign.  It took just one look in the door to figure out it wasn't a shop anymore,  They were now only doing long arm work.  With my head hanging down, I headed to the car and was probably headed home since this was strike 3.  Three shops not one open.  How did this happen!!!!!  As I was pulling out a gentleman came out from the shop and gave me a list of shops in the area.  Obviously I wasn't the first to come calling.

There was one shop, Soft Expressions on the list that was fairly close by in Anaheim.  What the hell, I'd give it another try.  I was forewarned that it had very little fabric but tons of notions which was fine with me since I'm not really in the market for fabric right now.  I think Soft Expressions is primarily an internet shopping site but they do have a small show room with almost every notion imaginable.  They had a bunch of books which were 40% off and I scored a couple of those.

There were 30 or 40 bolts of fabric on deep deep discount.  Rulers, stabilizer, and needles were abundant.  I scored some acrylic inks which I'd been hoping to get since I'd seen them on Quilting Arts.

There were some scrapbooking supplies as well and the prices were all a bit lower than I'd seen in other shops.  Not sure I would hurry back unless there were some specific things I needed but it was worth the stop.










Now I was within about 7 miles of The Quilting Cupboard's new shop so I decided to get in the car and drive some more.  It was worth it.


The shop was very bright and sunny with some lovely patterns and samples.

They had a nice selection of batik, a few patterns I hadn't seen elsewhere, and a really cute witch pattern that they had made up in several ways.

I bought this pattern to make my own pop-up trash can.  I do have to say I was less than impressed by their Row by Row design but then you can't have everything and the price was right.


After I was done, I got a pizza at the place next door which was very yummy.  It had Alfredo sauce and mushrooms and onions.  Then I hurried to get on the road so I could beat traffic.  This is definitely not Kimberling City traffic.   So what started out as a pretty bad start ended up an okay day.  How can I complain when I got to visit a new quilt shop?

Quilt Shops and Great Food

Had a really nice day yesterday.  I dropped Bre off at work and then headed to check out some quilt shops since Orange County has quite a few shops in a relatively smaller area.

First stop was Piecemakers which I've been to a number of times before.  It is a lovely lovely shop with many many gift items and antiques as well as fabric, yarn and an impressive embroidery section.







This shop is known for the calendars they publish every year with an elaborate applique quilt pattern featured in the calendar.  I found two older calendars that I liked and decided to get.

All around the shop, which is huge, there are probably 50 or more 14" squares and all the original patterns are available to purchase for $3.00.  I had to have 3 of them.  In fact they have a whole book and file cabinet full of these patterns.  Really really unique and lovely.  In fact that is how I would describe the whole place, antiques, a tearoom and beautiful display fixtures. There isn't a ton of fabric but  inspiration is everywhere.in the store.





I chatted with  Karen Fraser who was teaching a thread painting class for hand embroidery.  The work was astonishing and many of the examples around the shop were award wining pieces.  So so pretty. There were so many beautiful embroidery materials that I really hadn't seen in other quilt shops.  Oh and by the way upstairs there is a shopping area with small unique little artists' "shops".  You need to check this place out if you are anywhere near Costa Mesa.

Next I drove over to Flying Geese Fabrics over in Tustin.  It is in a really charming little downtown area and the shop has dedicated parking which is huge in Southern California.  I'm so sick of looking for parking.  I really miss Missouri's ample parking (among other things).  The shop had bright and sunny fabric all over the place.  There were some charming pillows that had a small printed vintage picture in them.  I had to have a kit for a Christmas pillow and a Halloween Pillow.

I was pleasantly surprised by the number of patterns that were created by the shop.  It is always fun to see things that you haven't seen anywhere else.  They had one pattern that I bought which works as a tote and then turns into a sewing machine mat with pockets, a pincushion and a thread catcher. Genius!!!!!

 They also had some really cute patterns for Christmas ornaments.   There was a nice selection of fabric, not huge but ample.  Also plenty of samples for inspiration.  I loved the Halloween panel they had cut up and made into pennants.  It is worth a visit.

Orange CA was the next stop to visit the Orange Quilt Bee shop.  Turns out I had been to this shop before and I loved it.  I think it was my favorite of the three shops I visited yesterday.  The quilt samples are abundant and they are happy beautiful quilts.  Right up my alley.  They had some bag patterns I'd never seen before so bought one and was extremely tempted to get another.













Kits were available for many of the quilts that were hanging which is always nice.  Nothing irks my mom more than to see a sample hanging in a quilt shop but none of the fabric or patterns are available.







The owner heard me asking for permission to take pictures for the blog and she came up to chat about my camera and taking good pictures of quilts.  Very informative.  There were a number of fabrics I found tempting but I'm really not in the market for more fabric right now.  This store did have a fairly large selection of batiks.  Both Orange Quilt Bee and Flying Geese Fabrics had Row by Row patterns so I added to my collection.  I spent more money than I should have but what the hell, you can't take it with you.

Bre finished work early so we went for lunch at this place near her office called Seabirds Kitchen in Costa Mesa.  It is a totally vegan restaurant with amazing food.  I had a deep fried avocado taco and a mushroom and cabbage taco.  So good and one of those places that reminds me I'm not in Missouri any more.  We hung out for a while and ran a couple of errands before heading up to L.A. for dinner at one of my favorite spots in all of the city, Tito's Tacos.  You walk up to the window and order and the 15 or so servers take the orders and assemble them.  The lines are huge because the food is great and cheap.  They have the best ever cheese enchiladas. .  These aren't for those wimpy vegans or healthy vegetarians.  Greasy, yummy, perfect enchiladas,   Oh gosh it was such a great day.

Baseball, Ant Man, and Christine

Well I had a lovely weekend and it all had to do with my friend Christine who came down from Oakland.  She arrived Friday night and we headed over to Veggie Grill for dinner.  That is one of my favorite places in Long Beach to eat.  In fact I think I've eaten there 5 times in the two weeks I've been here.  Talked all through dinner to try and catch up.  We've know each other for 19 years and it has been a couple of years since we hung out together.

We sat in Bre's house and chatted until way past our bed times while we tried to stay cool in the unseasonably warm weather southern California is experiencing.  We got an early start on Saturday morning which is rather unusual for Christine.  She is so not a morning person but she had her head on enough to suggest going to The Grammy Museum which was so much fun.  There were costumes from The Supremes, Michael Jackson, and Taylor Swift.

I loved the videos of Grammy performances, acceptance speeches and special awards.  There were nice snippets of music from 4 decades and I also really enjoyed playing some of the percussion instruments they had available.  It was much more fun than I was anticipating.

After lunch at Smashburger, Christine was very gracious and suggested we go to a quilt shop so we headed over to Sew Modern which I hadn't been to before.  I really liked the shop.  It was bright and airy and although there weren't a ton of samples on the walls they had a couple of bag samples that I just loved.  

There was almost a whole wall of solids so the color selection was amazing!!!!!!!!  They also had a pretty nice selection of patterns and books.  In fact I bought a Doctor Who Tardis quilt pattern.   GO DOCTOR WHO!!!!!!

They carry Cotton & Steel which I am attracted to but haven't yet purchased. They also had some linen and some silk.  The down side of this little shop was that I got a $68 parking ticket.  (Don't worry mom I'll take care of it.)  Is this the most confusing parking sign you have ever seen?

We had another couple of hours to kill before we went to the Dodger game so we headed over the Giant Robot store and it turns out that the Museum of California Art where Christine works had just curated a show featuring Giant Robot artists.  Check out this video of the show.  She enjoyed seeing where some of the art went after the show.  I enjoyed checking out all the cool toys.

We headed over to Dodger Stadium detouring around some protest or other.  We sat in the very top row above the third baseline and both of us liked the seats.  It was really really hot for about the first 3 innings and then it cooled down a bit.

 The game was great with a bunch of homers and hits and the Dodgers won.  I ate a huge, gigantic slice of pizza and a large bottle of water for the small fee of $12.50.  Geez.  So now the Dodgers can be checked off the bucket list.  We stayed a little while after the game to let the traffic clear out and watch Back to the Future on the Jumbotron. They let folks sit on the outfield on blankets to watch the movie. Such fun!!!!!

On Sunday we tried to enjoy the Long Beach Flea Market but the sun was relentless so we gave up after about 3 rows.  Mimi's for breakfast was air conditioned and we didn't have to wait 2 hours like we would have for the place on the water, plus the muffin was amazing.  Then we drove by the Queen Mary to kill some time before the start of the Ant Man movie.  Both the car and movie theater were air conditioned which was a major priority.  Ant Man was a blast. Christine and I loved it.  So funny and great computer graphics in the fight scenes.

After dinner at Coco Renos which is another favorite place to eat, I dropped Christine off at the Long Beach Airport.  It was a terrific weekend.

Santa Monica Pier

On my way to California, I found out my friend Barb from St. Paul was going to be in Laguna Beach to see Pageant of the Masters.  I called her right away to see if we could get together.  I've known Barb for 33 years.  She was my podmate when I returned to work at AT&T after maternity leave (Bre just turned 34).  We have been friends ever since and although I don't see her very often we play DrawSomething on a regular basis.

When we were planning our day, she mentioned that she and her friend Jean didn't have a car so I offered to drive if there was somewhere she wanted to go.  Turns out Jean had just turned 66 and they thought it would be fun to take her picture on the Santa Monica pier at the end of Route 66.  I gulped quietly and said sure that sounded like a fun day.  The reason for the gulp was California traffic, I would have to drive about 20 miles south to pick them up and then 50 miles north from Laguna to Santa Monica and then back the same way.  I drive 140 miles around home without blinking an eye,  that is just part of living in the middle of nowhere. But 140 miles in the LA area is serious business.  Timing would have to be perfect.  Luckily it was perfect and with 3 of us in the car we got to take the carpool lane which is always a plus.

We arrived in Santa Monica at about 11:30 a.m. to a beautiful sunny day, found parking about 6 blocks from the pier, and maneuvered our way through the construction area to the pier.  It was pretty crowded but not as much as weekends, thank goodness.  We all three marveled about how wide the beach was at that location and how beautiful everything was.  We checked out the tourist shops and huge boardwalk.  I pointed out where Cirque du Soleil sets up in the winter.  Bre took me there a couple of years ago.  Barb had found a souvenir shop she liked on line and we finally found it at the end of the pier and on the way back Jean stopped to pick up t-shirts at Bubba Gump.  Turns out "Forrest Gump" is her son and grandson's favorite movie.

I had an errand to run in Santa Monica as well.  There is this company call Lush that hand makes soap and shampoo.  I love their bath gel called Happy Hippy which has this wonderful citrus smell and makes my morning shower a little slice of heaven.   They have a store on the Santa Monica Promenade and we headed over there to pick up a couple of things.  I take my hat off to these two ladies.  They weren't distracted by all the stores so we went down the Promenade with no unplanned stops.

 By this time we were starving and started looking at the available food options.   As it turns out I had just been in Santa Monica the day before to have lunch with Bre and her friend Andrew and we ate at this great Mexican place, Lula Cocina Mexicana.  It was delicious and only a mile away so we decided to head over there.  The food was great and the Avocado Cheese burrito I ordered was as big as my head.  Oh it was good!!!!  I think Barb and Jean enjoyed their meal as well since there was nothing left on their plates.

We arrived back in Laguna Beach about 4 p.m. and then Barb and I went over to check out the art festival at pageant of the masters.  I found several artists I really liked but everything was way out of my price range.  Rich Graves did these awesome panoramic action photos.  The bike one really grabbed me since Bre is so into bikes right now.

I love art that makes me smile and Full Moon Clay with their retro comic book type sculptures hits the mark on that one.  I love all of the work they had on display.

 Scott Moore was another artist that really caught my eye.  He has a very realistic style but paints whimsical objects like the one on his card of the little man sitting on a table with donuts, and coffee.  So much fun and so much talent.

One of Barb's favorite was Molly Hutchings who did watercolors of quilt type patterns.  Really really pretty.

Barb has been coming to see Pageant of the Masters for about 14 years and knows her way around Laguna and the Pageant.  She talked it up so much that Bre and I are talking about going to see it before I go home.  In the "lobby" of the outdoor amphitheater there are a bunch of tables under a huge canopy of different colored mesh tarp thingys.  So it is nice and shaded and there was a cool breeze coming off the ocean and we sat for a while to catch up.  It was such a lovely day.  Hopefully I've convinced Barb to come visit one of these days.