Cinnamon's - Jacksonville FL

On March 24th, the Country Heritage Tour to Historic Charleston and Savannah took us to a third quilt shop. It was our final point of interest, squeezed in on a Sunday morning, on the way to Jacksonville Airport to fly back home.

The delightful Cinnamon's Quilt Shoppe, is located in Jacksonville about 30 miles south of the Georgia/Florida state line and roughly 10 miles south of the JAX airport. It was the southernmost of the three shops we visited. For the other two see my previous posts for 3/27/19 and for 3/28/19.

My husband came along for the visit to this shop. At the second shop he had gone to a train museum instead. At Cinnamon's he first circled the shop and took some cell phone photos of fabric he liked. He did not tell me where they were but rather challenged me to find them.

This next train fabric I may already have in my stash at home. It is still bemusing to see his ferroequinologist tendencies live on. My husband does take an interest in my hobby. Last July he was willing to participate in a men's discussion on quilting sponsored at one of my guild meetings. One of the quilts he showed during his presentation was a train one I'd made for him, copying the colors of Refrigerator Railway Cars. He brought the reference book to prove the color authenticity. The quilts and his discussion are in my post for 7/24/18.

I really should get busy sewing up that stack of train fabrics I already own. I have enough for several shirts or quilts, three yards or more of each print.

At Cinnamon's Quilt Shoppe Frank made himself at home in one of the classrooms where an additional cutting station had been set up. As each lady came in, he polled her about which was her favorite quilt hanging on the walls and challenged her to find a "mistake" in one of the class demo quilts! He was having fun. Eating cookies while waiting for me also enhanced his morning.

Meanwhile, back to my shopping. I found these two banners very striking, both in the color selection and crispness of the design. They are titled One If By Land and Two If By Sea. Granted we were on a historic tour of the south and this phrase is more associated with the north, but I think this Country Heritage Tour put me in the history mood. Per the Paul Revere Heritage Project

“One, if by land, and two, if by sea” phrase was coined by the American poet, Henry W. Longfellow in his poem, Paul Revere’s Ride. It was a reference to the secret signal orchestrated by Revere during his historic ride from Boston to Concord on the verge of American Revolutionary War. The signal was meant to alert patriots about the route the British troops chose to advance to Concord. Few days before the historic ride, Revere was preparing his mission and arranged with three fellow patriots to set up a light signal in case if British troops started their advance to Concord. To give even more information, it was agreed that one lantern meant that the troops chose the longer land route and two lanterns meant the shorter route by water, leaving less time for patriots to react.

This frivolous pattern caught my attention. Although I am not a fan of appliqué I thought I could handle these 4" diameter circles made from the variety of fabrics in 5" charm packs.

I own an OLFA Rotary Circle Cutter which actually works quite well once you get the knack of it. I would use this to cut out the circles.

Continuing my historic and circle bent, I bought two charm packs of 5" squares in red, white, and blue. The prints are all have blender capabilities and since the prints are small scale, I think they will be versatile enough that I will be able to put these pre-cuts to good use.

Like many quilters I buy a fair amount of precuts. This book is dedicated to quilts made from layer cakes, jelly rolls, and fat quarters. Hmm... there are no 5" square pattern in this book. But 5" squares are just layers of layer cakes cut in quarters. I liked many of the patterns in the book One Bundle of Fun.

Yes, I did locate and buy each of the beach themed fabrics my husband Frank liked, 2½ yards of each – enough to make two king size pillowcases of each print if I do not incorporated one or both into a quilt.

I bought 1 yard of this stripe. The mottled subtle appearance appealed to me and I can always use a stripe in one binding or another.

These fat quarters were an impulse buy based purely on extreme cheeriness in color with the bright yellow and lime green. Besides I am in Florida now so how could I pass up a series titled Everglades? The eyes peeping out of above the water ripples on the lower left are too-too precious and convinced me I needed this fabric bundle. In fact, I needed it so much, I bought two bundles. I have two grandsons. Perhaps I could coax these prints into a patchwork shirt or shorts or a pocket or two.

The randomness and colors of these stylized blobs spoke fun times to me. They look like mildly imperfect gumdrops to me which meant they were in need of a good home. I bought 1½ yards.

My son-in-law used to be a fire fighter and now works as a fire inspector for the Risk Management Department at The University of Oklahoma. I will find a way to use this panel for him or his nearly four year old son. The silhouette format appealed to me.

Along the fire theme vein, here are two other fabrics I bought – 1½ yards of the one with text and emblems... 

... and 3 yards of the one with fire engines and dalmatians and signage. This strong colors of red and yellow make a statement in this impressive large scale print.

This tree print will make funky pillowcases around Christmas time. I bought 2½ yards in order for the trees on those pillowcases to face upright.

Our gift package when we left the store was this combination assortment by MODA. Inside a small zipped pouch were two mini charm packs for MODA's new lines Hickory Road and Strawberry Jam. Note the crossed seam rippers on the pouch. Also included in the gift packet was a quilt sketch book and moisture absorbing coaster. Cinnamon's had added their business card and pen.

Last but not least, I succeeded in finding a license plate for this quilt shop to add to the collection on the wall in my sewing room. This shop made a grand finale to our Country Heritage Tour.

If you were wondering, yes, when we got to the airport, I managed to layer all this fabric and books into my husband's suitcase without exceeding his 50 pound limit. My suitcase was already at 49 pounds from adding the goodies and treasures I accumulated at the first two shops. Nobody ever said I traveled light, especially not Frank! But happily, we work as a team.

Sew Much More - Savannah GA

On Thursday March 21st I visited the second of three quilt shops on my Country Heritage Tour. It was Sew Much More, located in Garden City, Georgia.

Sew Much More was only about 10 minutes from our Double Tree Hilton in Downtown Historic Savannah.

This store did not have quite the neighborhood ambience of the first shop, being along a highway rather than in a quaint town like Summerville.

However it is inside what counts and we were excited to see what treasures lay within as we disembarked our bus. 

The first thing that caught my eye was a panel on the wall above a doorway. The bright colors and curlicues were very appealing. I thought any one square would make a cute front on a pinafore. A row of them would lend themselves to the skirt of a little girl's dress. Note the square symmetry - right and left facing foxes in orange and turquoise, right and left facing turquoise squirrels, right and left facing skunks... any of these images could be features on a dress or skirt.

I must have been in an orange turquoise mood because I also picked up these fat quarters. It was only after I'd bought them that I realized they were intended to coordinate with the panel.

One of the staff demonstrated this ruler so convincingly I felt I definitely needed this Creative Grids Quick Trim Ruler to join the army battalion of rulers I already own. This one is special because of the non-slip tackiness on the back, the light and dark markings for various shades of fabric, and some special marking that will eliminate the generation of dog ears on jelly roll like seaming configurations.

In a bargain room at the rear of the store I found this Sew Merry and Bright book of cheerful holiday ideas. The wool/felt ornaments on the cover appealed to my sense of whimsy and seemed pretty easy to whip up.

I managed to find a commemorative license plate for this store to add to my collection.

Our parting gift from the store was an adorable cupcake of fabric. It is most likely a fat eighth. I do not think a fat quarter could be rolled up this tiny but I could be wrong. It is too cute to take apart to find out for sure. It will stay unwrapped as a souvenir for me for a little while at least.

I did not buy a lot at this store but I cannot speak for the other ladies on the tour. I did hear that our tour guide would be mailing about twenty or so Large Flat Rate USPS boxes containing fabric purchases from the first two shops that quilters would be unable to fit in their respective suitcases; and we still have one more quilt shop to visit on this tour.

People, Places, & Quilts - Summerville SC

As part of a Country Heritage Tour of Historic Charleston and Savannah I took with my husband March 18-24, I visited three quilt shops. I will address the second and third shops in Georgia and Florida in later posts.This post focuses on the first and northernmost shop, People Places & Quilts in Summerville, SC.

Summerville is a quaint town slightly northwest of Charleston SC, first settled in 1785 and incorporated into a town in 1847. Entry from one end of the town of Summerville passes over a railway track, so mounded in the road that vehicles of long length can get hung up on its highest point.

Pine trees are revered in Summerville. In 1847 a law was passed prohibiting the cutting down of pine trees, the first of such a law in the United States. Branches can be removed but the trees themselves are sacred. Per Wikipedia's entry about Summerville 

In 1899, the International Congress of Physicians (or "Tuberculosis Congress") listed Summerville to be one of the two best areas in the world for treatment and recovery of lung and throat disorders. It received such notation due to its dry and sandy location, and the many pine trees in the area that release turpentine derivatives into the air. Folks would flock to Summerville in the summer for their health - hence the name.

The pine tree background is interesting but the quilt shop was more fascinating both for its architecture and contents. It was housed in what used to be an old hardware store; the fabrics and notions are displayed in multiple rooms at two levels. The welcoming staircase shortly after entry beckons you to come and see more.

The room off to the right held bolts and fat quarters and some kits.

The room straight ahead with the lovely twinkly white lights held books and patterns as well as more fabric.

It also held two very inviting love seats. My husband Frank made himself at home on one of the comfy "husband's couches" where he browsed magazines while waiting for me after walking the downtown area himself for a bit.

Here are my purchases. I spotted this assembled pillow top of an intricate tree populated with birdhouses of all whimsical sorts. 

On closer inspection I noted that the tree is formed by cutting apart each of the window pane sections of this panel and joining them, very carefully matching the tree limbs. I have shown only half the panel here. It is doubled over and there are the identical twelve images on the other side.

I was enamored with the detail in each of the pictures.

Then I noticed that there was a similar pillow assembly from a panel that contained birds only without their nesting houses.

Once again note how each image can be cut apart and the tree branches carefully joined at the seams. I had to have it as well. Note the Elizabeth's STUDIO signature along the edge. The watercolor artist is Tracy Lizotte.

I love the printed detail. This mama robin red breast and her three babies is a good example.

Once home I read the selvage and learned this fabric was from Elizabeth Studies. I greatly admire the work from this printer and have bought them in the past. Usually I only see it at quilt shows because it is an English company and vendors have told me that the quantities required for the wholesaler to buy is prohibitive for smaller shops. Had I been aware of the Elizabeth studio connection while at People Places & Quilts I would have asked staff at the store if they stocked similar fabric from that mill. I may phone them now that I am home. Several of my past blog posts show other examples of fabric from this mill. 

Three blog posts are panels for cloth books for babies:

• post for 11/09/18 Whose Baby Am I? – artist John Butler
• post for 12/16/14  Little Baby Signs – artist Joy Allen
• post for 12/27/12  My Baby's Day – artist Joy Allen

Two blog posts are for panels intended for cloth books but that I made into placemats instead:

• post for 12/16/18  Twelve Cats of Christmas – artist Kevin Whitlark
• post for 12/17/18  Twelve Dogs of Christmas – artist Kevin Whitlark

One blog post showcases a sepia toned seaside print fabric I made into pillowcases:

• post for 8/17/16  pillowcases – artist Faye Whittaker 

Other purchases I made at People Places & Quilts were two fat quarters – just because I liked them.

The whimsy and colors of this bird print appealed to me. I was only going to buy ½ yard but there would have been only yard left on the bolt. I simply could not leave it there by its lonely self so I got the entire 1½ yards. With three granddaughters ages nearly 3, nearly 5, and 6½,  I am sure this will make a pretty dress for one of them.

I also remembered to add to my collection of quilt shop license plates.

Having completed my shopping, I made my requisite trip to the rest room. Our tour guide Patti told us that her father had advised her to always "run on an empty tank". The decor was clever there, too. A step ladder with a dowel to hold the paper rolls was cute.

My husband took my photo outside the side of the shop as proof I was there. I am wearing my tour badge, my bobbin necklace, and halfway-wearing my embroidered denim shirt quilt shopping shirt. Fabric – not fashion – takes priority!

Other ladies from the tour gathered outside the store enjoying the gorgeous weather as we waited for all to finish shopping and for our driver Rick to bring the bus around from wherever he had found to park the huge thing. 

Diagonally across the street I spied an antique store that my husband had been to and had found mildly interesting.

With fifteen minutes to spare my husband and I dashed over there.

I bought a small dress-form hook to hang in my sewing room. I will use it to hold my tape measure or perhaps instructions for a project in process.

As we boarded the bus, each of us was handed a small gift. They were little angels made from clothespins and fabric representing the pastel painted houses of Rainbow Row.

Rainbow Row is a string of houses located along 83 to 107 East Bay Street near the waterfront in Charleston.

Once we had boarded the bus, all the staff of People Places and Quilts lined up outside to wave goodbye to us all. What fun! All that measuring, cutting, folding, visiting, and feeding (they gave us lunch, too)... and they still had the energy to wave! Whew!