Sadie and I participated in the Middle Georgia Shop Hop today. We visited all 5 shops and made it back home in about 8-1/2 hours with rain. We actually ran into a quilty friend from ATL at Bird House Quilts who was doing the reverse route! Sadie also met some new canine friends at the same shop, as well.

I basically make one big loop when I do the shop hop in a day. Down I-75 to Macon/Warner Robins to visit 3 shops, then cut across to Columbus and Hogansville before returning to ATL via I-85. Next year, I may try doing the shops down I-75 one day and the shops down I-85 the next day. I may save time because all driving will be on the interstate instead of back country roads, but I don’t know if it will necessarily save on mileage.

I did purchase the two shop hop blocks from each shop + a couple of items on my list. I selected a white-on-white print from my stash for the background fabric. I think it’s only fitting since this fabric came from a shop that was once part of the Middle Georgia Shop Hop! 🙂

Here are my notes on each shop:

Magical Stitches – Baby Lock dealer, awesome tool wall and brands of thread I can’t find in the ATL, traditional & batiks

Couture Fabrics – Brother dealer, wonderful selection of fabrics including lots of Riley Blake, Moda and tons of pre-cuts

Bird House Quilts – Bernina dealer, excellent selection of patterns, unique notions, Moda, batiks and wide backs

Sunday Best Quilt Works – No dealer affiliation, but offers machine service, well curated selection of fabric, patterns and notions, shop location is definitely off the beaten path

Hometown Quilt Shop – Juki dealer, vintage machines and notions on display all over the shop, traditional fabrics

All 5 shops offer longarm services.

If you are seriously in need of fabric, Couture Fabrics will be well worth the drive. If they don’t have it, drive 10 minutes to Bird House Quilts to see if they have what you need.

Be sure to support your local retailers!

Pattern prices have risen steadily in recent years. As a technical editor, I fully understand the process (and expense) involved in bringing a new pattern to the marketplace. It’s a lot of hard work. What I have noticed is there seems to be an emerging trend among some designers to take a super simple traditional quilt, format the instructions with a cutesy font, add some modern graphics, then plaster social media (especially IG) with carefully staged photos to launch this “new and modern” design. Most of the patterns in this category are digital downloads and are priced at $13-$15.

I did a double take when a friend shared a picture of a simple quilt pattern her daughter found online. $15.00 for a downloadable pattern on how to make a basic charm square quilt. No cutting, no HSTs, just the charm squares laid out in rows and sewn together. Knowing the parent has a tight budget, I suggested they take a look at this tutorial first. She could always buy the pattern later, if she felt she still needed it.

There’s definitely a quilt pattern out there for everyone’s taste and budget. If you are new to quilting and sewing, know that it is a community where members love to SHARE – extra fabric, supplies and even sewing machines – but most of all knowledge in the form of tutorials. Despite an uptick in the monetization of nearly everything quilting and sewing related, there still remains a lot of content available at little or no cost. My longarm quilter friend stopped quilting because she feels quilting has become too commercial. It’s now all about money – not about sharing the love of an art form and craft. She has a valid point.

Librarians are big about resource sharing, which is why I encourage stitchers to utilize resources available at the public library, their local quilt guilds and quality resources available online for free. I do NOT advocate violating copyright laws.

Tip: Pinterest is a crafter’s best friend. Before you click the “buy now” button on a pattern, pin the image to Pinterest and see what other suggested pins are generated. Most of the time, you’ll probably see a pin for a similar project with a free tutorial linked.

Below is a curated list of sources for free, beginner quilting and sewing projects:

Fat Quarter Shop

Missouri Star Quilt Company

All People Quilt (American Patchwork & Quilting)

Sew4Home (Janome)

We All Sew (Bernina)

Your favorite fabric manufacturer

Your sewing machine manufacturer’s website

Your local quilt guild’s community service page (usually contains links to easy, free patterns)

and last, but certainly not least –

Your local public library (use Libby app for access to lots of quilting and sewing magazines!).

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with any of the above links nor do I receive any renumeration.

Only $1 registration fee…

Just $4.95 will reserve your spot…

Call the shop to register now!

The pictures of the quilts in the online ads make it S-O-O-O tempting to sign up, right? BOM by mail or in-person? Which do you prefer?

Participating in a BOM is one of my goals for 2023. Dedicating half of my quilty budget on a BOM program is not one of my goals. Thank goodness for the wise advice of my Friday Sew Day friends.

I’m currently participating in a virtual BOM sponsored by A Quilting Life. It’s a fun project I can pre-cut to make at Friday Sew Days. The cost to participate is nominal, which fits my budget. Another suggested budget-friendly option is the Saturday Sampler (BOM) that kicks off next month at one of our LQS. For $15, you get a block kit. Bring back your completed block on the designated day the following month to receive your next block kit FREE. Any missed months may be purchased for $15.00 each. A quilt finishing kit is usually available for a modest fee. Some of the ladies in my Friday Sew Group participate in online BOM programs. Costs for those run $40-$50 per month per project. The #1 reason given for online participation is because the project they want to make isn’t available locally – especially the Tula Pink projects.

Curious, I researched online BOM programs I found one that interests me where the total cost to participate in the BOM would be about $350.00. Add batting, backing and longarm quilter’s fees (finished size is too big for me to tackle on my domestic machine) and I might be looking at an investment of $600 to $750 to make this quilt. Totally worth it for the right quilt; but for me, this one just doesn’t fall into that category. I’d rather wait until the pattern becomes available for sale and pull fabrics from my stash. With the money saved, I can go on another quilt retreat or make several baby/lap quilts to donate to my quilt guild’s community service group. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer here. It’s based solely on your personal preferences, priorities and available budget.

I’ll continue with my virtual BOM and add one from my LQS if I like the project options. I find it ironic that I probably would have signed up for the paid online BOM if I was still working full-time. The block pieces arrive laser cut and ready to sew. This would have been a monthly treat to myself. Getting time off to attend regular in-person quilting events was a challenge.

I thoroughly enjoy the freedom being retired brings. I’m more than happy to be intentional with my spending and projects so I can thrive, live my best life and continue to remain retired.