Row by Row Shop Hopping with Tammy

Oh my goodness!  I have a working car and after picking up a friend --- pointing it towards as many quilt shops today as I can.  Isn't that what you would do with a working car?  The theory is that all I am going to do is pick up free Row x Row patterns and perhaps a neutral or two.  My expense will be gas  and lunch.  Sounds reasonable right?  Let's go.

I drop Mister off at work and go straight to the Richland Sewing Center in Hurst, where I am meeting Tammy.  She is going to share in my adventure today.

I find a couple of the RxR fabrics that I don't already have and grab my pattern.  Two fat quarters -- reasonable exchange for a pattern.  I do love these little ducks.  Tammy is picking up the license plates along the way as well.  I may regret my decision not to do that.

Next stop:  The Old Craft Store in Carrollton.  I am not a huge fan of this store simply because they don't have fat quarters (I know -- strange huh?), but I absolutely LOVE their cute pattern.  I am not purchasing the kit, BUT the black and whites of the girls are vinyl.  Awesome concept.  I do try and purchase some of the background fabric, but they have allotted it all to their kits and fear running out as it is.

They also have just the sweetest display ever.  There are umbrellas all over the place and a darling umbrella quilt hanging overhead.  I walk out the door with just the pattern but while there they had a winning quilt just being photographed.  People have finished already and we are just gathering patterns.  Wow.

Back on the road and heading towards Plano.  I do come  up this way fairly often BUT usually to one particular store.  This shop hop is good for me as I am exploring new shops along the way.  There are two stops we are going to make in Plano (saving one for another trip) and first up is Best of Bernina.  They also have a winning quilt already on display.  I think we are hitting most of the shops that are represented in that winning quilt.  Yay!  Their row is three dimensional -- I will have to think about that part.  Not sure it is good for a quilt that doesn't hang on the wall.

Onto Fabric Fanatics in Plano.  I am only on a pattern hunt here and forbidding myself from any purchases as I have my fingers and toes crossed that I will get into their New Year's classes when the registration opens on Monday.  That ALWAYS turns into a shopping extravaganza for me.  Also, I still have a good selection of batiks left from all of my Row Robin purchases and they will work perfect in this row.  Talk to you Monday FF.

The Quilt Asylum in McKinney is next.  I have been laughing at the postings online about the name of this place.  Having retreated with many people who have worked here, I am excited to finally see what it is like.  I have to admit -- what a great little store.  It has a decent vibe and we are treated very well by the staff.

It is fat quarter heaven and oh, the neutrals.  It doesn't take long for me to collect a wonderful little stack of them.  Their pattern is quite simple but I love the border fabric so decide to pick up some of it along with my other treasures.  It's a nice store -- not my favorite in McKinney, but I will definitely stop in again.

Heading downtown, our next stop is Happiness is Quilting.  This place is bursting at the seams with customers everywhere and it appears that I am not the only one who adores this store.  Their row is just oh so cute and I ask if I can purchase the sunglass fabric.  Not a chance as it all has gone into kits.  Well, then I guess I'll get the kit.  I love this row so it is not an issue for me.  I grab three fun neutral fat quarters (as if I didn't get enough in the previous store) and walk to the checkout.  One of the wonderful ladies on staff here informs me that if I just purchase one more fat quarter, I can have four free.  I actually ask for clarification as that seems pretty cool to me.  Off I go and yes, I find more than just those four.  Love, love, love this shop but I forget to grab an outside picture of it.  Drat.

After a wonderful lunch with Tammy at Spoons in downtown McKinney, we are off to our final stop in this lovely community.  Stitched With Love is just down the road and also a new shop to me.

It's a small shop that carries a good inventory with great variety and LOTS of fat quarters.  Oh my.  Can I behave here?  They have created a vertical row to help widen the quilts a bit.  Great idea.

Near the checkout, I spot a basket of pin cushion chickens.  Oh my, they are absolutely darling.  I only purchase a couple of fat quarters, one of which I think I can use for the background on another row.  We'll see, but they are both fun and "watery".

We have a bit of a drive to our next destination in Denton.  I have heard so many wonderful things about this shop and have been wanting to go here for a LONG time now.  I am so glad the day is finally here.  It has a rather modest entry with minimal signage, but Minding My Ps and Qs certainly lives up to it's reputation.  Yep, I have finally caught Tammy in a picture.  I bet she is thrilled that it is this one.

I find a couple more neutrals but spend most of my time visiting about upcoming Bonnie Hunter classes and retreats.  I get all the information on a future event being sponsored by this store in 2017 - yep that's right - but also share information with them about the upcoming classes over New Years at Fabric Fanatics.  Hopefully we will meet up again if I don't get up this way before that.

Their row is sooooo fun AND reasonable.  I just purchase the whole thing as finding fun fabrics like that will just take me too long.

It's getting late in the day and I have to pick up Mister soon so we only have time for one more stop.  Just down the road is Material Girl Quilt Shop, another small little shop with minimal signage.  It would be very easy to miss if you didn't have the address.  Oops, caught Tammy again -- this time on the phone.

The shops row is entitled "By The Pool" and my best guess is that we are looking out of some doors to a poolside scene.  I LOVE the lemonade on the table.

I find some really fun "water" themed fabrics to use in my rows, get the pattern and call it a day.  Wow.  We have visited nine shops and I am kind of afraid to tally up what I have spent.  I hope it stayed below $100.00 so that I can do this another day and check off another nine shops.

Thank you, Tammy, for sharing my day.  It has been wonderful to have a companion and I had such a great time getting to know you better.  I simply cannot wait to see how your OHMYGOSH quilt turns out with all of those beautiful batiks you picked up at Fabric Fanatics.  Thank you again.

Once I get home, I lay out all of my treasures from the day.  WOW.  I am going to put most of the neutrals to work in the upcoming mystery quilt Ribbons of Love.  For more information on that, please check out this POST.  I'd love to have you join us and sew along this fall.

My treasure trove before today consisted of the row by row fabrics from Timeless Treasures that I ordered when they were 60 per cent off two days before the event started.

With what I have added today, oh I am getting there.  Cassie called while I was out shopping and she is picking up patterns and fat quarters in Utah for me.  She sent a picture of the pattern and some wonderful yellows that she got.  Ooooooh -- I can't wait.

Well --- here is today's haul and I have to admit.  It's going to be hard to put these on the back burner while I collect more patterns.  I have other projects that are a higher priority though.  Must stay focused.