Well not nothing, but my day yesterday was just so blissfully normal. Not a weekend. Not a Monday, Not a Friday. It was a TUESDAY. And a very ordinary wonderful Tuesday!
I had been buried in paperwork, trying to find my way out of a stack of papers that I couldn't even remember why I stacked them there on my desk side table, no rhyme or reason for what I intended to do with them....
Some of them were contracts and I needed to make copies before sending them back to their prospective guilds, but low and behold...as soon as I started to copy the first one, the printer decided to run out of ink about half way down the page >_< !!
About this time Jen called! I told her of my printer cartridge woes and that I was going to have to run for a new one, and pretty soon we were making a lunch date for the Chick Fil A that is right there near the Walmart/Staples where I was headed!
Is there anything better than a friend who can make an un-wanted errand trip turn into a fun lunch?! Thanks Jen, it was a great day! We are planning to get together on Friday and SEW. I'm always up for that! She has an adorable airplane quilt she wants to make for her son for his next birthday. (Did you get that pattern enlarged at Staples? What size did you decide?! :c) )
At Walmart, I found the printer cartridge, the LAST ONE of the kind I needed. Thank you ink-fairies! And I realized that I didn't have to rush, I could slow down and WANDER! No quilting stuff came home with me. Not that there is much to be found there anymore, but I can usually pick up machine needles, rotary blades, and other little stuff if I need it.
This walmart has gone to completely having only pre-cut packages of fabrics on hand, mostly for home-dec projects, though the bundles say they are for quilting. You know, when you can't really open the fabric like you can on a bolt..and feel it in your hand ---because it is so tightly wrapped that you can't see how thin it is, or what the texture is --- it just loses something in translation!
I can see myself grabbing the 2 yard cuts of the 100% cotton solids they have there. 2 yards for 5 bucks? Yes, I've used that "Country Cotton" or whatever the brand name is, and I like it...but that is the only fabric I think I would trust from there right now because I know I've used it, and have had experience with it. The others? The prints look kind of "cheap" for lack of a better word. I'm just not impressed.
Still....for those in rural areas ((Yes, and that includes me too since they closed down the Ben Franklin that was the "MAIN" quilt store in Kernersville)) This is it. This is all there is if you need thread, notions, fabric, whatever. At least the Walmarts are TRYING to provide us with some things we need. But it's sad that it falls this much short.
They also closed down Randy's Quilt Shop in Greensboro...And there are a couple shops in Winston-Salem, but they are clear on the other side of the planet from me, and my errands just don't take me anywhere near where they are located, so I do most of my shopping when I am teaching on the road rather than make a 40 minute drive one way locally...but that's another tangent! When I am home --- The less time spent in the car the BETTER!
So what DID come home with me?! I decided it was time for a NEW IRONING BOARD COVER. Oh how that can perk up a sewing space!
And I decided that it was time to go through this basket of bills, statements and receipts and do some organizing there. I bought a collapsible file and spent time sorting and clearing out (None of this had been done since Tax Time in April! It just all went in the basket!)while watching "In Her Shoes" With Shirley McClain. Oh Chick Flick Heaven!
I sewed a bit....and puttered. That was it! That was the whole day, and I am so grateful for it!
I'm gearing up to head to Harlingen, Texas on Saturday. I've got a trip to meet with the Frontera Quilt Guild! WHOOOO!!!
This is an area I've never been to before, and I'm really looking forward to it. We are doing the Oklahoma Backroads Workshop to use up HUGE amounts of bricks and squares! YAY! And a Lecture and Trunk show as well...
Gals, I have two requests, any time I go down to Texas! BBQ & Tex Mex! Bring it on!
The Walmarts in our area are completely phasing out all fabric, thread, notions etc, etc. I've only seen one Super store that had the pre-cuts, and it seems a lot to be desired. I am thankful that there are other fabric stores in our area, but sadly all the quilt shops have closed, the closest being about 45 minutes away (on a good day with no traffic). I am thankful for my abundant stash, as I have been able to do some shopping in there for projects. And of course your helpful hints on using scraps! Yay!
ReplyDeleteOur closest fabric store is an hour away. The closest WalMart is 90 minutes away. There is a mountain pass to cross every direction out of town. That makes traveling for fabric this time of year pretty iffy. No fabric and very few notions in town. I have a hard time believing someone can't keep a fabric store going here with a quilt guild of 50+ members. So sad! I agree with you Bonnie. I have to feel the fabric before I buy it. Buying from the internet is just not the same! :(
ReplyDeleteWe just had a LQS close. Very Sad. We are however lucky here to have two Sewing and Vac stores that carry good quilting fabric and a QS only 30 minutes up the road. Then again we also have a huge Joannes and a Hancock Fabric...guess were are really lucky...spoiled even?
ReplyDeleteSeems like a day to savor. Really I mean it. Sometimes we are so busy we forget to appreachate the simple day and joy it brings. Glad you made the most out of your day and may you feel energized.
ReplyDeleteWhere I live everything is at least a 25 minute drive and I'm used to drivng fifteen miles to get anything--groceries to ink cartridges. We are lucky to a Jo-Ann's and three quilt shops within the area and a Ben Franklin that still has a sale table for $1.99 a yd but they're far enough away that it means you don't go there spur of the moment.
ReplyDeleteThe quilt shops here in NE seem to be thriving but the owners work hard to update shop samples and go to all the local quilt shows. They are always adding new classes and techniques so perhaps that's why.
Oh Bonnie I can so comiserate with you! And you Kville Walmart is the only one with precuts! Our Hanes Mall has nothing! I remember three years ago when they phased it out-even the fabric cutters couldnt understand why as it was such a successful department! CEO men are clueless! Heck I still miss Piece Goods. Im lucky Hancocks and Joannes are on my way home as is Sewingly yours. Isnt there a quilt store by CrackerBarrel in Gboro? There was a commercial on the radio this week. I find my favs at online store, ebay and etsy.
ReplyDeleteWhat, Randy's closed? Darn. I was there once while DH attended a conference in Greensboro (the Proximity Hotel... nice...). It was right before you moved to NC. They had a great sale going on while I was there. Sigh.
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