window shopping

How much is that doggy in the window?

 

Meet LIlly!    She cracked me up when she arrived with Julie Anne yesterday.  She's like my dog Cheeky only a shrink wrapped pocket rocket version!  I had not been very aware of the Staffy breed and when we adopted Cheeky it was because of the Ridgeback in her.  The Staffy personality was a bonus gift.  These dogs are gifted with a smile, a trusting loyal nature and as Cheeky's name would imply...tons of attitude.  It is the kind of thing you have to experience to understand I guess.

Then there is this...have you ever seen a dog sit on her knees before?  Only problem with this photo is that you can't fully see her gorgeous white socks.  

If doggies are the theme then check this out...

Wendy is growing up a garden of stripes and text and featuring the colours of the day...orange and gray.

It's growing up and up and up....

 

into a big Growing Up pattern...

Wendy's workshops are on Mondays and Wednesdays as well as evening sessions if you are interested in getting in on the action.  They are full of fun techniques from foundation piecing to machine or hand applique.  Every session Wendy gives an informative demonstration of a block.  From upstairs we can here the oohs and ahhs of her classes which is very distracting.  There isn't anything this woman can't do and I have gotten in the habit of turning to her and asking for all kinds of things. Like bags... 

Next up on the bag schedule is yoga mat bag...and NOT just because I want one in some gorgeous home dec or Cloth fabric.  That would just be too selfish. But I do want it and I want it NOW.

Not only do have quilt and bag envy where Wendy is concerned but also with her hexagon patterns which are multiplying out of control.

 

 We had the pleasure of yet another finished quilt from the Kaffe Fassett workshops.  Lynn brought hers in yesterday and really, we all had to clap.  Lynn really jumped in the deep end on this one and the results are spectacular.

This week I got a photo of this version of Playground Days from MO2 all the way from the Netherlands.  It looks very different in cool blues and greys but it is a lovely and satisfying pattern to make up.  Great for scraps.

                            

These also come from the Netherlands....fields and fields of tulips.  What beautiful place this must be!  Are these stripes planned or random? 

  Stop and stare at that for a minute before starting the day. 

Just before I go...    I have hundreds of books that I pour over lovingly and they are very diverse in nature.  Many of them I purchased on a punt, many for the author and many because I picked them up, flipped through the pages and had to have it.  I admit, I am a picture person.  I want a quilting book that looks beautiful and takes my mind on a journey of imagination.   There are so many books out there now to choose from and they all look interesting on the cover but what is inside?    Thing is that as the bookstores disappear and our only option is becoming buying on line how do we decide what we want?  I am sad to see retail changing so much.  I miss headphones in a record store and I a good browse in a bookstore.  I visited a local bookstore that is closing on the weekend and nearly cried to see it all disappear. I am curious about this retail debate regarding shopping on line or in store.  Am I alone here?  Do we really only want to buy only on line?  Am I just old, old fashioned or what? k

 

Comments

[Scohen174@cox.net]

Dogs, color, and books. Three of my favorite things. Purple and yellow, yum. And yes, I felt guilty when I bought the Kindle because I prefer the bookstore......

[Susan]

I am not sure where this retail overhaul is going to go... I do think as a society we are more and more barbaric... so we should look to history and those "barbarians" we studied in world history.... they seemed very irrelevant at the time but keep popping up in my brain since we have entered the 21st century.

On a very - VERY - selfish note: Even if I never buy another fat quarter I have enough fabric to last me the rest of my life. So I could be a happy camper for life.

But some day we may indeed be singing:
Where has all the fabric gone ?
Long time passing?
When will all the young girls learn?
Sewing takes time?
And if you listen to Kathy you will learn
More than quilting......

[Ursula]

To buy your books in a physical store is sure different from buying online. All the page flipping and peeking inside, not to mention the touch and feel of the real thing ...

But, if you are not so lucky as to live anywhere near a well sorted bookstore, this experience used to be limited to some pretty rare occasions, and if you needed something out of the ordinary, you were out of luck altogether. Any book could be ordered, yes, but you would have felt obliged to buy it even if you didn't like it. With the online book stores there is the new function of "look inside" which gives you a pretty good impression of whether you like the book or not. And of course all the reviews to go though. And nobody seems to feel embarrassed to return a book (or any other product) to a big online store, if it doesn't meet their expectations - which nonetheless may not happen too often.

So, I think it's a blessing we have all the new possibilities, along with an amazing world of instant information. For example, living in Germany I wouldn't know about your quilting life without the internet ... but I do, and I love all the inspiration you pass along!

Ursula

[Carola]

I can imagine buying books online - but fabric?! I tried it a few times and was always disappointed. Either the colors were not what I imagined them to be or the feel was not right or the colors of the different pieces did not match the way I thought they would. And you even cannot give cut fabric back, if it does not come up to your expectations! I do love book stores and we in Germany still have many, thank God. But even though there are a tempting amount of online fabric stores now, nothing beats the real thing, the feeling of fabric, the interplay of colors in the real! So lets hope, fabric stores blossom and flourish and last ....

[katherine]

I read religiously, I don’t comment often. But i couldn’t resist today.
Have a thought of previous generations with local shops where one would do the weekly shop. The local grocery, butcher and baker, the green grocer and milk being delivered to your door. The shops now lay bare. Particularly in regional areas. While Harvey Norman came out and all of the mum & dad independent stores vanished, so too will the retail outlet on the street. Where will we congregate as a society, to people watch, sip coffee, and read newspapers and books. Will our children sit in café houses with kindles, instead? They will never know inky fingers. What will happen with all the libraries? Everything will be available online, instead of going into a community centre we will sit at home in our lounge rooms, down loading books instead.
I believe there will be a cult movement or I hope there will be. I love the crack of a book spine, to dog ear the corners, reading it over again. Imagine if all the shops closed and everything was ordered online. What a sad existence we will all live. No connection with one another. We will have the technology to talk to one another, without any real human contact or in depth relationships.
Fingers crossed we come up with more ways of getting together to share our lives, laughs and friendships.
Although I have purchased fabric online, I have taken a personal pledge to support my local patchwork shops. I want them to stay around whether the dollar is good or not..

[Amy]

Around her in Southwestern Ontario Canada, we have a few quilt stores but, they do not have enough designer fabrics that would interest me. It's mostly Northcott fabrics and companies or designers that I havn't heard of. Where are all the Anna Maria Horner's, or the Kaffe Fassetts or the Amy Butlers? If a store does have a designer, it may only be one bolt. They may also have one or two laminates to chose from but most likely not. How can a store carry all of these and still be in business, that is a lot of overhead. The only option would be to buy those specialty fabrics on-line. I would love to feel and see the fabric before hand but it isn't possible here. What makes a store buy what it does? If the store owner choses a Fassett line over a Northcott line would it sell? Now I know that Northcott is a company and Fassett is a designer but is it really so difficult to get Fassett, Horner and Butler under one roof?

[Juanita]

Oh, how I love a good book! But I will admit to my magazine subscriptions expiring due to the constant inspiration available on the internet, and I don't miss the piles accumulating on the side table.

I'm not much of an internet shopper, oh it seems convenient and easy enough, but I want that face to face personal contact-with the shop owner, worker or neighbor in the shop. It's about being part of something larger than myself. I feel selfish and indulgent when shopping on the internet, and so often whatever I purchase just seems lackluster once it arrives. I'd rather go into a shop and choose to purchase or not. Many times what draws me to shop is the need to connect with other like minded people and I have to really discern wether I am there to buy or socialize, both are very valid reason, but understanding them avoids regretful purchases. Having a shop owner that embraces both parts builds a community that will bind together in wonderous ways. I think that you do an amazing job of that Kathy! Long live the brick and mortar shops!!!

[Liz Florom]

The picture of the dog is SO CUTE!!!!!!! And I love color too.

[michelle]

WOW love Wendy's Quilt...wish I live closer to take in her classes. I do buy fabric and books on-line but would prefer to do so in person if a store(s) exsisted where I lived. I much prefer to turn the pages of a book or flip it over to read the back. There is just something about looking at a book in person vs. buying it on-line. Fabric has the same pull...running your fingers over, matching it up with other fabrics, getting other opinions...Michelle

[cath babidge]

just thought i'd bring the comments up to double figures! no, seriously, i work in Kathy's shop and reading some of your responses makes me very proud of what we do. All your comments relate to what we do: Kaffe, Amy, Anna and so much more all under one roof. Happy, excited workers and shoppers...laughter...Kathy tries to bottle it and put in in her posts so if any of you ever get the chance to visit sydney tell us and we will welcome you with open arms. We even made lunch for a guy from Wollongong yesterday and that's only 100Km away...see you soon Gary!

[Connie Martin]

I love my Barnes & Noble Bookstore! They have headphones to listen to music too! My family teases me because I just have to go there. It's like having to go to the quilt shop just to go there! Okay, I have to know where to get the newspaper print that is in Wendy's quilt. I have to have some!! Do you have it in your store?

Connie in Columbus, OH

[Liane]

Let's all start a movement today to hang onto all our speciality shops - be they quilts, books and everything else.
We must all support these shops so that they can stay in business otherwise we will be faced with a great lack of creativity as everything becomes mass or cheaply produced for online marketing.
I can see the value in the internet for information but give me the colour, feel and warmth of a quilt or book shop any day!

[Julie-Anne Reid]

Lilli the Staffy says woof woof woof & fanks very much for posting her photo's on your blog! She is a dear little thing & such good company. Love the doggy fabric too.

[Black Bra]

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[Coach Outlet Online]

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