Travel – Artquiltmaker Blog

Picking Daisies

Picking Daisies is an amazing quilt shop in downtown San Luis Obispo. I loved it.

Picking Daisies is located in The Creamery. Described as “Tucked back behind the intersection of Higuera and Nipomo Streets, The Creamery Marketplace might just be downtown San Luis Obispo’s best-kept local secret. The open-air public market merges the Central Coast’s storied dairy history with its modern, flavorful present.” Inside the gates is a courtyard with seating surrounded by various shops, including Picking Daisies.

Picking Daisies - books, patterns — Picking Daisies – books, patterns

Right inside the door of this petite shop are bag and garment patterns. I also saw a small, but nice selection of books, though I didn’t take the time to look at them.

I was surprised to see more Karen Pratt patterns! I went from never seeing her before to seeing her patterns all over! This is why I like to go to quilt shops: I always see items I haven’t seen before.

The first thing I saw when I walked in were California tea towels and a California themed embroidery kit. Some of the tea towels were the same fabric that I used for the shirt I made for DH. I didn’t buy the kit, but I did buy the embroidery cloth with the design printed on it. I’ll see about making it after I finish the needlepoint. The cool thing was that they had a completed example, which looked modern not fusty. One motif was the iconic building at Los Angeles International Airport. The designer is Cedar O’Reilly. There are three different designs and are only available at Picking Daisies.

Picking Daisies - kits and projects — Picking Daisies – kits and projects

Both Cut and Run and Picking Daisies were great. It would be hard to choose a favorite, but the merchandising at Picking Daisies was really amazing. Everywhere I looked I saw bundles of napkins, kits for projects, but not just the normal kits shops can buy from fabric companies. They had clever and carefully put together kits from their stock. The photo above shows a project bag using some Tula cat food cans as the background. This is a similar idea to my I Spy pouches. In the middle of the photo is the Divided Basket pattern by Noodlehead. There were about six kits available for this pattern in all different fabrics. I have resisted buying this pattern, but when I saw it here for a good price, I succumbed. I didn’t buy a kit as I am sure I can make one up at home. 😉

Picking Daisies - color — Picking Daisies – color

I also noticed the color. The walls were all different colors, not necessarily colors I would choose, but great colors for the space. It felt small, but also cozy and warm, not claustrophobic. I know I said I really like the bright white walls and light filled rooms of Stitched, but I also liked the warmth and coziness this shop.

The shop owners were working with a fabric rep to select new fabrics from upcoming offerings. They were occupied and I was able to wander around the small space seeing what I could see. I also earwigged a bit and saw some new and upcoming fabrics from Cloud 9 and Northcott.

While this was definitely a quilt shop, they also had some gift items, which is a great idea for tourists and kids who might wander in. Earrings, some cards, a couple of puzzles, the tea towels, were some of the items I saw. The gift items did not take away from the fact that this was a quilt shop.

One thing I noticed is that they make cloth napkins and have them for sale. They had a whole wall of napkins. Napkins make great gifts, they are made from fabric and can be made from bolt ends. Not your usual tourist gift, they are a clever choice for someone who wants a souvenir, but a useful one.

I love the way these napkins are displayed. Hanging them on the wall makes a lovely art piece. Napkins were sold individually (need one for your lunchbox?) and in packs of four, maybe more.

Picking Daisies - fabric — Picking Daisies – fabric

The shop was absolutely STUFFED with fabric. Everywhere I looked had bolts displayed. Even though it was a small shop, I didn’t feel like visiting was a waste of my time. In addition to everything mentioned above, there were plenty of great prints from which to choose, including a new line by Martha Negley!!! Apparently, she has been picked up by Free Spirit again and Picking Daisies had a flower collection plus fabrics from a new mushroom themed collection. They are also expecting another collection called Golden Harvest from her, shipping in July. I saw some of the Golden Harvest prints online, but need to take a look in person. There is one with grapes and pears and an eggplant and I loved it!

Picking Daisies - notions — Picking Daisies – notions

They had a small, but well thought out collection of notions. I was pleased to see Karen Kay Buckley scissors displayed, which are the best. I added some True Grips to my pile just because they had them.

They had the basics and few unique items like one of those glow rulers we saw at Kruusn a few years ago. I haven’t seen those very many places (another thing to make sure stays charged?), so I thought it was interesting.

Picking Daisies - Embroidery & Notions — Picking Daisies – Embroidery & Notions

Picking Daisies - Fabric & Notions — Picking Daisies – Fabric & Notions

The Notions are in the front corner of the shop. Next to them is a cabinet with more fabric and notions and then along the side wall are quilts and their cutting area. Behind the cutting area is a small area,possibly for classes where the owners were meeting with the fabric company salesperson.

In between the embroidery and the kits section was another shelf with more kits for napkins and other small projects. This is what I mean by great merchandising. They had things so you could make your own projects, but everything you need to grab and go as well. In looking at the photos, I saw things that I didn’t see while in the shop.

I did buy some of the Martha Negleys they had. I didn’t LOVE any of them. Everyone does flowers, but her vegetables were unique and I wish she had scattered some veggies in among her flowers. Don’t get me wrong, the flowers were nice. I even have an idea for a couple of them. I also want her to continue designing, thus the purchase.

Visit the Picking Daisies website, where you can order all of these items online: https://www.pickingdaisiesinslo.com/

Cut and Run Quilt Shop

We were away last week on the Central Coast so DH could attend Grand Parlor. I didn’t do nearly the prep that I had done in the past for his events and had decided to do some quiltmaking side trips of my own. I planned to drive to Carpinteria while we were in SLO to visit Roxanne’s. It was about a two hour drive and after finding a few quilt shops much closer I put off the Roxanne’s visit (and the SBPL visit) for another time.

Cut and Run Fabrics was the first quilt shop I visited. I stopped on my way back to the hotel after the Ladies Luncheon.

I had a little trouble finding it, but I was in the neighborhood and eventually arrived. It turns out that the shop is within walking distance of my aunt’s house.

Cut and Run has quiltmaking fabrics as well as garment fabrics and supplies for making garments. I saw some lingerie straps and closures that I recognized from when my grandmother took a lingerie class.

The shop had a great selection of fabrics with a distinctly modern vibe that appealed to me.

I chatted with the owner for awhile after she gave me a bookmark with all of the shops on the Central Coast listed. This is definitely a great effort by all of the shops to work together.

The bookmark definitely makes for a temptation to go on a road trip specifically to visit all of these quilt shops. Of course I wanted to head out right away, but I had to fulfill promises to DH and attend events for which I had signed up.

There was a wide variety of notions including quite a large display of vintage buttons.

Dozer, a very large dog, was snoozing away behind the cutting counter.

I meant to ask whether the shop actually stocked garment patterns, but was distracted by the excellent marketing. It is possible she rescued the cabinets from a Joann that was going out of business.

I like the samples of quilt patterns that were displayed. They are big and bold. I like the colors, too.

The variety of colors of the samples and the fabrics made me happy to be in the shop.

I thought the shop was a good size, too. Not too small, plenty of fabric and notions, fresh everything.

One thing I saw was great flannels! The shop had wonderful colors for flannel. I can’t remember seeing such a good variety since I was at Joann’s looking for flannel for the YM.

I think we will make another trip south later this year and I will put this shop on my list as one to visit again.

Address: 2300 Broad St, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
Phone:+1 805 519 1908

Hours: Tue 10 AM–5 PM
Wed Closed
Thu Closed
Fri 10 AM–5 PM
Sat 10 AM–5 PM
Sun 10 AM–5 PM

Stitched

Mary took me to a new-to-me quilt shop called Stitched. It is a little hard to find, because it is directly behind an Army and Navy store! They have a big sign on the road so look for that when you visit, as well as the Army Navy store. The shop has its own parking lot so you don’t have to share with any Army Jeeps. 😉

Apparently, this is a new location for the shop. We drove there through Medford. I think Central Point is part of Medford or near Medford. If you look up “quilt shop medford” you will find the address and directions.

The sign says Sewing Works and Mary made a reference to “part of that brand”, but I have never heard of Sewing Works, so I looked it up. Apparently, the shop is now part of the organization. I am not sure if it was before, but the Sewing Works website is interesting and I like the name.

I am also not sure what this building was before – something like Medieval Times? Those gothic windows are definitely a unique feature I have never seen in a quilt shop. Isn’t it great how shops take over a space and make it their own?

The overall feeling of this shop was light and bright. The walls were very clean/white and there was a lot of nice light in the main, front room. The ceilings were very high, which, I am sure, helps.

Stitched front counter & looking down the left side

This is a BIG shop. There is a new,or recently filled, area in the back that smelled new and with which Mary was not familiar. It provided a lot of space for more fabric, books and quilts!

The back room had a lot of fabric, Accuquilt dies and a few notions and books. They had a huge rack of the Fabric Cafe 3 yard quilt books. I haven’t tried one of these quilts, but I see the books more and more. I am not sure what the magic is about 3 yards?

Stitched- backroom dsiplays — Stitched- backroom displays

There were a couple of cutting tables. I could see also that they were trying out different displays. The space is large and they have room to grow.

I might have seen a crib as p[art of a display at other shops before, but I don’t remember specifically. I thought the look was good. There is a lot of space for creativity using the crib as a center focal point, especially because a lot of people start quiltmaking in order to make a baby quilt.

The shop also had a longarm. It wasn’t running (thank you!), but that indicates s full service shop where you can get your quilts quilted as well. On the other hand, it could have just been another innovative display! I didn’t check the website very thoroughly to see if they run a longarming service.

Stitched - front of shop — Stitched – front of shop

The front of the shop has fabric and an extensive notions wall. For the most part, however, front of house is all things Bernina. Mary goes there for classes. In the photo (left), you can see the way they continued the castle window theme at the top of the wall. Fun, huh?

I also wanted True Grips** for my Sheffield acrylic templates, but the shop only carried InvisiGrip**. InvisiGrip** is not a favorite, though it is ok if you have nothing else. YMMV.

One of the things I like about visiting shops is seeing the different items that are available. Mary told me, and I noticed, that Aurifil is not widely available.

Stitched - classroom — Stitched – classroom

The ‘classroom’ is small. It is an open space in the front of the shop and can seat about 6 people. I am not sure how I would feel knowing that I was in the middle of the sales floor and trying to learn.

I love the quilt to the left of the ‘classroom’. It was quite vibrant in person.

There was a ton of thread and Bernina longarm supplies. I didn’t look much at them, but I am sure it is good to know about a location that has such supplies.

I bought some nice fat quarters. I couldn’t resist the rainbow selection. I threw in a couple of low volume text fabrics. As mentioned, it was hard to find Aurifil, but this shop had a small selection of Aurifil neutrals in the large size (not the cone) including my favorite Grey 2600. I also bought some Iron Off** for Mary, though I think the brand was Magic Iron Cleaner** or something. We got some goop on her iron and cleaning it was the impetus for the trip.

All in all, Stitched is a good shop I would visit again.

5104 Crater Lake Ave
Central Point, OR 97502

**Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this website.

Heading to Sew with Mary

Mt. Shasta - May 2026 — Mt. Shasta – May 2026

I can’t help taking pictures of Mt. Shasta. Despite the fact that I already have a million photos of the mountain, I still take more photos each time I drive by. It is a striking sight. Pictures just don’t do it justice. It looked particularly beautiful as we drove by this time.

When I don’t pick up my Mom, I can bypass about two hours of the drive. We arrived in Ashland just after 4pm not at all exhausted. DH was able to make a quick stop at the fly fishing store there. Sadly, Sew Creative was closed when I went there while he went to the fly fishing shop. How perfect is that, though? A quilt store and a fly fishing store two blocks apart?

On the first day of my vacation, I sent DH off at 9am to go fly fishing. DH had to drive another 2.5 hours into the wilderness to find his stream. Then MaryM and I headed upstairs to start sewing.

After setup in Mary’s workroom, I started sewing a couple of small projects. I was sad not to be using my new machine, but was happy that Mary had a second machine I could use so I didn’t have to haul a machine in our stuffed car.

Fairytale I Spy - finished — Fairytale I Spy – finished

Before I left, I had prepped another Snap Tray. That project was ready to sew. I also had plans for an I Spy pouch for the Chaos templates.

This I Spy pouch did not adhere to the sizes Sara provides. I used her instructions, but worked with my own measurements. The process worked fine and I am really happy with my newest I Spy pouch.

I got to work on the Snap Tray first. As mentioned, I wanted to use to organize the space next to my machine. I am pretty excited about how well it worked. Cleanup was a breeze as well. I took the small Snap Tray out of the rectangular Snap Tray and brushed all the schnibbles into the pet bed pile.

I also started cutting out the Sheffield on the first day. I was able to get everything ready so I could start to sew on Day Two. I am glad I did some prep before I left. I was really able to hit the ground running.

At the same time I was working on these projects, Mary got down to business with her Running with Scissors tote. I thought she had finished this bag a long time ago! We worked together on fabric choices and some other confusing aspects of the pattern**. Periodically, I stuck my oar in when Mary seemed to be struggling. Mostly, I encouraged and cajoled her to get on with it! By the time I left, she was assembling the whole project. Mary is very meticulous. I was super impressed with how she quilted her pieces. The pocket quilting matched up with the case body quilting. I would have never thought of it, but it looked amazing.

I have made this pattern and am pleased with how mine came out. However, I still find the naming of the pieces and the lack of a map of the project to be confusing in terms of what fabric goes where. We looked at the photos of my Arty Running with Scissors tote. A LOT.

The next day we went to Green’s (Anvil Sewing) and Stitched. Both are in Medford. I forgot thread beyond the Serafil I was using for bagmaking. I needed some Aurifil 2600 for EPP. I bought the thread, but never worked on the project. Green’s is a great place to buy bag hardware, patterns and supplies. I think they have all of the ByAnnie products. What a great resource for local bagmakers.

Then it was back to sewing. I continued to work on the Sheffield. In between, as leaders and enders, I worked on the Potato Chip blocks. I am glad I brought them since I was able to sew about 6.

At some point, I stopped working on the Sheffield, even though I really wanted to finish it. I decided to add a leash and an interior zipper pocket. I didn’t have the right hardware and didn’t want to compromise on a bag for me.

MaryM's Book and Tool Folio — MaryM’s Book and Tool Folio

I started work on three bags that I want to use as gifts. I had decided, before I left to make the Aneela Hooey Book and Tool Folio (Stitched Sewing Organizers**, pg.55). I collected all of the supplies and fabrics for three of them. One reason I decided to make this was that I thought it would be a useful organizing tool. It is also one bag that uses 8 inch zippers, of which I have a lot and rarely use.

Aneela’s idea was to use it for sewing supplies, but I found that a pad, including a larger one I tried later, and a composition book both fit in the large pockets. Mary and I had a long discussion about the merits and then she suggested the Zip It Up Folio** by ByAnnie. I had most of the supplies I needed and Mary gave me a couple of zippers to use, so I was set to make them. I decided to make one first to get the lay of the land.

I think making one on its own was a good choice. I wanted to get familiar with the pattern and see where I might want to make changes.

Cutting takes awhile and is a good thing to do with a friend. All the pieces are now cut using the Philip Jacobs feather fabric as my inspiration.

I chose to make this bag with two vinyl pockets instead of a mesh pocket and a vinyl pocket. I cut the first vinyl pieces wrong, so those will become the new windows for future I Spy pouches. I am glad I brought a brand new roll of glitter vinyl. Mary has a lifetime supply of clear vinyl and she offered me some. It was a good backup in case I ran out.

I made good progress despite the need to quilt the fabric. I wanted to cover the top of the vinyl pockets below the zipper, so I brought the pieces home. Since I was ready to assemble the bag, I needed to stop, add the ribbon and then proceed. Another project to finish at home. Sigh.

It was a great trip. I felt super calm afterwards and can’t wait to do it again.

All the May vacation projects

Portland: Sewcial Studies

No, I am not in Portland at the moment.

I never got around to talking about Sewcial Studies after I returned from Portland in the Fall.

I went with Cheryl and Amanda. Sewcial Studies is in Milwaukie on a cute little street with a variety of shops including a chocolatier and a bookstore.

Sewcial Studies, a very small store, describes itself as an ‘art and craft’ store. While we were there, a woman was learning how to make a shirt, or some kind of garment.

One side of the store (shown, left) houses supplies you can buy: fabric, notions, etc. The collection of items isn’t large, but everything is high quality and a little unique. The red table in the center of the photo really intrigued me. I couldn’t help but think it looked like a billiard table.

On the other side of the store is the class/lessons/sewing side. I didn’t take a good picture of the whole side, but you get an idea of what it looks like. There were 3-4 tables with sewing machines where people could sew. I was intrigued to see different brands, models and vintages of machines. While having the same machines would be good for troubleshooting, getting used high quality machines might be more cost effective.

I really wanted to buy these pattern weights even though I didn’t need them. They were so cool looking and would have been great for shapes I needed to cut using a paper pattern.

They were on the pricey side, though, and I decided not to spend so much on an impulse buy. I don’t see them on their website so either they are too pricey to mail or I missed my chance.

One cool service they have are Open Sews. The charge is only $10/hour and they happen everyday the shop is open. You get to use their tools, machines, and get help if you should need it.

The coolest thing in the shop was their rivet press. I know I am obsessed with rivet presses right now, but this one was super cool the way it was embedded (inserted?) into an old sewing machine cabinet. OMG! Such a great idea. Also, the turquoise ‘plate’ is awesome.

I don’t think the sewing cabinet top opens anymore, but it would be great if the rivet press could be stored inside the cabinet as well. I think the height prevents it.

I wasn’t as focused on the store as I normally am, but I still saw enough to know that I like it. It is also a GREAT idea! I love the idea of dropping into to sew with others when it fits into your schedule.

Let me know if you go visit.

Tel:(503) 303-9143
suzanne@sewcialstudies.com
10835 SE Main Street
Milwaukie, OR 97222

Store Hours:
Sunday 12-5pm
Monday 10am-6pm
Tuesday Closed
Wednesday-Saturday 10am – 6pm

Visiting Pendleton

I have driven past this shop/warehouse many times on my way to and from Pioneer Quilts. This was the first time I stopped.

Pendleton is a wool manufacturer and for a warehouse this building/location was wonderful. It felt clean, warm and inviting.

The shop is not just a fabric shop, there are finished items for sale as well. I saw wool flannel shirts, throw pillows, blankets, ponchos, jackets, gloves, hats and scarves as well as a number of gift items, such as mugs, plates, trays, and rugs.

The company supports the National Park Service through a series of products they have been making for many years. They have a similar collection of products that support Native American causes.

There were also different types of craft kits and supplies. The shop had a fantastic selection of wool roving and felting supplies. I thought of getting some roving as I do like it for pincushions, Mega Pinnies and other stuffed projects, but ultimately decided to wait. I know they have it available for a good price, so I can buy it another time.

There was an amazing quilt on display as well as a video showing the making of it.

One fun thing highlighted was that Pendleton Dry Goods Mercantile opened in Disneyland’s Frontierland in 1955. There was a video on the history of the company where this tidbit was included. I am not sure the shop is still part of Disneyland, but I sort of remember it from visits as a kid.

The shop sold wool yardage on rolls. It was wide, too, maybe 55″ wide. I didn’t look closely. The colors were great! Julie bought an offcut to use in one of the Charlie’s Aunt bag patterns. The offcuts were $3 for a certain length or by the piece. I don’t remember, but very affordable and a great option if you don’t like the idea of thrifting for some wool.

This history video also talked about the Pendletones, a band which later became the Beach Boys!

I will definitely go back to this shop. I am glad I was able to take a look and could think about what they had to offer.

If you want to give back to underserved communities, think about selecting a holiday gift from the Chief Joseph or NPS collection.

Friend Julie already wrote about this shop. Take a look at her post to get a different view.

Pendleton Woolen Mill Store

8500 SE McLoughlin, PORTLAND, OR 97222
Tel: 503-535-5786

Paramount Sew & Vac – Eugene

At Sew Creative, I bought a magazine that was part of this year’s Pacific Northwest Shop Hop. I am glad I bought it because it had the names and addresses of various quilt shops on our route. Julie read various parts of the magazine to me as I drove.

This shop, Paramount Sew & Vac, in Eugene was one of the shops of which I had never heard. It also would not have been on my radar if it hadn’t been in the Shop Hop magazine. When I see ‘sew and vac’ I don’t think quiltmaking. Stereotyping, I know and I need to try and curb that.

We decided to stop here on a whim, on the drive to Portland, and were really glad we did. First, the place is HUGE, as in grocery store huge. This is the kind of shop we need in the Bay Area. Second they had a LOT: a lot of fabric, a lot of notions, a lot of Accuquilt, a lot of machines. It is well worth a stop

Paramount: Tula's Graywork — Paramount: Tula’s Graywork

One of the things I was excited to see was Tula’s Graywork for the first time in person! I hadn’t seen it in person before. It was great to see it looks as good as in the photos online.

I ordered some from Pink Door and can’t wait until it arrives. I was sorely tempted to buy a bit, but controlled myself. I do wish Pink Door would send my order. Not sure what the hold up is!

I was thrilled to see so many machines and be able to look at their prices. I have looked a little online, but you always have to call or go into a shop to get the price. Yes, I am continuing to look for a new machine and I feel like this shop gave me some information I needed to move forward on the project.

I had never seen a Grace Rebel machine before, but was excited to see the high harp.

Most people thing BIG harp, but after testing Cyndi’s Juki, I am enamored of a high harp. It is super helpful when making bags, especially if your machine ( like mine) does not have a free arm. As you can see it is a very basic machine. I wasn’t in a place, sadly, were I could test and consider machines, but this looks like a great second machine.

I was impressed to see the amount of Accuquilt dies and supplies that the shop had. I am sure I have never seen so many. I have been considering an electric Accuquilt, though haven’t taken the plunge. I was interested to see a smaller version, the Bolt**, which I hadn’t heard about. I also thought they had more dies than I had ever seen in one place before. I really like to have choices and seeing things in person makes things easier to evaluate.

The outside walls of the shop held the notions. A few were on the left hand wall as we entered. These were supplies for the Brother Scan & Cut. They were on sale for 40% off, so I took the opportunity to select a few things for my Scan & Cut. I had never seen these machines or supplies in a store and was excited. Sadly, there was a problem with the prices. The prices shown were not the original prices, but had already been marked down. They were more than I was willing to spend on ‘spec, so I passed them up. I need to get familiar with the Scan & Cut before I stock up. At least I know where they have the supplies now.

On the other side of the store were more conventional notions: rulers, needles, etc. These were all next to the Accuquilt dies.

Their main line of rulers was Quilter’s Select. I saw a number of sizes I hadn’t seen before, which was interesting. I don’t know if they are knew or I just have never seen them. They had Sew Kind of Wonderful rulers and a few others as well. I didn’t see any Creative Grids or Omnigrid rulers, which I thought was interesting. All of their solids were along the right wall under the notions. I didn’t take a look, so I am not sure what brands were available.

I can’t stress enough how many machines they had! I was sort of overwhelmed with the number of brands as well. I would definitely go back to look at machines if I lived nearby

This store is definitely worth a short detour, if you are in the area.

Apparently, the company has two locations. The other is in Salem, which I didn’t visit. You can email that shop at: paramountsalem@comcast.net

Paramount Sew & Vac

1015 River Rd
Eugene, Oregon 97404
Phone: (541) 345-2100

Email: info@paramount-sew-vac.com

**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops, including their online stores, and other small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this website.

Travel Quiltmaking

As mentioned, I am just back from Portland where I rested after a lot of caregiving this year. I went with Friend Julie and we sewed while it rained quite a bit. My other post talks about the various activities in which we engaged.

As I was sewing, I found a few things I had forgotten as I hadn’t delved into my travel supplies quite as much prior to this trip. I realized that I had prepped well for the projects I was bringing, but was missing a few crucial supplies. Fortunately Julie was able to step in. She was in the same position and I was able to help her out with a few things.

Once again, I forgot my Sew Steady table. I survived, but I need to remember it as I bought it and spent some money doing so. Sitting in the fabric isn’t doing anyone any good.

My travel tool bag is still the Crafty Carrier, which I made last year. It is still working out. It has enough space for two Tupperware containers and my Hildegarde Trunk as well as outside pockets for scissors and other tall things. It weighs a ton, but seems to be holding up well.

I also forgot my big seat cushion. That would have been useful to have as the dining room chairs are on the low side. I was getting up frequently to press, so my hands didn’t suffer.

I know I have shown this Ruler bag several times. This trip was a good reminder that it is useful to make sure you have something in which you can carry all your flat things, including a rotary mat.

You have to press and not everywhere has an ironing board or iron. I have a June Tailor Square ‘n Blocker** to use for pressing. I also have a small wool mat. Neither of these are great for yardage, but for smaller pieces they work fine. As mentioned, we ended up finding a large ironing board (normal size) so this is moot for next time.

Apparently, the June Tailor product is no longer available. You might be able to find one on alternate sites. The other quilt and craft sites I looked at listed it as ‘out of stock’. The Oliso MultiMat** might be a good alternative.

You might also want to bring an iron. I have an Oliso Mini iron. It is the original version and the handle gets really hot. Friend Julie has a newer model with an on/off switch and a larger handle that does not get hot. You know how I feel about Oliso, and there are many other brands of small irons from which to choose.

My advice is to think through how you will be working on your projects separately from the actual projects so you can figure out what you need for travel.

**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this website.

Another Sew Creative Visit

As mentioned the other day, we stopped in Ashland to visit Mary and rest in between driving to Portland. On our way out of town, we stopped at Sew Creative. The last time I was there was 2021. No masks this time. 😉

This was the first shop we visited on this trip.

The shop was pretty much the same as last time, though with new fabric and supplies. I enjoyed the people working there. They were cheerful and helpful.

The tile on the floor is very striking. It is easy for me to tell which photos are of Sew Creative! I have always liked black and white tile. I forgot they had it in this shop. The shop is STUFFED with all manner of fabric, patterns, notions and quiltmaking supplies.

The front of the shop was set up to invite a person in. They have a small selection of books. I noticed that many quilt stores are not carrying as many books as they once did. Thanks, Amazon.

The small garments were very appealing. I have one small great niece and was tempted to make her something. I resisted as we all know that will never happen.

Sew Creative: front to back - further — Sew Creative: front to back – further

They were in the process of changing displays, so the beautiful table was empty. I really like gate leg tables. The staff were cutting fat quarters, I think, in the back. You can see they had a free demo behind the table next to the check out desk.

An impulse buy when I was checking out was the All Pacific Northwest Shop Hop magazine. It isn’t pictured below for some reason and I loaned it to Mary. I am not going to make any of the projects. Too much green and brown and panels and trees. There were some good ideas in the patterns for settings, especially for setting blocks in the corners. I might be able to use some of them for the BAM BOM. The best part was the list of quilt shops. It wasn’t complete, but there were a lot of shops I didn’t know about. The one I visited in Albany with Mom was not listed, for example

On the other side of the patterns you see across from the table was a selection of fabric. Last time I found some linen/canvas bag fabric in this area. No such luck this time.

That doesn’t mean I didn’t see some appealing colors and motifs! LOL! I found some of the fabrics I bought at Family Threads on bolts here. There were also some nice greys, for which I am always on the hunt. There was soooo much to look at in this shop that I am seeing things in the photos I don’t remember from when I was actually there. There were quite a few people in the shop and that was a little distracting.

I love their notions. Sew Creative has a good selection and I saw that they had improved their selection of embroidery thread. This went with the wool felt I saw, I think.

The display piece on the left of the photo was crammed with various notions. There was a good selection of needles and I probably should have stocked up on the Chenille needles I use for hand sewing, but was too distracted to think clearly.

I was pleased to see some Creative Grids rulers I hadn’t seen before: a 18.5 x 12.5 inch ruler** and a 12.5 x 24.5 inch ruler**. The latter is called “The Big Easy,” which made me laugh. Neither of these are must haves, but recently I have thought they would be useful.

Sew Creative has a good selection of rulers, both small and large. They are largely Creative Grids, but I saw a few other brands as well. I saw a couple of the Jaybird Quilts rulers I used for the Journey to Nebula Sew-a-Long in which I participated a few years ago.

Sew Creative: Notions - Cutting and Sticking — Sew Creative: Notions – Cutting and Sticking

The shop also had quite a few scissors and different kinds of ‘sticking’ notions. I also saw a respectable supply of hardware, which made me wonder if they had bagmaking classes. I was somewhat fascinated by how much they were able to cram onto the turntables they used for notions.

I was also enamored of the patterns. I refrained from buying any as I have more than I would like to think about. There was a a really good selection of bag patterns.

I noticed quite a few of the Charlie’s Closet patterns. These are patterns that are shown in wool on the cover. I have thought of making the one I have with an old men’s suit or from a wool coat. I haven’t done it yet as I really need a hard wearing handbag and that means leather. I might try it though. Keep this in mind. It pops up later in the trip.

I also noticed jelly roll rug (see above) patterns popping up in several shops. I wonder if they are coming back around as a ‘thing’? I made one a few years ago and may make another. It is a good way to use up fabric. LOL!

There were a few quilt patterns, but the rack (shown left) showed more bag and other projects. There was a two zipper pouch that I liked. I didn’t buy it because I didn’t like the Triple Zip Pouch pattern I made. I do like the idea of a pouch with multiple zippers. I didn’t think I need to buy a pattern as I know Sew Sweetness has at least one. I also know that I made a couple of versions of such a pouch from an Aneela Hoey pattern. Still, I am always happy to peruse patterns and discover new designers.

Sew Creative: Applique' BOM — Sew Creative: Applique’ BOM

The shop had several Block of the Month projects. The applique’ BOMs were hanging on the wall in the back.

The fabrics on the rack in the right front of the photo were Kaffes, Philip Jacobs prints as well as Marcia Derse fabrics. I know I said the shop was crammed, but looking at the photos reminds me of just how crammed it was with almost everything a quiltmaker could want.

Behind the notions was more fabric and a display of wool felt. I don’t remember seeing wool felt the last time I visited. I noticed the various pouches right away, but my mind needs a little time to turn over the implications.

Th back of the store held batiks, tone-on-tones and blenders. I am always surprised to see the rounders that hold fabric draped over bolts. It is a good way to see more of the fabric. I am just always surprised.

One of the things I found interesting was a class on using wool felt to make pouches. I think they also had some kits. This is something I haven’t thought about, but why not?

I am not as familiar with the properties of wool felt in terms of use, but I like the idea of not having to worry about the raw edges, as you do with quilting cotton.

The shapes of the patterns shown are interesting and I like the idea of being able to embellish the exterior more easily than with quilting cotton. I have been thinking about a wool felt piece for awhile and this display gave me some more ideas.

It would be so nice to have to quilt shop within a few miles of my house.

I found a nice grey background, though it is a little dark and some blues that are not turquoise. I might use the grey for the Morning Glory Quilt, though, as mentioned, it is a little dark.

I highly recommend this store. Mary is very lucky to have it close by.

Sew Creative
Address: 115 E Main St, Ashland, OR 97520
Phone: +1 541 482 1665

What I Did on my Fall Vacation

I spent 10 days in Portland and arrived home a few days ago. Of course, I went to quilt shops and will talk about some of the new ones in future posts. I did quite a bit of sewing, which was nice and rested a bit, though not as much as I wanted. I also visited with friends and family.

I got to spend quite a bit of time with the YM. He has a new apartment since I was there last time, which I got to see. I was also able to check in with “The Beast” as he calls his cat, Penelope.

She was quite happy until I got out my phone to snap a photo, then she got this “no papparazzi” look on her face. She accomplished this by slightly moving her ear back.

I was over at the apartment three times, but she only showed herself this one time. No amount of coaxing could get her out the other times. Oh well. She is a good companion for the YM.

The YM had a set of used Elfa (sp?) baskets that he was using as a dresser. He wanted a ride to IKEA to buy new dressers. We looked through the whole store and he ended up with two Gullaberg tall dressers. They are nice white dressers with a lot of drawers. He thought two was too much, but I said that other stuff besides clothes could be stored there as well: games, tools, etc.

We did a few things that were not quilt related. Shocking, I know.

I have been trying to go visit local sights when I am in Portland. My non-quiltmaker friends and family don’t understand how fun it is to visit quilt shops. They seem to be disappointed when I say I only visited quilt shops! LOL!

This time I went to the zoo. Friend Julie was great for planning outings. She checked the weather, which meant we didn’t walk around outdoors in the rain. The zoo has an 10 month old baby elephant and I had to see her. She is adorable. I took about 100 photos. Very worthwhile to go and see.

The zoo is fabulous. While it is a zoo, the enclosures are the best I have ever seen. The first time I went the bears were running around their enclosure under the bridge we were standing on. They looked super happy. This time one was digging for something. I couldn’t see what.

We spent a lot of time with Rose-tu and Tula-tu. Tula-tu is still learning to use her trunk and that was fun to watch. Rose-tu is a great mom! She gently nudged Tula-tu this way and that. We speculated that she was ‘talking’ in a range we couldn’t hear, because Tula-tu kept changing course or doing what Mommy wanted. I think we spent about 20 minutes watching them. The video I took is very calming to watch.

The sea otters (or sea lions??) were also awesome. Watching them swim around their enclosure was also very calming. I was so calm I forgot to take a video, which I regret now. It gives me a reason to go to the zoo again.

In the Arthouse, we set the sewing stations similar to how I did the setup last time. We had two sewing machines, so I had to use some different strategies to lay out projects. it worked fine, partially, I think, because I was well organized.

We had to eat meals on the coffee table, because the beautiful dining room table was a full on sewing worktable. Nobody complained. 🙂

The ironing station was, again, in the kitchen. We used Julie’s small iron, because it is an Oliso v.2 and has a cool headlight feature. It might be a hotter iron, because we had to stack up a couple of ironing pads for when the iron wasn’t in use. I didn’t have to do that last time I was there. Later we found a full sized ironing board in the closet by the front door. I am not sure I have ever looked in that closet! Good to know for next time.

As usual with cutting fabric, we had schnibbles. We ending up putting them in a bowl to keep them corralled.

I had a lot of cutting to do, so the bowl was overflowing by the time we left even though I cut quite a bit at Mary’s house as well. I always see the amount of schnibbles I produce as a marker of how much I am accomplishing.

We went to Pioneer Quilts again. You can read my last post about it where I complained about forgetting to take a new picture.

I took one this time, though the gardens were not as gorgeous as last summer. It is a really nice store and you should go and visit.

I saw this gorgeous purple berry a couple of times. This photo was taken in front of Pioneer Quilts. I really love the color. Someone said they thought it was poisonous. I didn’t see any birds eating the berries.

I think the color is fairly well represented in the photo. I am not sure I have fabric that color, but I’ll have to look. It is very inspiring.

Leah, my hostess, has a new studio in downtown Portland. I am in LOVE. I want a studio like hers. I’d have to start selling quilts or bags to make the rent. She has worked for 10 years to get this studio, working first in her garage, then sharing a studio. She has now graduated to her own 3 room studio where she can have all of her paintings in one place, stand back from her work and see it, do packing and shipping and all the things that a business requires.

She has rented out her garage studio to a young artist. While looking at her work, I saw this table. If I can’t have Leah’s studio, perhaps I can get a table like this?

It would be great for storage and I could use it as a worktable or cutting table. The issue with getting a new table is I have to decide on the size. If I get a large table, I won’t be able to put it in the closet when I need to tidy up. I have to decide whether I care about that.

I only went for one walk while I was gone. Yes, I am getting back to my daily walks now that I am home. While I was on that walk I saw this sign. It mimics a joke I have been telling, though my joke was about quiltmaking. I am thinking about making a sign and putting it on one of the sites to create passive income.

We went to a shop on NE Alberta called Collage. It has craft supplies and stationery. My sister turned me on to it, though she likes to visit Salt and Straw after checking out Collage.

I bought some googly eyes to put on the back of my travel sewing machine. Whoever is across from me at Sew Day will have some eyes looking at them. LOL!

One exciting thing we did was go to a laundromat! I know it sounds crazy. I hadn’t been to a laundromat in YEARS, but we had to go as nobody has suitcases big enough to carry clothes for our whole trip. This place was sparkling clean, but didn’t feel sterile. It had a monitor-person to answer questions and help with the machines. She was very friendly with all of my stupid questions (no, I did not have the app!) There was a cafe with excellent coffee, though Friend Julie said the scone was yucky, having too much baking powder, a clean restroom and comfy places to sit. it was definitely a much better experience than when I last visited a laundromat.

I did shop for fabric and quiltmaking supplies, but I didn’t go at it as hard as last year.

All in all it was a fun trip and I am planning to go again.

Retreat Donation Projects

Lee Ann's Improv community quilt — Lee Ann’s Improv community quilt

There was no organized Community Quilt project at the Retreat this year as both Community Quilt chair people were otherwise occupied and didn’t attend. Despite that, the group made (or brought) ~15 quilts to hand in. First, I brought the White Strips donation quilt, but couldn’t hand it in, because nobody was there to collect it. Oh well, I’ll hand it in on Saturday.

Lee Ann put the finishing touches on the Improv quilt above. I made a number of the pieces and it was fun to see them. She said it has been sitting around for awhile. I was really glad to see what a great job she did.

Lee Ann's Flying Geese quilt — Lee Ann’s Flying Geese quilt

Lee Ann also put together a Flying Geese quilt for the Community quilt project that was really interesting.

Peggy gave her the mauve-y red awhile ago and asked her to do something with it. The color wasn’t exactly Lee Ann’s style, but recently she got a layer cake that included fabrics she used for a background. This isn’t a quilt I would make, but I think the combination works really well! Lee Ann did a great job on the piecing. She ran around the room with the quilt fluttering behind her like a cape when she finished! It was a joyful act.

Anna also finished a donation quilt that has been hanging around. We all helped her arrange the last few blocks, so she could get the quilt off her UFO list. I thought it was a Pulse quilt that Anna wasn’t able to finish, but she finally figured out it was intended for the victims of the Las Vegas shooting in 2017. In looking through the posts where I communicate the call for victims who need quilts, I was reminded how many times recently there has been some tragedy where a call has gone out. This quilt will make someone very happy. As usual, Anna did a great job.

Melinda was on a binge. She made 10 baby quilts (~34 inches square) from a tub of children’s fabric she can’t remember buying. LOL! I didn’t get any photos of her quilt tops and backs because she was so fast at showing them. She was pleased with how much she got done, but disappointed that she didn’t use up more of the fabric.

I made a donation quilt with some of the leftover fabric from the pillowcases.

I got the black and white triangle (pinwheel?) fabric from Melinda. She was happy to offload it. I added it to the pillowcase fabrics to make the quilt slightly larger.

As you can see, I messed up the layout somewhere along the way. Someone will like it.

Lynette's Pillowcase quilt top — Lynette’s Pillowcase quilt top

I wasn’t that happy with the black quilt once I saw what Lynette made with the other pillowcase scraps. She added a cream background fabric from Melinda to really make the pillowcase scraps shine.

Lynette is a on a potato chip quilt binge. I may have heard of Potato Chip quilts, but I have never made one. I might now that I know how great they can look.

Lee Ann's special 4-patch donation quilt — Lee Ann’s special 4-patch donation quilt

Lee Ann found this block somewhere – I didn’t hear the story and made a donation quilt out of children’s fabrics. She added some solids and the quilt top looks really great.

I didn’t bring a scrap bin or my 2.5 inch squares bin and I was sorry. I had to scramble around for leaders and enders and that wasn’t easy. I got quite a bit done using other projects for leaders and enders, but it was difficult. I was shocked at how ingrained sewing with leaders and enders is for me!

Retreat Projects

I am back from the guild Retreat and pretty pleased with what I accomplished. It is ever enough? No, but I am trying to be satisfied with what I accomplished.

Two bobbins made 7 pillowcases and 15 blocks containing 1,035 pieces, plus some of the chain Link blocks, two pouches and some various other leaders and enders pieces.

This is my stack of projects. I am quite proud of how much I finished.

I did decide at the last minute, while I was at Family Threads, to make pillowcases for the kids in the Angel Family. I didn’t give them anything last time I saw them. I am so grateful for their good care of my stepdad that I felt like I wanted to do something. Pillowcases have been on my mind so I bought some fabric at Family Threads and then made them.

Going on Retreat

Last weekend was the guild‘s quilt retreat. It was great to get away and sew for 10 hours per day. Like last year, we went to the St. Francis Retreat Center in San Juan Batista.

This is a picture of all the attendees with some of our projects.

The room had a different setup than last year, but we had plenty of space to work. There was a tall table where people sandwiched quilts and laid things out. There was a couple of design walls and two cutting tables.

2025 Retreat - my space — 2025 Retreat – my space

My space was more than I needed, but I used it all. LOL! I plunked my machine down when I got there and just used it in that space. I had a whole 6 ft. table to myself and could have moved it over to have more space on the left. It worked pretty well. I got plenty done.

Julie sat across from me, so we were able to chat and get opinions pretty easily.

People started putting ‘hats’ on their machines at night. I am not sure what sparked that, but I saw it a few times with fabric and bags. Keeping the dust off? The machine with the fabric is SueG’s machine and I think she just wanted a decoration for her machine.

They fed us very well. Nice healthy meals even for me. I felt good after the retreat from a food point of view.

Julie and I brought some cocktails and drank them before bedtime. Such a good way to sleep well.

I was very cold the first night. I got up in the middle of the night and put on my fleece jacket. The next day I remembered doing that last year as well. I’ll have to make a note about it for next year.

All in all, a good layout, a good weekend and a general good time.

Birch Fabrics Again

I visited Birch Fabrics back in October and forgot to post about it. The last time I visited was over 10 years ago. I thought I had been there since then and it is possible. I may not have written a review on those in between visits. It is also possible I have just purchased from their online store. I don’t know.

They have moved to a new space away from downtown and nearer to their warehouse.

Birch Fabrics - first room — Birch Fabrics – first room

The space is MUCH smaller than their previous space, just two small rooms. DH was with me and we also found it a little hard to find. The sign is pretty small.

Still, the space is super clean and well organized. It was very quiet. There was one person working and she was cutting for online orders.

Mostly they had Birch Fabrics, including Charley Harper fabrics, but I saw some Tula fabrics also. There was a small number of notions.

Birch Fabrics - 2d room — Birch Fabrics – 2d room

One thing I found was a couple of different Sun Hat patterns. One was the Sew Hungry Hippie Bardot Bucket Hat pattern. You know that my first Sun Hat didn’t work out very well. I had been thinking about this pattern and was glad to be able to see it in person. You can buy it at Birch, but also on the SHH website. On the website, they also have a video course and SVG files for separate purchase.

Anyway, the second room had all of the Charley Harper prints. I have to admit I went a little crazy with those fabrics. I bought quite a few pieces and they are not my normal purchases. I really liked the Charley Harper fabrics, but I tried not to buy them all.

I might make myself an Atlas Zipper Pouch with the turquoise bird fabric. I bought the fish fabrics to make DH a Hackney. I haven’t gotten to it yet.

I’d visit this store again, especially now that I know where it is. Small, but mighty!

Another Trip to Portland

Double Rainbow in St. John's — Double Rainbow in St. John’s

As you might have gathered, I really like Portland. I went again last week for a break and to see the YM. He has finally moved back to Portland, so it is much easier to see him. it is also much, much easier to get him home for a weekend, though we haven’t tried that yet.

I saw this double rainbow on the last day I was there. I went out for a walk before the long drive and felt like it was a good sign.

Mom didn’t come this time for a lot of reasons I had to accept. It was also a time where I could use a little break on my own. The drive was long, which is the down side of Mom not joining. Mary M was out of town, so it was a hotel in Crescent City then another long drive from there to Portland over Grant’s Pass. I am really glad there are audiobooks. At some point I am going to have to break the drive into three days, but for now two days was ok.

The weather felt like summer when I left.

As mentioned, the first stop was in Crescent City. It was a lovely evening. I went for a walk to stretch my legs after I checked into the hotel. The scenery was great. This is a lovely time of year.

The next day I drove over Grant’s Pass which is a nice drive through a forest, but felt fairly sketchy when I stopped. Fortunately, it is only two hours from US 101 to I5.

When I arrived in Portland, I felt like it was definitely Autumn. There was rain during the week and I wasn’t uncomfortable wearing a pullover over my t-shirt and a fleece jacket.

At the Arthouse in Portland, I set up my sewing area. It was a two room sewing area that I shared with food prep and eating. Sewing and measuring were in the dining room while cutting and pressing were in the kitchen

The kitchen has a nice big island, which made it great for cutting. It was also a good height so my back didn’t hurt from cutting out the Holland Pouches. As the week went on, more and more space was taken up with sewing.

The chair in the other room, which you can see on the upper left, is the one I used for sewing. I forgot to take a photo of the dining room where I sewed.

The ruler bag Amanda made me is great for traveling. It holds two rotary cutting mats (different sizes), my sewing machine mat (the Undercover Maker Mat), my June Tailor ironing pad** as well as the wool mat, numerous rulers and my small seat cushion. I forgot to bring my Sew Steady table, but I didn’t really need it since I worked on bags and smaller projects.

The Arthouse didn’t have an ironing board, so I used the wool mat I received as a gift last year. I have used it, but I haven’t had a chance to really use it a lot. It wasn’t great for pressing yardage, but it worked really well for smaller pieces. I was pleased that it worked so well.

I quickly found that it was better to have the iron and the mat switched. I put the mat where the iron is, in the photo above, and visa versa.

I forgot to bring my needlepoint project, but it was ok. I had some ripping out to do as well as hand finishing and there are always cell phone games.

In general, the sewing went really well. It was nice to have a long stretch of time to work on various projects.

I did go out and about a little bit.

One day, I went to lunch with Amanda on SE Hawthorne. We didn’t go to any quilt shops for once, but we looked at the different shops in the neighborhood.

We walked by this cafe and reminded me of the buildings in California Adventure, especially the Carthay Circle restaurant. The Bagdad is owned by McMeniman’s. The spelling of the name made me think of bags, like handbags, and dads. That made me laugh.

I don’t usually visit thrift stores, but they had some interesting and well organized shops. They weren’t junk shops. The stuff looked carefully selected.

I don’t remember the name of the shop where I saw this leaded glass window, but I really liked it. I thought it was interestingly complex without being over the top. The glass choices were excellent, too. It would be a great quilt as well.

We went to lunch at a fried egg restaurant. Shockingly, we ate fried egg sandwiches! Mine had the best gluten free bread I’ve had in a long time. Portland as great GF bakeries and restaurant options. I always eat way too much when I am there.

On my way back to the car, I saw this sign. I had been thinking about this sentiment before I saw the sign. Is it true? Do you think well behaved women make history?

I am sad that I didn’t get a better picture of it. Eyes are a fabulous lenses and cameras just don’t do the same sort of work . 🙁

There was also rain in Portland. Not downpours, but enough to clean my car. It was nice.

I saw this group of leaves with dew one one of my morning walks. I thought the arrangement was beautiful.

I was able to get out and walk almost every day. It was good to keep up my exercise routine. It is fairly easy in Portland, which is another reason I like visiting.

The house has a lot of art, thus the name, Arthouse. Each time I go I see different paintings and mixed media pieces, but there are a few that I see over and over. This one by Maude May is a favorite.

The YM and I got to spend a bit of time together. I helped the YM do a bit of job searching, house hunting and things that were easier with a car. I provided moral support and a ride for his job searching efforts. I had hoped that my magic wand would work by the time he left, but sadly no luck. He has some opportunities and got a little bureaucracy done with my help.

I also went over to the temporary place he is living and met Penelope. I enjoyed meeting her and got to play with her a bit. She is a feisty girl. When she plays, she puts her claws out right away. The ribbon toy I waved at her immediately got wrapped around her and her claws. Cats I have lived with in the past would let go after a bit, but Penelope hung on and that was the end of playtime.

I briefly visited Sewlarium to pick up some thread and try to get the YM interested in maybe hanging out there. That was the only shop I visited in Portland.

On the way home I stopped at Ocean Waves in Eureka. I haven’t been there in awhile. Friend Julie and I didn’t go when we drove through Eureka on our trip in July. I bought a charm pack to use as the starting point for a quilt for a friend who lost her daughter in a car accident this week. I’ll use some of the other fabrics I bought recently, too.

Of course, I couldn’t resist some Philip Jacobs prints.

I wanted to stop at Springville Quilt Barn again, despite the danger of more fabric. However, they are only open Monday-Thursday and I was driving through on Saturday. That happened on the way up as well. Maybe next time.

I did stop at Stitch. I bought a gift, which I won’t show now, but I always find something fun there.

I have some of the Tula dots, but they seem to be hidden somewhere. I bought another piece to make the Hackney for me. The others I just liked. I’ll have to think of something to make with them quickly.

This was a wonderful view from north of Eureka. It has similar topography to the Oregon coast.

There was a better view from the car, but the narrow, windy road prevented me from take a picture through the windshield. This one isn’t bad and you get the idea.

There were A LOT of political yard signs all over Portland. I saw both parties represented. I really liked this one.

I also saw a lot of political ads on TV. Two of them were about the same candidates from different angles. When I realized that the commercials were about the same candidates I really watched both ads. It was interesting to see the same information (facts??) spun in different ways.

I was glad to go on the trip and hope to get back to see the YM soon.

**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.

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