Friday, October 11, 2013

Quilt Shop Hop

Hooray!  It's time for the Harvest Shop Hop.  On the agenda are two quilt shops in Tehachapi, one in Maricopa, and two in Bakersfield.  There were two more shops in Porterville, but we decided to skip them. Our goodie bags in the back seat and our expectations high, Rhea steered her Denali toward Tehachapi.

It was early and we had plenty of time, so we stopped at Murray's Farm and checked out their produce and wares.  They were setting up a program for a busload of school kids to drop by and pick pumpkins.  Time to get ready for Halloween!   

The two shops in Tehachapi are literally less than a block from each other on the same street.  Very convenient for us!  We visited 5 Hearts Quilts and Fabrics first.  This shop was recommending one very busy quilt.  They had made up several quilts using this pattern in all sizes and colors and were offering kits.  Although this quilt pattern was not for us, it didn't stopped us from looking.


























We walked the short distance to Debbie's Fabrics next.  Their store was brimming with cute displays of all kinds of projects.  We hadn't been there 15 minutes when they announced everyone was invited to take a free fat quarter of our choosing.  Yes, please and thank you!

I found several things I had to have.  Upon checking out we were given a goodie bag which I later discovered was a panel of Flower squares.  Very pretty!  



The Maricopa Quilt Company was a delightful surprise.  This is a tiny oil town far off the beaten track.  They had a great selection and had made up several quilts, including one made up of 50's novelty fabric that was really cute.  We left Maricopa about 1p.m. and trekked on back to Bakersfield where we stopped at Bolts to Binding just long enough for me to spend a small fortune and to ask about quilting services.  I like to piece quilt tops but the actual quilting is a task I have not mastered yet. 

After some lunch  at The Black Bear Diner we went to Strawberry Patches, which is just around the corner from Rhea's house.  This place is always a delight to visit because of their fabric selection and mouth-watering displays. 

Believe it or not, it was 4:30p.m. and time to head home to put our feet up -- yeah, right.

What a great time we had!  Lots of laugh and fun.  Can't wait until the next quilt shop hop!