Tiny Stitches- inside look

I have been adventuring again!

This week, I have been in Atlanta Georgia for a convention. Not quilting- but, I couldn’t go an ENTIRE week without doing anything related to quilting, so I took some time to visit some of the local shops.

I went to Tiny Stitches shop in Marietta Georgia. It was about a 45 minute commute from where I was staying at the Atlanta convention center, with a bit of traffic on the highway.

But, oh! The trip was worth it!

I arrived 15 minutes before the store was open for the day, and there was a line of women out the door! There was a murmur of excitement rumbling through the crowd. Friends greeted each other, and showed off their progress on their current block of the month projects..

I introduced myself to a few of my neighbors in line (no one should ever falsely accuse me of being shy!!!!) in order to get the scoop on what was going on.

Two Saturdays a month, Tiny Stitches runs 4 sessions of a class/presentation. (They have so many quilters who attend that both Saturdays cover the same material- no pun intended.)

When we were ushered inside the classroom, there was standing room only! There were beautiful displays of finished quilts, cutting tables at the right height, tables with good lighting, and a very lovely design wall…. And the buzz of excitement in the room… grew.

ONe of the finished quilts in the classroom:

The friendly strains of the Mr. Roger’s theme song floated into the air, and the crowd quieted. With anticipation and barely contained excitement, the ladies leaned forward, perched on the edges of their chairs.

And Mr. Rogers bustled down the stairs in a sport coat and tie, with shiny loafers and an omnigrid briefcase full of rulers. We all sang along as “Mr. Rogers” changed into a zip-up cardigan and some comfortable shoes and welcomed us to the quilting neighborhood!

The new block of the month pattern was being revealed! The theme for the new quilt is “In the Neighborhood,” and celebrates the quilting neighborhood in Marietta. And what a neighborhood! The women were so very friendly to each other, and were very welcoming to me, as a newcomer.

The “In the Neighborhood” BOM Quilt has two choices for colorways, and will probably result in two different finishing kits. During the presentation, the two finishing kits for THIS year’s BOM were revealed, and the finished construction was different enough that you had to look carefully to believe that both quilts were, in fact, the same project.

Detail of the yo-you flowers in the border:

“Mr. Rogers” and the scalloped border finishing kit with yo-yos:

Once the new quilt was unveiled, and the current BOM finishing kits were discussed in great detail, a local long-arm quilter stepped forward to provide tips on preparing your quilt top for your long arm quilter.

Some of the tips included:

Press your seams open. (The flatter the points, the less the long armer has to fudge the pantograph.)

Don’t be afraid to ask if you long armer is comfortable doing a particular job. For example, some long arm quilters would rather pass a job onto another colleague than embark on a project that requires them to do custom work (Or, in my case, pantographs.)

It’s only necessary to trim threads on a high contrast quilt, or on a quilt that has fabric you are likely to be able to see through (I.e. Kona White).

Make sure your backing is even and square before you give it to your long armer. Buy extra. Rip it to length. Rip off the selvedges, and sew your center seam. Then, re-rip any edges that don’t line up. This prevents tucks on the backing. (And makes life easier for your long arm quilter.) Buy at least an extra half yard to compensate for uneven printing.

Tiny Stitches also announced that they are going to be more active on social media from now you. You can check them out, here:

Once the presentation was over, we all climbed the stairs to a very charming quilt shop. It reminded me of the smooth charm that you see at Quilted Treasures in New Hampshire, but without the “tourist-filled” atmosphere. (As far as I could tell, I was the only tourist in the shop that day.)

Check out how beautiful (and crowded) this store is:

This is the view as you climb the stairs from the classroom to the store.

The vignettes were charming and displayed the fabric and sample quilts in a very appealing manner.

The fabric was organized by color and by line, and I just could resist running my fingers along the beautiful bolts.

The kits and patterns were utterly irresistible!

The sample quilts were charming, and beautifully displayed:

If you ever have time to visit Atlanta, make the extra time in your schedule to stop by Tiny Stitches in Marrietta! It is well worth the trip!

Happy Quilting!

Jan

PS Stop by Tiny Stitches Facebook Page and let them know that you enjoyed my picture tour!