Wee Play by Moda

I just picked up a jelly roll of this fabric and I cannot tell you how cute it is. I love brights, I love batiks, and I especially love the new up and comers like Amy Butler, Tina Givens, Heather Ross (lightening bugs and other mysteries is the very best ever), and Grand Revival designs. But seriously I have a weakness for retro inspired prints. I love the whole aunt grace thirties inspired stuff. Just yesterday I went to the store I cannot stand, my local quilting fabric store. I will explain why I can't stand them in a minute. Right now I want to express my joy and love of this very sweet fabric line. It will remind you of your grandma, well if she was from the Midwest it will. You see, my grandma on my mother's side was actually my great grandma and she went from Arkansas to Kansas in a covered wagon. Probably not because that was the only mode of transport but because it was the cheapest way to get a family of 10 from point a to point b. Anyway, my grandma made actual clothes out of feed sacks and had a pedal foot singer and a hand wringing washing machine, if you can even call it a machine. She loved sweet little prints, and this line is full of them. If you are not yet familiar with the jelly roll or charm pack or layer cake. Let me explain, a jelly roll is 40 2 1/2 inch strips. Sometimes it is the entire line or there are coordinating solids or they pick and choose from coordinating lines. A true jelly roll is always 40 strips. A charm pack is a collection of fabrics again from a single line or coordinating lines that are 5 1/2 inches square and a layer cake is a collection that is 10 inches square. There are quilt patterns and assorted project patterns specifically designed for these items. It is a great way to see the entire line at once. Sometimes you can even get them on sale on Ebay or Etsy or at your local crafter/quilter store. A jelly roll costs between 20 and 30 dollars depending on how new it is and mark up in your chosen store. You can get un official jelly rolls everywhere comprised of like colors or bits and pieces of other peoples stashes. If you need them to follow a quilt pattern make sure you get at least 40 strips. If you are just collecting them to add to your stash then the quantity won't matter as much. I will figure out how to post pics soon, but I created a very sweet quilt top from the Wee Play line and I hope to sell it somewhere soon, that is if one of my children don't claim it first.

Now, why I can't stand my local quilting store. I love fabric, I mean I love it nearly as much as shoes. Fabric doesn't judge and it won't make my ass any fatter. I love to collect it, I love to try new projects with it. I enjoy it as an artistic medium. The people who run the store are very old, and quilting purists. They are snobbish about anything other than quilting and they are unwelcoming to the next generation of sewers. They are not friendly, they are not particularly helpful and they aren't really all that kind. Now in case you think I am too quick to judge. I even took a class there in beginning machine quilting. I was the youngest by 30 years easy, they were condescending and rude as if they didn't really want me to know how to use a walking foot, like it is some secret reserved for octagenerians or something. You would think that pursuit of the almighty dollar would open their eyes to an untapped market, the young and eager. I don't think it will happen. I am not even sure that the store breaks even let alone makes a profit. I get the feeling that this is a "yes, dear" venture by a very wealthy absent husband to appease his empty nesting wife. The fabric selection is mostly drab, full of civil war reproduction fabric and lots of thimbleberries. There is some thirties and some novelty fabric but thats about it. The prices, well if there were another store in town that carried the fabric I wanted I would never shop there again. This town is interesting, there is one apparel fabric store, one quilting fabric store and an absolute ton of home dec fabric stores. Perhaps I need to travel one town over where there is a large Mennonite population I bet they have a nice quilting store probably two and I bet the people who run the store are actually nice and helpful. Wow. Dare to dream.