Falling Off the Wagon is Patriotic, Isn't It?

On Saturday, I went on a Stash-Enhancing eXpedition (got your attention, there, didn't I?) with 5 of my quilting friends to a shop about an hour from my home called O' Susannah's Quilts and Gifts up in Watkins Glen, NY.

The shop had invited customers to bring in unwanted fabric from their stashes the previous weekend and get store coupons in return. The unwanted stash was then offered for sale at $2 per yard to everyone else on Valentine's Day, with the proceeds going to United Way. Great excuse to go fabric shopping, right? Do something good for those less fortunate.

Anyway, we got there right as the store opened and were a bit disappointed to find out that there hadn't been too many quilters who had been willing to part with some of their stash. I did manage to find a nice 2 1/2-yard piece of colorful fabric that would make a nice backing to a kid's quilt someday. Couldn't beat the $5 price tag -- and the money went to charity anyway.

I figured that I had to do my patriotic duty to keep our country's economy flowing and to help keep a small business afloat, so I also bought some white fabric for a project that's been hanging around in my head; the bundle of fat quarters was calling my name as well. They just scream spring, don't they? And we all could use some of that right now, right?

Anyway, it was a fun day with a quick stop at another small shop in Corning, NY called Corning Stitchworks and the Old World Cafe where we had a marvelous lunch.

To top it all off, when I got home, I had a small surprise waiting for me in the mailbox. It was a free fat quarter of pretty blue fabric and a nice thank-you note from Quilted Pink -- they sent a free fat quarter to the first 10 people who signed their guestbook and I was one of the lucky ones.

A great day all around!