what would you do...

have you ever watched the television show "what would you do" hosted by john quinones? they create real life situations utilizing actors and then film real life people in the scenario they created to see how people react. 

i felt like i could have recently been a part of that show...and i am still stumped by it...so maybe if i put it out here the real life people will come forward and let me know who they were. no hard feelings...i'd just like to know.

last thursday i arrived at the store at 10:00. there was a car in the parking lot. it had no occupants and there was no one in the lobby waiting for me, so i assumed my husband had a client visiting his business upstairs.  i sat in my car for a few minutes to write some notes in a folder related to a project i am working on. if any customers came, i would be able to see them pull in and i would then of course unlock the door.

after finishing my notes, i proceeded to the front door. it was now about 10:15. i put the key in and turned the lock like i always do.  i walked in and turned on the first group of lights. then proceeded to walk to the next room. out of the one side room a woman appears. i let out a slight gasp. i walked a bit farther toward the cutting counter and two more women appeared walking from the farthest back corner.

i was startled. i wanted to say something, but nothing would come out of my mouth.  i wanted to move, but my feet would not budge. finally my brain slightly engaged and i asked if they thought the store was open. one of the women responded that they thought i was at the loading dock unpacking fabric.

the loading dock?  this is clearly a former bungalow type house turned commercial. there is no loading dock here. now i was frightened. my heart started pounding. fast. i felt sweat beading up on my forehead. i wasn't sure what they were going to do next. i started frantically turning all the lights on. i quickly opened the side doors in case i needed to make a quick exit.

then i started mumbling. i just kept saying i must have left the front door unlocked the night before. i tried to focus on their faces. i definitely had never seen them before. then one asked me about a pattern. i tried listening to what she was saying but was not hearing so well. so i just started mumbling again. i could not think coherently. then they just took to the front door and left.

the next customer in asked me what was wrong with the ladies who just left because they nearly knocked over her granddaughter. i am stumped. i just don't know what to believe.

if you entered a small boutique type of store and clearly all the lights were off and there was no sign of life yet in the shop, what would you do?

i would like to think they were quilters, visiting for the first time. but i would have thought they might have offered an apology for scaring the living daylights out of me, been a little nicer leaving and maybe even stuck around to buy something.

one thing that has come out of this...adt...the alarm people now have a presence.  and soon you will see some cameras mounted. darn it. i hate this feeling of insecurity. but better safe than sorry i suppose.

i am most thankful for this...sarah was not with me. i don't know if she would have been frightened by the situation, but she definately would have felt my panic and likely responded accordingly. and that would have been greatly confusing to her.

stolen sadness...

this post is the complete opposite of what i usually present on sunday, but time is of the essence...this fiber creation was stolen...yes STOLEN...

it was hanging in the quilter's legacy of lakewood quilt show at the rocky river, ohio rec center this morning. it was discovered missing this afternoon. the quilt belongs to artist bev fawcett. please pass this info on to your contacts in the hope that someone brags or shows it to someone else. or even worse, tries to sell it on an electronic format. please help bring this quilt home. if found, please call anna's sewing center at 440-716-8884. 

like a white tornado...

oh my. it is so rare this happens. mrs. clean has been working overtime...

preparing all four front tables for the next big arrival.  i wonder what it will be?

still digging out...

oh my goodness.  the carpet looks great.  the store not so much...

we are still trying to get things back to viewing order. please bare with us...

smokey kind of day...

smoking hot that is. remember that phrase...where there is smoke...

...there must be fire. yikes, yes there was...bright orange flames...shooting close to our new signs. with the electrical box on the ground. no pics because that is the point when i ran for the phone to call 911. no big deal really, they had it out in just a few minutes and soaked the ground really good for us. i was a tad apolgetic to have called, but the captain assured me it was the right thing to do. the ground is so dry right now and fires can spread rapidly he reminded me.

snake eyes...

i was so excited when i heard the cleveland zoo was offering free admittance to moms on mother's day.  then i realized i no longer have any children who want to go with me. so i headed over to the sewcial lounge for some afternoon relaxation...

i think a trip to the zoo might have been a safer idea:)  yes, the needle broke. fortunately, after it went through my finger.  how about you. do you have any sewing injuries to share?

copyright...copywrong...

i was not going to get into this discussion. the whole concept of copyright is dauntingly complex. so at first i just ignored the rumblings. then they got stronger. and i started to receive emails directly about the subject. i ignored those too. but i also started doing some research. and what i was seeing alarmed me.  i did not like what i was reading. not about our friend. still i was not going to mention it here. not on this blog. but then on wednesday, a customer asked about the situation in our store. in front of sarah. i was crushed when she then asked me why people were talking about her friend kate.

so i decided to do a post. in sarah style. to help her understand and maybe the pictures will help our readers have a better grasp too.

the kate spain i know showed up on our doorstep on august 14, 2010,(at her own expense i might add), to help us kick off a store that was opening with one mission...to hire young adults with developmental disabilities. she befriended my daughter, born with down syndrome, in a way few have.

kate knew there was not going to be much fanfare on this saturday.  we had only been open for four days. we had very little fabric. we did not even have a customer list.

yet, she was gracious and kind. to even the youngest of visitors. signing autographs and taking time to explain the design process.

after our guests left, she asked for her luggage. having come directly from the airport, i assumed she wanted to freshen up. change clothes perhaps.   

instead, she opened a suitcase full of goodies that she brought for us.  there were photo albums, pot holders, towels, scrapbook supplies, aprons, note cards, gift accessories, etc. she had flown an entire suitcase full of items she had designed to leave with us. free of charge. no strings attached.

i was touched beyond words.  she also calmed my fears of entering a new industry. one i had little knowledge of, yet one that felt so right for my daughter and me.

i was extremely impressed with kate's thoughtfulness. she was humble. no glitz. no need to impress. a genuinely sweet person.

so when i started to get emails asking me about my thoughts on her being named the designer involved in the copyright litigation, i was frankly stunned. i truthfully could not believe that kate would do such a thing. so i started pouring over the various blogs discussing the scenario. i was in shock. i just could not believe what i was reading.
 

could this be the same kate who sent us another package perfectly timed to arrive on our first anniversary?

this time a box filled with new delights. many printed with designs in fandango, the very fabric collection in question.

i went back to the store and read the notecard that kate had written us. it has been prominently displayed in the store since the day we received it.  as i reread the words of this card, i knew in my heart that whatever lead up to this series of events, it was breaking kate's heart. i simply knew from our initial meeting, from the correspondence over the past year and a half, from the phone calls. the voice messages she has left us, that kate did whatever she did because trust had been broken.

as i continued to read unkind words left in comment feeds on her blog and other blogs, my heart was racing. these people did not even know kate. why the hatred. and then i panicked. what would we do if there is no more kate spain fabric? our customers have grown to love kate. i continued to read the comments until i finally got to one that gave a link to the tote bag in question.  i clicked the link...

  

my gasp was loud. so loud my son heard me on the second floor.  i was dumbfounded to see before my eyes, fandango. large swatches of fandango printed on a mass produced plastic bag. the image had been blown up so significantly, i could not even see a quilt. i knew instantly with that one photo that kate had been taken advantage of. and she had every right and needed to protect her image. her designs. her livelihood.

in all fairness to emily cier, i have not met her, so i have no photos or stories to share like i do with kate. i do have a bit of experience to draw from in receiving legal notices in the mail. it makes your heart pound and your stomach turn in flips. i understand she was nervous. i would have been shaking in my shoes. i do not blame her for her reaction or for blogging about it here and here.

and that is why before i could take this post to print, i wanted to see the book. when it arrived, i fell in love with scrap republic. it belongs in our shop. one copy sold the day they arrived. as i turned each page though, i became a bit more perplexed as to why c&t did not pick one of emily's beautiful and colorful quilts to put on a bag marketing emily's book.

when i finally turned the page and saw the quilt in question, nearly two thirds of the way in...

it's that tiny little quilt on the top left, i was even more stumped. why is this the one they chose to magnify a tiny segment of? i truly do not understand. emily's colorful scrappy quilts are awesome. in my opinion, emily got short changed. and it is a shame.

 

kate has been very clear. it is not and never was about the book. it was about that tote bag. the mass production of a tote bag without her permission. the kate i know and love encourages creativity. she applauds the efforts of all the creative hands that go into making a display, like this one in our store, possible. she does not want that creative flow to stop.

has the quilting community learned from this? absolutely. i hope with time, the haters will be able to see the kate we know and love dearly.

for the emails asking if we will continue to carry fabric designed by kate spain. you bet we will. for as long as she agrees to design it. i sincerely hope the quilting world has not been so unkind that she will run from making fabric. for that would be a sad day for all of us.

kate has extended an offer to work with emily on a future project. i personally would love to see that happen. their works go together like peanut butter and jelly. and we would love the opportunity to create another front window display featuring them both again.

hexies in the classroom

last evening while i was listening to the science teacher chat about my son at conferences, i looked over and on the door spotted this...

i was so excited to see the use of hexies. they're everywhere right now in the stitching world. i offered my appreciation for utilizing a well known quilt pattern in the classroom. of course, it really is the other way around. yet the young teacher played along with me and told me that his grandmother quilts all the time.     

twenty four

well here it is the 24th of december. christmas eve. i woke up wondering if we would have any customers today. sure enough and the first sale of the day...

just wanted to share that little numerical coincidence with you and let you know we will be here until 5:00 pm. so far, gift certificates seem to be the most requested item.  i'm thinking there are going to be some very happy quilters come morning. 

separation anxiety...

the feeling was dreadful as i walked out last night. so frightening, i turned around to take one last picture...



i was so nervous. just the thought of leaving was making my heart have rapid palpitations. then around midnight, my laptop crashed. or so i thought. that sent me into a minor panic attack. my husband and son would probably describe it as more major than minor. i tossed and turned all night long. i couldn't sleep. i don't ever remember being like this with my children when i left them for the first time. sorry kids. but leaving the store for the first time. well...it was anxiety provoking for sure.

i'm not sure why really. i was leaving it in very capable hands. did you see yesterday's delightful daisy quilt? well the creator, aimee, was the one watching the store. only the reports coming in say she was working very hard, not just watching. thank you aimee. i so very much appreciate it. i'm still in columbus and need to get on the road. i will tell you a little more about my meeting in the next post. for all of our customers who came in today, thank you. thank you. i'll see you soon.

oh one last thing before i go. sew to speak in columbus. delightful. a must stop.

spring has sprung...

as in sprung a leak...literally...

inside and out. i think our little furry friends are thinking about going for a swim in that lake forming in our front yard. maybe even jump into the can collecting the drips. inside the window. i guess one should be careful what they wish for. maybe that snow last week wasn't so bad afterall.

beauty from the inside out...

oh how i love when the snow waits to fall...

until i'm inside the store. it's so pretty looking out. i think the snowflake swirls falling in the front window were a good selection for january. although i must confess that wasn't such a hard decision here in cleveland, ohio. i just heard there was snow in 49 states today. we're thinking of our fellow shop owners out there in warmer climates not used to struggling with the snow. just try to remember, this too shall melt...it's just a matter of time:)

new stockings...

i had visions...of sugarplums...and new grown up stockings this year...

afterall, i am surrounded by fabric. bolts and bolts of perfect holiday collections. i have patterns. i have batting, and thread, even adorable trim. i just have no time. so like the tailors children who had no clothes...we have new...store bought stockings.

i'm thrilled though. i did not hold out much hope for a last minute rush to buy stockings on christmas eve, but what to my startling eyes did appear...why two j's, an s and even one m. wait there's more...four stocking hangers...two girls and two trees. why it's perfect i say...for julie and john, sarah and matt...surely it's meant to be.

wishing you a very merry holiday full of wonderment and joy.

it's not pretty...

i once worked in an office where a few of the lead staff were just terrible at planning. they always waited until the last minute to give the secretaries their work, which often would necessitate them working late the evening before a big meeting. stress levels increased tenfold. if the directors had just done some planning. used their brain a little more, everyone would have been happier and more productive. one day a support person had enough. so she hung the above sign on the wall of her cubicle. i never forgot that. i've tried to live by that motto. it is just common courtesy. it creates good will.

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but i've also lived long enough to observe that time and time again, it's the poor planners, the one's who can't think beyond today that often rule the think tank. they have a way of getting their needs met regardless of how others are treated in the process. regardless of the loss of productivity. regardless of the disruption to others. regardless of the additional financial requirements.

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do i sound bitter? sorry. i am. this could have all been taken care of when we were knee deep in mud, the plaster kind. when the painters were here. when the carpenter was here. unfortunately it wasn't. so please check this blog often for new details about some construction that must occur in our building. it will necessitate the closing of the store for a time in the near future. hopefully only a few days. i appreciate your patience and understanding.