Visit Your Local Quilt Shop Day

What fun! The Fabric Shop Network is hosting a Visit Your Local Quilt Shop Day blog tour. Join the #ILoveMyLQS fun and enter for the chance to win some great prizes. Visit your local quilt shop day is this Thursday, January 24th.

So let me tell you a little bit about my adopted hometown Portland, Oregon. For those of you who are wondering, it is exaclty like an episode of Portlandia We play hide and seek in libraries, visit the farms of the foul we eat and Aimee Mann cleans our homes. Portlandia does an excellent job of showing all the finer things about PDX, however, I have yet to see an episode based on the electrifying Local Quilt Shop scene. Well, let me take this opportunity to sketch it out for you.
(For the record, some parts of this script are not true.)

Quiltlandia
synopsis
Michelle (that's me!) decides to hop on the modern quilting band wagon. She entrusts her worthy friend Alex Q (Adorable Lovely Experienced Quilter played by Fred Armisten -- what, guys can quilt...) to guide her through the process of choosing fabrics at SewPo, his favorite local quilt shop.

SewPo, a sweet sewing space and quilt shop
in the quirky and hip Mississippi Arts district.

(MICHELLE and ALEX Q enter SewPo. KATE is putting FQ sets together for a new table display)
MICHELLE: Hi! I'm looking for some fabrics to make a modern quilt, what would you suggest?
KATE: (store owner, her real name, played by Carrie Brownstein) Well, how about trying the quilt I made that was featured on an episode of Grimm. I have a kit of that right here.
MICHELLE: How cool is that! Everyone in Portland loves Grimm! I totally want to make a Grimm quilt!
KATE: Yeah, everything is so much cooler when it is on TV.
ALEX Q: Awesome!
KATE: It comes with everything except the fabric for the back and binding. But we have lots to choose from here. You can get thread to match too --

The finest selection in modern quilting fabrics west of the Mississippi

loud music starts playing outside

MICHELLE: What the?

KATE: Oh, that? That is just Aaron and Mikey (Played by themselves). Ever since Ween broke up they started quilting. Sometimes they hang around out front and busk so they can buy more fabric.

MICHELLE and ALEX Q: Awesome!

the front door opens and five women walk in
WOMAN 1: Here we are gals!
WOMAN 2: Grab your fabrics and line up so KATE can cut them for us.
WOMAN 3: We don't have all day.
WOMAN 4 & 5: Chop Chop!
MICHELLE: (whispers to Alex Q) What is that all about?
ALEX Q: Oh, those are the bee ladies. This could take a while. Follow my lead --
(ALEX hops on the twister rug and taps a secret code onto the colors. The small red toy car turns into a portal for a secret room)

Step once on the top red, three times on the middle blue
and step on both browns at exactly the same time...

(lights flash and scene changes to a small room that looks suspiciously like the 24 hour Church of Elvis)
MICHELLE: What is this place?
ALEX Q.: It's a magic quilting sanctuary where you can hide out if you want to meditate on what fabrics to chose for your quilt. Every LQS in Portland has one.
MICHELLE: That's Awesome! Is it easy to get back to SewPo from here?
ALEX Q: No problem, you just have to do this move and we go back (does a little Elvis dance)

They re-enter through the classroom near the yellow chair.

(Back at SewPo)
MICHELLE: That was Awesome! I had no idea --
ALEX Q.: Yeah, LQSs are full of surprises. You were Awesome!
MICHELLE: I was, wasn't I!
KATE: Hey did you guys go to the sanctuary?
(Michelle and Alex Q look at each other knowingly, nod their heads and smile)
KATE: Smart! It got nuts in here for a while then my mom came by and helped me ring stuff up. I can cut your fabrics for you now.

Kate's Mom (Janette) is a force to be reckoned with!

(KATE cuts their fabrics. ALEX Q. and MICHELLE thank her and head out.
MICHELLE: I'd love a coffee. How about we head over to Stumptown Coffee Roasters and take a little break.
ALEX Q: Awesome! We can look at more fabrics online! Sew Mama Sew has everything! And I love Lark Cottons! And then we can head over to Cool Cottons and if we still have time we can go to Bolt and buy more and...
(fade out and scene.)

Check out quiltshopday.com and like them on facebook.com/quiltshopday. And share some LQS love if you are in our fine City of Roses. We are quite lucky to have so many fantastic shops here.
Peace out,
Michelle
SewPo
830 N. Failing St. Portland, Oregon 97227
(503) 282-1372