Notes from the Patch

Living La Vida Loca

It was such a crazy, fun, exhausting weekend! Every time I looked up someone was rocking out to the latin music - all day long - for three days! 

                                                This lady was literally bopping as she shopped

It was a party for sure!

Our Heart of the Valley Shop Hop* was beyond fabulous. One of the favorite parts for me was working with the eight other shop owners. Three years ago I viewed them as competition, but now after working with them and planning these hops they have become allies in making our hop the best around.  They all have worked so hard to give you a wonderful experience. I loved hearing how much you loved the special touches each brought to their shops. Such creative, giving, special people!

Monday morning bright and early we all drug our tired bodies to Quilter's Paradise in Clovis for our follow-up meeting where, just like after any good party we rehashed the whole event. We  talked about the food and the goodie bags and the crazy quilters who dressed alike and partied (and shopped) like there was no tomorrow. We read your thoughtful comments and talked about how we could be better next year - because you must know, we want to be known as THE BEST shop hop around and there is always room for improvement.

Then, before we adjourned, we did what we had really gathered to do. We drew the names for the three big prizes.

Drum roll please......

1st place winner of $1350 in gift certificates is Susan Gill from Fresno

2nd place winner of $675 in gift certificates is Marcia Burg from Clovis

3rd place winner of $360 in gift certificates is Carol Terry-Nickol of Clovis

Congratulations to our three lucky winners!

The winner of our Strawberry Patches basket is

CeCe Westerfield from Bakersfield. CeCe was thrilled as she peeked into her basket and discovered all the hidden treasures. Her friends were excited too with the hopes of some serious sharing.

Thank you all for coming and supporting us. All the party planning and decorating and cooking in the world means nothing without lots of happy party guests and you guys are the absolute BEST!

Muchas gracias!

Encourage one another,

Save the date: Next years hop will be May 3, 4, & 5, 2013

* You can go to the shop hop website to view all the winners

Oh, I almost forgot. There will be a drawing for those who show their finished quilt top to their local participating quilt shop. Just finish your nine blocks with your purchased setting kit by December 31st, 2012 and receive a chance to win one of three $75 gas cards! Cool huh?

It's Cinco de Mayo weekend and we're having a Fiesta!

I just cooked fifteen pounds of taco meat, grated eight pounds of cheese, made two gallons of salsa and

my

feet

are

killing

me! (not to mention my fingers are burning from the jalapenos and my kitchen is a mess)!

Before I head off to bed I wanted to remind those of you within driving distance to join us for The Heart of the Valley Shop Hop this weekend.

The store is ready

the margaritas are chill'n

and some lucky customer will win this

Now if you'll excuse me I need to get some rest because tomorrow we're going to

PARTY! 

Encourage one another,

My Garden of Eden

Our beautiful Eden roses are just beginning to bloom.

They are so big and heavy that they remind me of huge pink grape clusters drooping under their own weight.

Although they bloom off and on all spring and summer they are never as gorgeous as they are right now during this first bloom.  I look forward to them all winter and every morning as I pull out of the driveway I glance over to the brick wall that runs between us and our neighbors to check their progress.

I got up an hour early this morning to finish reading Heaven is Here by blogger Stephanie Neilson.

Reading Stephanie's blog after her accident helped me so much during the time I was caring for Jeff and preparing myself to live the remainder of my life here on earth without him. I know so many of you are going through tough times and I want to recommend this book to you as a source of hope and inspiration.

Stephanie writes about her life after a plane crash where she was burned over eighty percent of her body and how her faith, family and community helped pull her through some unbelievably horrific times. She reminds us that it's what's in our hearts that really matters and urges us to be kinder and more compassionate to one another. 

I love that.

In this crazy, busy world, it's our love and compassion and our connection to one another that really matters. With a positive attitude, our faith in God, and the love and support of our family and friends, we can do anything. It is possible to once again find joy through our pain and sorrow.

Have a wonderful Wednesday my friends!

Encourage one another,

 

 

 

 

Happy Birthday toooo US!

Twenty seven years ago when I was trying to decide whether or not to open a quilt shop I remember thinking I didn't want to be sixty and regret that I'd never had a shop of my own. Oh, I'd started and managed a shop for someone else, but there is just nothing quite like having a store of your own, or so I imagined.

This is me in the early 80's (just before I opened Strawberry Patches) showing off my creations at a craft show. That's how I got started - sewing and selling things I made. Do you remember those decorated hats and hoop art? We thought they were lovely back then. We were making baby bedding way back then too!

I've been in this business for nearly half of my life and have been loving pretty fabrics and sewing since I was a little girl. Now that I'm over sixty I can't imagine my life without Strawberry Patches. I'm so glad I was naive enough to think I could do this. I've met the most wonderful people here; from the ladies I work with to the ladies and gentlemen who are our cherished customers and friends. Strawberry Patches has been and is a very important part of my life.

This is the postcard we sent out announcing our opening. A little worse for the wear (but then who isn't after hanging around for nearly thirty years?). My best friend Beverly started Strawberry Patches with me and then sold her interest to me three years later so she could spend more time with her boys. Beverly still makes most of our kids clothes that we display in the store and her husband Dennis is the craftsman who built all of our beautiful cabinets. Gosh, reading this postcard makes me realize that some things haven't changed. We still offer the best quality fabric and trim, the latest patterns, hard to find supplies and accessories and I think we still have impeccable models. That makes me smile to think we've stayed true to who we started out to be.

On April 6^th & 7^th we will be celebrating Strawberry Patches' 27^th birthday by having a party and sale with 27% off all purchases*. This is our way of saying thank you for your friendship and support. We hope you'll join us in the store or on line for this sale. For on line orders, just say "Happy Birthday" in the comment box and we'll take 27% off your order at the register.

We hope you can come to our party. After all, without all of you there would be no reason to celebrate !

Encourage one another,

*Sale excludes: Sewing machines, sewing machine service, sewing furniture, blocks of the month, custom work and classes. Limited to stock on hand - no special orders or presales please. 

The gift that keeps on giving

I've always said that one of the best things about working in a quilt shop is the people we get to know. Quilters are such wonderful, caring folks.

Last year during our shop hop we gave away the pattern and fabric to make zippered pouches. We worked for weeks, coordinating and cutting fabrics and packaging them for the 550 shop hop participants who visited our store. Many of our customers returned to proudly show us their finished pouches.  One customer took our simple idea to a whole other level.

Enid has made hundreds of our zippered pouches over the past year. She's given them as gifts and she's made them for charity. We have sold her hundreds of zippers and helped her put together countless fabric combinations so when Enid asked each of the ladies at Strawberry Patches to personally put together a fabric combination we thought nothing of it. She claimed she was just out of ideas. What we didn't realize was that she had a sneaky plan.

Yesterday Enid showed up with a gift for each of us. A pouch made from the fabrics we each had personally selected.

This one is Andi's. When she opened her sack she got tears in her eyes and said, "This is the reason I love to come to work here".

This one is mine. My birth year is hidden under the keys. (No, not 1804)!

Each had a little note tucked inside thanking us for our help.

Thank you Enid for reminding me why I love this business so much!

So in the spirit of friendship and giving I would like to pay it forward by sharing our pattern with you all here. You know, just in case you want to make one or a couple of hundred.

Encourage one another,

I hope you'll plan to join us on May 4, 5 & 6 for our third annual Heart of the Valley Shop Hop. You just never know what fabulous gifts each of the nine shops has in store for you!

 

Looks good enough to eat

I took my manicurist a big bouquet of greens this morning as a thank you for introducing me to the Glowing Green Smoothie.

That's about what we blend up for a three day smoothie supply. Parsley, romain, celery, spinach, kale, apples, pears, lemon and banana.

Yummy.

Encourage one another,

Twenty 12

I've been thinking a lot about my word for 2012. You know, the one word that summarizes what I want to work on to better my life in the coming year.

This year my word is simplify.

sim·pli·fy  (smpl-f)

tr.v. sim·pli·fied, sim·pli·fy·ing, sim·pli·fies To make simple or simpler, as:

a. To reduce in complexity or extent.

b. To reduce to fundamental parts.

c. To make easier to understand.

Simplify summarizes what I hope to accomplish in my life perfectly! Let me be clear. I'm not striving for a simple life, there is nothing simple about me - just ask Bill! What I hope to accomplish is to reduce the extraneous things in my life so I can fully enjoy the things that matter to me most.

Here are my plans:

1. This year I will strive to simplify my life by cleaning the clutter from my office, my sewing room and my closets; my life in general. I really want to feel and be more organized!

2. I will strive to list what I hope to accomplish and revel in the satisfaction of crossing off those lines one. by. one.

3. I will document my experiences and share my feelings more regularly here on my blog through words and (better) photos.

4. I will simplify my life by remembering that people are more important than things. That holidays aren't just about elaborate decorations and shopping lists but about spending quiet time with the people I love.

5. I want to eat simple, healthy foods (not necessarily those pictured here - sorry Peggy) and continue to strive to eat a sugar free diet.

6. I want to take more long walks on the beach and capture the simple beauty in nature through the lens of my camera.

7. I want to sip and savor this life to its fullest and share it with people I love.

8. I want to simplify my life by unplugging more often from computers, iphones, ipads, televisions and radios. In this crazy busy world I want to find quiet moments to reflect.

So, for me tonight there will be no crowded parties and fancy gowns. I will simply surround myself in the comfort of good friends and the man I love and toast to a bright and promising New Year.  

Cheers!

Encourage one another,

One more thing. I couldn't let this year go by without thanking you all for gathering here and encouraging me through your comments. As corny as it may sound, my life has been forever changed because of this blog. Your coming here means so much to me. Thank you! xo 

   

 

Opening my jar to wish you a sweet day,

 

 

Baby Love

Sunday a bunch of our sweet customers gathered to shower Amanda with some baby love

We ate

and ate

and ate some more.

Thanks to Kara and Annette there were lots of yummy goodies.

Attendees needed their strength because I made them work. It was Project Runway - baby style. The ladies worked in teams decorating onsies and bibs in just one hour.

They had full run of the store and could use anything they could find to decorate those outfits.

Kind of like kids running amok in a candy store, but in this case a fabric store. Those ladies Sliced

and glitzed

and ruffled

and googa-ed like no body's business.

If a little doodad was good

 then a whole lot of doodads were better.

OH BABY!

I'm not sure Baby O will be able to sit down or move in some of those outfits, but it sure was fun creating them for her.

I'm so lame. I didn't get one photo of Amanda. Apparently I need a lot more photography help than just with my lenses.

Sheez...

Encourage one another,

 

 

 

Life as I see it

Things always work out in the end. If it hasn't worked out yet, it's not the end.

Let me start by saying I'm typically not a worrier. I tend to trust that in the long run everything will be just fine. Oh yeah, sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and start thinking of things that are going on in my life and worry a bit, but usually in the morning I realize how silly that was.

The thought of losing my manager, Amanda has been hard on me. I love that girl just as many of you do. I've watched her grow from a young inexperienced girl living at home with her parents to a married woman with a beautiful home of her own.

From the day Bill and I introduced Amanda to her husband Lang I've known this day would come - the day she'd leave me to stay home to rock her babies. As much as I want that for her (just as I wanted it for my own kids) I knew I would  miss her sweet competent spirit here with me every day.

The good thing about making a baby is that it takes time. Time I've needed to prepare myself both physically and emotionally for the day Amanda would be leaving.

As the months have clicked by and Amanda's belly has grown, I've slowly reclaimed some of the jobs I'd relinquished to her and found some wonderful, capable women to step in to help.

I've hired Becky Rhodes to head up the Bernina side of our business. Becky's knowledge and love of Bernina is as amazing as her laugh is infectious. Becky and I have some exciting plans in the works and it is our number one goal to continue to provide our customers with expert advise as well as continuing education on machines, software and sergers.

With Becky here everyday I was feeling more comfortable (and sleeping much better) but still felt like I could use just one more person to round out our team. This morning Andy Stewart came in with her resume in hand. She said she'd been praying about a part time job and several people had urged her to apply at Strawberry Patches.

This afternoon I hired Andy. It seems God answered two prayers when He sent Andy to me - hers and mine.

So things have worked out. As I see it, it's not the end but a bright new beginning.

A beginning for Amanda as she starts her new full time job as a mother, and a beginning for me who, with the love and support of a fabulous team will continue to help, inspire and encourage you our valued and cherished customer.

I am blessed and humbled in the knowledge that God hears our prayers. He blesses a young couple with life's greatest gift and He hears this woman's 3:00am prayer for strength, courage and the help she needs to carry on.

Encourage one another,

 We are getting together on Sunday, August 28  at 2:00pm to shower Amanda with love here at the store. We would love to have you join us.