Quilt Sampler - again!

The spring issue of Quilt Sampler Magazine arrived today!  

You probably know Sampler as the magazine that features 10 fabulous quilt shops that are located all across the United States and Canada.  This issue actually features 11 - and the eleventh one is US!  We are the Encore Shop, the "where are they now" shop that they chose to check-in on for this issue.  It is very exciting!

Way - way - way back in 1997 when we were a very young shop, with just 3 years in the business our phone rang.  At that time it was Heidi Kaisand that called to tell me that we had been chosen to be featured.  I didn't believe her and it took several minutes for her to convince me that she was who she said she was.  From that moment on our business became a pretty wild ride.

I've had the pleasure of working with the Editors of American Patchwork & Quilting, Quilts and More and Quilt Sampler over the years so it wasn't a huge surprise when Jennifer Keltner, Editor of APQ called last fall.  However I wasn't expecting her to tell me we had been chosen to be the Encore Shop for this spring issue.  Immediately my brain began to whirl.  The photo shoot was scheduled for October, when the shop displays feature fall colors, leaf prints, holiday fabrics are on the front fixtures and there are ghosts and snowmen all around the shop.  To make the photos look seasonally appropriate we had some shifting to do!

In my world it goes without saying that in order for something to become clean and organized something else is going to become dirty and disheveled.  Getting the shop ready for the photo shoot was no different.  First we shifted all of the holiday fabrics to the shelves facing the back of the store.  Those are the red holiday tags you see dangling in the photo.

Next we collected all of the spring/summer quilts we could find and I called in a few extra from my designer friends.  It was like hanging my own private quilt show.  With tons of husband help to do the high ladder work it only took a few hours to arrange things and get everything hung.  The shop had to be looking good from every angle, because you never know where the photographer will choose to take the shots.  What I think looks great might not appeal to them.  For example, I loved this shot (without the step stool) but the Editor thought it looked "too workroom".

On the day of the photo shoot Tatiana the photographer, her assistant and the editor set-up the shots while we pretended that nothing special was going on.  It is fun to watch them work and see what appeals to the magazine eye and what works better in reality.  One of the things we love about our shop is the SIZE.  Compared to most we have massive floor space, lots of room for customers to move around and not feel claustrophobic.  In the magazine world photos of floor space is a big no-no.  Lots of time was spent deciding how to make us look spacious without showing too much floor.

Once they were finished there was nothing else to do but wait, keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best.  Well, nothing but submit our project and instructions.  All of the Sampler Shops are asked to design something original for the magazine.  As the Encore shop I was asked to provide something small to feature.  I chose to update our Three Pocket Tote.  I added a new elastic closure and chain handle and made not one but three versions for them to showcase.  I also chose to quilt the fabric myself - on the Handi Quilter instead of using pre-quilted fabrics.

Now the issues have arrived, the shop and our project looks great and we get to celebrate and share the issue with you!