teaching sewing confidence, tip by tip

Wednesday 16 April 2014

Exploring Brooklyn, NYC


After our NYC Metro Mod Quilt Guild meeting back at the start of April, a group of us headed down into Brooklyn to see the Quilters' Guild of Brooklyn Quilt Exhibition at the Marriott Hotel at Brooklyn Bridge.

I didn't bring my camera so I've just got some pppp (pretty poor phone photos) to share but hopefully, they'll still inspire.  Here's just a snapshot of the exhibition which is heavily biased towards my more modern tastes and also to people I'm friends with ;D


 



Now for my friends' quilts:
Bernadette Forward - who blogs over at New Quilts On The Block




Robin Strauss



Above and below quilts by Christine Janove, who taught me to quilt (read about my very first quilt here) and to whom I'll always be immensely grateful x



Here're my friend and ex LQS staffer, Robin Strauss (you saw her Global Rising quilt above), teaching a Dresden Plate class that we just had to take part in - Robin you were wonderful, hope our heckling didn't put you off ;D


Now that we'd made the trip out to Brooklyn two of us decided to take the opportunity and explore further so we went in search of the Brooklyn General Store.


What a find, you can see from the pics that it's a little gem (as always I asked permission to take photos).


A range of all fabric types and weights, yarns, notions, books and they do classes too - I won't list all the brands, you can check them out on the website - strangely their Facebook page is a personal page and not a business page and I'm not up for 'friending' a business myself, I prefer to 'like', but if that's your thing here's where you can find them on fb.


A peep inside the classroom (below).


You know that working in a fabric store I'm always interested to see how other stores operate from
how they display the fabric - seemed to be mainly in colour groups and some by type;
cut it - the minimum cut is 1/4 yd and they tear the fabric (giving you a truer crosswise grain line) but if, like me, you prefer to avoid misshapen fabric edges and like your fabric roller cut, then they'll do that for you too;
price it - prices were on each bolt and looked like the majority of standard quilting weight cotton was around $12 to $13/yard
swatches - forgot to ask :(


It's an all round nice store, good atmosphere, and the staff answered all our myriad of questions.  One thing to note is that I believe the classes fill quickly particularly the serger sewing.


Downside - it's a bit of a trek to get to, 128 Union Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231.  I checked it out on Google maps and if you're visiting Manhattan and using the subway it's a 33-minute journey from Macy's, Herald Square - that's 22 minutes on the F train then an 11-minute walk to the store.  So maybe it's more of a local destination store than one for the general fabric tourist?  That said if you do make the journey out I don't think you'll be disappointed and there're some great places to eat and drink between the subway and the store too.

And if you're wondering what I bought ...


Two Morris Modernized in Aquamarine - (it's killing me typing modernized instead of modernised in connection with something as English as William Morris), Kaffe Fassett Shot Cotton in Raspberry and Three Sisters Etchings - Dobby Dot in Aqua.


Have you ever been to Brooklyn?  Is it on your bucket list?


For details of other fabric, yarn, trim and notion stores that I've visited around the world along with the NYC stores I love, exhibitions and events I've attended and wonderful people I've been lucky to meet click the links below or in my side bar :D



Disclaimer: This post is for informational purposes only, no payment or commission is received on click-throughs and opinions are my own.

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21 comments:

  1. That is such a cute store! I have never been to New York, but it is on my travel list. :) -Brittany

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  2. That's my LQS! They have a decent turnover for new fabrics and a nice Liberty selection. I tend to walk by a couple times a month and see what they've got going on. Haven't taken a class there yet, though.

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    1. Fab to hear from someone who regularly uses the store, you can't complain having it as your LQS. I've dropped by your blog and started following, loving your boyfriend's quilt and your Liberty STATW, that's the classiest STATW I've ever seen! :D

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  3. Your pictures are very good. It's a stunning exhibition and a great shop. I wish I could visit Brooklyn one day!

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  4. That is a cute place! One of these days I'll get to NY again. This time I will have to make a list of fabric shops to stop at. :)

    (Side note: they might "friend" rather than "like" because FB is kind of a jerk and won't show things in people's newsfeeds who "like" you unless the person interacts with your page LOTS or you pay FB to show it to them. It kind of sucks)

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    1. Wrote about this on my fb business page only yesterday - well about fb 'likes' not counting/showing unless you 'like' from a personal page rather than a business page.

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  5. Wow Chrissie...looks like a great place! Love your purchases. What a great exhibition!

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  6. I love "close friends" done by your friend and teacher. From the photo I can't tell if it is a modern version of a crazy quilt or if it is beadwork on wholecloth. Either way, it is gorgeous. (and I am picky about embellishment.)

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    1. It's Christine's class sample for when she teaches 'Stupendous Stitching' at The City Quilter from the book of the same name by Carol Ann Waugh. The technique uses hand embroidery, decorative machine stitches and couching, there's beadwork on there too, isn't it just wonderful?

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  7. Great quilts - thanks for sharing. And thanks for the tip on Brooklyn General. I will have to put it on my list of shops to visit. Haven't been to Brooklyn in years (used to have family there) Looks like a great destination. Thanks!

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  8. Beautiful quilts and that store looks like a crafters heaven.

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  9. I gotta quit coming here. You make me want to move to New York!!! The quilts are all sew beautiful. And the General Store, too! Thanks for taking me on a virtual tour!

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  10. That definitely looks like a great place to explore whenever I get the chance to come down that way.

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  11. I could spend all day in that store and I don't really even sew! Love the quilts too.

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  12. Thanks for sharing the photos from the exhibition. The quilt "Close Friends" intrigues me - can you remember if it was patchwork or tight embroidery on wholecloth?
    That looks like a great store; I'd love to find some modernised Morris too!

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    1. Close Friends is Christine Janove's quilt sample for the Stupendous Stitching class she teaches at The City Quilter where we work. The class is based on the book of the same name by Carol Ann Waugh - here's a link to her website. It's a wholecloth that's with decorative hand and machine stitching, embroidery, couching and beadwork, it's really beautiful :D

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  13. Thanks lots of great pictures and wonderful tips.

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  14. I love those fabrics, are those what you picked? We're right on the same page I would buy those! I loved the close friends quilt, fun and whimsical lines. I wouldn't want to leave there for a long time :)

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Chris Dodsley


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