I just returned from a wonderful get-away. We headed to Melbourne, via the Snowy Mountains, in order for me to attend the Evolve Yoga Festival. We never did see the mountain because of heavy fog. The drive from Thredbo to Wodonga was tortuous with torrential rain and flooding. However, in Wodonga, there was one of the best quilt shops I’ve ever been to.
Carolyns Quilting Room is amazing. The work of her and her staff is absolutely inspirational. She has a love for reproduction quilts and I can’t say enough about how lovely they are. Also, her eye for fabric purchasing is right up my alley (think traditional/reproduction/romantic). I seriously could have spent a whole wad of dough in this shop – she even had the European Taupe line – which is gorgeous (although I still prefer the Japanese Taupes). Instead, I settled for a couple back issues of Quilt Mania (a French quilting magazine). I’m sure everyone in the quilting world already knows about this magazine but I’ve only recently discovered it. This is a shop I’ll come back to next time we drive to Melbourne as it’s not too far off the Hume Highway.
After the yoga festival (which was 2 days of bliss), we headed up the coast and our first stop was Gipp Stitch in Warragul. This was a bustling little town and the shop seemed to have everything you could possible need in the line of crafts. They had a nice selection of fabrics and books to keep the quilter happy. I was able to pick up the bargain of the trip here – fat quarters at 5 for $10. That’s a STEAL in Australia where fat quarters typically run $5-6.
Next stop was Miss Milly’s Crafts in Traralgon. An old-fashioned shop run by a lovely couple. The find at this shop was the pattern booklet by Panda called Crochet Modern Vintage. I have been on the look-out for this leaflet since I spotted it in a Frankie magazine on the way to the USA last year.
Next it was Lily Lane Quilting in Rosedale. Another shop that is worth the stop if you’re in the area. A vast selection of pretty much anything and everything that a quilter would need. I splurged out on a new cutting mat, a couple of fat quarters and some Gutermann Sulky thread to use on my Japanese non-taupe quilt.
From there – we went to the Riviera Patchwork shop in Bairnsdale. My second favorite shop of this trip. A delightful shop with something for everyone – contemporary fabrics – romantic fabrics – whimsical fabrics – flannels – you name it – you’ll be able to find it here. She also has a wonderful selection of books and patterns – not to mention gift items. I found a couple of blacks and greys to add to my Klimt fabric collection, plus a couple new patterns.
This one from Marg Low called Bird of Happiness.
And this one from Leanne’s House called “A few of my favourite things Sewing Roll”
Our last stop was the Pepper Lane Designs quilt shop in Narooma. I love this little shop but rarely get there. Not only does she have a nice selection – but she’s American (although, she’s been in Australia for 30+ years). The shop didn’t disappoint and I left my last few quilt dollars here buying King Tut quilting thread for my Klimt quilt.
I had planned to stop at Steph’s in Moruya but ran out of puff and just wanted to be home. We did discover a (new to us) restaurant Cafe Vulcan, so think we’ll probably go back and do a date day there in the next month or so. If you’d like to read more about our trip, be sure to pop on over to Mr. W’s blog, On The Grapevine, as he has a 4 part post on our trip.
