The Legendary Tour
 

The LegendaryTour of 2019


Five quilters toured13 quilt shops in the Shipshewana area over a 3 day marathon.


For you lucky onesthat will be at any of the retreats, the ground work has been laid. We are certain that you will enjoy all of these shops and be welcomedwith open arms.


QuiltingVagabond, fromthis board, mentioned in a post that she was headed to Shipshewana toset up a shop hop for her RV group of 250 campers in June. Since Idon't drive very far anymore, and I'm local, I offered my services astour guide if she would drive. Joining us was Dianesewsmore, aquilter and recent convert to this board.


Day 1 The Southern Group


1. Since there were somany, we split them into southern group and northern group. Afterpicking me up, we headed for Zincks in Ligonier, which is out ofBerlin, Ohio. A great deal of fabric including upholstery.

1. Rentown, Indiana, west of Napannee, Country Quilt Creations owned and operated by Delores, a single Amish lady with a great eye for good fabric. Each one of us had our favorite and this one is mine.
   

1. Calico Point, southwest of Goshen, quilting fabric, Janome and Baby Lock machines. Bright, well organized, helpful staff.
   

1. Heartland Sewing Repair, Bernina dealer, some quilting fabric, class rooms, sewing machine cabinets, notions, helpful owners.
   

1. Fabric Utopia was in Elkhart, but moving to Goshen in May. They have a great sales receipt – tells you the amount, the manufacturer, the name of the fabric!
   

1. Sew Creative Threads, Elkhart. Sewing furniture , I wanted one of those Arrow chairs, Pfaff machines, a good selection of different fabrics.
   

Day 2 The Northern group.

1. The Lavender Patch, Bristol, In. Lots of creative surprises. The owner loves vintage machines and has several on display.
   

1. The Quilt Shop @ Essenhaus. Recently moved into spacious area in the building with the silo. I always find something I have to have at this one.
   

1. I Sell Fabric north of Shipshewana. A very colorful owner with some deep discounts on the fabric.
   

1. Lolly's in the Davis Merchantile downtown Shipshewana. A must see. Great presentation, selection of books, rulers, the full meal deal.
   

1. Cotton Corner in Shipshewana, now in the same building as Yoder's. APQS and Bernina dealer. Diane found a new machine here.
   

1. Yoder's Department Store, Shipshewana, another must see. If you can’t find it here, you probably don’t need it!
   

Day 3 Going East

1. Caroline's Cotton Cottage, Rome City, IN. Worth the drive. This was the one that our two new recruits: Tina and Kathy #2 wanted to visit for the great selection of civil war reproductions. Owner is most knowlegable.
   

There are other fabricshops in the area, but mainly sell Amish clothing fabric. Unfortunately we have lost several shops in the area recently. Emmatown Fabrics on State Rd. 5, Jeannett's in Wakarusa, Spectors inShipshewana, The Pumpkin Vine in Middlebury and Erica's in South Bendare out of business, as well as the Shirley Shank's in The Old BagFactory which sold finished quilts.

Well, you gals found some of my favorites. I can slip down to Shipshewana in about an hour from home. One shop that I enjoy and frequently stop at is in downtown Middlebury. It is Amish run and yes, they have all things that an Amish woman would need to cloth her family. Everything from buttons to garment/apron fabric to straw hats to boots etc. But they do have one whole wall of the store devoted to quilting fabric, some books and a few basic supplies. I often find wide backs there that are different, unique. The help is just right. Willing to assist but mostly just leave you alone to think, plan, and consider. They will frequently have a small selection of bolts on sale. I bought 7 yards of an Elm Creek fabric for $5 or $6 per yard and is was some of the best fabric I have ever used. This little gem of a store is right in the middle of town, near a cafe and a hardware/general store on the west side of the street. It has beautiful creaky wooden floors and smells like stores of yesteryear, all fabric, leather and just a touch of age. Wish I could remember the name of it. It is a family name not creative quilt name.

That's Gohn Brothers. We went there and somehow we left it off the tour list. So sorry. You can go in there and hear a bunch of strange sounds. That is the seamstresses upstairs running commercial machines. They are making Amish clothes complete with snaps and the loud bang that we heard the day we were there was someone putting those snaps on with a big machine.

It sounds like a fabulous trip with some great ladies and quilt shops along the way. Fond memories of this special adventure for all.

Sounds like you all had a great time!

Is the June shop hop during the quilt festival? I was going to try to meet up with Quilting Vagabond several years ago but it didn't work out. Would still love to meet some of the "Quilt Borders" so add me to your contact list for next time!

My apologies to Gohn Brothers. Two of us went over the list, but our heads were spinning about then.

Marcia

so amish do use machines?

The 5 and 20 Country Kitchen and coffee shop at the intersection of highway 20 and highway 5 is a good stop for a meal. Tasty food, good coffee and a nice selection of pies. Must keep your strenght up, right?

Yes, the Amish usually buy a treadle machine. It depends on the Bishop but some hook a mechanical machine to a battery (like a car battery) and sew.

We ate at Essenhaus, the Copper Top and Topeka Pizza. If we would have gone out for the 4th day we probably would have gone to the Blue Gate or 5 x 20. But our strength was tested. We each took a slice of pie home from Essenhaus. The girls help me unload the numerous bags of fabric onto the kitchen table. I went downstairs later and started opening the bags and accidentally came to the bag with the pie. Of course I sat down and ate it. German Chocolate pie.

This sounds like so much fun! Thanks for sharing with us.