Sunday, March 26, 2017

A Visit to Missouri Star Quilt Company, Part 1

On Wednesday, six intrepid Brown Bag Quilters headed west for a bucket list trip--a visit to the Missouri Star Quilt Company. We are all devotees of Jenny Doan and her fabulous, quick and easy quilting tutorials using pre-cuts, plus I am addicted to her Daily Deal, as my Visa bills can attest.

We left Boston and flew into Kansas City, arriving late afternoon on Wednesday. MSQ is about an hour from the airport. We did a quick tour of the shops before they closed for the day at 5pm. Our plan was to be up and running at 9am on Thursday to spend an entire day visiting all 14 shops.
A bright mural adorns the side of the sewing center building. A 50's themed quilt retreat was in progress during our visit.
If you can read the computer screen, we traveled 1,205 miles for our visit. But we met three ladies who came from Brazil, so 1,205 miles didn't seem so far. We also chatted with ladies from Oregon, California and Minnesota during our visit. According to the media, MSQ gets up to 10,000 visitors during the summer months.
The MSQ stores are on two sides of the main street in Hamilton, MO. Below is a view of the strip that includes Primitives and Wool, Batik Boutique, Machine Shed, Man's Land, Licensed to Sew and Penney's Quilt Shop. Upstairs, you will find Sew Seasonal, Backing & Trims, Kids & Baby and Modern. They have renovated the existing buildings and revitalized the town. In addition to building quilt shop mecca, they have brought in several restaurants, because we know that quilters love to eat! The town is cute and quaint. Everyone we met was very friendly and welcoming.
This was one of my favorite shops since I'm fond of novelty prints.
Vintage machines decorate the window of the Machine Shed.
Need a break? Visit Man's Land.
Joanne and Sue stopped and rested in the comfy lounge chairs in Man's Land. There's even a pool table in the back.
Same side of the street, but photo taken from the opposite end.
Here is a picture of the other side of the street.
This is the Main Shop, or as I call it the Welcome Center to Quilter's DisneyLand... The rest of the shops on this side are Missouri Star Mercantile, Florals, and the Sewing Center, where the quilt retreats are held.
Another beautiful wall mural.
Right next door to the Main Shop is Mama Hawk's Kitchen. On Wednesday, I enjoyed a fabulous brisket sandwich for lunch here. And I also tasted my first red cream soda. Delicious! J.D.'s Burger Dive is adjacent to Mama Hawk's Kitchen.
All of us developed an addiction to Mama Hawk's divine cinnamon rolls... I wonder if she does mail order...
Here I am with my Brown Bagger quilting buddies enjoying another scrumptious lunch on Thursday at Blue Sage.
From top left, clockwise: Nancy C-T, aka PugMomQuilts!, Marion, Nancy D., Sue, Joannie and Joanne S.
Thanks for visiting. There will be a Part 2, so come back soon! Do you want to see what we bought?

Pugs and kisses,
Nancy



7 comments:

  1. Oh how fun. Definitely a bucket list trip. Looks like you had a marvelous time.

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  2. I live in Pennsylvania and was visiting my daughter who lives in western Illinois. We drove over to Hamilton on St. Patrick's Day. It was our first visit to Missouri Star. We shopped both Friday and Saturday probably buying more than we needed. It truly is a quilter's paradise!

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  3. How exciting - what a great trip!!

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  4. Looks like you had a great time! I'm jealous! And why are there no men in man's land? :)

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  5. How daring of you all! I love the pictures you showed, and your pilgrimage to the 'holy land' of quilting. Just awesome! So did you find any pug fabric in the novelties??

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  6. It was great to meet you! Also I saw the photos your posted of your nine patch baby blankets. It'll look so great with all those far quarters we found! Please post a photo of the sloth pillow when you complete it :)

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