So Many Shops, Sew Many Rows!

Do you like shop hops? Do you like collecting quilt patterns? Maybe you are motivated by prizes?

And if you live in New York State or Pennsylvania--or if you are planning to visit either of these over the summer--this might be just the ticket to travel from shop to shop with a purpose!

No fees, no passports, and if you've got a smart phone (or a pencil and paper!), you have everything you need to collect a pattern at each of the participating shops. This could be the 'easiest shop hop' ever . . . and maybe even the most fun.

It's a row by row shop hop!

Each of the participating shops has designed a row, following this year's them of "Fairs and Festivals." As you travel from shop to shop, you might get a reason to come back to the area for their special events!

The row patterns can only be obtained by visiting that shop in person. Collect and sew at least eight rows together, and return to one of the participating shops and win a prize! That's it! Them's the rules.

So why am I telling you about all this? . . . It's true, I don't have a shop, but I was thrilled to be asked to design two of the rows in the hop, one in New York and one in Pennsylvania. Wanna see?

"Pick a Patch of Punkins" was designed for Sew Special in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. Tons of fall festivals celebrating everyone's favorite fall vegetable take place throughout in Fayette County each year.

And this row, named "A Pickle and a Jam" has lots of little pieces that combine to invoke fun, colorful jars of home-made fruit and veggie put-ups. This row celebrates the culinary arts competitions at the New York State Fair in Syracuse. You'll find this row pattern only at Calico Gals in Syracuse, New York.

The hop starts July 1. To learn about the hop in New York, visit this public facebook page. To read about the Pennsylvania Row by Row hop, visit this page. And to get the complete map of all the shops in both states, you'll want to save this page to your smart phone!

So gather your travel gear, charge up the GPS, fill 'er up with gas, and put the pedal to the medal!

Happy Stitching!