Suzanne's Quilt Shop opened on June 1, 1988 in Royal Palm Beach, Florda. Here are pictures of the fantastic selection of quilting supplies on opening day. Wow where is all the stuff! Many of the products we know and love today in quilting had not been invented. Many folks did not know about the rotary cutter. Very few people machine quilted. It took a while to build inventory. Profits were recyled back into the business and we grew and grew.
See our hugh quarter yard table? What a fantastic selection of eyelet lace in the pie safe! Where are the samples? Someone has a lot of work to do! (Photos are not showing the other half of the shop.
The shop was under 1200 square feet in a back corner of a shopping center in a courtyard. It was not our first choice for a location. Where we wanted to go was snapped up right in front of my eyes. It's a good thing because a sports bar went in right next door to that spot I had had hope for. Having a bar next door would not have made a good situation for the ladies coming to classes at night. My mom suggested we try a different landlord and shopping center. When we met the landlord and saw the sign over the entry to the courtyard area we knew this was the place. The sign said "Walk with God."
In the beginning Suzanne was the only employee. One of her students, Bonni,would come to sew every day. When the shop busy Bonni would log onto the payroll. As business prospered more part time employees were added and of course the inventory started to overflow the shelves and samples were eveywhere. The shop was at this location for 7 years. When Trudie Hughes came to teach for the first time. She said" Suzanne you have to get out of here and expand". So Suzanne bit the bullet and moved the shop to the Crossroads Plaza in the center of Royal Palm Beach. (More photos to come)
Pictured are Nora, my mom who had just retired and Stephanie, my daughter who graduated high school for the first day of the shop. My mom was did not live close engough to work at the shop. She was not a quilter, but she loved to see the business grow and when she visited she was always helping folding fabric, counting money and entertaining the staff and customers. Stephanie went to community college and then away to school. While a Florida State University. she decided she wanted to learn to quilt and Mom's stash had plenty of Free stuff. Stephanie finished her education with a Masters in Textiles. She got a job with a manufacturer in Moultrie, Ga, met the love of her life and blessed us with 2 grandsons. That is why Suzanne's Quilt Shop is now in Moultrie.
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The logo for Suzanne's Quilt shop was designed by Beth Dix of Primrose Lane. Beth is a designer of clothing patterns for dolls and children. You can see her designs at www.primroselane.com In addition she is great resource for heirloom sewing supplies. Beth is a quilter and once worked at our shop in Royal Palm Beach. I told her back then that I wanted a new version of a Sunbonnet Sue that would represent a woman heading off to go quilting. She came back a day later with a wonderful sketch.
Since we are celebrating out 20th Anniversary in business and our 10th Anniversary online, I recently had our website revamped. The web designer added colors to the original sketch to give her a new look.
We have an Anniversary Quilt in the making and the logo is going to be an embroided design in the center. Tunie, another former employee, quickly stitched the embroidery design for our quilt. Shirley Thomas, current employee, designed our 20th Anniversary Quilt which is in the process of being made. We will have the pattern and kits available at the Anniversary Celebration coming us soon!
Hope you will be able to attend our 20th Anniversary Celebration. Our official opening date was June 1, 1988. Do to graduations and vacations, we delayed the 20th Anniversary Celebration to Saturday, Sept. 6th. We will be giving away 20 quilts at 3 p.m. You must be in attendance to win. From August 1 - September 6 we are giving a ticket to the drawing for every $10.00 purchase. Starting Saturday, September 30 - September 5 we will be having daily specials in store.
Now where is that girl going? She's going to Suzanne's for the best in quilting supplies!
Happy Quitling,
Suzanne
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Suzanne's Quilt Shop opened in 1988. Five years previously, I became interested in quilting because of a neighbor Linda H. Here we are together hand quilting at the South Florida Fair. Linda is the lady in the background and Suzanne in the foreground. We belonged to the Palm Beach County Quilter's Guild. Each year there was a special competition for a block to go in the quilt made for the fair. Linda and I both had blocks in that quilt.
Linda did not teach me to quilt but she inspired me. I took some lessons from our pastor's wife and at a quilt shop in hand piecing and hand quilting. After the first 2 quilts I wanted to do some quick machine pieicing. I thought I could tear my strips for a log cabin quilt and they would be fine. I created one big mess. Linda said"Try my rotary cutter." I was too cheap to buy a non essential gadget like that. Boy was I wrong! I was hooked on rotary cutting. It was one of those AH HA moments!
I had no sooner started quilting, when I realized I would like to teach quilting. I have a degree in Home Economics Education and loved to sew. Linda and I thought it would be wonderful to own a quilt shop together. We did a little research and realized the timing was not right for us financially. Our children were young and we needed jobs with paycheck and maybe some day it would happen. We each had 3 kids in the same age range and we attended church together.
Linda started teaching pre school and I started teaching home economics to middle schoolers. We tried to find time to meet once a week for quilting. After 5 years I was able to financially open Suzanne's Quilt Shop. Linda could not join me in the business venture. She continued our weekly quilting bee at the shop. She comleted a Baltimore Album quilt while I only made 3 blocks. She was artistic and one of the sweetest persons you would ever know.
I speak of my friend in past tense because Linda passed away at the age of 60 last November of Alzheimer's Disease. This is the only photo I have of the two of us enjoung our hobby. When I last saw her in the nursing home I mentioned quilting. Linda replied "Oh how I loved it so! You and I were going to ........"
Spend some time each week doing what you enjoy with the people you love.
Happy Quilting,
Suzanne
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