Bonus Blog!!

Here are a few photos from the market we attended in June. We start with a square space. We decorate it and display our newest things. It is lots of work, but tons of fun! We love seeing our friends--all the people we chat with on the phone all year...

Here is Tina placing our pictures in the booth.

I am hanging up paper flowers to decorate the booth.

Here is our finished booth. we set up to show our newest things. We try to make it look like a corner of Shepherd's Bush.

This is what our booth looks like before we start-and when we finish. We are just finishing packing up Charland, (left top) Sharon Crescent (top right) are thrilled they are all packed and ready to go to dinner. Cecile from JABCO (left bottom) and Sydney from Charland designs (right bottom) are giving us moral support.

We also have a great new recipe on our website. It is for Chryl's Black Bean Salsa. It is a yummy, summer recipe.

Also, on our website, we have added several "New at the Shop" patterns and a new Shepherd's Bush free pattern, called "Free."

Please note that our 2008 Shepherd's Bush Retreat is full. We do have a waiting list. If you would like to be added, please give us a call.
(801-399-4546)

Dear Friends,

It is a quiet, hot afternoon here in Utah--the perfect time to sit down and write to you. I am having a blue day today, and I am counting on this to cheer me up. Maybe I have been inside too much. How can you go out on a beautiful summer day like this and still feel blue. Christian turned 15 the end of April and got his learner's permit for driving at the beginning of summer. Yikes! They tell us that changing the driving laws will result in more experienced, safer drivers, but I have to wonder about the safety of that parent sitting in the passenger seat. At our house--or should I say on our roads--we are getting a lot of practice in. I do have a willing chauffeur every minute, but you have to be vigilant at all times and at all turns. I have a mental list of streets and intersections that we just can't go on, and I truly wish that Driver's Ed came before the driving. We are spending a lot of quality time together, and there is always much good in that. I am learning a lot about teenager's music and can even say I have developed a fondness for Coldplay--well some songs anyway.

We are busy at the shop getting ready to ship our market orders. It is always a challenge to get all the components of each kit gathered together at the same time. I am waiting for charms, Sue is waiting for buttons, Lynnette is waiting for fabric, and Kari is waiting for threads. The UPS man is waiting for peace and quiet, and then we will all be waiting for a vacation. It's a fun and busy time, and I know that very shortly we will have treasures winging away from us to waiting customers. I love to stitch in the summer when the nights last forever and I can sit outside in the evening and cool off. I hope you get to do the same.

A friend, Kay, called us this morning to ask if we were ever going to put up a new recipe. Good idea! I guess none of us realized how long it had been since we last put one up. While we were talking about it, Chyrl said she would love to share a favorite summer recipe from her family. It sounds delicious. I love simple things that on a hot summer day almost work as a whole meal. So watch on the Bush Cooks on our web site in the next few days for a new recipe. Yum! Chyrl also gave us a sweet Chex mix recipe some months back that is positively addicting. We may put them both up and let you feed both your sweet tooth and your savory one. Let us know what you think.

I have to take Christian to Civil Air Patrol, and--no--he is not driving since it involves sort of a freeway. Have a great week and try to steal some stitching time. I plan to do the same.

Ever fondly,
Tina

Market

Hi Friends,

Finally--here I am again. My friend, Judy, tells me it has been 12 days--by now probably 13--and I was pleasantly surprised. I would have thought it had been about 30 days. It seems like forever since I wrote, and I have to say it is nice to be back. The first week of June is such a slam for me. Kids out of school and Market all in one week. Now I am almost 3 weeks into it and I think I am going to be able to breathe again. We are beginning to settle into a routine, and I hope Christian will be busy. It seems to have turned from winter to summer overnight, and that is always so pleasant. Not! I dream of many, many days in the 70s, but Utah just doesn't know how to do that. Oh well, at least it isn't humid. I am just going to enjoy this. (A mantra for summer for me.)

Well, market is over. I usually face the end of market with true and utter joy, but all our friends at Columbus talked about getting market blues after they returned home, so of course this year I have them a little as well. The power of suggestion. We had a great time and a great market. The Columbus market is the greatest, and I am sorry for folks who can't make it. It is always fun to meet up with friends and visit during the show and then hang out with them in the evenings. And it is always fun to see other shop owners that we only get to talk to on the phone the rest of the year. We had a great space in the convention center this year. A bunch of us had asked to be near each other, and we seemed to be placed around a little plastic park affair. It was complete with fake grass, park benches, tables and lamp posts. I know it sounds bad, but it was actually a lot of fun. A great place to gather and go back and forth to our booths. Charland spend time strolling the adorable Weeks' baby, Sally around the "park," and we would all wave to her as she strolled by. The convention center is across the street from the North Shore Market, which is fabulous. We spent much time strolling through there eating and shopping. Killer Pad Thai--although everyone else said that their lunch choice was the best. Charland bought dishes, Teri and Cecile bought cards, I bought flowers for the booth and we all had ice cream--several times. It is the best ice cream imaginable with such unusual flavours as Strawberry Buttermilk--one of my personal favorites--Salty Caramel, Grapefruit Hibiscus, Goatcheese Cherry, Lemon Yogurt with Blueberry compote. Yummy! Way worth going to market for. We just had so much fun this year, no wonder I am feeling "market blues"--missing friends, missing fun times.

Teri ordered great stuff for the shop and now we get to watch it start arriving and get excited all over again. Everyone watches for the UPS truck to arrive and sort through the boxes. Teri is anxiously awaiting this fabulous French reproduction stitching supplies, and I am watching for some wonderful bags to arrive. Being in the back so much of the time, many things come and go long before I am aware that they have even come. When I end up paying the bill, I usually wander out to see them only to be told that they are long gone. OK, I am watching for my bags. (I only want 1 of them.) We had gotten a lot done for market this year. 4 books and a number of new kits. Everything should be on our website if you want to look and see. We are busy here at the shop getting our kits put together and ready to ship, and I only hope that other people are like us--watching and waiting for them to arrive.

If you haven't had a chance take a look at our site and see what is new. We'll start putting up some new things from market in the next few weeks, so be sure to log on now and then.

Have a great, warm and safe week.

Until next week--fondly, Tina

PS--Unfortunately our mysterious computer took a few liberties with one of our new books--In a Stable--and it inserted all new symbols onto the first little graph. If you have purchased this book, you will find below the corrections for that first graph. They are also on our web site. Sorry about that. --T
"In a Stable" Corrections

Hi Friends,
This morning some sweet person called to see if we were alright. We're fine. It is just me. We are trying to get ready to go to the market in Columbus, and that is pretty much all we've been doing. So Sorry. I promise, when I get back, I will get right back on schedule with the letters. Maybe even some photographs. School is now out for the summer and I have to admit this always hits me with a bit of trepidation. I love having all the time to do what we want, but it does become sort of a juggling act. Soon, Chris will be busy with all his summer activities and the days will go by too quickly, but the first week or two are always a challenge. Especially when it includes getting ready for a market. So...enjoy your tender beginnings of Summer and be patient. I will write again in a week or so. Until then, finish up projects because a whole lot of new ones are coming our way. Until then--
fondly, Tina