1. This morning my email contained a link to a site that shows the sex offenders in your area. Normally I’d just delete this but I clicked and entered my address. Turns out my next door neighbor is on the list. Now this guy is creepy but in a totally harmless kind of way if that makes sense. He’ll do anything for you too. I know I sound like the neighbor being interviewed on the news after the serial killer is caught. “He was just the sweetest guy.” Turns out he’s on the list for kidnapping. I know he’s divorced and has custody of his kids so I’m guessing it was part of the custody battle. Honestly, I don’t think he has a full-fledged, well thought out kidnapping scheme in him. He’s also not in jail. I feel sorry for him now. It must suck to have that following you. If I didn’t know him personally I might have been freaked out by a registered sex offender living next door.
2. I decided to investigate if there were any companies making quilting fabric out of organic cotton. The first one I found had fabric for sale for $103 a yard. I read that over and over thinking, “Is that for a bolt? Surely that can’t be a yard.” But it was for a yard. Buy 10 or more yards and it went down to $99 a yard. It was ugly fabric too. I did find Near Sea Naturals that has organic fabric and yarn at much more reasonable prices but I’m a bright color quilter and everything they have is so blah to me. I know it is because of the natural dyes but hopefully someday we’ll be able to get fabric that is good for both the earth and the soul.
3. While looking for organic cotton I found Bamboo Clothes. I like bamboo. I really want a bamboo floor for my sewing room someday. This site has great clothes at about the same price as “regular” clothes.
4. I’ve been wanting a solar generator for emergencies. I have propane heat but it requires electric to run. I want to not have to worry about not being able to get water to the horses in case of power outages. But solar powered anything is scarily expensive. I looked up homemade solar and hit a motherlode of info. I should have known that most environmentalists were cheap like me. Check out this and this. Reading these make my brain fuzz over because I don’t understand electrical stuff but it doesn’t seem hard.
We design colorful fun organic cotton fabrics. Our sateens (which are 110″ wide!) retail for $20 – $30/yard. When you consider this is more than 2x the average quilting fabric per yard I don’t think it is outrageous.
We have toyed with the idea of creating a “quilters” line of 45″ fabric but cost wise as the fabric shrinks the cost per yard does not shrink by the same amount. I figured people would rather get more for their money than less. I would love to get your feedback on our fabrics. We are always open to suggestions, comments, etc. In gratitude – harmony