Quilt Shop: Greenbaum's Quilted Forest

Since I'm awake way before the crack of dawn, I decided to use the time tell you about one of the quilt shops I visited following the Stitches in Bloom quilt show I attended on Friday.  The quilt show was in Silverton, Oregon, which is just a whoop and a holler from Salem.

And just as I wrote that I wondered about the origin of that expression, "a whoop and a holler," which I heard for the first time when I met my husband's family nearly forty years ago; you know, back in the 14th Century.  So I had to look it up.  This is what is says at Answers.com:

This is a mountain phrase that means "within hailing distance," which may be a mile or more away. It comes from the mountaineers' way of yodelling or whooping to each other from one height to another, once a common feature of the Swiss Alps and the Southern Appalachians. . .
[A]dditionally - the "holler" referred to is actually the common idiomatic pronunciation of the word "hollow," meaning 'shallow mountain valley.' Thus; "Only a shout and valley away."

I had a feeling you'd want to know.  The pause that refreshes.

But to get back to the quilt shop, Greenbaum's Quilted Forest is one of my three favorite quilt shops within an hour's drive of where I live.

It is located in the older part of Salem, and so the street is lined with these kinds of store fronts that remind me of places my mother and I used to shop when I was a little girl.  (If you look at the reflection in the door to the right, you might notice a photographer.) 

There is heavy traffic on the street outside, but there is plenty of free parking if you don't mind walking a couple of blocks.  My only complaint about the parking is that it is angled in, which is easier than parallel parking, but difficult to back out when one desires to leave.  With so much traffic and with stoplights at each end of the block, you will be dependent on the kindness and good manners of other drivers . . . sometimes in short supply.

When I walked into the Quilted Forest the first time, I can recall feeling as if I'd just stepped into Dorothy's Land of Oz.

It is a small shop, but the owner has used the available space to thrill the heart of any quilter looking for some beautiful fabric.  There is fabric everywhere one looks . . . lining the walls and on displays throughout the store.  There are numerous beautiful quilts hanging from the walls and ceiling, giving the impression of having walked into a fabric woodland.

Having visited this store many times, I can tell you that the employees are friendly and helpful.  The back wall contains bolt after bolt of good quality fabric on sale.  Also, I like their punch card system.  Fill a card, and one receives $25 in free fabric at a subsequent visit.  I'm on their mailing list and they frequently send coupons offering triple punches or special sales.  There is also a discount on one's entire purchase once during a birthday month.  With such good deals, it's definitely worth the drive when I'm looking for something special.

There will be something for everyone's taste in their wide selection of patterns, books, and fabrics.  They have the most beautiful batiks I've seen anywhere.  The store has a comfortable atmosphere and is set up for enjoying an hour or more of browsing and touching.

It's been a while since I've visited and written about a quilt shop, but I'll dust off my rating system and give Greenbaum's Quilted Forest five rotary cutters out of five for it's good customer service, good parking, great inventory, and easy-going ambiance.  

This is, by the way, the shop that is hosting the group I'm traveling with when I attend the International Quilt Festival in Ireland in June. 

If you find yourself in Salem, Oregon, at some point, don't miss an opportunity to visit this delightful shop.  Since my first visit, it's become the yardstick by which I measure every other quilt shop I see.