9/17/16

Quilt Shop: Beyond Bolts, Thayne, Wyoming

Well, do I have a treat for you today. Do you ever go to the hardware store with your hubby? I'll drop the pretense here and just be completely gender-biased by saying gag me with a spoon. I'll wait in the car, Honey. Only if we're here in Thayne, Wyoming, he'd better keep his wallet in his front pocket because there's a fabric store here. Just look there to the left of the True Value sign, and you'll see the "Beyond Bolts" sign. 


Walk in the front door, and sure enough, this is a hardware store...no doubt about it. Look just to the left and there it is...a full service fabric store right there with the hammers, nails, and plumbing supplies. That's my friend Marei there right in the middle of the image below.


Yes, Marei has beautiful hair. She's had beautiful hair as long as I've known her, which has been since the 7th grade. But Marei is a LOT older than I am, and so I'm gonna say she's been friends with me for 50 years, but I've only been friends with her for 10 years. You do the math on that.

So look at all this gorgeous fabric. Did I mention this is a hardware store???


Just inside the door were these pretty regional batiks. There were so many I loved it was hard to choose one for my 365 quilt, but I'll get to that in a minute.


And those weren't the only batiks. They had other pretty batiks, and some of them were on sale.


Also, a large supply of minky, flannel and fleece.


This was a full service fabric shop with fabrics and interfacings on the bolt.


This one's for you, Padsworth.


And here's something I haven't seen since the Craft Warehouse near me went out of business: a good supply of fabric flats at great prices. My stash was built from the ones that used to live near me. Just below you can see battings on the bolt.


They had a good supply of solids too.


They also had a lot of cute patterns for quilting and embroidery.


But they had supplies for all kinds of needlework, from embroidery,


to knitting and crocheting,


and garment-sewing.


And I love a punch card store where you get punches according to the amount you spend. Marei filled up her card which entitled her to 20% (I think) off her next purchase. Nice. Since I won't be back any time soon, I gave her my punches too. Here's the batik I picked for my regional 365 quilt shop quilt.


I picked up a yard of this one. Won't this make a cute binding?


This one might be hard to see in this image, but it's a white on white polka dot. I got two yards. It'll make a nice background for embroidery.


So, wow. This takes the cake for being an unusual location and a delightful surprise. I give it my highest rating of five rotary cutters. Fabulous service, and a wonderful diversion while Mike looks for dowel rods to hang my quilts.


From Swan Valley, this shop is on the way to the Grand Tetons, and so if you're ever in the area and want to see Beyond Bolts, just drive over the mountains and there you'll be. It's a can't miss shop if you happen to be in the area.

*Disclaimer:  Cat Patches accepts no advertising, nor any sponsorships.  The opinions expressed on this blog are based on the personal impressions and perceptions of the author. They are formed  on the basis of one short visit, on one day, and may or may not reflect the experience of others visiting on a different day.  They are no more descriptive than a single snapshot image can be, and nothing written in a review of a quilt shop should be construed as objective fact.  The reviews are strictly the author's subjective opinion and should not be interpreted as anything more.

13 comments:

Cathyg said...

Very smart marketing!

Lyndsey said...

Another great shop and love your fabric choices. Stripes do make a fabulous binding

Shari said...

When Mike retires and you travel east, you need to check out Patrick's in Covington, GA. It's a feed store with a quilt shop in it. Also check out A&E in Pensacola. It's an appliance store with a quilt shop. Both are just fun places to shop. Thanks for sharing your vacation with us. Safe travels home.

Dorothy said...

When I was in Forks WA 3-4 years ago, I found a fabric store in a drug store. I was amazed at the amount of fabrics, etc that were in there Almost did a happy dance :-)

Marei said...

Thank you so much for the sweet comment about my hair. Apparently I should have brushed it for the photo shoot! And what do you mean I'm a LOT older than you? A WEEK? That's not a lot, unless it's a week of listening to nonstop political babble! Glad you had a good time. I always enjoy going there.

WoolenSails said...

That is funny, you can find a quilt store anywhere, lol.
I guess when you are in the middle of nowhere, stores have to be dual purpose.

Debbie

Cheryl's Teapots2Quilting said...

I went to a cool store in Oklahoma last year. It was hardware, automotive, gifts and lots of fabrics (including flat folds). We had a blast there.

Kate said...

Looks like you had a wonderful trip. Love all the beautiful photos, it's a gorgeous area. All the quilt shops look like fun places to shop. Glad the problem with the truck didn't cost you too much time. Looking forward to seeing what you've got going in the sewing room now that you are home.

Gretchen Weaver said...

What a great idea and what a wonderful shop! Looks like fun. Blessings, Gretchen

Rebecca said...

Once apon time... almost a long time ago.... Hubby and I designed a store in our head ( ok mostly mine) that was sporting goods and fabric and just for the hell of it used books.

quiltzyx said...

Very cool shop! I am drooling a bit over the thought of batiks on sale! Love the one you picked & the stripe too. Good job Barbara!!

Judy1522 said...

That's what I call a perfect store and I like the fabrics you purchased. Not sure which Craft Warehouse you used to go to that closed down but the one I went to on 185th in Aloha closed also which made me sad. A couple years or so ago they opened a new store at Cedar Hills Crossing which is much closer to where I live and they do still have the flat folds at a good price plus lots of other great quilting fabrics.

Brown Family said...

THat is a very nice and interesting shop! You never know what you will find in strange places!