Grand Rapids, Michigan

Day Two of our trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan. One issue with traveling on a Sunday is that most quilt stores are closed. So we went to Antique stores today. The day started out continuing a tradition that we’ve had since my high schools days. On our birthdays we post a sign on our kitchen microwave. Our hotel last night had a microwave so I was able to post her sign. If you are ever near Warren, Ohio we highly recommend Aunties Antiques  off Rd 422. The building is huge and filled with treasures. It is by far the cleanest and most aesthetically displayed collections of vendor booths. Something for everyone. We spent almost two hours there and bought the sweetest applique lap quilt, a Raggedy Ann bank, a bird pie vent, and a Charming Tails figurine. Happy Birthday to both of us. Lunch was at the Welshfield Inn. They were nice enough to seat us for brunch even though we didn’t have a reservation. Next we went to The Hatchery Antiquesi. Ridgeville, OH. As clean as Auntie’s was this one as dusty. Lots to see, but we didn’t find anything. We travelled for awhile on Historic US 22, the longest US highway. It goes from Boston, MA to Astoria, OR. Our third stop was an antique store in Milan, OH. Milan is the birthplace of Thomas Edison. So we stopped by his home and had a nice visit with him, well his statue anyway. We drove almost three hours to Middlebury, Indiana. We had quite the surprise when we first walked into our room. There was only one bed. They were out of double bed rooms so they gave us the enjoying king room at no charge! So we each have our own room tonight! Mom can keep her room as warm as she wants and I can keep mine as cool as I want. Neither of us have stayed in rooms quite as large as these. Tyler has a whole sofa to himself. We are only sorry it is just for one night. What a great way to end her birthday day! Tomorrow back to the quilt shops!

After a great night’s sleep in our own rooms, we drove to Shipshewana, IN. A very quaint little town with shops, antiques and home to a very large flea market. For better or worse the flea market was closed today. The clerk at the hotel recommended we stop as Rise and Roll on our way for donuts. It was well worth the stop, plus they had free coffee. In Shipshewana we went to Lolly’s Fabric in the Davis Mercantile. A large selection of fabric and a shop full of ladies on a Quilter’s Heritage Tour headed to Grand Rapids too. We ate lunch outside on the 3rd floor. A delicious chicken salad made with apples, grapes and pecans. Next we went to Yoder’s Department store and the Cotton Patch. So many fabrics, sew little time. A quick stop at Yup’s Dairyland for an afternoon treat. We drove to Elkhart, Indiana to see the Quilt Gardens. In a number of different cities they have garden plots planted to form quilt patterns. This year they also have added statues. Mom sure likes talking with them. LOL We visited three different gardens before heading to Kalamazoo, Michigan. The weather has been fantastic, low humidity and mid 70’s. We’ve noticed an abundance of ponds and most people have extremely large front lawns. We miss the mountain views in the distance. Tomorrow more quilt shop and then a few nights in one place before we head home.

There were several quilt shops in the area and we really lucked out with the one’s we picked. Quilts Plus in Kalamazoo was filled with samples and beautiful fabrics and incredibly friendly workers. Julie the owner bought the shop from her parents and often travels to Harrisburg, PA. We told her to call next time she is in town. Fields Fabrics is a chain store but they carry quality fabrics from Moda, Hoffman, Northcott, Free Spirit and lots more. Then we drove to Marshall, MI to the Quilts at Marshall House. The first floor of the house was all quilt fabric. It is the kind of store you could just stay all day! In Marshall we saw a Classic Denny’s Diner. I had never seen one like that before. Our next stop was Dragonfly Quilts and Art in Plainwell. The store used to be a dime store and the fabric is stored in the original wooden shelves. Very cool! The Amway Hotel in Grand Rapids connects to the convention center and it quite elegant! Our room is well worth spending several nights in. They provide real glass glasses no plastic wrapped cups here! We explored the hotel some and found on the first floor they have a place where people come to drink and play Duckpin Bowling. We didn’t check it out yet, but on the fourth floor they have Pickleball Courts. We walked to dinner at Tupelo Honey. We got a pleasant surprise when they just gave us a slice of pecan pie for free! On the way back to the hotel we saw a crowd of people. Turns out it was the Grand Rapids Swing Society. They host dancing in Rosa Parks Circle downtown every Tuesday night. We watched them learn a circle line dance. Off to bed and a good nights sleep. Tomorrow is quilt show day!!

We figured out that it might be better to drive into a city hosting a quilt show rather than staying nearby. Parking at the convention center would have been half the distance then the walk from the hotel! The hotel is amazing but we’ve decided to move on. One day was all we needed to see the show. There were some really neat vendors with lots of great ideas. Below are just some of my favorite quilts. There was a special exhibit of the Princess Diana challenge quilts sponsored by Cherrywood fabrics. After we finished up we had lunch/dinner at Flanagan’ s Pub and then took a ride on the pink DASH buses. They are free buses that make a loop north/south or east/west. Gave us a chance to see more of Grand Rapids. They are primarily for people to park out of the downtown area for a lot less. Tomorrow we’ll be back to quilt shop hopping and checking out more of Michigan.