Just 2 miles from Interstate 70 Exit 157 in Ohio is A Touch of Thread Quilting Gallery. Owned by Doug and Martha Creasy, this shop took over Grandma’s Country Store over eighteen years ago, but some folks still stop in looking for Grandma.
Miss Martha’s mother owned the Quilting Bee in Dresden, Ohio, and she and her husband owned A Touch of Thread, which started as a long arm business with sales and service on Gammill machines as well as quilting. When Mom retired, the Quilting Bee closed and the fabric was transferred to A Touch of Thread, and a combined shop was born. There are now over 3,000 bolts on hand and vibrant full service quilt shop.
Fabrics include benders, brights and big prints. Yes, there are many Stack-n-Whack candidates! Take note of the lighting under the lower shelves, so all of the fabric is easily seen in all of its glory.
There are a lot of panels here, some of which I hadn’t seen before. Look up! They are hung from the ceiling and numbered, and then there is a table with numbered baskets to pull yours. Check around the shop for samples made with them, like the snowflake quilt pictured below.
Every quarter there is a “Strip Club” meeting. Watch the calendar for this event. You get a pattern and a set of 2 ½” fabric strips that have been selected and cut in house. You pick a fabric for the accent and borders, and then make your quilt. I like the idea of picking your own accents; it prevents everyone from making identical quilts. There are also other clubs and classes that can be found online.
I mentioned above that this shop is the local Gammill dealer. There were several machines in house being prepared for delivery the day I was there, including one with a 14 foot table. Unfortunately there is not a room in my small home that would fit a machine that big, but if you have the room, go for it!! There is also a wall of Omni thread at very reasonable prices.
For day to day sewing, A Touch of Thread is a Baby Loc dealer – don’t for get to check these darlings out. They range from small machines suitable for carrying to classes to larger embroidery systems.
Finally, there is a desk and books to occupy the kids if you have them along. The shop is run by grandparents, so they are used to having children around and needing something to occupy them.
Plan to spend 45 minutes to an hour here to see everything.
| A Touch of Thread Quilting Gallery | Hours: Tues-Fri 10-5 Sat 10-2 Sun-Mon Closed |
| 2885 East Pike | 740-454-8372 |
| Zanesville, OH 43701 | Martha@atouchofthread.net |
| www.atotqg.com | Mail Order: Yes Fabric Online: Yes |
Ah, but dear peacock lover; did you grab that peacock panel? Enquiring minds and all that… 😉