Hamilton Visitor’s Guide: Missouri Star Mercantile

civil war fabrics, missouri star mercantile

Did you hear the news!? We have a brand new shop! Missouri Star Mercantile is at 104 N Davis, just a few doors down from our main shop.

The collection here includes our reproduction fabric lines! Want to look around?

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

You’ll find our Kansas Troubles fabrics, including that super popular Five & Dime quilt from Loose Change, designed by Lynn from Kansas Troubles!

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

Downton Abbey, Jo Morton, Barbara Brackman fabrics (among so many others!)…

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

And a big selection of of colorful 1930s reproduction bolts!

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

We had an absolute blast decorating this store! From the light fixtures and the furnishings…

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

…. to the big window displays!

Missouri star mercantile, civil war fabrics, quilt shop, civil war quilt shop, missouri star quilt co, jenny doan, 30s fabrics, downton abbey fabrics

Missouri Star Mercantile hours match our other shop hours… Monday thru Saturday, 9am-5pm! We can’t wait to see you here! If you have a visit to Hamilton planned, be sure to check out the rest of our Visitor’s Guide series!

Meet Missouri Star: Amanda, Carol & Dylan

Today we’re back in the shipping department to meet more of the crew working to get your orders out the door! This department set a new MSQC record recently and we want to pause the get-to-know-MSQC fun to share about it!

On Friday, May 16th, they 2303 packages out the door. AMAZING! We can’t say enough great things about the people in this photo. They LOVE our customers and are truly just as fun to work with as you can imagine. Way to go, shipping crew!!

ShippingRecord

—–

Ready to meet some more of them?

AmandaG

Amanda

As you can tell from her photo, Amanda is a shy and quiet employee who started working here this spring. Don’t worry, though. We’re working to help her come out of her shell. *wink* 

Do you sew? My Grandma taught me how to sew along with crochet many years ago. Kinda got away from it when she passed away 11 years ago. I still sew simple things and patch, but after starting at MSQC I have found the desire to start getting back into it! Now to just decide what project I want to start with!

Any favorite fabrics you see while working? I love the variety of so many fabrics to choose from. Seeing the new stuff come in is pretty awesome.

Favorite thing about working at MSQC? Working with a great bunch of people is very refreshing!

CarolH

Carol

Carol is the Training Manager and prior to that, she managed the shipping department. She made the transition from customer to employee three years ago and we couldn’t be happier! 

How’d you land the job? I was a customer at MSQC before I was an employee. I was so happy to learn that a quilt shop was coming to Hamilton. I had been wanting to learn how to quilt. I took the very first class that was offered back in November of 2008. It was the zigzag table runner class. Some time later, I happened to be shopping in the store one day when Sarah asked me if I knew of anyone who needed a job. I said, well, maybe me. The rest is history.

What types of projects do you like to make? I quilt and love it. I have a goal of making everyone in my family a quilt. I also make baby quilts and love to give home made gifts. They just offer that extra special touch to show the gift getter some special love.

Favorite fabrics? I love all of the fabric that Deb Strain creates!

Do you have a funny work story to share? We like to take a little extra time to give our customer a little special attention in shipping by writing a hand written note on each order. Several of us at various times have been writing a note and maybe doing a little talking at the same time. Some notes that we have had to white-0ut include, ‘Thanks for the weekend’ and ‘Thanks for the water.’ Ha!

Any parting words for blog readers? I have been married 31 years. We have one son, a daughter in law, a granddaughter who is four and grandson who is 19 mos old. We love to travel on our Ultra Classic Electra Glide Harley Davidson. Besides quilting, I also love to read and am active in church activities. I have lived in Hamilton almost all my life and am ecstatic that our little town is coming to life, and has hope and a future. It means so much to me that it is hard to put it into words. (Missouri Star note: Aw! The feeling is mutual, Carol! We love this town, too. And our employees? We can’t ask for better!)

What do you love most about your job? Our employers make sure to let us know how much we as people and the work we do is greatly appreciated. We are told and made to feel that way in many different ways. Not something that I have experienced in such a way at other places I have worked. 

DylanA

Dylan

Dylan has joined MSQC about seven months ago. He doesn’t sew, but fabrics with camouflage or outdoor imagery catch his eye when they come through shipping. Speaking of camo…. Dylan loves being outdoors, hunting and fishing. Another fun fact? He works with his mother, Anna!

And the best thing about your job? The work environment is great. Everyone that I work with keeps the mood of the work place all happy. I feel like I’m just part of a big family and always feel very welcome as if we are all just a big family.

——-

Aren’t they so great? We hope it’s fun for you to put some faces with those notes in your packages! We’ll cover more shipping crew members later. Next week, it’s off to customer service!

Fabric Friday: Quilt Market Edition

Fabric Friday is taking a slight detour this week in order to share a bit about our trip to Quilt Market last weekend. We headed to Pittsburgh, PA for Spring Market this year. Everything you see here will be shipping to stores in the coming months, so stay tuned to the shop!

image

Market is held each fall in Houston and rotates between five different cities for spring. Wondering the difference between Market and Festival? Market is the industry trade show, while Festival is open to the public. The photo above shows one half of the booths we checked out! Crazy, right?

At Market, we have the chance to see and visit with our favorite designers to see their new fabric lines. Look! We found our friend Lynne with Kansas Troubles!

image_5

 

We also get to see exciting new products, like these awesome die cuts from Sizzix! Amazing, right?

image_2

 

The booths are always great to see. So much inspiration in a 10’x10′ space! Check out the colorful new Paint collection of fabric by Carrie Bloomston for Windham! You might recognize her name from her popular debut collection, Collage. Fans will be happy to know the newsprint fabric is back!

image_10

Joanna Figueroa of Fig Tree never disappoints! This is her booth for her upcoming Moda collection, Somerset. So many beautiful new quilt patterns she has, too!

 

image_4 image_3

 

Heading over to the Robert Kaufman Fabrics area, we find more quilts that wowed us! Many of our Instagram followers asked about the pattern (made from the Beau Monde line) and our friends at RK tell us it will be a free pattern called Cleopatra’s Fan, coming soon to their site.

image_6

 

Also in the Kaufman section, Valori Wells had several amazing quilts on display! Check out this one made from her Blueprint Basics fabrics. Keep your eyes here for the free pattern coming soon!

image_7

 

RJR introduced a new division of the company called Cotton + Steel. If the always-crowded booth is any indicator, these collections will be quite popular. The five designers’ collections are all designed to work separately as well as together. The giant swatch wall seemed to dance to the air conditioner in the convention center!

image_1 copy

Check out this beautiful flying geese quilt, made with the Homebody line from Cotton+Steel:

image_9

Market might be all business for MSQC, but you know us…we still know how to have a great time!

image_1

….and leave inspired to sew! Just ask Al. He picked the upcoming Fig Tree line as the perfect collection to make his FIRST QUILT! Stay tuned, kids. Things are about to get awesome!

image_2 copy

 

Lucky for Al, he knows a family member (or two. or ten) who can teach him! Any guesses for the tutorial he’s picked? Or any tips to pass along? Leave him a comment and cheer him on!

Meet Missouri Star: Sara, Adriana & Julie

In this, the third installment of “Meet Missouri Star”, we head to the shipping department to meet three of the fastest shippers this side of the Mississippi! Ready to meet Sara, Adriana and Julie?

SaraT

Sara

Sara has been with MSQC for exactly a year (can someone order a job birthday cake, please?). She’s mother to three wonderful children, likes to paint, be outdoors and go on occasional movie dates with her husband. 

How’d you land the job? My interview was in the nutty guy room with Sarah and Al. There were no chairs so we sat on the floor for the interview. They initially put me in customer service, but the force is strong with Al so he moved me to shipping.

Do you sew?  I can sew, but not very well. I plan on taking some of the classes at the retreat center to increase my skills. I want to learn how to do everything.

Favorite fabric? I’m starting to like all of it. I’m definitely catching the quilting bug.

The best thing about working at MSQC is the people I work with. MSQC is definitely the most fun place I have ever worked!

AdrianaD

Adriana

Adriana has been with MSQC for four months and, while she doesn’t sew (Yet, we say!), she would pick batiks as her favorite fabric. The atmosphere is what she loves most about working for Missouri Star.

JulieD

Julie

Want to know a fun fact about Julie? Her daughter also works or Missouri Star! In addition to her daughter, her family includes a son who is in The Marines and her husband of 21 years. Julie joined the MSQC work family two years ago.

Do you sew? I don’t sew much. I’ve made a pair of pajamas for my daughter probably ten yrs ago. However, since working for MSQC I’ve made two quilts. I have three more planned!

Any favorite fabrics? I’ve worked with charm packs & jelly rolls. Equally easy!

The best thing about working at Missouri Star? There are several reasons MSQC is a nice place to work. It’s family oriented and I think it’s awesome to work in our hometown. Even as we grow Sara, Al & Dave like to stay connected with all employees. Everyone works together.

 

—–

Aren’t they super? If you’ve ever been in town and done a tour, you’ve most likely seen them working like busy bees (and grooving to a great song on the radio!). This department is full of staff, so we’ll cover a few more of them next Monday, too!

Hamilton Visitor’s Guide: Sew Seasonal Shop

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

Sew Seasonal is our fabric store dedicated to all ranges of seasonal fabrics! Located across the street from the retreat center (just a few doors down from the main shop), this shop has everything you need for a holiday project… and then some! Ready to begin your tour?

Stop in at Sew Seasonal and you’re likely to find Becky working among the spirited bolts. (Hello, Becky!)

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

You’ll find a full range of Christmas and winter fabrics in styles to suit any taste…

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

Patriotic fabrics…

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

Sweet and lovely Valentine fabrics…

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

And Halloween and fall fabrics, too. Boo!

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

This shop is located in a building that at one time was a jewelry store and the original ceilings and double front display window serve as reminders of the shop’s heritage. We truly love these old buildings!

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

Missouri Star, christmas fabric, holiday fabric, sew seasonal, valentine fabric, halloween fabric, patriotic fabric

Sew Seasonal shop hours are 9am-5pm Monday-Saturday, just like the main Missouri Star shop. We’d sure love to see you soon! If you have a visit to Hamilton planned, be sure to check out the rest of our Visitor’s Guide series!

In the meantime while we’re waiting for your arrival, tell us…. which seasonal fabric area would you gravitate toward first?