Parowan, Utah

Last week when we were at Brian Head, we heard that there was a quilt store in Parowan. We originally went through Parowan, and then drove 15 minutes up the mountain to get to our resort at Brian Head. We had enough fabric to keep us busy for years, but knowing there was a quilt store nearby sent us driving back down the mountain one morning.
We arrived at "Sew Crazy" at about 10:15 am and found the doors locked. We waited around for a few minutes and then surmised that because we were in a small town (population of around 2,500), maybe the store was closed for the day.
Our next stop was to find a copy shop. We went into the visitors center for directions and were greeted by a lovely lady named Jet. She asked where we were from and we explained that we were quilters and came down the mountain to visit the quilt store, but it was closed.
Jet: "Wait a minute, let me see if I can find Connie on her cell phone...hmm, no answer."
Jet as she dialed on her phone again: "Let me see if her husband knows where she is."
Turns out Connie was in Cedar City for a quilt event and her husband guessed she wouldn't be back any time soon.
Thanking Jet, we left and then decided to check out some of the stores in town. Parowan is the oldest town in Southern Utah, established in 1853. There are many historical buildings, homes and museums.
We strolled into a wonderful antique store called "Affordable Treasures" on Main Street.

After shopping for about a half an hour, the phone rang at the antique store. The owner, Phyllis Semick handed me the phone and said "It's for you".
"Huh?" was my puzzled reply.
"Yes, it's for you".
"OK.....??...Hellloooo???" At this point I'm wondering how anyone on the planet would know where I am.
The voice on the other end asked "Are you the ladies from Salt Lake wanting to go to the quilt store?"
"Yes...???"
"I'm Connie, and I own the store and I'm back, so you can come on over if you like."
"OK...we'll be there soon" stumbled out of my mouth.
My girlfriends were all looking at me with the most puzzled expressions. When I explained who was on the phone, we all burst out laughing. Being from big cities, we got our first taste of small town communication and concern. Can I just tell you how wonderful the women of Parowan are? After a half hour in their town we felt like family. They had gone out of their way to help us feel welcome, and I knew if I needed anything, anytime, they would try and help.

We jumped in our car and drove over to Connie Biasi's quilt store called "Sew Crazy". She's a young mom, and as sweet as can be. The store is small and limited in selection, but she had some really nice fabrics. Judi found a good selection of pinks and browns that she was hunting for. Connie also has a long arm in her store. She charges 1 cent an inch for overall quilting, and 1 1/2 cents an inch for custom. I saw some of her work and she is very good. Terrific prices, and she said she does mail orders. You can find her at "Sew Crazy 63 E. Center St. Parowan, Ut 84761 (435) 477-9136"

I found this great new book by Heather Mulder Peterson of Anka's Treasures called "Fat Quarter Cottage".

Cupcakes seem to be the rage right now so I bought some of this fabric, although I'm not sure where I'll be using it.

When I called Mr. Cactus and told him the experiences of our day, he had one word of advice. He said "You girls better behave yourselves. You're in a small town and everyone is going to know what you are up to."

When we checked out of our hotel room we vacuumed and cleaned it up extra nice because we might want to go back there sometime. We didn't want them to say "Oh yeah, WE REMEMBER YOU SALT LAKE QUILTERS WHO LEFT THREADS ALL OVER YOUR ROOM!"