New Orleans House Project

Friday, March 8, 2013

Fabric in the Crescent: The Quilted Owl

New Orleans area quilters have two great local quilt shops to help suppor their quilting obsessions inspirations.  Last week I took you on a virtual tour of Mes Amis Quilt Shop; this week we're going to stop by The Quilted Owl.

The Quilted Owl is located in suburban Old Jefferson, just a few miles west of New Orleans proper on historic Jefferson Highway.  The store is a cozy, Craftsman-style bungalow, typical for this older neighborhood near the Mississippi River.  Owner Angie Jeanfreau named the shop in honor of an owl decoration on the roof of the house.  Now owls are a highlight of the shop, as evidenced by this mascot sculpture in front of the store!

The Quilted Owl features reproduction and traditional quilting fabrics.  Angie particularly enjoys hand work, so the shop is also full of embroidery supplies.  You'll find fabrics by designers such as Jo Morton, Judie Rothermel, Kim Diehl and French General.  There's also a large selection of wool fabric and embroidery threads.

There are always plenty of shop samples for inspiration!  You'll find books with traditional and primitive quilt patterns as well as plenty of embroidery patterns and books.  

Angie and her staff keep lots of kits on hand as well.  The purple and gold quilt above is a kit based on Newcastle Fabrics New Orleans 1850 line of fabrics.  If you're a visitor to New Orleans and want a special fabric souvenir, Angie just might have the perfect kit for you!

The black and gold fleur de lis quilt is a shop original BOM called Crescent City Charm.  It features embroidered versions of favorite New Orleans icons.

I think I've mentioned before how much New Orleanians love Mardi Gras.  Here's the Quilted Owl's version of a Mardi Gras lap quilt.

The Quilted Owl also has a nice selection of batik fabrics (this is just a small representation).

And here's some batik inspiration!

Visitors to the Quilted Owl are greeted by this friendly fellow at the front door.  If you're visiting New Orleans, you'll definitely need to come by car or cab.  It's about an 8 mile trip from the French Quarter, but Angie and her staff will give you a warm New Orleans welcome!