The first question I usually get is "how did you come up with the name?"
In some of the pictures, you will see THE Cherry Moose, a heavy solid metal figure in a dark cherry red color. It was a gift from my mom (local antique shop find) and that's how the little mascot and name all began.
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The second question (sometimes the first question if you know us) is "how's Lily?"
My Official Greeter, Quilt Model and Rating Expert... can also been seen in some of the photos and almost always gives a 4 Paws Up! At 6 weeks old poor little Lily started having horrible seizures and was finally diagnosed as epileptic. The doctors recommendation was to put her down quoting "Quality of Life" but we chose to try living first. Some days she's a little old lady and some days she's rocket-dog! She's had a great life full of love and adventure so we just take the days as they come. When I closed my shop in 2018 she even had a retirement party!
**PUP-DATE: It is with deep sorrow that our beloved Lily passed last week on March 1st. We had a great 16.5 yr run and she touched so many lives.
Evolution of CMQ...
I grew up in a family full of talent including cooking, sewing, quilting, embroidery, knitting, crochet, woodworking and more... so for me it's in the blood. At the age of 6, with my mom's help, I started sewing Barbie clothes on her old black Kenmore machine. Growing up and throughout high school sewing was my thing! I dreamed of being a famous fashion designer but at that time it was a totally overworked field. My grandmother was the family quilter and made wonderful things...but there was this one teacher who introduced quilting to the class and I was hooked. That first block called "Night & Noon" is still one of my favorites. During high school the dream was to own a shop one day...I knew the exact spot I wanted. In the meantime, I worked several other retail & clerical jobs, returned to college earning my AA in Business Entrepreneurship and even formed a craft pattern company with my mom for one year. You can still find those patterns today, now under the CMQ label.
2012 - I was able to take early retirement and focus on quilting & quilt designs. One day the opportunity to be part of a shop co-op presented itself and I had my own booth aka room. I started with barely any inventory and eventually took on a second booth selling handmade items, candles & country decor. This lasted about a year until the co-op dissolved. I continued to work on my designs with future plans.
2016 - The little space next to the shop I always wanted became available. Working with a wonderful landlord, I was able to make it mine!
2017 - Moved to the bigger space next door ... dreams come true! What a learning opportunity, lots of growth and so many more plans.
2018 - A year full of changes and challenges for our family. I was compelled to close my shop at the end of December. Over the next two years I continued to sell what I had available through Facebook & PayPal but missed having something "real."
2021 - With delayed plans to move out of state, my heart just kept saying this is the time to rebuild! So here I am, launching a new website & blog page, planning for the future and seeing where else dreams lead me.
Above all, eternally grateful for those who have given us the opportunity to build & grow, the customers who support us, my mom and last but not least, my daughter who grew up with the insanity of it all but has been my biggest fan & supporter. There wouldn't be a Cherry Moose without any of you.
In some of the pictures, you will see THE Cherry Moose, a heavy solid metal figure in a dark cherry red color. It was a gift from my mom (local antique shop find) and that's how the little mascot and name all began.
.
The second question (sometimes the first question if you know us) is "how's Lily?"
My Official Greeter, Quilt Model and Rating Expert... can also been seen in some of the photos and almost always gives a 4 Paws Up! At 6 weeks old poor little Lily started having horrible seizures and was finally diagnosed as epileptic. The doctors recommendation was to put her down quoting "Quality of Life" but we chose to try living first. Some days she's a little old lady and some days she's rocket-dog! She's had a great life full of love and adventure so we just take the days as they come. When I closed my shop in 2018 she even had a retirement party!
**PUP-DATE: It is with deep sorrow that our beloved Lily passed last week on March 1st. We had a great 16.5 yr run and she touched so many lives.
Evolution of CMQ...
I grew up in a family full of talent including cooking, sewing, quilting, embroidery, knitting, crochet, woodworking and more... so for me it's in the blood. At the age of 6, with my mom's help, I started sewing Barbie clothes on her old black Kenmore machine. Growing up and throughout high school sewing was my thing! I dreamed of being a famous fashion designer but at that time it was a totally overworked field. My grandmother was the family quilter and made wonderful things...but there was this one teacher who introduced quilting to the class and I was hooked. That first block called "Night & Noon" is still one of my favorites. During high school the dream was to own a shop one day...I knew the exact spot I wanted. In the meantime, I worked several other retail & clerical jobs, returned to college earning my AA in Business Entrepreneurship and even formed a craft pattern company with my mom for one year. You can still find those patterns today, now under the CMQ label.
2012 - I was able to take early retirement and focus on quilting & quilt designs. One day the opportunity to be part of a shop co-op presented itself and I had my own booth aka room. I started with barely any inventory and eventually took on a second booth selling handmade items, candles & country decor. This lasted about a year until the co-op dissolved. I continued to work on my designs with future plans.
2016 - The little space next to the shop I always wanted became available. Working with a wonderful landlord, I was able to make it mine!
2017 - Moved to the bigger space next door ... dreams come true! What a learning opportunity, lots of growth and so many more plans.
2018 - A year full of changes and challenges for our family. I was compelled to close my shop at the end of December. Over the next two years I continued to sell what I had available through Facebook & PayPal but missed having something "real."
2021 - With delayed plans to move out of state, my heart just kept saying this is the time to rebuild! So here I am, launching a new website & blog page, planning for the future and seeing where else dreams lead me.
Above all, eternally grateful for those who have given us the opportunity to build & grow, the customers who support us, my mom and last but not least, my daughter who grew up with the insanity of it all but has been my biggest fan & supporter. There wouldn't be a Cherry Moose without any of you.