Sew Bee It quilt shop a magnet for area enthusiasts
Chattanooga Times and Free Press,
May 9th 2002
By Emily McDonald Staff Writer
Pamela Ruiz took quilting lessons from Karen Sperry to please her mother-in-law, Grael Ruiz. Now Pamela Ruiz has opened a quilt shop, Sew Bee It: A Quilter's Garden, in Ringgold, Ga., and Mrs. Sperry and Grael Ruiz are helping her run it.
"Quilting is a passion for me, and another passion is organizing events where people can get together and have fun," Pamela Ruiz said. That's what she wants to foster at Sew Bee It. "Ladies can come in here and spend the whole day." The shop is in 3,000 square feet of space that formerly served as the warehouse for GR Electronics, a business owned by Pamela Ruiz's husband, Gary. It is filled with quilting supplies ranging from bolts of colorful designer fabrics to sewing machines and also contains a classroom and sitting area where coffee and pastries are always available.
Quilts made by Grael and Pamela Ruiz and Mrs. Sperry hang on the walls and provide visible proof of Pamela Ruiz's comment that "quilting is not a relic of a bygone era. It is fiber art." Quilting is a $1.84 billion dollar industry in the United States and enjoyed by almost 1 million Americans, according to Pamela Ruiz. That represents a 43 percent increase in the number of quilters and almost a 52 percent increase in total dollars spent since 1997. There are about 2,000 quilt shops in the country.
"There is a whole new audience for quilting," she said. Quilt shops are reaching out to women who have college degrees and range in age from 25 to 75.
Quilting has also become high tech and Sew Bee It sells a computerized sewing machine by Janome for $999. "The whole store is networked," Pamela Ruiz said. Quilting software allows quilters to design a quilt, select fabric and calculate the yardage. Then they shop. Sew Bee It offers an array of classes, among them a monthly unfinished objects -- or UFO -- class for quilters with a bunch of incomplete projects.
Although only open for a couple of months, Sew Bee It is already becoming a draw for quilters who've previously traveled to Atlanta, Birmingham, Ala., or Knoxville to buy supplies. Or they've ordered them by mail. "If you are a quilter, who knows about this place," said Sally Greulich of Cleveland "I am so excited they are here," said Diane Hagen of Chattanooga. "I was going to Knoxville." Unlike some shop owners, Pamela Ruiz doesn't care if another quilt shop opens next door. "Quilters have a saying, let's do a shop hop," she said.
Pamela and Gary Ruiz and his brother moved their families to Ringgold three years ago and Grael Ruiz and her husband decided to move, too. "She was unhappy about leaving her quilting guild," Pamela Ruiz said. "I found Karen and she taught me in her basement to quilt. I only did it to make her happy but I got addicted." Pamela and Grael Ruiz were driving to Atlanta to buy fabric and, although she'd never owned a business, Pamela Ruiz decided to take the big leap and open the shop that represents an investment of about $140,000. The space met several criteria the women had for a shop location, Grael Ruiz said. It is near Interstate 75 and restaurants like the new Ruby Tuesday and is spacious with high
ceilings.
