Before saying okay, we went and looked at the site to make sure that it was a wholesome place for Mr. Michulek to be.
Indeed, it was a lovely. We gave the site owner both our consent and a compliment, and in the course of our ensuing correspondence learned that not only are the site owner and her husband retired postal workers whom many of you might already know and love, but that they also own another fantastic website called Trading Fabric Postcards.
That would be perfect for our Fun Ways to Increase Revenue series! we thought. So we asked the site owner, Chris Wheeler, to write for us as a guest blogger. She agreed, and what follows was submitted by her. Enjoy!
Chris Wheeler:
Gary and I both retired from the USPS Downtown branch March 2006. He worked in the Registry Cage, and I worked in the Tour Office. Both of us worked Tour 1.
The post office was very good to us. We met in 1986 there and were married in 1987. We have been married 25 years this June.
I have always dabbled in some type of craft. For years, I had my own ceramic shop with Mother. We made porcelain dolls and all kinds of things pottery. Then I painted sweatshirts for a while.
A year or so before we left the Post Office, Gary saw in the paper that Blount County had a quilting guild. We live in Locust Fork, and it is only about 15 minutes to Palisades Park where the guild is held. I joined.
I ended up falling in love with the sewing machine again. I am my happiest when I hear it humming. I was accepted two years in a row to have two of my quilts in national competition with American Quilter's Society Quilt show. 300 were selected from all over the world. It truly was an honor.
Then it happened: I met my web master Carol Logan Newbill. In addition to designing our sites and getting us on the road to" Blogville,” she also owned a fabric postcard group online. That caught my eye.
The post office was very good to us. We met in 1986 there and were married in 1987. We have been married 25 years this June.
I have always dabbled in some type of craft. For years, I had my own ceramic shop with Mother. We made porcelain dolls and all kinds of things pottery. Then I painted sweatshirts for a while.
A year or so before we left the Post Office, Gary saw in the paper that Blount County had a quilting guild. We live in Locust Fork, and it is only about 15 minutes to Palisades Park where the guild is held. I joined.
I ended up falling in love with the sewing machine again. I am my happiest when I hear it humming. I was accepted two years in a row to have two of my quilts in national competition with American Quilter's Society Quilt show. 300 were selected from all over the world. It truly was an honor.
Then it happened: I met my web master Carol Logan Newbill. In addition to designing our sites and getting us on the road to" Blogville,” she also owned a fabric postcard group online. That caught my eye.
Well, Carol decided that she had more work than she needed, so she gave up the group. I asked if I could have her members, and she willingly let me take over.
I changed the name to Trading Fabric Postcards. My group is worldwide. I have members in South Africa, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, of course the USA, and all over the world. We are more like friends than people who just trade.
The cards are 4 inches by 6 inches and consist of fabric backs and fronts with a Peltex stiffener in the middle. Then we stitch around them to hold them together. They actually are pretty easy to make and very enjoyable.
The cards are 4 inches by 6 inches and consist of fabric backs and fronts with a Peltex stiffener in the middle. Then we stitch around them to hold them together. They actually are pretty easy to make and very enjoyable.
We look at it as your own tiny work of art. No two will ever be alike. It makes going to the mailbox a pleasure! They are something to look forward to receiving in the mail.
I am always amazed at the beautiful workmanship the ladies have. Some cards come in beaded by hand in ways that you could not even imagine. Some are hand-painted, and some the designs are made by just sewing tiny pieces of fabric together to make the scene. We waste nothing. I have used tiny pieces of fabric before that I had to pick up with tweezers.
Yes, it is an addiction but in a good way. You can see a lot of beautiful cards on our web site www.tradingfabricpostcards.com. When you get to the bottom of the page, just click on older and go on. There are a lot of cards there.
I am always amazed at the beautiful workmanship the ladies have. Some cards come in beaded by hand in ways that you could not even imagine. Some are hand-painted, and some the designs are made by just sewing tiny pieces of fabric together to make the scene. We waste nothing. I have used tiny pieces of fabric before that I had to pick up with tweezers.
Yes, it is an addiction but in a good way. You can see a lot of beautiful cards on our web site www.tradingfabricpostcards.com. When you get to the bottom of the page, just click on older and go on. There are a lot of cards there.
(The postcards above come from Chris' collection. She has received over a thousand fabric postcards. The next two are examples of ones that she has made and sent to others.)
Sometimes at 10 pm, I look up at the clock and I can see my coworkers clocking in. I thank the good Lord that I am about to go to bed and not headed off to the Tour One office or somewhere else. I do, however, miss a lot of you.
We passed the post office this week, and I said to my husband, "It sure was good to us: we met there, it gave us good salaries, good retirement and insurance, and a lot of people we care a lot about crossed our path." Friendships from there will last an eternity.
Sometimes at 10 pm, I look up at the clock and I can see my coworkers clocking in. I thank the good Lord that I am about to go to bed and not headed off to the Tour One office or somewhere else. I do, however, miss a lot of you.
We passed the post office this week, and I said to my husband, "It sure was good to us: we met there, it gave us good salaries, good retirement and insurance, and a lot of people we care a lot about crossed our path." Friendships from there will last an eternity.
We are always up to something, and if you are interested you can keep up with us at www.chriswheelerquilts.com.
May you all be blessed, healthy, and happy. Drop us an email sometimes at SadieMaesAttic@aol.com. We'd love to hear from you.
Chris and Gary Wheeler
Chris and Gary Wheeler
