top: This cheerful stylized
pineapple logo indicates to
guests the style of fabrics sold
inside Pineapple Fabrics: bold,
bright, and not-so-traditional.
bottom: In seeking an alternative
to cutting traditional kits, the
idea of Pineapple Packs was
born. A customer selects a pack
and then has several project
sheets to choose from that can
be made from that pack.W
ith its white clapboard
wood siding and
double-hung windows,
Pineapple Fabrics in Center Harbor,
New Hampshire, a community of
about 1,000 residents 50 miles north
of Concord, evokes tradition. But
when visitors step through the door
of the quilt shop, they are in for a
surprise: Instead of selling fabric on
bolts, owners Dot and Rick Kimelman
sell only packs of color-coordinated,
custom-selected precuts. “We wanted
to bring something totally new to an
established industry,” Dot says of
their nontraditional way to sell fabric.
The fabrics in each Pineapple
Pack are drawn from a variety of
manufacturers for truly one-of a-kind
combinations, and each pack comes
with a project sheet suited to the
fabrics it accompanies. “We wanted
to introduce our customers to the
creative process while taking away
the stress of cutting fabric and
coordinating colors,” Dot says.
Pineapple Fabrics has a vibe that
is bright and cheerful. Honey-color
pine flooring and white walls make
colors pop. Fabric packs and samples
hang from the walls, while 1-yard cuts
sprout from baskets and are stacked
on vintage shelves. A berry-color
couch and chair cozy up to a floral-
pattern rug and provide a place for
traveling companions to rest while
their partners peruse the shop offerings.
The idea for Pineapple Packs
came to Rick about five years ago.
The husband-and-wife team was
looking for an alternative to quilt
kits, and he envisioned a variety of
precut packs, each comprising cuts of
different sizes—strips, squares, and
21"-square bonus quarters, which is
an extra-wide fat quarter. “The extra
width in a bonus quarter makes it
possible to cut four 10" squares—