ARLINGTON, DAR, LONGABERGER AND THE BUS

I finally found the courage to try this again. Maybe my "redo" will be better than the 1st post.

Arlington first: Simple grandeur and the quiet....that is what stays with you. We were able to visit the gravesites of JFK and RFK. JFK's grave, with the eternal flame faces the Washington Monument and Capitol; the tour guide told the story that in the spring of 1963 JFK stood at Arlington House and looked east and said something to the effect "This is the most beautiful place, I could stay here forever." Sadly, this statement came true 6 months later when JFK was buried at the foot of Arlington House. A simple white cross, also at the foot of Arlington House, marks RFK's grave. Both graves are so understated and even though you visit them specifically, it is the row after row after row of rod straight white gravestones and the Tomb of the Unknowns that draws me to silent prayer and reflection. Arlington Cemetary speaks volumes about peace ....and war.

DAR: Preservation, Education and Patriotism . I think this was one of my favorite places. Maybe because it was run by women..(does that qualify as a political statement?) It was very organized: the theme based displays, the state rooms with items from states that reflected certain time periods, the Library with its widow's walk on three sides, lamps with shades!! on the tables and ferns and greenery everywhere...(I am going to post my pictures because my words cannot do this room justice) and last but not least: The gift shop...I did my part to support the DAR in that shop! My favorite purchase was a DAR black on creme poster of the alphabet and it was on SALE. I think Debbie's favortite was the Waterford Crystal finial on the stair railing. She did NOT buy that. Julie liked anything that would amuse her grandkids! Hop back on the bus, Gus and get thee to the Capitol for your picture.

Longaberger Baskets: I really was not prepared for this event. I think I just expected a huge factory with expensive baskets, liners and protectors for sale. Well, I was right about some of it.
There was a factory and there were baskets, liners and protectors. It was so much more!!! There is huge shopping area with all kinds of retired Longeberger products....many at sale prices.
We decided to get our picture taken in the basket (no comments about basketcases, please) and then we hopped a cute trolley over to the factory and the store there. We found some treasures, not as much as I thought we would...thank goodness, our over head bins were getting full. Then back on the bus, Gus to the town of Dresden, which is more Longaberger deals and products. It
here that we found the liners and the protectors to the small serving basket that was given to us as a gift on the bus trip. Lunch at a cute diner...owned by Longeberger originally....Life is good.

The BUS: WOW! Everyday was an adventure in itself. Comfortable seats...a little cramped but ok for long drives. I wondered why many gals brought quilts on the bus, I kept thinking why carry that around?...well, I soon found out why as even I occassionally shivered in my window seat! Thank goodness I had my pillow...I could block the draft coming in through the window vents...in sharp contrast to this was the ladies who brought hand held battery operated fans. Without being indelicate, I think I can guess why! The bus driver, Smokey, was as sweet and as patient as can be but he clearly owned the temperature in that bus. He was surrounded by windows (that is a good thing for a driver, isn't it?) and he clearly was hot! We wanted him to be comfortable...he was driving, 50 chattering magpies across country and he was lifting suitcases and loading prolific carryons without complaint.
At the beginning of the trip, most of us had one suitcase and one carry on that we stowed under our seats or in the overhead bins. Somehow, by Wed, the suitcases and carry ons had" babies"....and overhead bins wouldn't close tight and they would fly open midway and objects would rain down on some unsuspecting quilter. Every stop, quilters would pull another folded, scrunched empty carry on out of the proverbial magic hat and voila!, new space to store recent purchases. Open the bin and PUSH, SHOVE and SHMOOSH; by now the bus was rolling and it was a challenge to stay upright, keep all the stuff in the bin and get the new stuff in. Somehow, this "bin duty "fell to Debbie...she was the tallest and she was on the outside and she knew how to climb and she was fearless...eventually, she had to stand on the seat to see if they could find an empty, open, unpacked space in the bin.
The funnest part of the trip was making new friends as we were bumping butts, elbows, boobs, legs, feet with our bus companions...I was constantly apologizing as I made my way down the aisle...and I have some bruises to prove it. The organizers arranged for sections to get off the bus so we appeared orderly...sometimes, ladies would stay back until the rush had passed because as our floor and seat area gained baggage, it was harder to get out of our seat...the highlight was every morning, Dorothy would make her way down the aisle and give out good morning hugs...cool...wish I'd thought of it! She may have just been going to the bathroom or to visit someone at the back of the bus, but it became a ritual that I looked forward to. Debbie and Julie and I traded seats to sit next our new friend Paulene...Julie and Paulene had a great time...talking about ...well everything...Julie is blessed with the gift to talk to anyone..Paulene, had some of that blessing as well, so they hit it off.
I have to mention all the activities on the bus....know this...no matter what time of day or night, there was a hum of conversation non-stop. My husband could hear it on the cell phone when we talked. Even when the movies were on, we could talk b/c the volume was so loud! We were louder after we ate or came out of a quilt store, we used our 6 inch voices (teacher talk) in the morning out of respect for our nappers, but we talked, laughed and giggled, and we never were at a loss for conversation. The trip organizers made multiple trips to the back of the bus and stopped and talked to everyone whether they were passing out treats, gifts, treasures, snacks, games, or collecting garbage...they checked with everyone of us...could they evey hear "thank you", "that was great", "I love it", "money and more money", "I wanted one of these!", "how did you wrap all of this?" "thank you" enough? We can never say thank you, enough. We also filled our time with sewing, quilting, crocheting, knitting, reading, playing games, tracking the stock market, and quilting magazines and patterns galore. I brought a map but gave up trying to see where I was after a certain point b/c I was on the wrong side of the bus to see roadsigns...it was hard to let go of that! I just had to trust that they would navigate w/o me. Julie and Debbie, thanks for being such great seat mates and entertaining me!

FABRIC & THREAD DREAMS con't

As you can see, I finally loaded up some photos and I LOST an entire blog about the DAR, Arlington, Longaberger etc. I must go....too frustrated to continue at the moment...thank goodness a picture is worth a thousand words....

THREAD AND FABRIC DREAMS COME TRUE con't

I am thinking some quilting terminology and definitions might be in order for our blog, for example the word STASH. I imagine the definition would be something like 'goods or products held in a secret place'....how many times have I "stashed" the fabric in the trunk of the car until my husband goes to bed? How about "FAT QUARTER"? Now that is a loaded phrase, isn't it? Let's see, if I use it in a sentence with context clues if you get the meaning: "If I buy these 4 fat quarters, I will have a yard of fabric needed for the inner border." See, it's simple...fat quarters is a way to get a squarish chunk of fabric, rather than a long skinny 1/4 yard of fabric. So 4
FAT Quarters equals a yard of fabric. Buying fat quartes allows for more variety....
Or the words PIECER and QUILTER; the 1st assembles the cut pieces into a block, then the blocks into a quilt top, whereas the other, creates a design and stitches, either by hand or machine, the pieced top into a final product. Most of us enjoy piecing, but do not own a longarm quilting machine and prefer someone to quilt the piece. I have so much respect for those who quilt huge bedquilts on their own sewing machines....how do they do that???
Many words in quilting carry an "EEHW Factor". We literally gag at the thought of certain processes in quilting, like paper piecing or English piecing...now that draws a big EEHW from many; same with applique with blanket stitching or needle turned, hand quilting, or using templates rather than strip piecing. Many of the older, more skilled quilters have experienced it all and have modern preferences ...one has to admit that the rotary cutter has revolutionized piecing. Whatever your "EEHW factor", one has to admire someone who can do it all with love.

Did I digress or what? I wanted to talk about the fabulous shops that we visited, some in beautifully landscaped countryside and others in shopping malls with a Starbucks around the corner. They all carried different lines and types of fabric, patterns, tools, kits, ideas, fat quarters and pleasing displays designed to make our shopping easier; gifts, discounts, sales, treats, thank you gifts and smiles were provided by these 8 shops. We swarmed these places.....often choosing fabric shopping over food!!! All of us waited in cutting lines and then check out lines for over an hour to give these owners our $$$. For the most part we left with bags full of civil war fabric, reproduction fabric, patriotic fabric, flannel, jelly rolls, charm packs, layer cakes, Kaffe Fassett, Moda, Jo Morton and Jinny Beyer fabric, pattern books, wool, batting, and gobs of fat quarters! What I must say is that this group had Civil War Fabric FEVER. It was a frenzy and at one point, I shared 1 5/8 yards of civil war fabric with 4 fellow quilters. In the very last shop we went to, one of the gals walked up to a line and fabric and said,"Oh my god, I have been looking for this fabric for 6 months!" She could hardly contain herself...that happens to us frequently, we run out of fabric and so begins an odyssey only Ulysses would understand! One of the things that the QBT organizers did was to provide gift certificates for each shop we went to...so just before exiting the bus, they would draw 2 names and these ladies would get gift certificate to the store we were at. I won a gift certificate, so did Debbie. Watch for the picture of a true WINNER!

ALL OUR THREAD AND FABRIC DREAMS COME TRUE

So this morning I had the great idea that it would much more interesting to read a blog based on themes or topics rather than a day by day account. DISCLAIMER: these are my thoughts and words; I can only write about what I saw and heard and I apologize in advance if I miscommunicate or misrepresent any information.
So here goes.....we might as well start with the # one topic everyone is talking about the THE ECONOMY!!! I am here to report that we quilters on this trip did our part to strengthen our economy. We, or our subsidiaries, purchased food, gas, fabric, quilting gifts and gadgets, food, gas, fabric, baskets and pottery, food, gas, gift certificates, prizes and treasures, more fabric and plenty of gifts from several gift shops and street vendors for 2000 miles roundtrip. Whether we used cold hard cash, checks, credit cards, piggy banks, or debit cards, in 5 days we contributed a hefty boost to this struggling economy. The exact amount is for us to know, we are too genteel to brag about money, but trust me when I say....it was monumental. We truly lived Thomas Jeffersons' s words inscribed above one of the treasury entrances: "Cultivate peace and commerce with all."
Speaking of Jefferson, a word or two or several about PATRIOTISM. From the moment we got on the bus until the very end, it was all about the red, white and blue: flags, buttons, stickers,
patriotic clothing, songs, games, ribbons, and packages...everyone of them decorated for us. I swear these trip planners would have served us red, white and blue food if they could have! The cool thing about quilters is lots of their red, white and blue was quilted, embroidered, and embellished. Some were putting the final touches on their outfits on the trip out. Several quilters were working on patriotic projects...one project in particular was the 40 x 40 inch wallhanging made in 72 hours (as the legend goes); the gals finished the binding and the label in time to have their picture and the quilt taken with the capitol building as the backdrop. It was all very exciting!!!! We are all hoping that the wallhanging makes to the president!!!!
While the visit to the White House was much anticipated and surrounded by much drama (no purses, no cameras, no phones) and security checks...I got the wand?, and secret service... who did disclose a great place to eat called the Ebbitt Grill. I think that was the only unrushed meal I ate the entire trip! The CAPITOL was less imposing in its rules and regulations...until it was time to go in. We had been photographed on the steps and I think we looked great in our red, white and blue, though sweaty no doubt, we were lined up and ready to roll, when the word came down that the capitol was shut down because a suspicious package was found. We hung around for an hour; I did get to see a street protestor bull horning about Ron Paul for President. The docents from the capitol were all hanging around outside waiting to go back in. When the call came, we lined up with our purses and bags in tow.
Now think about this: what do you have in your purse? We couldn't bring in liquids, food, aerosoles, and I cannot remember what else. We go through the checkpoint and innocent quilters suddenly become dangerous threats to the capitol. The contraband we tried to sneak in: an apple, an orange, some fiber in the form of white powder, a coffee thermos and I don't know what else!!! Good thing my peace earrings were not a problem. We eventually got through and then rushed to our assigned area. I can only speak for my guide, we seemed to get stragglers in our group and she was very distracted by the throngs, frequently had to adjust/correct headphones, and seemed to be following too close to other guides...she did know her artwork, statuary and history about the capitol building. Like Deb said, "I wouldn't want to miss this." I really wish we could have seen the House of Representatives and Senate areas...off limits, tho we did get to go to the crypt. It was originally built for George and Martha Washington to be buried but they flat out refused....postthumously. So now it is used as a library of displays about the capitol building...NO GIFTSHOP...we were truly bummed about that...tho we quickly recovered when we found out we were going to a quilt shop on the way back to the hotel.

DC QBT Exceeds ALL Expectations!!!!

We just got home about an hour ago! We were all anxious to get home...true, most of us will see one another in a week at guild but it will be kind of sad tomorrow morning and not to get on a bus with all and ride to quilter's heavenly oblivion.
I know we did not keep up with the blog they way we intended to each evening....well, what can we say???? We were shopping!!! We lost all sense of time by Friday and strived only to be running from the bus to the event to quilt shop, cramming in some food along the way. The schedule allowed for free time and the organizers tried their best to keep us on some sort of schedule. Anyway, to say we had a fabulous time is an understatement!
Sunday, I promise to go back and revisit day by day highlights and share some cool, cool photos. Quilters, put your heads on your own pillows tonight and tomorrow....start QUILTING!!!

Well, we have had some whirlwind adventure so far ....the bus ride was FOREVER on Tuesday. In spite of numerous activities planned by the QBT planners, including 3 meals delivered to us on site, games, singing, drawings for door prizes, gift certificates, 2 quilt shops on Tuesday and 2 on Wednesday, touring the White House today ...highly over rated and now we are resting comfortably at a great hotel....our hotel last night was a HORROR movie. Deb, Julie and I had a horrendous experience....we will be happy to share this story with you in person...you must see in person the graphic representation; just suffice to say that Julie and I had a tough time sleeping...Deb can sleep through anything.
Debbie speaks:Even though we got up about 3:30 AM yesterday morning, we managed to have the energy to go to 2 quilt shops, spend some money and contribute to the economy, and have fun on our 10 hour bus ride! We went to 2 more shops today as well as our White House tour and great crab cakes for lunch. We are going back to Arlington National Cemetery tomorrow morning at 8:00. We've decided to get some "street" food-aka hot dogs-for lunch so that we'll have some time to go to the WWII and Korean War monuments before we get back on the bus and go to Jinny Byer. Tomorrow night it's bon appétit at The Cracker Barrel and then on to our hotel. We've got more quilt shops on Friday and then we're shopping all the way home through Ohio and Indiana. What a way to go! It's still too early to tell who will win the prize for the most money spent, but Julie's got to be in the running. Having some trouble uploading our daily pics, but perhaps tomorrow night we'll have better luck. Stay tuned for more news and photos of our patriotic bus complete with Japanese red, white, and blue lanterns.

It's become an obsession

I have to resist the temptation to just sit here and write about this trip. I keep re-reading the instructions, making sure I did not miss anything, I am doing the final pack right now...I just through the clothes in the suitcase....I am packing and organizing my quilt trip travel bag and my little sewing bag...I am bringing freezer paper to draw patterns, a small mat and my rotary cutter and ruler....some fabric samples of fabric I would like to find more of, some scrapbooking items that I might want to use on my log book..in case I find some wool and yes, Debbie I remembered the wool thread...it should take us most of the trip to figure out how to use that fancy needle threader that I bought us from Sue Spargo..I just fly from kitchen to sewing room, organizing, touching, thinking, rearranging, looking to see if I thought I forgot something...it's nuts...Don says come to bed...oh but 1st I am loading one quilt of mine and the block that is finished correctly. good night and sweet quilt dreams. Look at the end of the blog for my Dresden Plate Quilt. If I make it any smaller, you won't be able to see it.

I'm a piggybacker

So, here I am writing to a blog! Never thought it would be me. Next thing you know, I'll be texting. I'm writing under Chris' sign on, hence the "piggy" reference. I can't wait to go on the trip. I've had trip envy for the past 5 years that we've been in this guild. Every year, Chris and I had to work. Now that I really shouldn't be working, I am, but I'm going anyway. I haven't spend much time out East, so I'm excited to see what it has to offer in terms of quilt shops. Gee, I hope I get to spend some money!!!! It will be so fun to be on a bus--no driving--with so many people with common interests. I hope that some of us will be working on some interesting projects en route. I'm bringing my knitting and hope to be able to get some things done. Can't wait to learn new card games (thanks, Chris), chit chat without interruptions--unless we're getting off the bus to go to a store--and have some treats and laugh, laugh, laugh. Gotta go finish packing and grading!!!!! I've got to sleep fast so that Tuesday will come!

ANTICIPATION

2 days. Much conversation today about travel comfort...snacks...(don't tell me... I want to be surprised!), amusements and to what to wear while riding on Tuesday. Since we have never gone before, we have so many unknowns...tho there is a promise of prizes and surprises so we enjoy speculating what the event planners have up their sleeves! Anticipation is so much fun. I am sending out blog instructions to Deb and Julie so they can get their 2 cents in. They will as soon as they get a chance.

A quilt or 2 from my collection...eventually

I spent the afternoon looking for pictures of my quilting. If I had to define my efforts, I would say I am a scrapologist...I love scrappy quilts and sampler quilts using traditional blocks. ....not a big fan of applique...though Edyta's techniques makes it easier...oh and KEEP THE TRIANGLES AWAY from me and no one will get hurt! I suffered through the QBT block and notice my picture...it is wrong. PS....I did fix it and I hope whoever wins the set of blocks cannot tell which one was mine...:)

What is a QBT???

We are days away from the departure date. As I talk to my friends about leaving, they all seem to be curious about a "quilt bus trip". I think they picture quilting on a bus or displaying quilts on a bus..(which by the way, sounds like a clever idea...if we mounted small quilts in the windows of our bus...how fun is that?) I explain that we will be visiting several quilt shops along the way; that all shops offer different fabric, patterns, displays, gift items and all kinds of quilting treasures that we just have to have. Not to mention....SALE fabric or yardage of our favorite fabrics that we thought we would never see again!!!Of course, nothing is as much fun as 10 hours of quilting comraderie on a bus!!!! Do you think we will be talked out???? NOT!!! Believe me, if we run out of quilt topics, we can talk about sewing machines, knitting, crocheting and working with wool...see we won't run out of topics for 5 days...believe me. So my friends, fasten your seatbelts and enjoy our QBT!

Posted 2 pictures from 2005 quilt show....more to come!

I posted some picutures of my friends. More pictures on the way!

Counting Days

I cannot wait. I think everyday about getting ready, what to wear; Deb has a new outfit..."bus wear"...looking sharp and comfort without wrinkles, new shoes....me, I bought some new crocs for walking. I have been thinking about my red, white and blue for our picture in DC. I know Deb has finished the block...she probably turned hers in on time...not me....I just finished it and I am going to take a picture and try to post it....keep your fingers crossed! Google makes it so easy. I am also preparing a quiz for those of us who are traveling and those of you at home can take about the trip. I promise, it will be multiple choice...no essay questions!!!

Once I post the blog, I hope you join in and share your thoughts. It will be hard for all of us on the trip to post b/c we will be quilting and talking and talking and quilting and buying and did I mention talking about quilting? So even if we cannot write/read every night, you can stay in touch with us by writing to us!

DC QUILT TRIP

Welcome to our quilt trip blog. We are leaving on Tuesday Oct 7 and returning Oct 11. By the title you can tell we are traveling to DC. Our trip planners, Geri, Liz, Jennifer and Jan have worked hard to plan a great trip. You can read the comments that we post along the way and enjoy our trip...even if you cannot be with us. As you read and post comments, please do not reveal any last names or give detailed location/travel or date info.