Road trip!

The annual Jacksonville Quiltfest road trip went off without a hitch - once we retreived the seat belts and returned them to a usable position. That brief pause gave us the opportunity to say good morning to a trio of sandhill cranes. Then we were "On the Road Again" thanks to personalized cds for our musical trip created by our very own DJ.

We arrived safely, trooped in behind a busload or two of fellow quilters and proceeded to shop!

Some favorite vendors:
Bolines who had tables full of five yard kits (their specialty). Several of us now have those kits in our posession.

Cotton in the Cabin always has an incredible collection of indigo fabrics. Yummy!

Critter Pattern Works had fabulous patterns. Their display was a treat.

Diane Smith, also known as FiberSmith was there with all of the goodies and info needed to learn about making your fabric unique by adding dyes and paints. She has wonderful retreats on Cocoa Beach.

And then, of course, there's Olde Green Cupboard.

After checking out everything the vendors had in store, we moved on to the quilt displays. The variety and quality of work was a delight. It is so inspiring to see the range of techniques that have been produced by quilters of all ages. Several quilters from our area won ribbons. Woo Hoo! It's nice to know such talented people.

When we finished circling the displays and vendors a few more times, we went by Olde Green Cupboard, and then headed for home. But first, we had supper at The Loop Pizza Grill. We like to try places that are new to us when we're traveling and we were very pleased with our meals.

The rest of the trip was uneventful until we arrived at the Mims rest area. (Some of us could go no further.) After numerous cars quickly departed at the sound of our giddy laughter, we piled into the "quiltmobile" and completed our journey.

A good time was had by all, and our families were grateful once again that they did not travel with us.

QuiltFest is coming!

In a little over a month we will be on our way to QuiltFest of Jacksonville, Florida. Woo Hoo!

If history repeats itself, the show (and the journey back and forth) will be memorable. There will be plenty of chocolate, kettle corn, music and hilarity as we travel I95. Last year we entertained fellow motorists with finger puppets. I don't think the Snapple truck driver will ever be the same. Who knows what will happen this year.

Feel like going to a quilt show right now? Try this video of the USF Quilt Show held March 1, 2008. There are all kinds of quilt videos available online. Enjoy!

In the beginning . . .

How did the "inner child quilters" find each other?

I think it was the natural draw of discovering others who were equally "mature", "serious" and dedicated to "calm" and "order".

What began as a couple of us carpooling to the quilt show in Orlando has evolved into a "burb" full of women having a rolling party on the way to the QuiltFest of Jacksonville.

When the "quiltmobile" starts rolling, the fun begins. I won't say that we get more than a little rowdy, but one teen daughter wanted to know if her mother could move to less noisy spot so she could hear her on the cell phone. "Mom" explained that sitting on the roof at 75 mph would be difficult, and the wind and road noise would be louder than we were. (Perhaps a slight exaggeration on her part.)

In addition to quilt shows, we have also participated in various shop hops, visiting numerous quilt shops throughout the state. We've even had a couple of shop hops of our own.

We also enjoy an on-line shop hop. While it doesn't present the fun of all of us being together, it does have the advantage of visiting quilt shops in your pjs! And, we can compare all of the interesting new stuff we find online. (Like this -- Wrights SideWinder™bobbin winder.)

Our next "event" will be a charity quilt -- our first project together. While "Inner Child" is not a guild or a circle (more of an amoeba, actually), we thought it would be a wonderful idea to do something to contribute positively to our community. It also gives us another reason to have and all day party!