I'M BACK

Hi All My Friends & Family

I left for the Crazy Quilt Great Adventure Retreat in Hartford, CT. on Thurs. This was put on by Maureen Greeson and Susan Elliott. I flew with Carol Kramer who lives in clermont, FL and we connected up at the Orlando airport. We had roomed together before in Omaha plus do get together a couple of times a year when I am down in FL.

I have to tell you that the retreat was the most thought out, carefully planned and downright wonderful one that I have attended. Maureen was so wonderful to all of us attendees. Every morninbg as we would go into class there would be a different gift or goody bag from Maureen with some wonderful things in it. Actually on our first day the bag contained items that Maureen provided for us for each of the 3 day classes. Items that she thought might be hard for some of us to find and so she donated them. Kudoos to Maureen. Maureen and Susan Elliott are complete opposites so make a wonderful pair. Maureen likes to sit quietly in the background and Susan is a wonderful outgoing personality so she directed most of the evening activities. Maureen was probably all worn out by this time anyway from all her careful planning and making us things. We had talks from Betty on old quilts that she brought to share one night and then Shirlee Fassell gave a talk and showed the most wonderful work I have ever seen. Not all cq. I have been a fan of hers since Maureen had her original newsletter and Shirlee's work would appear on the pages. Always told Maureen that I wanted to come back as Shirlee in my next life.

The 3 days teachers were Allie Aller, Sharon Boggon (all the way from Australia) and wonderful Betty Pillsbury. There were only 60 attendees allowed and we were divided up into groups of 20 rotating teachers 20 to a class. We had Allie Fri., Sharon Sat. and Betty on Sun. Three wonderful teachers. I actually started a project in Allie and Betty's classes that I hope to finish. Sharon I just did a lot of stitches and new ideas on a piece of muslin. I did take a finished cq square to work on but it is hard to know just where to put things when you are working like this. Now I can spend time and think about where to put them.

All in all it was a wonderful 3-4 days. We left Sunday right after class and surprise - surprise - we were quoted 3 hour flying time home and arrived 41 minutes early. That has never happened as far as I can remember in the past on a short flight. Someone quipped he took a shortcut. Good job hubby checked the airline and was just about at the airport when we had our bags and I called him.

One of the things that was planned was a swap with others - optional - of course. You could swap with either, 10 people, 20 people or all 34 who entered. 26 chose not to. I started and could make about 1 or more a night so decided to do all 34.
I did either a flower motif or a dragonfly. I also ordered some of Vicky Clayton's hand dyed silk ribbon that comes on bobbins - I love that - and included one in each bag. In went a little spray of flowers and I have been interested in paper crafting lately so made little tags they can use and included them also. I did not want to show them before so people would not see them who read this blog and were swapping.

The first pic is the largest plastic bag you can buy and then the individual pics of the flowers and different winged dragonflys. I do not have a bead store around here so just used what I had until it was used up. Therefore there were many more flowers (about 3/4 to 1/4 dragonfly). I put them on about 5-6" pieces of dupioni silk so they would have a nice piece to be able to sew into a square.

When I get finally unpacked I will share with you all the wonderful ones I received.
Great time but always good to be home with my sweetie.

I will start putting on some of the pics I took eventually.