The 2019 Vermont Quilt Festival

Dear Readers,
Once again my family and I attended The Vermont Quilt Festival, 2019. I want you all to know that I found the perfect outfit to wear. It was one where I can easily be found in a crowd. I call it my "Where's Waldo" suit. Afterwards we went out to dinner at Costco for their special foot long hot dog with cold drink for $1.50. There are no complaints with this bill o' fare as we prefer spending at the quilt show instead! It was there that we saw a woman of similar age wearing a red and white striped dress and all wondered if that was her "Where's Waldo?"outfit? It did save me on many occasions when my daughter was able to easily spot me in a crowd, after finding Waldo for so many years in her youth!!

Me in my "Where's Waldo outfit" along with my daughter. The only time I
use my rolator is at quilt shows where it doubles as a shopping cart!

Now for the quilt show news! They mixed up the lay out this year! The vendors were all located together in the first room and the quilts were in the second, perhaps knowing the main purpose of any quilt show for us quilters is shopping first and show second. It did seem to discombobulate us a bit but first set out to find the bathrooms right between the two rooms.

We took in  the quilt show quickly as we have come to appreciate that my dear husband photographs all the quilts so we can re-enjoy the show for the entire year and actually from an easier vantage point for me...sitting down at my computer! Every year I get more lame, and more than once my daughter suggested that if I stood up straight and walked right, I would consume less energy than crawling behind my rolling walker!! She is obviously clueless just how hard it is getting for me! Next year, I will perhaps have my husband add rear and side view mirrors to my handlebars to keep me aware of how I need to better navigate to stay out of people's way!!

The quilts made our jaws drop. No matter how much I grow in my skills each year I find that the quality and creativity of the quilts shown increases exponentially!! Enjoy a bit of the show courtesy of my husband, Tom McMillen, photographer and be the judge yourself!!

I love the stories and sights that surround the quilt show. We heard that one of the winners wasn't going to enter her quilt as she didn't think the quality of her work measured up!! Typical quilter's attitude, if you ask me!! Perhaps the greatest sight, however was seeing an elderly couple whose husband was leading his wife who was navigating with the help of her white cane for the blind. They stopped at every quilt so he could verbally describe each quilt to her, so she could appreciate it too! What a dear man and it all demonstrated that no matter what, quilt shows are for everyone! It seemed no matter what direction we went, this couple were there "seeing it all"!

Please click on  control with your mouse centered over each quilt and roll your mouse button forward and backwards to make each appear bigger and smaller on your computer screens to enable you to read the details on each quilt tag or even look at the details on each quilt. I have included the photo of the credit tags following each quilt, which tells details about each quilt! Note that the leaf quilt was done using a solar printing technique!! Enjoy!...And all credit goes to these amazing quilters and my husband who takes time to photograph them every year. They are truly my yearly inspiration for my sewing, though what an amateur I am next to these quilters! Each quilt is so beautiful!! I selected my favorites, awarded or not! I also stopped to talk to one of my favorite quilters, Connie Harris Farrington, from Queensbury, New York. She is so friendly and warm and has shared much with me about her quilting process, which has been very encouraging to me!

 

Last, but not least is a quilt done by one of  my favorite quilters. I was very pleased that this year Connie Harris Farrington was awarded for her work. Every year she enters one of her quilts in the show and each is about women and their accomplishments. This year's theme was about Women of the Pen. Note that she always does a double sided quilt, as her quilts teach and so she doesn't miss a space to deliver her message. She has taught me that quilting is about learning and processing. "Not every quilt", she says, "is worthy of being finished" and "each quilt is about learning". She always has several quilts in process and each seems to work its way to completion or not. She has taught me to enjoy the process more than the outcome. Quilting is about living and learning and expressing yourself. It is OK to work on more than one quilt at a time and whether or not you finish them is not the point. This came as a great relief to me, though I am attempting to finish more and more of what I have started, though she is right, not all are worthy of my time.

Sale Tomorrow: Vermont Farmer's Market Craft Sale

Little House will be at Vermont Farmer's Market Craft Sale at the Holiday Inn in Rutland, Vermont. Do stop by and visit us!! It will be open from 9 A.M to 4 P.M. My daughter, Hannah will be there showcasing our wares.  There is a full sock rack of 301 pairs of fleece socks, as well as our wool pincushions and house decor.  See you there!

Let Freedom Ring!

Spring is here at last and it is time for Spring Fling in the nearby town of Fair Haven, Vermont.  This means a Memorial Day Parade and celebration.  It is a time for their town-wide garage sale, and other spring time special events, including the used book sale at the library. My daughter is there with her boyfriend and his boys who are proudly parading with their Boy Scout Troop. It is an event that means community in every sense of the word.

Years ago I remember being leader of a young women's organization, and the theme  I chose to represent my time as leader was "Let Freedom Ring".  That was over fifty years ago now.  How time flies and yet some things don't change, like love of my country.  I learned so much at that time about the history of our nation and about all the patriots that laid down their lives for the sake of our present freedoms. My sense of appreciation and love of my country has grown more every year as I continue to learn more about the heroes that have fought and died for our nation.

I have just finished reading about prisoner of war camps during the Civil War, after re-discovering that my great grandfather fought in this war and was imprisoned seven times, and was even imprisoned in Andersonville, one of the most notorious prisoner of war camps. Unlike the prisoner of war camps of today, there were no fine facilities or humane treatment. It was one of the darkest days in our history, when prisoners were kept in overcrowded stockades with no housing, or sanitation. Thousands died of malnutrition and disease. Most prisoners were inadequately clothed to protect them from the cold or sun and the atrocities ranked among the worst in the history of mankind! How easy it is to forget that this is what is behind Memorial Day celebrations, now an extended weekend and reprieve from work.

May we all take time to say a prayer for our nation and may we be willing to lay down our lives to protect the freedoms that were so hard earned by the many patriots who paid for them most dearly! Our freedoms are more than a privilege, they are our sacred responsibility to maintain.  They are not free, but came at a great cost! May God bless those who paid the price for our treasured American life and may freedom ring forever!