First things first, thank you so much for your sweet congratulations and hilarious comments about Downton Abbey.
Between blog comments and emails, here's a tally of the popularity of character mentions from this favorite BBC/PBS Masterpiece Theater presentation:
Branson - 6
Carson - 9
Matthew - 6
Lady Sybil - 6
Lady Mary - 9
Thomas - 1
Dowager Countess Violet - 19
Countess Cora - 1
Ms. Hughes - 7
Ms. Pattmore - 2
Isobel (Matthew's mum) - 1
Lord Grantham - 4
Lady Edith - 5
Bates - 4
Anna - 7
I love them ALL, but I am really trying to figure out a way that Branson and Lady Edith will get together, or maybe Branson and Lady Mary(?), Branson and the Dowager(??), Ms. Hughes and Carson(???), the Dowager and Carson (????). Come on, Season Four!
I think we all would like to by spunky like the Dowager some day...
Using the Random Number Generator, our 2 winners of the Downton Abbey T-shirts are:
BJ Elder and Barb.
Congratulations! I wish I had a T-shirt for everyone!
It seems like a long time until Season Four of Downton will air. I have been re-watching earlier seasons while appliqueing my long borders - what was I thinking when I made them so busy?
I was scanning through the freebies on NetFlix yesterday afternoon while in my hand applique sweat shop (temporary nickname for the Quilt Cave...) and found the BBC drama "North and South" in 4 episodes. It was FABULOUS, so if you are suffering from a Downton Abbey hangover, watch "North and South" as a little "hair of the dog," so to speak. (new crush: Richard Armitage...sigh...)
Now on to the "Thelma and Louise (minus Louise) AQS Lancaster Quilt Show Trip" - this post REALLY should have been called "How NOT to go to a fabulous quilt show." Lots of things I would have done differently:
1) I made the round trip in less than 40 hours (and that includes more than 14 hours of driving, part of the return trip in the middle of the night with snow...). I had a limited window of time to make the trip. Next time I will cancel something so I can spend more time seeing everything and HAVING FUN!
2) DON'T GO ALONE!! Quilt shows are always more fun WITH someone else. I should have at least made some firm plans to try and meet up with blog buddies (or kidnapped people here for the road trip).
I was looking for a couple of familiar faces, which I never saw, but I did bump into the same woman 9 times...it was almost as if we were stalking each other. If I had seen her in Amish country, I probably would have been really freaked out.
I mean, seriously...if a person spent too much on patterns in one particular vendor booth, and no girlfriend was there to see it, did money really exchange hands??
3) Don't try to see EVERYTHING (including some of Pennsylvania Amish Country) in one day...it is impossible and will just make you crazy.
4) Don't gush when talking to pattern stars like Lori Smith when purchasing patterns in person at their booth(s). She was WAY busy (she is very popular and was working the booth solo) and they will NEVER remember that you met briefly over a VISA machine.
5) Make sure to get that long overdue hair cut before leaving town...you never know when the camera will be on you (AQS did a video interview with me...should appear on YouTube QuiltTV at some point - if anyone finds the interview, after you've stopped laughing, send me a link!).
6) Don't try and take your own picture of you and your quilt...you will just look pathetic and it won't work. Ask some nice person to take one for you.
But remember to HAND THEM YOUR CAMERA when you make your request, LOL. I, sheepishly, asked a person, and they took one with THEIR camera and continued on to the next quilt. I'm sure she got home and had a good laugh about THAT one...
7) Commit to the trip sooner, stay closer to the venue, and don't try and find the absolute cheapest room in the tri-state area...Firty-two bucks did get a bed and working shower in York, PA, but it wasn't too great as a place to applique overnight before the show.
8) Keep your tool purchases focused on what is needed to finish a current project. I found this neat tool to help adjust the tension in my hoop (and save my fingers) and a pure graphite marking system for preparing my "Baltimore Rhapsody" quilt top for hand quilting.
I also bought some 50-cent batting squares from the Hobbs booth so I can make my final batting decision in the next couple of days.
9) And finally, don't get upset when your quilting buddy finds new people to hang out with while you are gone. Find a prize or two to take home and share...
Teresa :o)
