Sewing Summit, a non-recap

What can I even say about my trip to the Sewing Summit?

It was awesome, it was a riot, I would go again in a heartbeat.

The fabric shop hop on Friday morning was tons of fun. All of the shop owners were incredibly warm and welcoming (it felt so… not New England), offering snacks and discounts and giveaways left and right. It felt like I showed significant restraint by coming home with only about 10.5 yards of new fabric.

Even though I didn’t really go into the weekend with a travel buddy, everyone I met was open and friendly. And really, what kind of icebreaker do you even need when you know everyone there is a fabric lover of one kind or another?

The classes were fun, the women teaching them were smart and funny and excited to share their ideas. Did I come away with any major epiphanies and completely new skills? Eh, probably not. But I left feeling inspired, with a few new ways to look at fabric and construction, and that was more than enough for me.

Best of all, there was a room full of sewing machines where we could all just hang out until the wee hours of the morning. Not the fanciest of sewing machines, certainly, but it was awesome to have them. Hey, I even got a quilt top finished! Though, as it turns out, trying to sew and socialize at the same time leads to more seam-ripping than normal. Alas.

As you can see, I didn’t even bring my real camera, hence the sparse and crappy iPhone/Instagram shots.  But all told, it was a great weekend. Well-organized (especially considering it was the very first one!), nice size (under 200 people), and a generally positive, supportive, inspiring atmosphere. You didn’t need to be the most experienced, original, or well-known person to be welcomed. Just bring some enthusiasm and openness, and you’re golden.

You can bet I’m marking my calendar just as soon as Sewing Summit 2012 is announced.