Sew South Part 1

Wow! I have been thinking about this post and not sure that words will ever convey what I experienced this weekend......

You see I was at SewSouth. In case you haven't heard about it, it was a small retreat of 50 sewists in Charlotte NC. Tickets were first come first serve back in November. It was organized, and done oh so well by Jennifer of Ellison Lane Quilts.

This was her first attempt at organizing and running a retreat....you would never have known it. She rocked it, both in organization and content, not an easy balance to achieve.

And the sponsors were amazing!

In reality I wasn't sure what to expect....

I had been to big shows and classes before, and smaller local ones too. They were....good....but just not me...something was missing but I just thought that my expectations were too high... what did I expect? There were beautiful quilts, great lectures and even some sewing time....always lots of people coming and going.

And here I was driving 12 hours south to Charlotte, taking a weeks vacation to be a tourist and a sewist, with 50 other women that I had never met. When people asked where I was going and why, I got a rather blank look.... oh.. that sounds nice... have you ever met any of these people?  Nope, not a single one. But I read their blogs or was linked to them by Flickr groups and bees and I am inspired by what they create!

And you know what....create we did.....I met those women..... they inspired me again, and again, and again!
We had one language and that was fabric and thread.

From the first moments of checking in and receiving a wonderful Welcome bag with gifts from sponsors and goodies for those moments of thirst and munchies, to meeting Dana of Old Red Barn and Diane of random thoughtsdoordi and Susannah Kate of ArtNest (on Flickr and Instagram) on the elevator and being asked if I was here for Sew South and would I like to go to dinner?

Dana of Old Red Barn, Ginny of Fishcreek Studio and Susannah  Kate of ArtNest

Diane Stanley of Randomthoughtsdoordi and Ginny

 There was never a stranger....never an ego that needed to be checked at the door.... only women who love to sew and create and who wanted to learn and laugh 'till we cried and just have a girls weekend!

And we did.
We.Rocked.It....Period.

It was Exceptional.

I would like to think it will occur again, that the magic can be repeated. I hope so, but I am not convinced, because what was created wasn't necessarily only the wonderful clutch taught by Diane Stanley, or the duffle taught by the ever patient Lindsey of LR Stitched, or the cutest paper pieced star taught by Jennifer of Ellison Lane Quilts...

What was created was more, much more. It was about friendships being formed and extended. It was about generosity and sharing, it was about cheering each other on - literally, cheering for each finished duffle! It was about finding your tribe, your people. It was about belonging in a way and place where you were totally accepted.

It was Amazing.

Stay tuned for Part II -- you will see the loot given away by awesome sponsors
and the awesome projects we made.

Ginny