Slide Night 2– the best bits

I have been writing this blog post now for more than an hour, and I am struggling. I cannot explain how it felt to meet dear dear friends who I firmly believed I would never ever meet in real life.

I hope they know just how much it meant to me. These photos look so “stand-and-smile” but it wasn’t like that at all. There was a LOT of hugging and some gift swapping, and loud raucous laughter and a bit more hugging. There were toilet stories and sharing and encouragement and support and invites to parties. Thimbleanna you are here in spirit. We never did manage a photo-or certainly not on any of my devices. I smile like an idiot every time I look at these photos, Stephanie, Jacquie and Erica

You lot are a whole lot of bomb-diggetty.

and this is a new friend and a story I shall be telling for about the next five forevers. A while ago, Angie sent me one of those “you-don’t-know-me-but” kind of emails. In her email she offered to loan me some things for my booth. In fact, she went around and photographed all the things in her house that might be useful and sent me pics and measurements and ideas. (yep, kinda crazy… but in the best way). I bought things online and sent them to her house…..lots of things in lots of boxes. Nothing was too much trouble. Then Angie and her gorgeous (and funny) husband delivered all my junk to the Convention centre for me, along with their furniture. Angie helped me set up and then hung out with Jem and I and then at the end of it, they were there helping again. Unbelievable !

After quilt market Jem and I went to visit Angie and her family to say thanks and were given dinner and completely and utterly embraced. Angie’s help was invaluable, not just at quilt-market but in the weeks before-hand when I was a complete stress head. It felt so good to have someone on hand in that whole other alien country who I could ask questions of. I knew Angie was a great person but it was just so much more than that,  we got to hang out with her awesome family and laugh and read bedtime stories. On the night we were leaving we all headed outside and then Angie realised we didn’t have a photo so we rushed back in and took a few quick pics. (look at the littlest man sleeping in the background). The very best bit about this crazy internet adventure is the new friends, and I know you all know that.

I tell you, my dance-card overflows.

Slide night 1

I don’t want to bore you (says the woman who took photos of the manhole covers) but I just want to tell you that the after-quilt market bit, hanging out in Portland was awesome. It is a truly beautiful city. All the inner city streets are tree-lined and there is sculpture  and gardens and interesting things to look at absolutely everywhere.

There were amazing buildings with fire escapes ! (Why don’t we have fire escapes ?)

There was eating. Do you know that Portland has hundreds of food carts? We ate a lot at the food carts, so much variety and always lots of people hanging out. There is one whole city block of food carts, you can walk the whole block trying to decide what kind of cuisine to try. I wanted to eat everything (and I put in a damn fine effort I might add)

and shopping? I’m so glad you asked.

Jem didn’t complain once during quilt market (sore feet aside) so I felt duty bound not to complain as she dragged me through every vintage clothing store in Portland. We visited a great suburb that was practically lined with vintage shops and cool cafes and I truly thought we had shopped every shop imaginable. But like a bloodhound , she can sniff out a retro bargain among the moth balls and I believe at least 8 frocks (and a multitude of other things) made the journey home with us.

Not wanting me to feel left out, Jem even found a vintage shop for me.

Quilt market 2 : Colour and movement

I am guessing you have probably seen heaps of booth photos by now and you will certainly have read far better wrap-ups than you are going to read here.

It really was overwhelming. I had thought I would just wander around each day and take photos. Ha ! Not even close. To get around and try and see all the booths, I had to go early before Quilt Market opened and do a section each day.

I am still not sure I covered everything and some of my photos were shocking (big surprise)

If you want to see more photos you can check out more over on Flickr.

Oh and who is responsible for buggering up Flickr while I was gone?

Its dementing.

Quilt Market 1 or yes I had purple carpet

You all know how much I was stressing about the booth before quilt market, well I have to say, walking into that Oregon Convention Centre for the first time, seeing the forklifts and moving boxes and giant structures being built made me pause for more than a second. The place itself is Huge.

The booth space is a curtained structure with short side walls. Inside that structure you can build your booth (and I do mean build – one booth paved their floor with brick pavers).

On Wednesday Jem and I caught the train to Target and Ikea to gather supplies for the booth and to begin setup. I was super lucky that a blog friend (now real life friend) Angie had offered to loan me some furniture plus the use of her house to store stuff before market.  Angie came to help on Wednesday afternoon and we hung the curtains and got all the furniture and boxes sorted out.

(Yes an iron would have been a good idea, thanks for noticing but I didn’t pre-purchase an electricity outlet so we just went with the wrinkles)

Although this space is only 6ft x 10ft it sure took a long time to set up.

On Thursday we fussed and farted about for hours until eventually it was as good as it was going to get.

and as we left the Convention Centre on Thursday afternoon at about 3…. this is what we saw… People lining up for Sample Spree !

I was gobsmacked – they planned to sit there until 8pm.

and this is about 1/4 of the line by 8pm. It sprawled over three levels of the convention centre.

Sample Spree runs for two hours, exhibitors offer “samples” of their stuff at really reduced prices. Places like Moda and Riley Blake are completely mobbed with women four and five deep edging to the table to snap up fat quarter bundles and pre-cuts. It is a frenzy – nothing less. Wild crazy quilters running (I kid you not) into a room of tables and setting about to restore the whole US economy in 2 hrs.

Man, hasn't she gone yet?

I know, I feel a bit like the friend who tells you that she is pregnant 5mins after conception. That early knowledge makes for a long nine months. It is a bit the same with Quilt Market, I seem to have been banging on about it forever.

Tomorrow will see Jemma and I join Nikki and her entourage and set off. There is nothing more to done in any practical way. I found myself at a bit of a loss yesterday, life without a to-do list sits uneasily with me. Of course, I just started on the after-quilt-market list. ( lots of classes, kids ones, grown up ones- even a class in Cooriemungle!

I have been scouring the interwebs for crafty places to visit in Portland after the show, and will be mixing that in with a bit of definately-nothing-to-do-with-crafty-stuff shopping for Jemma. I have to admit to a bit of a giggle when I think of Jemma at Quilt Market....she has no idea !

For the longest time I have been focussed on the "work" of quilt market, the to-do list , the booth panic, the logistics, the not insignificant amount of time energy and dollars geared at this event. I got a bit over-it before it had even happened. People kept asking me if I was getting excited....and I would look at them like they had three heads.

'

But you know what ? its going to happen, regardless of whether I packed the right clothes, or the sensible shoes. No matter what my booth eventually looks like, or who stops by to visit, I am going to the USA and I am going to meet some wonderful, crazy, internet friends that I never ever thought I would meet in real life.

And that is reason enough to pack the Lady Depends.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Crackle crackle

Howdy cowdies,

This is Jodie here, speaking to you from beyond the computer. In a quest to keep everybody up to date and bore you all rigid I am experimenting with The Blogsy App so I can blog from the Ipad.

Can I just add here, the number of interacting devices and associated passwords in my life has reached a point of critical mass. As much as I am keen to be able to post photos of my trip on every concievable platform while I am away, I can't help but think of the old days when friends went away and you had to WAIT until they got back to see their holiday photos. Cue, the interminably boring slide night effect of people describing every single photo to you. "This was our taxi driver" "This was a funny man selling stuff".

So maybe it is better if you just follow along, clicking "like" every now again if it behooves you. You can find me on Bookface and Instawobblies if you want it all blow by blow.

At any rate I can't get the "how-to" guide to show up so its all dumb luck from here on in. I can't figure out a preview thing, nor can I get rid of the acres of space. I apologise now for the fact I cannot locate spellcheck.

 

From where I am sitting this post looks like a bit of a dog's breakfast. Crazy spaces and teensy photos but you know what, I say Publish and be damned.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Ingrid, and Donna and Jodie and Mary (all the people of the internets)

Today is the first of May and in 13 sleeps I will be heading to the Spring Quilt Market in Portland Oregon.

In 13 sleeps I will be going on my very first overseas adventure.

I can’t believe that this is actually happening

In case I don’t get a chance before I go, I just want to say thanks;

For hanging around and being awesome and saying nice stuff and having far more faith in me than I deserve.

(Of course if it all goes horribly wrong, I’ll be blaming each and every one of you)

All the new stuffs and sleep and about 4 weeks till Portland

I am almost stopped.

Of course there were many many more new things planned for me to have ready before Portland but not only will there be no time, there will be no room in the suitcase for them either.

Ulrich Little Heart (creative card) will be debuting at AQC next week

Classic Messenger is ready and available now

Louie, Monkey of wonder is almost ready

Madame Sausage is almost ready

I am a little bit sick (My throat is like the fire of Hades) but mostly just strangely tired. I sleep deeply every night and then BAM wide awake at ungodly O’clock pondering the fate of the world, gusseted button joints and how to cook tuna for the following night’s dinner. Does this happen to you ? I have to say it is a special kind of dementing .

I’ve been told its quite common in “Ladies of a certain age” 

Apparently it is also quite common for sleep addled ladies “of a certain age” to lean in and slap people.

booth panic

This morning I got the email about my booth in Portland. I’ll be number 928 if you are popping by. I read about curtains and poles and lights and carpet and giant structures and rules and regulations and I ate some chocolate and had a very quiet ladylike  panic.

This morning I had ‘booth panic’ , what colour carpet do I want ? I have no idea ! (Does anyone really choose purple?) Googling booth images is not a good idea, its all Amy Butler and giant Moda elephants. No-one seems to take photos of the teeny booths.

To stem the panic I checked out the floor plan and googled my neighbours (they both seem very nice). See Jodie, its real people with tiny booths as much as it is fake gardens and custom built scenery.

I will be visiting Ikea (and Wal-Mart which I am kind of excited about) in Portland and creating a booth from whatever catches my eye.

I am out of my comfort zone here people. In the past when I have had to create a booth, I have carefully mapped out the dimensions and had a complete set-up weeks in advance. I tweaked and swapped and changed and drove everyone around me absolutely mad. I also had a ute full of furniture and accessories, rather than a suitcase full of toys and a few pairs of undies.

And yes, of course it will be fine and yes I have a vague red and white theme in my head, but just this morning it is suddenly very real and I figured if we were having a cuppa this morning I’d be asking you.

Should I take the frock along? (see sidebar) I mean I don’t actually have a pattern for it or anything but its a great conversation starter. 

What about bunting (you know I am not a huge fan of bunting), it looks festive but surely we are over it.

How about pom-poms. I bought a pom pom maker with the idea of creating a kind of garland, but the pom pom I made was ugly. I want to make teeny ones, but then that seems like a lot of work for not much impact.

How do I display all these toys at kind of eye-level without it looking like a dogs breakfast?

Pole scrunchies ? To cover the front poles? plain or striped?

curtains? tablecloths? signs?

I’d pass you another biscuit and refill your cup and look at expectantly………..well ?

what’s the fuss

Ever hopeful, I went off and had my passport photos taken this morning.

The neutral expression stuff proved quite difficult because I kept smiling at the woman behind the camera.

I do feel though, that she captured just a little of my personality in this shot.

 

Would you let this woman into your country?

The things I want to blog about

 

My awesome weekend at sewjourn

My friend Mary's patchwork shop

My new look spunk bubble bloggy stuff

My upcoming classes

My very small part in the wonderful Red Nose Day Dolls campaign

Tuesday Rotate

Stuffs I have made  and stuffs I want to make

But right now, on this rainy (at last) Tuesday morning I need to tell you

that I finally have a birth certificate with my actual name on it.

(roll on passport)

Jodie- next bit middle bit surname

Best you make a cuppa before you start on this one.

Once upon a time a couple got married, had kids and gave them names (because otherwise it is just too confusing).

After a bit they got divorced and the woman married someone else. Lets call him newfather.

So the kids all changed their surname to newfather.

No big deal – this would have to happen to tens of thousands of people.

Life goes on and one of  the children gets a drivers license and has to fill out a special form explaining about the remarriage and the newfather name.

Life goes on even further and the whole thing is never thought about….the kid has been a new-father since she was about 5. Banks stuff, house mortgage, university diplomas..everything is newfather

 

So welcome to the present day when Jodie –next bit, middle name, newfather decides she might need a passport. She figures she will need a full birth certificate, not just an extract and proceeds to dig out the extract.

Well surprise surprise ! of course Jodie is expecting it to read “jodie-nextbit, middle name, oldfather” but it doesn’t…..it reads  Jodie, next bit, oldfather.

WHAT ? the next bit is not joined to Jodie with a little hyphen ??? really??? and where is my Middle name ???

As you can imagine this brought about some discussion with the mother. Apparently when Jodie was baptised the priest was not impressed with the Jodie, next bit, oldfather name as it did not contain any Saints names so he joined the next bit to Jodie with a dinky little hyphen and added the middle Saint’s name himself….

Thanks dude.

So I have been lugging around this great big overweight name for all this time when I didn’t have to.

Hurray….a legal name is in order to go back to Jodie, next bit, newfather (and then a passport)….however if I do that I would have to change every other piece of paper in my life. That just seems like a whole new can of hassle.

So now I have to legally change my name from Jodie next bit, , oldfather  to ummmm, Jodie-next bit, Middle name, newfather, the name I have been using for thirty something years.

The first attempt was rejected by the office of pink polka dots because I was born under the jurisdiction of the office of green squiggles.

You know what, you can call me freakin’ Elvis if it will get me a passport.

I may be swimming to Portland.