Fun on the Bus!

This weekend's bus trip was my first two day tour. It was lots of fun and I would love to do it again, for sure. For now, I need to recuperate--lol! 

At the first two shops I showed great restraint!
At shop one, I picked up some Jan Patek fat quarters. At the second shop, the stripe on the right was part of that same line and on sale, so of course I had to pick up a yard. 

By the third shop, things were starting to become a blur....
 Most of the fabrics I purchased were from the sale sections--you know I love a bargain! I did have to have that little Primitive Gatherings check even though it was regular price--too cute. 

My "mission" on the trip was to find small non-directional shirting prints.
 I think I am set for a while on these! A couple were directional, but too cute to pass up.
 One shop gave everyone on the bus one of these Fiskars cutting mats--that was a fun surprise!  

Another "mission" was to find fabric for fussy cutting Lucy Boston blocks and some of my Mrs. Billings hexagons: price is no object here! One shop had a Minnesota version of Lucy as their free shop hop block with fussy cut ladyslippers. I also purchased one of their Lucy kits to get that wavy red fabric--just in case I didn't already have it--!

When you find Jan Patek, French General and Kaye England fabric for $4.50 a yard, buy backings!
At the first shop on the second day, we were greeted by a tent set up outside the shop, all hung with beautiful quilts, where they served coffee and homemade cinnamon rolls. Yum! The shop was part of a grain elevator and so cute.  The coffee drinkers were extremely appreciative, as the coffee machine at the hotel had been on the fritz and they had been reduced to surviving on decaf. 

 For booking the bus trip with the travel company, everyone was given a Moda jelly roll of Janet Clare's Aubade.
The prize for visiting every shop in the Southwestern section of the shop hop was a bundle of 12 flannel fat quarters. I was a bit skeptical of what the quality of the free flannel would be, but it was beautiful!  Shirley and  I swapped my flannel bundle for her jellyroll though, as I have a pattern I've been wanting to do that requires two rolls. and she wanted make a larger flannel quilt. That worked out great us both and, let's face it--the Aubade is BLUE! Also for the shop hop, we got a charm square of the special Minnesota fabric. Can you believe that I didn't get a single repeat? Not even of the stripe I had already picked up at Colorz--amazing. 

Every shop gives out a free block pattern that they have designed for the Shop Hop fabric, and I think all of the shops were also participating in the Row by Row Experience--I am swimming in new patterns to sort through! The standing French General tool station was a door prize that Ruth didn't want and gave to me--love it! What a sweetie! Sandi and Karen gave me their English Paper Piecing hexie kits that were a giveaway at one of the shops. I have to work on getting them hooked on EEP asap!

If my calculations are correct, I came come with 29 yards of fabric (eeep!), not including the approximately 3 yards of fabric on each of those jelly rolls. 

I think I better dig in this winter and sew like there's no tomorrow!