Sewing Summit, Part 3

Saturday afternoon we had the best lunch EVER!  I totally should've taken pictures of all the food we ate because it was sooooo good.  I love food.  I love kitchen gadgets (you'll find out why later).  I love anything to do with food....except for actually cooking it.  I can't cook.  So when I get an awesome meal, I totally appreciate it.

In Amanda's class

Lunch was no exception.  Lunch was awesome!  There was yummy salad, the most delicious veggie sandwich I have ever had in my entire life, and OMG the brownies!!

In addition to the yummy food, we had some awesome company!  I met so many talented and amazing people.  We even played this fun game, Prom & On (tell your life story from Sr. Prom until now in less than 2 minutes).  It was so fun to hear what everyone has done and how they got started in the sewing/creating world.

I got to meet her! She is awesome!!

After lunch we had some time before our classes started again.  A group of us sat on the couches and chairs in the hotel lobby in front of the fireplace and worked on our handwork.  Some people drew, some people knitted/corcheted, some people embroidered.  I worked on my hexies.   Mike and Marshall stopped by and everyone just loved Marshy.  He was so funny.  Then I went to Quilts 101 (with Amy Smart) and Mini Quilts (with Amanda, AKA @heyporkchop on Twitter).

I've never made a mini quilt before, I was always too scared to do it, and didn't really understand what made a mini quilt.  After taking Amanda's class, I totally want to make one!  She was so encouraging and motivating about not feeling guilty about buying fabric you like and only making 1 block (for a mini quilt), and about just having fun and really doing what you love.

Me and Chris (@Frecklemama on Twitter)

I have to admit that I am one of those people who has spent the huge $$ on fabric to make a quilt, made 1 block and said "I hate this," as I put the project away forever.  Now I can find uses for those single, loner blocks and maybe even for the oodles of fabric I've never used! :)

Bento Kid's Meal

After classes were over I met up with my boys and we rode the TRAX down to the Gateway Mall.  We had dinner at the Thaifoon Asian restaurant.  Marshy's dinner came in a bento box!!  (P.S. - isn't that the funniest forced smile you've ever seen on a kid?  Had me laughing pretty hard when I took the picture!)



While we were waiting for our food to arrive, I had this brilliant idea for a Halloween-themed mini quilt.  Some of the advice Amanda had given us was to always carry a notebook in case inspiration struck.  Well, I left my notebook in my hotel room (doh!) so I needed something to draw on.  The only thing I could find was Marshall's menu and a purple crayon!  Yes, that is exactly what I used.

See, I had this great idea based off of a cookie cutter that Mike had bought me from Sur la Table earlier that afternoon.  And of course, being the kitchen gadget addict enthusiast that I am, I had to go there before we ate dinner.  Mike had already bought me a clear spatula (well, he thought it was clear but it was really glittered!) and a Zombie-shaped cookie cutter.

When I went in the store, I would've bought the whole place out if I could afford it!  I love that store!!  I bought a pasta drying rack for when we make homemade fettuccine, an apple corer so I would actually eat apples (I hate having to cut out the core), a pair of onion goggles, and a pink polka-dot knife (because if I spent $5 more I got a free year of Martha Stewart Living or something awesome like that, and I'm a sucker for freebies!).  What I really wanted though were sets of these in all the different colors, but Mike said no.  (See, I told you I loved kitchen items!  Wanna know how many times I've used any of the things we bought yet?  Yeah, none.  They're still in the bag!  I swear, when I'm old and crazy I'll end up on Hoarders for either my fabric stash or my kitchen gadgets.)

After dinner we rode TRAX back to the hotel, I changed into my comfy clothes, and went downstairs to free sew.  It was so much fun, and I admit that I didn't actually get a ton done, but I had a blast.  By the time I rolled myself into bed somewhere between 11 and 12, I was beat!  Also, my feet looked like this.  Yeah, just a little swollen.  I had perma-sock line and no ankles well into Sunday night, but it was totally worth it!

Stay tuned to hear what we did on Sunday at the Sewing Summit!!

To read Part 1 of my recap, go here.
To read Part 2 of my recap, go here.