Ramblings from my treehouse: 10 Things I Learned from My Weekend at Quilt Market

Mr. T and I got back from Quilt Market in Houston late Sunday night. We were exhausted, but had a fabulous time.

I do have a list of 10 things I learned from my first time at Quilt Market that I hope to remember the next time I go.

1. Have a good talk with George (our GPS). We had a few detours on our way to Houston!

2. Get lots and lots of sleep BEFORE I go. I didn't sleep much before leaving as I tried to get orders filled and shipped out, and needed to get packed and ready to go. I also think the adrenaline was running through me, and I was "pumped up" and ready to get going. I don't sleep well away from home, so I was exhausted by Day 2!

3. Don't take a brand new camera that I've never used! Remember, I'm not quite familiar with the terminology. (See previous blog!) My goal is to learn to be a better photographer and learn this camera this next year! I hope to see an improvement in pictures at the next Quilt Market.

4. Lose 20 lbs. for those pictures....oh, OK maybe 10! We'll see.

5. Take food with us to the Convention Center. We were starving and the food at the center was SO expensive!

6. Head directly to Moda during the Sample "frenzy" on Friday night. Honestly, I think they were wiped out of everything in less than 15 minutes! I did get to spend plenty at their booth though:)

7. Take a small rolling suitcase to the Convention center. Actually, I was going to, but Mr. T said I wouldn't want to deal with it on the shuttle bus. Boy, was that a mistake! Some of the distributors did provide market bags, but by time you collect freebies and purchase fabric bundles, you're really loaded down! Believe me, I reminded Mr. T that I wanted to bring the rolling suitcase as I loaded him down with my bundle:)

8. Spend 3 days and not 2! On Saturday, I spent most of the time meeting with the reps to order many of the fabulous new designer fabrics that will be coming out in the next few months. I really needed one day to just relax and take in the details at all of the designers' booths.

9. Have more money to spend on more new fabrics next year:)

10. Have a wonderful time visiting with the designers, shop owners, and the friendliest quilters ever, just as I did this year!

Here's a picture of people waiting for the door to open on Friday night at the Sample show. They brought chairs into the room from different places in the Convention Center, and some of these people had waited up to 5 hours to get in! After we saw the room starting to fill, we thought maybe we needed to get our own chairs and wait. We sat next to some really nice ladies that have brick and mortar stores in Nebraska and Tennessee. It's so fun to talk to other shop owners and find out the latest things they're doing in their shops.

This is after the doors were open and the "frenzy" began! I heard that someone got hurt last year. No incidents that I know of this year. Mr. T just stayed out of the way and took pictures. It was actually calmer than I expected.

I think I was starstruck by all the wonderful designers. Here I am with Heather Bailey.

Her booth was wonderful, featuring her new Nicey Jane fabric. Her booth won best double booth prize. That is real grass in the background!

Here's a peek of her new fabric line and her new Turtle pincushions. They are so cute! Her fabric will be in my shop somewhere around December.

Of course, I had to have a picture with Amy Butler. Amy is just as sweet, and kind in person as I expected her to be. I also wouldn't mind having that model body! She's wearing one of her new patterns. I think I must've been giggling like a school girl from the looks of this picture. Mr. T just shot the picture. He didn't wait for any posing.

It was really a toss up, for me, between her booth and Heather's for best of show. Amy's booth is displaying her new LOVE collection. I have all 26 of her quilt-weight fabric in my shop right now. It is absolutely beautiful. I fell in love with the purse in the far right of this picture. It is one of Amy's new patterns that will be out soon. You know where I'll be headed as soon as it can be ordered! Also, look at those pillows with Amy's new LOVE fabric. They are fabulous!