Quilt Shows- Ailsa Craig and London

 Elizabeth and I went tooting around Southwest Ontario to a little town east of London, Ailsa Craig. It was the Quilts of the Netherlands show and I for one was overcome by the beauty and talent on display. These pictures taken with no flash cannot do them justice.. The committee did an excellent job. Kudos to small town Ontario

Then we stopped at a nice shop in Arkona and the Marsh shop in Coldstream .A  few of the Dutch women  came in while we were there. Hey they like shopping for fabric too. The next day was Quilt Canada Conference which happens every 2 years in big city Canada. This year it was in London so it was probably the only time a lot of us could go. There were all kinds of quilts from bed to wall which showcased all kinds of fiber art.It was a juried show as well so you have to be good to get into that. Cameras were not allowed but I did get a booklet with pictures of all of them. We ran into a few girls from home. It was very busy. The only complaint was the food. The university cafeteria was catering and we went for lunch about 1:30 and they were out of food. I can see why there are riots in prisons-hundreds of menopausal quilters and no food!!!! Not a pretty site!!! We also went to Lens Mills and Fabricland and on the way home went to Reicharts now in St Jacobs and E and E in the post office  in a little Mennonite town called Newton. She has excellent fabric.

 My best news for last.... There was a Janome dealer at the show and I bought a quilting system,the 1600P machine with "cruise control" and the Imperial frame. I saved 1100 dollars because of it being a show special. I have been thinking about it and researching the systems. because I've had such good luck with Janome I thought I would stay with them. There was a Babylock sytem there as well and I could have bought a small car for their price. They will deliver and set it up when I'm ready.

All in all it was a great albeit expensive mini vacation I'm used to Days Inn at best and the Bates Motel at worst on fishing trips with Pete. We stayed at the Hilton. The only thing missing was a mini fridge in the room for cream for the morning coffee. Who uses those non dairy creamers anymore? There was no white terry bathrobe either. I guess Paris used them all up on the prison trips.