In addition to the new designs, I always like to take along some of my previous year's releases plus old-but-still-good designs that might be new to some. This equals LOTS of trips to the copy shop, LOTS of visits to my cover printer, and LOTS of folding, stuffing, packing.
I happened to schedule travel very close to the same time as my local needlework shop owner, Jeannine of Acorns and Threads. We arranged to meet for coffee post-security; it was nice to sit bleary-eyed together, in the wee hours of the morning, catching up and chatting about life and industry happenings. I truly treasure the friendships that I have the privilege to build because of being part of the Cross Stitch Nation.
My bare-bones hotel suite is always a bit of a challenge to whip into shape, but with an entire day, and the help of my loyal companion Donna, it becomes a fun-filled day. We have such a great system now, having done this together for a few years, that we felt we had it completely under control, and took a few hours to go antique shopping in the middle of the day. Over-confidence is not always my best friend. It was a mad scramble to get finished that afternoon, and we mistakenly decided that it would be a good idea to save the pre-order packing for the next morning.
Friday night Early Bird shopping seemed rather quiet this year; a conversation that came up repeatedly; I was a bit worried about the entire weekend being a bust. But I found out later that the shop owners were certainly out in force, but they were all grabbing up fabrics as fast as they could, saving the pattern shopping for later. The tale has been told that anyone that had linen there was pretty much wiped out of inventory by the end of the evening on Friday. Shopping frenzy, anyone?
I had my camera in hand, as I made my rounds on Friday evening. Only about half of the rooms are open for early shopping, so I missed many opportunities to do more than gaze longingly through windows. But I did get out a bit on Sunday afternoon to visit those that I missed. I was woefully neglectful of that camera though, and as I went back through my pictures this morning, kept saying to myself, "where are the pictures of Paulette's room?" I have no clue. I think I might have been too busy chatting with my friend to lift my camera to my face.
But I did get pictures of quite a few other lovelies...
Blackbird Designs
With Thy Needle and Thread
Erica Michaels Designs
Kathy Barrick
La-D-Da
The Nebby Needle
Primitive Hare
Rovaris
Sampling of Memories
Scarlett House
Stacy Nash
Saturday morning dawned clear and warm, and the enormity of the pre-order list caught up to me rather quickly. Donna and I started hurriedly packing bags, but it was becoming clear that we would not be finished on time for the doors to open. Thankfully, my Sunday helper Anne, popped in to say hello and jumped into action, helping us get ready.
And it's a good thing. I don't think I have ever experienced a day as full and busy as that first day of Market this year. Maybe back when I worked retail on Black Friday. Maybe. I was so very thankful for my two helpers sticking it out with me. I could not have managed without them!
Which will hopefully serve as an explanation (not an excuse) for my woeful lack of further photos of the rest of the weekend. Other than a couple of blurry pictures of meals that I didn't want to forget, there are no group photos, no selfies with friends, not even pocket photos taken accidentally during the rush.
It was an amazing weekend, full of laughter and genuine connections with fellow stitchers. I truly treasure my time in Nashville each year. I love the ability to network and sit face to face with shop owners and designers and fabric dyers. I love the atmosphere of creativity. I love the inspiration that I always bring home with me. It is a not-to-be-missed experience for sure.
Thank you to everyone that stopped in for a visit. Thank you to all of the shop owners and helpers that spent countless hours on your feet. You all fuel my tanks each year and keep my creative juices flowing. I hope this industry continues to grow and provide me with a place to call home for another twenty years or more. I think I could easily keep doing this for a good long while.
A special something to show you... I was contacted shortly after the last Market, by Shannon White, a lovely stitcher who wondered if it would be possible to stitch my entire flock of birds (The Bird Collection, Parts I-IV) on one piece of linen. Knowing that their sizes were not uniform, I played around in my software program for awhile, rearranging them like a jigsaw puzzle until I arrived at a large circular arrangement that balanced very nicely.
Fast forward a few months and a couple thousand miles, she met up with me at the hotel and allowed me to display her work of art all weekend.
I know, right?
Don't you just love it!? She plans to find a large round frame to display it in.
And now for the very good news... If you have purchased all 4 booklets in the Bird Collection series, and can send me a photo of you holding them, I will send you a PDF chart of this special large arrangement, so you can stitch them up all together in one flock. Shannon is proof that it can be done in less than a year. Who's in?
Now, in an effort to make up for the fact that my pictures are a bit lacking... I've started contributing to the FlossTube world over on YouTube. If you haven't discovered this rabbit hole of cross stitch wonderful-ness yet, prepare yourself. And then, after you've prepared yourself, go watch this video, in which I talk about Market and show you what I brought home with me:
And then, after you've watched this, go watch everyone else out there in FlossTube land.
You're welcome.
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