Lella boutique

It’s hard to know where to begin with a trip like this.

Sherri McConnell @ A Quilting Life and I just returned from England after spending an unforgettable stretch of days with 30 fellow quilters – and somehow “quilt tour” doesn’t quite capture what this experience was.

Our adventure was created and beautifully managed by Craftours with me and Sherri as hosts. We knew the itinerary was going to be good, but what we couldn’t have known was just how much fun we would have with the group of women (+ 1 husband) who came along with us.

We started in Birmingham at the Festival of Quilts, which is basically the ultimate playground for anyone who loves fabric, quilts, and making. This was actually my first retail quilt show to attend, and there were so many quilts to admire, booths to wander, treasures to bring home, and inspiration to tuck away for later. Of course, I loved seeing a few familiar faces – Janet Clare and Luke Haynes.

From there, we headed to the Cotswolds and spent the next several days exploring some truly magical spots of England.

We wandered Stratford Upon Avon, visited Kelmscott Manor (the home of William Morris), toured Highclere Castle (aka Downton Abbey) and Blenheim Palace. We also stopped by the Victoria & Albert Museum (to see the oldest quilt/coverlet in the world), and of course we made our way to Liberty of London to shop our hearts out.

And because this trip was for makers, we did plenty of that too! We had the sweetest wool felting workshop with Steffi of The Makerss where we made these sweet little mice. They had tea and biscuits waiting for us in the most beautiful pink room.

One morning, Sherri taught an EPP (English Paper Piecing) class and I taught a little cross stitch workshop where we stitched special London-themed bookmarks. We would continue to work on these projects in our free time and had a lovely tine together. It’s rare that Sherri and I get free time to just stitch “for fun” so we really enjoyed this time.

Looking back, I don’t think my favorite part was any one place. It was the whole thing. It was riding the bus through the English countryside, laughing over meals, seeing what treasures everyone bought, stitching together, discovering new places, and watching friendships form along the way. Thirty wonderful people from different places and walks of life with one very important thing we already had in common: we love to make things. Turns out, it’s a pretty wonderful place to start.

Sherri and I had never hosted a trip like this before, and I’m so grateful to her for being such a great co-host. We both felt overwhelmed and appreciative of everyone who trusted us enough to come along for the adventure. A huge thanks to Craftours for dreaming up the itinerary and taking care of all the details that made it possible for the rest of us to simply enjoy being there.

England, you were an absolute dream. I have a feeling It won’t be the last time we’ll pack our sewing kits and passports together.