Home Sweet Home!

After a wonderful week away, we arrived home safe and sound…albeit somewhat poorer…around 7:30 last night.  We thoroughly enjoyed our time away and managed to squeeze in all that we had hoped to including visiting with old friends and family and shopping till I literally dropped.  It’s going to take a couple of days to recuperate from this vacation…I’m just saying.

I managed to snap this picture of Mr. Painted Quilt as he started to unload the van just after pulling into the driveway last night.  Although you can’t see all of the bags containing our my purchases, just use your imagination.   *wink*

Mr. PQ knows me well enough and thank goodness he had the foresight to take out the back seat before we left!

We left Nova Scotia last Wednesday morning and drove fifteen hours straight through to Montreal where we spent the next two days visiting with friends and family who we haven’t seen since moving to Nova Scotia in December of 2010.  The temperature by mid afternoon was in the 80’s and we had to turn on the air conditioning in the van…in mid March!!! 

The unseasonably warm weather  hung on until Saturday when we started to make our way home, this time through Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine…and you know what we I did…

S-H-O-P !!!

We I did a lot of damage in The Christmas Tree Shop and the Walmart Super Store in Burlington, Vermont.  I didn’t visit the quilt shops that I used to regularly shop at because I was saving the best for last.  So rather than stay overnight in Vermont as was our original plan, we decided to continue on directly to Augusta, Maine and arrived there about 6 p.m.

We checked into the Comfort Inn, went for dinner and crashed for the night.  It was another long ten hours of driving…including the hour or so for shopping…from Montreal to Augusta.

Through the quilting grapevine, I found out about the Busy Thimble, located in Litchfield, Maine…about 10 miles outside of Augusta.  For anyone who is into antique reproduction and Civil War fabrics, then this is a must visit quilt shop.  I think that I would be safe in saying that there would be something for everyone who is into that type of fabric…and more.

I emailed Cyndi, the shop owner, ahead of time because I knew that we would be in Augusta on Sunday and Monday when the shop is normally closed.  Because Cyndi’s house is located on the same property and right next to the shop, she was most accommodating and opened her shop for me on Sunday morning.

And S-H-O-P I did!!!

Here’s Cyndi, chatting with me as I drooled down the aisles, picking up treasures along the way.

Cyndi’s specialty is antique reproduction fabric and every bolt and piece of fabric in her shop reflects that. 

I was in absolute heaven!!!

Look closely at all the sample quilts hanging throughout the shop.  Talk about inspiration!

We will be returning in July during the Maine Quilts annual show.  Needless to say, our hotel reservations are already booked!

After picking up the ‘must-have’ fabrics that were on my list, I decided to give my credit card a reprieve until July.

I’m not going to bore you with the clothing, groceries and incidentals that we I purchased along the way but will tease you instead with some of my purchases from the Busy Thimble.

The Farmer’s Wife book and the latest edition of the Primitive Quilts and Projects were on my list.

Green reproduction fabrics seemed to be direly lacking in my stash so this fat quarter collection snuck it’s way into my bag .

A stack of brushed cotton homespuns to add to the stash that Mary from Quilt Hollow gifted to me a short while ago also found it’s way home with me.

Jo Morton Civil War fat quarter bundles.  I couldn’t resist.   *sigh* 

I needed some browns and blacks and after seeing them grouped together like that, decided that in addition to the browns and blacks, some reds had to come home with me as well.

Aren’t these new red and black shirtings awesome?

And what about these toiles?  I L-O-V-E toile fabric, especially when used to back a quilt.  Lots of yardage pictured below.

More brown and black yardage…

and lots more yardage of shirting fabric.

I think that this reproduction fabric will look great as a backing for a scrappy hourglass quilt that is on my ‘to do’ list.

Not a bad haul, huh?

In a couple of minutes we’ll be leaving to pick up Frankie who was staying at The Calico Inn, enjoying his own personal vacation while we were away.  Click on the link above if you are interested in having a look at his home-away-from-home.

When I called there last evening to make arrangements to pick him up today, we were told ‘not to bother’ as the owners fell in love with him and his personality and wanted to keep him.  I guess that was their way of saying that Frankie had won their hearts too.

“Not a chance,” was my reply.  

Home would never be as sweet as it is without Frankie and Mac.  And believe it or not, Mac missed him too!

As much as we did enjoy our time away, there really is no place like home.