I presented my final lecture today at the American Quilter's Society show here in Daytona Beach. I spoke on "Pagtinabangay: The Quilts and Quiltmakers of Caohagan Island" to a small but enthusiastic group of women and men. I had three great volunteers who helped me set up including hanging several quilts, and most of those in attendance hung around afterward to pack up. One woman even carried some of the quilts to my car. It was a delightful afternoon.
Indigo growing at Tomoka State Park in Ormond Beach, Florida.
I spent tonight packing up for my drive home but first I'm looking forward to a visit from a long-time friend. (We met on a canoe trip in high school.) We'll spend a few nights here at Tomoka State Park before we head home — her to Delaware and me to Colorado.
Interesting to those of us who love all things textiles, this park was once an indigo plantation. The hardy indigo plants can still be found around the park.
Historical marker at the park.
My day began with errands. Yes even road trips include errands. I don't remember falling asleep with my glasses on of something equally dumb but I must have done something like that because when I put them on this morning, they were way out of alignment. My first errand was to an optician. I lucked out. I randomly selected a place to go only to be helped by Amanda, a well-trained, skilled and very friendly young woman who got them back in shape. No charge.
Next was a stop at the Honda dealer. One of my headlights burned out on my drive here. I thought I was stopping by to make an appointment for Monday but 30 minutes later, I drove out with the new headlight shining brightly. Again I lucked into a young woman Manuela who really knew what she was doing and had clout with the shop to get the job done fast.
"Midnight Frolic" by Molly Hamilton-McNally won Best of Show at the AQS Daytona Beach show this week.
Some Winners
The quilts exhibited at this show are quite good. The judges had a challenge to select winners. Photos of two of the winning quilts are here. You've got to love a quilt titled "Monkeys in My Hair." Zoom in and find the monkeys plus a lot of other critters. I'll share few more winning quilts in the next few days.
"Monkeys in My Hair (Evie)" by Deborah Hde won Best Wall Quilt.