Friday I took an applique workshop with Becky Goldsmith. What a great teacher she is, she had a video camera set up so we could watch her on a screen behind her. That way we could sit and take notes and not have to hover behind her!

The class was called Little Bitty Eensy Teensy and let me tell you it was. The finished blocks will be 5" and the first piece we worked on was a small branch about 1.5" long with 5 branches! There are four of these on the block. We also worked on an 8 sided star. She showed us how to applique circles and inner curves [reverse applique].

I don't usually do needle turned applique and found the lesson very helpful. If she comes your way, make sure you attend a lecture or take a class. She makes it look like "A Piece of Cake."

Final chapter for the travelogue. We drove by Joy of Quilting in Florence early and found that the shop would let us come in although it wasn't yet open. But at Jodi's Quilt Shop; also in Florence we were not as lucky.

The Oregon coast is one of my favourite drives; if you've not done it be prepared for lots of curves and narrow roads. The views are spectacular with a lot of easy access to beaches. There are many lighthouses along the way. One of my favourite ones is at the Coquille River, it was being worked on while we were there and I didn't take any pictures this time. Watch out for cyclists along the way.

In Newport we stopped in at Quilter's Cove http://www.quilterscove.net/ This was previously Newport Quilts and Gift Store. The new staff are a lot friendlier, they offer a birthday discount of half your age! They also credit you $25.00 after spending $250!

In Lincoln City we checked out the Outlet Mall and then headed back on the road stopping at BJ's Fabrics. She has a shop in the basement of her home filled with all sorts of goodies and fabrics in every nook and crannie you can find.

Onto Tillamook, known for their cheese and ice cream with a brief stop at Jane's Fabric Patch http://www.janesfabricpatch.com/ Most of the towns along the coast are about a 30 minute drive apart. The Tillamook Cheese Factory has a great ice cream parlour always worth a quick stop.
http://www.tillamookcheese.com/VisitorsCenter/

Trash 'n' Treasures in Rockaway Beach is a fun antique shop that I've found a few treasures in before, but no luck this visit. In Wheeler I ran into Creative Quilts before we headed up to Centre Diamond in Cannon Beach http://www.centerdiamond.com/ This shop always has some special treasures. They have a wonderful selection of Batiks and Japanese Fabrics. They had a cute kit to make a circular bag with some antique kimono fabrics and Japanese beads.

After shopping we drove back to Tolovanna Beach and had a stroll, looking at the shorebirds and crashing surf. I had fun taking pictures before we drove up to Seaside for the evening.

Tuesday morning we woke up to clouds and headed back over the Columbia River and into Washington state. Weather improved along the way and we took a few driving breaks, heading back up to the Canadian border.

The final round trip was 5,600 km or about 3,500 miles. It was filled with lots of fun, family friends and adventures.

Last night I went to a presentation by Lion's Gate Quilters' Guild http://lionsgatequiltersguild.com/ Every other year they do Fall Seminars where they bring some "big name" quilters. I have previously listened to lectures and attended classes with Jane Sassaman http://www.janesassaman.com/ and Ruth B.McDowell
http://www.ruthbmcdowell.com/ through this group. Last night they had Becky Goldsmith http://www.pieceocake.com/ and Jeannette DeNicholis Meyer http://www.jdmeyer.com/menu.htm speak at the event. I enjoyed both speakers. It was interesting to find some common links between them. They both are married and have two sons and they both shared the same whimsical cartoon as part of their presentation.


Tomorrow I'm taking a workshop with Becky called Little Bitty Eensy Teensy. The applique squares are only about 6" square! I look forward to taking this class and will let you know how it went tomorrow.

Travelling up through Oxnard we saw lots of artichokes growing in the fields. We went to San Paula and checked out Brownie's Basement. This shop recently changed hands and they have some great bargains tucked in amongst the bolts of fabrics and gift items.



We took a driving break in Solvang where we walked along the Danish themed shops and had a driving break. We spent our next night in Santa Maria where the quilt shop had just closed.



Next we checked out Arroyo Grande and the Quilt Attic http://www.quiltspot.com/ I got a copy of their upcoming November Shop Hop to locate some shops along the way north. We drove through San Louis Obispo bypassing Betty's Fabrics and stopped in at Quiltin' Cousins in Pismo Beach. This is a small but well stocked little shop.



In Morro Bay we stopped again at the Cotton Ball http://www.thecottonball.com/ they have quilting, home decorating, knitting and sewing machines in this 2 level shop.



Continuing north we explored antique shops in Cayucous and then went into In Stitches http://www.cayucosinstitches.com/ she has been open just over a year and has some delightful quilts hanging on the front porch. We had lunch at The Little Market where they custom made a great sandwich for us.



On our way to Pacific Grove we looked at Japanese fabrics in Back Porch Fabrics
http://www.backporchfabrics.com/ Their computer system keeps you on file and I found that I was last there in 1999! Their staff is very informative and helpful.



Do you ever get the feeling that there is something special happening but you've not been to a place before? Well as I approached Moss Landing my bells started ringing in my head, I recalled seeing a show on Food Network about a Fish Market/Restaurant. Well, next thing you know I'm going up and down streets trying to locate it and that I did! Phil's Fish Market and Eatery http://www.philsfishmarket.com/links.html We tried both their white and red clam chowder with a steamed artichoke and garlic bread-great! As we left Moss Landing we spotted some antique shops that were closed for the day. Next time I'll check them out.

We spent the night in Santa Cruz and stopped in Half Moon Bay where we enjoyed a Flower Market and then their Farmer's Market. We then drove up through San Francisco the next morning. We stopped at the vista point at the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge to take some pictures.

We then headed up through vineyards and orchards as we continued North along the Redwood Highway. At times the trees crowded along the highway until we were again back at the ocean beaches; just in time to watch the sun set. We ended the day in Eureka.

The next morning it was cloudy, one of the few we encountered on the trip. As we drove into Crescent city the skies turned sunnier and we found a few antique shops open early on this Sunday morning.

Just across the Oregon border we stumbled upon our second quilt show! This was a small but interesting show with a good vendor's market.

Onto Port Orford and Quilter's Quarters, always a necessary stop for me. Then in Bandon we stopped at Bandon Boatworks Restaurant http://www.bandon.com/webfront/merchants/merchantdetails.php?merchantid=18 Forget Me Knots Quilt shop has moved onto Highway 101 into yet another larger store [the third location I've found them in] http://www.forget-me-knots.net/ We found out there was yet another quilt show that day in Coos Bay, unfortunately it was just about to close and we were about 20 minutes drive away. We did drop by Threads that Bind http://www.threadsthatbind.net/ only to find that they had closed for the weekend to be at the show.

The Oregon Coast Quilt Shops are having a shop hop in February 2008, I just might head down to it. We finished our day in Florence enjoying yet another bowl of clam chowder.

Several friends have asked to see some pictures from my trip. Here is a brief overview of the trip with some quilt shop information and some pictures.

We drove through Washington State, stopping only briefly at Aunt Mary's Quilt Shop in Smokey Point http://www.auntmarysquiltshop.com/index.html Then we headed down to Oregon where we found The Speckled Hen in Wilsonville. A favourite shop of mine that used to be in Aurora. The good news is that she was featured in The Better Home and Garden's Quilt Sampler for the fall issue. Check out information about her shop at http://www.speckledhenquilts.net/index.htm

The next day we headed farther south stopping in Springfield to check out At Ruthie B's antique shop. I've already posted a couple of photos from this shop. Just around the block was Quilters' Junction http://www.quiltersjunction.com/home

Next stop was Pandora's Box in Garden Grove, always a stop for me. Sorry no website.

The following day we were in Northern California where we stopped by Sew Unique in Mount Shasta City and they suggested stopping in at Sew What www.sewwhatquilts.com turns out they were having a shop hop and we decided to have some fun and join in. Just around the corner and up the street was Sew Simple http://sewsimplebernina.com/ On to Red Bluff and In Stitches. Next came Chico and Honey Run Quilt Shop, another favourite of mine. http://www.honeyrunquilters.net/

In Paradise we found Debbie's Quilt Shop and Morning Star Quilts. http://www.morningstarquilters.com/ Down the hill and back over to I-5 we found Quilt Corral.

Then we drove down to Citrus Heights and spent 2 days with family before continuing down to San Diego. Along the way we found Sowing Sisters in Carlsbad http://www.sowingsisters.com/

We drove along the Pacific Coast Highway down to San Diego where we stopped off in Old Town before finding our hotel in the Little Italy district.

The next day we wondered around the zoo taking pictures and enjoying the lovely sunny weather. We road the tour bus and sky tram and took lots of pictures.

Nest time you are in San Diego, check out Little Italy and have a meal at Filippi's Pizza Grotto, but get there early before the lines start. We drove over to Point Loma and then over the San Coronodo bridge to have ice cream at the historic Del Coronodo Hotel [remember it from "Some like it Hot" with Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemon? http://www.hoteldel.com/

We also went to Rosie's Calico Cupboard
http://www.rosiescalicocupboard.com/ they have over 20,000 bolts of fabric in the shop! We also checked out Country Loft http://www.cloft.com/

Back on the road we headed up to Irvine to visit with a friend and her family. Found the local Trader Joe's and made a few purchases. at http://www.traderjoes.com/index.html

We headed west and caught the PCH and started to head north. Seeing surfers and people enjoying the beach along the way.