November (c)rush day 3, 4, 5 and 6

We arrived in Asheville by dinner on Friday, caught up with friends and unloaded our luggage. 

Saturday we headed to Weaverville.   Lucky for us it was Open Studio weekend and various artisan's had their studios open for tour.  Unfortunately Sassy Jack's has not yet re-opened.   We did get to visit Tessa's Shop Around the Corner, Five Little Monkeys and the Well Bred Bakery.     

HAD to have pattern

Let's see, in Tessa's I broke a display......as instructed by   the shop owner she told me to pull open the drawer in the dresser to see more vintage linens and I pulled the handle right off!   Talk about embarrassing.  In Five Little Monkeys I sent the shop worker on an elaborate search for a pattern I had to have and will most likely never sew.   

Five Little Monkeys, so named because of the owners five little children, was a dream of a shop.   It was the perfect mix of great items and great presentation and displays.....

This shop was recently featured in BH&G 

and the bakery.......elcairs to die for but we held fast and resisted.

Up early Saturday we took a trolley tour of Asheville.    It was the best way to see and learn about Asheville on this hop on/hop off ride.   Beautiful homes and an area rich in history.   Plus your driver gives you all the tasty tidbits from the past.  One of the stops we made was at the beautiful Omni Grove Park Hotel.   What luxury.    Lunch was available however you needed advance reservations.   The setting and the hotel was the lap of luxury in a mountain retreat kind of way.  A place for Kings and Queens and Presidents!

I mean look at that fireplace.   Ten seats across the hearth will give you an idea of how large it was.  To the right of the fireplace, the entire back of the lobby opening to tiers dining and seating.

Beautiful attention to detail from the era of when the hotel was built.

From the west wing, looking back toward the section that houses the lobby.

A long list of Who's Who of previous guests including 11 different presidents.  

The Grove Arcade was one of the sites we saw on our trolley ride.  Opening in 1929, it was home to many high end shops and services.

It went through many different phases, uses, and updates.    It is now home to shops and townhouses.    Below, there are what appear as to be four ornate pieces at the bottom corner of the top floor windows.   Take a closer look.  Story goes that the man that opened the Grove lent a friend some money.   When the friend failed to repay the  loan, the owner had charactatures of the debtor put around the building.   

Just goes to show you, don't P.O. a man with money.

We hopped off the trolley for a cup of the best hot chocolate in Asheville at French Board Chocolates

I can’t vouch for the hot chocolate…….I caved to a Root Beer Float!

Sunday morning we were up and out again.  Although our trolley tickets were good for the next day and we had planned to use them again we didn't get the chance to.   We instead headed to Biltmore Village.   This is the area where the homes of the workers who either helped build and or worked at Biltmore.   Eager beavers that we were, we were there before the shops opened.  Walking around we realized the shops were not touristy type shops but rather Chico’s, Joseph A. Banks, Brooks Brothers…..nothing we couldn’t visit when home.  

This building was typical of the architecture in the area.

We didn’t let any grass grow under our feet.  We took a short drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Southern Highland Craft Guild.   

The display of artisan’s work was beautiful.   There were quilts, jewelry, baskets, woodworking, weaving and more.   The gift shop was equally as lovely.   And admission was FREE.    Great place to stop on the Parkway.

You know, I can’t remember what this thing was.  At the time I thought my son-in-law would get a kick out of seeing this…..…but for the life of me, I haven’t got a clue other than it was a foot powered thing-a-ma-bob thing-a-ma-jig!

Time for a real meal, we went to White Duck Taco on Riverside in Asheville.    This place was literally in a Quonset hut!   The line was long but fast and the food was delicious and the weather was warm enough to eat outside.

We hit some consignment shops and headed back to our hotel for the registration and welcome to final Prim Society Stitchers Retreat event at 4 pm.  This was my third Prim event and I enjoyed it immensely.   It is always good to be with your tribesmen!   Sunday night was the meet and great; classes started on Monday morning. 

We had a table of fun ladies were next to us.   Their fun loving was infectious.     This  is Lisa to the left.   Not only a wife, mother, stitcher, great crafter but the girl's a pediatrician to boot. She brought make-it/take-its for any and all who wanted to join in.  I started following her on Floss Tube and Instagram right away.   Just wait til you check out the autograph books she makes from paper lunch bags!    Follow her at Prims on Greenway     

One day she had us make these stick pins and the second day, we made covered buttons.   Now I get why everyone is into “the sampler in a jar” craze.  Making the buttons could be addictive.   

My first class was with the fabulous Faye Riggsbee.   No pre-stitching required and left with a finished project.  Now that is my kind of class.   She taught us how to finish off a round piece and attach it to a base.   We learned how to make rusty pins....the secret is cinnamon!  She gave us ideas for using the class techniques and was just a pleasure to listen to with the southern accent.

Tuesday’s class was with Dames of the Needle’s E-Beth.    We did the pre-stitching way back when and finished off the piece in a little ruler box.  There is a magnet sewn in place below the cross stitch to hold the scissors.  I need to find my small black scissors to make this complete.  I had never rusched before and now know it will take practice.

The Merchant Mall was small and I only bought four things.   I bought two pieces of fabric and two patterns.  The “pumpkin bird” is because I don’t have any fall stitchy pieces.  I have plenty of Halloween but not fall.   And the thimble case was just because.

After our farewell dinner were received our attendance gifts.   This beautiful LeHay shaker box with pattern, fabric, floss to finish along with a bunch of other goodies as well. 

 

So that rounds up Day 6.   Hope to be able to post the trip home by the end of the week.  Thanks for stopping by nd keep on stitching.