Whenever I go to an event like The Stash Bash, I come away not only feeling refreshed and happy, but confident in knowing that quilty people are truly the best people. I meet so many friendly faces, welcoming and kind, understanding and affable, and often truly hilarious. Sometimes meeting your Instagram and blog friends can be awkward, but with quilty people, it's just like picking up a conversation you were in the middle of when you last chatted. If you haven't been to an event like this before, I really can't recommend it enough. There's two similar events that I know of that are coming up, in case you're interested: Sew OK and Sewtopia. Both events still have tickets available, so if the timing and location works out, I say go for it!! You won't regret it :)

One of the fun side benefits of having quilty people for friends is setting up fun personal swaps with them. Have a friend that you admire that makes garments? Offer to make them something in exchange for them making something for you! I love bags, and while I enjoy the process of making them, I know that I'm kind of terrible at it. So when I jokingly suggested a swap with Kristi recently, she went for it. She's going to make me a cool bag, and I made a super awesome mini quilt for her that should be showing up at her doorstep today, using a new pattern that will be coming out right here tomorrow. If you liked my Showstopper quilt block pattern, you're going to love Drop Dead Gorgeous! Here's a few sneak peeks to tide you over - and make sure to come back tomorrow to see more :)