This coming weekend will be the first of two Escapes I have planned. I do retreats for other groups and enjoy them, but there is something to be said for doing all the work myself. There is the regular stuff like the quilt and getting all that done, but add in the food, goody bags, bus trips/tours/out of the house day, massages and pedicures it just adds up.

Everything seems to be in place so now I can start on the menus. It is interesting to me how many people don’t like to cook. I hear all the time that women don’t cook since it is just the ‘two of them now’ or it is ‘just me’. Well, it is just me most of the time as well and I cook meals. It is easier to cook for one…one chicken breast, one burger, one handful of pasta…not at the same time I hope, but you see what I mean. My fridge looks like it belongs to a family of four because I eat at home when I am at home. There are some meals that I can cook in a matter of moments and it is SO much better than a box of something else. There are so many recipes online, too. It is like making a quilt but for sure the quilt lasts longer.

Some friends of mine have been sharing quotes lately. One that I love and I might just have to have made into a tee shirt for myself…”Argue not with dragons, for thou art crunchy and go well with brie.”

Hope that wherever you are the weather has been kind to you. It is cold here today but the sun is shinning and that makes all the difference in the world.

Keep the clouds, snow, ice and gloom out of your life the best you can! Escape!

I have worked 2 months of jobs in 2 weeks time. That is because I am my own schedule maker and I am an idiot! There was a job I put on the calendar but in the wrong place. Lucky for me it all worked out but it was a quick first two weeks of this month. It has taken me this week to get back to some sort of normal activity at home.

Now, I am getting ready for the first of two retreats I am doing this year. The first one is in Isle Of Palms, SC. That is right outside of Charleston. The house is truly beautiful and there are 10 Escapees joining me there. Then a few days later I am in Garden City, SC which is outside of Myrtle Beach. This house is outstanding and there are 13 of them joining me there. If you would like to join me at one of these retreats next year you need to email me, telling me that you are interested. At that time I put your name in a folder to get info when it becomes available.

My Escapes are not for everyone. They are not inexpensive, nor are they boring. I have modeled the Escapes into a retreat that I would like to attend. I cook all the food. I love to cook so this is something of a treat for me. The houses that I rent for the 4 nights is always a mansion worthy of our need to relax and be pampered. There are tables set up for sewing with a view whenever possible. There are giant fish tanks, lovely furnishings and hot tubs. Some Escapes include a bus tour, some of them have visitors…like my family. No matter where the Escapes are they are an experience. A small group of women getting together to sew, eat, relax and laugh together…and there is a kit just waiting for you so there is no cutting or worries about bringing the wrong things.

Lots of bad weather has been going through the country. If you have been having lots of ice and snow my heart goes out to you. I don’t miss trying to get around in that mess. I think about it when it is 100 degrees here in the summer, but really…I don’t miss the snow.

I have posted my schedule on CharlotteAngotti.com and if you would like me to come to your area to teach/lecture please check the dates and if there is a blank on the schedule get with me. I might have some personal things going on, but we might be able to work something out.

A couple of days ago I gave a lecture in Myrtle Beach to about 260 quilters. I asked if anyone could come up with a good name for a group of quilters….a stash! Now, that is a great name for us…a stash of quilters. Even better than a pride of lions!

Happy Quilting to you all!

With the new year we start making promises and wishing for stuff. I wish someone would go into my studio and pitch all the stuff that I just can’t. I want them to promise me that they will not tell me where it went.

I want to promise to never let it get this bad again. Yeah, that’s it, I promise to keep my studio straight. WHAT? That can’t be right? How can it stay clean if I am using it? When I pull something off the shelf, how can it get back in the right place without me taking too much time out of my working time?  I wish for more time. Now there’s an idea. If I could do that surely I would have a clean and neat studio.

I also want to be tall, thin, young and have long flowing blonde hair….But how would I know it was me?

Yes, I am saying it out loud! Merry Christmas!

This isn’t to hurt anyone else, or to say that whatever you believe in is less important. It is say what I believe in is important as well. So, Merry Christmas to you all!

Whatever you believe in I hope this time of year brings you great happiness. Being with family and friends is so wonderful and if that is what you are doing then be blessed in that.

I believe in this time of year. People tend to give of themselves a bit more. And if they aren’t I am in a mindset to tell them to get into the spirit. With money not going as far you could help someone out…take the groceries in for a neighbor who isn’t as able. Help with chores that aren’t yours. Smile more at everyone. You would be surprised at how far that smile will go. Some things don’t cost us any money and they mean so much.

So, may each and every one of you have that happy, giving spirit. Merry Christmas and God Bless Us, Every One!

It is about this time of year when I realize that getting away with my friends is really important. We have long conversations about jobs, relatives, book deals and other business related topics. We also relax, get our heads around cooking a meal and sewing. We just have a great time together.

When I first started offering my Escapes to the beach to others I didn’t realize just how much fun they were for those attending. I had never had the experience of being at a retreat. I patterned them after something I would want to attend. Over the years they have gone from a hotel to a beach house. The people who have attended have made friends and many of the same people come back year after year. I cook the food and make sure that you are relaxed and comfortable in a big house with lots of extra goodies.

There are openings in the Charleston, SC Escape, Feb 5-9, 2010. If you are interested in attending please get with me soon. The cut off will be Dec 1. You will really miss out if you don’t join us. I am not certain but I think this will be the only time I will offer the Charleston Escape.  Since I live in the Myrtle Beach area it is just easier to deal with local rental companies, check on houses, get things to the house and make sure that it is the high level of retreat that I require. There is an Escape there already and offering another will not be difficult. So, if you are interested in coming in 2010 or joining me in 2011 I will  be cooking up something fun.

As I look at the ocean from my bedroom here in Virginia Beach and hear the voices of the other teachers who join me here each year I know that I need this to keep on track of my business but I need it more than that. To be with really good people, eating wonderful food, sewing on projects for no real purpose and just enjoying the day…I am worth this, I need this and I think you do as well. Join me in Charleston for some escape time.

Thoughts from the beach.

It is already November? That means  the Holiday season is once again looking me in the eye. This sounds like I am ready doesn’t it? Well, I am anything but ready. It is my job to warn you that Christmas gift giving is around the corner. It is my schedule that has prevented me from doing much about it.

Don’t get me wrong I do have a few gifts. I have made a few things, shopped for a few things and if put to the test I will lie and say that I have only got a few more things to pick up. But to be completely honest, I am going to be shopping like a mad woman soon.

One thing I will say is that it won’t be this week or next. I am in NY right now. This is my last job of the year. I love what I do but it is nice to be able to say that this is the last job of the year. I will not be on the road fighting air travelers for space in the over head for over a month. In that month I plan on having way too much turkey, shopping for Christmas presents, trying to get someone to put on a dinning room where my screened in porch is and enjoying my family. Plus, next week I am going to enjoy the company of a group of other national traveling quilt teachers. We get together once a year at the beach and it is that time.

If you have a group of people that you truly enjoy you should try to get away with them. Rent a house. Bring your quilting or whatever it is that you love and have a week of laughter together. This doesn’t sound too much like a plan to some of you but I totally look forward to sewing with my good friends. I want my sides to hurt when I leave.

Last week I was in MI working at the Quilt Patch. What a great time. The store is huge and full of great ideas and beautiful fabrics. I taught two classes and they were full of lovely women who were a joy to be around. Kathy, the owner, is a bundle of energy. I now know how to end any lecture where no one moves to leave…you dismount!

Enjoy your Thanksgiving and try thinking of something you are thankful for every day until Thanksgiving. I am very thankful that I can see color the way I do. I am thankful that I get to travel to see all the great people and places. Oh, I am really thankful that I have been blessed as much as I have. There are my first three.

Keep your bobbins full and be thankful!