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Tuesday, May 28, 2013

May VCQ Meeting

Our quarterly Virginia Consortium of Quilters meeting was held in Blackstone, VA, at the Virginia United Methodist Assembly Center on May 11.  A group of us enjoyed a Friday afternoon tour of the Schwartz Tavern.  It is one of 2 original taverns that existed at the crossroads before Blackstone came into existence, and the only one remaining. The very knowledgeable curator shared the history of the tavern and its various owners, and also gave us a tour of the adjacent carriage museum.


The tavern started as only 1 or 2 rooms and was added on to several times.  The furnishings are close to period, based on an inventory of its contents.

There are 2 large mill stones on the exterior of the property.


 
This is an example of a Blacks & Whites quilt, tied to the history of the town and the 2 taverns.  Schwartz is German for "black" and the second tavern was White's Tavern, hence blacks & whites.
This is a portion of the inventory listing the contents of the tavern.
There are some lovely old trees on the property as well.

Saturday, May 4, 2013

Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival

Great day to be at the Howard County MD fairgrounds for the wool and sheep festival. I have never seen so much wool in one place in my life! And all the yummy colors! It was very crowded - knitters, weavers, felters, spinners, sheep shearing, food trucks - sensory overload! Enjoyed it immensely but came home exhausted!