At the end of May, during the stress and mayhem of looking for a new home, I had a lovely respite one Thursday evening in Mattawa when I attended the first Blue Sky Stitcher's Ladies Night Out. It had been a busy week, for in addition to arranging the details of the move and the mortgage I had managed my final PEP Talk the evening before and had attended my last MWRC board meeting that Wednesday as well. I was meeting myself coming and going, as the saying goes. So I was very weary on the evening of May 28th, and, to be honest, not looking forward to getting dressed up to attend the fundraising event. But I had promised to buy a ticket from the organizer, and had parted with $10 for it, and some social conscience or whatnot within me prompted me to support the group with my presence as well as my ticket money. It was to be my last hurrah in Mattawa, as I would not be in town for Voyageur Days or any other event. I went.
I went alone, taking for granted that I would see familiar faces to join. As it turned out my friends were either working at the event or were sitting in groups with their friends and their tables were full. I have always been somewhat of a loner and never minded attending anything alone, so I found a seat at the back where I could rest and observe the festivities. The size of the audience was a pleasant surprise. As you can see in the photos there were a lot of women enjoying this night out with the girls, all of us given tiaras at the door and treated like princesses.
Initially we were entertained by a musical family who played and sang while we selected our choice of several tasty-sounding desserts and tea or coffee. And then there was a great build-up to one of the main events (the other being the auction): a 'fashion show' was in store for us, one kept so deliciously secret that we were forbidden to photograph it. Accompanied by pop music selections 'appropo' to each model's outfit, local 'girls' (men in drag) danced and cavorted along the aisle runway as the emcee described their clothing and accessories. I recognized two of the models, but had to ask the woman next to me (a local) who a particularly cute model was. It was my insurance agent, Pierre/Pierrette! Hahaha! He was gorgeous and gregarious--quite a wonderful queen of the night! The fashion show certainly turned what could easily have been a blah event into an evening of revelry and did wonders for my worn spirit. The auction (too rich for my blood) followed the fashion show; many lovely items were up for bid, with the money going to support the Blue Sky Stitchers.
Displayed around the room, but with the majority behind the area where I sat, were dozens of beautiful quilts created by members of the Blue Sky Stitchers. I took photos of several of the quilts and other handiwork, and have shared some of them here. Click on images to enlarge them.
There were two very specially crafted items which were lovingly displayed to us by two of the princess stitchers and then placed in the entry for the rest of the evening (see photos). These items were stitched in honor of a member of the group who passed away from cancer several months ago.
Here in New Brunswick we still are not settled into our house so I have yet to get involved with any volunteer or social organizations. I miss the occasional outings I had with friends back in Mattawa, but have a lot of good memories from my three years there and look forward to seeing my friends when I return to Mattawa for a visit (and to pick up my car) in a few weeks.
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