Tea Time

At AQSG Seminar

From time-to-time I've mentioned my love of antique quilts, but it's time to admit I'm a card-carrying member of the American Quilt Study Group and I have been at Seminar this week. In fact, I am part of the host organization, Midwest Fabric Study Group.

A lot goes into planning and hosting an annual gathering of this magnitude.  Since Middle Tennessee is not quite the Midwest, I volunteered for something I could manage from a distance -- the welcome event. We decided to reflect on bygone days when ladies (and some businessmen) would lunch at a department store tea room, a time when hats and gloves were the uniform of the day.

Few people even own a hat these days so my job was to coordinate the Feathers and Flowers Bonnet Boutique where attendees could "rent" a hat for the occasion with the proceeds going to the AQSG Endowment fund.

I was responsible for the design and layout of the booth only; the hats were contributed by several individuals who were either collectors or antique dealers.  A couple of my helpers were instrumental in arranging things to their best advantage.

We had several decades represented in the hat selection...

... and added interest with photos, hat boxes, and mirrors.  The most exciting part for me was how everyone got into the spirit of the event, either dressing to the nines with a home-made outfit ...

... or simply adding a chapeau with their jeans.

The real fun was watching someone who "never wears a hat" get cajoled by a friend into selecting one to wear.  There was hardly a hatless head in the house when the tea got underway.

 

And a good time was had by all!!