TRAVELER TESTIMONIALS QUILT AND TEXTILE STUDY TOUR

I went on this trip last summer, and it was **wonderful**! We stayed in very nice hotels, had a luxury coach for
travel, with room to spread out, and were personally escorted by a French guide who was the most delightful and diversely educated young man (who is rumored to be the guide again in 2006). At each of the sites we visited we were treated like visiting experts and were given informative lectures and guided tours of the exhibits, and also time to
linger on our own.

And there was shopping, for those who never have enough fabric! We had great "show & tell" sessions in the evenings, and managed to pass around a surprise signature quilt top made of French fabrics, which we gave to tour creator Deb Roberts on the last evening. I would encourage any BQHL member with an interest in antique fabrics and fabric production to consider this tour - I guarantee it will be unlike any other you have taken.

Xenia Cord - Kokomo, IN; From a post to BQHL - the British Quilt Heritage Listserv

The textile study trip to France was one of those travel experiences that holds some treasured memories for me. Deb Roberts' tour was very well organized and had some additional surprise events that made the experience very rich. I loved being able to see some textiles that I never would have seen had I been traveling alone, and this included some special archives. This opportunity, in itself, made the trip worthy and invaluable. It was important to be able to visualize these designs in the cultural and historical context in which they had been created. Adoram, our tour guide, provided us with the history of each area as well as anecdotes along the way, and this added another dimension to the entire experience that I had not anticipated, but found worthy and delightful.

One of the highlights was being able to meet and learn from Kathryn Berenson, a truly knowledgeable and expert textile historian. Last, but not least, I met some wonderful women along the way, some that I have maintained contact with and will visit in the years to come. I definitely would partake in one of these tours again. I believe it was time and money well invested.

A tremendous opportunity of a lifetime! I was treated to the superbly organized 2005 Vintage Textile Tour of France tour that gave me the opportunity to see first hand many of the textile and quilting treasures of France that would not normally be accessible to a lone traveler. The camaraderie of sharing this experience with 36 other textile and quilt enthusiasts from North America and the South Pacific certainly added to my overall enjoyment of the trip. Without reservation, I have and will continue to recommend this trip and other trips offered by Deb Roberts to anyone interested in the European influences on our North American quilting heritage. –

The trip provided me with an invaluable wealth of knowledge for my work in quilt history and appraisals. Organized well - structured enough to keep us all busy and learning, yet flexible enough to change when special needs and interests arose. It was fabulous beyond my expectations. It was a perspective-altering experience. I see fabric, history, and culture in a new light - not just Anglo-American, but European-American.

Personally, there isn't a day goes by in which I don't remember some experience - the rich history, the fabric techniques, the sights, the food, and most of all, my fellow travelers, as well as the French people. It's worth taking more than once.

“I came away with a different point of view, which is the point of travel I guess. I’d go back in a heartbeat.”

"An overwhelming and eye-opening experience. These two weeks have been worth more than 100 times the price in terms of what it has contributed to my knowledge of quilt and textile history….I didn’t want to leave and I cannot wait to go back.”