South Carolina Part One

I'm back home from a wonderful trip to South Carolina.  I visited there over thirty-seven years ago, and I've had "Carolina in My Mind" ever since.  The first stop was Charleston, an incredibly beautiful and historic city.  We spent two days exploring almost entirely on foot, with the exception of a carriage ride tour.  When we were worn out, we escaped back to our room at The Meeting Street Inn.  It is a fabulous inn.  The rooms are furnished with amazing antiques.  Yes, those beds are high.  What you can't see is the step stool in between them.  It came in very handy for my short companion.  It was such an awesome place to stay.  I really hated to check out.

This was a cemetery that we walked through.  It was a peaceful and lovely place. 

The architecture captivated my attention the most.  I could live in any of the houses, and be perfectly happy.  I loved the shuttered windows, wide southern porches, gas lights, intricate iron work, and well...everything.  The gardens were beyond stunning.  Many were very English looking in their layout.  Wouldn't you love to be sitting in one of those rockers stitching away?

A highlight of the trip was a visit to The Charleston Museum.  I am very grateful to my friend, Carol for suggesting that we make an appointment to view some of the many samplers housed there.  I knew that the Ann Wragg Sampler below was there, but I didn't know that samplers aren't always on display.  The curator was very gracious and let us view several.  Seeing Ann up close was a thrill.  It is a small sampler, but the stitching is perfectly done. 

My other favorite was the Mary Bella Hopkins Sampler.  A large sampler with beautiful stitching in really nice colors.  Oh, how I wish someone would reproduce it.  I would be first in line to buy the chart.

In my next post, I'll tell you about the trip up the coast to Myrtle Beach.