Wow, there are so many great threads to read and comment on this morning that I became distracted. It's time to recap my Seattle trip before I begin forgetting all the details.

When I first heard about the Seattle Shoptember Inge Fest I hoped against all hope that there would be a way I could go. DH is a flight attendant, and against all odds, he was able to get a trip that had a Seattle overnight on the Saturday of the meet-up (read: free hotel room). I decided to combine trips and visit my sister and BIL who live about an hour outside of the city. I flew up on Wednesday and had a wonderful couple of days with them sightseeing and hiking at Snoqualmie Falls and along the Cedar River. Bringing my entire ten-item wardrobe was overkill, as I ended up having to borrow warm gear from my sister to layer over my gear (can you say normcore?) for our outdoor activities. Besides my two travel outfits, I only needed one "fashion" outfit, and that was for the meet-up on Saturday. But it was nice having the lot of it to choose from, though I was teased mercilessly by the YLF gang about not loosing my suitcase (and thus my entire wardrobe), lol!

Early Saturday morning my BIL dropped me off in front of Vicki's hotel, where she, Sveta and Deb graciously allowed my to store my suitcase for the day. It was such a thrill to meet Sveta and Deb for the first time! Deb is so jovial and animated and Sveta is dramatic, with a deep voice and a beautiful smile. After Sveta rung off a phone call she approached me saying "Now I have to hug you!" and it was like we'd all been best friends our whole lives. After the three of them were ready we set off for breakfast at Urbane, where the crowd had already gathered. It was so fascinating to see people in 3D, to hear their voices and to watch the way they moved and get a sense of their energy. It really completes the incomplete story that a still photograph tells.

When I walked in, everything became a happy blur. I began greeting people I recognized from the forum and I spotted Angie and Inge right away. I couldn't believe how quickly they made me feel at home and gave me their attention! It was quite unexpected for them to thank me for coming (are you kidding me? Thank you)! Inge is tall, beautiful and has a soft gentleness about her. She is such a treasure! Angie has this wonderful way of simultaneously making you feel like you're the only person in the room while never ignoring anyone else. I don't know how she does it! She was even smaller framed than I expected and just as lovely as her pictures. You can see from our selfie that she is delicate while I look like a Cro-Magnon cave dweller.

At breakfast, I enjoyed sitting with Cocolion(Denise), classicallycasual(Peggy) Aida, Angie's friend Mary-Ellen, Cerinda and Aida, who (along with AJ) is an old roomie of mine from a previous meet-up. After a cup of coffee, I cruised around the room meeting everyone I hadn't gotten to talk to yet. Everyone seemed like a celebrity to me, especially the ones that post frequently. While I was gone, Denise paid for my coffee. That makes the second time she has been my Secret Santa! The elusive Greg showed up, snapped a few pics, and then rode off into the sunset (err--sunrise). I didn't take many pictures, but I managed one of him!

After that, I positioned myself in Angie's group to see how it was done. We headed to Nordstrom first and I was taking mental notes. I really didn't go in search of anything in particular, but I wasn't adverse to bringing home a souvenir from my trip. Can I just tell you that our dear Angie is even more wonderful than you could possibly imagine? She is so very kind and diplomatic while still being an expert. She was never impatient or stressed, and there was never a sharp word out of her mouth. Everything about the shopping experience was positive and upbeat. She took great pains to make sure she helped everyone find what was most important on their list. It was a joy to watch her work. She has a great capacity to remember people's style, their climate and their lifestyle needs. It was uncanny! She sat beside me and watched me try on tall boots and helped me realize that they were all too wide in the shaft for me (and finally put that to rest). I tagged along and watched Dianeg (such a sweetheart and a true English Rose), Christy (super stylish and so flattered by the new olive Burberry jacket she bought), K. Period (beautiful in her particular prints), Sveta and Aida (twins in there plaid pants) and others shop. Angie managed to swing by the fitting rooms at just the right time and assess everyone's garments.

I think we went to All Saints after that, and I tried on a leather jacket there just for fun. Goldenpig(Natalie) has a good picture of that on her thread. The one pictured below is a jacket I tried on at the Rack. Both were nice, but in the end I just don't have a need for one at this point, plus they were kind of pricey. There were some great purchases at All Saints, which I'm sure you've seen on the other threads. Dashielle and Natalie both tried on the cocoon coat.

Lunch at the Steelhead diner came next. I was privileged to sit across from Inge, Sveta and Vicki and visit with them some more, although it got very, very loud and boisterous. I began loosing my voice! We met Jenava (very serene and beautiful), and had to say goodbye to Natalie(very composed, serious and very, very nice--I enjoyed watching the focused way she shops) after lunch. I hope to have a visit from her and bj1111 (who is so animated and absolutely hilarious) sometime after the New Year. All of you, please let me know if you will be near Phoenix this winter--I'd love to meet up.

All day I kept pinching myself that I was actually there in Seattle, shopping with Angie! What a dream come true, and it was SO MUCH FUN. I don't know when I've had such a good time hanging out with a fab bunch of ladies. After the Rack and a few more stores, if was time for me to say goodbye and go meet DH at his hotel. Vicki broke off with me in LOFT and walked me back to her room so I could get my suitcase. We exchanged some clothes that had been on loan and then said "till we meet again". In the end, I came away with nothing but warm memories of a fabulous day spent among what felt like old friends. And that was more than enough. If you ever get the chance to meet up with Angie, Inge or any of our wonderful forum members, please do it. It's absolutely a phenomenal experience. Thanks for reading and looking at my pitifully few pictures.

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