I had a great time in Houston and met a lot of really nice people. Some were already online friends, but most were previously unknown. It's wonderful how a common interest can bring such different personalities together. It doesn't matter if you make traditional quilts, modern quilts, or art quilts . . . it's enough of a connection to start a conversation and a potential friendship.
Andi took a photo of me with my quilt, Inside Out: Hormones. It didn't win a ribbon but it was accepted into the show which is an honor in itself. It's always interesting to see what quilts received ribbons. Sometimes you totally agree with their choice and other times you can't figure out what they were thinking.
Overall, it was a great show and I enjoyed the experience thoroughly. I tried to see all of the quilts, but I know I didn't. The set-up was a maze and I never really quite figured it out. The quilts I did see were amazing though. The grand prize winning quilt,
Chihuly's Gondola by Melissa Sobotka was gorgeous but it was difficult to see the details because they had barriers set up that kept you three feet away. Melissa said she used tsukineko ink and a lot of reverse applique.
My quilt above has some reverse applique and the class I took with Ann Johnston was on reverse applique. It's a great technique and I'm pretty sure I'll be using it quite a bit more in the future. Here are two of the blocks in progress from the class.
More layers can still be added or subtracted as desired. A third block was sewn, but not cut into at all yet. I think we got a lot accomplished in one day.
Then there are the vendors . . . something like 700 of them!
Honestly, I already own enough products to open my own store, but that never stopped me from finding something to buy. For the most part, my purchases were practical but very specific: applique scissors, chalk marker, self threading needles, awl, shibori book, misty fuse, HQ ruler, Glide thread. I only bought one yard of fabric but it's gorgeous, Japanese, and it was the last yard. The most unusual thing I purchased is a resin product called Little Windows. I haven't tried it yet but it looks like it will be fun.
It's nice to travel but I love coming home. Quilt shows always get me fired up. I'm working on several projects at the same time. I'll take some in progress photos for the next post.
