The Show was fun and the week end of giggling was great. Before I return to reality I will report.
The class with Georgia Bonesteel was relaxing. There wasn't much in the way of new technique to the class but she was so nice. She added a ten minute hand quilting lesson which was more valuable than the other six hours of piecing. (someday I am going to master hand quilting!) The miniature quilt is cute but of course not finished. We were to take 40 prints cut 1.5" by 14". I used Civil War reproduction fabrics and a tea dyed muslin for the background. I asked if the pattern was available for the shop to purchase so I could offer a class. She said I could use the pattern for a class as long as the pattern was given to the students with her website still showing and we did not charge for the pattern. That shows how nice she is.
I shopped until I dropped on Thursday evening from 5 to 8. Only those registered for classes or members of IQA are able to shop on the Thursday night preview. It is so nice because the crowd is thin enough that you can actually get into the booths. I purchased antique quilt blocks, African and Japanese fabrics, one batik quilt kit, some pearl cotton I needed to finish a project and indigo fabrics for my niece's wedding quilt. All but the batik kit were on my shopping list. I allow myself one antique item per year and often purchase it at this show. On Sunday I purchased another kit from Cherrywood (their beautiful hand dyed fabric) and several patterns. Also purchased more dies for my Accu Cut machine. The machine was purchased back when I was kitting supplies for camp crafts. I am out of that business now so use the machine to cut odd shapes like circles and hexagons that are not easy to cut with the ruler. Sometime I will report on using that machine. Does anyone else own one?
Friday and Saturday the crowd caused actual grid lock where no one could move at times. I slept in and did handwork in my room until
1:00. Another online group, Jo Morton Stitchers, planned to meet at 1:30. We had hoped to find a table in the eating area and sit and chat but the place so way too crowded for that. We introduced ourselves, took a picture and left. It is fun to put faces to the names we read online.Friday evening I attended the sampler session which is twenty teachers gathered in a large ballroom. You move from area to area hearing a 10 to 15 minute presentation of different topics. I paid especially good attention to the hand quilting lecture by Cindy Blackberg. Since I enjoyed her style I checked the class schedule for the rest of the week end and found her Saturday afternoon class in hand piecing still had openings.
Saturday morning I saw the quilt display. Saturday afternoon I took the hand piecing class. The techniques were about the same I had tried before. What was different was the rubber stamps that Cindy sold. No more tracing templates and marking seam allowances. Of course I bought a basic set. We plan a long driving trip this summer and I will take along several blocks ready to hand piece. I usually just do redwork on such trips. I can't stitch while driving but like to stitch in the evenings.
Sunday show attendance is lighter so I made one more pass through the vendors. This time I purchased several patterns, an African basket for my sister (OK she won't get it until Christmas so I will use it to hold fabric until then) and two more quilt kits. Yes, I know I already have 100 kits waiting to be made but these are so pretty. We left for home about 2 so we could get unpacked and ready to face the work week.
It was fun and relaxing. I just wish I could dive in and make some of the things I brought home. I especially would like to finish the quilt I started in the Georgia Bonesteel class. Alas, class samples, wedding gifts and promised table runners await.
The shop where I teach, The Quilt Merchant, in Winfield, Illinois was in booth 1344 and 1346 with all Civil War era quilts and needle punch. It was their first show. They did very well and made many new contacts. All week end I was stopping by their booth to check in and see if they needed anything. The booth was crowded everytime. Almost all of the kits sold which means we have work to do. There is a shop hop in May and there is nothing in the shop to sell! The punch needle sold very well because we had someone sitting there demonstrating all day. On Friday they sold out of the hoops so Docia called the distributor and asked for more. The distributor brought them to the shop before closing on Friday afternoon and Docia was able to get them to the show for the Saturday and Sunday selling period.
I didn't tell anyone that Sunday was my birthday. My husband and sons delayed the celebration until Monday evening. My husband chose something from the pile of stuff I brought back and wrapped it for my birthday present. I am not mad about that. It was his way of telling me that all the money spent at the show was OK. He knows how much I enjoy my quilting. My mother is visiting so it was an especially good birthday. Now back to reality.
Susan