I got a chance to go to the Road to CA show last week. Lots of wonderful work. Big crowd. Overflow parking lot full at a bit after 10 am. I spent a nice day with one sister of mine. A real treat for both of us : )
I just picked up a couple of patterns and a little bit of fabric. The featured artist was Cindy Needham. She does wonderful stuff on a Juki machine. Inspiring what can be done without going to the big bucks for frames and bigger machines. She does talks for superior threads and knows a lot. If you get a chance to see her or her work go for it.
Beads or crystals seem to be on a lot of quilts. IMO the phrase 'less is more' needs to be thought about. There were probably twice as many beads on many quilts than really is tasteful.
Here is a link to the winners. Worth a look.
Taria