Shipshewana Shopping Spree

Shipshewana's annual Quilt Festival was this week.  Kathy, Deb, Gabrielle and I drove up Thursday and had a wonderful two days of shopping, quilts and sharing.

Our first stop on the way up was at Calico Point - now a favorite quilt shop.  They have a wonderful selection of fabrics and their prices are great - several dollars below the typical quilt shop.   If you're ever near Goshen, Indiana, make sure you look them up.

Additions to my batik collection of fabrics.  All but the pale lavender at the far right are from Calico Point.

We got to Shipshewana mid-afternoon, checked in at the quilt show to pick up our tickets for the evening's entertainment and checked into our hotel.  On the way back to town (all of 4 blocks or so), we stopped at several stores to investigate their wares.  We also went to Lolly's, well known for their enormous selection of fabrics.  After checking out most of the shops in downtown Shipshewana, we had dinner at the Blue Gate Restaurant - a favorite.  We ate and ate and I ate even more but their meatloaf is hard to resist.  Kathy & Deb made sure they got a side of chicken & noodles.

Thursday evening, we had tickets to see Ricky Tims.  He not only played the piano and sang, he told engaging stories about growing up, learning to quilt and connections to people throughout his life.  We laughed, enjoyed the music and had a wonderful time.  

Friday morning found us at the quilt show.  And I forgot my camera!  Fortunately, Kathy had her Iphone and took this picture of me beside my quilt.  She sent it to my phone and I was able to upload the picture for the blog.

BIQR Star was completed at the 2011 Beaver Island Quilt Retreat.  I love the way the black background contrasts with the batiks.  Note the red ribbon hanging beside it - 2nd place!  I was tickled.

There were 152 quilts entered in the show this year so it has grown by leaps and bounds in just 4 years.  There were also several quilts from out of state and Claudia Pfeil entered her Fire and Ice quilt that had been entered in MQS last year. 

Balloon Bouquet by Gail Lysett - this got my vote for Viewer's Choice.  What a fun idea this is and she appliqued all of those small circles beautifully.  

Shopping isn't limited to just fabric - what a concept.  We found time to use our coupons for "free food!"  Buy a pint of jam and get a free mini-loaf.  I got Sweet Pepper Jam - it was delicious with peanut butter on the sandwich I had at lunch.  I also got some pickled beets (yum!) and onion cheese.  That made a great grilled cheese sandwich for dinner tonight.  My other big purchase (using a coupon!) was a new purse.  I love the color and the funky stitching on the front of the bag.  Kathy bought a purse, too.  And while at Yoder's Department Store, Kathy and Gabrielle bought new sandals. 

My treasure trove of non-fabric purchases.  I splurged on the Corn Chips with flax seed (delicious) and honey roasted sesame sticks.

On the way home, we went through Middlebury and stopped at the Gunn Bros. Lots of quilters there, too.

I bought these funky dinosaurs to use in a Stack & Whack pattern.  We saw a Stack & Whack quilt in the show that had bright colors with a black background and it was spectacular.  

 It was a wonderful trip with good friends.  We had a great time, laughed alot, bought lots of fabric and ate well.  Put Shipshewana's Quilt Festival on your calendar for next year - June 26 - 29, 2013.  You'll have a great time.  


Cheers!
Margaret

NQA 2012

I'm still decompressing after a fabulous three days at the National Quilting Association's 2012 Quilt Show.  My primary purpose in going was to take a Design course for Quilt Judges.  Full disclosure - I have judged only 1 quilt show so far.  I've scribed and been an aide at 4 quilt shows and am fascinated by the judging process.

In the meantime, I know I have lots to learn and that was the reason for attending the Design course at NQA this year.  Taught by Beverly Fine and Andi Perejda, both NQA Certified Judges, this course was helpful in outlining design elements and design principles and how knowledge of those elements and principles can be helpful when evaluating a quilt's design.  They used Joen Wolfrom's book Adventures in Design as a starting point.  And it is just a starting point - there's so much more to learn!

One of the features this year were mini lectures by a variety of people.  "Confessions of a Scrapper" was the title of Cindy Erickson's talk.  Cindy was one of the judges at MQS and I enjoyed getting to know her there so just had to listen to her talk.  She is witty, fun, and had a wonderful collection of quilt tops to share.  Some were waiting for the borders "to be born," and with other quilts the borders were born first with the insides following.  It was interesting that she buys fat quarters and finds that's sufficient in most cases with only borders taking more than that.  I guess that's pretty much the definition of scrap quilts - lots of different fabrics, right?!

Cindy Erickson talking to a room full of quilters about scrap quilts.

Here's one of Cindy's quilt tops - complete with the border!  All of her quilts had some unifying fabric with the scraps providing lots of color and interest.

 Another fun thing was attending the live Auction Friday night with Cindy Claycamp, a friend who was vending in her Quilting Memories booth.  I was delegated to bid on a quilt for Nancy but the price rapidly exceeded her maximum bid.  I did bid on a quilt for me - and won!

"Grace Note" by Jean Power of Larchmont, NY.  Thanks, Jean, for such a wonderful little quilt.  I love it!

On the way to the auction, Cindy and I ran into Mary Buvia, a master quilter from Greenwood, IN.  We sat and talked with Mary for at least an hour - what a treat that was.  NQS had a special exhibit of Mary's quilts, "The Magical World of Mary Buvia."  Mary had done a workshop for our guild in 2011 and I've taken several of her classes.  She's a wonderful teacher.  Her book on the making of her award winning quilt "The Loading Dock" should be coming out in August.  She was in the process of writing it last year and I know it will be full of wonderful information.  

 On Saturday, there was learning integrated with more fun stuff.  I took a class from Deb Karasik and had a blast.  I missed hearing Deb talk at the MQS banquet and when I saw that she was teaching at NQA, thought it would be a good opportunity to check her out as a potential speaker and workshop presenter for my guild.  She passed!!!  Not only did I learn new techniques for paper piecing (yes - I now enjoy paper piecing, a 180 degree turn from my initial paper piecing experience), I enjoyed meeting Kathy who let me sit beside her for the day.  Kathy bought a new sewing machine at the show - lucky lady - and her daughter is getting married in a few weeks in Wooster, Ohio.  What a coincidence - I attended The College of Wooster!

My table partner - Kathy.  I love her jacket - all my colors.  I was standing there with my camera in hand and told Kathy I was going to take her picture - not sure she believed me!

Deb Karasik and "Mr. Deb," aka Jeff, holding Deb's latest quilt.  Her quilts are so vibrant with their color  combinations and this one, set against a black background, is especially stunning.

So...here's my paper pieced block.   I still have some areas for improvement but I'm pleased with the result. 

After a full day, it was a quick drive home.  My head is spinning with ideas - which one do I work on next?  Actually, there are a few quilts waiting to be quilted and they are absolutely next in line.

Cheers!

Margaret

Guild Meetings

I attended two guild meetings last week.  At Wednesday's Columbus Star Quilters Guild we were celebrating our birthday - 25th anniversary of the Guild's founding if my memory is correct.  We had a brief program on blocking quilts as well as Show and Tell.  Look at this fun stuff!

Here's Jan modeling a cap that Kathi made for her husband.  She called it a "welding cap," as that's what he wears as he is welding things, I guess.  He loves the fun fabrics like this one with cartoon characters.

Susan and Dottie are holding this wonderful quilt.   I'm thinking this is Dottie's quilt that she hand quilted. 

Susan and Dottie holding another of Dottie's quilts.  This one was for a granddaughter - flannel fuzzy quilt will be warm for her to snuggle in.

Susan sharing one of her knitting projects for the upcoming birth of a granddaughter!  Susan is so excited...first girl baby in the family in forever!  She was working on a little outfit to go along with the blanket.

Don't you love the colors in this bright quilt of Ruthannas?

Cathy displaying one of her artworks.  I've got to get a faster shutter speed or have them pose while I take pictures.

 On Thursday, I was privileged to join the Greenwood Quilt Connections Guild for their evening meeting.  I was actually doing a presentation on Fractured Quilts for them.  Before my presentation, they had their  Show and Tell.  I don't have names of the quilters but I loved the quilts they shared.  It was interesting to me that the quilt designs felt so different from the ones seen at the Columbus guild meetings.

This relatively simple structure is really appealing to me.  The white blocks have streaks of color that are then emphasized by the blues and greens in the alternating blocks. 

This quilt was done by a high school student - her granddaughter.  What a  great design and it was nicely done as you can tell from the ribbons attached to the quilt.

There was some debate by guild members as to what this quilt represented.  But the quiltmaker  set us straight - an African mask.  She had the red fabric and wasn't sure how to use it but she incorporated it well with her other color choices. 

The Greenwood Guild also had a discussion about their upcoming quilt show in September.  It was interesting to hear them talk through the same types of issues we discuss regarding our show in October.  Even more interesting was their discussion about items that would be for sale at their show.  I picked up some good ideas for our Quilters Boutique.  But now the challenge is to get those items made in time for the show!  On to quilting!!

Cheers!
Margaret

Sonoma Rose

It's been a busy time recently - lots of quilting stuff, lots of family stuff and lots of other stuff!  During a quick trip to visit my parents, I was able to read Sonoma Rose, the latest novel from Jennifer Chiaverini.  I won this book by visiting my friend Loris' blog.  What a cool thing to do!  So I'll pass the book on to some lucky reader of my blog!  Leave me a comment if you're interested in reading this Elm Creek Quilts novel set during Prohibition times.  It's an interesting read about a woman's efforts to save her family and herself.  I'll draw randomly from the responses received and will contact you for your address if your name is drawn.

I've got to prepare for a presentation to a guild later on this evening so other posts will have to wait!

Cheers!
Margaret

MQS 2012

Time flies when you're having fun and I had a wonderful time at MQS this year.  I went a few days early so I could see Cheryl & John before taking them to the airport.  They spent time with Cheryl's daughters in Phoenix over Mother's Day weekend and I got to stay at their home and play with Buddy, the cat!  Cheryl said I was never around the first few days of MQS, anyway, as I am volunteering to assist with some aspect of the show.

This year, for the first time, I got to help with the unpacking of the quilts.  It's quite a process - taking each quilt out of its shipping package, unrolling it, going over it with a lint roller, checking to be certain the quilt matches the information provided on the entry form and then folding it in a specific way to make it easier for those having to handle it in the judging rooms or in the photo area.

Cindy is sitting at the end of the table with the notebook of entry forms.  There's a helper on each side of the table to lay out the quilt, verify that it matches and affix the numbered tag that is used to track the quilt as it travels to various areas.

I didn't take very many photos this year as I purchased the CD with professionally taken photos.  I did have to take a picture of this quilt as I'm very proud of it.  My niece, Diane, made this quilt while at Camp Margaret last summer.  It's the Anniversary Quilt given to her parents in honor of their 25th anniversary.  How can it have been that long?!

I still love this quilt - the batiks from my stash and the perfect piecing by a first time quilter!  Diane did a beautiful job putting this quilt together and then she quilted it herself.  I'm so impressed with her work for a first time effort.

 Another of the fun things I got to do was work with Kimmy Brunner who was the Mistress of Ceremonies for the Audacious Auction for Education.  Funds raised from this auction are used to provide scholarships to attend classes at MQS in subsequent years.  This year, with the help of generous donors, over $11,000 was raised to support the grant program.  If you're interested in applying for a grant, check out the IMQA home page and click on the IMQA Foundation tab to learn more about how to apply for a grant.  I did that in 2009 and am so glad I did.  It's opened up a new world of quilting for me.

Here's Kimmy preparing for the auction.  She takes pictures of each item and then injects her bubbly personality as she banters with the Auctioneer.

Both Laura and I were winning bidders.  Laura won a beautifully handcrafted bowl by  Fred Hill.   Check out his website for more of his exquisite wood work as well as items for quilters!  I was the lucky bidder that won Nemo in Fiji, a quilt made by  Laura Wertwijn.  This wallhanging was made as a sample prior to her making a larger wallhanging with the same theme that she entered into the Show.  I have the perfect place for it in my house - now to get it hung.

I had an enjoyable time catching up with Sharon, a friend who lives in Lee's Summit.  We walked through the vendor mall, examined the quilts on display and then headed out for dinner.  We exchanged ideas about guild programs and possible boutique items - actually Sharon gave me lots of ideas.

Here's Sharon standing here in front of The Rambling River display.  It's the compilation of works by 15 different quilt artists living near the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers.  Sharon's quilt is the 7th from the right - it's the middle panel of the 3 that are hanging even.

 Every year I visit John & Cheryl, I take a quilt or some item as a thank you.  In previous years, I've used fabrics that go with their home decor and that feature the animal prints Cheryl loves.  This year, I had to do something geared toward John's second love - Buddy the cat.  Cheryl provided a selection of pictures and I made this simple but delightful quilt showcasing Buddy's typical poses throughout the day.

John with the Buddy quilt.

So...lots of fun, lots of learning, lots of things to do and lots of great friends - both existing and new.  It was a wonderful week.  

Cheers!

Margaret  

Milroy Amish School Auction

Carol, Lillian and I decided to brave the potentially stormy weather to attend the semi-annual Milroy Amish School Auction.  No weather issues getting there and we were safely engaged in the quilt auction when the thunderstorm went through.

First things first - Lillian & Carol found that fruit pies hit the spot as we gathered energy for quilt viewing.

This was a new location and the first thing that caught my eye was a large mechanical thing that I found out was a metal shearing machine.  We were in an Amish tool shop powered by generators!  Quite interesting.

This was an enormous machine and had a pulley for a PTO on one end.  I had to ask one of the Amish men what it was used for.  He was there with his wife, who was looking at the quilts.

But the main draw for us was the quilt auction.  The quilts were piled on tables by the time we got there so we looked through them as they were finishing the furniture auction.

Piles of quilts.   They had been hung up prior to our arrival for easier viewing.   There were tables and tables of them.

Here's the wall hanging I bought.  I actually saw it from the back side first - the quilting caught my eye.  Traditional pattern and colors.  I love the rope quilting in the brown sashing.  But why is there no quilting in the dark blue sashing?

  The first quilt came up quickly and I happened to glance over and see it - a very traditional pattern that had beautiful quilting.  We were over on one side and I had trouble catching the auctioneer's eye.  The Amish couple I had talked to earlier hollered at the auctioneer for me and I won this quilt.  

Prices were similar to those of past auctions I've attended.  I also bought a quilt top - the challenge for me is to get it quilted.  I was absolutely astounded when an Irish Chain quilt top went for $525.  Amazing.

We stayed through the end of the quilt auction - bidding on some of the quilts and other items.  Both Lillian and Carol bid on and won the bids on woven throw rugs - they were gorgeous colors and nice and soft.  They did bid on some quilts and quilt tops but didn't win any of those items.  About half way through the auction, Lillian had the bright idea of putting her rug on the bench for us to sit on.  It was much softer than the wooden bench!

After the end of the auction, we slopped our way back to the car.  Then it was fun trying to drive through the mud and get out.  We did see them towing one truck out of the mud and I was fortunate enough to get out without getting stuck but it was close.  It's like driving on ice - no control of direction - but worse since the car was covered with mud.  Carol treated me to a car wash when we got home.  Got most of the mud but there were still some clumps I had to wash off.  Don't know what the use of this field will be but it certainly got torn up.

We had a good time, enjoyed the atmosphere and enjoyed being with each other.  What more can you ask for on a rainy Saturday?

Cheers!
Margaret

International Quilt Festival - Cincy Style!

Deb and I went to Cincinnati last weekend to take in the sights at the International Quilt Festival.  The weather was beautiful and Deb drove.  Amazing how many things I've missed while driving - houses built that I'd never seen, trees blossoming out (dogwoods were particularly beautiful), picturesque lakes - just wonderful to sit and be chauffeured.

After arriving, we spent the first few hours walking through the vendor mall, waiting for those items we had to have to jump into our arms.  I was looking for a few things but couldn't find them.  Did see some lovely vintage quilts but they were out of my price range.

On to the quilt displays.  Here's just a sampling of what we saw.

I really love the idea of small quilts that add up to provide a picture of what's special about an area, like "The Great Cincinnati Landmarks Quilt Project" pictured here.  How many of these landmarks do you know?  I had to refer to the key they had posted for several of them.  But you may recognize the old Union Station in the upper left corner that is now known as the Music Hall.  And of course it wouldn't be Cincinnati without reference to a riverboat.

My guild laughed at me when I suggested this type of quilt challenge.  Perhaps it was my unifying theme:  Indiana Route 46 - admittedly not the most exciting topic.  I ran into several friends from the guild while I was looking at this and they caught the bug!  So we'll give it another shot in the next year or so.  

I was intrigued by this quilt - relatively simple design but stunning result.  The star in the lower right hand is beautifully executed with thread.

On my list of quilts to make is a landscape quilt.  This has a wonderful calming feel to it - I loved it.

Another landscape quilt framed in this larger quilt.  Interesting setting, don't you think?

This quilt brought back memories of the Greek Isles and the Mediterranean sea.  While I love the idea of making a quilt with all of those houses on different levels, I don't see that as a part of my quilting future - too many tiny, tiny pieces!

Always on the lookout for possible quilting designs, I saw this on the Cincinnati Bell building while we were waiting for a light to change.  I love the idea of overlapping petals of flowers.  That's going to make it into a quilt in the near future.

We did finally buy a few things and then went to the next big stop...Graeter's, the best ice cream in Ohio!  Just what we both needed to fuel us up for the ride home.

What an enjoyable way to spend a day - with a wonderful friend at a quilt show.

Cheers!
Margaret