The Weather Was Not My Friend

Hi Everyone,

My blogging absence has been due to my traveling back to Virginia for the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Fest.   A week ago Tuesday was the day I flew back.  I knew I wanted to go to the show, but I was torn about getting there.  I could have driven, as we've made that journey many times, but I wasn't sure if the weather would cooperate.  I also would be by myself, which wasn't all that appealing, either.  In the end, I decided to fly--even though I don't enjoy flying very much at all.

My connections were great:  I flew from here to Detroit (about a 20-30 minute flight) and then from Detroit to Norfolk, VA.  That flight was only about 2 hours long.

Tuesday morning I woke up early and was busy packing and getting ready.  I didn't leave until just after noon, so there was no rush.  Around 7 or 8 I got a call from my friend Janice, in Tennessee.  She was going to Virginia, too, and driving.  She called because she woke up to 6 inches of unforcasted snow!  (If you follow Bonnie Hunter, that was the same day that she woke up snowed into her cabin.)  She wasn't sure if she was going to make it, but she was going to try.  She crawled down her mountain at 20mph, passing the snow plow, which had gone into the ditch!  She made it to the Interstate, though, and the conditions there were much better.  Her late, slow start meant she wouldn't be there to pick me up from the airport, though, so another friend, Lorna, would come. Lorna and her husband had graciously invited both Janice and I to stay with them.

My weather here in Indiana was fine.  Detroit was fine.  Norfolk had some snow forcasted, but they backed off the amounts and said that they should just get "a dusting."  We set out for the airport and everything went great.  I think it was when I landed in Detroit and turned on my phone that I saw a text from Lorna saying that it was snowing a bit and that her husband was going to drive with her to the airport.  (The drive from her house in Hampton, to Norfolk is usually about 25 minutes, but does require a trip through the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel, and there can be snarls from time to time.)  I texted back that I could stay in a hotel over there if it seemed bad, but she said they weren't supposed to get much snow and that it wasn't sticking.

I only had about 25 minutes in Detroit between flights, so I had to hustle.  Is it always me who has connections in and out of gates that are the furthest apart possible?  Good grief!  I made it okay and even had a chance to grab a snack.  (I had an early lunch at 10:30 because I was flying out at 12:30.)  We boarded and I turned off my phone again.  When we landed and I looked out the window of the plane in Norfolk, huge flakes were coming down at a great rate.  I turned on my phone and had a text from Lorna that they were stuck in traffic--there may be an accident.  I replied and understood.  I had lived there and delays in the bridge tunnel were common.  I made my way to pick up my bag and settled in to wait.  Luckily I found an outlet, because my phone was losing charge--I was in "the red."  In the end, it took Lorna and her husband over 2 hours to get to the airport!  It wasn't just one accident, there were problems all along the roads, but it was the snow that was the major culprit.  It took another 2+ hours to get back to their house.  We just crawled along, but at least going slow helped us stay safe.  I have never seen roads that awful before and I grew up in South Dakota and lived in Alaska!  We finally made it to her house about 9 pm.  I felt like a real heel for causing them so much trouble!  On our way back from the airport, we heard from Janice.  She made it to Richmond (about 1.5 hours away) but decided to stop there.  By the time we woke up the next morning, there was over 6 inches of snow on the ground.!  Janice made it by 10 that morning.

This is the picture I took in the morning out the window.

It wasn't through snowing either.  The first full day of the show, Thursday, we crawled slowly through it to the venue.  Janice took this picture walking in.

The weather was keeping many people away, so it was great that first day--no crowds!  We heard that a vendor had been involved in a fairly serious car accident due to the weather, resulting in broken bones.  I hope she is alright!

It quit snowing and warmed up that day!  And then refroze over night.  So on Thursday we had crawled through snow to get to the show, and on Friday we skated there on ice!  (Notice the theme:  despite the conditions, we made it!)  More people made it on Friday, too, as well as buses, so it was much more crowded.

The weather got better, though.  As Sunday approached, and I would fly home, I was checking weather there, Detroit, and home.  Home wasn't going to be good.  There was a "winter storm warning."  It started snowing in the morning, but it was going to taper off through the day.  I had a later flight out of Norfolk (6:20 pm or so) and wouldn't land until 10:30pm here at home.  I got dropped off at the airport, got through security, and settled in.  I wasn't in the gate my flight was leaving from, as another flight was boarding at the time.  I read for a while and then decided to wander back to my gate.  When I did, I saw that my flight was delayed by 50 minutes!  It seemed that the plane we would take to Detroit was currently in NYC at LaGuardia and they were having terrible weather.  I checked my itinerary and I had and hour and 20 minutes in Detroit, so I was still okay.  And then it was delayed 15 more minutes.  And then even more!  I was not going to make my flight home from Detroit!  I decided at that point to book myself a hotel room near the airport where I could ride a shuttle.  The flight from New York was getting de-iced and it took over an hour.  It finally took off and when the gate agent told us, we all cheered!  By then all of us in the gate were making friends.

I was really impressed with Delta--they kept us informed!  I know that seeems basic, but so many corportations don't do that!  They also brought us snacks and drinks.  The flight from NYC landed, and it was one really fast turnover!  We took off and landed in Detroit.  The agent had booked me on a flight the next morning to Indiana, so I scanned my paper to see if I could get my boarding pass, and I got a voucher for a hotel and transportation!  Crap!  I had booked that other room and it was too late to cancel.  Our flight wasn't the only one with problems, though.  Thousands of people needed rooms, and the one that Delta had for me was 30 minutes away.  I stuck with my room that was just off the airport property!  Down in the hotel shuttle area, it was bedlam!  A shuttle would pull in and get swarmed by people.  I've never seen anything like it!  I had trouble figuring out which shuttle to get, but after calling the hotel, I saw the correct one.  I made it to my room just before midnight.

In my carry-on bag was my camera, my coat, my book, and my day's purchases from the quilt show vendors.  I had some pieces of wool, patterns, and a frame.  No change of clothes.  No toothbrush.  No hairbrush.  I did have my phone charger, though.  I slept in my clothes and woke up the next morning.  I had gotten a toothbrush and toothpaste from the hotel desk, which was really nice!  I was okay otherwise.  It turned out I most missed my face cream (my face was so dry) and clean socks.  (I detest wearing "used" socks--they are stretched out and just don't feel nice at all.)  I made it back to the airport, through the bedlam again (thousands of stranded passengers needing new boarding passes.)  Once more I made it through security and found my gate.

Again I settled in for an hour or so and read and fantasized about face cream and socks.   The thing was, the gate wasn't filling with people!  So I went to check the boards and saw that the gate wasn't the one on my boarding pass, but a different one.  Luckily, it wasn't far away.  The flight was uneventful and we landed just before 10 AM.  My husband was there to pick me up and he drove me home.  I was so relieved!   Sometimes there is just nothing better than  hot water, a hair brush, and clean clothes!  That and moisturizer!

How about you?  Have you been stranded before?  What did you miss the most?

I'll be back again with more about the show.

Meanwhile, I'm not sure if any of you also follow Rachel at Stitched in Color.  She is a modern quilter and I enjoy her blog.  I've followed as she shared about trying to have another baby, celebrated as she got pregnant, and was anticipating the birth.  Well, her little Eleni was born last week, but there were problems and it is sounding fairly grave.  I'll be praying for their baby and their family.

Have a great day!
JoAnne

Vendor Goodies and an Update

Hi Everyone,

The first thing I want to share is an email that I got from a fellow guild member here who also reads my blog.  She is a charming lady that I had the pleasure of getting to know while working on the quilt show.  She wrote to me in regards to this Marine Quilt that I shared yesterday.

To ensure that I didn't make any mistakes, I'm going to cut and paste her email:

Hi JoAnne,

I was looking around misc quilt blogs tonight and saw your post with photos from the Quilt Show.   I just wanted to tell you that I happened to meet the lady that made the Marine Quilt.   She was there with her husband, who happened to be using a walker.   She made the quilt for her son (and his wife), and she said that the only thing on the quilt that was done by machine was the letters United States Marine Corps which she did on machine and then hand sewed them on the quilt and the binding.   Everything else was done by hand.  Her husband told me that she hand embroidered all three verses (stanzas?) of the Marine Corps song on the quilt.    Also I asked her how long it took her to compose this masterpiece and she said "30 months".   She wanted her son and his wife to put it on the bed and use it.   She was just a delight.   I agree with  you that putting it on a back wall without proper lighting was a disappointment.

Thank you Susan W. for the great information about this spectacular quilt.  I wish it had been possible to photograph it better!

Finally I'm sharing some of the fun things that I decided to purchase at the show.  Believe me, I found lots and lots of fun things, but one can't get everything!  I actually had a list of things that I wanted to look for--I don't know about you, but I get distracted by all the fun things and then can't focus.  The list really helped, too.

At the top of the list were these scissors by Karen Kay Buckley:  the small "Perfect Scissors."  The micro serrations on the blades are wonderful.   When I was paying for them, the vendor asked if I knew about her pins.  I didn't and so she showed them to me.  They are so thin that they seem more like a strong fiber than a piece of wire.  Last week Pam Buda discussed both of these on her blog.  

Another item that I really wanted was a 15" Creative Grids Ruler.  My old Omnigrid 15" ruler has 3 chipped corners.  The one I found is actually 16.5" square, but that is even better.  The show ran from Thursday-Sunday and late Saturday this month's Schnibble pattern was announced.   In looking it over, I saw where it would be extremely helpful to have a 60 degree ruler.  I couldn't believe I didn't have one, so what other choice did we have than to go back to the show on Sunday to find one!  It was actually not that easy as several of the vendors who were selling these rulers were sold out.  We did finally find one.  Have you tried these Creative Grids rulers?  I love them.  They have spots of "grippiness" that grab on to the fabric and keep it from shifting.  

Despite the fact that I still haven't used some of the patterns I got last year, I couldn't resist getting more.

I can't wait to try these:  You use 2.5" strips like Bali Pops and fold them with interfacing and/or fusible fleece and then weave them together to make these bags.  The booth had a sample of that purse, and it was simply adorable!

And of course, I had to get some tiny projects, too.  

The rest of my purchases was fabric.  I actually got a fair amount this year, but I put it away before I took pictures and I wasn't sure I would remember it all!

It seems to me that there are two main categories of things at these shows:  tools and supplies.  I'm not too much of a "gadget" person.  While I do believe in using the correct tool for the job--I don't feel the need to replace every ruler I have because I like a different style better.  I am replacing them as need dictates.  I am the sort of quilter that would much rather have a package of 25 replacement rotary cutter blades for my favorite cutter than two or three other cutters.  I lean more towards the supplies:  I am totally a "stash builder!"  Fabric and patterns, oh my!  I can't say no to pretty fabric and fun patterns. What sort of consumer are you?

Have a great day!

JoAnne

Whew! What a Nail-Biter

Hi Everyone,

What an exciting morning!  When we lived in Alaska (2003-2007) we became big Iditarod fans.  The race always begins the first weekend in March and it was just won a few minutes ago.  Last night, things looked a lot different.  Jeff King, who is an "older" Alaskan musher was in the lead.  He passed by Aily Zirkle (a woman) to get there.  I went to bed thinking it would be another Jeff King victory (he has won 4 times.)  Well, I hadn't counted on the weather on the Bering Sea coast!  It was horrible conditions, with 65+ mph winds creating a dangerous situation.  Jeff King was just a few miles short of Safety (the last checkpoint before the finish line in Nome) when he got caught in the storm.  He stayed hunkered down with his dogs for a while but decided it was too dangerous and so he scratched.  Aily made it safely to Safety where she decided to stay out of the storm.  The third place position was held by Dallas Seavey.  He just had his 27th birthday (I know this because he and my daughter were born on the same day) and has already won the race once.  You may know him as he has been a participant on both seasons of Ultimate Survivor Alaska on the National Geographic Channel.  The storm didn't slow him down at all and he blew (literally) right through Safety.  I guess Aily wanted to try to catch him, so she set out in pursuit.  Dallas crossed the finish line first, winning his second (at 27!) and just two minutes later, Aily finished.  I like them both, but I really wanted a woman to win, as it has been 24 years since a woman has won.  (The first woman to win was Libby Riddles in 1985 and then Susan Butcher won 4 times in 1986, 87, 88, and 90.)  Anyway, it has been a very exciting morning!

I suspect, though, that you came looking for quilting stuff, not Iditarod updates.  So without further delay, I'm sharing  some more pictures from the quilt show.

This quilt was a stunner.  I'm not sure why, but it was hung way in the back of the show.  But maybe I'm just biased.  This is a quilt that was made for a Marine's Retirement.  I think a wife made it for her husband, but I'm not 100% certain--I was too busy looking at the details.  The Marine Seal is appliqued in the middle, complete with real cording around the perimeter.   She then embroidered different Marine saying around it and began to quilt.

It is hard to see, but across the top and bottom she quilted in his name and rank.

It was quite the quilt, and full of inspiration!

I've seen photos of this quilt from Road to California.  It is called "Jingle Bells" and won Viewer's Choice at Midatlantic.

That exhausts my better photos of the quilts.  I'll be back next time to show my purchases.  Did I say that yesterday?  I guess I mean it this time!  I also have some other posts to write about things I've been making, etc.  

Have a great day!

JoAnne

It's "That" Monday

Hi Everyone!

If you live here in America, and maybe other places in the world, you probably had a more difficult time than usual waking up on time this morning.  Yes, it is the weekend we all dislike--the dreaded time change in which we all lose one hour.  I would say that the opposite weekend, in the fall, is everyone's favorite!  And while I know that the time changed early Sunday morning, let's face it--it doesn't really impact people until Monday morning.

Twice I have lived where the time doesn't change--in Arizona and most recently Hawaii, and I really didn't notice much difference with the daylight, so I'm not sure why we feel the need to "save" it.  At any rate, at least it is a sign of spring and maybe the cold weather will go away now.

Today I'm going to share more quilt pictures from Midatlantic.  Tomorrow I will share some of the goodies that I bought, as I had a request for that.  I'm not sure what I was thinking when I photographed the show this year, there was certainly no rhyme or reason to it.  I didn't even take pictures of the best quilts!  Probably I was too engrossed in them to take a picture.

I also took many pictures of the quilting.  I guess that is the technique that I'm most interested in right now.  Here are some of them.

The picture above and below are of the same quilt.  It is hand quilted.  The stitches were so tiny that you didn't even notice them--just the "puff" that they create.  Below my finger is as close to the quilt as I could get without touching it--for scale.

More and more I am amazed at how the quilting can totally change a quilt top.  And consequently, more and more I'm less happy with getting tops "all over quilted."  Since we aren't millionaires, though, I will continue to get them done that way, but I do like to get special quilts custom-quilted occasionally.

Midatlantic is probably like many major shows--it features the entered, show quilts, and then other exhibits.  My favorite quilts in this show were from one of those exhibits.  The Baltimore Applique Society had a group of quilts in an exhibit titled "A for Applique."  They were gorgeous!

The quilt below began, as I interpreted, from a commercial pattern, but the artist added to it, creating a tribute to Texas--featuring long-horn cattle, armadillos...

...and even the creep-crawlies like this perfect, hairy, rendition of a tarantula.  There were also centipedes, snakes, and even cockroaches.  

This one below was my favorite.  The applique is incredible.  I have two closeup pictures of blocks so you can get the full impact.

I suppose I have over-loaded this post with enough photos for now, so I'll end.

Have a great day!
JoAnne

Fun Quilting Week

Hi Everyone,

I know I've been a little light on posts lately, as you may remember, the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival was in town at the end of last week.  I had a friend, Dorothy, who came to visit to attend the show with me.  She left this Tuesday morning, and it has taken me the rest of the week to get back to "normal."

The show was a lot of fun.  There were so many gorgeous quilts and lots of vendors!  If you were preregistered, as we were, you could go in for the preview night on Wednesday.  We did and spent that time familiarizing ourselves with the vendors.  We shopped a little bit, too.  I was wanting a 15" Creative Grids square ruler.  I didn't find that size, but I got a 16.5" one instead.  Making that purchase that evening made lots of sense--so I didn't have to lug it around too much.  I actually made a list of things that I wanted/needed and it really kept me focus.  Have no fears!  I did find other things to bring home, but the list was very handy.

We spent Thursday and Friday at the show for most of the day.  We would look at quilts for a while, and then shop for a bit, have lunch, and repeat.  Usually, Thursday isn't such a busy day at the show, but this year it was!  At least 8 large buses came full of quilters from all over the area.  At times, you couldn't get close to the quilts and the vendor booths were so jammed you couldn't get in!  Whew!  I really don't like crowds, so we would go to an area that was less populated.

I spotted John Flynn who was giving a seminar just before one we attended!

Both Thursday and Friday we had registered for seminars.  These are 1.5 hour lectures about various quilting topics, but the two we attended were about machine quilting.  The first was by Sue Nickels, (we were signed up for her class on Saturday) and the second was by Frieda Anderson.  It was interesting to get two different "takes" on the subject.   Some of their techniques were identical, but they differed on different points, too.  For instance, Sue and Pat Delany (who I had a class in machine quilting with last year) don't bury their threads.  They start and stop with a series of tiny stitches (not on top of each other--that makes a knot) and then clip the threads.  Frieda does use a needle to bury her thread.  Both use Sharp needles, or Microtex Sharp, with cotton thread, but other types with poly thread.

On Saturday, we had our all-day class with Sue.  We did pop into the show on our lunch hour and I think after class.  We pretty much had seen or bought most everything we needed at that time.  We weren't feeling a huge need to go back on Sunday, but we began quilting at home Sunday morning and I realized I needed a 60 degree triangle ruler (I still can't believe I didn't have one!) and I said we could either go to the fabric store, or the show!  It was an easy decision to go back to the show!  It did take a while to find the ruler, though, as some of the vendors that I knew sold it were out.  We spent maybe two hours there again and finally said our goodbye to Mid-Atlantic.

Sunday night the warnings were being issued for a winter storm.  We spent Monday getting snowed in.  My husband didn't have work so he did the laundry while Dorothy and I spent the time in my quilting room having fun!

I will be back with other posts covering more of these events with more photos.  In looking over the pictures I took, I see I wasn't focusing in on too much and must have forgotten to take photos of many of the quilts, but I will share what I have.

Have a great day!
JoAnne

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Hi Everyone,

Today starts the most wonderful time of the year!  At least here in Hampton Roads, Virginia.  Tonight is the preview and then tomorrow is the big opening day for the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival!

As you can see, I have my credential and am impatiently waiting for the preview tonight.  Actually, it is going to be a busy day as I have a friend arriving today from Alabama.  She is staying for nearly a week and we will take in the show and spend extra time quilting and talking and drinking tea, etc.  I really wish all of you could join us!

We are taking a Free-motion Feathers class from Sue Nickels.  We also are taking a few lectures, but I don't remember what they are right now.  I will be taking lots of pictures of the quilts, etc. to share here.  Also, I'm sure I'll be sharing in "real time" via Instagram.

I have to say that I'm totally loving Instagram.  If you aren't sure what it is all about, or maybe like me, you thought it is an app to edit pictures, you may want to check it out.  It is sort of like Facebook, where you "follow" different people, but I have kept the people I follow (aside from close family members) limited to quilters.  It is sort of like mini-blogs.  People take a picture, write a bit about it and then share.  You can comment or just "like" it.  If you have a smart phone and want to check it, I strongly encourage you.  Find me "patrioticquilter" and then you can look at who I follow.  Sherri from A Quilting Life, Sinta from Pink Pincushion, Thelma from Cupcakes and Daisies, Mary from Quilt Hollow, Edyta Sitar from Laundry Basket Quilts, etc. are all on Instagram. I find that I am not spending nearly as much time on Facebook anymore.  I would much rather look at quilty fun on IG!

Anyway, I need to run.  I have a few errands to run before my friend, Dorothy, gets here.

Have a great day!
JoAnne

An Appraisal

Last week when I was telling you about the Midatlantic Quilt Show, I promised a post about an "intriguing" thing that I did at the show.  A few days before the show began, I got the usual email sent out just prior to the show detailing all the events, times, etc.  As I was reading, I came across a paragraph about quilt appraisals and how they were being offered at the show.  To set up an appointment, you were supposed to do so at preregistration, but the idea interested me.  I had never considered having any of my quilts appraised before.  Hmmm.

I have made probably close to 200 quilts of various sizes, but I will freely admit that maybe only 4-5 I consider to be my "masterworks."  Now I'm aware that the word "masterwork/masterpiece" can be a controversial subject and it means MANY different things to different people.  For me, I consider them to be pieces on which I have done extensive handwork, applique or quilting; precision, complicated piecing; and/or custom quilting. 

I decided that I wanted to get one of these quilts appraised, thinking it may be a good subject for a blog and also because I have a very difficult problem assigning value to my work.  I have never really sold anything,  I prefer to give my quilts as gifts.  I know what I paid for materials, but I have no idea how to value my time.  I suspect that I may not be the only person out there with this problem!

But which quilt should I take?  I thought it over very carefully.  Part of me was very anxious at the idea and that little voice in my head was already telling me that I was silly for getting an appraisal--that my quilts would hardly be worth anything more than the materials.  Please tell me I'm not the only one out there with that little voice!  Anyway, I decided to choose the one that had the most handwork--my Grandma's Country Album quilt that I recently shared with you here.

When we went to the opening preview on Wednesday night, I inquired and was able to make an appointment for the next day.  Here is the most important thing to remember as I'm telling this story:  until now I had never been to a major show and had NEVER seen quilts like those ribbon winners closeup before!!!  We got to the show that day and looked around at the quilts for an hour or so prior to my appointment and I really got anxious and stressed.  I started feeling like a fool for thinking that I could have anything of mine appraised--good grief, what was I thinking!  But I was committed, and so when the time came, Dorothy and I went to the car for my quilt and we went to the appointment.

When I was getting the quilt ready to take, I decided that since it had won a ribbon, maybe that fact would impact the appraisal, so I took the ribbon, too. 

We were escorted to the room by a charming woman who explained that she was an appraiser-in-training.  She informed us that there would also be another appairser there who just passed her qualifying test as well as the primary appraiser.  As well, the appraiser's husband was in the room, taking photos and doing the computer work.  I handed over the quilt, which they spread out flat on tables and then took photos.  I met them all and they were "just regular people" (of course) and nice and professional.  I handed the appraiser the ribbon the quilt had won, explaining that I didn't know if it would make a difference to the value.  It had won Second Place Best in Show at the Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo.  Up until going to Midatlantic, I had been sort of proud of that ribbon.  Now I was incredibly embarrassed.  For goodness sake, my quilt won a ribbon at a rodeo?!!!  I felt like a complete hick and totally out of place.  But the appraisal went on...

She asked many questions about pattern, fabrics, dates, places, etc.  Meanwhile, the two assistants were measuring and taking descriptive notes about the quilt.  At one point she asked if I knew how many hours I spent hand-quilting.  Of course I didn't!  I was still feeling mighty inadequate at that point so I worked my brain frantically trying to come up with an approximation of time spent quilting.  How would I even estimate?  I did finish the quilt ten years ago.  Hmmm, I looked over at the quilt laying out on the table and I envisioned my quilting hoop.  I pictured how many hoops that size would fill the quilt--I figured about 20.  Then I thought about how long it took to quilt a "hoopful" and decided that 3 hours was probably a fair estimate.  So doing the math, I came up with 20 x 3 = 60 hours.  It seemed pretty likely to me.  So I told her my reasoning and the number that I came up with and she was very intriugued at how I had estimated the time and so she made me explain it over again to her assistants.  That made me feel a little better at least, so I could at least look her in the eye.

And then, just like that with no fanfare, she told me the insurance value.  I was stunned!  I was hoping it would be worth around $300, maybe $500.  The figure she gave me was way, way higher than that!  I gulped.  I stammered my thanks, took the paperwork and quilt and Dorothy and I left.    When we got outside, I started laughing nervously and told Dorothy that my nerves were frayed and I needed....    (well, I probably could have used a drink, but since we were at a quilt show...)   ... I needed some retail therapy!!!!   So we checked out the vendors.

Oh, and just in case you were wondering:  the appraiser told me that ribbons only really matter if they are from Paducah or Houston!

Have a great day!
JoAnne

Barn Quilts

Did any of you see the fun, fun tutorial over at Lori Holt's blog about the cute block she designed:  a barn with a quilt block in the side?  She used leftover Farmer's wife blocks and put her barns on the back of her competed Farmer's Wife quilt.  Now she is having a sew-along with them.  I couldn't wait to try one out.  Luckily when I sorted through my orphan block stash, I found a good 6" block that would work.

 

Here it is!  I guess I took the photo at an angle--it really is a square block and not tapered.  Isn't it fun!  Now you may be thinking that I was supposed to be writing more about Midatlantic, but in fact, I am.  I had planned to share some of the goodies that I found at the vendor booths.  My favorite purchase was this:

 

 

A Barn Quilt.  These metal signs are normally put outside.  Some barns in the country have even larger, painted blocks on them.  They are really fun to watch for as you are driving.   Anyway, I've been wanting one for quite some time, but a patriotic one, of course, and there was this one, in red, fitting the bill perfectly.  I have it hanging on the end of my cutting island for now, until we get our "forever" house after my husband retires.  I think it is so funny/odd that both of these barn quilts came into my life in the same week.

 

I got quite a lot of fabric, as well, but it is put away.  The other cool thing I got was this seam ripper with a hand-carved wood handle.

They had many types of wood, and as you handled them all, they all felt a bit different in your hand.  I felt them all until this one seemed to "fit" my hand just right.  I thought it all seemed a lot like when Harry Potter got his wand and he tried all the different ones until the right one "chose him" as they say.  I'm not sure what species of wood this ripper is, but I'm sure it isn't holly.  I've even had the occaision to use it, and it really works nicely.

I hope you have a great day.  I'm still suffering with this dumb cold (possible acquired from handling all those rippers?) Yesterday I rested all day and emptied out the contents of my DVR.  Today I'm going to spend some time sewing.  Thanks for all the well-wishes!

JoAnne

Midatlantic Quilt Fest Post 2

Hi Everyone,

This is going to be another post full of "eye-candy."  I could probably share photos until the cows come home, but we don't want to get too bored. 

First up, One of my very favorite quilts at the show.  Not a prize winner, but the winner of my heart.  It is called "Daddy's Home."

One of my favorite exhibits was the selected entries from an International Quilt Challenge commemorating the Bicentennial of the War of 1812.  The quilt size was similar to what the soldiers in the Civil War carried, too.  That is, a quilt about the width of a typical sleeping bag.  They are referred to as "Cot to Coffin" quilts, I imagine because they were used with or without cots for the soldiers and then used to wrap the soldier for burial? 

This one.  Oh my.  It is made of hundreds and hundreds of teeny hourglass blocks. 

 

Here is a closeup of them.

 

 

I loved this exhibit for the Patriotic motifs that many contained. 

 

I especially liked this one, although I didn't seem to get a complete picture of it.  It was made by another Army wife.  She dyed the fabrics with natural substances like black beans, etc.  It has her husband's name on it.

 

 

There were some really extraordinary pictorial quilts in the main show.  

 

 

This one was so brilliantly "accurate" that I found myself trying to peer around the corner in that canyon.  Check out the quilting on it.

 

 

 

Another pictorial quilt was all about walking a dog.

Here is a closeup of the dog's head.  It really looks furry.

It was a real treat to see a completed version of "A Bountiful Life."  Especially since the passing earlier this month of the book's author, Karen Mowery. 

 

 

My parent's love visiting lighthouses, so I was drawn to this next quilt.  When I read the paper about it, I discovered that they are all the lighthouses of Chesapeake Bay. 



Finally, there is this:

Isn't it incredible and detailed?  The thing is, it isn't a quilt.  It is a wool hand-hooked rug!!!

That's it for today.  It seems I acquired a little surprise at the show--a cold-bug.  I thought I may be lucky this winter and escape being sick, but it seems my luck ran out.

Have a great day everyone!  I'll be drinking lots of hot tea and chicken soup.
JoAnne