Chattanooga Welcomes AQS Quilt Show

The riverfront of the Tennessee River in Chattanooga.

 

September 10-13, 2014 the City of Chattanooga, Tennessee hosted the American Quilters Society Quilt show in their downtown Convention Center. I had the pleasure of attending the event and I must say the City of Chattanooga and the town's quilters embraced the event. After a day of viewing quilts and exhibits at the Convention Center I took the time to visit the Tennessee Riverfront. It was fun being a tourist. I went to the outdoor art, a great restaurant, the IMAX Theatre as well as the Aquarium. What I wasn't expecting to see were more quilts. The Modern Quilt Guild Chattanooga had quilts hung in the IMAX theater as well as the Aquarium.

The Modern Quilt Guild had this quilt hanging from the rafters at the IMAX Theatre.

The Chattanooga Modern Quilt Guild must have been very busy in anticipation of the AQS Show. There were quilts of  fish throughout the Aquarium. But the most amazing collaborative was a series of  small quilts approximately 9"x12" each, all side-by-side that represented the Tennessee River. What a fun project that must have been for the guild.

Small quilts from 26 different quilters make their interpretation of the Tennessee River.

Quilts were a fun surprise to find in the Aquarium and the Imax Theatre. I was impressed with Chattanooga and how they embraced the AQS Quilt Show and I will definitely return next year. Maybe I can talk some friends into coming along.





My quilt "Flight Patterns" was an entry in the show and the centerfold in the AQS quilt catalog.

 

I did have one of my quilts in the show. My quilt, "Flight Patterns" was a semifinalist. The quilt was not a ribbon winner but I was pretty excited to have it pictured in the centerfold of the catalog. This was my first time to be in the centerfold.

 

I am currently finishing up on a quilt that measures 59"x62". Yea! About the time I am finished with a quilting project I am also ready to move on to another project. I  have several small projects waiting. I have four nieces pregnant and must  honor my mantra, "Every child deserves their own quilt." I will post as they are completed. Happy Stitching.

 

 

Last Minute Trip to Lancaster Pennsylvania AQS Show

The obligatory photo of  me with my second place Modern Quilt.





What a great surprise I had this month. It was the phone call every quilter would love to get, and a first for me. I entered my Modern Quilt "Flight Patterns" in the American Quilters Society Lancaster, Pennsylvania show and it won second place. So I did what any enthusiastic quilter would do, I jumped in the car for a road trip. Many thanks to my friend Penny for going along with me for this last minute trip and a really fun weekend.

 I had a great time being interviewed by Michele Duffy, editor of  the American Quilter magazine. It was a video interview and we talked about my second place winner "Flight Patterns."  It is  one of my quilts in what I call my "gray series" of quilts. We also talked about "Autumn in Boyle County,"  my quilt that is being displayed with an exhibit of Modern Quilts in each of the AQS shows this year. I was really excited to have two quilts on display at the show. I hope to see the interviews on the AQS website when they are edited.

 

 There was so much to see at the quilt show that we missed  the whole second floor of exhibits and vendors. But we did take in all that was to be seen on the first and third floors of the convention center and that included all of the quilts in the AQS contest. Needless to say, they were all amazing and inspiring. There are so many talented quilters out there. I love some of the new directions quilting has taken in the last five years. I especially love the use of solid colors and the quality and design of machine quilting. What will be next?

This  was taken during my interview with Michele Duffy.




Since the trip was a 10 hour car ride we took advantage of the location in Amish Country and spent a day in the small town of Lititz, Pa. We  toured the chocolate factory and the pretzel factory as well as poked around in all the cute little shops in town. This town really did smell like chocolate.



And for the first day of spring....

 

The first signs..,

Of spring.

My husband insisted I leave my responsibilities to take a hike this evening of the first day of spring.  Kentucky has had a long cold winter and we usually have a lot of yellow Wood Poppies blooming by now. There weren't any Wood Poppies but I did find a few brave wildflowers.