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Inspiration is everywhere ~ colors, shapes, emotions ~ and we found so much of it on our trip. Our first port of call on the cruise was Le Havre, France. Marie and I chose to do a shore excursion to Monet’s home and gardens in Giverny. It was a cool but beautiful day, and the bus ride was only a bit more than an hour long. Both Marie and I were surprised to note that the landscape along the bus route looked a lot like Wisconsin. Monet’s gardens were amazingly beautiful.

And the bees were happy there (look closely).

We were fortunate to get there before the crowds got too big. Then we were taken to an old sugar beet distillery. It hasn’t been used to make sugar for a long time.

Instead it’s been converted into an event venue ~ and the food was delicious!

Our final stop on that tour was the city of Rouen and I’m saving what we saw there for a future post. The following morning our ship arrived at Edinburgh, Scotland. The Norwegian Sky was too large to dock in town so we had to ride in on a tender. As we entered the harbor we were greeted by a lighthouse, complete with a bag pipe player in a kilt!

We enjoyed walking along the Royal Mile in the city of Edinburgh. The photo at the top of this post is of the castle from the main road, but we began our walk with this view. Truly medieval.

There were even treasures in the sidewalk ~like this pretty mosaic.

The colorful shops were such a contrast to the ancient buildings.

We found oodles of shops with Harris Tweed items (note the vintage sewing machine),

and other fabric related things (there’s a vintage machine on the sign!)

The inside of this shop did not disappoint (hand-made items and another Singer machine!)

This window was at a tailor’s shop with no machine, but scissors, a needle and thread.

It was a lovely stroll down the Royal Mile – and we ended it with hot chocolate in a shop amidst the bustle of tourists and locals.

The next day we arrived in the Orkney Islands and Kirkwall along the northern coast of Scotland. The islands were so interesting and had a rugged beauty all their own, combined with so much history.

Kirkwall was filled with fun shops and a beautiful church. But we were on a mission to find Jude’s Fabric and Joke Shop. We headed to the address on our GPS.

This didn’t look promising, and we assumed it was defunct. So, we headed to the craft fairs advertised along the main street. They were great, and one of the artists told us to go to Jude’s. When we said it wasn’t there, she told us to give it another try. So we returned and went through the brown door by the garage door. Ooh – there was a sign!

We wandered for a while in the overcrowded spaces, and finally found the door (with no sign). When we asked the sales lady about our difficulty in finding the shop she responded “our customers know where to find us” 😂.

It was worth the search!

What a lot of stuff! We found the cottons along with buttons and other delights along the front wall.

And another Singer ~ this one with a hand crank!

The fabric I just had to take home with me was simply a quilters cotton, but the design of embroidered flowers looked very 3D. And notice the “Thistle Sprig” the sweet saleslady included with my purchase (a symbol of Scotland).

She was so sweet.

What a wonderful time we had in France and Scotland!

In May I had yet another wonderful adventure. My friend Kristi put the tour together, and it was the second trip I’ve taken with Marie. We arrived in England two days before our amazing cruise and spent a day in both London and Windsor. Marie had never been to Liberty in London, so we had to start there.

She loved the beauty of this elegant store – and the fabric!

This was printed on a wall near the fabric department:

They had quilts, garments and yarn arranged so beautifully all around the fourth floor (the photo at the top of this post is of a quilted representation of the building itself).

I was especially taken with the kits for these wonderful embroideries. If you look closely you’ll see that the background fabric has pieces of shiny, colorful sheers placed in just the right areas to make the hand-stitching more beautiful. If you’re interested in these lovely kits you can visit the creators website by clicking here.

After our visit to Liberty we found a pub and had some delicious soup for lunch. The food was great, but the decor was the intriguing part. While waiting to be served I noticed an eclectic collection of things on a high shelf – which included a vintage sewing machine (can you find it?)!

Then after lunch a journey to the rest rooms (“toilettes” in the UK) led me to a most interesting staircase! I wonder who this is.

The decor in the toilette didn’t disappoint either. What lovely hand mirrors.

From there we walked to Buckingham Palace, and then our trek took us to Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, and the Houses of Parliament. We saw it all and were really tired because we’d been flying through the night, visited wonderful sites, and it was still early afternoon. So we decided to get on a “hop-on, hop-off” boat and see more sites from the River Thames. That ride ended at the Tower of London and Tower Bridge.

We grabbed fish and chips at another pub (stay tuned for that photo), and then got on a train back to our hotel at Heathrow… and a good night’s sleep (12 hours!!!)

We spent our second day in Windsor and toured the castle.

At this point I can’t resist sharing a few foodie photos. The colors alone are inspiring! A delight for the eyes and the tummy!

The following morning we rode a bus to Southampton and our ship ~ the Norwegian Sky.

Here’s the map of all our ports of call. I think you can imagine why we wanted to sign on ~ 7 countries in 14 days! We are truly blessed.

We’d had an amazing trip already and our ship hadn’t left the port. Next week my post will cover Monet’s gardens in Giverny, France… and more!

Over a year ago I posted about a lovely opportunity I had to speak and share my quilts at a Christian Women’s Retreat (click here for that post). Since then I’ve been invited to speak at other women’s events in churches in Wisconsin. Each time has been a blessing. Recently a church in a small town on the west side of the State had me come and share my testimony and quilts in three lectures during their Spring Ladies Luncheon. It was all wonderful! I stayed with the Pastor and his wife ~ and they excelled at hospitality. We had wonderful conversations, and Tracy is an excellent cook.

The ladies of the church put out a request for quilts to decorate with prior to my visit, and the response was quite impressive. This was the entry display:

Along with a few other areas:

The tables were set so beautifully.

I was especially taken with the star quilt on the wall in the last photograph. Tracy told me that the daughter of the woman who made it gave her some worn shirts from her four sons. She used them in the quilt ~ buttons and all. Delightful!

The theme for the day was “Designed For a Purpose”, and the verse I’d chosen for my talks was Ephesians 2:10. One of the women in the church had a Cricut™ machine. She cut the letters from paper and they were stuck to the wall of the fellowship hall with sticky dots. How clever.

Even the ledge in the stairway was decked out for the occassion.

The pasta bar lunch was delicious, with desserts of tuxedo cake and crème brûlée. Yum!

And the church ladies even had a craft set up where all those present were able to paint their own quilt blocks.

There were so many sweet ladies there aged from youth to retirement. A few were quilters, but many were not.

I didn’t get any photos of my talks, but that’s ok with me. I just hope that my message brought glory to the Lord, and that the attendees were encouraged to know Him and walk closely with Him. I know I was!

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And one more thing…

This past Thursday I returned from a wonderful adventure cruising around the United Kingdom. I’m currently jetlagged and trying to go through my photographs, so I wasn’t ready to post about the trip yet. I did however visit one place that unexpectedly related to this week’s post. The small town I was in for the above event was Avoca, WI. Imagine my surprise when one of our stops while touring the countryside around Dublin, Ireland was a woolen mill in Avoca:

The mill had a small museum and a lovely gift shop.

The museum contained an old loom,

and the story of the Wynne sisters.

The colors of the items available in the gift shop were yummy!

Sadly the mill was not running while we were there, but the vist was lovely nonetheless. I’m grateful to have been able to spend time in both Avocas!

A few weeks ago I taught for a quilt guild in northern Illinois. Kathy came up to me and said she was the “blue bird lady”. I remembered she’d sent me a photo of her bird quilt that I shared in my recent “bird” post (click here to read that post). After that post I did another one that asked readers to send me photos of their squirrel quilts – and Kathy brought hers to the meeting. She said she’d been a kindergarten teacher and her students loved it when she sang the song “Gray Squirrel”. How sweet. The musical notes in the border fabric represent the song! I was pleased she thought to bring it to the meeting.

The first photo I received in response to my post was from Diane:

“We have a friend whose nickname is Squirrel so I made this quilt for him.“

I’m sure Squirrel loved it! Then Bonnie wrote:

“Hi Kris, I just happen to have a quilt with a squirrel on it! I made this a couple of years ago, using some free appliqué pillow patterns as the source for the 2 big pumpkins and the critters. Squirrels are a great source of entertainment at our house because we have a “squirrel bungee” with a corn cob on it, and watching them jump up and bounce around on it is pretty humorous!“

Delightful! Another email came from Maud:

“Good morning, Your timing on the squirrel quilt is spot on. This year my local library asked me to make a quilt for a fundraiser. The library’s mascot is a squirrel named Oaklee, chainsaw carved from a dying oak tree in their front lawn.”

“Following their squirrel lead, I had so much fun making this quilt to fit the theme. The squirrel and leaves are made from wool I hand dyed years ago. The raffle drawing is May 2nd and I hope it makes a lot of much needed money for my wonderful library!”

I’m sure the quilt was a hit in the raffle.

I’ve been blessed to teach many classes recently for guilds and shows (I think I may have overbooked myself – but I loved every one!). I always ask students to send me photos of the projects they begin in class. Recently I’ve recieved some delightful pics, and they make my teacher’s heart sing!

This note and photo were emailed to me by a quilter in Rockford, IL. I was thrilled to see she’d won a blue ribbon for the piece she started in class. She didn’t however sign her email, and I don’t remember her name. So, if anyone recognizes her, please send her name in the comments below. Congrats dear quilter! Here’s her message:

“I took a class from you last year and entered my art quilt in the Sinnissippi Quilters Quilt Show in Rockford, Illinois.  I took first place in the art category.  Unfortunately it is overpowered by the quilt it is hanging behind.  I enjoyed the class and thinking outside the box.”

The next two emails were from students in my classes at the Indiana Heritage Quilt Show (click here to read the post about that show). This one is from Tearle who took my “Where Do I Start With Fiber Art” class

“Hello Chris — Here is my finished quilt! It has changed a bit since the class. I added some lace, rick rack and buttons. These embellishments are from my grandmother Beulah’s sewing stash! She passed away over 20 years ago but she was an amazing seamstress! She made all of her own clothes, as well as mine, my mom’s and my aunt’s, not to mention sewing for others to make some extra money.  Beulah is a Biblical name…one of the meanings that I could find was: “A place or state of ideal happiness and union with God.” So, if I’m naming my first art quilt, it would be “Beulah–a new beginning,” to represent the new turn my quilting has taken. Thanks again, Chris! I am already starting to think about my NEXT art quilt!”

Tearle’s story is as lovely as her quilt.

Then I received an email from Bryan. He and his wife were in my Mariner’s Compass class in Indiana.

“At my local guilds stay at home quilt retreat.  Finished my compass block. Loved the class!”

Well done Bryan! And here are two more student successes. Karen took my compass class last year, and when I visited her guild a few weeks ago (at the same meeting in which Kathy showed me her squirrel quilt) she had it finished and on a jacket! Gorgeous!

When I taught my Seminole workshop for these ladies two days later, Deb brought in her compass from that same class. I love the colors!

I really enjoy seeing what happens to quilts that begin in a class. Thanks to all who shared ~ and made this week’s post so much fun!

Liz is a dear friend who’s also a quilter, and she sent me the following photo and email:

“I have a friend who will turn 100 this summer & her mom (!) found this quilt in the bottom of a trunk 80 years ago. Any chance you (or your readers) know any history about it?“

After receiving her email I did some image searching online and found 2 that were similar. This one dates from the 1930s and was called simply “red and white medallion quilt”. The seller was asking $199.

The other one is called “early 1860’s civil war era red and white appliqué quilt” with a price tag of $395.

What I think makes the quilt in Liz’s photo special is that it is a sampler quilt. Does anyone reading have any stories or information about this pattern? Please let us know.

Also, I recieved another email I’d like to share. In February Roxan read my post about the baby quilt I made for my cousin’s daughter in “A Last Minute Baby Quilt“. In it I stated that I couldn’t identify the maker of the floral fabric.

This is what she sent:

“Use your cellphone to take a picture of the fabric, quilt, historical monument, etc., and save it on your phone. Then open the picture, and when it pops up, select “Google Lens”.  You may have to search in your app where “Lens” is tuck away, (mine is by the ellipsis above the photo) but once you find it, click Google Lens, and it will start quickly searching to help you find the source. I think someone like you could make great use of a tool like this. For instance, I found your bright floral fabric listing it as, “Floral Burst Serious Whimsey” for sale by Flowers2Fabric.com, for $15/yd (or in 1/4 yard increments). Another site was sold out, but at least you now have a website/manufacturer to start researching. And it took literally 2 seconds.  Hope this helps! God Bless!”

Thanks for this helpful information Roxan. The good news is that before I could look it up, Ruth knew the name of the maker I was seeking, and responded to my post: The fabric designer is P Carter Carpin. I’m grateful to all you dear quilters for your helpful comments to my posts.

Then, after a post about quilt designs in a hotel carpet while in Bloomington, IN, my friend Margaret sent me this photo of the new carpet in a church she visited.

Wouldn’t that make an exciting quilt? It used to be that we could only find quilt design inspiration on floors in European cathedrals. Like this mosaic I photographed on a floor in the Vatican Museum.

Art is all around us if we’re looking. Thanks Margaret!

And one more thing… at a recent guild meeting I met Deb. She shared this lovely stain glass quilt ~ yes it’s made of fabric. She said she wanted to hang it in her kitchen, but was concerned about grease, etc. So she coated it with Mod Podge™. It made the quilting look great, and is easy to wipe clean.

I love sharing these clever ideas. I hope you enjoy them too.

Thanks for this helpful information Roxan. The good news is that before I could look it up, Ruth knew the name of the maker I was seeking, and responded to my post: The fabric designer is P Carter Carpin. I’m grateful to all you dear ladies for your helpful comments to my posts.

To start this week’s post off on a whimsical note – the photo at the top of this post was taken in lower town, Paducah during Quilt Week. The area was having a “quilt displays in the storefront windows” contest and this clothing store topped mushrooms with quilts. So cute!

Then, there were a number of patriotic challenges exhibited at the quilt show in honor of our nation’s 250th birthday.

I didn’t organize these photos according to the individual challenges, I just snapped pics of a few of my favorites.

“Fourth of July Celebration!” by Cynthia England struck me as very clever.

“This Eagle Flies Upon the Wings of Adversity” by Mary Randall is filled with so many intricate sampler blocks.

“Kaleidoscope USA” by Colleen Monti combined stars, pentagons, hexies and diamonds in an interesting way – and I loved the red and white striped binding.

The details on the next two quilts was nothing short of spectacular!

And this one just made me chuckle – it’s called “Stars and Stripes”, and was made by Barbara Cline.

“Carefree Highways” by Carol Duffy was actually a part of the judged quilt competition. Each of the star centers is a counted cross-stitch block from a State.

Here’s a detail of Kentucky, since that’s where we were 😊.

And I think, if I had to pick a favorite, it would be “E Plurbus Unum” by Jennifer Gottleib.

God bless America!!!

On Wednesday night a reception was held at the National Quilt Museum to celebrate it’s 35th “birthday”. The huge charcuterie spread was delicious.

I was thrilled to be there when a representative from Paducah’s Mayor’s office presented a plaque to Meredith Schroeder honoring her as the “Duchess of Paducah”. Meredith, her late husband Bill, and their family have been a huge blessing to the quilt world – and to me.

The museum also had a wonderful display in honor of the annual “New Quilts From an Old Favorite” challenge. This year’s theme was “Food”. Some of you may remember a quilt I made last year that fit the theme of the challenge (click here and then here to read about that quilt). My entry wasn’t accepted, but many wonderful quilts were. The contest was sponsored by Royal Dansk cookies. Royal Dansk shipped crates of their cookies to the show for the celebration, and students at a local college designed a unique display for the cookies. It was a huge spool of thread complete with a wooden needle. Each of the guests were given a tin to take home at the conclusion of the ceremony. What a treat.

Jessica Drennan made the first place winning quilt. She cleverly included Royal Dansk cookies in her design. Brilliant! Click here to see the other winners.

I spent quite a bit of time browsing the wonderful vendors at the show. I couldn’t resist snapping this photo of Alex Anderson working in the Creative Grids booth. What a talented and down-to-earth lady who has earned a big name in the quilting world and yet isn’t above demonstrating their products for the customers.

Then I found a colorful booth that didn’t have any fabric or notions for sale. But Tami had her own stunning fused glass quilt creations.

The piece behind us is one she made after researching quilt blocks from each State. She calls it “Threads of History 1776 – 2026, 50 State Quilts in Fused Glass”. Here are some other items she had for sale.

I couldn’t resist taking one of her garden stakes home with me. Click here to visit her website!

The last day of the show I wandered over to a small shop called Artist Endeavors, located in a strip mall near where we were staying. Cheryl carries fabric, especially wool, and she holds classes. As I looked at all her lovely things we began to chat. I discovered we had a sweet connection. I’ve mentioned before that I’ve been helping to hang the show since 1989 with a group of quilters from Sun Prairie, WI. When AQS decided to hold a quilt show in Paducah, my friend Klaudeen Hansen and the Prairie Heritage Quilters were invited to Paducah to help them put on the show. To read about their connection to the show click here!

In the beginning my friends Arlene and Jean made the dogwood toppers for all the winning ribbons at the show. Arlene passed away many years ago, and Jean is no longer able to attend the show or make the ribbons. So, AQS found someone else to do this. And I discoverrd it was Cheryl! Here we are with one of her toppers:

She told me she made 91 ribbon tops for this year’s show. What fun to make this connection.

And the scariest moment during our trip took place on the sidewalk outside our B&B. Lori and I were sitting at a table having lunch when a man walked by with a huge yellow snake draped around his neck. Lori wouldn’t even turn to look, but I couldn’t stop staring. I looked it up and it’s a Burmise Yellow Python. I didn’t have the foresight to take a photo, so I found this online and – yup, that’s what I saw.

You just never know what you’ll see during Quilt Week in Paducah!

I’m starting this week’s post with some of my favorite large quilts from last week’s show, but I’m including some additional fun stuff at the end, so please scroll all the way through. Now for the big quilts:

If you’ve been watching the AQS website and/or Facebook page you will have seen this quilt. I had to start with Linda Neal’s quilt “A Calm Day at Sea”, because is was hands down my favorite. She said that she wanted to do a variation on a Baltimore Album quilt – and what a variation! I wasn’t surprised when it won the Viewer’s Choice ribbon.

Linda’s attention to detail is delightful ~ inside the circles and out!

Along the sea bottom:

And up top on the pier. A person can’t help but be captivated and amazed.

So what else can I share? Lots, as you’ll see…

“Searching for Whys” by Susan Nixon is a pattern I’ve admired before – and she did it beautifully. After I’d taken the photo I actually met Susan. She was in my Friday night class. That’s when I learned that she made this quilt while going through chemo treatments. She told me with tears that it was an important, healing part of her journey. What a beautiful blessing!

“A Time for Gathering” by Louise Thibaudeau looked so peaceful compared to many of the hundreds of quilts hanging in the contest, but I loved the sweet appliqués and uncluttered simplicity.

I felt the same way about “Birds of a Feather” by Kathy Madziar. The simple cross hatching behind the appliqués was a perfect choice of quilting design.

“Duval in Dots” by Tony Alicea is quite different from the previous two quilts, yet it too grabbed me. I think it’s the fact that this entire large wall quilt was made with only 1/2″ squares.

I’d seen “Beauty in the Broken” by Kathy Wylie in previous AQS magazines, but it was so special in person. All of the black areas in the outer border and center of the quilt are the black curtain showing through her cut-work. Amazing.

I often come upon “One Block Wonder” quilts at different shows. I’m especially intrigued by the ones that are made from 7 of the same printed panel. “A Stroll in our Autumn Years” by Lois Kindley began with a lovely panel – and the colors blended so well in the hexagon blocks (plus – I love orange).

“Lapin” by Megumi Mizuno is made with a great amount of hand-work.

Here’s a detail shot. Her appliqué and embroidery are beautiful. And just look at those tiny hand-quilted stitches!

I was very impressed. But then I came upon “Lollipop” by Antonia Kort-Hering. Antonia won a special ribbon for hand-work, causing me to be really impressed!

This photo shows why she won the hand workmanship award.

“Old Fashion Sampler” by Glady Cline uses old lace doilies in a charming way throughout the quilt.

This quilt was so long it had to be draped over a lower rod. I know you’ll enjoy a close-up of the blocks and doilies.

“Thousands of Thimbles” by Shelley Stallard is a scrap quilt covered with thimble shaped patches. I’m guessing those patches were about 1 1/2″. The sashed areas make it so interesting. WOW!

You may remember from last week’s post, that I enjoyed meeting 5 quilters from China. Well, at the awards ceremony one of the group got up to accept the ribbon for their friend Jing He’s quilt “Lili Li”. Jing couldn’t make it to the show, but her friends were very excited for her, and her quilt is lovely.

“Voyage of Threads” by Cole Reese Whitaker was another ship quilt I just had to share. It is quite large, and even though the shapes are somewhat simple, the overall effect is impressive.

The next two quilts are just for fun. This bed sized quilt by Nikki Woolsey is called “Pop”. It really made me smile.

And “Little Girl Danji and Kitten Jenny” by Jinyoung Lee was unexpected and delightful. Don’t you just love the little girl peeking over her shoulder at you? Sweet!

My final favorite from the show is “Flowers for my Granddaughter” by Judy Powell. The appliqué and piecing are very nice, but I especially loved the twisted ribbon border. Those of you who’ve taken my Seminole workshop know how much fun it is to make this border with Seminole piecing. The 3D results are lovely.

While wandering the show I ran into a dear friend, Bonnie Browning.

She was the “queen” of the AQS shows for many years, and did a wonderful job of making each show run to perfection. Since she’s retired she said she’s been working to find funding for the quilt murals to be added on the wall surrounding the convention center. So far there are 4 quilts on the wall (these 3 plus one added this year). She said there are more scheduled!

Shortly after bumping into her, I found myself looking at Bonnie’s very own miniature quilt in the National Quilt Museum. How lovely!

I’m so grateful to have taught at the Paducah show the past two years. This year was so busy because of my parent’s health issues (in case you’ve been following their story, mom has been in hospice care for 10 months and is still with us. She is nearing the end, and Dad sits with her every day. We are very blessed). So, I never got around to applying to teach again. Imagine my delight to be contacted by Lauren at AQS a few months back. She said she knew I’d be at the show and they had a Friday night time slot open for me to teach. What a wonderful invitation! I had a full class for “Quilt, Slash, Create” and the ladies were the best!

And I’ll close this week’s post with a photo of the biggest needle and thread in Kentucky. It stands on a corner near the convention center.

You just never know what you’ll see in Paducah. Besides the quilts, and the interesting people I’ve written about so far – there are some stories about the trip I’m saving for next week. Stay tuned…

Last Sunday Lori and I headed down to the 40th annual AQS quilt show in Paducah, KY! It’s been such a warm Spring that the ornamental pear trees that line our driveway were blooming 3 weeks early (see photo above). That meant the dogwoods were not blooming in Paducah, but the roses were!

And they smelled heavenly. Everything was beautiful and green. We unpacked and set up our “studio” in the kitchen of our the second story guest house as usual (note all 4 quilt sissies hanging around on the mirror top center 😁).

Our deck and the patio nextdoor were busy with squirrels – yes squirrels. Perhaps they showed up after reading last week’s post.

We enjoyed their antics, and I’ve always thought they were cute… until I discovered they were living in the attic above my third floor bedroom. They woke me at sunrise with their scurrying around. Grrrr!

Late that morning we headed over to the convention center and helped to hang the quilts. Once they were up it was time to pin the miniature quilts into the cases. We really enjoy doing this. Even the glamorous parts, like cleaning the glass:

Well actually, arranging the quilts is a lot more fun.

And I can’t wait to show you the “Best of Show” miniature because it’s filled with mini mariner’s compasses. Just look at the points in the center compass! The narrowest ones were less than 1/8″ wide!

It’s always an exhausting day, but I wouldn’t miss it – and I haven’t for 36 years. What a blessing! Whenever I travel to quilt events the quilts themselves are a wonderful focus, and yet I find meeting the quilters and their friends to be just as wonderful if not more so. So please watch for a few “It’s the people” insets as you read.

It’s the people! The next day my friend Susan arrived from Wisconsin and we all went to the awards ceremony. We sat at a table with 5 women who had just arrived from China. They were delightful, and so excited to be at their first AQS show. On Wednesday I met up with two of them at the show and we exchanged contact information. New quilting friends – what fun!

The first day of the show Susan and I attended a lecture on yarn couching by Bethanne Nemesh. Wow! Not only is she a creative and talented quilter, she adorns clothing and home accessories with yarn couched animals and botanicals. Just look at some of the coats she shared with us.

While explaining her technique she kept saying that it was actually quite easy. Susan and I are hoping to get together and do a bit of couching ourselves. Will let you know just how “easy” it really is. Stay tuned.

There were 400 contest quilts on display at the show, and many more in special exhibits. It’s much too much to take in all in one day. So, after the lecture I headed to the wall quilts and vendors on the second floor of the convention center. I hope you’ll enjoy my sharing a few of my favorites quilts with you from that day.

One of the first quilts that caught my eye was “Out of Chaos” by Judy Zoelzer Levine. Judy and I have been friends for years and of all her quilts, this is my favorite. I love orange – and the design is captivating.

I am often attracted to quilts with dimensional perspective and “Visual Voyage” by Inger Blood has such depth.

I was surprised to find that “MONA Perspective” was made by Caryl Bryer Fallert Gentry. She is one of my favorite quilters and teachers, but this isn’t her typical style. As with all her quilts, everything is done to perfection.

For some reason I’m drawn to nautical quilts, and there were quite a few amazing ones in this show. “Harraseeket” by Carol Russell captured this calming scene so well. Just look at the reflections in the water.

A little farther down the aisle I found “Beyond the Seas” by Isabel Munoz. I’m quite sure it’s a wholecloth, meaning there is a white fabric background and everything else is thread painted in black. Stunning!

Solitude by Judith Phelps won the Brother Best Wall Stationary Machine Workmanship Award. It is also heavily thread painted,

and because she changed her bobbin thread with each change of the top, the back is just as gorgeous as the front.

But of all the quilts on the second floor “Storm of the Soul” by Laura Franci was my favorite. It’s all raw-edged appliqué and her attention to detail blew me away!

It’s the people! As I was wandering through the wall quilts Jacqueline approached me and said “Hi Chris, I was hoping I’d run into you. I took your free motion quilting class here 2 years ago and I was short $3 to purchase your book. You gave me the book anyways and I’ve been wanting to pay you back with interest ever since.” She handed me a $5 bill. What a sweet lady! When I tried to decline she wouldn’t let me, and then she said that she was a long arm quilter and she is still using some of the techniques she learned in that class. I was joyful and humbled. A teacher can’t hear anything better than that a student is using what they learned in class. Thank you Jacqueline!

At this point I was only part way through the small wall quilts, so here are a few more. I loved the vintage feel of “Swinging Bonnet Babes” by Rhea Mowery, and her quilting added so much motion.

“Wagon Train” by Karen Lambdin is a lovely grandmother’s flower garden quilt with stunning quilting. What a wonderful backdrop for the sweet wagon train. Charming.

Katie Henrich made “Flight of Wonder” from a photograph she took of her sons on the beach. The “geese” flying along with the boys against the beautiful seaside backdrop makes this quilt special.

And speaking of capturing special moments, “First Look” by Paula Longshore is just too sweet!

When I walked up to “Small Town USA” by Christine Gillespie I found the buildings charming, but then I noticed that the trees are what are holding the horizontal rows together. The black curtain behind is showing through. How clever.

And since we’re on the subject of clever… my final quilt from the upstairs gallery is “Let’s Open the Zip” by Noriko Nozawa. The “open” areas are filled with buttons, notions, yarns and threads. Sew very clever.

I hope you enjoyed some early parts of this wonderful trip. Stay tuned next week for even more inspiration.