Burst of colors by Jill Eskew; quilted by Pat Roche
On Friday I went to my first quilt show since the pandemic. The Arizona Quilters Guild has a show every year (except 2021; it was held in February in 2020, but I didn’t attend). I can’t remember the last time I attended this show; it’s been a while.
Copper Mountain Springs by Melanie Harris; quilted by John Harris
This year’s theme is Canyon of Colors. I photographed 40 quilts at the show. I’m going to include them in four separate posts, so that I don’t overwhelm myself or you. I took pictures of quilts that appealed to me. Some of them were prize winners, but you know what? Not all the prize winners interested me, not that they didn’t deserve the recognition. But a lot of the non-winners caught my eye because of their use of color or their whimsy. I also prefer traditional quilts, so I passed by some of the more modern ones. One problem I had was fitting some of the large quilts into my viewfinder. The aisles were too narrow to step back far enough to capture them completely, even with judicious focusing.
detail of Copper Mountain Springs, showing the awesome quilting and rhinestone accents
I made one very big mistake. Attendees received a lovely booklet as they entered the show. I didn’t look at mine until after I left, because I was eager to see all the quilts. On the back was a map of the convention center. The quilts were on display in two different halls. I only saw the ones in the Main Hall. After I had seen them all, I thought, gee, there weren’t as many quilts as I remember seeing in the past. I saw a sign that said “More Quilts” and I went down a hallway and saw some lovely Hopi quilts on display as well as some for sale. I looked around the next corner and didn’t see anything more, so I backtracked and looked at all the quilts in the Main Hall again, as well as the 39 vendor shops.
Arizona Canyons by Sujata Ryan
What I didn’t realize because I didn’t look at the back of my booklet, was that there was another exhibition hall off the hallway around that last corner. So let that be a lesson to you: when attending a quilt show, be sure to look at your booklet!
detail of Arizona Canyons showing the expert quilting
If you are disappointed that I missed almost half of the quilts, I urge you to check out Quilt Inspiration in the coming weeks. Marina and Daryl Lynn usually attend this show and post about it. As of yesterday, they were still posting about the Tucson Quilter’s Guild Show, but I’d be surprised if they didn’t cover the AQG one as well.
Dancing Butterflies by Gail Witt; quilted by Jessica Jones
One nice touch at this show that I haven’t seen before: each quilt had an index card folded around the edge near the right side lower corner, fastened by a clothespin. If you wanted to see the backside of the quilt, you didn’t have to wait for a white-gloved volunteer to come help you; you could carefully flip the clothespin.
Zigzag Rainbow by Becky Ripley
detail of Zigzag Rainbow
Zigzag Rainbow is constructed with one-inch squares and half-square triangles. Note to self: I want to make a quilt like this.
Colors on Parade by Terry Findlay; quilted by Amy Dyer
Colors on Parade, made of half-square triangles acquired in a quilting group exchange, also has a bottom border of flying geese like the one on the right side. Note to self: I want to make a quilt like this.
Laurene’s Legacy by Jean Lopez; quilted by Robin Ruiz
Laurene’s Legacy, a Baltimore Album Quilt, is named for the late Laurene Sinema, a beloved quilt designer, founder of the Arizona Quilter’s Guild, and Phoenix quilt store proprietor who authored many quilting books. Laurene owned the original mid-19th-century quilt this is based on (published design by Heartland Quilt Guild), and many of the fabrics came from Laurene’s shop. As I was looking at this quilt, Jean Lopez happened to walk by, and graciously allowed me to take a picture of her with the quilt:
Laurene’s Legacy with Jean Lopez, creator
detail of Laurene’s Legacy showing quilting and ribbon
Will and Juli’s Celtic Wedding Quilt by Carol Rich; blocks hand-quilted; sashing and borders machine-quilted
detail of Will and Juli’s Celtic Wedding Quilt showing meticulous hand-quilting
Pineapple Scrap Quilt by Jillane Ocana
Southern Gentleman Meets Carpenter’s Wheel by Janice Jones; quilted by Kris Neifeld
detail of Southern Gentleman Meets Carpenter’s Wheel showing quilting
My husband, Greg, told me I should “buy something I don’t need” at the show, because I often come home empty-handed from shopping trips because I don’t see anything that I need. I breezed through the vendor booths without being tempted, because I know I have more patterns and fabrics at home than I will ever be able to use. But one item did make me take pause.
What do you think it is?
A seam ripper/stiletto combo! The prettiest one I’ve ever seen. It’s pricey, though. $40. I had to walk away and think about it.
Greg actually gave me permission to buy something I didn’t need. I do need another seam ripper or two, but a cheap one would do. I usually use a bamboo skewer when I need a stiletto.
But this one is a work of art.
I went back to talk to the maker, Ron Schuler of Quills and Quilts. “What is this made out of?” I asked, pointing to the handle.
“Magic powder,” he replied.
“Like an epoxy?”
“A two-part resin.”
And it looks and feels like stone.
I bought it. And I used it (the stiletto part) on Saturday. It works like a charm.
If you want to see more of the beautiful quilts from this show, stop back on Saturday. Until then, happy quilting!
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Though the Lord gave you adversity for food
and suffering for drink,
he will still be with you to teach you.
You will see your teacher with your own eyes.
Your own ears will hear him.
Right behind you a voice will say,
“This is the way you should go,”
whether to the right or to the left (Isaiah 30:20-21 NLT).
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Quilters out there, if you have to piece together a one-fabric border, do you try to line it up so that the seam falls at the center of the quilt, or do you let seams fall wherever they may? Please leave your thoughts in the comments below.
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I’ve always wanted to travel more, see new places and experience different cultures. Unfortunately, even though we’re retired now, it’s difficult for Greg to get around, so traveling is out of the question. I am grateful for the trips we’ve been able to make in the past, and hope that maybe someday we can do some more.
The most memorable places I’ve traveled in my life:
Germany (and Salzburg, Austria). My parents came from Germany, and on three occasions in my childhood and teens, my family traveled back to visit my grandmother, aunts and uncles and cousins. We visited castles and cathedrals, and saw the famous mechanical clock in Munich. My favorite place of all was Berchtesgaden, where my parents met and lived after World War II.
Hawaii. I’ve been there twice—once by myself, in 2004 for the Maui Writer’s Conference; and once with my husband, Greg, to Waikiki on Oahu. What a beautiful paradise.
The Grand Canyon. The first time was in 1997, the summer before Carly left for college. I thought it would be awful for someone who lived in Arizona to confess that they’d never been to the Grand Canyon, so we took all five kids there and back again in one day in our old Dodge Caravan with no air conditioning. I knew it was just a hole in the ground, but when you see it in person, it’s awe inspiring, so vast. My kids mostly remember being very very hot and bored with the 500-mile roundtrip. (And 2 weeks later our Caravan died.) About twelve years ago Greg and I went back by ourselves.
New York City. When we lived in New Jersey, we went to the city often, mostly for the museums and musicals. We’ve also done the Circle Line cruise around Manhattan. Our daughter Carly has lived in Brooklyn for 22 years.
Williamsburg, Virginia. That’s where we went on our honeymoon, about 6 months after our January 1974 wedding. It was getting close to our country’s bicentennial, and I was very into the colonial period. We went on what was the hottest week in the summer, looked at the historical sites for an hour or two in the morning, and then back to the hotel pool.
Washington, D.C. I went with my parents and my brother a couple of times when I was in high school. We went to all the monuments, and to the National Gallery (my favorite!) and the Smithsonian. Every American should see our capital city. Greg has never gone, even though I’ve suggested it many times.
Niagara Falls. Another place my parents took us, more than once. If I’m not mistaken, we’ve seen it from the American side and the Canadian side. It’s mesmerizing. You could watch that water fall for hours.
Sedona, Arizona. Beautiful red rock country. In 2008, Greg and I spent a couple of nights in a bed & breakfast with a gorgeous view from the balcony. We visited the Chapel of the Holy Cross, a beautiful church with amazing views, took a ride on the Verde Canyon railroad, and had the most delicious steak dinner that Greg still talks about. I’d love to repeat that trip, but the B&B now costs three times what it did, and that’s without the train ride and steak dinner that were part of the original deal. Bummer.
View of Sedona from our B&B balcony
If Greg ever recovers his strength and energy, there are a few trips I’d like for us to make:
Grand European river tour. You know the one. You’ve seen the commercials. From Amsterdam to Budapest. I am so jealous of all my friends who have already done this. But if I couldn’t do this tour, I’d be happy to settle for . . .
Italy. I want to see Florence, Rome, Venice, the Cinque Terra. I want to see Michelangelo’s work. I want to see lots of Renaissance stuff.
Israel. I want to walk where Jesus walked. I want to see all the places I’ve read about in the Bible. I almost went with my daughter Carly in 2019—I got my passport and everything. But then Greg and I both had health issues and I had to cancel. Every year church groups host Holy Land tours. I hope I get to go someday.
Now it’s your turn. What is the best vacation you’ve ever taken? If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go? Share in the comments below.
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