Houston!

  
A little construction and rain did nothing to dim the spirits of the thousands of happy quilters assembled at International Quilt Festival last month.  It feels like one huge happy annual reunion each time I attend!  Many other folks have already posted far better images of the winning quilts…as usual, there was something to inspire every type of quilter.

Here are some fun memories of all of the other activities at Festival:

1-Teaching

I had the pleasure of being a part of Open Studios again…here is one enthusiastic volunteer helping me demonstrate the final step in making Curved Leaf Coasters:

2- Learning!

I signed up for two terrific classes this year.  

Cheryl Sleboda’s “Building the Right Quilt Brand for You” was an all-morning session that took the group through an incredible amount of material, from concepts of brand identity to vet specific helpful website hints.  If you have a chance to take this class, do!  I have all sorts of homework to do during vacation.

I was also fortunate to be part of Judy Coates Perez’s all-day session on working with acrylic inks.  Wow! Judy managed to fit 2 days of material into one and it was amazing.  If you’re looking for a great Christmas gift for a friend (or for yourself ;)), order her book, Creative Alchemy.  This is what my drying area looked like after just part of the class:

  
Amazing what one piece of white fabric can become, isn’t it?  (Of course when I returned home I had to add a little thread…)

  
(Holiday gift note:  those little pieces of art cloth you create in class can be turned into marvelous gift card holders.)

3- Shopping

When so many vendors have become your friends, it’s tough to avoid spending a lot of time on that side of the floor exchanging hugs with folks I don’t get to see very often.  Festival is a great opportunity to hunt down a special new thread, hand-dyed fabric, or notion that you haven’t seen before.  

Inevitably, there are a few stowaways in my suitcase:

  
4-Celebrating with friends 🙂

The most important thing you bring home from Festival is memories….time with old friends and the fun of making new ones.  Having an awesome roommate is key, of course…the “before” and “after” shots of my roomie Meg Cox:

  
Quiltapalooza was fantastic this year (Michele Muska did an amazing job of preparing the party room and the pajama-themed costumes were priceless).  The big Saturday night party fell on Halloween this year–many amazing sights at the Monster Ball!  “Finding Nemo” was the costume winner and it’s easy to see why:
  
And so the countdown for IQF 2016 begins!