New Favorites
1. Going to market. Quilt Market was quieter and less hectic than I thought it would be. I was really worried that the environment would automatically trigger a crazy migraine (big places with noises bouncing around are a problem for me), but my head stayed pretty normal, so I was happy.
I was able to get through my to do list: that list had a couple of categories: manufacturing needs for my etsy shop and networking needs related to the blog and getting more of my quilts into magazines. While it was fun to see the fabric designers' booths in person and sometimes even get to chat with the designers, I tried not to fangirl.
2. I made an exception to my "no fangirling" rule for Carolyn Friedlander. You may have seen (and gotten wanty over) previews of her fabric line Architextures (due out soon).
But her quilts and her quilting are so awesome it makes me swear and pull out my hair.
I want her to teach me all of the things!
I may have told her as much and done a little dance for her. :-)
3. Meeting quilters in person. It's nice to put faces (real, 3-dimensional faces!) to blogs and flickr-streams. It's also amazing how honest and open people are in person. I've always felt myself a bit at odds with the SUPER NICEY NICE culture of online quilters, probably because my RealJob is one where giving someone criticism = doing them a favor. And I have a personal and professional disposition towards making distinctions. Anyway, I find that I'm much better able to have the type of conversations I want in person--honest, respectful, but tricky conversations. I found myself talking with a lot of people about how weird it was to see so many things trying to brand themselves as "modern" or for "modern quilters" and (a) completely missing the boat, (b) commercializing the "modern quilt" space to the point of ickiness, and (c) making useless, divisive distinctions.
4. Eating this dish:
I can't even describe how good it is! Get the recipe here: Butternut Squash Salad with Farro and Pepitas (I used barley in place of farro and toasted pumpkin seeds instead of pepitas).
5. Seeing quilts in person. This of course includes seeing my very own Kelp Quilt hanging in the Modern Quilt Guild showcase. It was the only bee quilt that was hanging, so I was really glad it was there, because bees and collaboration are really important and should be celebrated and displayed.
If you are new to this quilt, check out this post for a tutorial explaining how to make your own:
Kelp Quilt Tutorial
And check out these posts to watch the Kelp Quilt grow over time:
the proposal
getting blocks back from bee members
pieced but not quilted
finished
(All bee members are listed, sorry that the names aren't easily read in this photo).
I really enjoyed seeing all the quilts hanging in the showcase and in the festival more generally. It was so cool to get up close and see the stitching and amazing craftsmanship. I also liked cruising by the show at different times to see how busy the show was and which quilts were getting attention. To see more of the quilts, check out my friend Lynn's blog post here: The Little Red Hen
and/or the Modern Quilt Guild's post here: The Modern Quilt Guild.
I was able to get through my to do list: that list had a couple of categories: manufacturing needs for my etsy shop and networking needs related to the blog and getting more of my quilts into magazines. While it was fun to see the fabric designers' booths in person and sometimes even get to chat with the designers, I tried not to fangirl.
2. I made an exception to my "no fangirling" rule for Carolyn Friedlander. You may have seen (and gotten wanty over) previews of her fabric line Architextures (due out soon).
But her quilts and her quilting are so awesome it makes me swear and pull out my hair.
I want her to teach me all of the things!
I may have told her as much and done a little dance for her. :-)
3. Meeting quilters in person. It's nice to put faces (real, 3-dimensional faces!) to blogs and flickr-streams. It's also amazing how honest and open people are in person. I've always felt myself a bit at odds with the SUPER NICEY NICE culture of online quilters, probably because my RealJob is one where giving someone criticism = doing them a favor. And I have a personal and professional disposition towards making distinctions. Anyway, I find that I'm much better able to have the type of conversations I want in person--honest, respectful, but tricky conversations. I found myself talking with a lot of people about how weird it was to see so many things trying to brand themselves as "modern" or for "modern quilters" and (a) completely missing the boat, (b) commercializing the "modern quilt" space to the point of ickiness, and (c) making useless, divisive distinctions.
4. Eating this dish:
I can't even describe how good it is! Get the recipe here: Butternut Squash Salad with Farro and Pepitas (I used barley in place of farro and toasted pumpkin seeds instead of pepitas).
5. Seeing quilts in person. This of course includes seeing my very own Kelp Quilt hanging in the Modern Quilt Guild showcase. It was the only bee quilt that was hanging, so I was really glad it was there, because bees and collaboration are really important and should be celebrated and displayed.
If you are new to this quilt, check out this post for a tutorial explaining how to make your own:
Kelp Quilt Tutorial
And check out these posts to watch the Kelp Quilt grow over time:
the proposal
getting blocks back from bee members
pieced but not quilted
finished
(All bee members are listed, sorry that the names aren't easily read in this photo).
I really enjoyed seeing all the quilts hanging in the showcase and in the festival more generally. It was so cool to get up close and see the stitching and amazing craftsmanship. I also liked cruising by the show at different times to see how busy the show was and which quilts were getting attention. To see more of the quilts, check out my friend Lynn's blog post here: The Little Red Hen
and/or the Modern Quilt Guild's post here: The Modern Quilt Guild.