Friday, April 8, 2016

International Quilt Festival Chicago 2016

I was very lucky to find out about the International Quilt Festival in Chicago, 3 weeks before the show. I went today, braving the April snow and ice (fun Chicago weather) and stayed at the show for about 6 hours, only leaving when I felt my arms were about to fall off from carrying merchandise.

The drive to the convention center wasn't too bad, and parking was easy to find. I then had to walk the skybridge across the street (which was kind of fun) to the convention center. I have to admit, though, that the walk back felt a lot longer, when you're carrying so much stuff! First I checked out all the exhibits, and took some photos of some really beautiful or interesting quilts. I am definitely not as much into the "traditional" quilts with "traditional" colors, but really adore more modern bright and poppy quilts. Not surprisingly, Mod Squad was my favorite exhibit.

Here are some of my favorite quilts at the exhibit: (Per Quilt Fest rules, these images are for us to enjoy looking at only, please do not use these images in postcards or prints or anything like that, let's respect the artist!)

Left: Big Bang by Marlies Janssen
Right: Not a City by Betty Hahn

Left: White Holes by Peter Hayward
Right: Tutti Frutti Tree Tops by Susan Bleiweiss

Left: Modern Log Cabin by Kimberly Lapacek, quilted by Marcia Wachuta
Right: Lollipops in the Neighborhood by Denniele Bohannon, quilted by Kelly Cline

Left: Peloton by Valli Schiller
Right: Bouncing Ball by Coleen Walter

Left: Deconstructed Lone Star by Amy Struckmeyer
Right: I Tula Too by Cari Goode, quilted by Sue Drelicharz

Left: Paint Drips by Angela Pingel, quilted by Krista Withers
Right: Pete and Repeat by Amy Struckmeyer

I then hit the market, and did quite a bit of damage to my wallet there. I knew I was going to go pretty crazy, although after the first few rows I started to slow down, as my arms were heavy and my eyes were glazing over.

Well ... that should last me awhile, although unlike yarn, I don't feel that guilty about amassing a fabric stash before I know what I want to do with it, because I usually don't have to worry about running out, since it's all about mixing and matching anyway, and my scraps do get used, as I love the scrappy look in quilts.

The next big quilt show near me is Schaumburg Sewing & Quilting Expo in October. Before that, though, there's Stitches Midwest in August for my other obsession: yarn. I feel so blessed to live so close to these great craft conventions!

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