AQS Quilt Show in Knoxville

Last weekend, DH and I drove to Knoxville, Tn, to attend the AQS Quilt Show. The show started on Wednesday, but we drove up on Friday, arriving around dinner time.


After checking into our hotel, we headed over to Market Square.


We strolled around to see what was there. Many of the restaurants were tempting, but in the end, we decided on Cafe 4 , where we ordered Fried Chicken and Waffles! Yep, that is really a dish...and it was good! The waffles were served instead of bread with the meal...two 'quarters' of a circular waffle...not a big 'ole plate of waffles smothered in butter and maple syrup! Although that sounds good right now...



But I digress.



There is a greenspace/park area at the southern end, with shops on each side. North of the 'park' area, there is a concrete mall. There is an interactive fountain, which was turned off that night, plus a performance stage set up at the north end.



This is the southwestern end...the building with the awning and lights is Market Square Kitchen.








This is the western side of the square.

There were several tempting restaurants on this side!













Many of the resaurants had seating areas outside, too, with colorful plantings and/or lights.














Ok, imagine this is a panoramic view...chopped up!
I will start on the southwest corner and turn clockwise.

I am standing near the middle, and this first picture is looking southwest, toward the market Square Kitchen.










Turning clockwise, this is the northwest side.
















These tall buildings are just beyond the north side.

You can see the stage set up on the north end (lights near the ground, behind people walking).

When we arrived, there were musicians playing and singing, but then Shakespeare on the Square began. However, street musicians were scattered about here and there, playing softly.







This is the view to the northeast. We visited a couple of shops in this area.














And the southeast side. That last awning with the lights on it at the far right is Cafe 4, where we ate.

It was a lovely evening and a lovely place to visit!











On Saturday, we walked to the convention center to see the quilt show. While I cannot post pictures of all the quilts, I will share the display of the guild that mine was a part of.

This was the ULTIMATE GUILD CHALLENGE, where guilds across the country compete according to a theme. Each guild has a different theme to interpret. There were 8 quilts in each group.

Our theme was REPETITIVE CONSEQUENSES. We were to take a block or shape, and change it in some way...size, shape, orientation, color, etc...and repeat it at least 3 times such that it is a recognizable element in the quilt. The quilt had to measure 180 inches around its perimeter, but no single side could exceed 60 inches.







This is the view oif our quilts from one end...




















And the view from the other end.


I couldn't get enough distance to photograph the set straight-on without a wide-angle lens, which I didn't happen to have.











Here I am standing next to my quilt. I really wished to remain annonomous, but did pose for a few quick pictures when no one was looking.

















I took a break for a moment to send a text message, and Dh took my picture! But then I noticed that the quilts in the background are also from a local guild...the Davies Plantation guild in Bartlett. Theirs was a nice display (Theme=Log Cabin in the Woods).

My favorites were the ones where all quilts in the set were the same size and shape, and had a recognizeable theme. While our quilts were each beautiful in their own right, they didn't seem to have much in common, like some of the other sets did.

Catching up...Show ~n~ Tell!

I can't believe it is taking me so long to catch up on my life! April is just a blur...

It is already MAY and I still haven't shared my loot from the AQS Quilt Show in Paducah!

Ok, here goes:

I bought some books and special rulers. This book-- http://creativecurves.com/curvesaheadb.htm --and these rulers-- http://creativecurves.com/cc_mruler.htm --are to do some curved piecing. The rulers look like a 'hood' pattern piece to me! Vanessa, my companion at the show, already had the oval rulers and stopped in at the booth to ask how to use them (as she had forgotten). As I watched the creators explain to her how to use her rulers, I decided that *I* wanted some, too! Of course... :) So I bought the curved (radius) rulers, so as not to duplicate the ones Vanessa had...and I got a book as well so that I could remember WHY I had wanted these and what I planned to do with them!

I also bought this book from Elisa's Backporch...the Crazy Curves book and the 7" Crazy curves templates, as well as the 3½" Small Paths Template. She was in a brick warehouse across from the museum...and had laryngitis! http://www.backporchdesign.com/backporch.htm

I bought these fat quarters to go with a scrap quilt that I have started. Because I am not sure that I have enough scraps for an entire quilt, I bought more fat quarters in those colors to mix and match with the fabrics I already have. I might end up with WAY more than I need!

I got these fabrics just because I like them! some of the greens might go in the scrap quilt with the fabrics above...that one is a block of the month quilt...but they were to lovely to pass up! The bird print is like from an encyclopedia of birds!

I had decided to collect animal prints for a quilt, and so in each shop or booth, I looked to see if they had any and picked them up where I found them. Well, I now have SEVENTEEN animal prints—all different! Amazing that I got no duplications (of prints, not animals!). I hadn’t realized I had found quite that many! I am not exactly sure what I will make with them...perhaps a New York Beauty quilt?...but I have them now! :)

These were a couple of intersting Japanese fabrics that I couldn't pass up, along with a leaf and vine trim that was also calling my name.






The black roll is CHALK BOARD fabric! One can write on it with chalk and erase it, just like on a blackboard! I will make a small quilt for my neice with this.

The CHARM PACKS are Kaffe Fasset fabrics that I picked up at Hancock's of Paducah. They will make something interesting, but I am not sure what just yet!

I looked at several quilting aids at the show and the one I decided to buy is this one, the Fabulous Fabric Glide... http://cgi.ebay.com/FABULOUS-FABRIC-GLIDE-FREE-MOTION-QUILTING-GUIDE-/270544865325 ...two semi-hoops to use when doing free-motion quilting (but *not* on my HandiQuilter...on my regular machine, where I would be moving the fabric). These help grip the fabric and give you something to hold on to, rather than relying on finger tips and friction. This 'hoop' was taller than some of the other hoops...some of which were stacked 3 tall in order to better get a grip on them!

The underside has tiny little rubber grippers that will hold on...not foam rubber that will eventually wear out and crumble.

I also bought quite an assortment of 'stuff'...wonderful NECESSARY stuff! :) Like these blue foam blocks...they can be heated and molded around small items and then they become a rubber stamp! Just heat them back up to remove the molded imprint...and remold them at will!

The rubbing plates of insects and leaves are to be used with those paintsticks that I still haven't used, as could be both of the animal print stencils. And the tjanting tool is for batik...the soda ash is to prepare fabric for dying! See? All very necessary items!

These BAREROOTS things are actually kits for candle mats. I just thought they were cute! I got the recommended needles for hand sewing them, because that is polite...but I might do them by machine! I do love power tools, you know... :) The disappearing thread has already vanished...it is somewhere in my sewing room, I am sure!

I picked up several patterns that I couldn't live without...one in particular is for a purse insert. That just sounds like a good idea!

Who knows when I will find the time to do any of this...let alone ALL of it!

Currently, I have been working on creating a pattern for a new dartless top.

WHAT? you say.

Yep, every so often I feel the need for a little self-torture, so I go at it again! :)

And to make matters even MORE interesting, I decided I needed a new pants pattern (as my old one is now a bit tight across the middle! 8-0

I'll let ya know how that goes!

Back from Paducah

I'm baaaack! And I had a great time! This was my first visit to the quilt show in Paducah, and I hope it won't be my last. Paducah is a wonderful little town. I was quite impressed with the area around the convention center near the river...many quaint little shops and restaurants to visit, and everything was so pretty, with flowers blooming and all the landscaping looking quite well-attended! It felt 'safe'. Everyone we met was so helpful and friendly...nice.

My birthday fell during the days I was in Paducah, so my friends all helped to make it special. In addition to Vanessa and Marilyn (above), at the show, we met up with Etta (the one I went to Houston with last fall) and Charla and several of their friends and we all (10 of us) had dinner on my birthday at a wonderful little place called Patti's...
http://www.pattis-settlement.com/

Patti's serves bread baked in Terra cotta flower pots, along with strawberry butter! Yum! Plus, 2" thick pork chops are their specialty...although I got the salmon instead. There are white Christmas lights nestled with silk flowers and greenery along the ceilings and walls...I would hate to have to clean it, but it provided nice atmosphere!...hardwood floors and lace curtains, old oak furniture and antiques.

The waiters brought me a cherry cheesecake tart with a candle and everyone sang Happy Birthday to me! Ordinarily, I wouldn't have wanted that public singing, but what the heck...no one there knew me!...it was fun. The food was wonderful as was the company and the environment. It was a nice birthday!


The girls surprised me with this engagement calendar that everyone had signed...how cool!

This is what the inside looks like...a quilt picture on the left and seven days on the right...nice!

I'll take some pictures of my 'loot', too, to play show~n~tell!