Jul

31

On with the show

Filed Under Quilt shows | 2 Comments

Dana and I got the booth set up on Thursday. Then I lost my camera. It fell off the Handi-Mover on the way back to the car, and even though we retraced our steps immediately, there was no sign of it. I had a feeling, though, that it would come back to me, because it did have my name in it. Anyway, now there’s a gap in my photos and I didn’t get any of our wonderful neighbors, Kim and Lisa of Kathy Van Bruggen Designs. This mom and daughter team (daughter and granddaughter of Kathy, who had another commitment) were delightful to have next door.

On Friday morning, as we vendors were putting the finishing touches on our preparations, we heard an announcement that the doors would open 15 minutes early due to the number of quilters waiting to get in. Whoo hoo! At 9:45 it began, and it didn’t stop all day. Quilters converged on the Long Beach Convention Center in droves. Unfortunately, the CC was not prepared for the power of the quilt. We began to hear stories of long lines to get into the parking decks, more than an hour’s wait to buy tickets, and long waits in lunch lines only to have the food run out. All of the nearby restaurants were swamped as well. The next day, the CC doubled everything, but I heard they still ran out of food. Next year, guys, don’t underestimate us quilters!

Saturday was not quite as crowded. In the afternoon, a man stopped at the booth, smiled, and held up my camera. THANK YOU Jamie from Janome!!

Here’s what my happy place looked like:

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Me (the tall one) with my angel friend Renae (the short one) who volunteered to help me in the booth on Saturday.

I was pretty much chained to my booth the whole time, but I did get short breaks to go over and check out the show. I was mighty impressed! Emerging into the show area from vendor-land was like stepping into a gallery. The atmosphere was dignified and respectful of the beautiful quilts and amazing pieces of textile art that hung from the walls. Over at Quilts.com, you can see lots of pictures from the event.

I also got to meet some quilting dignitaries. Christine Brown, executive editor of American Quilter, appeared at my elbow. She has published articles of mine, and it was great to get to meet her in person. In line for coffee, I accosted Cheryl Uribe, The Quilt Show‘s Gizmo Girl. Later I saw her chatting with my photographer Gregory Case, who is Photo Man for TQS. After repeated attempts, I finally met Verna Mosquera when she wasn’t surrounded by her fans. I was also able to touch base with many other friends and acquaintances over the weekend.

At 3:00 sharp on Sunday afternoon, the bittersweet announcement went out that Festival was over for the year. What took 3 days to set up in vendor-land had to be down and out the door 5 hours later. That was no problem for us… we were out in a little over an hour, even with the three trips. I’m already psyched up about next year! Mark your calendars… July 24-26, 2009, same venue!

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

Jul

22

Hillary pattern benefits companion animals

Filed Under Designers, Fusible web, Machine appliqué, Patterns, Raw edge | Comments Off on Hillary pattern benefits companion animals

Leafing through my Keepsake Quilting catalog, I noticed a darling pattern for an appliquéd calico cat gazing at me with green eyes from atop a patchwork quilt. I went googling to find out more about the pattern. I was delighted to find out on Roberta Williams’ website that Hillary is the 18-year-old cat of Roberta’s good friend Diane Gaudynski, and that the two designers are donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this pattern to the Morris Animal Foundation.

That’s a lovely thing to do and I applaud them.

I’m off to Long Beach tomorrow to show my wares at the International Quilt Festival. I’m pretty darned excited! I’ve trained the DH Dana as a cashier. He’s being an awfully good sport. See you when I get back!

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs