Sunday 22 August 2010

Festival of Quilts

First of all, the good news!  Our friend G had her operation on Friday and is making good progress so far.  I was astounded when her neighbour phoned me to say g was on her way to theatre as I had been assured  the op was unlikely for a few days but, whatever, it is now done and G is happy.  She is now chomping at the bit to get the Physios working with her!  What is she like?  Her spirit and strength are indomitable.  DH has been to see her again today (as I am germ laden and daren't go) and she is looking forward to hearing all about my trip.

Well, I made it, despite a grotty cough and cold.  I'm sure the Festival was much busier this year, it seemed a lot harder to get photos of the quilts with all the people standing looking.  Needless to say my first stop was to have a look at my own quilt on display.


Here it is alongside a quilt by Marianne Bender entitled 'The Queens' .  I was very excited to see that someone was taking a photograph of my quilt! 


It felt very good and a bit flattering to think that someone wanted to take a little bit of my quilt home just like I like to photograph quilts that strike a chord with me.   I only noticed when I was loading the photos that the quilt in the bottom right corner is by Nina Lise Moen who blogs as Mrs Moen .

You may be aware that I have had support during my journey towards having a quilt at the Festival of Quilts by a group of like-minded quilters and their help has been invaluable, especially Annabel's.  After I found my quilt I rushed off to find everyone else's.


First of all was Carolyn's wonderful, beautiful quilt inspired by her home in St Ives.  I had been itching to see this quilt in real life and I was not disappointed.  The fabrics give it a wonderful glow and Carolyn's use of embellishments and stitching is inpired.  The surface has beautiful found objects from the beach and some lovely pieces of bead and what I think may be pieces of recycled jewellery (correct me if I'm wrong Carolyn).  Carolyn's quilt was attracting lots of attention while I was looking at it and people were looking closely at all the surface detail.


This stunning quilt is entitled "And Yet a Rose Full Blown" and is by Elma It is even more impressive in real life and the stitching is beautiful.


Lisette's quilt is entitled 'Jealousy' and speaks eloquently of the turmoil invoked by that emotion.  Unfortunately my camera didn't capture a good image of the whole quilt but I have shown a detail above.  The surface has been distressed with a heat gun.  I saw lots of people looking closely at Lisette's quilt too.

Last, but nowhere near least, is the very talented Sandra Wyman who had 3 entries in the competition.


The quilt above is called 'Nature's Blueprints - With Improvisations'.

This second quilt is called 'Survival of the Fittest' and the quilting is stunning.  The fern is fabulous when you see the actual quilt.  Well done Sandra!




The two photos above are two sides of a coin, so to speak.  This was a miniature quilt and is entitled 'Wildwood: Spring and Autumn'.  I was looking forward to seeing this piece and although Sandra calls it pretty I think it is beautiful.  

So, what else did I see?  Not enough!  I missed no end, trying to cram as much in as I could in the time.   First of all, Quilt Creations:


Time for Tea by Greta Fitchett

Tudor Threads by Pamela Bowles



A Walk in the Forest with Mary by Bette Tasker


A general view of the Quilt Creations area.


Winter Puzzle by Frauke Schramm which was a prizewinner, I believe, and which wafted and turned gently in the breeze to reveal all sides.

Ok.  I am going to pause there and post some more tomorrow as you are probably losing interest by now and I am getting tired.  Sandra wore me out partying all Friday night ;o)  Only joking Sandra, but it was fun wasn't it?  See you soon.  Oh, and thank you to everyone who took photos for me in case I couldn't get to Birmingham and most especially to Gina who not only took photos for me but took the trouble to put them on a disc and have them at my house by Saturday morning together with a lovely gift of one of her pincushions.  I am humbled and deeply moved by the kindness and generosity that I have been shown by so many people over the last few days while I have been so worried about my friend G.  Not forgetting the ladies who covered for me on the Contemporary Quilt Group stand on Saturday afternoon.  Thank you everyone. xx

21 comments:

Gina said...

I'm so pleased you got to the show and saw your quilt in place... it was beautiful. Wishing both you and G speedy recoveries!

Heather said...

Lovely post Julie and I do hope your cold will soon clear up. Those quilts are stunning - love the St.Ives one, the reversible one and those gorgeous jackets. So glad your friend has had her op. and is making such good progress. What an inspiration she is to us all.

imac said...

I need a waistcoat DW, how about it?lol
So glad you enjoyed your little trip my sweet.

LOVE STITCHING RED said...

Hi Julie, thank you so much for giving me a little insight into what it was like to go round the show. Thank you too for the lovely photo of my quilt. It would have been nice to see it hanging. Maybe I will get there next year. So glad G is doing great, I hope she is home soon. Love your DH's comment about the waistcoat. Look forward to seeing him wearing it then (!) LOL ;o)
Lots of love x

Carolyn x

Jackie said...

Glad you enjoyed your visit to yours and other quilts. It looks stunning.

carole brungar said...

Thanks for sharing these pics, I really enjoyed my visit!! Some gorgeous work, I was thrilled to see yours hanging amongst them too!!

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad you managed to get to foq Julie and had such a wonderful time...I hope you and Sandra have got over your partying now!! I'm also delighted at the news of your friend's operation and admire her get up and go.

The photos are wonderful and I'm so glad you've posted Carolyn's quilt as the photo I had of hers...... and of yours, didn't come out very well. Your close up of Lisette's quilt is much better too!

Ready to start for next year? Or do you want a day off?

ju-north said...

Knew I could rely on you to give a good account of the foq! Saw your quilt on another blog! Well done you! No stopping you now! xx

Bea said...

What fun! Thank you so much for taking the pictures you did and sharing them with those of us who didn't have an chance to see this wonderful festival of quilts. Beautiful, beautiful!! :)Bea

Marlis said...

... and we missed us once again:-((, but i was pleased to see your beautiful quilt (and took a photo). i came home yesterday afternoon and before i can write a blog post i have to answer 80 emails and download +/- 500 photos....

Lynne said...

Thanks for the FOQ report - I'm looking forward to the next instalment and determined I will be going myself next year. Hope your cold is soon better and that your friend is doing well with her recovery.

Emma said...

Lovely things in the show, never been so thanks for the tour. Your quilt looks utterly beautiful!

Glad all is weel with G 7 she'll be delighted with your support & tales of the show.

Judy Scott said...

Hi Julie your quilt looks so lovely and Im not surprised someone wants to photograph it! and thank you so much for letting us see Carolyns beautiful quilt. Ive not been to the show for a couple of years so it was lovely to get a glimse of everything. Hope your friend is on the mend, love Judy xxx

Diane said...

Popped over here via Carolyns blog - glad you got a good photo of her quilt - it looks stunning! xxxx (PS I am a St Ives fan too!)

Sharne Gregory said...

I am so glad that you got to the NEC and saw your quilt. I found it too! It was beautiful, it certainly said sea and sand.

Joyce said...

I am so pleased your quilt looks as excellent as it does. I was at the NEC yest and I thought the standard of all the members of the group was well above average.
Shame on me for missing the entry deadline!
Best
Joyce F.

Fenwitters said...

You must be so proud to have been exhibited! It looks beautiful there and in just company. I am stunned at the beauty of some of them! The one of the olive tree has made me go all quiet. I am glad you got to go. You deserved to!

Sarah Payne said...

I got to see your quilt and it looked fabulous! You must be delighted!

Diane Kelsey said...

I must have missed seeing lots of the quilts at the show. One day just isn't enough. It was lovely to see so many on your blog, especially The St Ives quilt, as I had looked for it.

Wendy said...

I am waiting for the pic of your purchases, I wish I had given you a list for the Oliver Twist stand :)

quilthexle said...

Thanks for posting my "Winter Puzzle"! I feel very honored, but sadly, I was not the one who got the prize ... that was the cute purple "stuffed dragon" right next to my work! But as I told my friends - this year, I'm next to the winner, so next year ???
Thanks for sharing your wonderful pictures - I'll come back, be sure !