Category Archives: Quilt Market

Missing Market

Over the last few days my fair city — Portland, Oregon — has filled with thousands of professionals in the quilt industry: fabric designers, quilt shop owners, pattern  designers, fabric and notions manufacturers, vendors, longarm quilters, professionals of every stripe. The occasion is International Quilt Market, the big trade show held twice a year. Fall Market is always held in Houston; Spring Market rotates among other cities.

As a quilt teacher and sole proprietor of First Light Designs, I’m eligible to attend. And where am I? Not in Portland. I’m Missing Market, a condition significant enough that others who also cannot go have created a #missingmarket profile on Instagram. But don’t feel too sorry for me. After two delightful days in New York City, the Dear Husband and I have arrived in Spain where we will join a group traveling down the Douro River on a small ship. We start in Madrid, board the vessel near Salamanca, and end in Lisbon, Portugal. Then it’s back to Manhattan for three nights before coming home in early June.

My plan was to bring a hand applique project or two along with me. I did finish piecing Block 6 of Hazel’s Diary Quilt and even got the center of the block marked for the applique . . .

. . . but that was as far as I got before running out of time.

With no handwork to occupy me in quiet moments on board ship, I need something quilt-related to tide me over till I get home, so I packed a book I had ordered from Canada that arrived just a few days before my departure:

This little book has 533 pages and weighs over two pounds! I will surely derive many ounces of pleasure from its pages during the journey down the Douro.

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in appliqué, Hazel's Diary Quilt, needleturn appliqué, Quilt Market, update | 3 Comments

My First Quilt Market

Today was the final day of the three-day International Quilt Market, held right here in Portland, Oregon. It was open to the trade only, and as the owner and sole proprietor of First Light Designs I qualified for entrance as a “cottage industry.” So yesterday I spent the better part of the day at the Oregon Convention Center.

As much as I enjoyed roaming the aisles, admiring quilts on display, looking at new fabric lines and publications and notions and patterns and threads and all of the other accoutrements of the quilting and crafting world, the highlight for me was meeting some of the quilt and fabric designers I admire whose blogs I have been following.

Heather Peterson of Ankas Treasures

Here I am with Heather Mulder Peterson of Anka’s Treasures. Her blog, Trends and Traditions, is one of my favorites. Heather is so talented: she sews, quilts, designs patterns, designs fabric for Henry Glass, publishes books — and she knits the most beautiful sweathers you’ve ever seen. All of the quilts you see in the background are from her latest book, Angles with Ease, and were made with her new tool, the Triangler, which makes all kinds of shapes including two of my favorites, kaleidoscopes and hexagons.

Here is Emily Herrick, showing her latest fabric collection, Technicolor, for Michael Miller Fabrics:

Emily Herrick with new quilt design

I don’t remember how I discovered her blog, Crazy Old Ladies, but it’s lively and fun, just like Emily and her quilts. I’m crazy about the quilt on the right, made from Emily’s newest pattern, Boomerang.

I was delighted to see fellow Portlander Mo Bedell, who designs fabric for Andover. One look at the fabric samples on the wall behind Mo will show you why I like her designs and fabric lines so much:

Mo Bedell

Both Emily and Mo won Best Booth awards, given for excellence in design and the over-all look of their booths. Congratulations, Emily and Mo!

Joanna Figueroa of Fig Tree Quilts was kind enough to pose for a photo with me:

Joanna Figueroa of Fig Tree Quilts

Joanna’s blog, Fresh Figs, is always full of gorgeous photos of quilts and other crafted items made from her patterns and her fabric lines for Moda. We had a nice conversation about the new Moda Honeycombs — packs of 6″ hexagons. On the table behind me are a few mini-purses made from her new pattern, Hexies, and a pack of Honeycombs. Yep. Those are on my list now, too.

And what a delight to meet Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs, who blogs at Bunny Tales:

Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill

Anne is well known in the industry for her quilt designs featuring appliqué, and she also designs fabric for Moda. When I introduced myself and told her that my friend Colleen and I are huge fans, she gave me a big hug.

Starstruck? Oh, yes. But you know what? These superstars of the quilting world are real people, just like you and me. And the ones I had the good fortune to meet yesterday were incredibly gracious and kind.

 

 

 

Posted in hexagons, kaleidoscope quilts, Quilt Market, update | 1 Comment