Aisles and Aisles of Inspiration

I attended the Internatioanl Quilt Festival here in Houston last week.  There were about 1,000 vendors showcasing and selling quilting tools, fabrics, machines, books, thread, patterns, storage supplies and a whole lot more.  There were 19 aisles chockful of everything imaginable to help quilters creative beautiful art.

Additionally, a main feature of the Quilt Festival are the hundreds of gorgeous quilts on display.  I try to attend the festival each year, but am generally on limited time and spend most of my time on the show floor looking for products that might work well in my drapery workroom.  I usually don't have much, if any, time to peruse the quilt displays. Boy, have I been missing out!!

Below is a photo of the Handi-Quilter $10,000 award winning quilt.  It was so gorgeous!  This was the creator's third Best in Show award at the Festival in less than 10 years. 

The docent showing the quilt said that the creator spend 1,500 hours quilting the piece - not putting it together, but doing the quilting along!  Oh my gosh!  Here is a close up of the detail work - it is stunning!

There were so many innovative, creative and gorgeous quilts on display.  My heart was full and I was smiling as I walked through the exhibit hall with hundreds of other attendees and admired all of the hard work, dedication, patience and skill on display.

One of my favorite quilts was this smaller display quilt showcasing kimonos and decorative knots.

This quilt was about 4 feet x 4 feet, I think.  Each smaller kimono was about 8" square.  Aren't they wonderful?  Each kimono was made in a different fabric and the cording for the knots contrasted with the kimono fabric.  They were adorable!  And the contrast with the background fabrics was lovely.

The blue kimono below was the centerpiece of the quilt.

Below is one of the smaller kimono pieces.

The quilt below took my breath away.  The solid blue base was intricately stitched in curved, flowing patterns and accented with contrast fabric and beaded details. 

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 Look at this gorgeous detail work! 

This quilt was stunning too - I loved the organic pattern.  The pebbles were so beautiful; see the photos below for a closeup of the intricate work in metallic thread.

This classically styled quilt was a study in contrasting colors and shapes.  Lovely!

The photo below does not do this quilt justice, but the closeup photos give you an idea of the perfection in stitching!

 I loved the detail work and the addition of the crystal accents.

This creative style was gorgeous too, and I loved the use of the metallic threads to make it sparkle.

Look at this stitching!

There was even a category for quilted clothing - beautiful!

This jacket and cummerbund caught my eye.  Look at the detail work, knots, beading and stitching!

I will show you more in "Part Two" of this blog post.  My mind is still reeling with ideas of techniques and designs to incorporate into window treatments.  The Quilt Festival show floor was a cornucopia of inspiration an ideas.  I look forward to sharing more with you in the next post!

Susan