MQX, Part 2!

Downtown Providence last rainy Thursday from the convention center........what a neat place!

The biggest part of MQX ((Machine Quilters Expo)) is of course --- THE MACHINES.

There were dealers for regular home sized machines as well as every kind of longarm or midarm imaginable.

If you ever find yourself considering the purchase of a longarm machine ---I suggest you go to a venue such as MQX or a large regional quilt show where many dealers are present so that you can TRY THEM ALL.

Just like cars----each person should try many to find which one it is that fits their needs right.

There is no one universal machine that is going to do it for everyone, so try them all and try them all again, whether you want the basics, or computer driven, or even a table top longarm that you can sit down at. Try them all.

A good thing to do is to try to quilt your name on the sample piece….just to get a good feel for how the machine moves.

Along with the machine vendors, there were of course fabric and thread and notions and all kinds of other goodies.

COLOR! I am so drawn to color!!

I didn’t buy much. I bought a foot for my Janome machine, and then I bought something I knew I wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else ---a seam ripper and a wooden presser ((For pressing paper piecing or other seams when no iron is near by)) that were hand made, turned and dyed by a lady --- they are SO different. Lord knows I don’t need more fabric or thread, so I thought these would be a good momento and could just live in my “live in the suitcase” traveling notions box.

As for the quilts….Oh the quilts!

There were more “Glacier Star” quilts in this one venue than I have ever seen. And they were each so different. I may have photographed a few of them, but the quilting on this one just took my breath away --

There were awards given for computer guided quilting….which believe me, is not as easy as it sounds, because you have to size everything to fit just right before you quilt it, and if you don’t….you spend a LOT of time with the seam ripper!

This one!! Holy radiating geese, batman! It was judges choice, viewers choice, everyone’s choice…..and you have to get up close and personal to see why ---

Look at the quilting and the lettering!

Center medallion--- love how those rays are quilted!

Many ribbons, of course can’t read the note pinned next to the quilt..I thought the ribbons matched the quilt pretty well too!

Border section….what I loved about this one was the intense piecing….and mix of quilting..it was about 50/50 as far as impact goes…not too much wide open space, and the quilting just fits it.

Here’s the tag!

This one has been posted on the blog before, because it was on the cover of “On Track” magazine in the same issue that my article on Scrappy Mountain Majesties was! It was however, the first time I got to see it in person…and get CLOSE!

OOOOOOOHHHHH! AHHHHHHHHHHH! :cD

This was just so detailed. What I don’t remember is if it was tinted ((The black to grey)) after it was quilted, or before?

This background “lattice work” seemed to show up on many quilts I saw….pretty!

I love how the quilting echoed the applique…..and carried on into the filler background…

And here’s the info card :c)

One more for this post! I’ve seen this pattern before, but never seen one quilted so beautifully! This is a piece o’ cake design, and I’m excited to be teaching with Becky Goldsmith at the Virginia Consortium of Quilters at Smith Mountain Lake, VA in just over a week!

I love piecing mixed with applique, but this quilting is just SO nice…it becomes part of the whole.

This quilt was not quilted SO HEAVILY that it is flat. It’s a good mix without it being “too much”, you know?

I think this one would look awesome on a bed, and still be cozy enough to snuggle under. There were so many quilts that were so heavily encrusted with beads and crystals and sequins and all other surface embellishments ----and while they are so pretty to look at, if it can’t go through the washer and dryer, it’s not something I’d find myself making….but I was really feeling at home with this one, even though I’m a very remedial appliquer!

Climbing Clematis --- love the colors and texture in this one. SO many different shades of purple, and many different shades of green. It’s more than just a “purple and green quilt” This is raw edge applique, something I’ve really never done..

Close up of quilting detail! Love that white fluffy bit at the flower centers!

Here’s the card for this one. I tried to get pics of cards as long as there wasn’t a mob of people around the cards trying to read them. I didn’t have time to stand in line and wait!

This medallion was just lovely….all the way gorgeous! I’ve really been drawn to yellow over the past year. The card is there, but I didn’t get a close up, someone moved in to read it while I was photo taking!

This is NOT a quilt!

This is the tile on the lady’s room floor! LOL!! Faked you out, Didn’t I!?

There will be more pics to share tomorrow – we are not done by a long shot! And if I get time, this afternoon ---I’ve got a special treat you’ll want to come back for. Remember the stilettos that were gifted to us by the quilter-who-wished-to-remain-anonymous?

She has sent me the directions for making them, and wants me to pass them on to you, I’ve got to upload a PDF file ,etc….so I’ll have that ready for you hopefully this afternoon!

Happy Wednesday – this work week is already half over!