QuiltCon in Review: 8

With this blog post, I'm wrapping up reviews about about QuiltCon because I'm pretty sure I could keep posting pictures for days and days... like this picture of the award-winning quilt - MQG's Award of Excellence - Clamshell Jamboree made by Michelle Bartholomew @michellebartholomew of Washington.

Not only do I like her 43" X 58" quilt made for the Windham Ruby & Bee Challenge, but I admire her leaping skill!

Below are more of my favorites - though I've already seen on Instagram many quilts that I managed to completely miss at the show! They might have been favorites too!

A show-stopping quilter at QuiltCon was Lorelai Kuecker @pigs.in.a.blanket.quilting, a 15 year-old from Missouri whose quilt, Magnetized won first place in the youth category. Not only was her quilt beautifully executed, but she (and her mother) wore a different quilt-y outfit each day of the show. 

Here is Lorelai with 72" X 94" Magnetized. She explained that is was foundation paper pieced, and free motion and ruler work quilted entirely by herself. 

On Friday, just outside the quilt show floor I saw Lorelai and asked to take a picture. As I was taking the picture, I asked Lorelai "Who's your friend?" The person on the right is her mother! <forehead-smack> They made their outfits.  

Simply incredible! Though I can't imagine wearing such outfits anywhere except to a quilt show. 

Hundreds of QuiltCon attendees wore quilt-y, self-made clothing - patchwork jackets, appliquéd jackets, patchwork skirts, appliquéd jumpsuits, decorated flight suits, mended jeans... you name it, and someone was wearing it. One day, I wore the selvedge skirt I made in 2014 and last wore to QuiltCon Austin in 2015. I'm happy to say it still fits!

Below are some of the (only) 10 quilts displayed in the low volume exhibit (not judged). 

Whispering Peaks was made by Stephanie Bracelin @srbracelin of the Central Iowa MQG (no, I don't know her). 

The quilt measures 33" X 33", and was improv pieced and domestic machine quilted.

My friend, Susan Skatoff @susan_skatoff, is a new quilter who last year started the Palm Beach MQG chapter. She has in instinct for creating original designs. Here she is with her 41" X 42" Can You Relate? quilt. It was begun in a workshop with Maria Shell with the prompt, "If I were a quilt." Her response: "Dismissed. Over-looked.... Can you relate?" 

Susan is a longarm quilter; she quilted words... "listen, listen, listen."

It should be no surprise that this 30" X 41" Harmony Within quilt was made by Tzitzi Bejarano @tzitzibm of Mexico, whose other bias tape quilt Whispers of the Acacia appeared in the Windham Challenge quilt category. 

Once again I was struck by her simple, effective use of bias tape.

Not to be missed were transparency quilts. This was my favorite among them - Circle of Friends by Erin Case @eksrn2002 of Washington. 

It's 70" X 49" and beautifully executed. 

The description card said it is machine appliquéd, but I sure couldn't see her stitching!

Lectures

I attended five QuiltCon lectures.

Anna Maria Parry

1. David Owen Hastings: "Backing, Binding, Batting, Beauty," a unique way to assemble a quilt
2. Martiza Soto: "Improv Throughout Time"
3. Anna Maria Parry (formerly Horner): "Blueprint Quilting," which was a review of her new book Blueprint Quilting, presenting her process for creating quilts
4. Tara Faughnan: "Quilts As Art: Valuing Our Work"
5. Fiona Johnstone: "Breaking Out of the Quarter Circle." 

By far and away, the best presenters were David Owen Hastings, and Anna Maria Parry.

However, I learned the most from David Owen Hastings of Washington, and Fiona Johnstone of the UK. I didn't take any pictures of David, however, I have lots of pictures from Fiona's lecture. 

She has a mathematical mind that I couldn't keep up with. Hopefully, the many pictures and notes I took will help me create new designs with the Curvelets.

Fiona is the award-winner of this 56" X 48" Ruby Curvelets that earned the People's Choice award at QuiltCon 2023 in Atlanta.

Each block in Ruby Curvelets is 8" square and comprised of 64 ONE INCH blocks! During the lecture, Fiona explained her self-imposed rules for making Ruby Curvelets.

It's amazing to understand how many different shapes can be made with these little templates. Each FINISHED patch is 1" X 1"! 

This little quilt, made by Fiona, was on display (and for sale for $300) in Jen Carlton-Bailey's @bettycrockerass vendor booth. 

I took one workshop, and it was a six-hour one with Libs Elliott - Chaos with a Twist.

Libs, a Canadian, is an excellent instructor who has a fun way to approach quilt design. She assigns a number or letter to traditional blocks, then either draws a number (or alphabet letter) from a bag, or uses a computer random number generator, to select block designs to put together for a quilt. 

This is my result from the workshop - an incomplete section that's one-fourth of a quilt. I have lots more work to do to turn this into a finished quilt. 

Here is another student's progress, using a batik fabric with solids.

One of Libs' Chaos With a Twist quilts was hanging in a vendor booth. If you check out the Instagram hashtag #chaoswithatwist, you'll see more unique designs. 

Libs' workshop was worth my time and money, and I look forward to implementing her design method in a future quilt. 

Well, I think that wraps up my QuiltCon sharing. Thanks very much for putting up with my many posts about it.

Especially for those of you who've never attended QuiltCon, I hope my pictures of quilts and activities gave you a taste of what QuiltCon is like.

There's something about QuiltCon.

Hopefully I'll see you in Raleigh, North Carolina next year: February 19-22, 2026. The keynote speaker will be Hillary Goodwin @entrophyalwayswins.

Previous QuiltCon Review Links

• QuiltCon Review: 1 - general: friends, Waymo
• QuiltCon Review: 2 - handwork
• QuiltCon Review: 3 - appliqué
• QuiltCon Review: 4 - piecing
• QuiltCon Review: 5 - small quilts
• QuiltCon Review: 6 - Windham Fabrics Challenge
• QuiltCon Review: 7 - Community Outreach Challenge quilts
• QuiltCon Review 8  - youth, low volume, lectures, workshop

Linda