Recap – Quilt Canada 2018 May 31 to June 2

This year’s Quilt Canada was held in Vancouver B.C. at the beautiful Vancouver Convention Centre

I was honored to have my piece “Golden Phoenix” accepted into the National Juried Show for 2018.

This piece was originally made as my entry to hang in the invitational show at Quilt Canada 2016 and I was curious to see if it would pass the criteria for the NJS.
I was thrilled that it did. 

It holds a hidden message to all my students, especially those who are just learning to free motion quilt.

The Phoenix symbolizes good fortune, opportunity, luck, strength and resilience.

 All of above are required for successful free motion quilting so my hidden message is to enjoy the process and never give up.

“Golden Phoenix” was free motion quilted on my HQ Sweet 16, hand guided, no stitch regulator.

I used cream colored linen front and back with a variety of gold polyester and rayon threads from WonderFil and Superior.

The background stitching is WonderFil, InvisaFil in two shades of gold.           

The batting is one layer of bonded cotton with two layers of Hobbs Tuscany Wool on top.

Once quilted the design was colored with a variety of watercolor pencils mostly Derwent (both Inktense and Watercolour) and Faber-Castell then set with textile medium.

This is a fun process as the color develops and changes once the medium is applied.

I had a wonderful time chatting with many students and friends from all over the country.

All of the quilts on display were fabulous and as I was not teaching this year I was able to spend lots of time seeing the National Juried Show, the Trend-Tex Challenge, Rosette Invitational, Modern Quilts, Jr Exhibits quilts from Inuvik and more.

The postcard challenge organized by              Cindy Scraba  of Cindy’s Threadworks and B.C. Coastal Regional Representative Karen Killins-Robinson was a resounding success. 

Thank you for your tireless work ladies!

Over 1500 pretty amazing postcards were made and donated.

I managed to make a few ...

and of course bought a few to support the wonderful cause of raising funds for BC Children’s Hospital.

A total of $11,000.00 was raised.

Way to go Canadian Quilters! 

Pam Brown ( x 3) of Brentwood Bay BC, Sunny Mowat of Duncan BC, Meryl Huxham of Victoria BC, Susan Teece of Victoria BC and Ann Sonders of Guelph Ontario …           thank you, I have your postcards.

Tina Manders of Courtenay BC, your postcard “Bears Fishing for Food” was the perfect birthday card for my brother and sister in law as they are nicknamed the “Bears” and their birthdays are just days apart.

They have it beautifully framed and on display.

After all ... postcards are little individual works of art!

I had a great time attending the evening lectures with Stacey Day and Gloria Loughman, both very inspiring quilters.

I even had a chance to take a class.

Though I have judged at country fairs and several shows I do not have any formal training and have always wanted to explore the CQA judging program.

It was wonderful to be able to take the class WHAT WAS the Judge Thinking – An Introduction to Quilt Judging.

Taught by Joyce Brown and Judy Villett the course was fascinating and would be  invaluable for anyone interested in entering a juried show, organizing a juried show and/or becoming a quilt judge.

This is class is also module 1 of 5 required to become a certified Quilt Judge.

Next on my agenda, sign up for module 2 and see where it takes me.

The merchant’s mall is always fun to visit and of course a few new treats followed me home from this one.

This year was the 30^th anniversary of the Trend-Tex Challenge and the theme was Celebrate!

Each year Trend-Tex donates fabric for the challenge kits.

The winning wall quilt is given to Trend-Tex Fabrics while the majority  are sold as a fundraiser for CQA/ACC by silent auction on the final day of Quilt Canada.

Laura G.R. Cole, I was lucky enough to have the winning bid on your piece “Celebrate 30”.

It will serve as a lovely reminder of another fabulous Quilt Canada.  

The best part about attending any quilt show or conference is being able to network with people and groups who are equally passionate about the art of quilting!

Quilt Canada is an important forum for us to share what we do!

Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there!

No matter your skill level… share your work.

By doing so we encourage others to try!

Take classes and attend lectures whenever you can.

Attend your local shows and our national show whenever possible.

You will grow as an artist and make friends that will last a lifetime.

One final note.

I was thrilled to have my brother and sister in law attend Quilt Canada 2018 as their very first quilt show.

What a fabulous introduction!

It was amazing just to watch their faces as they experienced each new aspect of the show.

My sister in law began excitedly planning her first quilt while the three of us discussed the designing of a special Musical Themed quilt to be made for them by me.

Just before we parted for the day my brother gave me the most wonderful gift of these words…

“I (we) had no idea what a magical world you live in!”

I couldn't agree more.

Here’s to continuing the journey and sharing the magic!