The Mid-Atlantic Quilt Fest was held at the Hampton, Virginia convention center last weekend and I went with my friend and colleague from work and her good natured husband. These are some of the quilts that caught my eye in the display section. Although I know there are larger quilt shows, this was my first so to me it was quite something. My apologies to the makers of these wonderful quilts as I only snapped some shots of my favorites and did not write down the creators. The intricate use of applique on this lovely quilt above stopped me for a while.
Having lived on the Eastern Shore of Virginia for years and also in the Richmond area with the James River proximity, Great Blue Herons are a favorite bird and a familiar sight. I love the mariner's compass on this quilt as well as the vibrant colors.
I stared at this quilt for quite a while. A view of the cosmos, although that was not the title of it, tiny starbursts and galaxies were very beautifully machine and hand stitched. This was my favorite quilt of all that were displayed.
Interesting design feature of ribbons at the bottom of this art quilt.
I so love sock monkeys. I have been stockpiling sock monkey fabric when I find it and then, I saw this quilt. Adorable! This is a close up shot, of course, but the whole quilt was equally whimsical. I love it.
The last week I have been taking my first formal quilting class from my friend and colleague extraordinaire, Cheryl Schenck, who has her own fabulous blog
http://myfeeddogsaredown.blogspot.com/. Pictured above is my pieced and finished quilt top, which when set down for a moment was immediately appropriated by big kitty Mango. I actually made it with him in mind since it is a baby quilt and my babies have four legs and fur. They may as well get a head start on it. Tomorrow is my last day of class and I must hum ding to finish it. I pieced the back in strips (not shown). Photos of the finished product when it's a finished product.
Mango on his quilt. It suits him, don't you think?
And my blog posts of late wouldn't be complete without a photo of one of my little pouch creations. This one features a cute little elephant machine appliqued on wool. It went to Charlotte, NC a few days ago. bye bye!
What have we been doing these prolonged winter days of late? Why, we have been studying history. Richmond, of course, is a treasure trove of Civil War sites, museums, trails and so on, and this one is a freebie we have never hiked before. Gaines Mill, near Cold Harbor, was the site of a battle that took place in June 1862. 15,000 men died here. This day we were the only ones on the 1.5 mile trail. It was still and eerily quiet. As we walked, we tried to imagine the spectacular battle and we stopped now and then, in spite of Lucy's pulling on the leash (you'd never know she was 14 years old) to read the historical markers and consult our map.
Near the end of the trail, Michael is happy we are in the 21st century, and so am I (most of the time, anyway).
Dusk at Gaines Mill, Virginia.
The Mid-Atlantic Quilt Fest was held at the Hampton, Virginia convention center last weekend and I went with my friend and colleague from work and her good natured husband. These are some of the quilts that caught my eye in the display section. Although I know there are larger quilt shows, this was my first so to me it was quite something. My apologies to the makers of these wonderful quilts as I only snapped some shots of my favorites and did not write down the creators. The intricate use of applique on this lovely quilt above stopped me for a while.
Having lived on the Eastern Shore of Virginia for years and also in the Richmond area with the James River proximity, Great Blue Herons are a favorite bird and a familiar sight. I love the mariner's compass on this quilt as well as the vibrant colors.
I stared at this quilt for quite a while. A view of the cosmos, although that was not the title of it, tiny starbursts and galaxies were very beautifully machine and hand stitched. This was my favorite quilt of all that were displayed.
Interesting design feature of ribbons at the bottom of this art quilt.
I so love sock monkeys. I have been stockpiling sock monkey fabric when I find it and then, I saw this quilt. Adorable! This is a close up shot, of course, but the whole quilt was equally whimsical. I love it.
The last week I have been taking my first formal quilting class from my friend and colleague extraordinaire, Cheryl Schenck, who has her own fabulous blog http://myfeeddogsaredown.blogspot.com/. Pictured above is my pieced and finished quilt top, which when set down for a moment was immediately appropriated by big kitty Mango. I actually made it with him in mind since it is a baby quilt and my babies have four legs and fur. They may as well get a head start on it. Tomorrow is my last day of class and I must hum ding to finish it. I pieced the back in strips (not shown). Photos of the finished product when it's a finished product.
Mango on his quilt. It suits him, don't you think?
And my blog posts of late wouldn't be complete without a photo of one of my little pouch creations. This one features a cute little elephant machine appliqued on wool. It went to Charlotte, NC a few days ago. bye bye!
What have we been doing these prolonged winter days of late? Why, we have been studying history. Richmond, of course, is a treasure trove of Civil War sites, museums, trails and so on, and this one is a freebie we have never hiked before. Gaines Mill, near Cold Harbor, was the site of a battle that took place in June 1862. 15,000 men died here. This day we were the only ones on the 1.5 mile trail. It was still and eerily quiet. As we walked, we tried to imagine the spectacular battle and we stopped now and then, in spite of Lucy's pulling on the leash (you'd never know she was 14 years old) to read the historical markers and consult our map.
Near the end of the trail, Michael is happy we are in the 21st century, and so am I (most of the time, anyway).
Dusk at Gaines Mill, Virginia.
