Charlotte Quilters' Guild Annual Carolina Lily Quilt Show is TODAY and TOMORROW ONLY!

I just got back from our Charlotte Quilters' Guild's annual Carolina Lily Quilt Show.  WOW!  If my mom hadn't needed to get back home to her puppy, I'd STILL be there oohing and ahhing over all those gorgeous quilts, and spending money at vendor booths.  They have fabulous items for sale in the boutique as well.  The show will be open until 4 PM today and then again on Saturday from 9 AM to 4 PM, and I highly recommend that you try to get over there if you're at all local.  The quilt show is at the Union County Agricultural Center in Monroe, and here's a link with directions.  

Carolina Lily Quilt Show 2020 Best of Show and 1st Place Applique: Tulips for Oma by Christa Smith

My friend Christa Smith -- the one who helped me diagnose my longarm quilting machine issues -- won 1st Place Appliqué and Best of Show for the original quilt design pictured above, Tulips for Oma.  She designed the pattern, did all the piecing and hand stitched needleturn applique, and custom quilted it on her APQS Millennium longarm machine.  I love everything about this quilt!  If you love it, too, you can purchase the pattern from Christa's Etsy shop here.  This is Christa's first-ever pattern release and, after seeing this beauty, I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Detail, Tulips for Oma by Christa Smith

I love how how the two alternating appliqué blocks have quilting designs that use similar shapes and elements, yet are completely different.

Detail, Tulips for Oma by Christa Smith

Another one of my friends, Judy Morganthall, won 2nd Place in the Pictorial category for an original design based on a photo she took on vacation in South Africa.  She uses a glued collage technique with a sheer mesh overlay and thread painting that secures the layers and adds detail.

Carolina Lily Quilt Show 2020 2nd Place Pictorial, Sabi in the Sun by Judy Morganthall

The photos don't even do this justice; you have to see it up close:

Detail, Sabi in the Sun by Judy Morganthall

I am so amazed by how much talent, skill, and creativity we have in our guild. I don't have time to share all of my photos from today's show, but wanted to get this post up while there's still a chance for readers to get to the show before it closes.  There are SO MANY gorgeous quilts to see, plus Bernina, APQS, HandiQuilter, Innova, Poppy the Featherweight guy, and fabrics and notions and tools galore to shop for in the vendor mall.

Okay, I'm showing you ONE LAST QUILT before dragging myself away from the computer, because I just loved this one by Valeria Rainey:

Carolina Lily Quilt Show 2020 Judge's Award, Most Loving Portrait: Nurturing by Valeria Rainey

Valeria's Nurturing quilt (shown above) was adapted from Debra Cartwright's artwork.  

I myself have ZERO quilts entered in the show, because ZERO is the number of quilts I've finished (other than a few charity donations) since completing Lars's high school graduation quilt last spring.  I didn't have the heart to take his quilt off his dorm bed while his school is blanketed in snow and ice!  Maybe I'll have something finished by NEXT year.

Our Guild's New Blocks On the Move Portable Display for Community Education

My only contribution to this year's show is our new Blocks on the Move portable display, based on a program I learned about from the Country Crossroads Quilters Guild of Modesto, California.  The folks in California were kind enough to supply the plans for building these versatile display units that can be configured in different ways to fit different spaces, and the idea is to move them around the city and set them up in public libraries, hospitals, and other venues where we can reach people and share what our guild is all about.  My husband built our display units, and I solicited the 16" mini quilt donations from our talented guild members.  I love that I got so many different types of quilts for our display; it really shows the diversity of the quilting styles and techniques that we have in our guild.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!