QuiltCon West part two -the People and Projects

Some of My Peeps

QuiltCon West 2016.  The much anticipated hanging out with quilty peeps.  Some I rarely see (like my sister) some I had never met in person before but "know" from bees, swaps and IG, some local guild mates I get to play with all the time - it was the absolute sweet spot of the weekend.  I wish I had a photo of everyone!

BeeSewcial mates at QCon

PF Changs was conveniently located near the venue which came in handy the first night puddle jumping to get there and then again for lunch with BeeSewcial mates (L-R around the table: Me, Diane, Leanne, Hillary, Stephanie, M-R, Felicity and Anne)

Blocks received  

It was no coincidence that I chose February as my 2016 month to be Queen because look at all the lovely "Stretch" blocks that were delivered to me in person.

Debbie's Mod Mood

Debbie wasn't able to attend but she was well represented with her beautiful quilts in the show. and I'm honored to have contributed 4 blocks to it.  You can read more on her blog here and the judging here.  First place in the Group Category is pretty fantastic.  

Fans from Class

The night class options for QuiltCon allow for more flexibility with volunteering during the day.  I came away with these two fans, a bunch of parts and a very memorable time with my sister.  enjoying Anna Maria's hysterical stories.

My Sis, AMH and I

Earlier, the entire ballroom was entertained by the wit and wisdom of AMH, Jennifer Sampou and Elaine Theriault moderated by Anne Sullivan on the topic of Getting & Staying Creative, Keeping the Mojo Burning.   It was reassuring to hear the wide range of what works for each of them reinforcing that there is not one right answer or approach as I seek to find my own voice.

Mojo Panel 

You may recognize the quilt on the right from my IG feed and this guild post.  Excited to have it so prominently displayed next to LA MQG aka: The Mothership and to have named it. "Dovetailed" verb: Join together by means of a dovetail, a nod to both the design shape and the collective creation of friendships built to last.

SBAMQG Charity Quilt

I learned about Libs Elliott from my friend Anne last QuiltCon in Austin and signed up for the weight of love workshop as my first choice during the scramble of registration.

Libs Elliott and I

I actually have no intention of following the pattern and cringed at the thought of a predetermined coloring chart but am confident I'll enjoy my free form version. 

Workshop Progress 

Wrapping up the weekend with a Sunday early morning final class.  After little sleep and way more social activity than I am accustom to, I wasn't sure if I had it in me to FMQ but it was great.

Christina - a wonderful teacher

With a love hate relationship with FMQing this class was exactly what I needed to get things flowing. 

My Sample

No surprise the MQG did a fine job of keeping us informed and connected with screens throughout the venue. I also used the app on my phone so much more this time.   Speaking of technology, I slipped into the lecture Modern Quilts from Digital Tools during my volunteer lunch break.   It was fun to have my design and quilt included in the presentation. 

There were so many new people to follow on IG.

Super volunteering in the workshop building meant was a lot of directing attendees and checking in with teachers.   When 2018 rolls around I'll have it all figured out.  

Workshop Building

My sister and I managed to make the Late Night Quilters meet up which was conveniently gathered at the Sheraton where we stayed.

Photo from the Facebook page shared by member Leona McCann. 

eat, drink and talk talk talk

Another impromptu get together and group shot thanks to Stephanie.     The dinner out with my guild was fun too but unfortunately we didn't get a photo. 

Can you spot the block in Debbie's quilt that was a design inspiration for Dovetailed and Castles in the Sand?

Last but certainly not least - the Quilts of QuiltCon.  I confess to having done a terrible job documenting them.  Good news for me at least is that I did throughly enjoy them and other bloggers have included great images capturing quite a few of my favorites.   Our guild secretary Renee shared this post and be sure to check out these posts by Amy Smart , QuiltingJetGirl the MQG and more.

QuiltCon on Facebook  has a beautiful "eye in the sky" photo of the layout.   The magazine can be found online and on newsstands - pick one up if you haven't already!