Fanfare 2022--the Heritage Quilters Of Huntsville Quilt Show

 After a 6 month delay, my guild quilt show was held recently. Usually held in October of the odd years, this one was pushed back a few months due to Covid stuff. 

The show was full of beautiful quilts, about 200, great vendors (who did very well) and a record-breaking crowd of attendees. Obviously, people are eager to get life "back to normal". 

I didn't take nearly enough photos but lots of my friends did, like this panoramic view by Robin A--it only shows a small part of the very large hall at the Von Braun Center:

This is the 17th bi-annual show put on by HQH. There were wonderful quilts and pretty ribbons on many. I am going to share my most favorites here and a few of the winners.

Teachers love to see their students succeed so it was great to see these quilts wearing ribbons. 

1. And So It Began: Brenda Miller started this in our Quiltmaking 101 class in 2014 and just finished it. Honorable Mention, One Maker, Pieced Medium.  This is the quilt I had taught for more than 10 years to hundreds of local quilters. My goal is to addict at least one in each class totally to quiltmaking and Brenda and her sister, Jo Anne, both got the bug. I credit Brenda with "making" me start the Sunday Sew & Sews--and we are all glad she did:

There were several Sizzle quilts made by students--this was the 2019 Block of the Month quilt for The Quilt Show with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims. 

2.  Pam Erickson calls this one Rainbow Sizzle. I love the pieced border she created for it. Designer Becky Goldsmith was also very taken with it. Pam was very excited when she saw the Blue Ribbon, 1st Place in Two Makers, Pieced Large. Quilted by Lois Kindley.

3. I Like It Hot, by Brenda Miller, with the original appliqued border designed by Becky Goldsmith. Honorable Mention, Two Makers, Applique/Mixed Large, quilted by Patty Wilson: 

4. Mariner's Compass on Steroids, by Evelyn Spaulding, 2 Place, Group, Appliqued/Mixed, Medium/Small. Mechelle Armstrong and Linda Snellgrove also worked on it: 

5. Galactic by Cyndi Russell, quilted by Patty Wilson. Cyndi is a student and friend and I love having her in class. Her fabric selections and use of color just amaze and thrill me. Honorable Mention, First HQH Fanfare Quilt: 

There were several Afternoon Delight quilts, the 2020 Block of the  Month quilt for The Quilt Show, designed by the late Sue Garman.

6. Sew Delighted by Brenda Miller. Her first attempt at hand applique. Honorable Mention, One Maker, Applique/Mixed Large: 

7. Afternoon Delight, by Cyndi Russell. The green is so beautiful as the border fabric:

8. I Ain't Afraid to Applique, by Donna Daniel, quilted by Becky Clayton.  Honorable Mention, Two Makers, Applique/Mixed, Large. This neutral palette is amazingly beautiful and unexpected. Designer Sue Garman would have loved it: 

9. Worn By Me, by Evelyn Spaulding, quilted by Patty Wilson. All of the applique blocks use wool fabric from clothes Evelyn wore in the 1960's when she made a lot of her clothes. Pretty clever as wool appliques can be cut raw edge, not turned under. Honorable Mention, Wool, X-Large, Large, Medium:

Another class I love to teach is Smitten and I was very happy to see this quilt.

10. Smitten by Leigh Hubbard, quilted by Lisa Rummell and Susan Yell. This quilt is most often made in bright, happy, contemporary fabrics. Leigh's choice of low volume, soft prints and neutrals is so beautiful and comforting. I loved watching her make the blocks in class and was so excited to see it at the show. Honorable Mention, Group, Applique/Mixed Medium, Small:

Detail shot of Leigh's Smitten and the quilting: 

11. The Giving Quilt, quilted by Lois Kindley, top by Suzie Wilbanks. This pattern is my Charming Sampler that I designed for the first Joyful Journey Retreat in 2020. Suzie made the top there but never really liked it. Lois, however, loved the colors/fabrics so Suzie gave it to her. Lois had to remove the quilting Suzie had done but could then really quilt it beautifully. I was so happy to see this at the show so future students can see fabric possibilities unlike my two samples, which have much more contrast between fabrics:

Detail of the quilting: 

Suzie used all the remaining charm squares to piece the back:

Now for some more of my favorites, in no particular order.

 12. Dad's Lone Star, by Lorrie Brown, quilted by Patty Wilson. The pattern is by Ricky Tims, as are the hand dyed fabrics. So beautiful to see at our show. 

13. 25 by Ben Darby. Made as a tribute to his wife in celebration of their 25th wedding anniversary. Ben is very talented and this was wonderful to look at closely. First Place, One Maker, Pieced Medium:

14. Flowering Snowball by Lynda Kronenberger. I recently discovered a photo of this design on Instagram and learned it had been all the rage about 6 years ago with Internet sew-a-longs. Intending to work on it at my recent Retreat, I ran out of time and didn't start. So I was very happy to see Lynda's version as I am even more inspired to make it. Honorable Mention, One Maker, Pieced Large:

 

15. Happy Mountain by Leigh Hubbard. This was just fun to look at. Great fabric selections: 

16. Hen House by Kari Hawkins. I find these fabrics and the pattern lovely and soothing and enjoyed looking at it. Honorable Mention, One Maker. Pieced, Medium:

17. Iceberg by Elaine Wick Poplin. Elaine does a lot of improv quilts with strong links to traditional blocks. These are log cabin variation blocks. I am always impressed with Elaine's use of color/fabric and just enough "outside the box" inspiration. I look forward to seeing what comes next from her. Second Place, One Maker, Pieced Medium:

18. Awakening by Elaine Wick Poplin. Improvisational curves, First Place, One Maker, Pieced Large: 

19. Seminole Saguaro by Elaine Wick Poplin. The seminole pieced background is amazing, you just want to look at it for a long time: 

20. Sunshine Cove by Sharon Rush. The Detail shot shows just a bit of what makes this quilt so good. Each shape is beautifully stitched with matching thread and the blocks are outlined with piping made from 1/16" cording. First Place, First HQH Fanfare Quilt entry: 

Detail Shot (thanks, Laura!)

                                                

My own entries are quilts you have seen before. This is my personal journal so here they are for the record:

Western Sun, a replica of an antique quilt I have always loved. The biggest quilt I have ever made and the last king-size quilt for me. Quilted on my Bernina Q20 sit-down longarm, it took more than 90 hours to quilt and 15 hours to bind. One of my favorite quilts:

Garden Party Down Under, the 2022 Block of the Month for The Quilt Show, designed by Irene Blanck. Made with the help of 8 Sunday Sew & Sews, I quilted it on my Bernina Q20. I  adore this quilt. Second Place, Group, Applique/Mixed, Large, X-Large.

Color My World, the 2021 Block of the Month for The Quilt Show, by Wendy Williams. I quilted it on my Bernina Q20. Second Place, One Maker, Pieced, Medium:

How about Viewer's Choice? There were so many votes, 3 ribbons were awarded for Viewer's Choice.

1. Mariner's Compass Plus 20, by Pam Anders, Melissa Labella and Charlotte Jones. First Place, Group, Applique/Mixed, Large, X-Large:

2. The Bible Quilt by Christopher Smith, David Gilifilen and Lin Hayden. First Place, Other and Best Original Design: 

3. Beardy by Sherrie Cahill, Third Place, Art/Innovative:

And, last but not least: BEST OF SHOW. AU by Ben Darby, First Place, One Maker, Pieced X-Large. Assembled from 6" paper pieced blocks Ben designed. More than a few "War Eagle" shouts were heard:

There were 200 quilts in the show so this is just a taste. I think you will agree, it was a wonderful show put on by a very talented guild.

Let's quilt.

Barbara