Festival of Quilts

Well ... it is definitely beyond the weekly post I had hoped to be accomplishing. However, July was a sad and challenging month as my mother's long and lovely life ended. While expected, and she was at peace with joining my father—who we lost in 2016 and who she had wed 70 years ago last month—it is sad to know she is gone. I am grateful that I could return to the US to see her in March of this year. We said our farewells then, knowing we would not see each other again. 

I leave you with one of my favorite photos of my mom and me. It was taken five short years ago. While she told me not to waste my money flying out to see her so often, she giggled and smiled every time I did. That is what I will remember most about my mom—not wanting it to be about her, yet basking in the love and joy when it was.

 

Barbara Ann (Ordos) Roddy 1934-2023 ♥️

 

My mom taught me to sew. So what better post to share alongside news of her than some of the lovely creations I saw at the Festival of Quilts here in the UK this week?

 

This is the 20th Anniversary of the show; it is at the National Exhibition Center (NEC), located at the Birmingham International Airport. It is the largest quilt show in Europe and has the largest open quilt competition in the world. 

 

There were 12 categories for the competition, including a new one called "Sustainable Quilts," an additional five categories for youth quilters, and finally, a new, non-judged section called "For the Joy of Sharing." And what beautiful artistry!!! There were all the traditional booth setups and tons of classes. I am a self-taught quilter, so I want to make the time next year to attend a lesson or two and learn some new things.

 

But for me, it is principally about the beautiful quilts.

 

I am fortunate enough to live within a mile of a train station, so for £11.55 round-trip, I had a 1:09 train journey to the NEC, with one change at Birmingham New Street Terminal (the largest train station outside of London in the UK). We have had a lot of industrial action by workers here in the UK, including train workers, so I was lucky that those actions (which I support) did not impact my journey this week.

 

Birmingham New Street Station

 

I arrived at the show at 9:45 on the first day it was open (Thursday). While there was clearly artistry in every category and there wasn't a quilt in the show that I didn't like, my taste definitely drew me towards the Modern and Contemporary quilts. Here are a few that truly resonated with me (IG account in () when available):

 

"Mask #2 The Stoic" by Scott Culley, Germany (IG @scottculleydesign)

"Mask #2 Ru Paul" by Scott Culley, Germany (IG @scottculleydesign)

"70 Years a Queen" by Fiona Wollaston, UK

 

 

"Girls Night Out" by Arty Tarts, UK

 

"Friday Drinks BC (Before Covid) by Wendy Ward, New Zealand (IG @wendyward.nz)

"Ralph" by Vera Root, UK, 2nd Prize Winner (IG @veraroot)

 

 

"Colorplay" by Edith Bieri-Hanselmann, Switzerland (IG @swissquilter)

 "Indian Summer" Ekaterina Bessarabova, Spain (IG @katybess68)

"I wanted to so I did" by Helen Creasey, UK (IG @and_sew_i)

"The Beauty and The Beast of Cacti" by Merna Timmins (UK) 

I hope you enjoy these as much as I have. Congratulations to ALL the quilt exhibitors—you showed us new ideas, artistry, fun and creativity and we thank you.

 

I am off to Edinburgh for the Fringe Festival next week, so stay tuned!

 

Best, 

Lisa