back from nashua

best of show went to this astoundingly beautiful quilt by LINDA ROY called "Irish Cream."  Plenty of action here....stippling, trapunto, cathedral window sashings and hand quilted too!  i just love it when shows acknowledge hand quilters along with machine quilters...makes my fingers tingle!  **** kudos to the team for organizing this year's gathering, especially difficult given the fact that the venue abruptly closed on them earlier in the year AND just days before the freak early winter storm knocked out power.  many not far west are still without electricity, but was restored in time for the show to go on.  i sat at admissions for a couple of hours and more than one quilter arrived still without electricity but who cares when there's a quilt show on?  **** seriously, i can't extol the virtues of this show enough.  it's all juried and it's always stellar.  my admissions cohort, terry burris, had 2 quilts in the show...i was impressed!  **** my one class was sue nickels and drawing feathers.  since i make a lot of amish quilts, i'm always looking for over-the-top designs to quilt (it's the part i love most, remember?) and despite being totally exhausted for this evening class, i was giddy with design fever.  it'll take practice of course, especially since rulers and i are uneasy partners, but since my focus is not perfection, i believe i can be successful.  i imagine the person who drew the first circle or invented the wheel was equally excited.   designing in my head for the 2+ hour trip home last night helped keep me awake and alert.  thank you time change...i got an extra hour that i so badly needed!  the vendors?  watch tomorrow....