African Fabric Lady

This is the weekend for the annual Quilter’s Gathering, held at Nashua, New Hampshire.   It’s their 20th Anniversary show, and the second year of the second generation of promoters, daughters of the women who started the show.  I’m the only vendor who specializes in African Fabric at all the shows where I participate, though there may sometimes be others who may have a few items that are African in origin or influence.

Have you ever been to any of the larger quilt shows?   They are usually held at hotels or conference centers, and feature talks of interest to sewers and quilters, classes that are design or technique oriented, and there’s usually an area where many quilts, contemporary or historical are on display.

At Quilters’ Gathering, the quilts are displayed in a ballroom.   The lighting is moderately inadequate, but “teh quilts more than make up for that”.   The first really big quilt show I ever viewed was at A Quilters’ Gathering and I found it to be an emotional experience, as if I could feel all the hopes and joys and sorrows sewn into these fabrications.  Thousands of hours are invested in their production, and whether or not you love traditional quilts (I’ve never seen a Log Cabin Quilt that I did not love) or contemporary quilts (I can get tired of seeing historical fine art reproduced in fabric), the craftsmanship is uniformly high at this venue, and there’s something wonderful about being able to appreciate all the talent and effort that went into their making.

I always look for the quilts that employ African Fabric.  Surprised?  I guess not.  Come back next week to see if there were any quilts featuring African Fabric at this show…or join me in Nashua this weekend.

Cheers,

Chris