Quilt Con 2022 (1 of 4)- Travel Journal

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Work in progress packed for the road.

This was the week modern quilt makers have been waiting for! It feels like ages since I filled out the paper work to enter my quilt for QuiltCon 2022 and I've really been looking forward to attending this annual event. 

So, my wonderfully supportive hubby and I packed up the car for the 6+ hour road trip to Phoenix, Arizona. It's been a long time since we've driven that far for anything. Like a lot of people, we have been very predictable and conservative in our ramblings of late. Somehow it was freeing to get out of the pandemic imposed bubble to see a different part of the country. 

The Phoenix Convention Center is a wonderful venue for such a large gathering. It's got great architectural angles, with interesting textures in glass and stone, and lots of space for social distancing!

This year the show contained 481 quilts from all 50 states and 19 countries including Russia, Australia, England, Germany, Italy, South Africa, Mexico, and more. The scope of talent was breathtaking. 


Of course, I have been to QuiltCon and other quilt shows before. (Check out "quilt shows" under the Labels of this blog for other examples.) I thought I knew what to expect going in. But this was the first time ever that I would be seeing my own quilt hanging. That is a different experience all together. 


Questions arise. 
  • Do you want to experience the show the way you walk through every other quilt show, building the suspense by attentively moving from category to category and patiently waiting to take your turn for a closer look at each piece? 
  • Or should you attack it with tunnel vision and go straight for your creation?
  • Maybe both, find your category and take time to appreciate the work of other quilts in the group, before stumbling on your own piece?


To be honest, I didn't have a plan of attack. I just knew I wanted to savor the whole experience from this new perspective, feeling a part of the presentation. 

We didn't come across "Scrambled Q's" until we had looked at quilts for well over an hour and I could tell the energy level of my traveling companion was running low. (He lasted a lot longer than I expected, thanks to a big late breakfast.) 

When we finally reached the appliqué section we were more than ready to see my quilt!

Here we are!

It was in some very impressive company. 

I was planning to show a sampling, but I'm having trouble retrieving pics. 
I need to work that out, . . .
Stay tuned. 









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