International Quilt Festival Houston November 2016

As this is our fifth trip Cath and I feel pretty confident getting out and about, especially with Google's assistance.  We have a routine - know how many classes we can do before the brain shuts down; how much time is needed for the quilt exhibition and the shopping; plus allow plenty of gossiping time. We strayed further afield on the public transport system as we try to do something different each visit.

The alternative adventure this time was a Sunday afternoon trip on the tram to visit the museum district spending time at the Centre for Contemporary Craft and the Museum of Fine Arts. Then the bus on Thursday to The Galleria shopping mall followed by a side trip to Michaels and Joanns (to fulfill an errand).

Being in Houston at Halloween provides an opportunity to see creativity in different media...

Spectres in the trees at Discovery Green

My favourite creation from the Hilton Americas-Houston Hotel pumpkin competition (apparently it is based on Pokemon)

We did four classes - two days with Philippa Naylor to master applique; an evening with Glennis Dolce creating a shibori bead embroidered brooch; fitted to be fabulous with Katrina Walker and also created a stained glass pojagi butterfly with Katrina.

Philippa has greater mastery over applique than I do - a clear example of practice makes perfect. This was a fast paced class with an exuberant tutor where we made samples of various techniques, based on her book Applique Mastery.

Philippa in front of the Applique Mastery quilt

Mastery class sample 2

Mastery class sample 1

My applique apprenticeship samples

Glennis Dolce sample

Glennis had some truly exquisite examples of jewellery created with her silk shibori ribbon.  It was difficult to choose a ribbon colour and I am surprised how pink mine looks in the picture when I thought it had more a a green tinge. My piece definitely has promise and will be finished in 2017. (Lets see if stating a goal on my blog creates any accountability for my things to do list.)

My shibori bead embroidered brooch in progress

There are no pictures from Fit to be Fabulous with Katrina although they certainly would have been amusing. We created a body graph with a partner to get an idea of our proportions and shape.  I just hope I don't resemble my body graph - some of the shapes were decidedly out of this world and not in a good way. It did however confirm that I need a full bust adjustment (FBA) and a forward shoulder adjustment. One learning moment was that in Katrina's opinion (and she is a Palmer Pletsch certified instructor) I fit the size 10 Palmer Pletsch fitting shell.  I would normally start with a size 12 in the Big 4 and make adjustments from there, so something to consider when I next use a BMV pattern.

Katrina's class sample

The stained glass butterfly was a wonderful class with Katrina.  I very nearly finished my piece in class and this will be something else to finish in 2017.  The foundation piecing technique with silk organza was slightly different to traditional foundation piecing in that you work from the back so you don't have to worry about mirror imaging the pattern.  Love the transparency of the finished piece - I wonder if I could incorporate it into a garment. Something to ponder.

My nearly finished version of the stained glass butterfly

In-between classes we attended two lectures.  These lectures are generally very good - amusing, informative and creatively invigorating. But in the words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Into each life some rain must fall and for us that was listening to the self-aggrandisement of a little man (figuratively not literally). If only we had been closer to the door!!

Love seeing all of the creativity that abounds at Quilt Festival.  The quilt show is huge and needs to be nibbled in small pieces so the mind can absorb the detail. My favourite of the International Quilt Association award winning quilts was Unknown Man by Marina Landi and Maria Lucia Azara of Sao Paulo Brazil which won the Gammill Master Award for Contemporary Artistry. This quilt was an original interpretation, used with permission, of a painting by Francoise Nielly. My head can appreciate the effort and technique mastery of the Best of Show winner Reflections of Cape Town by Cynthia England but my heart appreciates the Unknown Man.

Unknown Man by Marina Landi and Maria Lucia Azara

Reflections of Cape Town by Cynthia England

A small sample of other quilts that struck my fancy at Festival...

My Butterfly Garden by Dawn Monk, UK

Suburban Nest by Sara Sharp, Texas 

Teal Circle by Sherri Lipman McCauley, Texas

Open Spaces by Sandra Poteet, California

Not to leave out the New Zealand quilts...

The Big Dry by Camilla Watson, Wellington NZ

Wheat Field by Melissa Burdon, Blenheim NZ

And the shopping - well that was minimal (in quantity if not in dollar value) as I had been rather self-indulgent in San Francisco and Ashland which left only a small amount of luggage allowance for Houston.  I did succumb at the last moment to two pieces of scrumptious black wool fabric (a wool mohair and a wool cashmere) from The Wool House in Toronto.  I have seen a picture of a mohair moto jacket and this may be how I use my fabric or maybe not who knows what it will become once the aging process is complete.

Although Quilt Festival attracts around 60,000 visitors it never feels particularly crowded which for someone who has adapted a bit too well to the low population density of New Zealand is a bonus.

Quilt Market show floor

Roll on 2018 for our next trip to Houston.