Road to California

This past week Road to California has been going on. I was so excited, not only because this the first quilt conference and show I've attended, but also because I was there to shop... not for fabric (well that too!), but also for a new sewing machine! I've been faithfully sewing on my Brother for the past few years and since it is an entry-level machine that cannot be cleaned, it was time for a new one. I've been saving for the past couple years for my "forever" machine, and I was so eager to find her!

Here's the contents of my bag before I left the house... a couple of quilt sandwiches (not for nourishment, but in case I needed to bring some along to try FMQ on), some snacks, and notebook with the brands and models I thought I was interested in and my various notes on them.

Once I arrived, I was so overwhelmed with the beauty of the show. This was one of my favorite exhibits, which was called Perspectives: Fantasy and Reality and curated by Sheila Frampton-Cooper.

Sheila also had one of her quilts, Fantasyland, exhibited and I managed to get a photo of her with it. I love her quilt!

Being a hexy lover, I had to take a picture of this one. It's called Perseverance by Linda Neal and is made of 10,509 half-inch (!!!!!) EPP hexagons. I was surprised that it "only" took 16 months to piece the top.

And this was another fun piece. It's called Cowpath in the Tundra by Diane Shore and I was particularly drawn to the texture of this piece. It is made with leather, acrylic paint, silk cord, and cotton.

And here is one last favorite. This one is called Wings of Dreams by Dana Lynch and it caught my eye because there was a lot of bling to it! I love the bright colors but also the meaning behind the quilt. Dana created it as a representation of her dream come true-- to own a long arm quilting business.

Okay and I did a little shopping too.

And yes, I left having accomplished my big goal-- buying a new machine! :) I had a blast at the conference and I'm now looking all the more forward to going to Quiltcon. Are you going to Quiltcon? Or another quilting conference? I'd love to hear your favorites!