Lancaster AQS Quilt Show Review

Click your heels three times girls - we're not at Host anymore!!!
Thanks for the memories!

The Lancaster Quilt Show has moved on up, into town, and into beautiful new digs in center city Lancaster, and Lancaster has rolled out the red carpet for us. Thank you AQS for your dedication to keeping quilts in Lancaster!

This is Penn Square facing the new home of the AQS Lancaster Quilt Show in the brand new Lancaster Marriott and Convention Center.

Take a step inside this beautiful Marriott - ahhhh... lovely! And, let's address a necessity here that is all too often overlooked at quilt shows - our comfort. The hotel has plenty of locations to grab a snack or beverage throughout the 3 floors which house the quilt show. And now for the big news - the venue has plenty of clean and beautiful womens' bathrooms - do I hear "hallelujah!".

It is an amazing feat that AQS could pull off this quilt show - remember, they had less than a year to orchestrate this show in a brand new facility - Congratulations! I can see this show growing exponentially in years to come.

I attended the show yesterday with friends, and returned today to get more pictures for you all. There was a nice crowd yesterday, but today there was a CROWD - it was packed this morning when I arrived. The parking garage in town was almost full to capacity and the show aisles were shoulder to shoulder with women, and a few token men, shopping and quilt viewing. Everyone was impressed with the new venue.

The quilts are beautiful. I'm going to share with you snipplets of photos of some of the prize winning quilts - you need to attend the show in person to appreciate the beauty of these works. Many congratulations to Marilyn Badger of Saint George, Utah for receiving Best of Show awarded to her quilt "Filigree". The quilting is exceptional, and almost all of it done with metallic thread.

Best Hand-workmanship was awarded to Suzanne Marshall of Clayton, MO for her entry, "Vases". This is a stunning quilt - her color selection is lively and the hand quilting is impeccable.

The award for Best Long Arm went to Rhonda Beyer of Tualatin, OR for "Darwin's Diamonds and Flowers." This quilt is beautiful - but unfortunately it was placed too far back in a poorly lit location to truly appreciate the intricacy of the quilter's work. While this venue is better, unfortunately lighting is still an issue in parts of the exhibit hall.

Linda Roy of Knoxville, TN was awarded First Place in the Appliqued Bed Quilt category for "Icing on the Cake". I love the chocolate background fabric she used - her stitching is incredible.

"Oriental Expressions" by Karen Kay Buckley of Carlaise, PA received second place in the appliqued bed quilt category. I love the leaf spirals in her border - again it was a very dark location and you could not fully appreciate this quilt.

First place in the Wall Quilt Category was awarded to Janet Stone of Overland Park, KS for "Alpha Block Celebration" - everything about this quilt is lovely - I especially like her tabbed border.

I love this quilt by Deborah Kemball of Baie D'Urfe, Quebec, Canada - "Jewelled Garden" - it received third place in the wall quilt category - it is a personal favorite as well as a judge's favorite.

And now for my awards for the quilts that I felt deserved awards - I bestow upon them the "thread from the edge award" - sorry, no monetary value. I love this quilt - it is something I would never undertake but the quilter's workmanship is extraordinary - Congratulations Diane Johnston of Pahrump, NV for this lovely version of a Dear Jane quilt that she titles "Northwest Passage". The reverse applique is beautiful, and the different quilting in every block is so appreciated.

The second "thread from the edge award" goes to Terri Stegmiller of Mandan, ND for "Here's Looking at You Cat". I love the eyes - you have to see the cat's eyes as well. Beautiful imagery.

I obviously did not get photos of all of the prize winning quilts - to those not mentioned, sorry and congratulations. AQS invited us to a lovely premiere of the Lancaster Quilt Show - thank you so much. Three specific requests for next year - 1. better lighting; 2. full frontal views of the quilts; and 3. no quilts more than 4 feet back from the viewing area.

And to Lancaster - thanks for welcoming us with open arms. Take note of the enthusiasm of the local businesses getting into the spirit of the show. The daily menu at Carr's was blanketed with a quilt background.

This dress shop dropped a yo-yo quilt as their backdrop,

Traditional quilts stocked the shelves in this window display.

Papagalleo's spiced up their window with this lovely quilt. Get a load of my reflection wearing the zebra dress - not quite my style.

And FIG Publishing really exercised their creative side with this beautiful window display featuring quilting frames circling some of their many publications set in a patchwork inspired arrangement - love it! And yes, I am definitely as thin as my reflection suggests - not!

Oh, shopping - yes I did plenty of that, but this blog post has gone on long enough. Tomorrow I'll open my shopping bag and share with you my purchases. I will say that if you are heading out to the show before my shopping post I recommend making sure you stop at the Renegade Shops on Route 30 (across from the Host Farm) - there are quite a few good vendors in this location.