19th Annual Airing of the Quilts in Milwaukie Oregon

Finally did it-I entered my Double Wedding Ring quilt into a quilt show. Technically not a 'judging' show, most of the quilts in this show were top notch.

The show was held Friday March 22nd and Saturday March 23rd. I went down on Saturday to see my quilt on display for hundreds of admirers to see. You can only imagine the gratification I felt standing several feet away fidgeting with my camera when I heard a woman admiring my work say, "This quilt is gorgeous".

Moments later as I kept touring the show, I came across the Oregon Quilt Project table. I inquired about quilt documentation and mentioned my quilt was in the show. One of the hosts asked me which quilt was mine, and after describing it, she knew exactly which one it was. There were only two wedding ring quilts in the show, so it's not a wonder she recalled which was mine.

There were over 100 quilts in this show, and so many were beautiful. This one was super 'scrappy', and I have a fondness for this type.

Another challenging pattern I will attempt to tackle in my lifetime is the Lone Star. I think this one would be more challenging then the Double Wedding Ring.

Now that I have my first show down, I hope to continue making textile works of art for more shows!

Wedding Ring Quilt

The current quilt on my frame is on hold temporarily so that I may prepare another piece of work to enter into an upcoming show. Technically not a judging show, the Airing of the Quilts is a show of local quilt owners and artists displaying their prized possessions. This year will be my first attempt to have my wedding ring quilt accepted for display. 

The past few days I have spent repairing any small flaws, ironing the quilt, and trying to get out some dreaded chalk marks when the quilt was hand-quilted. I am trying the Mr. Clean Magic Erase to get these orange marks out, but it isn't working as miraculously as I had hoped. I do have a few more methods to try getting them out. For future reference, don't use Dritz quilter's chalk, especially in orange!

The next goal for this quilt is to have it documented by the Oregon Quilt Project. Quilts are inspected and logged into the Oregon Quilt Index. I can truthfully say that this is a quilt made with fabric that was purchased in an exclusive Oregon fabric store, made in Oregon, by an Oregonian. I chose the wedding ring pattern to give myself a challenge, and the first quilt I ever fell in love with was a wedding ring quilt. Although blue isn't my top favorite color, I chose it because it is my husband's favorite color. The blues remind me of the summer sky and ocean as we were married in July at the beach.

This quilt was meant to be a queen size for our bed. Unfortunately, it is better suited for a full size. I didn't purchase enough fabric initially to make that extra row of rings. It is currently kept in an airtight bag to preserve the color from fading now.

I love this pattern, and hope to make it again with black as the background and bright colors for the rings. It is a challenging pattern, this particular quilt has heard a few four letter words that I don't repeat in front of kids! But like a solid marriage, it is a work of patience, tears, and love.