The best story I have of QuiltCon, was meeting a young boy (around 10-11?) who had won third place in the Youth category. He was with his mum and dad. Other than the fact the boy had won, all three of them had a quilt in the show. It was so heart-warming that they all had this love for quilting.

So, yesterday we talked about the use of solids (trend #1), and texture (trend #2). Ok, so the quilts and other trends that I saw continues today….

3. Use of Prints

One of the biggest surprises to me, was the increased number of quilts that utilized prints. I love quilts that use prints but still have that modern feel.

4. Hand Quilting and FMQ

There seems to be a movement to over the last couple of years to embrace a variety of quilting techniques in the show, not just the expected matchstick or straight lines. I saw an increase in hand quilted quilts and more modern-styled FMQ.

5. Faced Binding was very common on quilts this year.

6. Quilts with a Message

Last but not least…
Every year there are a couple of quilts that bring a strong message, whether its supporting women rights, speaks out against gun violence or highlights the current social and political climate. This year was no different, except I think more people (including a large number in the youth category) are using their art to make a statement. Here are a few from this year and there were many more.

This quilt above, I left last as this had the most impact for me. It was the winner in the youth category (person under the age of 18). As I stood reading the description written by one so young, I was bought to tears. You see my son is ten, in elementary school in the US, and Ann’s description sunk in deep. Here is Ann’s description:

“I created this quilt because of the mass shootings and terrorism that have occurred during my lifetime have unfortunately led me to question the true beauty of America. These acts of violence have impacted the lives of so many people both directly and indirectly and I hope this quilt will serve to bring awareness to this societal issue and also honor the lives of those who were harmed. The bottom half of the quilt is simultaneously supposed to symbolize the American flag and a classroom because I worry that kids in school are learning to normalize these horrible events because they are so frequent.”

That’s it from me on the quilts of the show, additional information on the winners of QuiltCon awards can be found here.