Dodging the rain in the Northeast, we find ourselves in hot and steamy Des Moines for the Iowa Quilt Show. One of Juana’s bucket list items is to attend this exhibition of hundreds of quilts, and the fact that our niece, Lucy, lives nearby makes it so much easier to make the journey.
Entering the cavernous exhibition hall we are surrounded by superb examples of quilting as well as all of the tools of the trade.
Outnumbered by women by at least 40:1, I am having weird deja-vu moments thinking about when I used to drag Juana to various tool shops and tag sales in my youth and what it must of felt like for her to be surrounded by strange objects.
“Check out the arm on that one,” says an attendee about a computerized embroidery machine.
“I want this!”, exclaims another.
All price ranges and budgets are accommodated from simple 1/4-yard fabric squares costing a few dollars to large, computerized quilting machines listing for over $50,000. I had no idea.
Walking around the arena, it amazes me the high percentage of quilts using nature and plants as their focus. Quilters from all around the world (Japan, Taiwan, Ukraine, etc.) as well as nearby domestic locations display their efforts. I’m amazed at the intricate nature of their efforts and the effects they create with thread and cloth.
The gardens and plants I see created here are much nicer and tidier than any I have created. There are no weeds. There are no bug-eaten leafs. There is no fungal rot. It is perfection in cotton, silk, and other media.
These quilters have much in common with Mother Nature in that only when you look up close can you appreciate the time, effort, and thought required to create such beauty. From a distance, a daisy looks simple and lovely but only when you stick you face next to it do you then discover and appreciate all the tiny parts that make up the image.
Here are just of a few of the many botanical quilts we saw. Enjoy
