The quilts of Gee's Bend - a trip around the world

Yesterday Rosie and I flew interstate to see the quilts from Gee's Bend. I got up at 4:45am and we were on a 7:15am flight.

Being interstate almost felt like being in another country. I am not kidding! The public transport system was so different! We could catch a train from the airport, but there is an additional fee for entering or exiting at the airport terminals. Unlike my capital city (Melbourne), where one buys a ticket all day for all forms of transport for about A$12 - in Sydney one pays A$31.40 for an all day ticket! We couldn't believe it!! Or, one pays a particular amount for each station travelled. We paid A$20 each for return trips on the train. Ridiculous. We must have been paying for all the fare evaders, as the ticket security was pretty lax except at the airport station. (And in Melbourne, on a Sunday it's a Super Saver price of A$2.90 for an all day ticket!!)

double decker trains!!!

There were no rubbish bins. I asked at the station where I could find a bin. I was told "We have no rubbish bins". I said "Where do I put this?" (indicating rubbish). He said "In a bin, when you find one". Ridiculous. What's the problem? Do they think there will be fires or explosions in the bins? Or will people pick up the bins and throw them? I felt like I was in India, but I knew if I threw my rubbish on the ground I would be fined. I left the rubbish on the train!!! (Naughty I know, but they must be paying someone to do that).

Rosie and I planned to spend the day at the "Quilt Indulgence Festival" with exciting workshops, International quilt displays and a quilt market.


When we go to the Melbourne shows, we spend all day walking around the shops, free workshops or demonstrations and the quilt exhibits. We come home tired but full of inspiration and excitement.


We mistakenly thought we would need just as much time in Sydney. We were there for 2 hours and we were ready to come home. The International quilt displays really were fabulous. The US quilts from Gee's Bend (imagine a quilt made from old jeans on sale for US$13,000 - that's about A$26,000 at the moment!!!); and 30 of the best quilts published from a French magazine, a Japanese magazine, a New Zealand magazine and Down Under Quilts (Australian) magazine. One of my quilts was selected to tour Australia with this international exhibition.

We have been studying the quilts of Gee's Bend for a few years now. They are inspiring. Really large scale quilts. Most of the quilts at the exhibition were made from old clothes, fabric samples and furnishing fabrics.

After we perused the quilt exhibition we wanted something to eat. There really wasn't much to eat at this racecourse. The meat pie I bought was awful. I took it back and got a sandwich. The catering was bad. We must be spoiled in Melbourne. However, we met a nice quilter in the food queue and ate lunch with her and Annette Gero. Rosie said we must have stuck out like "dog's b...ls" as the only other quilters there (more about that later).

Annette is releasing a new book later this month. It will feature photos of hundreds of quilts from her personal collection - all early Australian historical quilts. The book will feature 29 quilt patterns with instructions and it weighs 2.2kg. Annette picked my brain for a few ideas, and I showed her my quilt in a magazine she had bought (I've got "street cred!!").

After that, there was nothing to do. Why? There were 5 stalls in the quilting side: one was Down Under Quilts magazines, two sold sewing machines; one sold fabric paints; and one was a general craft shop with a little bit of fabric.

The rest was scrapbooking and card-making. All the signs outside the venue were for papercrafts. We were so disappointed. (We couldn't care less about those crafts).

If we had known we only needed 3 hours at the venue, we would have still gone to Sydney. But, we wouldn't have caught such an early plane, and we would have made arrangements to visit other things in Sydney (I didn't really want to pay another $20 for train tickets if I didn't know where I was going).

So, did I have a good time? Yes. We saw what we went for (the Gee's Bend quilts), lunched with Annette Gero, bought the DVD, and I bought the first book (they sold out of the second book - they only brought 6 with them - how dumb can you get?). We had the cake, but we missed out on the icing.

Was it worth A$220 in airfares and trains (excluding travel to and from the Melbourne airport), food etc to see the quilts? I'm not sure. Maybe I could have bought both the books and the DVD and stayed at home satisfied. Maybe not.

LATER: It's not just me! I found this blog post by Ruth. See what she has to say. I really can't believe how poorly attended the exhibition was. I believe it was poorly advertised. The event is now organised by a publishing company who advertised only in their magazine. There are around 5 other magazines aimed at quilters published in Australia - the event was not advertised in them.

I had a dream...

Last night I dreamt about these quilts... well, about making my own actually. I dreamt about the fabric - my LQS has the Gee's Bend Collective fabrics on the bolt.

I imagined it as a "one day" quilt. Not, I will make it one day, but I will make it in one day.

I dreamt that Mum basted the quilt for me on her longarm machine using soluble thread, and I quilted it on the machine.

I think I should use scissors, no rulers, no rotary cutters, just like the Gee's Bend women.

I would like to use fabrics in Amish tones from the Gee's Bend fabric range. Okay, maybe tomorrow night I will dream I have enough time to do it!!

This is what I sewed last night before I went to bed dreaming. A little bit of work on Lori Smith miniature "Simply Charming".

I am trying to finish this little quilt top before Wednesday. Wish me luck!!

Finding the centre

I have finished the centre of Simply Charming - one of the little quilts designed by Lori Smith. Just borders to go.

Tomorrow I plan to do all the borders, then finish a round on Lizzie Mae's Medallion, and maybe even finish sewing the buttons on the 1950s Collection.

Will I sleep? As long as I am not dreaming of the Gee's Bend quilt, I will sleep like a log. I feel exhausted!!!

Pretzel Party time!

Well, I really opened a can of worms with my Gee's Bend post. I am sorry if anyone Sydney-siders saw it as a put-down. That was not my intention. It is my unbiased view as a visitor to Sydney.

Repeating myself, my main points were: I loved the quilts, but I would have planned my day differently if I was to do it again.

I have been so busy! I've hardly put a stitch in! Well, ok. That's not quite true. I have been working away on the French Collection applique but it looks pretty much the same as in the last post. When it looks different I will share.

I hastily prepared some stitching last weekend to take to Sydney to do at the airport. I couldn't take the Noah's Ark stitchery (see side bar) I have started - I am waiting for a new block to appear on Lynette's blog. I really just wanted one colour thread. So, I traced this off.

Actually, I traced 2 off (a little over-excited to say the least). I didn't want to run out of stitching!! As it turns out, Rosie was even more eager and she was stitching before the plane even took off. Her needle was confiscated (although she got it back as we left). That has never happened to either of us before. I suggested we wait until we are in the air next time, when they are too busy selling cups of tea.

Anyway, I thought I would make this cushion.

It's from this book by Bronwyn Hayes (who publishes under the name Red Brolly), an Australian designer. I've already stitched all the pictures for the quilt - I did them years ago. The book was re-printed this year.

I bought this pattern. Isn't it gorgeous? It's supposed to be for a Jelly Roll, but I would be just as happy if I found 40 strips 2.5 inches wide from my stash. What a fun name! Pretzel Party!!!

I hope to have some real progress to show over the weekend. I've got to do this week's sewing on the Mystey Quilt yet!!

Round and er... around...

I finished the last 4 blocks for the next round of Lizzie Mae's medallion quilt, then joined them into strips. However, I have only stitched one side onto the centre yet.

I have been thinking of new things I would like to start (like this Oceanica fabric and the Gee's Bend quilt), and what I would like to finish this year. Let's have some goals.

Now that I have finished the 1950s quilt (including label!!), I would like to finish the 12 Days of Christmas (needs final applique and stitchery border), Alice In Wonderland, Lizzie Mae's Medallion, all nine Little Lori Smith quilts, I Believe wallhanging, Rural Jardin fat quarter quilt, the baby quilt for Mikey's prem baby, and something else Christmassy (I haven't even started it yet!!)...... and that's just what I can think of right now!! I am sure something else will come up.

Sometimes I wonder if I will ever become tired of making quilts and quilty things. But, no. There are just too many new things to try and start, that I could never become bored.

I would really like to make something from string pieced bits. Check out this photo from the new Kaffe Fasset book "Simple Shapes". I could really burn up some scraps on something like this!!

These are both string pieced, then cut and pieced again. I really like that idea.

Oh yes! And my new stitchery design... I haven't even started to stitch it yet!!