A Kaleidescope of Color - The Indiana Heritage Quilt Show

The Indiana Heritage Quilt Show, like any other major quilt show, is a little slice of heaven for any avid quilter or quilter wanna-a-be.

Each year, quilters from around the MIdwest descend upon Bloomington, IN, for a three day quilting extravaganza.

I just had the pleasure of experiencing the show again this year. Here are some highlights:

160+ quilts are entered for show.

33 vendors from as far away as Oregon and Florida traveled to display and sell their wares.

20 workshops were available for avid quilting enthusiasts to learn new techniques.

Vendors range from general quilting supplies to specialty items like long-arm quilting machines, quilting books, specialty threads, sewing notions, and more.

Yards and yards, half yards, and thousands of "fat quarter" fabrics are displayed and available for purchase - the ultimate eye candy for any quilter.

Most quilters come away with new ideas, patterns, notions, and new fabric to add to their quilt stash.

While each quilt show is different and can have different judging categories, quilters that entered their quilts for the Indiana Heritage Quilt Show designated one of the categories below for entry.

Entries could be made by all ages and there was special judging for youth (under 16).

Bed Quilt: Any quilt intended for use on a bed.

Wall Quilt: A quilt that will only be displayed on a wall.

Appliqué Quilts: The quilt in which appliqué predominates over the other techniques used.

Pieced Quilts: The quilt is predominantly pieced either by hand or machine.

Special Techniques: Special technique quilts include but are not limited to embroidery, cross-stitch, embellishments, thread painting, whole cloth, three-dimensional work, and painting.

Fabric Art Quilts: Fabric art quilts include original work created as works of visual art.

Small Scale Quilts: Small scale quilts are proportionately accurate renderings of larger quilts and are limited to 30 inches or less on each side.

Mixed Techniques: Mixed techniques quilts include two or more balanced construction techniques.

In addition to the shopping, the workshops and the quilts displayed for judging, the Indiana Heritage Quilt Show and Bloomington, IN, came together to bring out the rich history of quilting in the Midwest.

Visitors to the show could hop on a shuttle that took them around the city of Bloomington to various historical stops:

1. The Wylie House Museum displayed antique quilts from the Wylie House collection. The museum was built in 1835 and was the home of Andrew Wylie, Indiana University's first president.

2. The Mathers Museum of World Cultures and the Glenn Black Laboratory of Archaeology (Indiana University) presented an exhibit entitled: "of Material Importance: Quilt Research". The exhibit focused on different aspects of quilt research.

3. The Farmer House Museum presented an exhibit that focused on both quilting and embroidery.

While women have been the predominant quilters for centuries, there are men who quilt too.

Quilting can be a fantastic way to express artistic form and it can a wonderful social outlet.

Quilting bees still exist where men and women come together to socialize and stitch - often for a common good (e.g, creating memory quilts for Alzheimer's patients, creating quilts for the homeless, and creating baby quilts for struggling young mothers-to-be.).

Even for those who are not quilters, quilts CAN be enjoyed by all - both as an art form and as comfort during cold winter months!

Another related article of interest:

Are You a Quilt Stash Queen?

The next show is right around the corner! It will be held March 3-5, 2016 at the Bloomington Monroe County Convention Center in Bloomington, Indiana.