Hampton Quilt Show (Goodies!)...

(Note: To enter my current giveaway, go here!)

In my last post, I shared some of the beautiful quilts at the 2013 Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival, but to be honest, half the fun of going to a quilt show is visiting the vendors!  I can remember the first few times I went, I was overwhelmed by the booths and had far too many impulse buys.  Now I generally go armed with a list and a budget.  I'll spend the first day looking for the items on my list and other things I'm interested in and on the second day, I'll make my purchases.  Usually several vendors sell the same items and by not buying at the first one, I give myself time to find the best price!  (Doesn't that make me sound kind of boring and frugal?)

My big shopping list items this year (like last year) were thread and quilting rulers, but I also knew I needed a 1/2" grid stencil to help with quilting things like Diane-shiko.  However, I also found some great Halloween stencils that could come in very handy quilting my Baltimore Halloween quilt.  I don't know if I'll use them all, but they should be a good jumping off point.  (I'm determined to finish that quilt in time for Halloween this year!)  It was hard to get a clear picture of them, but there are pumpkins, ghosts, witches, spiders, spider webs and leaves.

New Quilting Stencils

This is the quilt I hope to use some of them on...

My Baltimore Halloween Quilt Top

My main purchase at the show was more thread for my frame.  I bought Superior Threads So Fine 50 wt. and Rainbows 40 wt.  This thread works really well on my machine and they always have a good deal on it at the show.  I also got a couple more thread charts.  I haven't tried the metallic threads yet, but it's on my list of future things to do.  Perhaps even for the Halloween quilt?  I was thinking it could make for some interesting spider webs.

Stuff from the Superior Threads booth

At each show I go to, I try to pick up one or two Creative Grids rulers.  I'm slowly trying to replace my existing rulers with these, because I like them so much better.  They're easier to read and I just love that they have the grippy stuff on the back so they don't slide around on fabric.  This time I bought the 6.5" x 24.5" ruler and a 3.5" square ruler that I'll need for the HST swap my bee is starting.  Other than that, I picked up a couple of patterns, a charm pack and a few fat quarters.

New Creative Grids 6.5" x 24.5" Ruler

The rest of my haul

Overall, I was extremely practical in my shopping this year.  No quilt kits or fabric bundles for me.  I think I just have so many UFO's right now that it seemed crazy to consider purchasing another!  It was also a bit of a sticker shock to see some places selling fat quarters for as much as $3.50 each.  Wow!  Doesn't that seem really high?

It really was a lot of walking around and looking at all the vendors.  There were some unusual ones there as well - a couple for knitters and several selling beads and charms.  I think the ones that are the most interesting to me though are those selling things I can't buy locally.  All in all, it was another great trip and one I hope to repeat next year!

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.” 

Luke 6:32 (NIV)