QuiltCon 2020 Austin – Quilts From the Show Floor

You can read my experience with my own quilts in the show in Part One. Now I’m going to talk about the overall feeling and take away I got from the show. I did a similar review in 2019 that you can read here.

THE SHOW STOPPERS

First, congratulations to all the winners in the show. Everyone gets a good look at the Best in Show, Quilting Excellence, and machine quilting award winners as they walk in the main entrance to the show. These are always show stoppers, that’s why they’ve won the big prizes.

Then there are quilts in the show that just make you stop in your tracks because they are radiant. Some of these quilts were ribbon winners and some were not.

We can’t forget the People’s Choice. I think this was the clear winner as soon as it came into view. With his endearing character, it was undeniable that it really just made people smile and that’s just what we need sometimes.

TRENDS

I think because this was my second time attending QuiltCon I was not as shocked or surprised at the trends that I saw. I tried to make note of the differences from the 2019 show. And I tried to figure out what quilts I was drawn to this year, and why.

One of the biggest changes I noticed compared to last year was that there didn’t seem to be as much division between bright and colorful quilts vs neutral quilts. It seemed like even the quilts that were calm and neutral contained a lot of color. Because of this crossover, I wouldn’t say that there were classes of quilts like last year; colorful or neutral. Also, I noticed the 2019 Pantone color of the year, coral, was used as a neutral. As were many different coral, pink, and orange tones. Here are some quilts that I would consider part of the crossover group; neutral and colorful.

The second major trend I noticed is what I’m going to call “alternative quilting.” By this I mean quilting that isn’t just machine quilted or hand quilted with a simple running stitch. I love this trend and I can’t wait to figure out how to incorporate it into my own projects. Here I’m showing details of quilts that contain alternative quilting.

I did notice that there was another push towards super dense quilting. I think we will probably always see this in Modern Quilting because at this point, it is part of our identity. I felt like there was a bit of relief when it came to the quilting density at the 2019 show and I wish we were still trending that way.

The final trend that I thought was significant and was demonstrated in several quilts was layering. Specifically, transparent layers. I think we need to watch for more of this in the future. I’m intrigued by this trend and thought it was probably difficult to master with such beauty. I can’t wait to try this but I’m fairly certain my first attempts won’t live up to what I saw at QuiltCon.

Now I am going to share an assortment of quilts that I enjoyed seeing at the show. Every quilt was amazing and it’s unfortunate that I can’t share all of them. So here is just a sample.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my recap of QuiltCon 2020 in Austin. I’ve done my best to credit quilts correctly. If you have any questions or concerns please let me know. Also, please ask permission before using my photographs. Thanks!