1/24/20

Road to California: Day One

What a marvelous day we had yesterday. Attending the Road to California was a bucket list item for me, so check! It was an easy-enough drive, taking about an hour to get there. We were able to use the carpool lane for much of the way, and that cut down on our drive time significantly.

The show was at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, California, very near the Ontario International Airport. When we could see planes lining up to land and take-off, we knew we were close. Soon, the convention center came into view.


We were headed for the "B" Lot to park. The show opened at 9:00 a.m. we arrived just after 9:00 and found the "B" Lot already full. It meant making a u-turn and heading to a different lot, but there was plenty of parking there. I'd purchased my tickets online, and so we walked straight through the doors without delay.


Interestingly, when I handed these tickets to the person who seemed to care, she said, "What's this?"

"These are the tickets I paid for," I said, somewhat confused. Well, we'd also been provided with arm bands, and she really wasn't interested in the tickets. Before we could enter, we had to put the arm bands on our wrists. Okay. Whatever. But that was the only snafu, and I knew it was going to be fun when the first thing I saw hanging high overhead was this next quilt:


Cats! Bring in the cats!

So, I'll get to the show in just a second, but I first want to tell you about some of the things we saw among the vendors. And let me tell you...the area where the vendors were was absolutely mobbed. Mike and I are both crowd-phobic, and so we sped through the vendor area faster than I would have liked. It was okay. Our eyes were full by that time. And, kudos to Mike, who was very braved and followed me through the whole show and vendor area with nary a whimper.

But, hey...how about these leggings for your sewing day. One size fits most!


As a reminder, however, I've heard that spandex is a privilege, not a right, and so I passed these by.

But here's a quilt I've made. It's always fun to see something I've put together in my own sewing room. This pattern is called "On a Roll."


This is my version, hanging in our bathroom at home.


This next quilt was hanging in one of the vendor booths. I couldn't get close enough to get the whole thing. This one is for Molly and Buddy. They've been suffering through their staff's attempts at penguins all during the month of January. Take heart, Molly and Buddy. The month is almost over.


And, of course, anything with a cat was photographed. This is a template...pretty close to life sized.


This was a cute quilt, but I smacked my hands any time I looked at any embroidery patterns.


And I loved this one...but again, I was determined not to buy yet more patterns I won't live long enough to make.


Mike actually encouraged this next purchase. These are pretty nifty, and I can never get enough light over my sewing machine. This one will light up the whole table, and it will attach to the surface where my sewing machine is. You can see pictures and read about it right here...and no...we didn't pay the price listed on the website. There was a significant savings at the show. Mine was $150.


Purchases over $100 were eligible for this freebie, and so I got one of these. This will be a really nice light for doing hand embroidery, and it is rechargeable via a USB cable. This one is available on Amazon, and you can read more about it right here.


Also, I had a mind to add some fabric to my next Shop Hop quilt to represent our attendance at the show, and so I bought a fat quarter of this one. I have an idea about copying and printing the pretty design from the tickets and using it along with this fabric in whatever quilt block I come up with for this.


So, that's not what you want to see though, is it? You want to see the quilts! So let's get started. Just outside where the quilts were on display was this Special Exhibit honoring Road to California.


There were a lot of quilts here, but I only photographed just this one. For the quilts that follow, I'll first show the information included about the quilt and its maker, and then I'll show the quilt. For some, I'll show some detail.


This one appealed to me because of our visit to the California Poppy Reserve last spring.


Okay, and from here, we were into the quilt show proper. I'll continue on showing the quilts as I mentioned above. It was hard not to take a picture of every single one, but I did maintain proper decorum at all times. It was also very crowded, and so you'll notice some of the quilts and information a little off-kilter. My apologies. I think you'll still find all you need to know...except possibly this first one, where I managed to cut off the right side of the sign. Oh well. I'll try to keep my lip-flapping to a minimum and just let you look and enjoy.





Nancy Stovall had a hand in this next one. Visit a quilt show in Portland, and you'll see lots of Nancy's work. Also, there was a musician playing the piano just across from this one, adding to its ambiance.






This next one was three-dimensional. Where do people get their ideas?




I noticed most of the quilts were densely quilted, or densely thread-painted. It made me wonder if that was why my flamingos were rejected, since they were not as densely stitched. There were a few exhibits where they would have fit right in. I'm not disappointed, since I didn't really expect to get in. Still, I'd like to learn for future reference. Either way, this one was interesting. Lots of thread lost its life here.






Those little red circles were about the size of a dime.


I loved this next quilt. I could have looked at it for hours.








This next one gave me ideas. I'd dearly love to make a crazy quilt some day, but I've been intimidated at the thought of making a big one. This quilt was a mini...doll quilt sized...and I believe I could attempt something like that.




So, I have lots more pictures to show you, but I'll reveal them over the next couple of days. As for today, it's a sewing day here at the Traveling Three Cats Ranch. Truly. No excuses. The time has come.

14 comments:

Julierose said...

Just amazing works in cloth--thanks for sharing..I like "Round and Round the Neighborhood" too--lots to look at...hugs, Julierose

Vicki W said...

Great photos! I can't believe you didn't buy the cat embroidery kit!

Barbara said...

The quilt you like so much is That Town and Country Quilt by The Gourmet Quilter. Linda and I bought the pattern when it first came out but haven't managed to make it yet. I have lots of ideas for customizing it. The pattern is also available as a book - pricy but cheaper than the pattern, I believe.

Betty said...

Thanks for sharing your view of the show. Loved seeing Linda Roy's quilt. She was a member of the same guild as me before she moved from the area. I had the honor of "guarding" one of her quilts during our local show. I remember trying to convince someone otherwise when he insisted that it had to have been machine quilted!

QuiltShopGal said...

Wowser. Road does sound super crowded. But a good Bucket List quilt show to see. Although I hope you get to attend again in the future. I love all those cat theme sitings and beautiful quilts. I think I'm going to splurge and buy the same light bundle you bought. I definitely need more light in my sewing room.

Lee Young said...

I and some friends were there yesterday too; I had to step back and take some very deep breaths at times because of the crowds (and people blocking the aisles) but all-in-all, we had a great time - who knows, our paths may have crossed and we didn't know it! I only took three pictures. We were most amazed at a couple of quilts where the piecing was miniscule, meaning the pieces were but slivers of fabric measuring about 1/8" to 1/4", which was also tightly quilted. We longed for more chairs so that we could rest on occasion, they told us "upstairs" citing fire code issues were they to put more in the show area. It was a great day; next year we're talking of making it 2 days with getting a motel room. Enjoy your time there!

Sally Trude said...

Getting into a show depends so much on the judges and competing entries...and yes, I look forward to a time of “less is more” for machine quilting. And I hope that whole cloth quilts get comments like “not enough piecing.”

And I assume you know the baby penguin quilt is a Hartman pattern...so even more Portland taking over CA for a change.

Tilly said...

O what an exciting show. Beautiful quilts. Love the cat embroidery in redwork.
Do you know the designers name?
Greetings Tilly

Joan G said...

What a treat to see all of these beautiful quilts! Thank you for sharing and I am so happy that you were able to attend a show that was on your bucket list!

Jerilea Hendrick said...

Omg- spandex is a privilege! I'm dying!

It looks like you had an enjoyable trip. The fish net picture looks almost like twisted or braided rickrack in your picture.

Thanks for sharing.

Carol- Beads and Birds said...

These pictures blow me away. I admit I do have a couple of favorites. Thanks for the close up of Round and Round the Neighborhood. I imagine you could just feel the energy at the show. Your posts always get me more and more excited to be in CA. It's looking more and more like it's going to happen.
xx, Carol

piecefulwendy said...

I'm still laughing over those leggings :-) Those are not for the faint of heart, that's for sure. You are going to love those lamps; my SIL sells them in her shop. I don't have one, but maybe someday! Beautiful quilts, thanks for sharing!

Joni said...

Thank you so much for taking us along to the show! What gorgeous quilts and great inspiration. I'm afraid I would not have the heart to deal with the crowds...can't enjoy the quilts when heavily tranquilized. lol

QuiltGranma said...

Oh, dear! EXCESSIVE thread work, not beautiful!