Friday's Festival

The day dawned with skies of brilliant blue. I'm so glad the predicted rain has not arrived. Hopefully it will wait until Monday, when most Festival attendees have split the scene. The weather right now is glorious!

Sitting outside, waiting for Festival to open is a good place to be. From my perch on the balcony, I could people watch.

This was the line for one of the three escalators at 9:56. The doors opened at 10am.

That was nothing, compared to the lunch scene. This picture was taken at 1pm. We didn't eat in this arena.

I didn't take any pictures in the vendor mall, as I was much too busy parting with my money. As you can see by their bags, I'm not the only one doing some parting. :) (Was that a Freudian slip? I just typed "partying.")

Which reminds me...yesterday, we were looking at the quilts. The PA system came on - you know how sometimes it does a screech as it warms up? Well this PA emitted a long low sound that seemed vaguely familiar. I piped up, "Whale song!" A fraction of a second later, a woman on the other side of Sharon said the same thing.

When the PA made the song again, both of us (the stranger and I) said, "I speak whale!"

We looked at each other, and burst out laughing. It is SO much fun to be with like minds!!

I have taken a few pictures of quilts. This has to be my favorite of the top winners. It's hand appliqued, an original design, inspired by John 15:5. It is spectacular. At the winner's luncheon, the quilter told us about how this quilt came to be, and then proclaimed, "To God be the glory!" Amen!!


This quilt, from Text on Textiles, is completely different. It drew me in as I studied its construction and content and wondered about the meaning of the title, "A Fine Pastry." I didn't see any pastries. You can read the narrative following the picture, for the quilter's explanation.

One exhibit, that is a show within itself, is the Twelve by Twelve quilt challenges. This exhibit, generously sponsored by the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection, features 24 sets of 12 quilts apiece. Each challenge that was issued resulted in twelve quilts by the 12 internet artists. The quilts were then unveiled on their individual blogs and the group website. I spent hours studying the quilts, and only saw half of them. I'm going back tomorrow. And I bought the book.

Yesterday I showed you this quilt at the Alzheimer's booth, that was calling out to me. It was made and donated by Melody Crust.

I was back at the booth today, and they tried to get me to buy this one. It was made by Mary Story. I LOVE it, but I was in the middle of a bidding war at the silent auction.

In the end, I arose the victor. This little quilt, by Larkin Van Horn, will now go home with me as my official "souvenir" from my first trip to Houston. woohoo!! Wait until you see it in person.

Before we knew it, another day had come to a close. This was Sharon's last day here, so we had to grab our photo with the Houston horse brigade.

And there you go, another day at the show. I wish you could see this woman's garb, along with that of her companion. I called out to them, but I guess they were ready to call it a day, because they did not stop. Their skirts were made of men's ties, along with their tops and hats. They were quite the fashion statement, believe me!

Only one day left, and then I travel. I do hope you feel like you're right here with me!!