International Quilt Festival of Ireland

This weekend the 2nd year of the International Quilt Festival of Ireland was on in the National University of Galway.  Mum's friend Kay Thompson had a quilt on display - right at the entrance to the festival - of her Sunbonnet Sue travelling around the world.  Kay was thrilled to see it welcoming everybody and told us that all the Sues are made from scraps and based on a book she bought while travelling in the US. We loved it and thought it was seriously cute.

There were a number of themed exhibits.  Here's mum in the Manly (quilts made by men) and Feeling Groovy (disco ball lighting up the quilts).

There were a few exhibits that made a big impact on us.  One was the hands exhibit where people from all over the world sent in hand prints embellished with rings and jewels and messages.  I particularly liked this one with the paw prints included - I'd be really tempted to do this with Charly and Wilbur!

The other two exhibits that had a big impact were the I Believe and the Prision exhibits.  The I Believe was held in Galway Cathedral showcasing religious themed quilts from all faiths.  There was a lot of beading and glistening embellishments.  The Cathedral was a perfecting setting for it and is a magnificent building.  The prison was really cool and no photographs on the inside were allowed. Quilts from Limerick prisoners were on display behind iron bar and sounds of the prison were played over the speakers.  It was very effective and the quilts were great - lots of black and white.

This made me smile!

As did my purchases - bought the grey prints specifically for the Doctor Who-A-Long.

Mum fell in love with this hand bag - she loves shoes so naturally bought the kit and some fabric for me to make it for her.  I've never made a bag before.  Still just over a year ago I hadn't made a quilt either so I guess I'm going to give it a try!

Finally I treated myself to a 60mm cutter, a pressing sheet and some magic foundation paper recommended by Claire.  Hoping to work on my K-9 paper piecing block this week and try it out.

We had tons of fun and despite being there from 11am to 3pm still managed to miss out on the rain exhibit and a few shops so we will definitely head back again next year!