Quilt Market, Pittsburgh 2014 - overview

I went to Quilt Market last week. And today I will share a little about that trip to twice yearly trade show for the quilting industry. This is not a public event. It is a market for retailers and industry professionals (designers, authors, long arm quilters, etc.) to see a preview of the upcoming fabrics, patterns, books, quilting tools, etc. and to order them for retail sales.

I roomed with great women, Katy (The Littlest Thistle), Rachael (imagine gnats) and Allegory (a thousand needles). Spending time with them was, without a doubt, one of the best parts of Quilt Market. 

I met up with Becca (Sew Me a Song) and she graciously allowed Katy and I to tag along with her as she evaluated and ordered fabric for her shop. Becca is fantastic and I felt like she was an instant friend. I can assure you she is going to have some amazing fabrics arriving in her shop.

I met and talked with many talented fabric designers, bloggers, pattern designers, fabric manufacturers, sales reps, publishers, thread manufacturers, quilty tool manufacturers, etc. The folks at quilt market were all happy to share information and welcome me - the people of quilt market are really quite lovely.

I took a lot of photos on Sunday morning when it was quieter on the floor. There were too many photos to sort and edit for the blog so I just threw them all into a 9 or so minute slide show which I hope will give you a taste of the feeling of quilt market. It is viewed best in the smaller size and no need to click to youtube as it is not there yet (I might add that later). 

I will share more about the massive pile of fabric I bought at sample spree in the coming days and weeks. The sample spree allows you to buy fabric pre-cuts and some other items at wholesale or reduced prices and in advance of their release into the retail market. I will share more about these fabrics as I have time to really look at them and work with them - there are a lot of beautiful new fabrics coming out, its too bad that more would not fit into my suitcases (yes, I had two).

I am going to have to share other parts of Quilt Market with you over the next week or so. It was an overwhelming source of information and inspiration but I need some time to sort it all out first and to break it into smaller pieces for sharing.

And thank you to everyone who has purchased my new pattern, Canvas. I am going to extend the 50% off sale until the end of the month and show off some of the work of my testers this weekend. You can get a copy by following the links under the My patterns tab at the top of the blog.

Best,

Leanne