Special Events

Sewing & Stitchery Expo 2018, Part II

tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

Let’s dive into a continuation of yesterday’s post, Sewing & Stitchery Expo 2018, Part I.

Overload!

I appreciate the comments and as one commenter stated: “My brain would be on overload”. Yep, my brain was on major overload.

But at least I did not get this overloaded:

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Yes the paramedic arrived for a crafter who had passed out at Sew Expo and hit her head. She was okay and I am not sure if they had to take her out on the stretcher or no (I did not want to “rubberneck” around the scene (another attendee filled me in as I walked by).

Buttons, So Many Buttons

Here is a sampling of the numerous booths of buttons. I did not linger in these booths too long as I have enough buttons in my life right (even if the booths had “life-changingly-beautiful” buttons 🙂

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Need a Sewing Machine?

There were so many domestic sewing machine vendors: Bernina, Pfaff, Brother, Janome, Baby Lock, etc. There are also many long-arm machine vendors. They all had “show specials” and were willing to spend as much time as you needed to convince you to buy one of their machines!

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There were also sewing machine cabinet/sew room organization vendors; of course my dream Bernina machines.

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Yes most of the photos above have to do with my fantasy/dream Bernina sewing machines! As I am a “Berninaphile”, I spent time wandering around these booths. (If you ever win the lottery and want to get me something nice as you have really enjoyed my blog, I have a couple $10,000 + priced Berninas in mind!)

I even bought some awesome Bernina fabric at one of the Bernina booths:

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I do not know what I am going to make with it (I bought 2 yards of it) but it was one of those “I have to have it” moments 🙂

Serious Cuteness

Most of the vendors had beautiful and well thought out displays, but a couple really caught my attention:

Craft your own wool stitched treats (very low calories, ha!):

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This vendor made a covering for her booth so you entered a quilted house:

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Nothing to wear? Turn a quilt into a dress:

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A sampling of some of the cool quilts on display in vendor’s booths:

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The medallion one makes me think of Melanie @Catbird Studios!

A Touch of Home

My beloved Stitchin’ Post Quilt Shop from Sisters Oregon had a vendor booth at the show. They are there every year. I first learned about the Stitchin’ Post when I lived in Seattle, WA, had just started quilting and went to my first Sew Expo around 2000 or 2001. Little did I know a couple years later (2005) I would be moving to Central Oregon and they would become one of my favorite quilt shops!

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It was fun to say hi to local people I knew working the booth and believe or not, I actually purchased a couple items at the booth (although I can shop at the Stitchin’ Post anytime back home!)

Just Some Random Photos

Here are a couple random photos that did not fit into their own header section.

Endless displays of patterns and fabric bundles:

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Cool cork fabric:

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Very fancy handmade seam rippers! (Taking seam ripping to the next level…)

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And endless “bits and bobs” you want to add to your sewing/crafting room:

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Overstimulated and Hungry

We wandered ourselves near the point of fatigue with no break for eating. Finally about 2:00 pm we had enough and found a place to eat nearby.

We could have eaten inside the convention center/fairgrounds like many crafters did:

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But we seriously needed to escape Sew Expo (a new Science Fiction film idea: Escape from Sew Expo) and we ventured a couple block away to a New Orleans cuisine themed eatery and had amazing Po’ Boys sandwiches away from the maddening crowds!

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Mmmmmm catfish Po’ Boy sandwich and a microbrew

Our Haul!

When we returned to my Quilting Sisters home who was hosting us this weekend, we pulled out our individual hauls of goodies and did a “show & tell”.

Here’s a photo of some of our combined group haul:

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There is a lot more but we do not want a record of it – ha! (“What happens at Sew Expo, stays at Sew Expo”).

Postscript

My Quilting Sisters are a jovial group and we enjoy teasing each other.

For the rest of the evening, and the next day, we did a mini quilt retreat and each worked on small projects we brought with us. Well the hostess was working on a scrap quilt with half-square triangles and my other Quilting Sister was working on a wedding quilt with a lot of trimming.

To tease me about buying a bag of cool scraps at Sew Expo, they put together some additional scraps for me to take home:

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As you can see by the ruler, unless I was going to glue a tiny quilt together, these scraps are a little too small….

Published by tierneycreates: a fusion of textiles and smiles

Quilter, crafter, obsessive tea drinker and lover of all furry creatures (especially dogs and cats) - join me on my tierneycreates blog as I share stories from "A Crafter's Life".

31 thoughts on “Sewing & Stitchery Expo 2018, Part II”

  2. It looks like you had a great time.
    I would have brought home a heavier suitcase filled mostly with buttons!
    I have a dream of owning a Bernina…but it is only a dream.
    A Bernina is not on the list of things I can buy on my retirement budget.
    Thanks for sharing!!!!

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    1. I bought my Bernina years ago on the “24 months same as cash” deal I got from our local Bernina dealer! But to tell you the truth, as much as I love my Bernina, a lower end sewing machine would get what I need to do just as fine. 🙂

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  8. Well, this post showed just as many awesome treasures as the first. I almost feel like I was walking the aisles myself. These expos are so awesome to attend. I really enjoy going to our local one in September. I would agree with you that a plain sewing machine with awesome straight stitching is more that adequate for sewing quilts. How fun that you were able to go with a group of friends and spend the weekend together. Sounds like you had a great time! I’m so thrilled for you! ❤️

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Cindy and there were a mind blowing amount of treasures but I was good and could only spend the cash I brought and I had only packed a carry on so I had to get anything I bought in there. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Great name for Sci Fi movie! I am in overload just looking at your pics and drooling over those awesome Berninas! Nice haul for your trip home…bet you had to pay “additional airline fees” for all that additional weight!

    Liked by 2 people

  11. I think it was Expo Excitement that may have caused the crafter to faint. I’m glad the word was she is okay.
    If I saw all those buttons I would have an overwhelming urge to just reach in and run my fingers through them, while at the same time resisting the urge to shove them in my pockets 😋
    Next time I’m out to lunch, I’m having what you had! Yum 🍻

    Liked by 2 people

  12. Another fun-filled day, I see! I really like those wool cookies. They look very easily mistaken for the real thing! Glad to read that you were able to leave with some awesome buys (I love that glasses print!) as well as take a bit of a breather for a break. Looks like a really great expo. Any ideas yet on what you’d like to make with the items in your haul? (and yes, if I ever win the lottery, I got you!). 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. You mean I was supposed to purchase items with a plan in mind?!?! What kind of crazy talk is that?!?! 😉
      No plan but it was fun to purchase a couple treats! Yes I loved the wool cookies but I did not really need them so I left them there! Thanks for your comments 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  13. FUN! Serious fun. I have to say, though, the thing that most caught my eye was that catfish po’boy! I had a catfish taco lunch in Cocoa Village, FL last week that was really good, too. Must be in the mood for fish…

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