Things are getting more and more eccentric at Casa de la Swain. Changing styles in my textile work, falling in love again with painting and photography...and then there is the ever illusive quest for continuing creativity through working with Eric Maisel. Still on the road teaching, posting now at the Ragged Cloth Cafe and taking the pledge to keep handmaiden up to date.

Monday, April 21, 2008

On Being in Paducah

This is a picture-free post since I left my camera cables sitting just where they belong on my desk at home. Having said that, being in Paducah is such a treat. Life is definitely slower here than at home. Almost nothing open downtown on Sunday....not to be deterred, Donna Wilder and I found a great restaurant yesterday. A full bar and good steaks and salads. Ahhh!

The judging went well. Finished yesterday around 3 pm. No information will be revealed. Why spoil the party! Also there will be no pictures of the winners on this beloved blog since I don't have permission from the owners.

Seriously folks, this is an issue. Yes, we all love to see great quilts and blogs are good visuals BUT......how can you in good faith not honor some other artist's copyright? A good subject for a longer post.

Moving on....another day....looking forward to seeing old friends and enjoying a smaller town atmosphere. While Paducah isn't exactly a small town, it has managed to maintain the small town hospitality. If you are a quilt maker or even just a lover of quilts and you are in town during quilt show week, you can get away with just about anything. The entire town has on its "we love you" duds.

The Schroeders run a hands on affair. The staff at the publishing company is working the show. All the family members are doing a task....with grace, patience and attention to your needs.

My bf, Barbara, had made reservations at our usual hotel. When I arrived on Friday from Nashville, Libby Lehman took me to the said hotel. Oops! The reservations were wrong...not for the correct dates. Therefore, no room at the inn. Immediate panic. The weekend before the quilt show and no hotel room....not a good way to start the trip. On the cell phone to Cathy Dodson, handler of all things teacher,
"Hi Cathy. Gabrielle here..no room at the inn. Can you get me in at the Executive Inn....please....small catch in the voice....slobber, slobber." Five seconds later...."Call me when you get checked in. There is a room waiting for you." Praising her to the high heavens....shouts of glee.

So you get what I mean....you can get away with almost anything. Doesn't hurt that the judging started the next morning at 8:30 am.

2 comments:

Anne said...

Stuck my nose to the glass of your classroom yesterday to say hi, but you were delivering illuminating guidance to a rapt audience, so I left--hope the rest of the week is as successful!

realme52 said...

This year was my second time as a visitor at the Paducah show. In 2007 I was a relocated (dislocated) middle aged crafty-creative woman who thought she wanted to try and "get into quilting". I went to the show for a half day, was completely overwhelmed and had no clue what was going on. I fled, half shocked, half inspired.
Since then I have taken a few classes, read a ton of books, joined a small town guild, made several practice quilts, and pretty much realized that I needed to find some direction to walk in.
By "coincidence" I obtained your Creativity on Demand DVD. Thank you from my heart is all I can say.
I started reading your blog (lurker I am) and saw your quilt at the MAQ.
I went back to Paducah this year, with a different head and a different eye. Even though it is quite a commute, I still live close enough to go there three times, not just once, but I wished I would have had to stay there during those days, so as to remain immersed.
I saw magnificent "things", and met magnificent people. To me, the main learning experience is: knowing a face, a story, a life, a "per-sona", to connect to the quilts makes them more accessible to me.
Being a bloody beginner, perfect work/style/technique scares me to death. Meeting the creator in some form or shape (in reality, in their blogs, class, book, etc.) lets me realize that this is not some extra-terrestrial creature, cleverly programmed by aliens to produce masterworks, but a human of flesh and blood, more or less like I am. And that takes the scare away and encourages to learn, explore, strive, and risk to fail.
Thank you, Gabrielle.