Bulloch Hall 32nd Quilt Show - Ground Floor

Last Tuesday, March 11, 2014, started as a very sunny day.  We were pleased as we had scheduled to go to Roswell, Georgia, to look at the 32nd annual quilt show in Bulloch Hall.  We had been there last year and thoroughly enjoyed our visit.  I wrote three posts on the show, starting with A Quilt Show at Bulloch Hall - Ground Floor on March 18, 2013, then posts here and here.  We bought our tickets in the gift shop and walked to Bulloch Hall which looked gorgeous in the sun with daffodils in bloom around the front lawn.

In addition to the quilt shows we had visited Bulloch Hall before, during the Christmas season in December 2010 and again in 2012.  I wrote posts about each visit.  As I had mentioned then Bulloch Hall, which belongs to the city of Roswell now, was the childhood home of Mittie Bulloch who married Theodore Roosevelt in the dining room of the house in 1853.  Her son Teddy Roosevelt became the 26th president of the United States.  Her other son, Elliott, was the father of Eleanor Roosevelt, the wife of Franklin D. Roosevelt.  The home was built in 1839 on 10 acres of land by Major James Stephens Bulloch, an early settler in Roswell.  Bulloch Hall is the home of the annual Great American Cover-up Quilt Show.  We visited there for more than two hours and when we left it was 78 degrees F outside (25 C.)  It was difficult not to take too many pictures of the antebellum mansion or the quilts.  (Click on collages twice to enlarge.)

This year the exhibit is taking place March 8 through 16, 2014, with more than 200 quilts mostly made by local artists.  Quilts old and new, contemporary and antique are displayed throughout this historic house.  The theme for the 2014 show is "Reflections."  Marie Wood, co-chair of the event said "It could be reflections of the past, reflections of an image in a mirror or water, or simply reflecting angles in a pattern, whatever the personal interpretation."  As we entered the home we were greeted by two large quilts hanging in the front hall.  Quilt no. 1 is called "Kimono" by Ann Quandee.  Ann was there and told us that the kimono pieces had been pieced and appliqued by a friend and given to her for a quilt.  Quilt no. 2 is called "Garden Song" by Carol York.

We wandered around in the front hall and back hall.

At the end of the hall a tall quilt included many flowers.  Its name was "Shine on Mrs. Willie B. Brown" by Elisa Wood.  The brochure stated "The embroidered blocks were made by Mrs. Willie B. Reed Brown of Memphis, Tennessee.  She started hand embroidering the 50 state flowers in the 1950s.  In 2013 she turned 101 years old and her blocks live on.  Peace!"

At the entrance of the exhibit we were given a small slip of paper to write the number of our favorite quilt - an impossible task!  Here is one below I really liked before I even knew what it was called.  It is called "Road Trip" by Wendy Blanton.  She says "Road trip is made of hand-sewn 3" blocks with 70 pieces in each block.  Each block was pieced as my husband and I traveled the roads around our great country."

With such a splendid display of quilts in a great variety of sizes and designs, choosing a favorite will be a very hard task indeed.

I followed my husband into the Warming Room.

The quilt below, no. 21 is "Everything Old is New Again" by Ben Hollingsworth.  He said "The quilt is made using all wool clothing purchased by my wife at thrift stores ... each item in the piece represents a way of life in a simple place and time."  The bright piece in the center is "Colores de Mexico" by Ellen Apte who says "The fabric photos are from a trip I took to Ajijic, Mexico.  It is embellished with Guatemalan worry dolls."

Some quilts had received ribbons.  Quilt no. 49 by Patsy Eckman is entitled "Reflection of Sunset on the Zambezi."  "This small quilt brings back memories of an evening boat trip on the Zambezi River in Zambia, Africa."   No. 50 by Nancy French is called "Gerry's Passion."  "This quilt commemorates our friend and guild member Gerry Largay, who was lost on the Appalachian Trail in July 2013."  It represents a sunset seen while backpacking to the top of Mt. LeConte in the Great Smoky Mountains in 2012."  (Gerry has not been found yet.)

Going back in the hall toward the dining room I passed more lovely quilts, such as the one at the top of my post, no. 29 "Bunch of Beauty" by Altan Altikulac, who was there and told me that the paisley yellow fabric in the center of her flower was decades old.  No. 85 "Hearts and Hands" by Penny Menefee took her ten years to complete.

A table topper on the dining room table was outstanding.  No. 17 by Diane Berdis is called "East is East."  If I ever quilted, this is what I would like to do - a small quilted table topper.

I feel that the period furniture in the historic home adds elegance and atmosphere to the handmade quilts.  The dazzling colors of the quilts give the old home an emotional aura full of warmth.  While in the dining room I took a picture toward the front parlor but then remembered that photos were not allowed inside the parlor and stopped.  I did visit the parlor and was in awe of the artistic quilts shown there.  Mrs. Karen Reese Tunnell was the Special Exhibit Artist featured this year and I am sorry I cannot show her work.  She specialized in hydro-printing (marbling) fabrics.  She has taught and practiced quilting and surface design for 40 years and teaches her art in two schools, one in Brasstown, NC and the other in Gatlinburg, TN.

In the Informal Hall I liked the quilt "Life is a Beach" by Karen Gornall.  It would look perfect in a teenager's bedroom.

In the Master Bedroom, the star quilt over the chimney was striking - no. 80 by Linda Wirtz called "25 Charmed Stars Salute."

There were other intricate quilts in this room, such as no. 77 "Your Petticoat is Showing" by Vanessa Howell Brown.  She used Civil War fabrics and added lace to the dress forms creating the petticoat that women wore before the turn of the century.  The colors of quilt no. 79 "A Quilt for Katherine" by Margaret Betz are very harmonious.

Four large quilts needed closer attention.

No. 78 "Erin's Wedding Quilt" by Beth Garrison Culp was covering the bed.  She says "I have worked on this quilt off and on for approximately 20 years."

Walking into the Library my eyes were drawn to both the Victorian settee and marble table.  No. 89 "Log cabin - Barn raising setting" by Holly Anderson is a foundation pieced 1/2 logs of silk.  This quilt was made circa 1900 by an unknown quilter.  Table topper No. 90 "Fall in the Great Smoky Mountains" by Pam Martin was made upon returning from the mountains.

Two guild members were present in the Library, one member was quilting and the other selling raffle tickets for a large blue and white quilt.

We returned to the main hall to continue our visit.  As we passed a couple of doors I took some quick photos with my cell phone of two wall hangings.  Quilt no. 7 "Tea Ceremony Geisha" is by Lisa Kaupp and is one of the few quilts for sale.

The other quilt, no. 20 "Dragonfly" is by Karne Gornall.  I thought that its striking design and colors would lend itself to my "waterlogue" watercolor treatment, which I did when I returned home.

More quilts to come in my next post ...