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The American Quilter’s Society holds quilt shows around the country, but the most popular has to be Quilt Week in Paducah, Kentucky.   (You may hear it referred to as the Paducah Quilt Show.)  It’s a destination that is on many quilter’s bucket list. But why is that and what should you expect when you attend?

Schroeder Expo Center

Why Paducah?  In 1984, Paducah residents Bill and Meredith Schroeder formed the American Quilter’s Society. It was that same year that Paducah hosted the first AQS Quilt Show & Contest.  Kentucky’s creative city has been the mecca of fiber artists ever since and it is home to The National Quilt Museum .  So, it’s only natural that the home of the world’s top quilting museum would also be the location of the spring AQS Quilt Week.

When you step inside of the Schroeder Expo Center, you will be blown away at the creativity of today’s modern quilters.  More than 400 AQS contest quilts compete for more than $120,000 in cash awards including the $20,000 Janome Best of Show.

Bear with me – this post has a lot of pictures from the Spring 2017 show to give you a glimpse of what you might experience at Quilt Week.

Janome Best of Show:  Ewe Are My Sunshine by Janet Stone of Kansas

Moonflower by Molly Y. Hamilton-McNally of California (front above, back below)

Entries to Quilt Week are open worldwide.  Quilts at the 2017 show included entries from South Korea, Spain, and Australia, plus several other countries.

Captivated by Nature by Olga Gonzalez-Angulo from Spain

I…Reflection of Life by Olga Gonzalez-Angulo of Spain

Lazy Afternoon by Hiroko Miyama and Masanobu Miyama of Japan

Mont St. Michel Memories by Linda S. Schmidt of California

The quilters put in thousands of hours of work making these one-of-a-kind masterpieces.

Ravendale Star by Linda Fleschner of Wisconsin

Le Chat de Mondrian by Connie Kincius Griner of North Carolina

Silk Road Sampler by Melissa Sobotka of Texas

Can you believe that is a quilt and not a picture of quilted pillows?  Melissa has been quilting for only 10 years and took 5 months to make Silk Road Sampler.  Her style is photo realistic and draws on her love of old master paintings and art history.

Ode to Inspiration by Melissa Sobotka

Linus by Elaine Wick Poplin of Alabama

Dream a Little Dream of Me by Pat Rollie of Tennessee

Kona Color of the Year 2016 Special Exhibit

Rafiki – The Great Mystic by Deb Berkebile of Ohio in The Lion King Cheerywood Challenge 2016

What You Need To Know

Photographs are permitted during Quilt Week.  Be sure to respect the boundaries around the quilts, do not touch them, and always cite who the artist is when sharing your pictures.  (More specifically:  Photographs taken at AQS QuiltWeek® are for your own personal use, and for sharing with your friends and family who could not attend. Please include the name(s) of the maker(s) with any quilt image you post online; take a photo of the quilt tag so you will have this information. Photos of quilts may not be posted to any website where the images can be used to produce T-shirts, mugs, and other products.)

Demonstrations, workshops, and lectures take place during the show.  Be sure to sign up early if you are interested.

Vendors will be on site with quilting supplies.

If you get hungry during the show, you can step outside of the Schroeder Expo Center and take your pick of local food vendors are set up in the makeshift food court in the parking lot.

More Information

• For more information about Quilt Week, visit www.quiltweek.com.
• For 9 Things To Do In Paducah, click here.  I’ve included a few delicious places to sink your teeth into, as well as a few places where you can get creative.
• Click here to read the article on Southern Kissed about The National Quilt Museum.
• For all things Paducah, visit the Paducah Convention and Visitors Bureau’s website at www.paducah.travel.