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Machine Quilters Exposition

Looking back at the 2009 MQX Show

Once again we ventured east for Machine Quilters Exposition (MQX) which has called Manchester, NH, home for the last five years. There’s no doubt that the current economic climate had Founders Janet-Lee Santeusanio and Mary Schilke guardedly optimistic. However, these gals know how to put on a quilt show and once things got rolling, the economy may have been at the back of their minds, but that’s where it remained.

There is a wide range of teachers and classes offered at this show. Being an all-inclusive (meaning that it is not exclusively a longarm/midarm/shortarm show) we see a broader range of classes offered to appeal to anyone that does sewing, embroidery, garments, machine quilting or the piecing of quilts.

We came in a day early since a new event on Tuesday night, the "Ice Cream Social," sounded like fun. Venturing down to the ballroom early we found a long line of people waiting. Once the doors were opened, we scoped out the room to the sounds of Janet-Lee and Mary rehearsing a song with a keyboard player at the front. We claimed seats and grabbed a dish of ice cream smothering it with the various toppings available. YUM!

After a brief introduction and an overview of the evening's activities, Janet-Lee and Mary told the gathering that they had altered the words to the Sound of Music song, "My Favorite Things" with words related to MQX. As they sang, the audience roared with laughter and they seemed to have all they could to not laugh themselves. At the end, they took their bows and brought out a huge box of rolled up T-shirts with the lyrics they just sang screen-printed on them. The shirts were tossed into the audience, rock-concert style, while the audience screamed and dove to catch them. We weren't lucky enough to have caught one but a couple nearby opened up theirs for us to see. Sponsor Vicki Anderson of Meander Publishing had sponsored the event which was also printed on the shirt. The evening concluded with many door prizes given away and "Quilter's Craps" being played at the round tables. What a fun night and kudos to these gals for adding an event that was worth coming in early for.

The Wednesday evening "Sneak Peek Preview" again saw long lines at vendors and a feast for the eyes with quilts that get better and better every year. In its second year as a juried show, the level of creativity with machine quilting is nothing short of true artistry. Award winners were not announced until the Thursday morning "Awards Breakfast." This event was added in 2008 with sponsor Gammill Quilting Machines treating the audience to a lovely continental breakfast. Best of Show winner Renae Haddadin was overjoyed to once again receive this prestigious award. Although there were a several familiar names on the winners list, there were lots of new names which is good for the machine quilting industry.

Thursday continued with the show opening up to the public and again, we were confronted with a long line of people. General attendance seemed to be higher than in previous years on Thursday confirming our thoughts that this show, despite the economy, is a highly anticipated event. The Thursday evening Fashion Show sponsored by Hobbs Bonded Fibers never fails to please. Garments run the spectrum from simple jackets or vests to entire ensembles. Featured garment artist, Summerset Banks modeled her broad range of outfits which garnered "oohs" and "ahhs" from the crowd. What a talent!

We decided to stay through Saturday since Mark Lipinski was to be the keynote speaker at the Friday night banquet. Dinner was the best yet….. a moist, succulent pork loin with all the fixings. Quilt and garment Viewer's Choice winners were announced and the stage was given over to Mark. His raucous, self-depreciating humor about his life and how he got into quilting set the audience into frenzied laughter. We have been to a lot of events with speakers that drone on and on but not here. This man could have spoken for three hours and no one would have moved. A cell phone rang in the middle of his talk and he ran into the audience to answer it to the roar of the audience. When everyone was spent from laughter, Janet-Lee and Mary managed to award the 2008 Machine Quilting Teacher of the Year to the much surprised Dawn Cavanaugh to conclude the evening.

When we think these gals can't possibly top previous years, they manage to do just that. We left Saturday morning, thankful that we'd stayed for the banquet but thoroughly exhausted. After arriving home, we contacted a few vendors we'd visited to find out about Saturday's attendance and each one said that the typically quieter show floor buzzed with activity. The vendors we spoke to said that sales were up from previous years although two of them said their sales were slightly down. Since these two vendors had big ticket items for sale, they were not entirely surprised.

After a lot of consideration, Janet-Lee and Mary will move MQX to the Rhode Island Convention Center in 2010. We are confident that this show will remain as the top machine quilting convention in its new home. The sky's the limit for these two creative women! We will certainly be there.

2010 show information is available on the MQX Web site www.MQXShow.com

September 2009