qu24show-archive

The Quilter’s Unlimited 2024 show: “Kaleidoscope of Color”

This page holds information and links to files that might be useful if Quilters Unlimited needs to put on a show again without a “host venue,” such as LeMoyne Arts or the Museum of Florida History.

VENUE: North Florida Fairgrounds, building 2

  • Large, accessible space, familiar to many Tallahassee residents
  • Price per square foot ($1200 per day for 12,000 sq.ft.) allowed us to have a bigger three-day show for approximately the same rent as a smaller two-day show at other venues.
  • The Fairgrounds did not charge us for the Friday setup day or the Tuesday breakdown day — essential for a large show to allow enough time to set up pipe and hang quilts, etc. the day before so the show could have three full days open to the public.

The planned LAYOUT of the show.

DATES: Sat, Sun, Mon of Labor Day Weekend

This followed from the venue choice. The fact that there would be a spa show the the building next door to ours, that was a returning (and therefore presumably successful) event was a big factor. Our hope was that visitors to the spa show might also be tempted to visit our show.

PIPE AND DRAPE VENDOR, PSG

Production Support Group (PSG) was chosen because it offered pipe sturdy enough to hang two king-sized quilts from one cross bar. It was also recommended by a show committee member who had dealt with PSG for a show for the Friendship Star guild. Another local company (In Tents Events) has pipe that was not sturdy enough.

PIPE MOSTLY EXPOSED DECISION

Pipe for the show had a quote of nearly $3000, which included delivery, setup, and teardown and a small amount of drape (just 20 panels 4’wide by 8’long). The decision to do most of the display without drape was largely to keep costs from being higher. But it did give the show a different look. The use of ribbons to hang quilts below other quilts offered a chance to add more color. The spaces between quilts allowed more sight lines and light penetration, which I hope had the effect of keeping the bays of quilts from feeling less claustrophobic than they would have if they had been fully draped, especially when some of the bays were 10 feet tall.

VENDORS

There were 19 spaces 10’x10′ for vendors. We priced them at $75 if only one side was open to the public, $100 if on a corner with two sides open, and $125 for a double space. As a new show, we hoped that vendors would take a chance on it attracting enough customers. If the show were repeated, these could probably be raised a little.