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Serendipity and the Art of the Quilt

Serendipity and the Art of the Quilt

Creating with Brenda Gael Smith

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Shipping Quilts & Textile Works

28 November 2012 Filed Under: Colourplay Down Under, Curator Knowledge, Twelve by Twelve

Another challenge of travelling exhibitions is the travelling part. Entrusting quilts and textile works to postal and courier systems always seems an act of faith but, fortunately, I have never had a piece go permanently astray.

Nearly three years ago, I packed up my Twelve by Twelve Theme Series collection in an Aboriginal print travelling case for the ultimate walkabout:

  • Australia to Diane in California – personal delivery 🙂
  • Diane to Lark Books, Asheville, USA for photography for our book Twelve by Twelve: The International Art Quilt Challenge
  • USA->Australia to start its international exhibition tour
  • April 2010 Australasian Quilt Convention, Melbourne, Australia
  • May 2010 Gosford Regional Gallery, NSW Australia
  • June 2010 Textile Art Festival, Brisbane, Queensland
  • September 2010 Craft & Quilt Fair, Hamilton, New Zealand
  • September 2010 Craft & Quilt Fair, Christchurch, New Zealand
  • April 2011 Midsomer Quilting, Chilcompton, UK
  • August 2011 Festival of Quilts, Birmingham, UK
  • November 2011 International Quilt Festival, Houston, USA
  • April 2012 International Quilt Festival, Cincinnati, USA
  • July 2012 International Quilt Festival, Long Beach, USA
  • September 2012 North West Quilting Expo, Portland, Oregon, USA

And today my Theme Series arrived home:
Theme Series back from Walkabout
They weren’t alone. My quilts travelled in a big box with the Twelve by Twelve Colourplay Series:
Colourplay Boxed Up
You might think that a box this big would be obvious in a tiny post office agency but, no, it had a two day sojourn at Copacabana Post Office before it was discovered today. The box was battered and had a hole but all was safe and sound inside:
Colourplay Revealed
Now they are all packed up again, ready to continue their exhibition tour downunder in 2013:

  • Craft & Quilt Fair, Palmerston North, New Zealand 14-17 February 2013;
  • Australasian Quilt Convention, Melbourne, Australia, 18-21 April 2013; and
  • Pinnacles Gallery, Townsville, Australia, 29 April – 31 May 2013.

(Sorry Diane, the pink suitcase is already taken.)
Colourplay Suitcase
My international shipping tips include:

  • shop around – I have been well served by express international mail services offered by the Post Office;
  • use a service that provides tracking
  • pack watertight and securely with address details inside and out;
  • DON’T INSURE unless you are willing to pay customs based on the insurance value;
  • complete the customs declaration “wall hangings for exhibition & return.NOT FOR SALE. Nil commercial value“;
  • allow a time buffer for shipping and customs delays;
  • have a vigilant sender and recipient with clear lines of communication; and
  • pray.

Do you have a shipping story?

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Brenda Gael Smith
brenda@serendipitypatchwork.com.au

PO Box 131, Avoca Beach
NSW 2251 Australia

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Thanks to @centralgoldfieldsartgallery in Maryboro Thanks to @centralgoldfieldsartgallery in Maryborough, Victoria for the opportunity to share my artwork in Golden Textures 2025. 

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