QUILTIN' TIME: THOUSANDS OF STITCHERS GATHER IN PADUCAH FOR ANNUAL QUILT SHOW

PADUCAH, Ky. -- The weekend quilt crowd in Paducah can be spotted around town with quilted vests, appliqued T-shirts and handy tote bags.

The quilters find a pieced-together friendship in the centuries-old art of quilting.

These same visitors also have a keen eye for what makes a great quilt.

Paducah calls itself Quilt City USA, and certainly on this weekend the city lives up to its name. Quilts are everywhere, in store windows, in the convention center, at the mall and the museum, and even in the horse-drawn carriages.

The event is the 14th annual Quilt Show and Contest of the American Quilter's Society.

Carriage driver George Rexroad explained Thursday that quilters from Michigan annually joined him for a ride through Paducah. "They said they were tired of polyester blankets, so last year they brought us these quilts," he said.

Across the street at the city's Convention and Visitors Bureau, red-coated volunteers offered information and advice to quilt fans strolling through the city's downtown streets.

The show is expected to draw 35,000 to 40,000 visitors.

Quilts entered in one of the nation's largest competitive shows are on display at Paducah's Executive Inn. Thousands of people crowd the corridors, admiring handiwork and studying the details.

On Thursday a quartet of quilters inspected hand stitching on the front and then the back of a quilt that hadn't won a prize. The four make an annual pilgrimage from St. Louis to Paducah for the quilts.

"We love seeing the quilts, and we're amazed at what is chosen to win," said Ruth Warhoover.

While the four downplayed their own quilting skills, they obviously knew what they were looking at as the white-gloved hostess gently turned a corner of the quilt on display.

"My mom quilted," said Barbara Elledge, "but it was nothing like this."

White-gloved hostesses are needed to protect the quilts from thousands of admiring touches. Hostess Judy Saunders of Crocker, Mo., also gave visitors a tour of the quilts she protected. The binding is piped, and quarter-inch cross stitches give the quilt a unique appearance, she said.

The best quilt of the show, according to the three official judges, brings together traditional elements of quilting with a very modern theme. The quilt is a tribute to The Beatles.

It is the third quilt sisters Pat Holley and Sue Nickels of Michigan have done together. They started the project two years ago at the Paducah show when they bought richly colored fabrics, which are at the center of the quilt.

"We grew up listening to the Beatles," Holley said. When a new anthology came out, the sisters decided to combine their love of music with their quilting skills. They listened to the music, researched the lyrics and then planned the quilt.

Each block represents a Beatles' album. A yellow submarine is appliqued on a block. Another has money and a diamond ring. One border is filled with hands, traced from the sisters and their daughters. Another border features birds. On the back of the quilt, in tiny, careful handwriting are lyrics to every Beatles song.

"We worked about a year, but the guts of the work was in the last six months," Nickels said. They finished on Jan. 1. The deadline to enter Paducah's show was Jan. 15.

The sisters won $15,000, and the quilt goes to the National Quilting Museum, also in Paducah.

However, admirers of the Beatles quilt questioned the wisdom of accepting the purchase prize. "It's worth a lot more than $15,000, don't you think?" one admirer said.

"This is the first show it's been in," Nickels said. "We would like more people to see it. People want to share."

She said the National Quilt Museum in Paducah is the best place for the quilt. "If it has to be anywhere, I can't think of a better place than this museum," Nickels said.

The museum, which is about two blocks from the quilt exhibit, features many winners of past quilt shows.

It is the world's only temperature, humidity and light controlled quilt museum. The main gallery displays quilts from the museum's permanent collection. Two additional galleries display traveling quilt exhibits.

Unlike the convention setting of the quilt show, the museum has subtle lighting and a subdued atmosphere.

Mildred Potts, a volunteer at the museum, was on guard to protect the pieces from touches and from camera flashes. The extreme light from flash bulbs would damage the fabric, she explained.

"They are beautiful," Potts said, admiring an unusual quilt with a black background and iridescent threads.

Across the room, Jane Holihan of Walworth, N.Y., talked with fellow quilters. The soft-spoken artist has two pieces hanging in the museum. The quilts feature birds and flowers. All her quilts do, she said.

"The garden scene was completed in 1995 and took about one and a half years to do," she said. "I was looking for a different way to display the birds and flowers, and a trellis seemed a good way. I like the way this quilt has dimension."

Bonnie Browning's full-time job is coordinating Paducah's quilt show. "The city and county opens its arms to quilters," she said. "You can feel that the minute you drive into town."

AMERICAN QUILTER'S SOCIETY SHOW

The 14th annual American Quilter's Society show features 410 quilts from 42 states and eight foreign countries. The quilts are displayed in Paducah's Executive Inn. Admission is $5. Hours today are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The National Quilt Museum has special displays in honor of the quilt show. It is located at 215 Jefferson Street, two blocks from the Executive Inn. Admission is $5. Today it is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday the museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Between 35,000 and 40,000 quilting enthusiasts from across the country and around the world are expected in Paducah this weekend. Bonnie Browning, chairman of the quilt show, recommends area visitors consider a Sunday trip to Paducah. Crowds are largest on Friday and Saturday.

Paducah is about 75 miles from Cape Girardeau. Take Highway 3 south in Illinois through Cairo to Wickliffe, Ky. Highway 60 east leads to Paducah and the Executive Inn.

The best way to get around downtown is to walk. Horse-drawn carriages, Paducah's trolley, the local transit system buses and taxicabs are available. You can drive. Parking is tough.

In addition to the quilt show, Paducah is filled with special events this weekend, including additional quilting displays throughout the city, live musical entertainment and arts and crafts shows.