Escape. Create. Celebrate...

It's time for the second Quilt Expo at the Exhibition Hall in the Alliant Energy Center in Madison. This year's event, which is again presented by WPT and Sewing With Nancy, runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Tickets are available from advance ticket vendors and are $8 at the door. There are more than 140 vendor booths, a judged and juried quilt contest with 250 quilts and a series of special lectures, Sit & Sew workshops, quilting celebrity events and special exhibits to visit. For more details about the event, visit the exclusive Quilt Expo Web site or take a look at Nancy Zieman's insightful Quilt Expo blog.

To provide readers with a view of the work that goes into creating an event like Quilt Expo, Be more Tuned In went behind the scenes to the Alliant Energy Center for Wednesday's event set-up. WPT Events Manager DeAnne Massey said work was ahead of schedule on the event which has grown considerably since last year's successful inaugural Quilt Expo.Vendors from as far as Alaska in the west and Maryland in the east were setting up their booths. And, while the skies were gray and gloomy outside, the vibrant colors and textures of quilts everywhere lit up and warmed the Exhibition Hall. (Exclusive photos from the making of Quilt Expo after the jump...)

(Click on photos for a larger view.)





Vendors from across the country arrived at the Alliant Energy Center's loading docks to begin their day.








Cars, vans, trucks and trailers were all filled to the top with quilts, fabric and other notions.
















WPT staffers welcomed vendors at the check-in center and directed them to their booths.









Stacks of ironing boards waited to be set-up for their part in a Sit & Sew workshop.








Crew members set up the WPT booth with vibrantly colored cut-outs and exciting visuals.






Photos of last year's booth helped the crew in setting up this year's version in the proper place.








A couple of intricately designed quilts adorned a vendor's booth.









Nancy's Notions' staff members worked to set up their booth.








A patchwork of rubber totes created a quilt of its own as the contents were unloaded into the vendor mall.










The main foyer was empty Wednesday, but will be bustling during the Expo's three-day run.






A special new series of commemorative Gee's Bend quilt stamps will be unveiled by the U.S. Postal Service Saturday.








Hard-working volunteers took a break in the volunteer lounge.










Devoted volunteers hang one of the 250 quilts in the judged and juried quilt competition.