The most exciting thing in my life right now is that I am soon to be a published author! Who would have thought that someone as old as dirt could actually be starting a new phase, but that is the truth. AQS will be releasing my first book this coming year. If you go to their website, look at upcoming titles, and there I am! Wow. What a thrill.
As I get better at knowing how to use my new website, I will figure out how to post a link, but for now, please be patient.
I have been piecing and quilting since the resurgence of the craft in the early seventies and in 1997 I jumped in with both feet and started a custom quilting business. I had no idea what I was doing! My Gammill rep delivered my machine one afternoon. He and my husband (mr bill) set it up and the next morning we loaded the proverbial muslin sandwich. By early afternoon, he turned to me and said I was ready to go and left! Yikes!
I had hardly done any straight line quilting on my domestic machine, but within a few weeks I was taking in quilts. I can't believe how trusting people were.
The rest is history, as they say.
I started out making the very traditional quilts---a multiple of the same block set side by side, or if I was really daring, I would add sashing.
Over time I have become more and more experimental in my work. In fact, today, I have wrapped some metal washers with buttonhole stitching using hand dyed perle cotton. They will be going into my next art quilt.
I love starting out with a traditional idea and then stepping it up a notch. The picture on my home page is an in-progress shot of a quilt that will be included in my book. It is called Remembering: Belle's Star. It is my most recent "masterpiece" and was full of construction challenges.
Most of my work these days is making art quilts. I love the experimentation and using non-traditional materials such as plastics, metals, found objects and art supplies usually associated with painting rather than quilting.
Below is one of my many in-progress projects. It was born in a workshop I took a couple of years ago from Rosalie Dace. It is now farther along, but I don't have a picture. Just looking at this makes me want to get back to it. It is a fun piece, and my life hasn't given me the time I need to sit down and attend to this work for a while.
Haven't figured out how to insert a picture into the text yet, so that provides a good place to quit for this virgin blogger!
Thanks for coming. I hope to make it worth your time as I get more comfortable.
Ta ta for now .... pH