About Me
I am a mother, a grandmother, an animal lover and a gardener. I was married for 42+ years. I have two daughters and a son and currently, three grandsons & two granddaughters. I was raised in a small town in Westchester County (Scarsdale, NY), spent most of my early adult life in rural Hope, NJ and now am fortunate enough to have been able to retire early in Pawleys Island, SC-an exquisite Southern coastal location! Recently, I have relocated to Surfside Beach, SC. What more could one ask for?
I began quilting in the late '70s. I taught myself since there were not many places to take classes then. Since my children were infants and my husband worked the night shift, I had plenty of time on my hands at night when the kids slept. I taught myself hand piecing and hand quilting first because I was afraid to sew in the basement lest I couldn't hear the babies if they woke up. I developed a real affinity and love for needleturn applique which I could do in front of the television. Thus, began a love affair with quilting that continues to this day, except that now I've expanded into a big studio and do most everything, other than the needleturn applique, by machine.
In the early 80's I made my first "memory" quilt, of sorts, for my parents. It was not made from their clothing as the one's I do today are, but rather it memorialized the seasons of their lives. It remains on their bed to this day. At the insistence of others, I entered it into a Woman's Day quilt contest and was fortunate enough to be awarded one of the top prizes.
Currently, I make quilts for my family and friends, design and distribute patterns, assist at a local Prayer Quilt Ministry, work part-time and teach classes at our local quilt shop (Quilters Cottage in Garden City, SC). I create original memory quilts for those who commission them.
My two oldest grandsons love to help me quilt-the youngest is too little yet. They often help me arrange the fabrics and color patterns. They have their own sewing machine and are learning to sew.When my eldest grandson was 5 he actually drafted the design for a memory quilt commissioned for a young boy about his same age. This same grandson also said to me not long afterwards: "Grandma! I was looking at that quilt that you made from Pop's old shirts so that we could remember him when he was dead. I was thinking that you should maybe make a quilt from some of your clothes before you die, in case we want to remember you, too!" This year he suggested that I refashion the dozens of holiday pillowcases I have made for them into a holiday quilt for each of them. Pretty creative, huh!
Now both my grandsons bring me their outgrown shirts and get quite involved with designing their own quilts to preserve the "memories" they have already created! We have included appliqued renditions of artwork from their school as well as traditional block patterns and some original designwork elements as well. The youngest has done a self-portrait which I made into yardage to use in his quilt. The eldest has just been introuduced to the sewing machine and is doing quite well. He's decided to make a rail fence quilt from my scraps and completed six blocks at his first lesson.
My daughters are also developing an interest in learning to quilt and I expect that my granddaughters will get involved when they are older. They're a bit too young to help right now. My sister's family also has a few excellent quilters in it, We all have different tastes and styles, but quilting is still a family affair.
"Jack".
Only 2 weeks old and already waving !!!
Bella
The next generation of quilt artists...
