My Quilts

I enjoy the adventure of making a quilt without a set idea of the end result. I have little interest in making quilts according to patterns or from completed designs, whether drawn by hand or designed on the computer. While I usually have an idea that gets me going, I’m most happy in letting the piece evolve into what it wants to be, and I love “not knowing” when I start out what will be at the journey’s end. It is the process of selecting the fabrics, cutting into them, playing with the pieces, and making something out of the chaos and clutter associated with in-process work, which energizes and thrills me.

In the thirty years that I've been making textile art I’ve also had a career as a librarian, raised a child, loved a man with a full life of his own, renovated two houses, and enjoyed the hobbies of photography and gardening. Since a post-retirement move from the DC suburbs in Maryland to Boulder, Colorado in 2014, hiking and being outdoors has become a major factor in my life. It can therefore take many months for a quilt to unfold on the design wall, and periods of intense quilting activity are often followed by periods of incubation as other parts of my life take priority. My completed works often contain pieces of my personal story and hold symbols related to the pleasures and concerns of my life during the creation of the quilt.

Canyonlands series

Three small and one large pieces inspired by the ancient petroglyphs in Moab, Utah.  Shiva paintstik on freezer paper stencils made from my photographs of the images on the canyon walls by Zane Creek Boulevard. Machine pieced with machine and hand stitching; commercial and hand dyed fabrics.  Original designs completed in 2021.   

14 x 15 1/2"

14 x 13"

22 1/2 x 8 1/2"

33 x 38"

Longing for Travel in the Time of the Virus

Inspired by a photograph of Bellagio, Italy, which I took during a 2013 trip.  Original design made during the Coronavirus "lockdown" in 2020.  As it progressed, this piece became less about that scenic town and more of a celebration of the very idea of travel itself, something that we lost at the virus took over our lives.  Machine pieced and appliqued; hand-painted and commercial fabrics. 

34 x 24"

Detail

Detail

Detail