I've been quilting since 1972. To my surprise, my very first quilt won First Place in a student art contest at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. I believe I used the $20 prize money to buy a dress for a dance! The next quilt was made from old jeans. I'm pretty sure it is the heaviest quilt in the world. Believe it or not, the quilt still lives in the back of my husband's car and we use it every time we go to the beach.
In the 1980's I finally met other quilters my age. Thanks to the patience and generosity of my friend
Karen Bates, a group of young moms met once or twice a week at Karen's house in Los Angeles to quilt together. She introduced me to rotary cutters, gave me permission to use fabulous printed fabrics instead of sticking with solids and mini prints, and in general, opened my eyes to the wonderful world of contemporary quilt making.
Today my quilts might be more accurately described as "quilted collage." I like to include bits of paper, recycled and re-purposed materials like avocado bags or painted used dyer sheets, vintage trims, etc. I use all kinds of techniques to get just the look I'm after--paint, image transfer, embossing, foiling--the list keeps growing because there is so much great stuff out there.
Whatever materials I end up using, they all have some stitching in them somewhere. For me, there are few things more fun in life than to spend an afternoon doodling on paper or fabric with my sewing machine. Once I'm happy with that part, I mount them to a stretched canvas and may add more details. (By the way, if you want learn more about free-motion stitching with your sewing machine, I've been teaching quilters how to do that for over 20 years. Come take a class with me at
Monica's Quilt and Bead Creations in Palm Desert, California.)
They are easy to hang because I mount them onto a stretched canvas.
Check back often--I'm always working on something new.