Around the World Blog Hop

Last Monday my wonderful friend Carolyn from Sweet Boater Chick asked me if I wanted to be part the Around The World Blog Hop. I met Carolyn through the blogosphere and she has been such a wonderful friend. She is even kind enough to test patterns for me, so she gets to see all of my patterns at their worst!

This blog hop is meant to introduce you to some other wonderful quilty bloggers you may not have had the pleasure of meeting yet. I will answer a few fun questions and then next Monday, you can check out the wonderful ladies that I am linking to and learn a little bit more about them!

About Me:

I have been quilting for 13 years. I made my first quilt for my niece who turns 13 in September and after that I was HOOKED!
I live in Olympia, WA with my 4 year old daughter (Anne) and my wonderful husband.  We have lived here for almost 7 years since my husband got stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.  We love it so much that we bought a house and we pray the army lets us stay here!

I love quilting, sewing, cross stitch and I am an avid reader.  Anne and I try our best to stay active outdoors as well.

I am president of the South Sound Modern Quilt Guild based out of the Olympia/Tumwater region of Washington.

1. What am I working on?

I think a better question might be what aren’t you working on…I currently have about 10 WIPs that I’m willing to own up to and countless more that I don’t even want to think about because it will depress me! LOL

Instead of showing you a picture of my current project because I literally have like 6 on my design wall, I will give you an honest craft room picture. What you aren’t seeing is the disaster that is my sewing table and drawer set.

2. How does my work differ from others in my genre?

This is a tough one. I’m not sure I consider myself all that different. I love traditional patterns and updating them with modern fabrics. I love simple lines. I have a love affair with flying geese, half square triangles and oddly enough with batik fabrics (I think that is the Polynesian blood in me).I love rainbow color schemes and I am trying to push myself into combinations that are outside my normal box. That desire to push myself is what lead to the colors for my Flowering Lone Star Quilt:

I would never normally pick these colors, but I do love that shade of green.
I am almost entirely self-taught. Everything I have learned has been from my mom who helped me with my first 4 quilts and from trial and error. I’ve only taken one class and it was this past February with Katie from Sew Katie Did on Color Value.
I think something that sets me apart is the fact that I was a History Major in College and a Studio Art Minor.  Most of my quilts look to the past for inspiration while trying to move into the future. Not necessarily a true “modern quilter” but definitely leaning in that direction. I still have much to learn!

3. How do I write/create what I do?

I usually start by hand drawing my designs in a graph paper sketch book, once I get to something I like I switch to EQ7 and go from there. Usually what I end up with is completely different than what I started with.

Sometimes I start with a pile of fabric and an idea and just start sewing. That is how I designed my Dizzying Diamonds quilt. I wanted to see how my HSTs I could make from a Layer Cake and then I needed to figure out something cool to do with them.

I literally made over 150 HSTs and laid them out on my floor in different designs until I settled on one that I loved.
My creative process can sometimes be very…creative.  My husband would say my creative process is messy!

4. Why do I create?

This questions was originally a bit different, but I really like this one.  I create for two reasons.

First, because I want my baby girl to see that anyone can be creative. Growing up I couldn’t draw (like at all) and I couldn’t paint. I always felt like I had no artistic talent. In college I discovered photography and it took me to another world. I learned that I could create a world within a world simply by taking pictures. My preferred type was black and white, I also loved oil painting on top of my prints. I want Anne to know that she can be creative. Even if she can’t draw anything more than a stick figure, I want her to own her creativity and not allow anyone else to define what it means to be creative.

Second, I create because it makes me genuinely happy. I love seeing a project come together from start to finish.  The finish isn’t even what makes me the most happy it is when I see someone using something I have made. I think that is also why I love to cook and bake. It isn’t always the process that matters, but the enjoyment of the final product.  I create because bringing joy to others brings joy to me too.

My Rainbow Starburst Quilt just makes me happy to look at and I love that Anne claimed it when it was only laid out on the design wall.

I am sending you off to meet 3 of my wonderful blogging friends who are truly inspirational:

Kris from Sew Sunshine is a wonderfully talented quilter from Nebraska, USA.  I love visiting her blog because she always has something different to show and such an amazing range of talent! She recently tested the Flowering Lone Star pattern for me and I just love her take one it!

CeLynn from CeLynn’s Sunflower Patch has been a wonderful friend of mine for the last 3 years.  We first met in an online quilting bee and have been friends ever since. She is an incredibly talented quilter and bag maker!

Jessica from Quilty Habit is another incredibly talented quilter. She has an awesome eye for color combinations and I always love seeing what she is working on.

Thanks for coming stopping by! I hope you will take a few minutes to look around!!!