I’m a member of the “good life” generation - the baby boomers.  Like many children in the 1950’s, I had a mother who was a full-time homemaker, but she was also a talented seamstress and when her “chores” were done she would sew.  She would give me the fabric scraps and a threaded needle and I would commence creating knots and wads of tangled fabric.  I soon realized that modern technology was the way to go and I begged her to teach me to use the sewing machine.    Finally at age 7 she set me loose on her Singer featherweight and I’ve been a “sewing fool” ever since.

I started my first quilt in 1973.  It was a rather ambitious undertaking for a “wet-behind-the-ears” quilter.  It was a full-size (as in full-size mattress) quilt using the bear’s paw pattern in blue and off white.  I wanted to make sure it was extra warm so I put two layers of batting in it.  It was so thick I was lucky to get 6-7 stitches to the inch when hand quilting it.  I faithfully quilted most days for an hour or so.  TWO YEARS LATER it was finally finished and it turned out pretty nice.  I learned a lot from that quilt:  (1) never put two layers of batting in anything, especially a quilt; (2) any quilt over the size of a crib should be machine quilted if you want it done in a reasonable time; and (3) I can make a lot more quilts if I keep them small.  I’ve made a lot of quilts since then and my techniques have improved considerably.  I favor traditional quilts and adore antique quilts which I collect and, in some cases, restore.  Some of my quilts are made for family members but the majority are commissioned.  I have been selling my original creations at local bazaars for a number of years and have had requests for patterns, so I decided it was time to put them on the market.

In addition to making quilts, I cross stitch pictures of old houses.  I love the architectural detailing of older homes and I try to capture that in my work.  When traveling, I don’t buy souvenirs, I take pictures of wonderful old homes.  When I return home, the pictures are drawn up and cross stitched – and voila, I have souvenirs. 

I hope you enjoy my patterns as much as I have enjoyed creating them.  I will be posting new patterns every couple of weeks so make sure you stop back in for a visit.