About

My quilting journey began in the spring of 2018.  I was doing a big clean out of old stuff and came across a box of bandanas that I just couldn't get rid of.  I told myself that if I was going to keep them, then I needed to do something with them.  "I will make a quilt."  I had no idea what that would entail.  I didn't even have a sewing machine.  A few months after being gifted a sewing machine, I ordered a Quilting basics book.  From the first page, something sparked in my brain.  My studies began.  I watched every video and read every book I could find.  Every quilt block and design that came my way, I wanted to make. 

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I have always been an artist and a creative person.  My background and education led me to receiving a BA in Studio Art with a Sculpture Concentration over twenty years ago.  I think I ended up on that path because from as early as I can remember, I just really loved making things.  Drawing out ideas, and figuring out solutions to making things work with any materials I could find.  A useful skill I employ in everyday life as well.  After Art School, and not having access to an appropriate studio for sculpture, I delved into painting and figurative work, and discovered my love for working with color more than anything.  However, none of those individual mediums inspired me to create something every day...until I discovered quilting. 

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Quilting checks all the creative outlet boxes for me.  I love every step of the process:  Being a part of the long and rich history of quilters.  Learning each new skill.  Planning, drawing out, and calculating each design.  Gathering, searching and browsing  the infinite amount of color and pattern choices for the "just right" fabrics.  Cutting the fabric. Piecing the fabric together in creative ways to make different shapes and effects.  I don't even mind all the ironing involved.  Then the magic happens when it is time to quilt.  I use the Free-Motion quilting method on my machine where I can move the quilt under the needle to "draw" with the thread.  Those threads serve the most functional step of the process- it holds two layers of fabric and a layer of batting together, but I feel it is the most decorative and creative.  And that perhaps is the main reason I love quilting.  The finished product is a work of art that is completely functional and usable. 

 

So my quilting journey continues.  Every day I am working on some project or learning some new skill.  The way I have practiced in these early years is to make "Birthday Quilts" for my friends and family.  And that has been a very satisfying project as well.  Gifting a hand made quilt to someone, using what I know about them to create something very personal and customized is where Wendy's Quilt Works comes from.  

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