The Pattern that Changed My Life

Blogger and Sewing Designer Abby Glassenberg is hosting a series of interviews around this question, and it was the theme of the day for the #sewphotohop on Instagram today (organized by @houseofpinheiro).

Day 6 – The Pattern that changed my life

I considered highlighting my first quilt, but then I decided that this quilt set the course for my creative business.  

The pattern in Nancy Chong’s Crumb Quilt. I took her class at Quilt Camp in the Pines back in 2005. (She is better known for Hawaiian applique…visit her website here.) She even complimented me on my fabric and color selection!

I had the good fortune to teach her methods when I got home from camp. But the life-changing aspect of this quilt was the quilting.  I had an idea for the quilting design – circular Chinese symbols in the focus squares and something watery to fill the rest of the quilt. (Hopefully you can click on this picture to see the gold thread on the back of the quilt.)

 This was the last quilt I quilted on my domestic machine, and it really cemented my desire for a longarm!  I remember feeling like I could not see where I was going with my stitching, and I was so sore from pushing the quilt around.  Thanks to a supportive husband, I got my wish for a longarm back in 2006.  What an amazing journey!