Thursday, April 9, 2026

Guild Member Highlight

What a surprise it was to recently get an email from our guild co-presidents: "We've had interest from some guild members in having you as our spotlighted member." Well, how about that?! After responding that I'd be happy to, I was asked to fill out the slide below, and then at our April meeting last night, to tell briefly about myself and three quilts that I'd like to share.



The three quilts I chose to take with me were all what I considered representative of my style (do I have only one? I'm not sure I do.) - all improv, all scrappy, all with pieced quilt backs.

Let It Be - 2020






Sundry - 2025

After briefly sharing about the quilts, there was opportunity to ask questions, and I found that fun. I remember one about my quilting style (mostly straight/ish lines in some form) and another asking what kind of quilting machine I use (my current Janome domestic or my JUKI).  Anyway, it was very fun for me to share with my guild, and am so grateful for their interest in me and my work.


Earlier in the week, I realized I'd need a good-sized tote to take the quilts in, and I knew that the Workshop Tote by Jeni Baker @jenib320 would be perfect. I'd made the patchwork version before, but time was short, so I'd need to do the plain version this time. That would mean 3/4 yard cuts for both exterior and lining, and wouldn't you know, for the exterior, I found a perfect 80% cotton/20% linen canvas blend from VESSEL by Alexia Marcelle Abegg @alexiamarcelleabegg in my stash.


For the lining, some Essex Homespun in Natural coordinated nicely. And though the pattern calls for 1" webbing, I had 1 1/2" cotton webbing in Chocolate that would work nicely, and have been very happy with the result. (Random: I'd gotten both the canvas and webbing in a Studio Mystery Box from Anna Graham @noodlehead531 last year. Love that they were both so perfect for this quick make.)

Anyway, the tote sewed up in little more than an hour, finishing at 16” tall x 16” wide x 8” deep, which held three good-sized quilts quite nicely. Pretty perfect.

5 comments:

  1. what an honor that is to be featured in your guild. and how lucky they are to have you as a member. love the quilts you chose and your new tote bag is awesome

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  2. Debbie,
    How very complimentary to be a guest speaker for your guild! The quilts you selected were a great choice from the vast amount of work you do and are always willing to share with “reading strangers” on this site. You have been an inspiration for trying new things and to visit other artists on the internet. This is a grateful message to you - for the time you make and the talents you share, Thank you.
    s

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    1. Thanks so much!! It was a compliment, I agree. I chose quilts I thought were fun and interesting, and they seemed to enjoy them. Thanks for your kind words about my sharing - I really appreciate them AND that you follow along.

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  3. Well, congrats! I would have enjoyed hearing your presentation, and those three quilts are such great choices! I need to keep that tote in mind, pretty cool that you had all the fabrics right in your stash!

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  4. What a marvelous idea... spotlighting guild members. I am delighted they selected you, though I bet it was difficult for you to choose only three quilts to share. You've made so many wonderful improv quilts. Would you have liked sharing more? Sounds like your members asked good questions too. No surprise that members like knowing what brand of sewing machine is used... or one's favorite batting... or where your ideas come from. Like me, don't you start most of your quilts because of a challenge, or learning something new in a workshop? Nonetheless, I'm so happy your guild picked you. I would have enjoyed hearing what you had to say.

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