QUILTER | TEACHER | AUTHOR | FOUNDER
When Liz Porter and I joined forces in the late 1970s to team-teach beginning quilting classes in Winterset, Iowa, we didn’t have fame in mind. We had no idea we were part of a revival of interest in quiltmaking that … Read More
Because I pay attention to what’s displayed prominently on the fiction tables at book stores these days, I instantly recognized the turquoise jacket of Tayari’s Jones’ An American Marriage when I was helping sort books for the Winterset Public Library’s … Read More
Jennifer Egan’s The Keep was recommended by one of my teachers in a workshop at this year’s University of Iowa Summer Writing Festival. The class was on point of view, and my teacher used excerpts from The Keep and another … Read More
In Winterset, each Friday morning from 8:15 to 9 a.m., a member of the Madison County Chamber of Commerce hosts coffee for fellow members. Thirty or forty people generally show up to enjoy a cup of joe and socialize on … Read More
In the quilt world, common acronyms are FQ (Fat Quarter), UFO (Unfinished Object), QM (Quilt Market), and QOV (Quilt of Valor). My new career in fiction introduced me to a whole new set of shortcuts. WIP is one’s Work-in-Progress—and (BTW) … Read More
As those who know me know, I spent a decades-long career in the world of the American quilt—designing, writing, teaching, publishing, traveling the U.S. (and beyond) to connect with quilters everywhere and help them hone their skills. Writing—in the quilting … Read More
During my decades-long career, I designed many quilts for publication in books and magazines, always with instructions included so others could make their own. At conferences and quilt shows, when I’d see a quilt on display made from one of … Read More
Whether you’re a quilter, a quilt lover, or someone who simply loves a road trip on a beautiful spring day, head for Winterset, Iowa, Saturday, April 27, for the second-ever Airing of the Quilts, a fabulous, one-day production of the … Read More
Living next door to the post office isn’t so great at 5 a.m. when the mail truck with its back-up beeper delivers Winterset’s mail, but other than that, my home’s location less than five minutes’ walk from the town square … Read More
Not long ago, I wrote about belonging to a book club for the first time ever. I love my book club in general, for many reasons, but specifically at this moment because of the book Luann chose for March. I … Read More