THE 2015 FEATURED QUILTER:
OLIA JESSON from the TANGLED THREADS QUILT GUILD in Neepawa, MB
I started quilting in the fall of 2004, just one year before my planned retirement from being an eductor. I knew that I needed a hobby for retirement and quilting had always intrigued me.
I consider myself a novice quilter and a 'work in progress'. When I started I did not have any quilting tools or knowledge of quilting. My quilting friend told me to get an 18" ruler, a rotary cutter and a cutting mat. She gave me a 15 minute lesson on cutting fabric and showed me how to read a quilting pattern. I was on my way. That fall I joined The Neepawa Tangled Threads Quilt Guild. Support and workshops from the guild have been one of my greatest 'teaching tools'. I used the Internet to research patterns and quilting techniques. I subscribed to many quilting magazines and was a frequent buyer of quilting magazines at the local pharmacy. I was hooked to what my husband refers to as a 'cult'.
As a high school student I wondered why I needed geometry. Now I know. Math and especially those geometry lessons are now coming into use.
I have gone through many phases in my quilting years. As I was preparing for this showing I went back into my quilt collection. There were many quilts I had completely forgotten about. The one thing I did notice was that there was a definite progression of skill level and workmanship. I went through many stages...the red and white stage, the curved and circle stage, the Christmas stage, the jacket stage, and I seem to use a lot of 'white'. In my opinion, you need to be 'a little' obsessive compulsive to be a quilter. Perhaps that is why you continue...you never quit. I try to complete something when I start it...but there are times when things and plans don't work. I do have a UFO pile that I plan to complete; they are usually those projects where I've run out of fabric or they are out of my skill level so I need time!
Quilting is a great hobby...it keeps the mind working and learning and you always get satisfaction from the things you make, even if it is a 'work in progress'.
OLIA JESSON from the TANGLED THREADS QUILT GUILD in Neepawa, MB
I started quilting in the fall of 2004, just one year before my planned retirement from being an eductor. I knew that I needed a hobby for retirement and quilting had always intrigued me.
I consider myself a novice quilter and a 'work in progress'. When I started I did not have any quilting tools or knowledge of quilting. My quilting friend told me to get an 18" ruler, a rotary cutter and a cutting mat. She gave me a 15 minute lesson on cutting fabric and showed me how to read a quilting pattern. I was on my way. That fall I joined The Neepawa Tangled Threads Quilt Guild. Support and workshops from the guild have been one of my greatest 'teaching tools'. I used the Internet to research patterns and quilting techniques. I subscribed to many quilting magazines and was a frequent buyer of quilting magazines at the local pharmacy. I was hooked to what my husband refers to as a 'cult'.
As a high school student I wondered why I needed geometry. Now I know. Math and especially those geometry lessons are now coming into use.
I have gone through many phases in my quilting years. As I was preparing for this showing I went back into my quilt collection. There were many quilts I had completely forgotten about. The one thing I did notice was that there was a definite progression of skill level and workmanship. I went through many stages...the red and white stage, the curved and circle stage, the Christmas stage, the jacket stage, and I seem to use a lot of 'white'. In my opinion, you need to be 'a little' obsessive compulsive to be a quilter. Perhaps that is why you continue...you never quit. I try to complete something when I start it...but there are times when things and plans don't work. I do have a UFO pile that I plan to complete; they are usually those projects where I've run out of fabric or they are out of my skill level so I need time!
Quilting is a great hobby...it keeps the mind working and learning and you always get satisfaction from the things you make, even if it is a 'work in progress'.