Fading Freedoms

November 3, 2026November 2, 2026Leave a comment

I feel our First Amendment freedoms are under attack, and they are slowly fading. I made this quilt to look at the words carefully and to remind me and viewers what the amendment plainly says. It gives rights to the people against government censorship and prohibits the government from preventing us from protesting peaceably.

The quilt was part of Central Virginia Modern Quilt Guild’s exhibit Censorship: Stitched Narratives of Modern Quilters at the Richmond Main Library through Election Day.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

A Magical Jog

October 5, 2026October 4, 20261 Comment

This is my entry for Pick-a-Color Scrappy Challenge for QuiltCon 2027.

I store scraps by color, and although my biggest color collection wasn’t green, I knew it would be green. It reminds me of home in the mountains and reminds me to continue to grow. I try to use my scraps as close to their shape as possible and therefore I end up with lots of straight lines. Then, the process pushes me to add some curves. Then, I take the path of least resistance to stitch those sections together. Almost every bit of green scrap I owned found its way into in this quilt from wool to cotton to knit. A friend said the top left “jog” was magical. It feels that way.

I kept track of the process. You can see how parts remained the same while others didn’t make the final quilt.

I used different weights of thread and stitched mostly in the seams, wanting to celebrate every piece of scrap. It’s 42” x 42”.

The Gripe Session

February 25, 20262 Comments

This is THE GRIPE SESSION.

A quilt I made with my friends, Maggie Schubert and Kat Van Bourgondien. We made it for the Modern Quilt Guild’s Quiltcon fabric challenge.

55” x 55”

The fabric is Artisan Cotton by Windham Fabrics. It wasn’t selected for the show, and I’m sad about that, but we’re exhibiting it at our guild’s show, Make Mine Modern, at Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival, in Newport News, Virginia February 26-March 1, 2026.

Our artist statement:

The Gripe Session began as banter among friends on one of those days when everything seemed to go wrong. “Bang Head Here” became both instruction and release—stitched again and again. It’s a vent and a Valentine to persistence: proof that when all you can do is bang your head, you might as well make it soft.