MEET THE ARTIST

Living on the Swan river in Montana, I draw a lot of inspiration from the natural beauty around me; the constantly-changing seasons, and the majestic (sometimes humorous) animals that wander by daily. My quilts express my love of nature, and exploring blends of colors, fibers and textures.

Born and raised on the same farm where my grandfather grew up, quilting was always a part of my life, as my mother started quilting the year I was born. ​

Just as my father took up the plow from his father, I learned to love and work with fabric from my mom. Her creations lit my creative fire, and much of what I've learned has come from our playing and experimenting together.
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When not in my studio, I am teaching classes and workshops in both traditional quilting techniques as well as art quilting and thread painting. I love traveling and spreading my love for quilting with people of all ages.

I was first introduced to the arts at age 3 with ballet. Dance soon opened the door to theater, and after college I worked as a professional performer and director based out of Seattle--traveling across North America and as far away as Australia and Singapore.

​My flair for the dramatic fused into my quilting after my mother enrolled us in a class taught by thread artist Ellen Anne Eddy. There, I learned the basics of dyeing fabric, and the joys of layers upon layers of thread. Ellen's techniques and encouragement I began to develop my own textile art and quilts.

Best known for realistic pictorial thread paintings, I began to design patterns that would encourage others to drop their feed dogs and engage their inner child. My collection of National Park Patterns invite quilters to play with thread painting as they stitch down their appliqué, and my animal and flower patterns are a wonderful canvas to explore with threads, watercolor pencils and of course all of the beautiful batik fabrics!