Thirteen Questions With Zeus - Amy

I am starting a feature called Thirteen Questions with Zeus. This is feature where I introduce fellow followers of Qubee Quilts to you my reader. I hope that this is a way we can learn about other quilters like ourselves and know that we are not alone and maybe reach out and find a new quilting friend.

I'm sure your asking why we're calling it Thirteen Questions with Zeus? Zeus as you may or may not know is our dog and has never met a person he has not liked. He will run up to you and give you kisses. He is the kindest dog I've ever meet. He likes everyone regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, marital status, disability, religious or political affiliation, age or sexual orientation.


Today Zeus and I would like to you introduce you to Amy of Stitchery Dickory Dock. Join Zeus and I as we get to know a little more about Amy.

• Tell us a little bit about yourself?

Well, I'm a wife, mom, andlong-time quilting addict. Last Fall I left my 8 year full time job as afashion model booking agent to stay at home with my 3 and 1yo girls, and what agreat decision that turned out to be! Spending more time withthem is priceless, and the change has allowed me the chance to spend so muchmore time quilting. "Stitchery Dickory Dock" started out as a littleEtsy shop, and has blossomed into my blog. I have such a blastupdating it and connecting with other quilters online.

• What is your quilting background? (When did you first get started into quilting)

I started quilting somewherearound 12 or 13 years old when I joined a local charity quilting group called"People Comforters". It was basically a slewof older ladies in a church basement making quilts for Sheriffs to keep intheir trunks to give to domestic violence and emergency victims during theirtime of need.Quilting angels that they were, they took me under their wings andtaught me all of the basics- strip quilting with a rotary blade (a new quiltingfad at that point in time!), pressing, accurate seam allowances, and binding. We tied our quilts backthen, and it wasn't until just a couple of years ago that I began myself-taught quest to become a confident free-motion quilter (I'm far from apro, but progressing with each quilt!).

• Have you always been a quilter or did you start out doing something else?

I learned to sew as a child, through the 4-H club that my motherstarted- "Stitchin N' Kitchen". I made everything under the sun-from skirts and dresses, to pillows and bags- and entered them all at thecounty fair in hopes of a coveted purple Champion ribbon so I could move on tostate! Sure, we learned to cook, make pottery, bead jewelry and givespeeches, but of everything I took from those years, sewing is whatstuck. Changed my life in a huge way.

• What inspires you?

Sometimes I think I dream in fabrics and colorcombinations. I see possibilities for quilt patterns everywhere- patternson carpet, wallpaper, stationary, napkins...all candidates for quilting in myworld. I'm also heavily inspired by quilts from the past- especially thosesugar sweet ones from the 1930s- every stitch by hand, pieced from feedsacks orclothing, each undoubtedly with its own precious story...I take a lot ofinspiration from that era, and put a fresh, crisp, modern spin on it. Iwant to make quilts that both my great grandmother AND my daughter would adore.Dresdens, hexagons, log-cabins...I love taking these classic patterns andmodernizing them.

• What is your favorite color to use in your quilts?

White! I just love how whitebrightens up a quilt, and have learned to really use it strategically…not justuse it when nothing else works. Quilting also reallyshows on white (gulp!) so I try to use this as a challenge for myself to takerisks and go all out with the quilting. I’m also a bit obsessedrecently with orange. Can’t get enough of it. So warm and modern,looks great with practically everything.Making a wonky orange & gray babyquilt for a friend right now and I’m going a little crazy. CAN’T. STOP. BUYING. FABRIC.

• I was always taught that quilts need to be 100% cotton. Cotton fabric, cotton batting & cotton backing, but now am learning to use other types of fabrics in my quilts. Is this the case for you?

I prefer cotton all aroundbecause I think it’s easiest to work with, and looks and behaves the way thatI’m most comfortable with, but honestly, I love my local modern guild’s motto:“Quilting Without Rules”. There are no quilting police!Different materialsbehave differently, have different purposes, and mean different things toeveryone…so I say if you want to make your quilt out of jersey or silk orpolyester, do it! It’s your quilt! You should love it! The onlypeople judging my quilts are the ones who snuggle up with them on the couch, soI make my own rules, and I love cotton.

• What draws you to a certain type of fabric? The line, color, designer, etc?

I really try to put designers on the back burner of myselections (sorry designers!Love you!), and just choose based on how the colorsand lines of the fabric move me. I guess this might partially be due tothe fact that I work in a modern fabric shop and help customers all the timewho waltz in and say “Where’s your <insert designer> section?? Ilove So and so.” People get so caught up in names that they pigeon holethemselves and end up missing amazing masterpieces that happen to be by adesigner they’ve never heard of. To me, a more mature quilter should beable to bypass designers and collections, and choose their fabrics simply byhow the colors, lines, and movement work with what they envision for theirquilt.

• What does modern quilting mean to you?

To me, modern quilting means clean, fresh, simplified,functional, and also freed- as in free of traditional rules. Sure,there are techniques that lend themselves to a higher quality construction, andmore cohesive and effective design, but I love the freedom of expression thatcomes with modern quilting. Want to try something asymmetrical? Sweet! Bizzarecolor/print combos or wonky lines? Awesome!Quilt it with haphazard linesgoing every direction? Do it! Modern quilting has given us theopportunity to throw off the burden of traditional do's and don't and allows usto use our quilts as canvases to express our creativity with more freedom andacceptance than ever before.

• What is your least and most favorite part of quilting and why for each?

Most favorite isdefinitely planning and designing. I go crazy sketching out patterns orcutting out little printed pieces, moving them around like a little quiltpuzzle on my graph paper, then going on high speed scavenger hunts for theperfect fabrics. Also binding…love it. I get to sit and snuggle withmy quilt for a couple of hours while I stitch, admiring it, thrilled that it’salmost finished. Least favorite is probably basting. Whether I’mcrouched over safety pinning on my kitchen floor, or trying to smoothly rollfabric onto zillions of complicated quilt frame roller bars, it’s neverrelaxing.

• When making a quilt do you follow a pattern or make it up as you go along?

I don’t think I’ve followed a quilt pattern from start to finishin my entire life. Way too predictable! Must shake things up. Idefinitely get inspired by patterns, but I always end up mixing things up assoon as my fabric hits the needle. Makes for a very exciting process, anda quilt that is uniquely mine.

• Do you consider yourself a rule breaker in quilting?

This is tough, since rules seem to be different for everyone! I’veworked at both extremely traditional and extremely modern quilt shops, and it’sunbelievable how different perspectives are across the spectrum. Atthe traditional shop, rule-breaking meant long-arming or using large boldprints, but at the modern shop, the only rule seems to be don’t be tootraditional. I break the rules by ignoring what some people think istrendy or awesome or timeless, and just making what I love.In the end, I guessI always feel like I’m breaking someone’s rules, whether they be modern ortraditional. Rebel quilter!

• How can others find out more about you?

You can find out more about meat my blog- Stitchery Dickory Dock I also love toconnect on Facebook, Flickr, and Twitter, which you can also link to from my blog. Come on over and say hi!

• Is there anything else you would like the readers to know about you?

I think that just about sums me up!

Zeus and I would like to thank you for spending a little time with us today. It was great getting to know more about you.  Don't be a stranger.  I hope you can join us again sometime.  

Until next time,