My September Star

I am thrilled to introduce to you Terrie Sandelin as my September Star. She is a quilter and a published author of the book Minature Quilts. She has a blog called Bits and Pieces and also a website for you to explore. She is an amazing talent, and has introduced a revolutionary, easy technique of doing paper piecing, which is discussed in her book. She has generously offered to send me two copies of her book: one is for me, and the other will be for a giveaway that she will have that will be hosted by me on my blog. Thanks Terrie for your generosity!

Interview for September:
Name: Terrie Sandelin

· A Bit About Me:Let's see. I think I am what used to be called a woman of a certain age. I may even qualify as a woman beyond a certain age. In any case, it means that I've been quilting for a little over twenty years now. It is amazing how much joy this art/craft has brought into my life: the pleasure of creating; the many, many friendships; the challenge of writing a book.
In addition to quilting, I love novels and writing. (In fact, my graduate degree (from many moons ago) is in creative writing.) About a dozen years ago my husband decided to return to school. We agreed that when he finished his degrees, I would take some time off teaching to pursue some enrichment of my own. I decided that what I wanted was time. I planned to write a novel. But, there it was, my first week of free time and it occurred to me that I could use this cool Anita Grossman Solomon paper-piecing technique, tweak it a bit, and use it to make a miniature quilt. And, wow, did it work! I was amazed and suddenly I was a mini-quilting fool. I kept finding new ways to use the technique and was absolutely thrilled by the diversity of patterns I could develop. So, suddenly it was months later, I had dozens of new mini quilts, ideas for more, and no novel. Hmmm. I scratched (with some guilt) the novel plans and focused on a book proposal for mini quilts instead. Imagine my surprise (and delight) when C&T Publishing told me they were going to publish my book!
Well, I think that's actually more than a bit. Odd little bits: also in my life, a husband, two grown(ish) sons, and a new puppy (as you know). When I'm not quilting, I teach literature and writing at Colorado State University.

· What Inspires Me: I am most inspired, I think, by the sheer creative exuberance of the quilt world. There is always something new. Fabric styles change. New color combinations are explored. I remember when I first started quilting, there were so many rules. I was taught I should always use a small, medium, and a large scale fabric in my quilts. And yet, look at how many gorgeous quilts today use nothing but large scale prints. There are always new techniques and new combinations. I am inspired by the inspiration of others!

· What I Love to Do the Most Creatively: I really love to play with technique. I love learning a new way to do something and then fiddling with it and seeing what else I can make it do. It's why I had so much fun taking Anita Grossman Solomon's Fold and Sew technique and applying it to miniature quilts. I love to play with color and fabric, of course, but I think my deepest love is in solving the puzzle of how to make a new design work with the technique. I am currently coming up with new foundation patterns that push the ideas explored in Miniatures in Minutes even further.

· My Favorite Fabric and Designer: There are so many!! I love Kaffe Fasset fabrics. But I also love reproduction fabrics so Barbara Brackman and Jo Morton are also high on the list. There are a lot of fun new designers like Heather Bailey that I also adore.

· UFO I Intend to Finish First: Oh, my Star in a Star wall quilt is invoking some serious quilt guilt. That has to be first.

· What’s on the Design Wall Now: Well, I do work in miniatures. My design wall tends to be crowded with lots of little bits in process. There are little nine patches, a Crossed Canoes quilt in process, pin cushions to finish, an EQ design I'll sew up once I finish collecting fabric . . . .

· Who Would I Love to Meet: Other than Jon Stewart? Oh, you mean a quilter? I was lucky enough to meet Barbara Brackman at Quilt Market, and that was quite, quite lovely. I'd like to meet Anita Grossman Solomon, so I could thank her for the wonderful inspiration!

· If I Had One Wish: Am I unutterably shallow if I say I'd wish for hard wood floors in my living room and new kitchen cabinets? No, no. Wait. One wish? Travel. I'd like to go to Ireland and England and France and Italy.

Here are some of Terrie's work, and get ready for some amazing eye candy!

Thanks so much Terrie for your lovely interview and for your generosity! I will be honored to host your giveaway. Information about the giveaway will be in a future post. In the meantime, enjoy your visit to Terrie's blog and website.