Artist Statement:
My journey with fiber arts first surfaced when I was a preteen. My mother showed me her sewing machine, handed over some fabric and a pillow case and told me to “make more”. After a steep learning curve (YouTube not invented yet), I produced those cases and then went on to start making clothing. I won one of the top prizes for sewing a wool pants suit in my junior year in high school. I continued making clothing during my twenties. After marriage and the move to our first farm in my thirties, we acquired sheep and goats. The wool shearer told me that I should join the guild to do something with that good Corriedale fiber. I was never very active in guilds until I retired. I already knew how to knit but eventually learned spinning and then weaving. Weaving is probably my favorite activity in fiber art, although I still work with the other talents. I am motivated by an innate desire to make items from scratch, not only with fiber but also with cooking. I also love working with color and can be seen for hours at my computer, using a software program to experiment with design and color for upcoming weaving projects. To me, it is as much fun being challenged by the calculations prior to weaving as the actual weaving itself.
My projects have won ribbons at the county fair but I get the most enjoyment when I see the happy faces of recipients of gifts that I have made from fiber