2008 GSQA Seminar

Teacher Biographies

CHARLOTTE ANGOTTI

    While shopping with her mother in 1978 Charlotte wandered into a quilt shop and everything changed from there. Educated in fine arts, speech and drama she brings a variety of talents to class in a most humorous way.

    She has been teaching quilt making since 1979 because someone asked her to teach them. Her first quilt was sold right after making it and she has sold her quilts ever since. She owned her own quilt shop in Virginia Beach, Va from 1981-1999. She began teaching nationally in 1991 and has taught for many large shows as well as small groups.

Along with her kit business, Quilt Maker’s Studio, she now teaches and lectures full time and lives in Harbor Springs, Michigan.

    Known for her humor, her way with fabric/color and her pre-cut kits Charlotte believes her hobby is quilt making and her job is teaching others to enjoy it as much as she does.

HARRIET HARGRAVE

    Harriet comes from a family of quilters. Her grandmother, mother, and several of her 8 Aunts quilted in the 1930’s and 1940’s. Her mother tried to teach Harriet to hand quilt in the early ‘70s, but to no avail. Harriet mastered machine embroidery in the mid-1970’s, and adapted machine quilting from there.  She was machine quilting when the local quilt guilds thought machine piecing was not kosher, let alone machine quilting! She was teaching machine piecing, appliqué and quilting through the adult education system by 1978, and opened her store, Harriet’s Treadle Arts, along side her mother in April of 1981. The store started out to be machine arts, but quickly was taken over by machine quilting and piecing classes and supplies.
    In 1983, Marti Michelle saw Harriet’s antique reproduction pieces and was amazed at how hand quilted they appeared. Harriet essentially introduced nylon thread to the quilt world through those quilts. By 1984, she was demonstrating at Houston Quilt Market and teaching the last day of Mary Ellen Hopkins weeklong seminars. Marti Michelle asked Harriet to write a book on machine quilting for her publishing company, then known as Yours Truly. The first edition of Heirloom Machine Quilting was released March of 1987. C & T published the second edition, expanded and updated, in 1990. The third edition was updated again in 1995 and the most resent 4^th edition was updated, re-written and released in 2004. The first edition of Mastering Machine Appliqué was released in 1991 and then revised and re-released in 2002, From Fiber to Fabric in 1997 (out of print) which is the quilters bible for textiles and their care and keeping, and The Art of Classic Quilt Making in 2000 that Harriet co-authored with her friend Sharon Craig and is the ultimate guide to learning how to piece.
    Harriet has also worked side by side with H.D. Wilbanks of Hobbs bonded fibers to develop an exceptional line of natural fiber battings to meet quilters’ needs. P & B Textiles has printed four very successful lines of reproduction fabrics for Harriet. She is now working on more fabric for P & B.
    In 1994 Harriet was chosen by a panel of her peers as one of the 88 Leaders of the Quilt World for a book that was released by the same title out of Japan, and in 2006 was nominated for Professional Quilter’s Teacher of the Year.
    She has traveled extensively worldwide since 1985, including England, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and every state in the US. She has definitely spread the word that machine quilting is okay, and that our quilts are not machine quilted, but “hand quilted with an electric needle.”

JUDY HOLLEY

Baton Rouge quilt maker Judy Holley is known for her exceptional use of color. Her quilts have won numerous awards at Gulf Sates Quilting Association (GSQA) Quilt Shows, the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival in Williamsburg, VA and International Quilt Festival in Houston, TX. Her work has been published in Quilters’ Newsletter Magazine, American Quilter, Fabric Trends and the Journal of the International Quilt Association. She has been featured on the television series, Lap Quilting with Georgia Bonesteel, demonstrating her Whacky 9-Patch. She has been quilting for over 30 years and teaching for the past 15. All her classes are process or technique orientated with the hope of inspiring the student’s own creativity. She also works extensively in non-traditional fabrics, recycling anything from men’s ties to ladies scarves to velvet scarps and loved clothing back into quilts for special family keepsakes. New York Beauty and machine quilting are her most popular classes.

She has been married to her husband Thom for 38 years and they have three grown children. Still at home are several cats, a few dogs and a feisty green parrot. 

MARY ELLEN KRANZ
Mary Ellen Kranz has sewn and quilted since childhood.  She found her career path in computers but continued to pursue quiltmaking.   Her twenty years of experience teaching computer technologies provided her with an understanding of how PCs, printers, scanners and digital cameras could help tremendously in the process of creating fiber art.  She now shares that knowledge with quiltmakers across the country.

     Mary Ellen’s classes provide an opportunity to try out these tools and the latest quilting software under the guidance of a creative and patient teacher. For the past seven years, Mary Ellen has taught at shops, guilds, regional quilting events and national conferences including the Appalachian Quilting Party and Quilting By the Lake and the Houston International Quilt Festival.
     Her article, Joyful Image Quilts, appeared in the Spring 2003 issue of American Quilter magazine. Mary Ellen and Cheryl Hayes are co-authors of Blending Photos with Fabric: A Beautiful New Way to Combine Photography, Printing, and Quiltmaking published by The Electric Quilt Company.  Mary Ellen has been a featured guest of Alex Anderson’s Simply Quilts on HGTV.
 

LUCY LANDRY

Lucy Landry is a cloth doll artist who likes to dabble in all things fabric.  She developed her love

 for fabric and sewing as a young girl playing among her mother’s fabric boxes.  From the beginning, she was making dolls and doll clothes.  A chance encounter with an art doll book a few years ago rekindled her love of dolls and enticed her to try to sew tiny, individual fingers.  Soon she was drawing her own patterns and designing her own dolls.  Dolls became her passion.  Her professional training as an Occupational Therapist with a background in human anatomy and body movements has directly influenced her art.  She currently teaches a Creative Sewing Camp in the summer for children and has taught adult doll classes for guilds, and at quilts shops and conferences.  Her dolls have won numerous awards in local and national shows and have been featured in Art Doll Quarterly, Soft Dolls and Animals, and Dolls United magazines.
 

JACKIE ROBINSON

Jackie Robinson lives in Eureka, in scenic northwestern Montana with her husband, Jery Wyatt.

     An international teacher and lecturer since 1989 , Jackie has authored twelve quilting books. She is best known for her geometric patterns, creating new and expanded designs from traditional shapes. Jackie has made in excess of 400 quilts. Her teaching style is energetic. Students are always encouraged to develop their skills based on the material presented. Jackie believes in sharing all she possibly can in the given amount of time available.

Jackie opened her first quilt shop in a St. Louis suburb in 1982. In ‘88, they sold it to make a choice move to Durango where they opened Animas Quilts. Along the way they also started Animas Quilts Publishing, featuring Jackie’s quilt designs in books and patterns. They sold the quilt shop in Durango in 1999, and kept Animas Quilts Publishing. Now they live in NW Montana.

     Her quilts have been featured on the covers of Quilt World and Creative Quilting. American Patchwork and Quilting wrote a feature story about her Frank Lloyd Wright quilts and then, in 1997 they selected her shop, Animas Quilts, as one of the ten shops to feature in their Sampler issue. In 2006 her quilts were featured in Love of Quilting, Designer’s Quarters, Quilt, and American Patchwork & Quilting. In 2007 you’ll find her quilts in Love of Quilting, Quilt, and American Patchwork & Quilting..

     Jackie offers a range of workshops and lectures including classes on slick piecing techniques, updated traditional designs, and Wright’s art glass interpreted in quilts. In her lecture about F. L. Wright, she literally “puts him on”. Additionally, there are workshops designed specifically to sharpen machine-piecing skills. Lately, she has been designing fabric with Maywood Studio. 

SHARON SCHAMBER

I started my quilting just like most of you – buying the wrong fabric, using the wrong batting, and using the wrong needles.  With time, learned to use what really works for me, even though the product might not be know as the “right” one.  However, I do not, under any circumstances, compromise my standards. 

     I had to learn what a scant quarter and a fat quarter were.  Translating all those unusual terms that we use, so casually, was the nest step.  The first year was just a spin of learning and creating a base for future quilts.  For a novice, the learning curve is quite steep.

     I remember my grandmother quilting back in the 60’s, but everything was so different when compared to today.  I hope that the quilt world will be just as different for my grandchildren.  When I first began I had no idea that quilts were being machine quilted.  I remember only that quilts were all hand-pieced and hand-quilted.

I remember my Grandma Larsen counting the stitches per inch and ranting about being consistent, so that is where I went.  I set out to find how many stitches per inch I needed to make my quilts “right”.  I asked the wrong person, and she told me that it was just rude to ask.  This was the first indication that I needed to be a teacher.
 

MARY SORENSON

Specializing in traditional fine hand appliqué done from original patterns, Mary’s distinctive design style is characterized by elegant, formal lines, complex layering of small pieces, and an emphasis on using a myriad of fabrics to create visual texture and excitement.
     Her flawless appliqué technique, and humorous, hands-on approach to teaching have motivated students to return to handwork with enthusiasm.

     Mary has taught and lectured at guilds and conferences throughout the United States, and designs and markets a full line of appliqué patterns sold in quilt shops across the country. In addition to exhibiting at the AQS annual show in Paducah, KY, and Quilt Expo VI in Innsbruck, Austria, Mary’s appliqué was recognized with a blue ribbon at the IQA annual show in Houston, TX.

     Her work has also appeared in the AQS Quilt Art Engagement Calendar, Traditional Quiltworks magazine, American Patchwork and Quilting magazine, Better Homes and Gardens Quilt-Lovers’ Favorites and in the Fairfield Processing Corporation ads.

JUDY SPIERS

I was born, and grew up in Foxworth, Mississippi, where my husband David and I currently live. We’re the parents of two grown sons, Chris and Jason. Chris lives near us and works in retail business in nearby Columbia, and Jason lives and works about 30 minutes away in Hattiesburg, MS. Jason graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi in 2005, and has now opened his own graphic arts business in Hattiesburg. My wonderful husband, David, and I have been married for 34 years. David has always been very supportive of my quilting endeavors and has created numerous, specially designed tools and gadgets, to assist in my quilt making. The final member of our family is our beloved Sheltie dog, Cody, who is my constant sewing companion. My other interests and hobbies include genealogy, gardening, and bird watching.

    I began sewing at an early age, designing clothes for my dolls. By the age of 18, I was an accomplished seamstress. Before I began quilting, I also enjoyed other types of needlework, including embroidery, crochet and counted cross stitch. My husband, David, and I also owned and operated a ceramics business for a number of years, which allowed me to express my creativity with “clay” and paint.

    I have been sewing for most of my life, but only began quilting in 1996, as a self taught quilter. Even though I come from a long line of quilters, skipping one generation with my Mother, all of my Grandmothers had passed away and I knew no one who was interested in quilting. In some ways, I think that might have been better, because I took everything I had learned through sewing, and combined that with everything I had read about quilting, and developed my own methods and style of quilting.

I found and joined my local quilting guild in 1998, which has really allowed me to grow, as a quilter in so many ways. I am now a member of several guilds and quilting organizations. These include:  My local guild, Pine Belt Quilters of Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Innovative Fiber Artists of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Mississippi Quilt Association, Gulf States Quilt Association, The American Quilter’s Society, and The International Quilt Association. 

     I served as President of Pine Belt Quilters 2002 – 2004, where I now serve as historian for the guild, as well as teach and participate in numerous volunteer activities. I have also served as regional representative, and currently serve as Publicity Director for the Mississippi Quilt Association.

    As a quilter, I also enjoy teaching and speaking to groups about the art of quilting. I gain great joy and satisfaction from working with quilters of all levels, and I feel that I always learn as much from them as they do from me. One of my greatest joys is helping a new quilter to understand the basic techniques used for quilting, and then watching them develop their own style and become a dedicated quilter. I currently teach a variety of classes and workshops for groups and guilds. I am also a teacher for the Mississippi Quilt Association, as well as a Circuit Teacher for the Gulf States Quilt Association, which includes Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the pan-handle of Florida. I enjoy speaking to groups about quilting and quilt history, as well as tailoring lectures to specific group interests.

    I enjoy all types of quilting and I love a challenge. My quilted works include traditional and non traditional pieced and appliqué quilts, art quilts, quilted clothing, and small scale and miniature quilts. I particularly enjoy the challenge that miniature and small scale quilt making presents, with the demands for accuracy and precision. I now enjoy designing my own patterns and creating quilt designs, with a particular interest in taking old patterns and creating new designs with color placement. I find the computer very helpful when working with design. All of my appliqué patterns are drawn by hand.

I have been much honored to have my quilts recognized, by receiving numerous awards in local, regional, national, and international quilt shows. Some of these awards are as follows:

 2007

Appliqué quilt, “Mississippi Backroad Treasures” received the 2^nd Place award in the

   Large Appliqué category of the Quilt Odyssey Quilt Show held in Hershey, Pennsylvania, July 2007

Miniature quilt, “Pineapple Surprise Again” received the 1^st Place award in the

   Miniature category of the Quilt Odyssey Quilt Show held in Hershey, Pennsylvania, July 2007

Miniature quilt, “Carnivale’ ”, received the 1^st place award, Miniature Quilt category

   in the American Quilter’s Society Quilt Show, Paducah KY, April 2007.

Appliqué quilt, “Mississippi Backroad Treasures” received Best of Show, 1^st Place in the

   Appliqué category and Viewer’s Choice award in the Gulf States Quilt Show held in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, March 2007

Appliqué quilt, “Jacobean Sunrise” received the Marian Maerke Excellence in Hand

   Appliqué award and 1^st place in the Appliquéd Wall Hanging category in the Gulf States Quilt Show held in Baton Rouge,    Louisiana, March 2007

2006

Miniature quilt, “Nine Patch Stars” was voted 2^nd place in the AQS Online Quilt Contest     

   and was part of the special Online Quilt Contest exhibit at the American Quilter’s Society 2007 quilt show.

 Miniature quilt, “Pineapple Surprise”, received the Benartex Best Miniature Quilt award

in the American Quilter’s Society quilt show, Paducah KY, April 2006. This was a      purchase award and “Pineapple Surprise” is now part of the miniature collection at the Museum of the American Quilter’s Society in Paducah, KY.

 Miniature quilt “Pineapple Surprise, Again” received the 1^st place award, Miniature

    Quilt category, in the International Quilt Show, Houston TX, November 2006. 

 Appliqué quilt, “Mississippi Backroad Treasures” received Best of Show, 1^st Place in the

Appliqué category, Viewer’s Choice award and Pine Belt Quilter’s Viewers Choice award in the Pine Belt Quilt Show, Hattiesburg, MS, October 2006

  2005

 Miniature quilt, “Pineapple Flambé”, received the Honorable Mention award, Miniature

    Quilt category, in the International Quilt Show, Houston TX, November 2005

 Miniature quilt, “Pineapple Flambé”, received the 2^nd Place award, Miniature

    Quilt category, in the American Quilter’s Society quilt show, Paducah KY, April 2005

 Appliqué Quilt, “My Fine Feathered Friends”, received Best of Show, 1^st Place in the

Appliqué category and Viewer’s Choice award in the Gulf States Quilt Show held in New Orleans, Louisiana, August 2005

 2004

 Appliqué Quilt, “My Fine Feathered Friends”, received 3^rd Place in the Innovative  

    Appliqué category of the International Quilt Show, Houston TX, November 2004

 2003

 Appliqué Quilt, “My Fine Feathered Friends”, received Best of Show, 1^st Place in the

Appliqué category, Pine Belt Quilter’s Viewer’s Choice, and Viewer’s Choice award in the Pine Belt Quilt Show, Hattiesburg, MS, October 2003

     I have also been much honored to received awards for Judge’s Choice and numerous 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, and Honorable Mention.

 I have also been honored to have two of my miniature quilts, “Pineapple Flambé” and “Pineapple Surprise”, selected as part of the new miniature quilt collection at the Museum of the American Quilter’s Society in Paducah KY. They will remain as part of the permanent collection of the Museum and will be part of a traveling collection, when they are not on display in the Museum. These quilts have been featured in the book Oh Wow! Miniature Quilts and Their Makers, which was released in April of 2007. My quilt, “Pineapple Surprise” was selected for the cover of this book.

  My quilts have been featured in numerous magazine and newspaper articles, with my pieced quilt, “Confetti Baskets”, selected for the cover of the summer 2004 issue of Quilt magazine. My miniature work, “Pineapple Surprise”, was featured in the fall 2006 issue of American Quilter Magazine and was selected as one of the 13 quilts to appear on the 2007 American Quilter’s Society Calendar. “Pineapple Surprise” has also appeared in January 2007 issue of Quilter’s Newsletter magazine in an article about miniature quilts. My Miniature quilt, “Nine Patch Stars” was featured in the June 2007 issue of American Quilter Magazine. Two of my earlier miniature quilts were also featured in an issue of Miniature Quilt magazine.

MARY STORI

As therapy, Mary began teaching herself to quilt while recovering from back surgery in
the mid - 1980’s. She’d planned to return to her career of cooking school owner, instructor, and cookbook author, but after discovering the world of quilting and wearable art her energies were redirected. Mary was named 2004 Quilt Teacher of the Year by The Professional Quilter.

Her work has appeared and won awards in numerous national shows. Mary designed garments for four Fairfield Fashion Shows. Her garments and quilts have been shown in a variety of invitational and juried exhibits throughout the United States, and in Austria, Canada, England, France, Iceland, and Japan. She’s appeared on HGTV’s “Simply Quilts” and “Sew Perfect” several times. An entire episode of Fon’s & Porter’s PBS show, “Love of Quilting”, featured Mary’s beaded quilts.

      Mary has written articles and had work appear in scores of quilt magazines and publications! Her DVD; Mary Stori Teaches You Beading On Fabric will be released in August, 2006. She’s authored: All-In-One Beading Buddy, 2005, and Beading Basics, 2004, with C & T Publishing. The Stori Of Beaded Embellishment, 2001 with Martingale & Company. The Stori Book of Embellishing, 1994, and The Wholecloth Garment Stori, 1998, published by AQS.  She designed the Mary Stori Collection for Kona Bay Fabrics and her own line of trapunto quilting composition stencils for Quilting Creations. Her work is often humorous, generously embellished, and displays fine hand quilting. She loves the challenge of creating one-of-a-kind pieces. Traveling worldwide to present lectures, workshops, as well as quilt tour host keeps her motivated!