AmiSimmsQuiltStudio

My first project was a Superman outfit for the cat, complete with cape, hat, and tail cozy. Not bad for a 6th grader. After the scratches healed, I switched to making outfits for my troll dolls. (Appropriately sized fabric rectangle, two holes, and you're done.) Knitting, crochet, embroidery, macrame, and dressmaking came next. In college I took ceramics, and made things from old jeans. "Recycle" had not yet made it into the lexicon back then. Upcycle was still a long way off.

In the summer of my junior year an Amish woman showed me how to quilt. I graduated from college with a degree in anthropology, went on to get a teaching certificate, and taught second graders for several years. I loved it. In my spare time I made quilts. I was devastated when declining enrollment forced me out of the classroom. Then I turned my quilting hobby and my teaching skills into a new career and never looked back. For 30+ years I traveled around the country teaching people how to quilt. I also wrote 9 books and dozens of patterns. My quilting took me to the White House as a participant in the Art in Embassies program. I created both the Worst Quilt in the World Contest and the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative.

I retired at the end of 2017. Apparently it didn't stick. I became un-retired sometime before the end of 2018. Welcome to my Etsy shop! I still love to create, and I love to share. I'm so glad you're here!

I invite you to poke around. My creative journey still refuses to take a straight path. I delight in following my fancy and indulging artistic expression that is often not very "quilty." Such was the case with retractable tape measures with crocheted covers. That started very innocently and now I can't seem to stop making them. When the pandemic struck, Valli Schiller and I created the Valami Face Mask. We couldn't not help out. To date I have made and donated more than 450 masks, as has Valli.

I have a slew of new things to share with you, both ready-made items and patterns. "Favorite" my shop and you'll be among the first to learn about them. Just click the heart in the upper left corner above my shop name. Similarly, when you see a specific item that you really really like, hover your mouse over the photograph of the item and a heart will appear there too. Make it a favorite and you'll be able to find it again! It will pop up every time you sign in to Etsy. You know what's also cool about that? I get a notification when someone makes my shop or one of my items a favorite. It's a great feeling! I smile from ear to ear. (So thanks in advance.)

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