These colourful assortment of tropical fish will remind you of your visit to the South Pacific on a memborable Quilting Cruise. They are swimming in your own water colour quilt aquarium designed by Connie Rodriques for Whims Watercolor Quilts.
This is one of four workshops that will feature on the Quilting Cruise. All fabrics for the water colour quilt top and the applique are supplied. For a more challenging design you will also receive all the fabric and patterns to create an applique of Grandmothers Sewing Machine which can be appliqued onto your water colour quilt instead of the tropical fish.
When I left school I attended TAFE colleges and started several years of study in various areas of sewing. I have certificates of proficiency in pattern-making, dressmaking and a distinction in advanced commercial needlecraft. These qualifications and practical experiences have led me to kae up teaching of quilting and fabric embellishment. Free machining being my favourite are of machine sewing. 
I am currently a part time TAFE teacher and have been for the past twenty years. I started my TAFE proffession as a Advanced Comercial Needlecraft Certificate teacher when a staff member went on long service leave. Ihave been there ever since. However, as most TAFE collages no longer teach sewing I retrained and became a Business Services teacher.
Around nine years ago we sold our fram and bought a very large run down hous on the outskirts of Tumut, NSW. We renovated the house and turned it into a bed and breakfast. There were plenty of large rooms in our home for me to be able to start pachwork and quilting workshops. These wrokshops led to the running of livein retreats, both patchwork and scrapbooking. thanks to my sisters passion for scrapbooking.
Over the years I have attended numerous workshops with well know teachers bothe from Australia and overseas. They include Angela Madden from England, Vynthia England from the USA as well a learning a lot of techniques from Sharon Pederson from the USA. I have enjoyed a great workshop with Gloria Loughman of Australia.
I love many areas of machine patchwork. From strip piecing, to traditiobnal blocks, bargello, photos on fabric and applique. My favourite areas are machine embroidery and raw edge applllque. Landscaape quilts are of a particular interest to me. The variety of beautiful fabrics on the market today lend themselves to this areas of quilt making.I don't class myself as a quilt artist but as a quilt teacher.
I have a passion for sharing new techniques with students in my workshops. I encourage students to develop these techniques and create their own great quilts. Having patience is something I have plenty of.Three of my quilts have featured in 'Down Under Quilts' and Australian Patchwork and Quilting'. I would love to enter more of my quilts into the many competitions but find that teaching doesn't always allow me to meet the deadlines for these competitions. this doesn't stop me from planning quilts for cometitions!
I love to sew, to create, and to learn easier and sometimes quicker ways to achieve a great result. As Angela madden said "If sewing is not successful and fun... why do it?"
