Cheryl Arkison
Back when I started quilting it was practically unheard of for a 23-year-old to do so, but there I was. Now, over 23 years later I haven’t stopped. That’s more than half my life! In addition to my own creative work, I love to teach, write books, spread the gospel of improv, and design quilts. Every now and then I make a garment, my Grade 8 Home Ec teacher would be proud.
When it comes to making, I am happy to make what inspires me. I am well known for my use of bold color and the quiet whispers of low volume fabrics but I will use anything in between as well. Use what you love, make what makes you happy. Just get your butt in the seat and sew.
In the past decade, I’ve published three books: Sunday Morning Quilts (co-authored with Amanda Jean Nyberg, A Month of Sundays, and You Inspire Me to Quilt.
I spend a lot of time teaching now, mostly in the virtual world. Trunk shows, workshops, and events through Quilters' Playcation take my time in between running a business with my husband, feeding and driving 3 active kids, and walking the barky dog.
Eliane Bergmann of Patchwork & Poodles
Eliane Bergmann is the pattern designer and modern quilter behind Patchwork & Poodles. Eliane’s love for quilting has propelled her into a passion for helping others to learn how to quilt. Her goal is to create patterns and tutorials that are easy to follow and execute, so everyone can create beautiful quilts they are proud of! She shares her current projects and progress on her Instagram at @patchworkandpoodles. Eliane lives in Wisconsin with her husband Jason and miniature poodle Riley. Her website, Patchwork & Poodles, is full of tutorials, free patterns, tips, tricks, and lots of quilty inspiration!
Cheryl Brickey of Meadow Mist Designs
Cheryl Brickey of Meadow Mist Designs is a chemical engineer who loves designing quilts and quilt math. She lives in South Carolina with her husband, two school-aged kids, and three cats. She is the author of Just One Charm Pack Quilts (Stash 2021) and Modern Plus Sign Quilts (Stash 2018), has had her work published in major quilt magazines, and shown in international quilt shows.
Susan K Cleveland of Pieces Be With You
Susan's enthusiasm for quilting is said to be contagious and her quilts have received many awards in international competitions since 1997. Susan focuses on simplifying complex tasks so everyone can be thrilled with the results. She invented the Groovin’ Piping Trimming Tool and the Prairie Pointer pressing tool. In 2010 she was delighted to be named Minnesota Quilter of the Year!
Amy Ellis of Amy’s Creative Side
I'm a best-selling author, quilt designer, and owner of Amy's Creative Side. I've hosted an online quilt festival for more than 12 years, bringing quilters together to showcase their work and cheer each other on. My passion is to encourage quilters and help them find their creative voice in the midst of our busy lives. Teaching you to trust your creative intuition makes me excited to get out of bed in the mornings!
If I'm not quilting or teaching I'm usually hanging out with our family, or walking our dog Gus. With three teens in the house, there's always someone in the kitchen looking for a snack and I'm there checking in on their school work too.
I learned to sew garments as a girl, then taught myself to quilt about 20 years ago. I love that quilts don't have to fit anyone, and how unique each quilt is from one maker to the next.
Heather Givans of Crimson Tate
After ten years as a high school art teacher turned fabric store proprietor, textile designer, quilt pattern writer, and all-around happy gal, Heather Givans is a creative force full of inspiration and fun. Crimson Tate:: Modern Quilter, located in Downtown Indianapolis, is the creative hub that spurns Heather’s quilt making, friendships, and inspirations.
Cindy Grisdela
Cindy is an artist, teacher, and author of Artful Improv and Adventures in Improv Quilts. Her work has won awards in national shows and is in numerous private collections. Cindy began as a traditional quilter but gradually moved away from patterns to develop her own contemporary style as an artist. Cindy has a BFA in Art History and an MBA in Finance, and she lives and works in Reston, VA.
Candyce Grisham
Candyce Grisham has been fascinated with fabric, sewing, and quilting since the age of nine when she took her first sewing class and won a prize for her corduroy jumper and print shirt with a necktie. When she saw an ancestor’s quilt in the Smithsonian at age thirteen, she was hooked. She taught herself how to quilt from books and used cardboard templates and scissors to make her first quilt, a variation on the log cabin design. It has been a love affair ever since.
Candyce loves using fabrics, themes, and colors from nature, although she leans more and more toward bright fabrics, with lots of print. Much of her work has a “tradition with a twist” quality, and although it relies on inspiration from generations gone by, it also has a contemporary feel.
Candyce published her first pattern (a Dresden quilt, of course!) in 2015 and looks forward to sharing more of her work. She lives with her husband, Tom, in both rural Missouri and urban St. Louis with their golden retriever rescue, Bella.
Samarra Khaja
Samarra Khaja brings over 25 years of art direction, illustration, and graphic design expertise to the table; she also sometimes brings chocolate. Advertising, branding, editorial, marketing, and packaging are just some of the fun worlds she develops visuals for. She’s the award-winning author of “Sew Adorkable” and other creative books, a worldwide traveler, and the creator of the prize-winning mural, Heartbeat Brooklyn, which can be found in Brooklyn, NYC. She’s amusingly serious about her work.
Jennifer Moore of Monaluna
Jennifer Moore is an artist, designer, and the owner of Monaluna, an organic fabric company based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Jennifer’s fabrics are characterized by a modern and whimsical style, and she is committed to producing fabric in an environmentally sustainable manner. All Monaluna fabrics are GOTS-certified, ensuring that they are eco-friendly and fair trade, and they are suitable for a wide range of sewing projects, including quilting, apparel sewing, and home décor.
Shelly Moore of Ma Tante Quilting
Once a city girl, Shelly now finds herself quilting her time away on the prairies in Manitoba. As a longarm quilter, she loves to help people get their projects finished and into the arms of their loved ones. After honing her skills while photographing hundreds of client quilts, Shelly is now teaching others her secrets through her Beginner Quilt Photography course and lectures to quilt guilds across North America.
Samantha of Purple Sewing Cloud
Samantha is a sewist living in the North East of the UK. Her passion is garment sewing and she loves incorporating quilting and patchwork into her makes. Samantha also has some disabilities and thinks accessibility in sewing is very important!
Kitty Wilkin of The Night Quilter
Kitty is a quilter, designer, teacher, and photographer who aims to create beautiful things every day. She combines three of her favorite things: quilting, the natural world, and photography to bring you gorgeously inspiring photographs of quilts, knitwear, and notions in the wilds of Maine's outdoors. She has worked with a number of industry brands, including the Quilter’s Planner, Aurifil, and OLFA. Kitty is busy making the world a more beautiful place by designing quilt patterns, sharing her love of positive feedback loops with her Quilt Your Life Crew membership group, capturing the wonder of the world in photographs, and running around with her partner and three little kids.
Our Resident Expert and Host:
Lee Chappell Monroe of May Chappell
Lee has been creating since she first discovered crayons at age 2! She’s from a family of quilters and learned everything from her mother, affectionately known as The Guru. She loves all things fabric—from zippy pouch to queen size quilt—and everything in between. With a love of color and bold graphic shapes, Lee enjoys designing patterns and teaching all types of classes, while sharing her adventures on her blog, May Chappell. She is a trained graphic designer which shows in her clean aesthetic. Her work has appeared in multiple publications and she recently published her first book with C&T Publishing, Jump Into Sewing. Look for another book from Lee next year!