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Though her first love is
appliqué, our featured artist incorporates many techniques
in her quilts. Her work encompasses many technical
construction skills, exhibits excellent craftsmanship, and
has a highly developed and unique use of color and visual
texture.
A member since 1989, and active
participant in QA, it is our pleasure to introduce… |
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Joan Dawson |
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I am a true native
Californian, born and raised near the beach, and besides
the ocean, horses were my hobby and love as a teenager.
Twenty-five or thirty years ago I took a beginning
quilting class in Los Angeles. We drew around templates
and scissored each piece out one at a time. I made one
quilt, gave up quilting, and went back to my knitting
and cross-stitch. |
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Some years later we had moved |
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to the Northwest, and
wandering through the Country Village I saw a notice about a
beginning quilting class at Keepsake Cottage with Carolann Palmer.
This is where I discovered the rotary cutter, and a new
hobby was born. I had been sewing most
of my clothes all my life, so I was already a sewer. |
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About fifteen years ago, even
though I knew I was going to hate appliqué, I reluctantly
enrolled in Laura Reinstatler’s Block of the Month class
“The Twelve Days of Christmas.” Laura introduced me to the
world of appliqué, and I was hooked. And my quilt was used
as the cover for her pattern. Two months later Carolann
Palmer started a Block of the Month class at Keepsake
Cottage for her “Garden Windows” quilt, and this time I
enrolled enthusiastically. I finished both quilts within
the prescribed time and haven’t been without an appliqué
project since. |
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Luca |
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Luca is a Papillon, the
French word for butterfly so, of course, I had to make
several quilts in his honor. And the patterns are piling up
for future quilts. I am obsessed. |
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I love to piece and hand-quilt
but my first love is appliqué. Most evenings I settle down
after dinner, usually a dog in my lap, with an appliqué
project and I always seem to have at least one and usually
more in progress. |
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My quilting has no theme. I
quilt only for my own pleasure and make what interests me at
the time. If I see something I like that is the direction I
go. A traditional Hawaiian quilt may be followed by one of
Sara Nephew’s hexagon Serendipity quilts. |
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I have made many quilts for
friends’ books. I have been a member of QA since 1989 and
have met weekly with my Satellite Group, Loose Threads,
since 1991. Our constant exchange of ideas has been a major
influence on my quilting. Another group which has
contributed to my quilting life is the Monday Night Bowling
League. |
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For many years I have led a busy
double life, dog-training and quilt-making. I still have a
dog in training and love showing them in obedience, but
everything else has gradually been abandoned as I spend more
and more of my time making quilts. My quilting friends
think I shouldn’t be wasting my time on dogs, and my dog
friends think I shouldn’t be wasting my time with quilting. |
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I
am very pleased and honored to have been asked to display my
quilts at our 25th Anniversary Show. |
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