Tell us about yourself.

I am a quilter, and I love what I do. You may know me, not because of my designs, but because I run a group called Nine Patch A Day Group on Facebook where I go live most Sunday evenings to talk about quilting. My friends and family joke that I am a "recovering" shop owner. I owned The Quilt Company, a full-service quilt shop in Allison Park, PA for 28 years. I design rulers for Creative Grids, including the Quick Trim and Circle Rulers and the Scrap Crazy series of templates. I also dabble in designing fabric. One of my most recent designs is part of the Splendid Path collection for Studio E. I've been happily married for 46 years, and I am the mother to 3 great kids and grandmother to 2 amazing grandchildren. After retiring from retail, my husband and I moved to Amelia Island, Florida. Now those kids and grandkids have a reason to visit the old people - a beach!

Splendid Path Dots and Holes design: https://studioefabrics.net/splendid-path/

What inspires you?

I find inspiration in everything from unique color combinations to repetitive patterns. I love the details in old buildings, everything, from the tile floors, and brickwork, to the carved details. It is not unusual for my vacation photos to include church floors, odd doors, railings, flower arrangements, and no people! When I get "stuck" for a creative idea, I wander around the China department in high-end department stores.  I like the contrast of detailed designs against the negative space. It helps me clear my head! As for my design process, it can best be described as "messy". I am a scrap quilter at heart. I live by the motto "out of sight, out of mind", so I like to wallow in my fabrics -- everything, everywhere all at once, until it is time to clear the decks and start something new. My husband, a die-hard neat person likes to say that I don't put things away if I plan to use them again in this lifetime. I'm not quite that bad, but he does stay out of my sewing room.

Studio E Fabrics Splendid Path by Chelsea DesignWorks with Karen Montgomery

Tell us about your fabric.

I made a small contribution to the Splendid Path collection. My Dots & Holes print is a result of my quest to make fabric work for me. My thought process was to work backward from what the finished quilt would look like. To make a quilt that looked like curved piecing, what fabric I would need? How would that fabric be cut? Before the fabric would be cut, how would it be printed? Should it be a hard edge or a soft edge? If technical information, like using specialty tools for cutting, allowing for shrink, space between designs, scale, ease of piecing, and maximum use of the yardage is considered at the beginning of the design process, I think you get fabric that is really fun to work with!

View the Splendid Path Dots and Holes Free Quilt Project here: https://studioefabrics.net/splendid-path-dots-and-holes-quilt/

The Dots and Holes print is one single fabric, not a collection, so the variety of quilts that can be made from a single fabric is limited. That does not mean they are all the same. There are dozens of curved, Drunkard path style quilts, in a variety of layouts to choose from. The dot print can also be cut in half to make a beautiful scalloped border. The holes are perfect for featuring machine or hand embroidery or even to be used as quilt labels. I can't wait to see what our creative community makes!

View the Splendid Path Free Quilt Project here: https://studioefabrics.net/splendid-path-quilt-1/

What advice do you have for the new maker? 

Find a creative home. If you are a quilter, find a local quilt shop and make friends with the staff and other customers. Attend classes and demos on everything related to your creative journey. Many times, you will take a class and what you learn is that you "never want to do that again". That is an important learning experience! You have narrowed your focus. Learn to do things more than one way. Never limit yourself by saying "I can't do that", because I am confident you can.