HAND QUILTING, NATURAL DYES & FABRIC

Quilting

All my work is done by hand and machine pieced. Most often hand quilted with traditional cotton quilting thread or Japanese sashiko thread as well a second hand threads. My quilt designs are intuitively pieced or inspired by traditional quilt patterns that span many years and cultures and re-imagined in a contemporary style. I mix naturally hand dyed fabric with vintage/second hand fabric and also make quilts entirely out of naturally dyed fabric.

Natural Dyes

I truly fell in love with natural dyeing the first time I dyed a piece of fabric using the skins of yellow onions. The beautiful golden yellow that came from what is normally discarded opened up a new world of wonderful color possibilities only the earth could produce. I hand dye 100% natural fibers in small batches using plants, food scraps and minerals that I grow or forage for in and around Baltimore, dyes that I can not locally source like cochineal (bugs - that produce a brilliant magenta) I order online from a small business who sustainably source their dyes.

Fabric

I search thrift stores for 100% cotton or linen table cloths, bed sheets, and curtains for natural dyeing along with any vintage linens already dyed or printed with a pattern. All fabric used for natural dyeing is scoured (boiled) to remove any oils or waxes that may be hidden within the fibers that make up the fabric. After scouring, I prep the fabric for natural dyes using a mordant, this helps adhere the dye to the fabric.