Member Profile: Meet Laura!

Laura's Favorite Quilt: Quaking Aspens at Dawn

The basics

Name:  Laura                            

Hometown:  Dublin

Current Home:   Clonee

Pets:  Would love to have a dog, but gone too long during the day to have one now.

Laura's Diamond Dazzler

The details

What is your day job?  Administrator

What is your current dream job?  Quilt shop owner

What is your favourite time waster?  Reading quilt blogs

Covet Thy Neighbor's Fabric

What are you working on now?  I just did a class on Kalaidescope quilts, so I have one of those.  Also have an appliqué wallhanging that I’m quilting and also have a small 16 block wallhanging that I’m doing too.

What do you want to be working on right now?  Exactly what I’m doing now.

Do you have other hobbies beyond quilting?  Travel, photography, gardening, reading.

What is your strongest positive personality trait?  Loyalty

What is your greatest fear (nothing morbid or spooky…in a lighter sense)?  Running out of fabric, but that’s never going to happen in my lifetime – stash is too big!

What started you quilting?  Went to Keepsake Quilting in the US and bought the fabric to make a quilt.  Signed up for classes.  That was in 1997 and I haven’t stopped since!

Joy

Laura's first quilt: Zach's Quilt

A Quick-fire Round….What is your Favourite
place to holiday:  USA

movie:  don’t have one

food:  pasta or fish

book:  don’t have one

band/song:  Dixie Chicks or Alisson Krauss

Hen Party

colour:  Too many to choose

saying:  Just do it.

fabric line:   Moda

sewing tool:   Bernina sewing machine

completed sewing project:   Quaking Aspens at Dawn – quilt I entered in Birmingham last year

Member Profile: Meet Karen!

The basics

Name: Karen Cassidy

Hometown: Shannon, Co. Clare

Current Home (with description of the town/neighbourhood): Industrial Town, not real pretty but hey!!!!! Its home :D

Blog address: My4lil Girls

Flickr name: can’t remember, but its on the blog

Family: Husband Aidan & 4 girls…Lauren 21, Sophie 20, Bethany 17 & Ella 8.

The details

What is your day job? Stay at home mom

What is your current dream job? Fabric Designer……maybe someday!!!

What is your favourite time waster? Blog browsing

What are you working on now?  Two quilts, a crochet blanket & two bags!!!!!!

What do you want to be working on right now? Another quilt for my nieces 21st

Do you have other hobbies beyond quilting? Would be gardener

Do you play sports?  Which ones? swimming

What is your strongest positive personality trait? Well I did ask my girls bout this one, I think they’re pretty good at being waaaaayyyyyy too honest with me, they reckon I’m pretty generous.  Thank God they had something nice to say J

What is your greatest fear (nothing morbid or spooky…in a lighter sense)? Really, I hate the thought of having to be stuck with a baby belly for the rest of my life.

Is there anything in your past that would shock us (that you’re willing to share)? Wayyyyy too much….how much time d’you have??????

What started you quilting? Well I’ve always sewn, it kinda runs in the family, but blogging inspired me to quilt.

Karen's first quilt - a baby quilt

A Quick-fire Round….What is your Favourite
place to holiday: Rome

movie: The color purple (have lots of favs though)

food: fresh fish in Dingle

colour: Green

saying: What you sew….you grow

Karen's favorite quilt with fabrics from Holland

fabric line: Have so many favs, but I’m pretty excited now as I’m waiting for some Freshcut to be delivered

fabric designer: Again lots of favs, but if I had to pick one I love Robyn Pandolph

sewing tool: Rotary cutter….thought  I was in heaven the first time I used one

completed sewing project: Def a quilt I made for my Husbands mom & dad, it was made from Robyn Pandolph fabric, never took a photo L

quick finish sewing project :I Love bags or a book covers

Karen's least favorite quilt: a Manchester United fan....at least he likes it!

Member Profile: Meet Irina!

It is my great pleasure to introduce to our group Miss Irina.  She is just super talented as she quilts, quills, sews and binds books.  Irina, please tell us a bit more about yourself!

The basics

Name: Irina

Hometown: Born in Barcelona

Current Home: I live on a tiny island called Aughinish, looking out Galway Bay on one side and The Burren on the other side. It’s paradise!

Blog address: http://www.el-petit-taller.blogspot.com

Flickr name: El-Petit-Taller

Family: My partner is a musician and we have one daughter Hana, who will be 3 very soon and a baby boy who is joining us in 12 weeks.

Pets: We have 2 cats, Sooty and Haggis, and 3 hens, Lola, Matilda and Kona.

One of Irina's Favorite Quilts: Hana's Quilt

Irina's First Quilt: Big Blue

The details
What is your day job? I’m a social care worker for a charity organisation who deals with the homeless.

What is your current dream job? mmm... something artistic whether it involves fabric, stitching, painting or playing music.

What did you want to be as a child? Too many things! I remember saying a vet, an actress, a musician… I changed my mind all the time.

What is your favourite time waster? internet

What are you working on now? a commissioned baby quilt, a knitted hat, birthday decorations plus university assignments…

What do you want to be working on right now? I’d rather be sewing than writing college assignments!

Do you have other hobbies beyond quilting? I like quilling, knitting, playing music, bird watching, reading, cooking…

Do you play sports? I started playing badminton for the craic just before I got pregnant and I loved it, so I hope to go back as soon as I’m fit enough.

What is your strongest positive personality trait? Optimism, and being able to see the positive side of things.

What started you quilting? I always liked crafts and patchwork, but I really got seriously into patchwork after visiting an exhibition about 6 years ago.

A Quick-fire Round….What is your Favourite
place to holiday: San Francisco and surroundings
movie: Local Hero
food: pasta
book: I’ll go for a children’s one! Room in the Broom by Julia Donaldson.
band/song: The Pretenders
colour: Dark Red
fabric line: Sugar and Spice, Bliss, Awesome, Little Apples…
fabric designer: Riley Blake, Henry Miller, Heather Bailey… all of them!
sewing tool: sewing machine
completed sewing project: most recently, fabric baskets.
quick finish sewing project: The Stripy Baby Quilt
project when you need a quick finish: coasters or a pillow dress…

Irina's Least Favorite Quilt: The Scrappy Quilt

Irina's Favorite Quick Project: Stripy Baby Quilt

Member Profile: Meet Sarah!

Well, as Cindy is away I am introducing myself here so I'm skipping the nice intro because it would just be weird! All I'm going to say is have fun reading some more about me!

The basics

Name:  Sarah

Hometown: A small village in east Co. Meath

Current Home: Just outside Cork city, I'm a long way from home!

Blog address: www.fairyfacedesigns.blogspot.com

Flickr name: Sarah @ FairyFace Designs

Family: My lovely hubbie, and 2 little terrors (a boy and girl aged 5 and 4)

Pets: None, not now, not ever!

The details

What is your day job? I work in human resources

What is your current dream job? Ooh - a combination of quilt designer, quilt seller, sewing tutor and fabric shop owner. I'd love to run a creative space in Cork combining all those things, where people could come and have fun, make things, drop in casually, attend classes etc. I'm still dreaming!

What did you want to be as a child? A teacher (hilarious, I would be the worst teacher in the world!)

What is your favourite time waster? My laptop/iPhone....Facebook, Flickr, Blogs....endless entertainment
 

What are you working on now? I have 3 quilts on the go at the moment, plus a doll quilt swap

What do you want to be working on right now? A quilt for my son D, but I haven't finished the design!

Do you have other hobbies beyond quilting? I like to knit and crochet too, plus I love to read. I love to watch good tv too...roll on Game of Thrones series 2!

Do you play sports?  Which ones? Can you call dancing and swinging a 4 year old around a sport? It's definitely good exercise.

What is your strongest positive personality trait? Enthusiasm

What is your greatest fear (nothing morbid or spooky…in a lighter sense)? My sewing machine breaking down the week of a deadline!

Is there anything in your past that would shock us (that you’re willing to share)? Eh no.....

What started you quilting? I learned to sew and made lots of stuff including baby blankets, then someone asked me to make a quilt for them (2 actually) and I said yes without really realising what I was getting myself into! I blame her for my addiction.

A Quick-fire Round….What is your Favourite

place to holiday: Italy

movie: Lord of the Rings.... or Notting Hill. I know, they are not remotely related.

food: Thai, or Pizza

book: Em...Lord of the Rings!! (spot the recurring theme). I also love Maggie O'Farrell, Kate Atkinson and Margaret Atwood's books.

band/song: Florence and the Machine

colour: Aqua

saying: I'm so tired...... (I'm a night owl but my kids don't respect that and like to get up at 7am!)

fabric line: Don't have one - I'm a mix and match girl! Love to put together my own combos of fabrics.

fabric designer: Don't really have one either but I do love Denyse Schmidt, Kate Spain, Bonnie and Camille...anything bright and modern really!

sewing tool: I love my Creative Grids cutting ruler, its brilliant for accurate cutting

quick finish sewing project: phone cozy

project completed by you: oooh, tough one, its hard to pick! I love my hand quilted circles mug rug:

But at the moment I am completely in love with my Ruby quilt. The top is done and I have my backing fabric, all ready to baste next. This one will be a keeper :-)

Member Profile: Meet Fiona!

I'm really excited to introduce you to Fiona! Fiona is a super talented quilter, and one of the people responsible for running the Sew Irish Flickr group and Facebook page. She makes the most beautiful quilts, mug rugs, coin purses and lots of other goodies, many of which you can buy in her Etsy store, and she also sells fab Egyptian cotton thread here which is perfect for quilting. Tell us more Fiona.... 

Name: Fiona Leontis

Hometown: Dublin

Current Home: North County Dublin near the coast

Blog address: www.patchworkdelights.blogspot.com

Flickr name: patchworkdelights

Family: yes, hubby and two lovely boys

Pets: 1 fish which recently became 3 (we thought no babies involved)

What is your day job: legal secretary

Dream job: to do my hobby full time, be a stay at home mum, cook, bake and see my kids

What did you want to be as a kid; hmm cannot really remember...

What is your favourite time waster: the computer stops me getting on and making stuff for my shop

What are you working on now: in reality a customised baby quilt that is WAY over due, drawstring bags, and in my head 10 million things I would like to make

Do you play sports: yes chasing my kids to tidy up after themselves!

 What is your strongist positive personality trait: open to new ideas

What is your greatest fear: not answering this one.

 Is there anything in your past that would shock us: no comment

What started you quilting; mum + pincushion = resurrecting my hobby

Place to holiday: Of course Greece being that hubby is Athenian!

Movie: Under the Tuscan Sun, Priscilla Queen of the Desert and 51st State... oh long list

Food: Greek and Italian

Book: Sarah Allen Addison - she's only written 4 or five but I love them!

Band/song: Gotye

Colour: red

Saying: there's always someone worse off

Fabric line: Michael Miller (but really all of them, you know, depends what they are bringing out - Monaluna for example.... ah all of them really!)

 Fabric designer: same as above

 Sewing tool: needle and thread - love small stitches

Completed sewing project: my tumblr quilt

Quick finishing project: baby ball

Fi, it was great getting to know a little more about you! Thanks for sharing :-)

Member Profile: Meet Emily

It is our great pleasure to introduce another MQG Ireland member, Emily.  Drop a comment below to say hi, please!  Emily, take it away....

The basics

Name: Emily Muldoon

Hometown: Charlotte, NC, USA

Current Home: Salthill, Galway City, we are a 7 minute walk to Galway Bay and 4 minutes to the nearest pub! J 

(Editor's note: We American quilters living in Galway just might take over the guild.... let's talk!)

Blog address: http://tworedwellies.blogspot.com

Flickr name: emily.muldoon

Family: not yet, but I currently play house with my boyfriend Brian

Pets: yes please!

Emily's first quilt made (with a little help from her mom) for her boyfriend Brian's birthday.

The details

What is your day job?  Accounting (student)

What is your current dream job? Running a fabric store sounds fun! I would love to be the one to choose all the products to sell… and the one who gets to decorate the store!

What did you want to be as a child?  It was always to play in an orchestra! I majored in oboe performance for my Bachelor’s, but with my nerves and the frustrating reedmaking, doing it as a full time career was too much for me. I didn’t want to live a life that I would be constantly under pressure and stressed.

What is your favourite time waster? Browsing Flickr and pinning on Pinterest. Although they are not necessarily useless time wasters, as I learn something daily and are great for inspiration, but I waste a huge portion of my days on them. Definitely need to limit this and have more time to create myself!

What are you working on now? I’m finishing up a diaper changing pad ordered by a friend, finishing a dress, and knitting my first arm warmers.

Emily's favorite quilt!

What would you like to be working on? I am wanting to start the first quilt for our bed! The current debate is HSTs or stars…

Do you have other hobbies beyond quilting? Irish trad music, I play the whistle!

Do you play sports?  Which ones? I used to play gaelic football back in Charlotte, but not since I moved over. I don’t think they’d allow me to play! ;) I am learning to love to run though, I’m hoping to do my first half marathon this summer.

What is your strongest positive personality trait? I suppose my thoughtfulness to others. While I love making things for me, I honestly love making things more for other people, and I love to give surprises!

What is your greatest fear (nothing morbid or spooky…in a lighter sense)? Getting hit by a car over here from not looking the right direction before crossing the road!

What started you quilting? My mother has been quilting for the past 30+ years, and although she taught me at a young age, I had no interest then. Then some time after college, when I returned back home, my best friend had really taken off with quilting (my mom had taught her how!), so she inspired me to try it out again. I searched the web for ideas for quilts I might like to make, and that’s when I came across Anna Maria Horner’s blog, and that was it! I fell in love. I’ve only been sewing & quilting since 2009, so I have a lot of catching up to do! J 

Emily's least favorite quilt.  Here's what she has to say "It was for my good friend’s baby shower- I decided to do a quilt semi-last minute, so I pulled scraps together and backed it with her crib’s sheet print.  I almost didn’t want to give it to her, I think it’s so ugly.( It’s not even shared on my Flickr!)"  Editor's note: It's out there now, Emily...there's no hiding :)

A Quick-fire Round….What is your Favourite
place to holiday: any and everywhere! Italy & Spain are currently my favorites.

movie: The Holiday, Elf

food: sushi (anyone know of a place in Galway?)

song: Fields of Gold  (Eva Cassidy’s version)

colour: green

saying: The door of opportunity only opens once.

fabric line: Good Folks, Loulouthi & Echo
fabric designer: Anna Maria Horner hands down

sewing tool: my seam ripper comes in handy often! ;)
project completed by you: hmm, I need to do better projects I guess!
project when you need a quick finish: zip pouches
Emily, it was a pleasure getting to know you a bit better.  Thank you so much for sharing your quilty history with us!  

Member Profile: Meet Moira!

I am so very excited to introduce Moira!  I first saw her work at the National Exhibition of the Irish Patchwork Society, themed "Branching Out".  I thought it was just spectacular, so she is here to share it with you too.  Take it away, Moira!



The basics
Name: Moira Byrne


Current Home: Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland…on east coast just 12 miles from Dublin City Centre, Bray was a popular Victorian Seaside resort but became a commuter town for Dublin quickly with waves of new houses up to the recent Celtic tiger crash.


Family: One husband and grown up (38 year old) son, three grand kids 18, 12,9 and one great grandchild


Pets: two bold dogs

Poppies and Daisies

Poppies and Daisies Detail

The details
What is your day job? Environmental Awareness Officer with Wicklow County Council


What is your current dream job? What I have.


What did you want to be as a child? A doctor.

An tInbhear Mhór faoin Gréine

An tInbhear Mhor (detail of sun)

What is your favourite time waster? Looking at quilts and looking at quilting on the internet.


What are you working on now? A quilt for my friend Ann.  It’s an Amish Braid quilt made in Japanese
colourful fabrics and plum, with trapunto Japanese /Chinese characters.


What do you want to be working on right now? What I’m doing.


Do you have other hobbies beyond quilting? Reading, the internet, painting and drawing.


Do you play sports? Which ones?not a chance!


What is your strongest positive personality trait? I like people.

Apples and Plums

What is your greatest fear? Not using all the fabric I have bought!


Is there anything in your past that would shock us (that you’re willing to share)? Not a chance!


What started you quilting? I always sewed..clothes, furnishings etc but I wanted to paint in fabric

Spring Tulips

A Quick-fire Round….What is your Favourite
place to holiday: Lucca in Italy
food: Raspberries
book: A House for Mr Biswas by V.S. Naipal
band/song: Sitting on the doc of the Bay, Ottis Reading, and my hubby’s Ukelele Group
colour: Anything from Mauve to Purple
saying: It’s easier to be forgiven than to get permission and Is binn an t-anlann an t-ochras (Hunger is the
best sauce)
fabric line: All of them
sewing tool: My sewing machine

Bog Music