MEET JANELLE WIND

2. What is it that you love about being a quilter?

For me, stitching and making quilts is like breathing. It is a necessary part of who I am. I am a perfectionist at heart and after trying many (and I mean many) crafts over the years, I have found that patchwork and I are a perfect match. This is the one hobby where I can see something in my brain and replicate it with fabric. It brings me immense joy and I love to see others be bitten by this bug too. It is infectious.

3. What lead you to being a pattern designer?

When my first child was 6 months old, I was encouraged by my local fabric store owner to write my own pattern and to teach for her too. Having a Primary Teacher background (before kids), I loved the idea of teaching adults. At that time, there was also a gap in the pattern market for high quality, easy to follow patchwork patterns. This was 16 years ago, so it was before the internet had really taken off, before Pinterest, before free tutorials. Paper patterns were highly sought after, especially ones that gave you all that you needed to complete the project. So it was 16 years ago that I designed a table runner as a gift for my mother, and that table runner became my first pattern and first project taught to my students also. It was in country colours, and did involve a lot of small pieces, but from this project my students learnt to cut, piece, press, quilt and bind – all necessary components to have the skills to make more quilts on their own.

4. What gives you the most joy from creating and sharing pattern?

I LOVE to see others create quilts, achieve techniques they may not have tried before and actually have success in whatever project they would like to make. Over my 16 years of teaching, I have had many students arrive in my class with a basket full of quilt tops and not know how to quilt or finish their quilts. Other students have been afraid to use a sewing machine. Together, we have conquered fears, learnt simple steps and processes to finish projects and had a lot of fun. I also really really love to see photos of my projects that others have made. This definitely brings me much joy and happiness.