Nancy has had a needle and thread in her hands since

she was 7. Her Mom taught her how to sew and she has

been creating clothing and fiber art for over 60 years.

Anything to do with thread or yarn, from knitting to

cross stitch to needlepoint to embroidery to crewel work,

and even stained glass have been part of Nancy’s creative world.

 

When she moved to Portland in 1997, she started quilting which

has been her passion ever since. Needle turn applique, and paper

piecing are particular favorites since the Pandemic; wool and wool-felt

applique with embellishments have been added to the list of technique accomplishments. All of these are on her radar for inspiration and project designs.

 

She and her husband, George, of 51 years, who met while in college, have traveled the world because of his career with the USAF. Even her career as a cartographer, photogrammetrist and geographer of over 30 years has inspired her artistic view of the world.

 

After retiring in 2007 from USGS, Nancy started her home-based business Blue Heron Quilts selling fabric and quilting supplies. She brings a carload of offerings to the CCQ Stash Busters each year. Teaching is also her passion, which includes classes at Mt. Hood Community College, Just for Fun Quilting, Quilt ‘n Sew and CCQ Saturday Workshops to name a few.

 

Her students and other quilting friends are very familiar with her extensive UFO Project List which stubbornly hovers around 140. Nancy is a night owl and her best ideas for original designs come to her in the middle of the night.

 

Nancy’s 3 hardest quilting lessons:

   1.  After using a 5/8” seam allowance in clothing construction for so many years, accepting that a ¼” seam allowance, indeed, will hold a quilt together through thick and thin and numerous washings. 

​

   2.  When I sent a quilt for the first time to be quilted by a long arm quilter, I had to work through the emotional angst that the quilt would no longer be ‘mine’. Only to realize the quilt now looks so much better than I could have hoped for with my own quilting. Since that epiphany, some of my quilts have been going to the long armer and some are quilted by me.

​

   3.  I’m a perfectionist and realizing that a quilt doesn’t have to be perfect took a long time for me to accept... When, NOT IF, there’s an oops, it’s an opportunity to be creative and make the quilt truly “mine” and a one-of-a-kind, and by-the-way, PERFECT