exhibit, but for
me there is nothing I love more than to pass on my skills and passion for quilting and see other ladies and the fellas extend their own boundaries and create a unique piece of work."
She said her first recollection of being creative was of being "nurtured by a beautiful lady, Olive Wiseman - I suspect long gone to heaven by now. She was the lady who first looked after my brothers, sister and myself when we were taken under the care of the NCH (National Children's Home). I was then aged 5. With patience and love she taught me how to knit and crochet and create lovely little works of art from scraps of fabric. And from then on I have never lost the thrill or passion that is stirred up when creating something new from 'scraps' of fabric!"
It is no surprise that 48 years later, Sue still gets that initial buzz when creating patchwork and contemporary quilts.
From leaving school with a total of five CSE's and being told by her needlework teacher that her sewing days were over, Sue went on to pursue her love of young children, gained her NNEB qualification and worked in education. "I soon discovered an outlet for my creativity, knew I had an eye for colour and enjoyed displaying the children's work in bold and dynamic ways. At every opportunity I would enhance my displays with fabric and embellishments."
During that time in the early 70s, Sue met her husband and had two children she describes as 'fabulous and creative'. Taking time out to look after them, she said she had a wonderful time letting all her original, creative juices flow and made a wide selection of craft items for sale. She also took the opportunity to return to college and gained City & Guilds qualifications in Soft Furnishing and Crafts & Toy Making. "I absolutely loved being at home, creating new clothes for both myself and the children"
Sue returned to work when the children went to school. In
this part of her career she supported and taught senior school students with Special Needs. It was not long before she introduced many traditional crafts, including quilting to the students. During this time her own work changed direction and Sue began to design and sew Church Banners. Some were donated gifts and others made as commissioned pieces. They can be found throughout the UK and internationally. "I gained tremendous pleasure from sharing my creations with others", said Sue enthusiastically.
Sue said it was inevitable that she would bump into the world of patchwork and quilting one day and this happened in the early 80s when she visited an exhibition and was hooked! Her first quilt was king-size, named 'On Safari. "I thought I would start big and work my way down", she said. "I used a mixture of fabrics, including my own hand dyed cloth, techniques, embellishments and dare I confess it? - scraps of fabric from a rather loud and funky trouser suit I had recently made."
She showed me the palm leaves in the quilt that used the fabric and asked, "Be honest would you be seen wearing that fabric without warning others - please wear sun-shades?"
Since spending some time in Africa, Sue has a love of all things African and often finds her ideas and work leaning towards the beautiful tones of oranges, reds and browns. She has made a series of quilts depicting this passion. The first was 'Massai Warriors', a double bed quilt using appliqué and free machining to create a selection of blocks showing Masks. A smaller, heavily embellished piece, 'Warriors with Shields' followed. "My wall hangings of single warriors are proving very popular for a workshop day", she says.
"I suspect that my prolific quilting comes from the fact that whenever I develop an idea, I usually end up creating a series of quilts and small wall hangings from that one original idea," explained Sue. Hence the group of quilts 'Layered Textured Circles' two of which were exhibited at the Festival of Quilts and received very favourable comments from the judges.
It is obvious that Sue has wide and varied tastes and loves to design and create both in traditional and contemporary style. "I love the initial thrill of collating the fabric and colour scheme and always keep a keen eye out in charity shops for funky embellishments". Appliqué is probably her favourite technique, providing the basis for further embellishment and creativity as in her 'sample' quilt, 'Lazing on a Sunny Afternoon, where beading, couching, water soluble fabric, free machining, Angelina fibres, gold foiling and much more have been added for an individual touch.
Sue is leader of The Canalside Quilters Group in Uppermill, Saddleworth and is grateful for all the support and encouragement she has received from members. Talking about encouragement from others, Sue said she had to thank her husband, Ken, for making her sewing room - "My little piece of heaven as I call it" - and her children. Alan and Rachel, for always believing in her and loving everything she made. She also wanted to say how much she owed to 'Patchwork & Quilting' magazine, not only for its inspiration, but also for giving her the chance to stop, have a brew and relax at least once a month when it arrived. Sue has worked in full time education for 25 years and says she loved passing on her love of quilting and skills through her teaching. She says it is what kept her motivated and sane! Now she explained that she was very excited to be moving into the next chapter of her sewing life. She has taken early retirement from work and now pursues her passion by teaching workshops, demonstrating and giving talks. She is about to fulfil one of her heart's desires - to hold a Solo Exhibition. Sue's other heart's desire is to produce a book. "I'm going to continue to be passionate about my quilting and enjoying creating with fabric ... so watch this space!"
I am sure we will be hearing more about Sue in the future and I look forward to seeing how her exciting work develops.
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