OUR CURRENT EDUCATORS
Unsurpassed artistry.
Belle Brunner
Belle began quilting in in her mid-40’s and quickly fell in love with the craft. After taking an intensive pattern writing course, she began designing and publishing quilt patterns. She focuses on confident beginner patterns and techniques that even advanced quilters love to make and believes that all people, of any age, can learn to quilt. Her patterns are sold by major distributors and The Fat Quarter Shop. Belle is a brand ambassador for Havels Sewing, The Daylight Company, and Oliso. She is a former 2022 Maywood Studio Maker and is a 2023 Instructor for the American Quilters Society. She and her father own an AIRBNB in a national forest where she hosts small quilting retreats.
Having spent years helping non-profits and boards of directors, Belle expanded her Seams Sew Me business to also specialize in providing leadership, governance, consulting and education for quilt guilds’ boards of directors. She believes that strong inclusive guilds contribute to strong communities. She leads and teaches with her two leading values: of compassion and understanding.
Learn more about Belle at https://www.seamssewme.com/
Gudrun Erla
Gudrun Erla, the designer and owner of GE Designs was born and raised in Iceland. She started quilting at the age of 23. After owning and running quilt shops in her home country and designing patterns along the way, quilting brought her to Minnesota in 2003. Since then Gudrun has been designing full time, publishing patterns and books as well as designing groundbreaking tools for quilting for years, including the best selling Stripology rulers. Gudrun loves to take traditional ideas and put a little bit of a modern spin on them. All her patterns and books are geared toward today’s quilt makers, easy and innovative with a modern touch.
Jennie Lamb
Sewing has always been an influential part of my life. Growing up, there isn’t a time I can remember that my grandmother, mother, and aunt weren’t sewing or creating their next masterpiece. Naturally, I began with handwork; that evolved into garment sewing. Not long thereafter, I began quilting and the rest was history! In the last twenty years quilting has become my passion. Now, designing beautiful patterns is also a huge part of that passion.
I wake up everyday feeling blessed to watch my family grow in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Aside from quilting, I thrive on spending time with those I love.
I am a quilt pattern designer from the Pacific Northwest. Quilting is my passion and it seems that it has naturally evolved into quilt pattern writing. I started sewing at about 5 years old and have been sewing or quilting ever since. Writing patterns gives me an avenue to share my love of this art with others!
Joan Ford
On February 8, 2003, Joan Ford took her first quilting class and was hooked! Since then, Joan has completed countless quilts – hundreds and hundreds. But who’s counting?!
In 2006, Joan established her company, Hummingbird Highway. She has taught workshops, featuring the popular ScrapTherapy book and pattern series which helps quilters relieve the guilt of a growing scrap fabric stash.
A thorough overview of the process is detailed in the book ScrapTherapy®, Cut the Scraps! published by The Taunton Press. Her second and third book in the Scrap Therapy series ScrapTherapy®, Scraps Plus One! patterns and ScrapTherapy, The Verstaile Nine Patch, were released by The Taunton Press in 2013 and 2017.
As an avid bird lover, Joan developed a monthly pieced pattern series called The FLOCK. A new patchwork bird kit is shipped to member quilters each month. She is currently developing new techniques and online classes to combine quilting and charted stitchery.
As owner of Hummingbird Highway, LLC, Joan designs in her home studio and office. Joan, her husband, Dave, and their three pet birds live in Syracuse, New York.
Peggy Gelbrich
Peggy is returning for her 3rd cruise with Quilting Adventures. She’s a patient, caring and very informative educator. We can’t wait to cruise with her again.
Peggy has been quilting and helping others learn the joy of quilt making for over 40 years. As a quilt teacher, sharing the art of quilt making is her passion. She has taught quilt making across the United States and in Canada teaching at large guild classes, quilting retreats and small private groups in her home. Her teaching style won her a nomination for Quilt Teacher of the Year sponsored by the Professional Quilter.
Peggy loves making traditional quilt patterns look new again with modern fabrics and techniques. She enjoys trying and learning different techniques in the quilt making process, always looking for an easier way to conquer those seemingly intricate patterns.
Originally from Oregon, Peggy spent 22 years in Ketchikan, Alaska with her husband, Ron, raising their three children. With the children grown she and her husband have come back home to Oregon.
To see more of Peggy’s work, visit her website: https://yellowhousequilter.com/
Linda Hahn
Rebecca Lidstrom
Rebecca Lidstrom is the founder and creative force behind Studio R Quilts. She is an enthusiastic quilter, designer, and instructor.
Rebecca made her first quilt in 2004 and immediately fell in love with all things quilting. She incorporates simple design changes to create dynamic quilts that are easy to make. Her quilts and patterns have been featured in various quilting magazines and she is a 2023 Maywood Maker.
In addition to quilt pattern design, Rebecca presents lectures and trunk shows to quilt guilds. She also teaches workshops and classes to guilds and quilt shops. She creates from her studio in Madison, WI.
You can find Rebecca online at www.studiorquilts.com. She is also on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube @studiorquilts.
Sherida Giddings
As a Quiltworx Certified Instructor since 2015, Sherida has found a way to combine her love of teaching, with the sharing of the precision of Judy’s paper piecing techniques. It is a wonderful feeling to encourage others to develop more confidence in their own skills while creating something special, and having fun at the same time. While she has won ribbons in her local quilt shows, it is even more rewarding to see her students complete their projects and win ribbons Sherida will happily travel anywhere in Canada and further abroad. She looks forward to sharing her growing collection of quilts as a Trunk Show, as well the having the opportunity to teach at shops, guilds and retreats.
Johanne Moore
Johanne is an accomplished quilter and long armer, who has been involved in all aspects of sewing since she was a teen. She has worked at local quilt shops and taught a multitude of different quilting classes, including Quiltworx paper piecing, and is involved with teaching new quilters in 4H. She has taken classes from local and international quilt teachers, including Judy Niemeyer and various Quiltworx Certified Instructors. Her piecing and long arm work has been featured in several quilting magazines and a book.
Tracey Stinger & Becky Malarski
Meet Tracey and Becky, the dynamic duo of the quilting world and sisters with boundless passion and expertise.
Tracey, a Certified Instructor for Studio 180 Designs and Regional Sales Manager for QT Fabrics and Island Batiks, brings precision piecing and fabric selection to the forefront.
Meanwhile, Becky, owner of Sew in Stitches Quilt Shoppe and a recovering school teacher with a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction, infuses her teaching prowess and nurturing spirit into every aspect of their quilting journey.
Together, they form an unstoppable force, blending their vibrant personalities and shared love for quilting to inspire and empower enthusiasts worldwide. Whether through dynamic classes, innovative workshops, or their infectious enthusiasm, Tracey and Becky are on a mission to ignite creativity and camaraderie within the quilting community
Cheran Bee
Mostly, I’d say I don’t come from a sewing family. When I was about 12, I saw an old, unloved sewing machine way in the back of my maternal Grandmother’s closet. It took two years of wheedling, pleading and begging my mother to borrow it from her so I could get my hands on it. I knew I wanted to sew. Almost as much as my mother wanted me NOT to sew. She really didn’t enjoy it – to the point that she took the “F” in high school home economics rather than sew the project for the class – and she did not want to be responsible for teaching me how to sew. So I figured it out.
Fast forward a few years and I finally had my very own machine. I had piddled around making stuffed bunnies, crafty things and very cute outfits for my nieces. Until, one day my new-very-best-friend asked if I wanted to help her make a baby quilt for someone. That was it. I found my thing. It’s been more than 30 years sine that day and I still love it. After we made that first quilt, I wrote my paternal grandmother a letter, telling her all about it. I knew she knitted, needlepointed and wove, but I didn’t know she quilted. A week later, I received a package from her. A beautiful blue postage stamp quilt, hand quilted with red thread. From that quilt grew a 25 year correspondence of letters, scraps of fabric and photographs of the quilts we were working on. That relationship was a beautiful gift, one that I’ll always treasure.
In 2010, my husband and I both lost our jobs within a month of each other, at the beginning of the worst economy of our lives. Which turned out to be another gift, because we started Fiddlesticks Quilt Shop. Now I get to work everyday doing something I love, spending time with other people who love quilting as much as I do. I’ve met many people who have enriched my life and become lovely friends who share the love of fabric, color and quilts. My still-very-best-friend and I have completely corrupted my sister Treena, who is now a quilter, fabric collector and works at the shop with me.
In 2015 we were honored to be chosen as a Top Ten Quilt Shop by American Patchwork and Quilting