Meet the CQMagOnline.com Staff

Nora Creeach

Nora is a founding member of the CQMagOnline.com staff.  She served as Editor for many years and kept the magazine alive through sheer force of will.

Nora has been married to the same man for over 35 years and they have 2 sons. Her sons have made Nora and her husband grandparents nine times and great-grandparents four times.

Fifteen years ago she designed and they built their dream retirement home, a log cabin, in East Texas in the resort area of Lake Tawakoni. They've since retired and are enjoying country life.

Nora's been a crafter as long as she can remember. In her family it was considered an insult to purchase gifts. The feeling prevailed that if you didn't care enough to make something for someone you shouldn't bother with a gift at all. She was raised in Canada where she was taught by French Nuns. Because of the harsh winters they had a lot of indoor activities which included learning many of the different crafts and needlework.

Knitting, crochet and tatting never "took" with her. It seemed the more she tried the more nervous it made her and the tighter her work became until she could no longer insert the needle to make the next stitch. Conversely, embroidery was something that relaxed her and she loved it from the very beginning.

Silk Ribbon Embroidery is Nora's own personal love. She's taught "in person" classes in the past and now teaches at Crafty College. Nora invites you to join the fun and learn Silk Ribbon Embroidery. It can be a very useful and lucrative addition to your crafting portfolio.

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Rissa Peace Root

Rissa has been actively stitching most of her life.  She has studied a wide variety of beading, embroidery and quilting techniques over the years and has a large web site devoted to the needle arts, complete with a stitch dictionary. (http://www.prettyimpressivestuff.com)

Through her contacts on the Internet, she was able to meet other people with similar interests in her own state, as well as across the globe and has participated in seminars and projects across the country.  She has taken classes from many nationally and internationally known teachers; Susan O'Connor, Marie Yolande, Judy Jeroy, Lynn Payette, Bobbie Chase, Vickie Adams Brown, Carolyn Standing Webb, Barbara Jackson, and Catherine Jordan among them.  

In 2002, she began Mississippi NeedleArts, a non-profit educational organization, and got it chartered as the first chapter of the Embroiderers’ Guild of America (EGA) in her state. She now serves as Immediate Past President and Newsletter Editor. Rissa is also the Vice President and Region Representative for CyberStichers, the only online Chapter of the EGA.  In addition, she still finds time to serve as the Education Chair for the Tennessee Valley Region (TVR). She is always looking for ways to recruit and retain members.  Rissa was honored with EGA's Gold Thread Award for the TVR at the National Seminar in October 2006.  She was also nominated for the South Central Region's Heart and Hand Award. 

Rissa recently took over as Editor and Publisher, when Nora was diagnosed with cancer. 

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Lynn Schoeffler

Hi, I'm Lynn Schoeffler, and I live in Southern California: I struggle madly every day to find enough time for my CQ projects. I have lots of enthusiasm to share with the online CQ community, and to that end, I have even learned to work a digital camera and more computer programs than I ever wanted to know about. I've been doing some form of needlework for over 30 years, usually needlepoint and embroidery; I learned Brazilian Embroidery from some of the first practitioners in this country and went on to teach classes myself.

My husband and I have owned and operated our own business for many years, and raised two great kids in the meantime. Recently our daughter has joined us in the office on a part time basis as she finishes school, which gives me a little more time. You'll find me at the bead, fabric and antique shops up and down the coast of California, augmenting my ever-expanding stash.

Crazy Quilting is an art form I'll probably never tire of -- there is always so much to learn!

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Allison Aller

Allison was a design major at Cornell University, and this fundamental education has served her well in her 30 years of quilt making. She has been involved in pieced bed quilts, landscape wall-hangings, stained glass quilts, and crazy quilting, and is interested in combining all those genres in contemporary ways.

She lives in Washougal, Washington, where the beauty of the Cascade foothills and the Columbia River Gorge have a major impact on her palette and her subject matter. Gardening is her second love after quilting, and that plays a role in her work as well.

Allison has been happily married to husband Robert, a retired airline pilot, for 27 years. They have two boys, both of whom are computer experts, aged 18 and 21.

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Barbara Blankenship

I have had an interest in art, in one form or another, dating back to the first grade. Beginning with oil painting and cake decorating in the early 1970’s, I’ve dabbled in many art mediums. My Mom was a wonderful seamstress and passed on her love of embroidery, cross stitch, crochet, and needlepoint. I learned the art of hand quilting and pieced my first “sane” quilt in 1965. I never felt I had found my niche in life, so over the years I continued to search for that one art form that would bring satisfaction.

In the late 1990’s I signed up for a class in crazy quilting at our local quilt shop taught by Jan Campbell. I had always been interested in Victorian crazy quilting but felt it was beyond my abilities. But this was absolutely wonderful! It was creative, did not require a pattern, and in a unique way it was only limited by my own imagination.

Several years later I attended the Crazy Quilt Convention in Omaha, NE and met Victoria Adams Brown. I took her classes in button embellishments, silk ribbon embroidery and burnt silk. An irreversible “addict” was born. She has been my inspiration. I was thrilled when Vickie invited me to design two bras for her newly-organized foundation: A WAY TO WOMEN’S WELLNESS (http://www.wtww.org)

My latest project was embellishing a table runner pieced by Jan Campbell. We donated our work to be auctioned as a fundraiser for the local theatre group.

I am a native Texan and my husband, Jim, and I live on a 40’ motorsailer on the Gulf Coast. In November, we will celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. We have one son, Jason, who lives in New Mexico where he works as the director of a drug abuse clinic. He is definitely our “pride and joy.”

My husband has always had a dream of living on a boat and this became a reality four years ago. Although it has proven to be a wonderful lifestyle, I must admit to how he convinced me to sell our home and move. With little demands for yard work and cleaning, I was promised that I could crazy quilt all I wanted to.

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Sharon Boggon

Sharon Boggon is a textile artist living in Canberra Australia who holds a Masters of Arts, has exhibited work throughout Australia and has works held in private collections and the Canberra Museum and Gallery. Sharon has taught in the Textiles Workshop and the Digital Media Studio at the School of Art, Australia National University since 1997.

After life time interest in embroidery Sharon has recently returned to her studio to pursue a long held interest in the art of embroidery and crazy quilting full time. With hopes to develop a second career Sharon is following another key interest in her life that of assisting those who are currently in the field of recreational textiles to develop self expression and their creative abilities.

Sharon Boggon has a stitch dictionary which has been online since 1997. In January of 2004 Sharon Boggon started a blog under the title In a Minute Ago. Originally seen as a place to keep track of the numerous sites she has become interested in, it demonstrates how this technology can link up and assist creative communities online.

Home page and stitch dictionary & In a Minute Ago – a textile weblog

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Jakkie Lease

Art has always been woven in and out of my life. My mother was a tailor by profession, and accomplished needlewoman by desire. When we were small girls she would let my sisters and I use the sewing machine to make doll clothes. We were so young that she had to move the foot peddle to the sewing machine top. She taught us to use the foot peddle with our elbow.

My love for specialty quilting was a gift from my mother, she taught me patience and, that the finished product is the reward.
I’m a member of Watercolor Workshop, Wet Canvas, and Allegany Arts council Societies and several Yahoo groups focusing on crazyquilting. My watercolors and crazyquilt needlework is currently showing at The Gallery in Oakland, Md , Arts at Canal Place, Cumberland, MD and at the Cullinaire Café in Cumberland, MD.

My joy is sharing my love for needlework and painting.

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Kimber Pekora

Kimber Pekora is a founding member of the CQMagOnLine Staff. She has been doing Crazy Quilting for about six years and has won awards for her work. She has attended classes with Carol Samples, Victoria Adams Brown and Irene Kerr. Kimber and her husband Joe live in New Jersey, have a boating business, and are the proud parents of twin boys. She enjoys Silk Ribbon Embroidery, Beading, and her newest venture, Brazilian Dimensional Embroidery. Kimber is a member of the Jersey Cape Atlantic Chapter of the Embroiders Guild of America and the South Jersey Crazy Quilters Guild .She is also a licensed Cosmetologist.

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Cherie M. Thompson

Cherie was born in beautiful Bondi Beach lived by the seaside for most of her life and now her haven is close to the hustle and bustle of Sydney where op shops, garage sales, markets and craft fairs are her haunts.

A true blue Aussie she has adored needlework since a small girl. Her
grandmothers both taught her to knit and embroider and as soon as her feet could touch the pedal on the old Singer treadle machine she was creating.

From this ancient machine she dressed her two girls, made them dolls and toys as well as soft furnishings when money was tight. A memorable stint as a machinist for a shirt manufacturer, during the 70s, nurtured and developed her love of fine fabric. The collecting began, the stash grew and now she knows why she could never part with the fabric, buttons, braids and all kinds of magical haberdashery.

In 2003 after graduating with a Sociology degree she started cross stitch, tassel making and knitting but the passion was missing until, while browsing in her favourite bookshop, a Judith Baker Montano book literally leapt from the shelf and as she devoured the pages she knew she was ‘home’. She knew why she had been hoarding. Now she is obsessed. Her bookshelves groan with books by ‘them all’ as well as SRE, beading, the stash has taken over. The rich vibrant colours and feel of silks and luscious velvets are her love.

Wall hangings, framed blocks, bags and book covers are treasured by many with hours spent dyeing silk ribbon and motifs as she ponders the next, and the next projects. Life-long friendships have developed. Along with memoir writing, following a natural healthy lifestyle, genealogy and CQ this retired chef, a true Monkey, celebrates that joining CQMagOnline is the culmination of her already ecstatically contented, serene and positive life!  Life is complete.
 

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Julie Yonge

Although born in Little Rock, Arkansas, my family moved quite a bit while I was growing up - I attended eight different schools in grades 1-12. My teen years through college and a first marriage were spent in and around New Orleans where I call home. I moved to Houston in the early 80's and now live about 40 miles south of Houston on the coast, out in the country with my dear husband of 10 years and a menagerie of animals including dogs, birds, goats, a pig and an emu. I am a licensed wildlife rehabilitator, although, my sewing has now taken priority. I have grown twin sons, Jason and Jeremy, both graduates of the University of Texas. I am unofficially retired from Amoco Production Company where I was a Remote Sensing Technologist for 15 years, doing computer processing of digital satellite imagery for geological, geophysical and environmental interpretation. I spent a couple of years doing training and facilitating of computer courses for business and industry at our local community college, but at the present time I work from home as our county's Soccer Registrar providing database management, state reports and all the administrative materials such as rosters, player cards and game reports to approximately 2500 children. Along with sewing, reading, church committees, taking care of animals, and working with soccer, I enjoy gardening and maintaining our seven acres...(disclaimer: except when it is exceptionally "hot" - I like my air conditioning.) I have taught a couple of classes at our local quilt shop on specific quilting techniques and hope to do more in the future as I expand my knowledge on fabric art.

I began crazy quilting and SRE only three years ago when I visited a local quilt guild (as I was just venturing into the world of sane quilting) and heard a wonderful presentation on crazy quilting. I knew instantly it was what I had been looking for, a wonderful artistic outlet combining so many techniques, fabrics, and textures. I took a CQ class and immediately began pulling together stash (definitely a large part of the fun of crazy quilting), practicing stitches and reading everything I could on crazy quilting. I joined a local CQ Bee, went to the last Dallas CQ Retreat to take classes from Victoria Adams Brown and Rissa Peace Root and network with fellow CQers. I belong to an online CQ group who provide wonderful ideas, resources and encouragement. I have recently done blocks for group projects such as the Mary Fisher Angel Quilt, the Iceland Friendship Tapestry, and have done two bras for The Way to Women's Wellness Art bra Foundation (www.wtww.org). I have always had an interest in art and crafts and have dabbled on my own in many art mediums from clay to oils, but not a lot of artistic endeavor with fabric. I have now fallen in love with the "world of crazy quilting" and all that that entails...from the wonderful fabrics used, to its history and being able to pull little pieces of the past into your work and the amazing and talented women I meet. Goo-gah is now an important word in my vocabulary...everything must have lots of goo-gah! Another fun part of CQ - books! I have built quite an extensive library of books and magazines on CQ and embroidery, including Penny McMorris's book and am always on the lookout for a new one. They are all a delight to use as inspiration and education. My dear husband is putting the finishing touches on a studio space for me in the third portion of a 3-car garage which I plan to use every single day! Being creative each and every day in some way is very important to my well-being as well as continually stretching and learning. It is always such a joy, and yes, sometimes a delightful surprise to see a creation come together and even more of a joy to share it with others.
 

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Rita Ellison Goff

Rita Ellison Goff, a founding member of the CQMagOnline.com staff and a retired registered nurse, lives on a 15 acre mini farm in West Virginia.

After 30 years in Texas, she returned to her native state West Virginia. Once home, she took a class in quilting, and quickly learned that she loved piecing but dearly hated the repetitiveness of 'sane' quilting. On a fateful day in 1995, a fellow nurse brought a Crazy Quilt her Grandmother had made, all velvets with the most exquisite embroidery work. Rita fell in love immediately and began looking for any information on CQ that she could find.

Using a borrowed copy of Penny McMorris's book and a purchased Victorian Patchwork & Quilting by Arlene Deltore and Beverly Maxvill, she got out her rusty embroidery needles and began twelve 15-inch square blocks. At the same time, she purchased a computer and joined several online CQ groups. Through them, she participated in many round robins and learned so much seeing the work of others and reading the accompanying journals.

Along with learning this multi-faceted art form, she branched out and taught herself needle tatting, re-learned crocheting, learned Brazilian Dimensional Embroidery (BDE) via the internet, and began the accumulation of her vast stash. Throughout it all she found that she prefers to do all hand stitching.

While attending two Crazy Quilt Conferences in Omaha, Rita took classes with Betty Pillsbury, Judith Baker Montano, Nancy Eha, and Valeri Bennett, learning Crazy Quilt, beading and dyeing. At the Brazilian Dimensional Embroidery Seminar in Washington, she learned more about BDE. She's also taken several internet classes. Rita began teaching Crazy Quilting and Embellishing two years ago, and this year she added teaching BDE to her repertoire.

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Dean Deerfield

I live in Midland, Texas. I moved here three years ago from a much smaller town near-by. I had lived in Fort Stockton over 50 years. My four children were all grown and gone, I had retired a year before I moved, and it was time to move on with my life as well.

I worked as a med tech in lab and x-ray for years, but quit when my children started being a part of my life. I had 5 children, two boys, and three girls. God blessed me with my children. When I did go back to work part time, it was in a pre-school where my children attended. I found I loved working with the children and little by little I got very involved and finally opened my own day care center. I did that for 40 years and loved every minute of it. I went back to school and got my child development degree and taught part time for a community college here in the area. My middle daughter and I went to college together and that was fun. It took us 7 years to get out degrees. I still do child development workshops, and teach a class occasionally. I enjoy keeping my finger in the pot.

As most of you, I have always crafted in some way even as a child. I have done many things and loved them all, but the crazy quilting is the love of my life. I know it is because it is so free and creative and I can "do my own thing". I am a beadier, on fabric that is. Friends tell me I don't embellish, I encrust. On some of the pieces I have done that is true, but not always. I like to get a background quilted, and then embellish it will appliqué, beads, unusual threads and yarns, and just whatever it takes to "paint" the picture I want. I work with thread like I worked with paint. I have taken pictures of pets, or children and worked the background with threads and silk ribbon to recreate a dimensional background. I put my art quilts together much like I do my CQ's, the shapes of the pieces are different.

I also work with clay, and my love for that is almost as great as my CQing. My ability to be creative and help from God, got me through some very hard times in my life. It is great medicine for stress.

I have so many things started. I am working hard trying to get them finished. I have been working on a quilt I hope to have accepted into the International Quilt Festival in Houston. I am almost three years into that project and I am going to make an all out effort to get it finished this year.

I teach SRE, Embellishing, CQing, Needle Books, (first one thing and then another) in the adult continuing education program at the college.

First I prayed God would let me live to see my children grown, then to see them educated, and now I am praying He will let me finish my sewing projects. God is good, keep your fingers crossed.

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Linda Gibbs

Linda was born and raised in Long Beach, California (home of the Queen Mary). She worked in aerospace for many years and was fortunate to meet many of the astronauts of the Apollo space program, (they would come to CA for flight simulation testing before going into space). Linda also met many of the Shuttle astronauts, and worked on the Space Station although her company did not win that contract.

In growing up, Linda was always involved in the arts and after being laid-off in aerospace, she went into teaching at local collages, galleries, and specialty shops. She enjoys all facets of art - paper making, painting, textile and needle arts, embellishing, lampwork and glass fusing, just to name a few . Her talents are diversified and she teachers a variety of classes.

It is a privilege to be able to re-introduce "lost arts "out-of-the-past to a new generation. To be able to pass on the heritage of our ancestors To observe the progression of new students as they learn to design and create "one-of-a-kind" art pieces.

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Jenny Clark

Jenny is a founding member of the CQMagOnline.com staff. She retired from the federal government after years in management, training, education, research, economic development, and interactive videodisc design and development. Over the years, she and her husband have renovated seven houses with the last one being a cabin on the fifth largest lake in Florida. The home had to be completely gutted and re-built but they ended up with a four bedroom house with a large living room overlooking this 16,000 acre lake. In addition to full time work and all the many chores of renovation, she has always found time for sewing, crazy quilting, needlework in many forms, painting, and many other crafts. 

Upon her retirement and even with another renovation to complete, she began to focus more and more on crazy quilting and all the types of embellishment that accompany this quilting art form. With a love for all things Victorian and with her home filled with remnants of family memorabilia, she feels that crazy quilting became a natural part of her life's path forward. She loves all aspects of sewing, embroidery, crazy quilting, beading, tatting, and now machine embroidery and machine quilting. She enjoys working with the magazine staff and seeing the magazine grow into a useful and important resource in the lives of so many crazy quilters. 

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Pat Winter

Pat Winter also joined the CQMagOnline.com staff in December 2003. 

She is currently on a temporary Leave of Absence while she works on a project.  

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Editor: Published by: Pretty Impressive Stuff