June Featured Author
Many members of our guild credit Alex Anderson for getting them hooked on quilting. Her inspiration and love of quilting began in 1978 when she completed her Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt. Alex Anderson has an art degree from San Francisco State University, is the host of HGTV’s Simply Quilts, and well known to the quilting community. She is the author of 30 books in four languages selling over one million copies worldwide. Currently, she is a fabric designer working with RJR Fabrics and cocreator with RNK Distributing (Floriani) of the Quilters Select brand.
Alex and Ricky Tims founded The Quilt Show.com and The Quilt Life Magazine published by AQS. The Quilt Show is the world’s first full-service online video/web TV created for quilters to educate and connect the world of the quilting community. The Quilt Life Magazine was awarded The Library Journal’s top ten new magazines in 2010.
The International Quilt Festival chose Alex as the 2008 Silver Star Award winner. This award is given annually to quilters “whose work and influence has made, and continues to make, a sizable and positive impact on the quilting industry and community.” Alex, in addition to Ricky Tims and Karey Bresenhan of Quilts Inc., was chosen by the readers of Quilter’s Newsletter Magazine as “The Most Influential Person in The Quilting Industry” in 2009.
Over the years, Alex’s focus has been to understand fabrics and color relationships and the appreciation of traditional quilts and quilting surface design. Alex describes her style of quilt making as “innovative-traditional.” She wants to share her love of quilting and to educate and encourage those interested so that the art of quilting will continue to be handed down from generation to generation.
The OPQG Library has four books written by Alex Anderson:
1. Hand Quilting with Alex Anderson—Alex’s first real quilting class was taught by a Mennonite woman in the area. This experience led to an intense appreciation of hand quilting. Learn how to make heirloom quilts with simple techniques of hand quilting. Included are classic quilting motifs, along with Alex’s original designs.
2. Paper Piecing with Alex Anderson—Blocks with exposed bias edges and tiny points, which many quilters have avoided in the past, are made easy using paper piecing. In this book, you will find tips, techniques, and patterns that worked best for Alex.
3. Shadow Red Work with Alex Anderson—Patterned after the traditional embroidery redwork quilts of old, Anderson combines bold graphic designs from nature coupled with subtle wording on the background (the shadow work), creating an exciting effect.
4. Rotary Cutting with Alex Anderson—Alex says, “If I could only take five quilting items to a deserted tropical island, the rotary cutter would be at the top of my list…after my fabric collection, of course.” The rotary cutter revolutionized quilt making. In this book, Alex explains tips, techniques, and projects using a rotary cutter. The accuracy and speed of rotary cutting changed the face of quilt making.
For more information on Alex Anderson and her techniques, visit alexandersonquilts.com and thequiltshow.com.
