I have always been a creative person, and making things was my solution to a large fear of mine: boredom. I began my sewing when I was five. I would go to my grandmother’s house after school and sew straight lines on her machine. Not too long after this, my mom and I began to sew dresses and other projects to enter in the Missouri State Fair! As much as I loved seeing my work displayed in the fair, the creation process was frustrating because I had to be guided every step of the way (and I’m a stubborn girl)!

​When I was eleven, I discovered a box of fabric strips in my grandmother’s basement, which had been cut by my great-great-grandmother. I saw a chance to create on my own, and I decided I would make these pieces into a quilt using only basic fifth-grade math skills and determination (looking back, I really should have looked up some tutorials). Nonetheless, I was elated with the result, and I gifted the quilt to the original cutter’s great-grandson, my dad!

​From here, a quilter named Janice Kroone heard that my quilting interest was piqued, and she decided to formally introduce me to the art. She gave me some patriotic fabric and a used sewing machine to make a Quilt of Valor, a quilt made to honor veterans, for my mom, who was in the United States Army. Once again, I was too stubborn to watch any tutorials, but somehow I pieced together another quilt! This time, Janice invited me to use her long-arm quilting machine to finish the quilt. Upon first sight of this machine, I was hooked!

​Ever since then, I have embarked on a crazy adventure through quilting, designing, and now, garment sewing! What began as a box of fabric strips is now my passion!