The 2003 featured artist is Dorothy Kingsley Wray

Alex Anderson - Livermore, CA
Alex's love affair with quilt making began in 1978, when she completed a Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt as part of a degree in art from San Francisco State University. Little did she know that quilting would become a life long passion. Over two decades later Alex is still in love with quilting and all that surrounds it. The creative aspect of making a quilt or watching someone unlock their own creative spirit is one of pure joy and excitement. The journey of quilt making has challenged her in other ways never dreamed possible. From authoring books to hosting "Simply Quilts" on Home and Garden television, quilt making has allowed Alex to stretch and grow in areas beyond her wildest dreams.

Marilyn Badger from Brookings, OR
Marilyn has been producing award-winning quilts and garments using long-arm machines since 1991. She and her professional quilting techniques have been featured on over 30 public television shows such as "Sew Many Quilts," "Quilting with Fons and Porter" and others. Marilyn's work has also been featured in national publications. She has taught long-arm classes for eight years and has represented American Professional Quilting Systems as a consultant at most major quilt shows throughout the year.

Linda Ballard from Palo Cedro, CA
Linda is known for many things…she sponsors 18 mystery quilting retreats throughout California, and travels throughout the United States teaching at conferences, guilds and quilt shops. Linda has appeared on HGTV's "Simply Quilts" and you can find her workbooks in the Better Homes and Garden Quilting Catalog. Her style of teaching makes her very popular. She offers great handouts, great techniques, and loves to see her students produce as much as they can in class.

Jean Brown from Portland, OR
Jean's quilts and oil painting art works are shown at many shows and events. She has taught both arts for many years. Unexpectedly one day, Jean discovered a different way to hand quilt with great comfort and speed. Her classes have been all across the country, many guilds and on television. Jean was a charter member of the Southern California Council of Quilt Guilds and has created seven new guilds over the years.

Sally Collins from Walnut Creek, CA
Sally is an award winning quilter who is recognized internationally for her work with miniature quilts. Many of the skills and techniques used in her miniature quilts are equally important for traditional piecing.

Ann Fahl from Racine, WI
At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Ann Fahl earned a degree in Textiles and Clothing in Business. Quilting enables Ann to combine the things she loves; color, fabric and sewing. She finds the process an enjoyable creative experience. Her work has been accepted in art shows and quilt competitions and many are included in private collections. Ann also teaches and lectures on both traditional and contemporary quilts. Her work has been pictured in Art/Quilt, American Quilter, Quilter's Newsletter, etc. She can be seen on HGTV "Simply Quilts" segment #621.

Jennifer Gigas from Bernina®
Always looking for a creative outlet, Jennifer has found sewing to be her passion. From heirloom to embroidery to quilting, she's yet to find a technique she doesn't like. Jennifer began her sewing career designing custom children's wear and teaching fine sewing techniques. She currently works as an Educator for Bernina® of America, traveling across the country sharing her enthusiasm and excitement for all things sewing related. Her work has appeared in "Sew Beautiful," "Creative Machine Embroidery," "Inspirations," and other Bernina® publications.

Klaudeen Hanson from WI
Klaudeen has been on the faculty for the AQS Show in Paducah for the past ten years. She is well known in the Midwest and often her classes in Paducah are the first to fill. She teaches traditional patterns and emphasizes improving students skills.

Mary Ellen Hopkins from Pacific Palisades, CA
Mary Ellen is a quilter, author, fabric designer, publisher, lecturer and teacher. She has a reputation for the incredibly enthusiastic way she spreads the message about her trademark "Personal Private" way of designing and making quilts. She has developed five-day hands-on seminars and has presented them internationally. Among the seminars, lectures, writing and designing, there's not much time for anything else. But it is reported that on a regular basis, Mary Ellen can be seen rollerblading along the boardwalk by the Pacific Ocean.

Melody Johnson from Cary, IL
Melody's vibrant quilts are inspired by the colors of the fiesta. Playfulness is a hallmark of her abstract designs. Her techniques are primarily fused fabric collage with extensive surface decoration involving hand and machine embroidery. Her award winning quilts are exhibited internationally, including, The American Quilter's Society, Visions, International Quilt Festival in Houston, Quilt National, and the Nagoya Quilt Carnival in 2002. In 1999, she was awarded the Master of Machine Artistry prize at the I.Q.A. Festival in Houston, and in 2001, she won first place with her quilt Sunflowers II. She is co-owner, with Laura Wasilowski, of ARTFABRIK Extraordinary Fabrics and Threads, and both are members of the board of the Chicago School of Fusing, since 1997.

Jenny Kinney from Ventura, CA
Jenny Carr Kinney is a Textile Science graduate of the University of California, Davis. With over thirty years of experience, she has an extensive understanding of fibers and fabrics. Jenny is a member of the faculty at Ventura Community College and is a NQA certified teacher. Her interest in quilt history and the reproduction of antique quilts is inspiring to her students. Jenny has published her national award winning quilts in Miniature Quilts, "Professional Quilter" and Patterns of Progress: Quilts In the Machine Age, by Barbara Brackman. She has been featured on HGTV's "Simply Quilts" episode #739.

Debi Kuennan-Baker from Pfaff
Debi has been an Educational Consultant with Pfaff Sewing machines since 1990 and is best known for her combination of patchwork and surface embellishment. She has been a participant in the Hobbs Fashion show in Paducah, the Fairfield Fashion Show and is currently designing a garment for the 2002-2003 Bernina Fashion Show. Her work has been shown in American Quilter, Sew News and numerous Pfaff Club magazines.

Mickey Lawler from West Hartford, CT
Using her grandmother's quilts as her only guide, Mickey began making quilts in 1968 and within ten years had constructed and hand-quilted over 100 full-size and crib-size quilts. In 1983, she started painting cotton to satisfy her own need for landscape and textural types of fabric and subsequently created SKYDYES, a business specializing in hand-painted fabrics. Her exhibits and awards for quilting and surface design have toured internationally. Co-author of Not Just Another Quilt and author of Skydyes: A Visual Guide to Fabric Painting, Mickey has taught her serendipitous style of fabric painting extensively for the past 17 years.

Libby Lehman from Houston, TX
Libby Lehman began quilt making 28 years ago when her mother, Catherine Anthony, signed them up for a basic class. Over the years she has evolved from a traditional handworker to one of the leaders in innovative machine stitching. Her studio art quilts have won top awards and appear in many private, corporate and museum collections. Libby's quilts have appeared in numerous publications,88 Leaders in the Quilt World Today and her own best seller, Threadyplay with Libby Lehman. Her quilt, "Joy Ride," was selected as one of the 100 Best of the 20th Century.

Pat Magaret and Donna Slusser from Pullman, WA
Pat and Donna are self-taught quilters who began their quilt making careers in the early 1980s and have been team-teaching for over 15 years. Their classes are a safe place for students to learn new techniques, explore and trust their own ideas, as well as push beyond their comfort zones and take risks. They are designers, judges, lecturers, and authors of four books, including Watercolor Quilts and Shadow Quilts. Their teaching efforts have expanded to a new arena-the Internet-where their website features workshops, educational block of the month series, and a line of patterns. Their award-winning quilts have been featured in magazines, calendars and books and they have appeared on HGTV's "Simply Quilts" several times.

Sharon Malec from West Chicago, IL
Sharon Malec began quilting in 1992 making traditional pieced quilts, but gradually shifted to making contemporary art quilts. Her interest in animals and nature has helped to mold her unique style. She is most recognized for her realistic depictions of dogs and other animals. She has authored The Dog Lady Speaks and designed 43 individual patterns. Her award winning quilts have been exhibited nationally and have been published in American Quilter and Quilter's Newsletter Magazine. Sharon's quilt "Barking Up the Wrong Tree" is now in the collection of the Museum of the American Quilt's Society.

Bonnie McCaffrey from Hawley, PA
Bonnie McCaffery's quilts are by no means traditional, but rather art pieces. She is always trying to stretch quilting to its limits. Her teaching has taken her internationally to places that include England, France, Sweden and Denmark. Her numerous projects and articles have been published in American Quilters' Society, Quilter's Newsletter Magazine, etc. She has authored two books, Fantasy Fabrics: Techniques for Layered Surface Design and Fantasy Floral Quilts: Creating with Silk Flowers.

Sue Nickels from Ann Arbor, MI
Sue started quilting over 22 years ago and has been teaching machine quilting and appliquéé classes for the past 12 years, both locally and nationally. Sue has written two books with her sister, Pat Holly, on machine quilting patterns. They have also worked on many quilts together. Their quilt "The Beatles Quilt" won the 1998 AQS Best of Show. Sue's new book Machine appliquéé: A Sampler of Techniques was released in July 2001. Sue also enjoys designing machine-quilting stencils for Quilting International. Her priorities are to make the best quilts she can by using today's technology and to share her knowledge with others in a positive and relaxed way.

Robyn Pandolph from Colorado Springs, CA
Robyn is the owner of Cabin Fever Designs-a company she founded in 1995. She is known for her popular fabric lines as well as her beautiful folk art appliquéé patterns for quilts, pillows, wearables, and accessories. Robyn has published two books, Radiant Earth and A Mother's Quilting Legacy. She has also appeared as a featured guest on HGTV's "Simply Quilts."

Robert Purcell from St. George, UT
Robert Purcell is President and owner of Superior Threads. Before his days begin at Superior Threads, he teaches an early morning Japanese class at a state college. He graduated from Brigham Young University with a Masters Degree in Business in 1984. His background in product management, customer service, quality control and Japanese business practices are ideally suited for our quilting industry.

Jackie Robinson from Eureka, MT
The author of twelve books on quilt making, and quilting since the 70s, Jackie has been active in the business since 1982 when she opened her first quilt shop in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1988, she sold and made a move to Durango, Colorado where she opened Animas Quilts. Her work has been featured in several quilt magazines, most recently on the cover of The Quilter - Winter 2001. She has also had two appearances on "Simply Quilts" and two on "Kaye's Quilting Friends."

Ricky Tims from Arvada, CO
Ricky has been designing and making quilts since 1991. His quilts are typically contemporary or artistic and have been exhibited worldwide. His most recent quilt, "Songe d'Automne," has received numerous awards including the $5000 Master Award for Machine Artistry at the 2000 International Quilt Festival in Houston. Ricky teaches an exciting variety of workshops and is much sought after for his multimedia presentations that combine narrative, images of quilts, and live music. Ricky is passionate about quilting and is delighted to share his experience and enthusiasm with quilters at every level of expertise. Ricky is challenged by creativity in all forms and encourages individuals to cultivate self-expression.

Danielle Vaillancourt from Viking
Danielle Vaillancourt is a free-lance educator for Viking Sewing Machine Company. She holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in both Clothing & Textiles and Commercial Art. Danielle has recently appeared on the television show "America Sews" with Sue Hausmann. Danielle has done course work in Fashion Design and Illustration. She uses fabrics and threads to express her love of color creativity and artistic design. Specialties included are quilting, heirloom, embroidery and serger techniques.

Linda Visnaw from Viking
Linda Visnaw is a freelance educator for Viking Sewing Machine Company. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Education and a Masters in Educational Leadership. She spent 27 years in the public education system. Since sewing has always been her favorite creative outlet and teaching her passion, when the opportunity presented itself, Linda moved on to pursue a career in sewing education. Linda feels the very best opportunity of her life is teaching others how to sew and explore their sewing machine.

David Walker from Cincinnati, OH
David Walker's experience as a self-taught artist encourages others to look within themselves to find their personal vision that both teaches and heals. Since 1990, David has been teaching workshops and lecturing throughout the United States. Then in 2000, the "The Professional Quilter" selected him as a Teacher of the Year nominee. His work has appeared nationally and internationally, and is included in the collection of the Ohio Craft Museum as well as in many corporate and private collections.

Laura Wasilowski from Elgin, IL
Laura is a contemporary quilt maker, teacher and creator of hand-dyed fabrics and threads. She has an undergraduate degree in Costuming and a Master of Art in Fiber. Her quilts have been exhibited internationally and published in such books as Color: The Quilter's Guide, American Arts Quilts: Quilt 21/2000 and Visions '96: Quilt San Diego. Her work revolves around a collection of vivid, hand-dyed fabrics that she has stamped, silk screened, painted or dyed.

Sheila Williams from Temecula, CA
Sheila started her career with computers in the Marine Corps setting up training programs and educating personnel, and has now developed her own computer and quilting software consulting business. She has been quilting a long time but when classes often asked to design templates for a project, her question always was, "Isn't there a software program to do that for me?" After extensive research and education of all the different programs on the market, she now teaches all those various programs in quilt shops in Southern California.

Pat Yamin from Brooklyn, NY
Pat has been in the quilting business for more than 20 years. She began her business in the fall of 1981 selling all kinds of notions, books, batting and thread through a catalog. Her business detoured in 1991 into the manufacturing of the quilt making world. She designs and makes acrylic templates to make every quilter's life easier and more accurate. Now she finds that teaching is a major part of the process in bringing her techniques to other quilters. In 2001, her first book was introduced, Look What I See. Pat is currently working on another book that will be released during 2003.