2010 Quilt Instructors & Biographies
Below is a complete list of quilt teachers and their biographies, listed in alphabetical order. Explore the schedule of classes on Tennessee quilts, to learn what your favorite quilt teachers are lecturing on.
Charlotte Angotti - Conway, SC
While shopping with her mother in 1978 Charlotte wandered into a quilt shop and everything changed from there. Educated in fine arts, speech and drama she brings a variety of talents to class in a most humorous way.
She has been teaching quilt making since 1979 because someone asked her to teach them. Her first quilt was sold right after making it and she has sold her quilts ever since. She owned her own quilt shop in Virginia Beach, VA from 1981-1999. She began teaching nationally in 1991 and has taught for many large shows as well as small groups.
Along with her kit business, Quilt Maker’s Studio, she now teaches and lectures full time. Known for her humor, her way with fabric/color and her pre-cut kits Charlotte believes her hobby is quilt making and her job is teaching others to enjoy it as much as she does in classes about color selection, fabric collection, or one of her many new kit quilt patterns.
Visit www.charlotteangotti.com to learn more about Charlotte Angotti.
Kim Diehl - Pocatello, ID
With just the third quilt she’d ever made, self-taught quiltmaker Kim Diehl entered and won American Patchwork & Quilting magazine’s “Pieces of the Past” quilt challenge in 1998. This win took her life down a new and unexpected path, and with her fourth quilt, Kim began publishing her original designs. In the years since her challenge win, Kim has seen her work published in numerous national and international magazines, and she remains a frequent design contributor for American Patchwork & Quilting magazine.
With her new-found hobby quickly blossoming into a career, Kim realized that she needed to complete her quilts more quickly to meet her ever increasing deadlines. Although she loved using traditional needle-turn methods to hand stitch her applique designs, Kim began experimenting with invisible machine applique. She soon developed a technique that enabled her to machine-stitch her appliques in a fraction of the time. She has since written three books in her best-seling “Simple” series sharing her time-saving techniques for “tradition with a twist.”
When she’s not designing quilts and fabric, sewing patchwork, and working in her fragrant country-style flower beds, Kim travels extensively around the country teaching her easy invisible machine appliqué methods and sharing her quilts.
Visit www.kimdiehl.com to learn more about Kim Diehl.
Klaudeen Hansen - Sun Prairie, WI.
Klaudeen Hansen’s experience reaches far beyond just quilting. Not only is she a
certified judge for the National Quilting Association and has judged competition quilts for
a number of years, but Klaudeen also trains other people to be judges. Klaudeen is an
editor for Quilt Art and Address & Birthday Book, as well as the author of many articles
for various quilting magazines. Her quilts have been featured in numerous shows
throughout the United States and Europe. She is an accomplished teacher
Klaudeen’s classes will teach you fast, easy, and time saving techniques
for machine piecing, cutting, and machine appliqué and much more!
Marti Mitchell - Atlanta, GA
Marta G. Mitchell was taught to sew by her mother and it quickly became a favorite pastime. She decided to major in Textiles and Clothing and Home Ec Journalism at Iowa State University where she met her husband, Richard Mitchell.
Job transfers for Dick took Marti and the kids, Jeffrey and Stacy, all over the country. Marti was a Home Economist for The Dairy Council in Wichita Kansa, did part-time teaching and lots of volunteer work during their five-year stay in Cleveland, Ohio, and started her own sewing school in Atlanta, GA. Marti’s interest in patchwork led to doing some craft shows and a small craft shop with several friends. She also started Yours Truly Inc., by selling cut and package quilts her family made.
Marti offers a variety of lectures and classes that focus primarily on quilt making techniques, along with some classes on making a specific quilt, like the Giant Dahlia. Marti brings Perfect Patchwork Templates for use in class.
Visit www.frommarti.com to learn more about Marti Mitchell.
Nancy Odom - Westfield, IN
Quilt designer, author, and teacher Nancy Odom has several books and numerous
patterns in publication, with more pattern and book ideas always in the works. Also
among her creations are Quilter's Gloves for the machine quilter. Her company,
Timid Thimble Creations, markets her line of products. Nancy co-authored the
popular Elm Creek Quilts book for C&T Publications and her quilts have been
featured in several other C&T books. Nancy has also designed three popular fabric
collections for P&B Textiles: Azalea Trail, Gather Sunshine, and Vintage Rose.
Nancy has appeared on three episodes of Simply Quilts with Alex Anderson and on
America Sews with Sue Hausmann. She is a featured teacher and lecturer at quilt
shows, quilt guilds, and quilt shops. Nancy's designs have also been featured in McCall's Quilting
Magazine and For The Love of Quilting magazine. Nancy designed and quilted A Mother's Legacy, the
2005 International Quilt Association donation quilt. She has also created quilts for P&B Textiles, Hoffman
Fabrics, Benartex Fabrics, Bernina Sewing Machines, and Viking Sewing Machines.
Nancy offers a variety of classes on appliqué techniques, machine quilting, and of her original quilt
designs.
Visit www.timidthimble.com to learn more about Nancy Odom.
Annette Ornelas - Fayetteville, NC
Annette Ornelas, is a German-born quilt artist, teacher and designer. Annette lives in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
Annette has experimented with sculpture, painting and glass, but not until later did she discover fibers and fabric as her favorite art mediums. Annette develops art quilts from original designs. Both her more geometric quilts and the landscapes are inspired by her visual impressions of everyday life and nature.
With her sewing machine as her drawing tool, Annette shares her enjoyment of all aspects of quilt-making: designing, piecing, layering, quilting, and finishing through her teaching of creative quilting. Her technique in machine quilting is what brings her quilts to life. Three dimensionality is no longer an illusion… it is the quilt, which can be touched and experienced.
Visit www.southwindquilts.com to learn more about Annette Ornelas.
Nancy Prince - Orlando, FL
Nancy is an award winning quilt artist and the author of Simple Thread Painting. She has
taped several episodes for Simply Quilts and Creative Living on PBS. She spends most of
her time juggling her family, quilting and teaching her passion. This passion has
enriched her life and keeps her centered and focused.
Nancy is totally addicted to thread painting and her enthusiasm in workshops
can be contagious. Her anyone-can-do-it approach to thread painting is fun,
easy and a new way for quilters to broaden their quilting experience.
Visit www.nancyprince.com to learn more about Nancy Prince.
Louisa Smith - Loveland, CO
Louisa is a quilter with a global perspective on needlework. Born in Indonesia, and educated in the Netherlands, Louisa developed an appreciation for the needle arts. Upon moving to the United States in 1960, she was immediately drawn to quilting and quickly became an accomplished devotee. Her initial traditional quilting soon gave way to new and exciting designs. The incredible flexibility that fiber offers attracted her to “paint” with fabrics. She has developed two new teaching procedures: “Color, Design and Theme” and “Strips ‘n Curves.” Louisa has published several books on her techniques and her work has been exhibited nationwide and in Great Britain.
Louisa teaches classes and lectures on her technique of basic strip piecing with curves and her contemporary “One Patch” quilts.
Visit www.quiltescapes.com to learn more about Louisa Smith.
Phyllis Anderson – Springfield, NH
Phyllis Anderson is an avid quilter and designer of wearable jackets. Her tee shirt technique is very unusual and easy for all levels of quilters. She is an original designer of quilts and handbags as well and to date has designed over twenty patterns. As a result of owning her own quilt shop she is very well versed in the quilting industry. She has taught at many venues throughout the United States
She resides in Springfield, NH with her husband and co-worker, Bob, who also designs landscape patterns for their pattern company, New Beginning Designs.
Bobbie & Joel Bergquist – Rindge, New Hampshire
Bobbie & Joel Bergquist are husband and wife quilt makers, manufacturers & educators, who strive to keep things simple, quick and fun. Their constant exposure to about 35 Quilt Shows a year, helps them gain insight into traditional and innovative trends, as well as keeps their classes and products on the cutting edge of quilting. They have taught in 39 states.
Bobbie was the inspiration for Quilters Treasure, whose goal is to give quilters an artist pallet and to make quilting easier and less stressful for all. Bobbie wanted to make a stained glass quilt and found nothing available to meet this need, so Joel created fabric which has inspired her & many other quilters to expand their creativity. Within the first year of business they saw the need for Quilters Treasure to produce their own line of a commercial print fabric. Their fabric is now available in 54 delicious colors.
THERESA CLARK – Kodak, TN
An avid quilter, Theresa has taught classes locally for the past 10 years. Her enthusiastic personality make her classes fun and her knowledge of quilting make the classes beneficial to all who attend.
MELINDA DAVIS – Knoxville, TN
Certified as a square in a square technique teacher, Melinda teaches wherever she is asked. She is organized and thorough which allows the student to learn and enjoy this great technique.
Bonnie Goolsby – Gatlinburg, TN
Bonnie started sewing when she was 12 years old making pillows, aprons, and other wearable items. By the time she was in high school she was making most of her clothes. She sewed for many years before she ever started quilting and then a whole new world of sewing opened up. By the year 2000 she started teaching and loved it! She taught at Best Sewing in Knoxville, TN until the business closed in 2007 and also in North Carolina at the NCCAT seminar at Western Carolina University since 2004.
Kay Green: Sevierville, TN
Kay began making clothes at the age of 17. She and her mother made doll clothes. She started her own business, It’s Sew Kay, in 1980. For many years, she made and sold appliquéd shirts and jumpers, which lead to teaching classes. She also has industrial embroidery machines and is able to do any kind of embroidery work. Kay works part time for the Cherry Pit in Sevierville where she teaches purse and appliqué classes.
Joan Knight
Joan has been a national and regional quilt teacher for 15 plus years teaching in LA, FL, MS, AL, GA, OH, MI, MN, TN, MO. She is a past President for Gulf States Quilting Association and the Birmingham Quilt Guild 2nd Vice President. She is a Statler Creative Studio version 2.0 Certified Trainer and Creative Studio Elite Beta Tester. She is an area rep for Gammill dealer Stitch N Frame and a long arm quilter for three years.
Her personal quilts juried and awards won in regional, local, and national shows including Road to California, AQS Nashville, Minnesota Quilt Show, PA Quilt Show, MQS. Customer quilts juried into and honors won in local, regional, and national shows including faculty choice, judges choice, first place, viewers choice.
ANGELA SANDERS – Jefferson City, TN
Fourteen years of teaching in Louisiana and Tennessee have given Angela considerable experience. Her love of color and different techniques make her an exceptional teacher.
Patricia Simons
Patricia discovered the joy of quilting after completing her second quilt while attending a WonderCut retreat by Alice Walter and Deb Hopkins (designers or the WonderCut rulers). The Lone Star quilt is usually on display in the Quilter’s Rule show booth. As Quilter's Rule developed the Design Tools line, Patricia has developed a knack for designing different quilting patterns to fit each individual quilt. She demonstrates the techniques at shows and has begun teaching a class called “Unlocking Your Creativity (The Key is Templates)”. She has instituted “Design Basics 101”, which are step-by-step instructions using design templates to create your own patterns, hosted on the internet at www.quiltersrule.com. She looks forward to sharing her techniques to help you develop your own style and expertise. Patricia represents the family owned and operated business, Quilter’s Rule, and attends over 20 quilting shows a year.
Kathy Skomp – Chattanooga, TN
Kathy, along with her husband Mark, own and operate, Lavender Lime Quilting and Creative Sewing in Chattanooga, TN. The shop was named a Top Ten Shop by Better Homes and Gardens in 2009. Kathy began sewing at an early age, growing up in her grandmother’s and mother’s upholstery business. She spent many years teaching math and worked in marketing in the sporting goods industry. Kathy now spends her time running her shop, designing and teacher. Her books, Designs by Lavender Lime, are distributed nationally and internationally and can be found at quilt shops all over the country. She is also a pattern designer for Northcott Fabrics.
DEBI and DENNIS MOFFITT – Johnson City, TN
Debi and Dennis Moffitt, owners of Somewhere Sewing in Johnson City TN, have been in the business of serving up fun and friendship in quilting, machine embroidery and more. Originally from Florida, Debi worked as a paralegal for 22 years before moving to the beautiful mountains of Tennessee where her paths were led to quilting. As a certified Quilt in a Day instructor and a Martha Pullen Licensed Serger Instructor, Debi has rounded out her love of quilting and sewing to its fullest. Overseeing one of the largest quilt shops in the Southeast has become her passion and great joy. Somewhere Sewing has been featured in
Quilt magazine on several occasions as a featured shop.
