Designer Spotlight: Debbie Taylor-Kerman

Our designers are fabulous and we recently had a chat with Debbie Taylor-Kerman. Right after the interview, we have details on how you can win some of her Delightfully Frightful fabric! Take a peek at the line on our website! The line will be shipping in May! Make sure that you check it out at your local quilt shop.

HG: Where do you get your inspiration from?

DTK: I'm inspired by my kids, being inside their imaginary worlds and listening to their thoughts, traveling, shopping, being mindful and aware of what's going on around me, children's books and visiting trade shows. I also feel inspired by the things that I feel passionate about - women's issues, being a good parent, diversity, spiritual, emotional and physical well-being, ecology, equality and love.

HG: How long have you been designing?

DTK: I graduated from college with a degree in textile design in 1987 and have been designing ever since. I was a textile designer for fifteen years before branching out into licensing and therefore designing art for many different products. Oh my, seeing that in writing is making me feel old ...

HG: Can you give us a sneak peek into your studio?

DTK: I work from my home in New York City. We renovated a beautiful five story townhouse in Harlem, which took us over 2 years to complete. I absolutely adore our home and our workspace, and even though the process of renovating was a nightmare, it was worth it in the end. I feel completely blessed because here I am, not only living in this amazing city, I get to have enough space to work from home (so that I can be at home when my kids get back from school) and I also get to have a garden, both of which are rare in NYC. We have two floors for business, and I'm completely spoiled as my studio is on the top floor with a deck outside of it. I call it my cherry on the cake, as it has big windows overlooking the most spectacular panoramic view of Manhattan. At the end of my workday, as dusk approaches, I still get blown away after being here 3 years, watching the Manhattan skyline light up as th

e heavens go from cobalt, to pink, to midnight blue.

HG: Where did you grow up and where is your home town now?

DTK: I grew up in Scotland. I love Scotland and still visit often but my home is definitely here in NY. Bu as I always say, home is where my boys are.

HG: Pets or children?

DTK: I have two gorgeous sons, Eli who is twelve and Jules is eight. They are very different from each other, but they are both fabulously rambunctious and exuberant boys - no make believe tea parties and beauty salons for me, but I have loved every minute of building train tracks, make believe good guy/bad guy games and building lego ships. As you can see by our last Halloween photo, no fairy princesses for me either!

Unfortunately we have no animals. Both my husband Elliott and I are allergic to cats and dogs, which is a real bummer. I had a cat growing up and it wasn't until I was in my thirties that I developed allergies. Petting cats is actually one of the things in life I really miss.

HG: Favorite hobbies or vacation spot?

DTK: My favorite hobbies are yoga, tennis and antiquing. Being the Mom of two young children, I still struggle with finding time to nurture my own hobbies. I find that my weekends can be filled with shuttling them to tennis and I don't find the tie for it myself. I keep telling myself that will change as they get older and more independent - fingers crossed. : )

In the past couple of years, we've started to recognize that like us, our boys love adventure and travel. This past summer we took them on a camping trip out west to northern California and Oregon. We had the best time. So having been fully inspired and invigorated by that trip, this year we've planned a couple of great adventures. Pretty soon we're heading out to Santa Fe. I adore the culture out there, Native American history and, of course, the breathtaking scenery. I can't wait to experience that with them. Then at the end of the summer, we're taking them to Paris and then to a beautiful island on the west coast of France called Isle de Re for 3 weeks. I have spent a lot of time in France and this will be the first with my boys. I can't wait to share French culture with them for the first time.

HG: What medium do you create with?

DTK: I usually work with watercolor. I've just started to learn Photoshop. It has opened up a new world to me and has amazing capabilities but there's nothing more satisfying than the tactile feeling of creating a new image from a blank piece of beautiful textured watercolor paper, some paints and a beautiful brush.

HG: Thank you for this amazing peek into your life!

Leave a comment here and we'll have a drawing for some of Debbie's Delightfully Frightful fabric! Giveaway closes next Thursday, April 5, 2012 at 4 p.m.

Good luck!