Desire to Inspire Challenge - Interview with Katie Wyatt

The February Desire to Inspire Challenge was accepted by Katie Wyatt. She had just a little less than a month after getting her fabric from the Dana Brooks "Little Red Hen" collection to do something fabulous.

And fabulous was what she did!!!

Below is our interview with her, and pictures of her projects...

HG: Where do you live, and what is it like there?

I live in the historical town of St. Michaels located on the eastern shore of Maryland.  My husband and I have been here for 18 years - prior to that we lived in Bethesda, Maryland.  St. Michaels is know as the ‘Town that Fooled the British’ in the war of 1812.  St. Michaels has quaint shops, great restaurants, The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, the lovely Inn at Perry Cabin by Belmond hotel, and all the blue crabs you can eat.

(HG NOTE: I couldn't help myself and grabbed a picture of the Inn at Parry Cabin by Belmond from their website - WOW!)

HG: Share a little about your family and what you like to do together?
Wilson [my husband] and our two adorable Westies [Julep and Derby] enjoy walking around the town of St. Michaels.  We have the harbor area on the Miles River and plenty of historical homes scattered around town.  A favorite vacation spot [although we live in a vacation spot] is Duck [on the Outer Banks] of North Carolina.  Here we rent a pet-friendly home.  Since this is a ‘driving’ vacation I pack my sewing machine and a nice stack of fabric.  We are also photographers and enjoy taking pictures of nature as well.   

One of the Westies - Derby - inspects the quilt in progress

Julep gives seal of approval for snowball quilt

HG:  Share about your quilting journey... how long have you been quilting, what is your favorite technique or type of quilt, and who taught you?

I started to sew in the early 70’s when Home Economics was taught in school. My aunt was my inspiration then ... watching her sew Barbie clothes.  Taking a long break from sewing I started again with inspiration from my sister.  When she found out how much I paid for a simple dog bandanna she told me she could make them so much cheaper.  The next thing I knew I was buying a sewing machine to make dog bandanna’s.  I lost count but I made approximately 1,000 reversible dog bandanna’s which I donated to Westie rescue groups [in the US & Canada].  The rescues used the bandanna's for fund raising or to put on a dog when it was ready to go to to their forever home.  This step turned into making American Girl doll clothing - another sewing project inspired by my sister.  My quilting journey started when I met a lady at our local fabric store with a stack of quilting books.  We started talking and she invited me to the next quilt guild meeting.  From that point I was hooked.  Now I make quilts to donate to Westie rescue auctions on Facebook.  It’s my way of helping get a Westie get the medical attention it needs.  I have donated American Girl clothing to rescue auctions as well, but for most part I give all these away.  It makes me happy to see the look on a little girls face when she opens up a box of custom made doll clothing. 

The following pictures are clothing for American Girl dolls that Katie makes and gives away. 

HG:   Want to give a shout-out to your guild?  

I’m a member of the Bayside Quilters guild of the Eastern Shore [baysidequilters.com].  Our guild is very active with monthly meetings including guest speakers, classes, and various Bee’s.  The Community Outreach portion of the Guild meets monthly as well.  One program I’m particularly fond of is the Outreach donation of over 400+ Christmas stockings in various sizes to the Marine Mom’s in Bethesda.  These are then filled with goodies and are sent overseas to the troops.  Outreach also donates many many quilts to various groups and individuals - it’s too many to list here.   

HG: And anything else?

I have a love affair with fabric [don’t tell my husband or the Westies!]. I’m inspired by the creation of others as I hope others are inspired by my creations.  I do a lot of sewing and in order to keep track of what I made I started a blog just for the photo's [www.katiesews4fun.blogspot.com].  My other blog [www.westiejulep.blogspot.com] is my everyday life blog. Feel free to visit anytime.

In closing, I would like to thank Henry Glass Fabrics and the ‘Desire to Inspire’ contest for choosing me as the February winner.  Working with the Little Red Hen Collection of fabrics by Dana Brooks was a pleasure.

 

Used the Panel for Pillowcases! 

Tablerunner # 1 

Tablerunner # 2

Lap Quilt #1 Close up

Lap Quilt # 1

Lap Quilt #2

A big thank you to Katie Wyatt for doing such an AMAZING job with the Desire to Inspire Challenge. Here she is - Katie Wyatt.  Enjoying herself at the beautiful Inn at Perry Cabin. 

The next Desire to Inspire challenge will be posted TOMORROW. What will you do? Are you ready to accept the challenge? 


(NOTE: Katie has offered to GIVEAWAY one of the Table Runners and the set of Pillowcases to one lucky winner. Enter below.)

Desire to Inspire Challenge Giveaway Prize from Katie Wyatt