Introducing Nancy Arseneault of Tucson
It turns out that I am a third generation quiltmaker although I wasn’t aware that my mother and grandmother made quilts until I taught myself and began making my own quilts. I have sewn my entire life – doll clothes as a child and my own clothes while in high school. During college, I worked at a fabric store and never brought home a paycheck. It seems my love affair with fabric continues to this day.
Geometric patterns always appealed to me – kaleidoscopes, marching bands, doodling with colored pencils on graph paper. When I discovered Amish quilts in the early 1980’s, I quit all the garment sewing and other crafts. I was hooked on making quilts.
My early quilts were Amish-inspired. I used solid fabrics and traditional patterns. I quilted by hand and loved it. I began to take lots of classes to develop my skills. I joined quilting groups everywhere that we moved (and we moved a lot). Gradually I used the sewing machine more and more. Today I do very little by hand – only sewing on sleeves or embellishments. I’ve made more quilts than I can remember over the years – probably 200+.
Returning to Arizona in 2004, I joined the Tucson Quilters Guild and have been fortunate to develop a wonderful network of quilting friends. I have a very supportive husband who even buys me fabric! I‘m retired, and since my kids are grown and my dear grandchildren live out of state, I enjoy the luxury of being able to quilt every day. I don’t have a specialty…I love it all…but I am working on a continuing series of whimsical quilts based upon the Mexican celebration El Dia de los Muertos, The Day of the Dead.
I entered my first quilt show in 2005 (Tucson Quilt Fiesta) and was thrilled to receive ribbons from the judges and the viewers. Now I make quilts for competitions, for sale and for community. I continue to study with fantastic teachers. The more I learn, the more I want to learn. Three years ago I began giving private quilting lessons. I really enjoy sharing my love of quilting in this way and I treasure all of the relationships that I’ve created through quiltmaking.
