Here are a few quilter friends you might not know. In Alphabetical Order:
1. NINA CLOTFETER:
Nina lives in Mobile, Alabama. She is peppy, funny, smart and an excellent quilt teacher. Machine quilting classes are her specialty but she teaches other things too. Find her website here: Ninaquilts
You can also follow her on Facebook and Instagram.
Last year Nina came to Huntsville to take MY class Oh My Stars! She did so well and it is always helpful to have a sounding board when teaching a new class that might be challenging for some students:
Nina recently was the Guest Artist on The Quilt Show--the show was great! If you are a Star Member be sure to watch it: Show 3808
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| Nina and I teaching at Houston 2025 |
2. BEN DARBY:
Ben is an engineer by trade and his quilts are always complex, interesting and amazing. He does all the work and quilts on a domestic sewing machine. His quilting just keeps getting better, if that is even possible:
His Blog is always fun to read: Huntspatch Quilts. I encourage you to take a look. And follow him on Instagram: huntspatchquilts
Most of Ben's quilts are original designs and he often creates acrylic templates to make them when that is helpful. On his blog he gives a lot of information on his process.
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| MIAMI MEETS MANHATTAN by Ben Darby |
3. TARA MILLER:
Tara lives in the Atlanta area. She is a quilt historian, pattern designer, speaker and teacher. She is the ONE teacher I am trying to get my local guild to hire--she is the ONE teacher I am eager to take a class from. She is the master at MIXING LARGE PRINTS, something I have not done.
Her Lectures are full of great information and entertainment. Her knowledge of quilt history is boundless.
Currently she is the Curator of a major exhibit at the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, California: The American Quilt: Cloth and Commerce. Learn more about it here: BOWERS MUSEUM EXHIBIT
Tara has a YouTube channel and you can find her website here: quiltdistrict.com I also encourage you to follow her on Facebook and Instagram: quiltdistrict
I hope to see Tara Miller here in Huntsville in the near future--she is "one to watch".
4. PATTY MURPHY:
Patty lives in the Atlanta area. She is a designer, quilter, teacher, author. We worked together at the Virginia Consortium of Quilters a few years back. The quilt she was teaching spoke to me: Aether. I bought her pattern and ultimately made this quilt:
Her books offer a lot of great information:
Her latest book shows how to use those wonderful fabrics for more than one project:
Her first book is great for new to intermediate quilters who can't quite get things as perfect as they would like. Patty shows how to make small changes that make ALL the difference:
5. Elaine Wick Poplin:
She is a retired high school math teacher and that shows in a lot of her work. Her website is: messygoat.com but she shares more information on Instagram: messygoat_elaine
Elaine is a Cherrywood Fabrics Ambassador and often uses those fabrics for her innovative designs.
Elaine now travels some to teach and lecture and does ZOOM classses/lectures as well as local classes.
She has won Best of Show at our guild show and been juried into AQS shows and International Quilt Festival Houston. You may know her quilts even if you don't know her:
A local TV channel did an interview with Elaine about her quilt: "THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS":
In August 2026 Elaine will be part of a RETREAT put on by Cherrywood Fabrics called COLOR CAMP IN COLORADO: COLOR CAMP It looks like fun!
So there you have an introduction to some terrific people in my QUILT WORLD who you may not know. I encourage you to visit their websites and social media feeds for more inspiration.
Let's quilt.
Barbara
