Nancy McDowell – Embroidery & Quilting
When Nancy was working in the medical community, she was given sound advice from a psychiatric trainee. “Find something you love to do, something you are passionate about, and do it every day. It will make good days better and will boost you up in troubling times.” She’s taken that advice to heart, tried many things, and discovered her passion in quilting.
Her first quilt was pieced and quilted by hand and took a year to complete. She quickly discovered hundreds of beautiful quilts she wanted to create and made the move to piecing with her trusty sewing machine. The next “ah-ha” moment came with finishing the quilt and learning about the long-arm machines for quilting. She desperately wanted one and her husband came to the rescue when he offered half of his “man cave” to set up the large industrial machine.
Quilting is a wonderful expression of art from the moment a pattern is chosen, to selecting the fabric and seeing the design take shape. She loves the complexity of a challenging quilt which could take months to complete, as well as the more traditional patterns that just provide joy through the colors. The best part is handing that quilt over to the new owner. She makes it a point to give back by donating quilts to “Quilts for Kids” and take extra steps to make them special, knowing there’s a child out there who needs the comfort of the quilt.
She and her husband fell in love with Sparta years ago when they camped at Stone Mountain. It was an exciting time when they finally located a wonderful home just outside of the city. She is blessed to have a new studio space in this home where she is surrounded by windows and can look out over the mountains while she works. Quilting is a labor of love and she can’t imagine her life without it.
