Meet Kim
Pellon: Where do you find inspiration for
your work?
Kim: I find inspiration everywhere. There is a design to everything and it is amazing what you can do when you want to make something. I like blog stalking and pinterest is a little bit of an addiction too.
P: What does your creative process entail?
K: I will usually have an idea, google it to see if someone else has done the leg work and has already written a tutorial, something that will save me time and allow me to hop right on the project. I will pester my friends and ask them if they think it is a good idea. If I really cannot shake the creative feeling,I will draw a picture of what my idea is but not what it should look like since I cannot even draw a stick man, lol!
If everyone agrees and the drawing is not too bad, I will then grab some scraps and start sewing. I am not a math person and I do not have all the technical terms down just yet, so I am a sew as I go kinda girl. I hope I remember to write it all down while I am doing it. I have been known to be so engrossed with a project that I’ll complete it without writing the instructions down and then have to start all over.
P: Why do you enjoy sewing/crafting/quilting?
K: It is a great escape and a wonderful way to keep my brain working and thinking even when I am not actually sewing since project ideas are always in my head! I have even starting taking a journal (tutorial coming soon) with me everywhere so I do not forget to jot ideas down.
P: Do you create mainly for satisfaction, gifts, art
or another reason?
K: I create for all the reasons listed above. I like that it is something that is for just me, it is not connected to my husband, my children, or anyone else. I love those people and the roles that I hold in their lives but this is all me.
I love to make gifts for people and do charity work. There are so many worthy organizations like Soldierʼs Angels and Project Linus that take donated quilts and give them people that will love and appreciate them in times of need. I look forward to doing many more quilts for these organizations.
Some of my projects are just art. The viewmaster block was something I just had to do for no other reason than I just wanted to see if it could be done. It is the one project I am most pleased with since I was able to figure it out. To be sure I did have lots of input from my friends when I had a rough spot.
The only other reason I create is to hopefully inspire others to start sewing. I try to give simple instructions and lots of photos for the people who, like me,are visual learners and cannot “see” what the written instructions are supposed to be showing. That is one of the reasons I started so late in life, I needed someone to show me.
P: What tips
or
tricks learned through experience can you share?
K: Never EVER let your iron touch fusible interfacing! Just kidding, but if it does, a little baking soda and water paste will soon have it off. Always read through all the instructions of any pattern, no matter how easy it seems,before starting a project. Have a pile of scraps nearby to practice something before sewing your good fabric. I have found that if I practice free motion quilting or binding first, it makes it much easier to sew on my bigger quilt.The only other piece of advice I can give is to keep your machine manual handy.I often refer back to my manual when I am uncertain of how I thought something was supposed to work on my machine.
P: When and why
did
you
start sewing/quilting/crafting?
K: I starting sewing after my son Adam was born. There were no nice boy clothes that were affordable and not overly babyish. I took out my 1990 Kenmore and started sewing. I could not read patterns, still canʼt, but I designed a bib pattern and started a very very small sewing business making baby items. I found that I loved sewing and wanted to be more challenged after I closed my business. I looked at online blogs and became very taken by modern quilts. I worked up the nerve about six months later to make my first quilt. I have been in love ever since and wish I had started sewing much younger.
