Texture excites me – both the way fiber surfaces feel to the touch, and the visual orchestration of pattern, color, line, shape and form. As a surface designer, I am highly intrigued with the serendipitious patterns created on fabric by dyeing, printing and discharging.  The foundations of my studio quilting are working with wholecloth fabrics, or with stitched raw-edge appliqued fabrics -- all my own hand dyed, painted, printed, shiboried, discharged or digitally printed fabrics.  I am fascinated with overall graphic patterns that make a statement or have a bold presence.  I lean toward to muted colors and asymmetrical shapes that evoke the organic natural world. My inspirations include the natural world, the florescence of Art Nouveau and Victoriana, the stylized and repetitive geometrics of Art Deco and ancient Egyptian designs, Native American and ethnic tribal patterns, and the Arts & Crafts and Craftsman styles in functional and decorative arts and architecture.