In The Spotlight!
At Create Whimsy, we share the stories of makers. Learn about their creative journeys, inspirations and more! Browse all of our Spotlight Stories.
Spotlight: Margaret Grottenthaler, Textile Artist
Margaret Grottenthaler creates quilts that are playful, thoughtful, and refreshingly free-spirited. In this interview, she talks about her path from corporate law to full-time textile artist, her love of colour…
Spotlight: Debra Weiss, Fiber Artist
Debra Weiss has followed a lifelong pull to make with her hands. In this interview, she shares how confidence, curiosity, and a deep love of process have shaped her quiet,…
Spotlight: Nancy Dobson, Textile Artist
Textile artist Nancy Dobson shares how a lifelong love of fabric, nature, and playful experimentation shaped her creative path. From desert hikes and surface design to spontaneous problem-solving in the…
Spotlight: Sue O’Very, Serger Coach
From hand-stitched Barbie clothes to building a serger-loving community, Sue O’Very, known in the sewing world as Sookie Sews, has always believed there’s no such thing as doing it “wrong.”…
Spotlight: Angee Turner, Modern Quilter
Angee Turner grew up with fabric under her fingertips and a sewing machine always nearby. Quilting found her when she was chasing connection, color, and creativity. In this interview, she…
Spotlight: Carla Stehr, Fiber Artist
Carla Stehr’s creative path winds from tide pools and microscopes to fabric and thread. In this interview, she shares how a career in marine biology shaped her eye for detail…
Spotlight: Helen Geglio, Fiber Artist
Helen Geglio stitches together from memory, meaning, and a deep respect for the hands that came before her. In this interview, she shares how teaching, research, slow stitching, and repurposed…
Spotlight: Fenella Davies, Textile Artist
Fenella Davies is a hand-stitching storyteller, drawing on history, memory, and the quiet traces people leave behind. Working entirely by hand with aged and altered cloth, her process is intuitive,…
Spotlight: Nikki May, Artist and Designer
Nikki May has always followed her curiosity, whether that meant diving into ceramics as a kid, building a decade-long corporate design career, or trading cubicles for life on the road…
Spotlight: Michelle Freedman, Quilt Designer and Fiber Artist
Michelle Freedman began her creative path with early sewing, which led her to fashion and theater, including years as an outerwear designer for major brands. Today, she’s a quilt designer,…
Spotlight: Birgit Koopsen, Printmaker and Mixed Media Artist
Birgit Koopsen would draw for hours with her grandmother, turning rainy Dutch days into explosions of color. Her creative life has always been hands-on and joy-driven. In this Artist Spotlight,…
Spotlight: Katia Herrera, Photo Embroidery
Katia Herrera’s work lives at the intersection of photography, embroidery, and quiet emotion. In this interview, she shares how curiosity, intuition, and her Mexican heritage guide a deeply meditative practice…Trending Now
How to Make an Irish Chain Quilt: Free Tutorial
The Irish chain quilt is a classic traditional quilt made with nine patch blocks and squares of fabric for the background. Using only two fabrics, this quilt pattern comes together…
Shamrock Quilt Block: St. Patrick’s Day Free Pattern
Add a little luck to your life with our shamrock quilt pattern. Combine three blocks with corner half triangles with a stem block and you've got a shamrock quilt block!…
How to Make Fabric Easter Bunny Treat Bags: Quick and Easy
Learn how to make a fabric Easter bunny treat bag with our quick and easy tutorial. No pattern is needed! I'll show you how to make these adorable treat bags…
How to Make a Bunny Rabbit Quilt Block: Free Tutorial
This adorable bunny rabbit quilt block is super easy to make. Add personality when you add the eyes and nose with either appliqué, embroidery, or both! All you need are…
How to Make a Waxed Bread Bag: Easy Sewing Tutorial
Have you joined the sourdough makers? Or do you just pick up some yummy bread at the bakery or farmers market? If so, you need a waxed bread bag to…
How to Make Fabric Carrots: DIY Sewing Tutorial
Learn how to make fabric carrots with our step-by-step tutorial! This is a quick and easy project, perfect for beginners. And, for those of us with a lot of leftover…Latest Stories on Create Whimsy
Spotlight: Salma Arastu, Multidisciplinary Visual Artist
In this soulful conversation, Salma Arastu shares how growing up in Rajasthan planted the seeds of oneness that now flow through her paintings, poetry, and material choices. She reflects on… Spotlight: Margaret Grottenthaler, Textile Artist
Margaret Grottenthaler creates quilts that are playful, thoughtful, and refreshingly free-spirited. In this interview, she talks about her path from corporate law to full-time textile artist, her love of colour… Spotlight: Debra Weiss, Fiber Artist
Debra Weiss has followed a lifelong pull to make with her hands. In this interview, she shares how confidence, curiosity, and a deep love of process have shaped her quiet,… Spotlight: Nancy Dobson, Textile Artist
Textile artist Nancy Dobson shares how a lifelong love of fabric, nature, and playful experimentation shaped her creative path. From desert hikes and surface design to spontaneous problem-solving in the… Spotlight: Sue O’Very, Serger Coach
From hand-stitched Barbie clothes to building a serger-loving community, Sue O’Very, known in the sewing world as Sookie Sews, has always believed there’s no such thing as doing it “wrong.”… Spotlight: Carla Stehr, Fiber Artist
Carla Stehr’s creative path winds from tide pools and microscopes to fabric and thread. In this interview, she shares how a career in marine biology shaped her eye for detail… Spotlight: Helen Geglio, Fiber Artist
Helen Geglio stitches together from memory, meaning, and a deep respect for the hands that came before her. In this interview, she shares how teaching, research, slow stitching, and repurposed… Spotlight: Angee Turner, Modern Quilter
Angee Turner grew up with fabric under her fingertips and a sewing machine always nearby. Quilting found her when she was chasing connection, color, and creativity. In this interview, she… Spotlight: Fenella Davies, Textile Artist
Fenella Davies is a hand-stitching storyteller, drawing on history, memory, and the quiet traces people leave behind. Working entirely by hand with aged and altered cloth, her process is intuitive,… Spotlight: Michelle Freedman, Quilt Designer and Fiber Artist
Michelle Freedman began her creative path with early sewing, which led her to fashion and theater, including years as an outerwear designer for major brands. Today, she’s a quilt designer,… Spotlight: Nikki May, Artist and Designer
Nikki May has always followed her curiosity, whether that meant diving into ceramics as a kid, building a decade-long corporate design career, or trading cubicles for life on the road… Spotlight: Birgit Koopsen, Printmaker and Mixed Media Artist
Birgit Koopsen would draw for hours with her grandmother, turning rainy Dutch days into explosions of color. Her creative life has always been hands-on and joy-driven. In this Artist Spotlight,… Spotlight: Katia Herrera, Photo Embroidery
Katia Herrera’s work lives at the intersection of photography, embroidery, and quiet emotion. In this interview, she shares how curiosity, intuition, and her Mexican heritage guide a deeply meditative practice…
Spotlight: Lena Pugachova, Textile Artist
Lena Pugachova’s quilts are where precision meets playful storytelling, stitched together with curves, color, and clever visual surprises. From her roots in Ukraine to her creative life in Ireland, Lena…
Spotlight: Miesje Chafer, Bead and Fiber Artist
Miesje Chafer’s creative story begins on her grandmother’s sofa with a knitting Nancy and unfolds into a life rich with color, pattern, and hand stitching. In this interview, she talks…
Spotlight: Qristy Kurtz, Fashion Facilitator
From thrifted fabrics to runway dreams, Qristy Kurtz has always used fashion as a way to belong, speak up, and build confidence. In this interview, she shares how sewing became…
Spotlight: Colleen McCubbin Stepanic, Contemporary Artist
Colleen McCubbin Stepanic has known she was an artist since childhood, and her work carries that lifelong curiosity straight into the studio. In this interview, she talks about cutting up…
Spotlight: Charles Spitzack, Visual Artist
Charles Spitzack has been carving his way toward art for as long as he can remember, with woodcut becoming both his language and his compass. In this interview, he talks…
Spotlight: Dominie Nash, Textile and Mixed Media Artist
Dominie Nash has spent decades letting fabric, dye, and stitch lead the way. In this thoughtful conversation, she shares how quilting became her creative language, how her process has evolved,…