Wendy Fittler

My name is Wendy Fittler and I have lived in George Town for most of my life. I am happily married to Ray who is so supportive of my hobby that he built me a dedicated space for it. (Actually, I think he just wanted some space in the house that wasn’t cluttered with fabric, cottons, dropped pins, wadding fluff and a noisy sewing machine!)

I have had an interest in crafts of one sort or another since early childhood, when I watched both my mother and grandmother spend many enjoyable hours at their sewing machines or doing some sort of hand work. By my teenage years I had developed interests in embroidery, dress-making, crochet, knitting, drawing, card-making, painting, and designing and making dolls – interests which followed me into my adult life.  

I did not get into quilting until I retired from teaching in 2001. I was instantly bitten by a new creative bug and could not learn fast enough. I purchased fabric, threads and wadding, designed, cut, pieced and quilted obsessively and was delighted that the many hours I now had as leisure time became filled with such a pleasurable activity. I joined a quilting group in George Town in 2002 and the Tasmanian Quilting Guild shortly after so I could attended workshops and classes to develop my skills. I have tried my hand at a number of techniques, including traditional and contemporary styles, appliqué (raw-edge machine, buttonhole and needle turn), hand and machine pieced, hand and machine quilted, “stitchery” quilts and art quilts, but still really prefer anything that is hand-stitched. For a bit of variety or a chance to complete a project quickly I also enjoy making bags and other smaller projects.

Over the years I have come to realise that there is always something new to learn, some challenge to overcome and much joy and satisfaction to be gained from this wonderful craft.