Lancaster Instructor Edyta Sitar: In Her Own Words

My love for fabric began at a very young age when I used my mother’s newly hung drapes to create my first fabric project! My mother recognized my passion for fabric and thus began the journey with fabric and sewing. Creating beautiful gowns opened the door into creative textile design and established the building blocks which lead me into a quilting adventure.

One of my biggest blessings is my husband, Michael. I not only fell in love, I was introduced to the family tradition of quilting by my mother-in-law, Carol, and grandmother-in-law, Anna. My husband's grandmother welcomed me to live with her and the day I stepped through her door was the day I started quilting. She made it clear to me that when I live with her, I will be quilting with her. And so she sat me down across from her, with a quilt on a frame between us. She taught me how to rock the needle and that's where my quilting journey began. I have been quilting for 18 years.

My quilting studio is in a barn that my husband built for me. My favorite part of my studio is the loft upstairs. I get a perfect light and can leave all my fabrics spread out up there. I call it "fabric nesting". Something that makes me a little bit unique in the quilting world is the fact that I love using my batiks and prints in the same quilt. That allows me to enjoy all my fabrics and get great results.

I love gardening so flowers many times become my inspiration for colors and patterns. Students are my inspiration for teaching, and my favorite thing about teaching quilting! They are always happy and excited to learn something new. And what amazes me about quilting is that it does not have a language barrier. I once had a student that did not speak any English and we were able to complete a project during a class perfectly communicating with body language.

When I am not working, I enjoy spending time with my family. My children and my husband are my greatest motivation, providing the basis that you can accomplish anything you want if you just set your mind to it. Being able to do what I love and share this love with others is the greatest feeling and reward I could imagine! This is the Cinderella dream for me. My daily companion is my little dog, Max. I think he likes quilting too because every time I lay out a quilt… he immediately wants to lay on it.

Edyta travels all over sharing her passion; connecting to and inspiring quilters of all levels by sharing personal, stimulating stories about the quilts she makes. As the owner and co-founder of her company, Laundry Basket Quilts, www.laundrybasketquilts.com, she has been published in magazines world-wide and her quilts have received numerous awards.

She is teaching the following classes at the AQS Quilt Show and Contest in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, March 16 – 19, 2011…

#42804 Why We Quilt – Let Us Count the Ways (lecture)

#43506 Painting with Fabrics-Fusible Appliqué

# 47104 Dresden Star-Perfect Points

#47502 Foundation Piecing-On Eagles Wings

#47509 Mosaic Quilt




Click here to register for the Lancaster show and to sign up for one of Edyta's fantastic classes.