A few months later, we bought a house in Kerrville, Texas, a hill country town about 1 1/2 hours away from Pleasanton. We traveled back and forth on weekends updating the house. While doing that, we lived in an upstairs apartment above what used to be my parent's garage. I have been very slow at getting my business going again except on Craftsy. I lost all my equipment and most of my quilt samples. (Some were in a local quilt shop, so I have those!) I am slowly getting back into designing patterns. Thank you for being so patient with me during this time.
Many of you sent me fabric and other great tools to help me get going again after the fire. I thank you from the bottom of my heart!!!! Quilters are generous and kind-hearted people. I have saved your cards and notes and they still make me feel lifted up! I can never thank you enough!!!
Hi, everyone! My name is Linda Winters and I’m living in Texas again after being away for twenty years. I grew up in the colorful city of San Antonio, where Fiesta parades and colorful celebrations made an indelible impact on my tastes. To this day, I have a very difficult time working with soft, muted colors although I often admire them in the work of others.
I have been interested in quilts and quilting since I was a very small girl. My grandmother made a Little Dutch girl quilt that I found fascinating. Every little Dutch girl had a different print dress and her little socks were tinted (probably with crayons) to match! I thought that was just the most wonderful thing! Quilting, though, was on the decline during those years so I didn’t learn to quilt until I was grown. I did learn to sew, though, and as a teenager and young adult I made my own clothes.
I taught elementary school for 20 years, but I come from a family of artists and that was always an important part of my life. My love for children and children's books has also influenced my quilting. Many of my designs tend to be very reminiscent of children's book illustrations and the themes are often from fairy tales and nursery rhymes.
I live with my wonderful husband (an environmental chemist) only thirty minutes from the Alamo and the San Antonio Riverwalk. We are in a small farm and ranch community where the main “industry” is oil, cotton, peanuts, and cattle. I can hear coyotes howl at night and I can see Longhorns and other cattle grazing in nearby fields. It’s not unusual to see people riding horses along the side of the road. It can be one hundred degrees in the summer, but Fall, Winter, and Spring make up for it by giving us glorious, sunny days with cool (not cold) temperatures. I spend my days designing quilts, turning them into patterns, delivering them to several area quilt shops, writing my blog, and sometimes teaching classes. (I fill in any idle time baking or gardening!)
UPDATE: On October 8, 2013, our house in Pleasanton burned to the ground as a result of a fire in the garage (from a riding lawn mower) that spread to the attic of the house. We didn't even know we had a problem until flames were licking out of the garage and attic. We managed to escape with Sugarplum, our cat, and my purse! (Thank goodness for that. It had the only surviving key to my Jeep along with credit cards.) We ran from the house barefoot.
A few months later, we bought a house in Kerrville, Texas, a hill country town about 1 1/2 hours away from Pleasanton. We have been traveling back and forth on weekends updating the house. Meantime, we're living in an upstairs apartment above what used to be my parent's garage. I have been very slow at getting my business going again except on Craftsy. I lost all my equipment and most of my quilt samples. (Some were in a local quilt shop, so I have those!)
UPDATE: On October 8, 2013, our house in Pleasanton burned to the ground as a result of a fire in the garage (from a riding lawn mower) that spread to the attic of the house. We didn't even know we had a problem until flames were licking out of the garage and attic. We managed to escape with Sugarplum, our cat, and my purse! (Thank goodness for that. It had the only surviving key to my Jeep along with credit cards.) We ran from the house barefoot.
A few months later, we bought a house in Kerrville, Texas, a hill country town about 1 1/2 hours away from Pleasanton. We have been traveling back and forth on weekends updating the house. Meantime, we're living in an upstairs apartment above what used to be my parent's garage. I have been very slow at getting my business going again except on Craftsy. I lost all my equipment and most of my quilt samples. (Some were in a local quilt shop, so I have those!)