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LYNETTE ANDERSON
Q. When did you start sewing?
My love affair with textiles began at an early age when my grandmother taught me to embroider and knit, patchwork caught my attention in 1981 after the birth of my first son.
Q. Have you always loved to embroider?
I do love simple embroidery, cross stitch and the basic embroidery stitches are my favourites.
Q. What lead you to begin quilting?
I started doing patchwork after the birth of my first son. Previously I had enjoyed, spinning, weaving, bobbin lace making, knitting, cross stich and embroidery so patchwork was a very natural progression.
Q. Do you remember your first quilt? Which quilt is your favourite?
My first quilt was a traditional sampler quilt, I attended night class at the local school, the quilt which I stitched entirely by hand is still one of my favourite quilts although its looking quite faded and has a few stains now but then its is almost 30 years old!
My favourite quilt…gosh that’s a hard one as I love them all. My favourite is always the one I am working on at the moment or have just completed! So at the moment its Scandinavian Christmas which is my new five part block of the month.
Q. What lead you to start designing fabric? Do your fabric designs spring from your embroidery?
I think its every pattern designers dream to produce fabrics that they have created in colours they love to work with.
Q. How do you design your fabric? Are all the designs hand drawn or do you use a computer program? Tell us a little about your design process.
I hand paint all my images in the colours that I want, they are then manipulated on the computer using the program Illustrator until I have the look and feel I like. I then submit them to the fabric company who may make some adjustments and then once I approve the design on paper we go ahead and produce strike offs. Strike offs give you the look and feel of the design on fabric, its very exciting once you get to this stage. The hard part here is deciding which prints/colours to keep and which to discard.
Q. How many fabric lines have you done? Q. What is the latest one with Lecien called?
To date I have done 5 fabric collections, the first was back in 2002 with Marcus Brothers. I began working with Henry Glass just over two years ago I have released four fabric collections with them, ‘Stitches’ is due in stores any day.
Q. What excites you about being an Australian designer? What do you think makes Australian designers different?
I feel very blessed to be living in Australia and have found my creativity has blossomed since I have been living here (20 years), its something to do with the wonderful light that we have here and the sense of freedom that comes with living in such a beautiful relaxed country.
Q. Who or what inspires you?
I grew up in a small village in Dorset, England, spending the summers with my brother playing in the fields around our home and the winters busily crafting things with mum. Some of the imagery in my work still draws on those memories, as well as events occurring in my current everyday life - my whimsical appliquéd animals and embroidered details are distinctive.
I love animals and even when I was young I was always to be found with a cat tucked under my arm. Its not really surprising that many of my designs feature my beloved animals.
Q. What are you working on at the moment?
I always have a few things in the pipeline at any one time! Currently I am eagerly awaiting some yardage for my new collection, ‘Summertime Friends’, I have done lots of drawings in preparation for its arrival so once its here I can get straight into sewing.
You can view more of her work at http://www.lynetteandersondesigns.typepad.com/
I am also actively preparing for the European Patchwork Meeting in Alsace France (16 – 18 September 2011). I have booked a stand there and hope to meet you in France!