Tutors – New Zealand

Sharon Bradley

Growing up in the King Country Sharon has developed a keen interest in the constantly changing landscape and scenery around our beautiful area.   Ranging from jaggered limestone cliffs to beautiful glowing underground caves.  It is a great source of inspiration to be surrounded by rivers, lakes, mountains and farmland.

Sharon started her own studio 2 years ago and her passion for quilt making has become infectious with everyone that visits.   When Sharon is teaching she like’s to pass on as many tips and tricks as possible, as it’s the little things that make that special quilt unique. 

She has been experimenting with dying her own fabric and using a range of resists to create movement and texture.   Playing with thread and embellishing pieces of work is always fun and challenging.  Her favourite is to take a piece of fabric that is not liked and make something wonderful with it. 

Sharon likes her students to develop their own creative inspiration, taking them outside their comfort zone and gaining confidence in using new techniques and products available on the market.   She likes them to find their own artistic voice.

Who ever said that “only kids play?”  

Carole Brungar

Carole’s creative journey started in 1969 when she was given a Kodak Instamatic camera. All her pocket money was spent on buying rolls of film and having them processed. Since then she has gone on to work as a professional photographer shooting weddings, nudes, portraits and some still life. She has exhibited her photographs and worked on private commissions. 

Carole has also worked as a freelance journalist with articles published in a variety of newspapers and magazines. She has worked as an editor, journalist and photographer publishing a community newspaper for the New Zealand Army and also as a communications officer for the local city council.

She discovered traditional quilting more than 20 years ago, but more recently realised what fun was to be had playing with fabric in a more relaxed manner. With a challenge to reuse, recycle and use more of what she had at home, Carole discovered mixed media art and the fun and satisfaction gained by not having to measure everything three times or stress over lack of perfect points. 

She has a large collection of vintage linen, but she has the most fun from making old fabric appear new and new fabric appear old. 

Although Carole still makes quilts, she now spends a great deal of time teaching online classes to students from many parts of the world and making stock for the odd craft fair.

Carole has a Bachelor of Communication majoring in Communication Management and Journalism. Her artwork has featured in Sew Somerset magazines and she has been active in the blogging world for many years.

She lives with her partner Dennis in Palmerston North and has an assortment of cats, dogs and sheep. They have three grown children.

Tina Cooper

Tina lives in Nelson, New Zealand. By profession an illustrator and designer she earned qualifications as a mixed media visual artist. 

Tina does most of her design work on the computer. That with both writing and illustrating children's books keeps her very busy. 

A few years ago she found out she had Multiple Sclerosis and dealing with the difficulties this brings was a big obstacle in her life. Tina choose not to let this 'obstacle' stop her from doing her creative work and although her mobility is now by wheelchair that has only made her more determined to get the most out of life.

She was not a quilter before starting designing Appliqué for wall hangings but had sewed all her life from when she was a tiny girl.

Seeing a Hot Ribbon Quilt for the first time – well! She fell in love on the spot! Of course being a designer as well made her want to experiment with her own designs. Which she did using her design and sewing skills to create some stunning effects on quilts. Prompted to use New Zealand images for her quilts started her on designing patterns that other quilter's could use. Developing her own technique of painting on fabric and using glue and beads to make some stunning quilts has lead Tina in a totally new direction in her life.

'Doing something I really get pleasure from doing, has bought me so much satisfaction and it is something I hope can bring me much more pleasure in years to come!'

Joanne Dixey

Joanne (Jo) trained for 3 years at the Royal School of Needlework from 1991.

She then went on to complete her City and Guilds creative embroidery parts 1 and 2.

Jo now works on commissions, teaches and holds exhibitions.  Her work is slowly moving towards the use of fabric alongside stitch to create pieces of art. 

Hazel Foot

Hazel’s first introduction to quilting was in Hong Kong and Manila in the late 1990’s.  On her return to NZ in 2002 she joined the Auckland Guild and relished the opportunity to attend classes and experiment with the many techniques and styles available to quilters.  She developed a passion for machine embroidery and free motion quilting which she uses to enhance her work.

Hazel enjoys working with colour and creating designs that reflect Auckland’s Pacific flavour and also the places she has lived and visited.  Her other passion is gardening so floral designs are a recurring theme.

After a career in teaching, Hazel now enjoys sharing her skills and enthusiasm with other quilters and aims to give participants in her classes the confidence to draw on their own creativity when translating designs and ideas into textile works.  Individual help and guidance is given to assist each person achieve this.

Hazel has won awards both locally, including Best of Show at Calico Christmas, and nationally, and has had work selected to travel to France and USA.

Noeline Johnston

Noeline began quilting 21 years ago after the birth of her youngest child. She had always done many textile crafts and she soon became addicted to patchwork, attending every workshop and exhibition that she could. It wasn’t long before Noeline was talked into machine quilting other quilter's tops.  Later she opened “Catlin Quilts” a patchwork shop in Owaka, South Otago that she operated for 10 years. She organised and ran the very popular and successful N.Z. Hoffman Challenge.   Recently she closed "Catlin Quilts" and is now indulging in her main love, teaching and quilting for her family.

She has taught patchwork and quilting through out New Zealand and Fiji and Norfolk Island. She has been a tutor at a number of our National Symposiums. She loves designing her own original quilts. Her work is mainly traditional with a twist.

Chris Kenna

Chris Kenna is a quiltmaker from Wellington, New Zealand. She has a business degree and worked internationally as an accountant, auditor, and management consultant for fifteen years before leaving in 1996 to raise her two daughters. Since then she has focussed her time more and more within the world of quilting.

Her quilts have been exhibited nationally and internationally in a number of galleries and shows, and published in New Zealand and international quilt magazines and books. Her quilts have won a number of national and international awards, including Best of Show at New Zealand’s National Quilt Symposium in Manawatu in 2007.

Chris has taught quilting throughout New Zealand for the last six years and absolutely loves the challenge, responsibility and joy of teaching quilting to others.

Raewyn Penrose

Raewyn is a professional fibre artist, operating her gallery/studio in the picturesque spa town of Te Aroha, 90 minutes drive South East of Auckland. 

From a background of wool crafts and weaving, she became totally hooked on the felt making process in the early 90s.

Raewyn’s time is split between creating products for her gallery (plus other selected outlets), and running felt-making workshops. These are held regularly in Te Aroha, but she also travels to teach in other areas of NZ and even further afield, with regular visits to Australia and (on two occasions) Germany.

These very popular workshops cover a wide variety of techniques and are suitable for students of all skill levels.

Felt-making can be described as ‘painting with wool’. Fine New Zealand merino wool is Raewyn’s primary base material, but also works with alpaca and other fibres such as silk. Felt is a totally natural, durable and light fabric where colour, texture, form and functionality can all be combined into a wide range of unique outcomes, from fashion through to art.

Raewyn’s first love is fashion clothing and accessory design, but also creates other products such as wall hangings and carpet bags. She is constantly experimenting to develop new techniques and visual effects, and enjoys the sharing of knowledge with her students. 

Although time is somewhat limited due to business commitments,  Raewyn regularly participates in exhibitions and fashion parades, both in New Zealand and overseas. She has been involved in many regional and national exhibitions in a judging capacity. She has held the NZ Creative Fibre ‘National Tutor’ status for the last 12 years.

Sonya Prchal

Sonya lives in Whangarei with her husband of 24 years, David. She gains her inspiration from the gorgeous scenery around the Northland coast where they sail most school holidays. Sonya loves capturing the beauty of the New Zealand scenery and animals in her realistic picture quilts.

Sonya is enthusiastic about fabric painting after discovering how simple producing her own colourful scenic fabrics can be. She loves sharing her knowledge and inspiring others to expand their experience. Her enthusiasm and fun loving nature encourages her participants’ personal expression and creative experimentation.

Teaching has been her passion for the past 12 years and she has taught throughout New Zealand and in Thailand. Sonya has tutored sewing machine techniques, appliqué, quilting, design, free motion sewing and fabric painting. She gains great pleasure from seeing her students excel in their newly acquired skills and to take them a step further.

Sonya has won numerous awards and has exhibited in various shows nationally, and has had her work published in quilting magazines.

Jane Rixon

I was born and raised in Dunedin where I still live with my husband and son. I learned to sew at a very young age and was making my own clothes by the time I was 12.

Over the years I have tried and enjoyed many different crafts but since finding quilting I have been totally ‘hooked’.

I love to experiment with many different techniques but I especially enjoy raw edge applique, foundation piecing, free motion quilting and creating three dimensional elements. I am inspired by the beautiful shapes and colours of flowers and love to re-create them using my exciting three dimensional techniques.

It gives me great pleasure to create designs for others to enjoy and each class includes a number of valuable tips and techniques for students to utilise in their future projects. My classes help students extend and challenge themselves and they are often amazed at the results they achieve.

Full pattern instructions, including quilting designs, are provided in all my classes.

Helen Townend

Helen lives in Taupo, New Zealand. She has been dressmaking since she was a child, and branched out into quilt making ten years ago. Six years ago she began her Long Arm Quilting Business.
Helen has participated fully in her local quilting club, holding positions of Treasurer (one year) and President (3 years). She has had her work displayed in exhibitions in Taupo, Cambridge and Auckland.

She has enjoyed teaching a number of subjects and skill sets: Art and pottery to home-school children for 4 years, with an age range of 4 – 12 years; Piano for 4 years to children and adult students; Starting a Small Business at the 2006 Long Arm Quilting Conference in Cambridge; Trapunto for Long Arm Quilting Machines at the 2010 Long Arm Quilting Conference in Cambridge; Trapunto for Domestic Sewing Machines in 2010 and 2011 in Taupo and Cambridge and Free Motion Quilting for Domestic Sewing Machines in 2011 in Taupo.  Currently she is teaching many aspects of Patchwork and Quilting for all levels of experience.
 
She also teaches a number of ways to make use of your scraps.  These imaginative ideas are great for gifts, Helen is passionate about teaching various aspects of sewing, thread and paint artistry on fabric and patchwork quilting. She has a strong interest in new technologies such as photograph manipulation for use in fabric art.  Helen is always interested in creating new ideas and offering them for classes.

Helen works hard to ensure her students experience a focused, friendly and positive learning environment where they can feel relaxed and enjoy what they are learning. Her goal is to have each student pleased with their finished creation and inspired and confident to do more.

Mary Transom

Mary has been making quilts for twenty years and teaching quilting for sixteen years.  Her quilts have won many awards and ribbons over the years and she has participated in several solo and group exhibitions.

Mary’s favourite technique is machine applique with machine embroidery.

Her Flower quilts have become popular classes and some are now available as patterns.  These quilts feature machine applique, embroidery, and often beading and couching.

Mary loves to make her quilt classes accessible to quilters of all levels of ability.

Her classes are all project orientated, and students will have at the end of the class a quilt well on the way to completion. 

Mary lives in the sunny Bay of Plenty in the North Island of New Zealand, with her partner John and two small dachshunds.

Julie Van der Putten

Julie got he nickname ‘PUDDLE’ about 15 years ago when someone got her name wrong and it just stuck. So to lots of patchworkers and knitters around the world she is ‘PUDDLE’.

Julie lives on a lifestyle block on the outskirts of Cambridge with her husband Ray and dog Charlie. She enjoys being at home sewing, looking out the window at the green grass and having only horse and tractor noises and no other distractions.

She been doing craft since she was about 4years old when her Nana introduced her to knitting. She thinks this was to try and stop her from talking … (complete failure). She knitted clothes for her dolls and the cat.  Julie has sewn since intermediate school and was lucky enough to take sewing all through her high school years where she had the best teacher ever, ‘ Mrs Jack’. As a youngster Julie sewed all her own clothes and clothes for her mother (when she would stand still enough for a fitting!). She loved having clothes that were different and individual.

Julie started patchwork a bit by accident about 15 years ago after being made redundant from her job.  She took free classes at Grandmothers Garden Patchwork & Quilting and just loved it! She loved the fabric, colour, and the creativity. She loved it ALL!!!  

These days Julie teaches night classes in Hamilton throughout the year. She teaches not just beginners, but all skill levels. Julie gets a real ‘buzz’ out of helping people learn and extend their skills and develop their individuality and confidence as quilters. “It is great to see someone start with a ‘pile of fabric’ and a picture of what they want to make, and then see a completed quilt.” Says Julie. 

Demonstrating ‘Clover’ products has allowed her to travel throughout New Zealand and Australia, and it is through a Japanese Clover demonstrator that she discovered ‘Meshwork’. She has developed the Meshwork techniques to suit her own style and has even drawn ideas from Maori traditional weaving.  Julie says that Meshwork is small and intricate, but is wonderfully accurate which can produce an amazing 3-D look quite easily. 

She discovered ‘FREEFORM’ knitting and crochet when she was in Melbourne a few years ago. It was at a Quilt and Craft Fair when Prudence Mapstone had a ‘stop you in your tracks’ display and was selling her book. The technique and fluid creativity really appealed to Julie -, something different, something achievable, no pattern and no rules, and just what she was looking for. She started knitting and making bags and pillows and just loved the colours and the textures one can use.

Julie’s real joys are inspiring and helping people achieve their project goals, watching them create and complete their projects. She loves making quilts and other things for gifts for someone special.  There is no greater pleasure than seeing the delighted look on someone’s face when they are given a wonderful handmade quilt or knitted gift.

Julie Veck

Julie Veck is a talented artist. Her mediums tend to be thread and fabric although Julie also enjoys ceramics. Julie’s work has been recognised with awards at Calico Christmas and also being featured in Magazine Articles.

Julie is passionate about new technology and enjoys teaching all aspects of sewing, thread artistry, quilting, embroidery, digitising and our brand new cutwork tool.

She was exposed to the sewing industry at a young age through the passion of her Mum. It was a life style while Julie was growing up, that she has now made into her life’s Career.

Julie is the National Sewing Promoter for Bernina New Zealand. Her role involves teaching sewing technology, both old and new, to Bernina Sewing Centre Owners and staff, teachers and consumers.

Julie has a pleasant personality and is able to communicate with people from all walks of life, and has a natural talent to educate.

Sue Weston

Sue trained at Ardmore Teachers’ College during the sixties and then taught and travelled until her return to New Zealand in 1976.Her first tentative quilts emerged at this time along with her first child James.

Sue and her family moved to Singapore in 1978 for two years, which enabled her to discover wonderful ethnic fabrics’ such as batiks, ikats, sarongs, silks and cottons.

Sue and her family moved back to Auckland in the early 80’s.  She was involved in teaching classes at various quilt stores and attended her first Symposium in Auckland in 1984.

During a quilting trip to the States in 1987, Sue was exposed to many wonderful quilts in museums, in private collections and exhibitions. She was strongly drawn to the utilitarian, functional, quilts that were scrappy in nature, made by women who used whatever was at hand to keep their families warm.

Sue’s passion is scrap quilts.  Her interest intensified when she joined a group of like-minded women in the late eighties.  The encouragement and enthusiasm and informal critiquing of each other’s work has been invaluable to her personal growth.

Sue taught at the 2007 Symposium and has also had the opportunity to teach throughout the South Island.

More and more these days, Sue’s quilts are the result of needing to do something useful with a given piece of fabric or a pile of interesting scraps.  Her “bush blankets” or woolen quilts are made entirely of preloved fabrics.  Her string/strip quilts are made from cotton shirts she has found in charity shops.  Her techniques more often than not are template free, emulating the Afro-American style of quilt making.  This relies on an intuitive process to build pleasing blocks and then resolve them into a quilt top she is satisfied with.  This results in a unique piece of work.