Sharon McConnell’s quilts are characterised by strong traditional design and reflect the rich variety of colours and fabrics available on the market. “I think of myself as a modern traditional quilter,” Sharon explains. “I like modern fabrics being created by current designers, but I still relate to the classic style of piecing a quilt with blocks, interesting shape combinations and good craftsmanship.”

With two small school-age boys, Sharon spends time while they are away from the house during the day to sew and attend her own classes. But this is quite a new lifestyle for Sharon, being a nurse before she took up crafting full-time. “I was bored and the work didn’t excite or motivate me anymore,” she reveals. “When my position was made redundant at the company where I worked, I decided to try a new direction. I focused on publishing my quilt patterns and returning to school for art and design training.”

Growing up, Sharon was always surrounded by enthusiastic quilters and sewers. “My mother made many of my clothes as a child and she always had a quilt in progress,” she recalls. “My grandmother also had a hand-quilting frame set up in her home; she was always working on a baby quilt for someone.”

Sharon got seriously into quiltmaking more than a decade ago after graduating from college. “Even though I had seen my mum and grandmother making quilts, it wasn’t until my own friends were having babies that I discovered a love for the colour, fabrics and creative process.”

Sharon lives in Ohio, where she is surrounded by quilting traditions. “Ohio is on the eastern side of the Midwest, or central part of the country, where Amish people live in the rural areas. They have a strong quilting tradition and very distinctive style.”

Sharon doesn’t believe her quilts can be pigeon-holed into a set style. “I don’t think I have a specific style simply because I make whatever strikes me,” she says honestly. “I am committed to keeping on quilting ‘for me’ even as I attempt to expand into publishing my work and to sell my designs as patterns. I’m definitely not ‘modern’ in the common sense of modern quilting since I like all-over designs and lots of prints as opposed to negative space and stark colour.”

Sharon is strict about making only what she loves and as a result all her quilts are very special to her. “I avoid things that are commissioned or otherwise assigned and I choose all my own fabrics. I don’t make quilts for a specific purpose (like a gift, Bee, or swap) and that gives me the freedom to be choosey. I think that means I truly put myself into the projects and love them.”