Friday Feature: Holly @ Through My Window

(if you can't see the text of this post, click to view it from the website as our font is white)

Hi, I'm Holly McLean and I have lived, for the last 24 years in the small city of Bathurst, on the north shore of New Brunswick, Canada. It is a beautiful little city of about 12000 people.

We enjoy the four seasons with lots of snow and winter activities and warm beaches in the summer. We also have some beautiful rivers where we kayak.

I've been crafting and drawing since I was young, and have always loved the outdoors, spending time making mud pies, building towns in the sand pile, and making tents in the long reeds on the marshes. I have had a long time fascination with nature, always coming home with my pockets full of bits and sometimes even critters much to my mother's chagrin.

I took up knitting and crocheting among other things such as papier mache and painting in my teens. I love hand made things. I wanted at one time to go to art college but university was actually cheaper, so I became a teacher, taking art classes of all kinds on the side. Eventually, I taught some art to both children and adults.

I made my first quilt at the age of twenty.

While working and raising 3 children I always had one form of art and craft on the go. In my thirties I began doing watercolors, but I sometimes got too uptight about making the perfect picture. I was also still quilting at the time, eventually getting involved in a guild here in town. I have always loved textures and fiber and so, it was a natural transition for me to become an art quilter. Now I am happy with most of my pieces and I thoroughly enjoy the process. I have only had the confidence recently to call myself an artist!

I started blogging because I was a rare bird among my traditional quilting friends (I still do make some quilts) and I needed some some connections to inspire me. Since I left work due to illness 2 years ago, the blog has been a wonderful place to make new artist friends and to be inspired. It even gives me some impetus to keep creating every day.

My works are often quite colorful and often involve a depiction of something from nature--my favorite things are flowers, birds, the woods and the ocean.

I was recently very surprised and pleased to be asked to write an article for Quilting Arts magazine. This was not at all one of my goals but it has inspired and encouraged me to continue creating. I even just opened an Etsy shop which was a big step for me.

I'd love it if you would visit me at my blog.

Moderator comment: Make sure when you go to Holly's blog, you click on the image labelled "My Art and Quilts" on the right. It will take you to her Picassa album. There are lovely images there showing her work! So impressive!!