About Liz
I’ve known Liz McNally ever since I joined my local guild in the early 2000’s. Liz is an incredibly skilled and vibrant quilt artist who is always interested in exploring new ideas and learning new techniques.
Liz comes from a line of talented women. Although her Mom died when she was young, her Grandmother successfully sold her crochet, sewing and quilting handiwork to a shop in northern Manitoba. The store would send her the raw materials and Liz’s Grandmother would work away until she had a steamer trunk full of articles to ship by train to the West. The extra money was helpful to a farm family living on hard scrabble rocky ground.
Liz grew up to become a nurse and created dozens of tailored shirts for her family members using wool flannels and linen/silk blends. They were better than what was commercially available. She made so many shirts that she wore out the buttonhole capabilities on two sewing machines.
Along the way, Liz wanted a couple of bed quilts for her home but she could not afford to purchase them. She found a picture in a book for a Boston Commons quilt. That was the quilt she wanted! With a friends help she visited the local Lens Mills store to pick out what seemed an impossible amount of colors. How could they make 16 colors work together? Neither had a great deal of knowledge about fabrics so they purchased cottons, cotton/poly blends and poly batting.
As retirement approached Liz made a plan. She’d buy a sewing machine to take her to the end of her days and she’d join the local guild to learn more about quilting. Since 2003, when she joined the guild, Liz has sewn a total of 3 sewing machines into the ground and she’s still sewing strong!
Liz loves classes and takes them to support her habit and to support the groups that support quilting. ‘I always take home usable information no matter what the class’. Liz has two boys who have in turn had two children each, who range from 4 to 20 years of age.
Liz has been blessed with a keen interest in quilts, a creative spirit and an unstoppable talent.
Artist’s Statement
Ash trees in my area have been killed by the Emerald Ash Borer.
Simple beginnings are shown with the log cabin blocks. The present day is depicted by a solitary white ash tree that has died. The zipper teeth represent an ineffective barrier to the insect. The decorative tape shows a glimmer of hope for the future of this species of tree.
Materials and Techniques
This original design features cotton-wool roving. It is machine pieced and quilted and includes finished edge appliqué, thread painting, needle punch and hand embroidery.
Find out more about the Canadian Group and the TAQS show, along with links to all the artist’s profiles.
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