She's an artist who uses machine quilting techniques on dye-painted fabric .
Laurie Brainerd is a contemporary quilter whose work is displayed and sold in fine art galleries. Several of of her pieces have toured at the Quilt Festivals. She's had a large installation in the lobby of Baptist Mission Trail Hospital in San Antonio. Her work has been featured in publications, including 500 Art Quilts, Journey of Hope, and Lone Stars III. And we're very proud to say she does her quilting on a Janome Memory Craft 6600 Professional.
Laurie's mom taught her to sew when she was around 8 years old. As she got older she sewed on and off, making things like Halloween costumes. In high school she deliberately avoided Home Ec, because even though she knew how to sew, she hated cooking. So she took Shop instead.
Laurie says, "Over the years, I used sewing for home decorating projects. I started making art quilts when I was 40 years old--when I had enough space--physical, temporal, and emotional--all at the same time!"
Laurie always felt like an artist but just didn't know which medium she could really work in. Then she discovered fabric art. She says, "I have always been drawn to the texture of textiles. I first learned about fine art quilting when a friend gave me a catalog of an early Quilt National where she had volunteered. I had never heard of the medium until then, but was instantly smitten."
She discovered Janome when she was researching getting a new machine with a sturdier walking foot. Laurie says she asked the art quilter, Lisa Call, how she had solved that problem. Lisa uses the built-in technology on another brand. Laurie says, "I discovered that Janome also had this feature. And when I test drove both machines, the Janome 6600P was superior."
Laurie adds that another big plus is that her MC6600P fits the flatbed space on her Sew Perfect table.
She's looking forward to moving to the West Coast where she'd like to create a micro studio--less space but more functional. She's going to continue working on her unique surface design techniques, while fully exploiting what quilts can do that paintings can’t.
See more of Laurie Brainerd's work on her website gallery and blog.
You can see her quilting machine at your local Janome dealer.
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