M'Liss Rae Hawley's photostream  

JOIN ME ON FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/pages/MLISS-RAE-HAWLEY-Sewing-Quilting-C...

MY WEBSITE
www.experiencequilting.com

MY FABRIC LINES AT HANCOCK FABRICS
www.hancockfabrics.com/M-Liss-Collection_stcVVcatId550095...

LINK TO MY PUBLISHER
www.ctpub.com/contributorinfo.cfm?ContribID=228


MY BLOG AT HANCOCK FABRICS
www.hancockfabrics.com/Follow-M-Liss_stcVVcatId550195VVvi...

Many of you may already know me as the author of 12 bestselling books, and as a fabric designer and featured speaker for groups and events around the world. Along the way, I was crowned “Fat-Quarter Queen” for my pioneering and original work with these wonderful quarter-yard pieces of fabric.

My sewing journey began when I was four years old and my mother taught me to embroider on handkerchiefs. By age nine, my passion had grown so much that I convinced my father to fib about my age so I could take adult sewing classes at our local Singer dealer in Seattle, WA. Oh…and it was about that time that I got my first dachshund, Fritzi.

In college at the University of Washington, I majored in Fiber Arts and continued on with graduate work in textile design and clothing construction. It was there that I met my soon-to-be husband, Michael. We were married in August of 1979. Our son Alexander was born in 1982 and our daughter Adrienne in 1985. Michael went on to a career in law enforcement, eventually serving three terms as the elected Sheriff of Island County, WA. Alexander joined the USMC and is now a Staff Sergeant serving in Afghanistan. Adrienne graduated from Seattle University, served a year in AmeriCorps while also serving as a firefighter/EMT, and recently graduated with a Master’s Degree from University College Dublin in Ireland.

Meanwhile, my love for fabric and design continued, and in 1983 I began my business, M’Liss’s Design & Quilting World, LLC, in the living room of our home. In 1988, we moved to Whidbey Island, Washington, and my studio soon was shared with a new dachshunds, Gretel and Matilda.

I started teaching quilting in the Pacific Northwest; at the same time, I experimented with new designs and techniques. By 1995, I was submitting work for national competitions and winning! In 1998, I was selected by Bernina Sewing Machine Company for their Portrait of the Artist series and in that same year my first book, The Mariner’s Medallion, was published. In 2001, I released my first fabric collections with assortments of coordinating embroideries. By now, our dachshund family had grown to include George, Agatha, and Aurora. They were later joined by Amelia.

In 2003, I moved to C&T Publishing and—to date—have released eight books with this wonderful company; more are on the way. A year later, I began work on my nationally syndicated PBS show, M’Liss’s World of Quilts, and became spokesperson for Husqvarna Viking Sewing Machines, where I was featured in numerous worldwide advertising campaigns. M’Liss© Design Fabrics were being sold nationwide as well.

In 2009, I began my wonderful partnership with Hancock Fabrics. In the upcoming years, we will be introducing many beautiful original fabric lines and related products to bring color and creativity into your life.

If you’d like to know more about me and my family, upcoming design projects and products, and appearances and events, visit me at Follow M’Liss.
www.hancockfabrics.com/Follow-M-Liss_stcVVcatId550195VVvi...