Rebecca Speakes

My background includes 30 years in Graphic arts as a graphic designer, mostly as a self-employed freelancer.

I have been a fiber artist since 1975 when I designed and crocheted clothes for myself. Eventually I searched for a different medium which would allow for greater design flexibility. After taking some quilting classes, I began designing small wallhanging quilts. I employed my skills as a graphic designer to design geometric repeating quilt patterns.

During the following years I have made over 335 quilts. I explored quilt shapes other than squares and rectangles, like triangles, trapezoids and parallelograms. I’ve always loved color and shiny highlights. Many of the mini-quilts are embellished with foil stamping, beads, shells, metallic cording and gold mesh.

About 25 years ago I designed a home decor line of table runners, mug mats, placemats, pillows and bags. I used shapes from the quilts as design motifs. These creations are very colorful and fun. Each piece is 100% cotton canvas and batiks. The batiks are foil-stamped to add to their vibrant color. They are featured in many galleries around the country, mainly the Southwest and Midwest.