I recently picked up a copy of Alberta Quiltmakers and Their Quilts by Lucie Heins during a visit to the Royal Alberta Museum in Edmonton. Coincidentally, it was around the same time I was looking for a personal project to keep building my illustration skills. The idea originally started as a project about Alberta basket makers, but I quickly realized how little had been documented. Reading Heins' book, I found myself running into that same idea again, and it felt like a good excuse to spend more time with these stories.

Each illustration is inspired by the life and work of a different Alberta quiltmaker, pairing a quilt story from the book with a series of illustrated assets. The illustration system borrows from craft traditions, guild imagery, and colours found in the natural environment. I'm drawn to how quilting has been used to document people's lives, advocate for their communities, and make space for perspectives that have often been excluded from dominant narratives. I want that sense of storytelling, agency, and connection to come through in the visual language of each illustration.

This project is still growing. I'm adding new quiltmakers as I work my way through the book, so this page will continue to evolve over time. A big thank you to Lucie Heins for documenting these stories and making them available to curious craft lovers like me.