About Us

I began quilting as a freshman in college and found myself immediately addicted. I soon picked a new major and began pursuing my quilting as a possible career. Little did I know what I was getting myself into! I’ve been in business since 1996, starting small while working on my sophomore year in college. I initially did machine quilting out of my parents’ basement and publishing a few patterns on the side. I have worked up to quitting machine quilting and designing books and patterns full time. I also design fabrics for Henry Glass and Co, along with doing some teaching and lectures on quilting. The designs in my books and patterns are geared to the average busy quilter – meaning that they are simple enough that almost any quilter can attempt them. They usually have several tricks that make them easier and quicker to assembly than they first appear.

My business is named after my Great Grandma, Anka Petersen. She was a very inspirational person to me (my family and all who knew her) for many reasons. First of all, she got my Mom sewing, who in turn got me sewing. My first sewing machine came as a hand me down at the age of five, from Great Grandma. She was 98 when she died, almost blind, living in an aparment by herself, and still able to totally take care of herself. She was in good health and so sharp mentally. I can’t remember what I did yesterday, yet she could rattle off telephone numbers from when she was a telephone oeprator in the 1930’s. I wish I could have inherited her memory! Instead I inherited her love of working with her hands. We both loved to be busy, sewing, knitting, gardening, crafting, reading, cooking (no wait- that was just her), etc. I not only cherished her for all these reasons, but also for her great outlook on life. She had lived through so many hardships, yet she remained a woman of great faith and encouragement. I was fortunate that she lived such a long life, giving me a chance to connect with her.

My husband and I live near Spicer, MN. I have a studio above our garage and office out of our house. My “family” consists of myself, my husband Joel, and our dog Daisy. (My husband is threatening to guest blog about our dog, so I’m sure you will get to meet her). We bought a fixer-upper on a lake and have been busy getting the house to our liking. We have learned a lot, however, we don’t recommend anyone else trying what we did. In our spare time, we love to travel, read, and spend time with family and friends. Joel is also an avid (obsessed) outdoorsman. He has a serious fishing problem. I am however, am completely normal with no obsessions (fabric,chocolate, yarn, etc.)

Sorry, but there are no products matching this criteria. Please try again.