About Pelican Quilts

Quilts and love at first sight

I fell in love with my spouse immediately. I bought the first house I walked into because I knew it was the one. And I didn't choose quilting as my craft—it chose me.

Over the course of a few months, I encountered the quilts of Gee's Bend and, soon after, those of Maura Ambrose. I fell in love. From then on, I knew quilts would become the object of my artistic practice.

Made with naturally dyed linen & hand quilted

Each of my quilts begins with a traditional design or method but becomes my own composition. My process is slow. I dye linen with natural dyes to create my own palette, then hand stitch the quilts together with sashiko thread.

Pelican Quilts isn't a pattern library. It's a Quilt School

I don’t write quilt patterns here, I want to teach people to think like quilter, an artist, and a designer. It is a satisfying and powerful way of thinking and living.

That's why Pelican Quilts is organized as a kind of Quilt School. My journal and essays explore the what and why of my practice, and I believe those should be freely available. The case studies, technical guides, natural dye explorations, and Quilt School zines focus on the how. Together, they form an evolving curriculum built from years of experimentation, making, and study.

Welcome to Pelican Quilts

If you'd like to follow my work, you can find me as @pelicanquilts on Instagram and here on Substack. Most posts are free to read. If you'd like to support my work, please consider becoming a paid subscriber.

xoxo

Sarah Gagnon