DESIGNER PROFILE Rachel Hauser

Tell us about your creative background and how you first got interested in quilting.

My childhood was filled with ballet. I loved it for its beautiful forms, music and imagination. I also loved that it combined that beauty with a demanding precision.

After high school I studied fashion in San Francisco and eventually opened my own designer maternity boutique. I enjoyed most aspects of having my own business, but choosing the colours and shapes of the clothes was the very best part. When this business floundered after the 2008 recession, I decided to start something new with my latest hobby. It was a little window of opportunity with few risks and many upsides, so I decided to step through.

Although my mom is a creative person, I didn’t learn sewing or quilting at home. My family didn’t own any quilts and I never thought much about them. That changed when I fell in love