Sassaman Book ~ Blog hop! Give Away!

Jane LaFazio: Got your beautiful book yesterday, and here are some questions. I’m fascinated by your fabric design process. Tell us how you go about it
Jane Sassaman: The first chapter of Patchwork Sassaman Style briefly describes my process for Free Spirit. Basically I begin an idea with a black and white drawing. Then I play with a repeat of that motif. I enjoy the engineering aspects of making a repeat design. Then I redraw the repeat design as nicely as possible on tracing paper, still in black and white. 

Then I scan the drawing, often in sections which usually need to be pieced back together inside the computer. I work in Photoshop and with my Wacom tablet to clean up the drawing and begin adding extra details and experimenting with color.

 

JL: Your work has such a strong, beautiful nature theme. What are your favorite symbols and what do they mean to you?
JS: Nature as always been an inspiration in my work. I prefer to use plants in my work instead of people. Since plants have the same life cycle as humans, I can make more mysterious messages without such obvious references. In my fabric Mother Natures designs are used as both pattern and symbol. Once a plant becomes part of my design language I will use it again and again. Dandelions, for example, are tenacious, naive, exuberant and wonderfully designed. They show up in my work often.
All fabric line have a theme to coordinate them. My fabrics usually tell a story about my Midwestern environment and portray plants that I know very well.   

JL:  You mention in your book, an easy threading needle. Tell us about it and the brand you use.
JS: I would retire if I didn't have easy threading needles. They allow several threads to be snapped into the eye instead of threading through it. I use it to bury my threads when quilting. Clover and John James are usually very dependable.
JL: Since I’m such an admirer of your designs, the ‘whole cloth’ quilts in your book really appeal to me. What’s your favorite quilt in your new book?

Jane Sassaman Quilt

JS: I like the whole cloth quilts, too. After all, I design fabric to be "art by the yard" and I am very happy when people use it in big pieces. My fabric is quite suited for home dec projects that let the fabric just be itself... pillowcases, duvets, curtains, etc. It would be hard to pick a favorite quilt in the book, but I'm very fond of the patterns that play off the symmetry in a fabric design. It is thrilling to see the optical effects that develop, like the Broken Star, the Mirrored Triangles and the Radiating Diamonds.