Patricia Belyea

At age 50, Patricia Belyea took her first trip to Japan. At 53, she made her first quilt. Five years later Patricia left the creative agency she led for 25 years to become a full-time quilter. Once she started quilting, Patricia worked on projects during every waking hour (and hours she should have been sleeping). “I was a fish who didn’t know I was a fish until someone showed me the water,” she explains. Then Patricia discovered vintage Japanese yukata cottons and she had found her calling. These hand-dyed fabrics with graphic patterns and luscious colors seemed ideal for making stunning quilts. Patricia’s first quilt book combines an improv design approach with both vintage and contemporary Japanese fabrics.

Patricia writes about creativity, quilting, and Japan at www.okanarts.com.