Recent News:

Enjoy the newly released Sacred Threads documentary. Learn about the journey of this powerful exhibit.

Please enjoy my interview with Chris Smith at Heart-to-Heart.net. In this interview, I share the story of founding Sacred Threads.

Summer 2014

Click to enlarge

Vikki has an article, "No More Creative Roadblocks", out in the August issue of Quilt Life. The article, discussing the necessity of staying flexible and open-minded during the creative process, is based on an excerpt from Nurture Your Creative Spirit: Wisdom Learned through the Art of Quilting.

Spring 2014

Vikki is excited and honored to announce she was nominated for the 2014 Professional Quilt Teacher of the Year!

Winter 2013

My latest book, Nurture Your Creative Spirit: Wisdom and Insight Learned Through the Art of Quilting has been well received. Book Reviews: Read what people are saying.... I was interviewed for these publications about my new book.
Please check out my article in the Feb/March issue of The Quilter Magazine:	Vikki's interview with Lesley Riley titled "Nurture Your Creative Spirit" give listeners insight into Vikki's views on art, creativity and life: Blogtalk

Summer 2012

I'm proud to announce the publication of my new book, available now.

I reached deep within my heart and soul to write Nurture Your Creative Spirit. My most personal thoughts and spiritual feelings are revealed in these pages. Insights, wisdom and hard-learned knowledge, gleaned over the years as a quilter and visual artist, are shared openly with you. Although written from a quiltmaker's point of view, Nurture Your Creative Spirit is a book appealing to artists in any medium.

Accompany me. You will see yourself in these pages as I relate my journey. What can you learn about yourself and your art?

Through Nurture Your Creative Spirit you will:

• Read about the symbolism, stories and inspirations behind my quilts
• Explore the lessons art taught me including:

Determination
Persistence
Being passionate about one's work…the most important trait of all
Keeping a sense of humor
Having faith in yourself
Courage and curiosity
Motivation
Staying flexible and open-minded
The folly of perfectionism

• Bring enlightenment into your own creativity and spirit
• Increase your creative self-awareness and understanding
• Discover the need of having a good support system
• Know the difference between critique and criticism
• Understand how being grateful and staying optimistic impact your work
• Be inspired by 90+ colorful photographs
  

  Click HERE to preview pages from Nurture Your Creative Spirit. (Book artistry by Merry Yee Clark, Graphic Designer)

  June 14, 2012 was an exciting day for me. Hot of the press: the cover for my new book, Nurture Your Creative Spirit: Wisdom and Insight Learned Through the Art of Quilting. Here I am signing off on the cover after checking over the colors and quality (excellent!)

  My new book is being printed in the USA in Columbus, Ohio, by beckmanXMO (lower case "b" is not a typo.) Here I proudly display my newly printed book cover with Tracy Beckman (President) on my left and Scott Taylor (Operations Manager) on my right.

The Birth of Nurture Your Creative Spirit

Twenty-five years ago, I never would have dreamed of becoming a quilt teacher. In fact I hated sewing. I was a sewing disaster in 7th grade Home Economics. Maybe it's because I couldn't follow the precise rules. Or perhaps the pink floral "housecoat" I had to make in class didn't interest me as a twelve-year-old preteen. Either way, I thought sewing wasn't for me. The only reason I started to quilt was because of my sister's unrelenting insistence, coaxing me into attending a beginning quilt class with her. The rest is history. I became enamored with the wonderful art of quilting. I found out sewing can be fun. One thing led to another and my career snowballed. And so did life's lessons.

I didn't come into quilting until my mid-forties and quilting didn't become my career and mission until I was fifty. In my younger years, I painted with oils and watercolor, experimented in sculpture and played with all craft mediums. I was self-taught in all the art forms. I gained much knowledge about art…and wisdom about life…along the way. This was especially true with quilting.

Shortly after I finished writing Quilting By Improvisation (Dragon Threads, 2006), the inspiration to write another book came to me. However, this book would be different. Rather than writing about technical construction techniques in quilting, the thought of tackling the emotional, almost spiritual issues involved in artwork popped into mind. While excited about the concept for the new book, I wasn't ready for the challenge of writing another manuscript so soon after Quilting By Improvisation. So I put it off "for awhile". Well, "awhile" turned into five years. It's amazing how fast those years fly by, isn't it? During that time, I often thought about beginning my new book, but always dismissed the impulse. My excuse? Always too busy to take the time. Then in July 2011, during a Wyoming workshop, one of my students strongly urged me to get started on my book. The little voice inside me agreed. It was time to get motivated and write.

After the workshop, my hostess and friend, Kathy Lichtendahl and her husband, Ken, invited Denny (my husband) and me to stay with them on her remote llama ranch for a few days to relax. To this day, I don't think Kathy and Ken realize how lucky they were not to be saddled with permanent houseguests. We lodged in their bunkhouse and loved every moment. It was pure bliss and totally silent except for the wind. No TV, phone or distractions. I was completely relaxed. For the next three days I perched myself on a chair on the porch and wrote non-stop…the words pouring out of me. Thus began my new book. I already knew the title…Nurture Your Creative Spirit.

Later in the fall, one of my teaching engagements was on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. Before I needed to report to the scheduled workshops, we rented a condo on Molokai for 8 days. My sole purpose: to write my book. And write I did, sitting on the lanai from morning to night, with the ocean as my backdrop.

Then, again in North Carolina during our family vacation with my sisters and their families, I stayed sequestered at the oceanfront beach house, writing on the veranda while the others played, shopped or walked along the seashore. With all these beautiful settings for inspiration, the words just kept flowing.

I reached deep within my heart and soul to write this book. Based on my lectures, I intended Nurture Your Creative Spirit to be a personal, spiritual view of the art of creating. I wanted it to be a motivational book, meant to encourage and inspire others on their creative journey.

I write about the most important traits of creativity: determination, persistence, being passionate about one's work, having faith in yourself, courage and flexibility to name a few. I reveal my experiences and the hard lessons learned from making my quilts, as well as the stories and symbolism behind them. I relate my thoughts regarding the artistic process and staying in balance in life and art. I discuss creativity and inspirations. Using my quilts as examples, I show how emotions affect my work. I discuss the difference between critique and criticism, the importance of having a good support system and the art of gratitude. Once the book began to take shape, the subtitle became obvious: The Wisdom and Insights Learned From the Art of Quilting. Though told from my viewpoint as a quilter, the book is relevant to artists in all mediums.

Once I finished writing the manuscript and set the actual printing process gears in motion, reality set in. And reality can be scary. Typing your thoughts and words on paper is just the beginning. Next comes the endless, tedious rounds of editing, corrections and changes…first for the raw manuscript, then with the graphic designer as he or she flows the text into pages and adds the images and captions. I was fortunate to find an excellent (and very patient) graphic designer, Merry Yee Clark, who enjoyed working on Nurture Your Creative Spirit. Merry put her heart into the book as well as her expertise. Then,I found a great printing company near our home. Their team guided me through the steps and made the printing experience painless.

Publishing your own book is not for the faint-hearted. Though I strongly believe I was called to produce this book and share my knowledge, the large financial outlay and negative "what ifs" are always in the back of my mind. It does take faith and constant self-encouragement to keep moving forward. Even though the book is almost ready to debut, I still ask myself, "What on earth am I doing!" As I said, keep the faith and believe…..

Without doubt, writing this book allowed me to increase my creative and spiritual self-awareness. It’s my hope Nurture Your Creative Spirit will help you in your journey to gain wisdom, understanding and enlightenment into your own creativity and spirit.

With warm wishes,

Vikki

Winter 2011

My Crazy About Curves Workshop on DVD is now available.  Enjoy this excerpt:

Many of you have purchased and used Wonderfil’s Invisifil 100wt. polyester thread on my recommendation ... and if you know me personally, you know I only recommend to my students what I like and use myself.  I LOVE this thread and continue to use it for all my top-stitch piecing needs. However I agreed with my students that there were many key colors missing from their collection. This past autumn I approached the company with a proposal to include additional colors.

I am thrilled to tell you that The Wonderfil Specialty Threads Company agreed and has added 30 new colors to their Invisifil collection ... and it will be known as the Vikki Pignatelli collection of colors!  In addition, the threads come in a box featuring a detail of my quilt, “Rhapsody in Pink” as the background for the entire package. Each of the five new sets will contain six spools of thread, and each spool contains 400 meters  (437+ yards).

My online shop has expanded and new merchandise is now available! My students are continually requesting that I put on my website the merchandise I have in my classes ... books, DVDs, Invisifil threads from the Wonderfil Company, Truflex 40" curves and some of my best selling patterns. Please check out my newly expanded online shop for the all the items you've been asking for.

Even better news ...

$29.95 - 2 Disk Set DVD (NTSC Format for US)

My new DVD "Crazy about Curves" is available in two formats: NTSC for USA viewers and the PAL version for my overseas audience. The price for the 2-disk, 3 hour 50 minute set is $29.95. Read more on my Shop page.

Please note: For Canadian DVD Customers: I can substantially reduce your shipping fees to Canada (using USPS first class mail). Please email me at vikki@vikkipignatelli.com to place your order. I will send you an invoice (with lower shipping) through Paypal, payable by credit card.

My latest quilt, All Against All Odds, has been added to my gallery page.

I am honored and thrilled to announce that I was interviewed by Karen Musgrave for The Alliance of American Quilts. The interview will be archived with the Library of Congress and is the Alliance's project #903. Please view my interview by clicking here.

I had the opportunity to blog about my international travels to the UK and Down Under. You can read about my adventures on the Subversive Stitchers: Armed with Needles blog. Thank you to Dawn Goldsmith for allowing me to share my story.

I have a Student Gallery page. If you've used my techniques to make a quilt, please submit them to me for consideration with a short artist’s statement. We need jpegs with at least 800 pixels on the longest side.  Also, I need your permission to post your quilt. The length of time that quilts are exhibited online will vary depending on response of artists and the space.

© Vikki Pignatelli 2021.
The contents of this site are protected by copyright.
Any reproduction of the quilt images or text in whole or part without the written consent of Vikki Pignatelli is not permitted.
Website designed and hosted by Lisa Ellis.