Passing it on

Now that we have given you our exciting news, we want you to meet Connie and Mark Sayler, the (soon-to-be) new owners of Pacific Rim Quilt Company. Mark's the quiet one, you may not hear from, nor see him very often, but he will be integral to the on-going success of Pacific Rim Quilt Company.

Connie Johnson Sayler

And now, here's Connie:

I first became aware of Pacific Rim Quilt Company in late 2008 when Mark and I moved to Gold Beach, Oregon. I decided to join the local quilt guild, where I met Nancy Lee Chong. She has such a creative spirit, that right away I knew I wanted to get to know her better and learn from her. She was offering a mystery applique class to the local guild members and I wanted to take the class. Unfortunately the class was for experienced applique artists only, and I had never appliqued. No problem! I signed up for the class anyway, and spent the next few weeks watching videos online, teaching myself the basics of needleturn applique. I learned even more during Nancy's class and became hopelessly addicted.

After the class Nancy and I became good friends. She taught me all about Hawaiian quilting and I even designed my own Hawaiian quilt, that I am currently working on. After spending time working on and learning about Hawaiian quilts, Mark and I visited Hawaii. Hawaii is an unbelievable place. Everything is good there; it smells good, tastes good, feels good, sounds good and looks good. I will continue to learn everything I can about Hawaiian quilting and it will continue to be a major emphasis of Pacific Rim Quilt Company.

My journey as a wife, mother and quilt artist began in Casper, Wyoming, where I grew up. My mother taught me to sew at an early age. I took part in 4-H sewing and, of course, took high school Home Economics. I made my own clothes for many years. My Aunt introduced me to quilting during my high school years. She taught me to piece by hand, sparking a creative urge.  As a result, I am always creating things. I love working with pottery, beading, weaving, making paper and even designing jewelry. (And how much time does she think she will have for all that now? - asks Nancy and Janice.)

After marrying Mark, my life and business partner, 30 years ago, we gradually made our way to the west coast, always living in relatively small communities. We now live in Medford, OR, where Mark, who has a CPA (retired) and MBA, works in finance. We have two incredible children; both are grown, on their own, and making us proud every day. I feel very blessed to have been able to stay at home to raise them, and now they are following their passions, setting an incredible example for me.

In 2008 everything changed when my youngest went off to college and my mother bought me a book about quilt journaling. I thought it would be an interesting way to jump start my creativity. Little did I know it would be the perfect inspiration! I have been quilting and learning ever since. Quilting has become my favorite pastime and now it will become my life's vocation, following my passion.

The opportunity for Mark and I to purchase Pacific Rim Quilt Company is a dream come true. Nancy and Janice have created an amazing business, with great quality products, and super customer service, which we are proud to carry on. We feel so blessed to follow in their footsteps. I want all of you to know we intend to provide you the same high level of customer service, and quality products you have come to rely on. You can expect exciting new original designs, you will see us vending at more quilt shows, and you will find us on social media - making it even easier for you to share your quilt photos and creative ideas, and easier for us to get the word out about what we are up to and where we will be.

I have already been working with Nancy designing new patterns to be introduced later this year. We are very pleased to assure you that Nancy will continue to design for us, she will continue to teach, and you will see her with us at quilt shows - she is not going away! We are also happy to tell you that Janice will continue to make her incredible hand-dyed fabrics available to you through us. What could be better?

I am excited to begin meeting each of you! Please introduce yourselves when you see me at quilt shows; I look forward to your phone calls and emails; and soon our social media will be up and running.

What stays the same:

• The website stays the same. The way you order stays the same. All the patterns and products you have come to count on will still be available.

• Nancy will continue teaching. Her contact information stays the same.

• Janice will continue to maintain the website and e-Newsletters for this coming year, while we continue our transition.

• Janice will continue to hand-dye fabric, including special orders.

What is changing on June 1:

• The phone number and mailing address will change.

• If you have Janice@prqc.com in your address book, please change it to Info@prqc.com. (You can do that right now, Janice will still handle email through the end of May.)

• The person you talk to on the phone will be Connie, not Janice.

• Orders will be shipped from Oregon, so, for the time being, our Washington customers will not be charged WA sales tax.

• Nancy's website, www.quiltchong.com, is being re-vamped to provide expanded information about her, her classes, presentations, calendar and what she is up to.

More details will be given to you in our June e-Newsletter.

You may already have seen some of Connie's quilts in the Gallery pages on our website. Go take a look:

• Applique Quilt Borders and Table Runners (2 quilts)
• Design Your Own Hawaiian Quilt (her very first Hawaiian quilt design)

Nancy and Connie have already been collaborating and designing new patterns! You will be seeing a lot more of Connie's designs in a few months, and in the years to come.

Color-block Ulu

Shortly after we started talking to Connie about the future possibilities for PRQC, she surprised us with this contemporary layout for our Ulu/Breadfruit block. It is not quilted yet, but you can see the possibilities!

The block can be found in our Tropical II block pattern set, and it is the pattern that comes with our DVD: Hawaiian Quilting with Nancy Lee Chong. But really, any of our block patterns will work in this simple layout.

Click here to print the simple instructions to make your version of this stunning quilt.

This is just a tiny preview of the exciting new things in store for you from Connie. Keep watching, there is more coming in the months and years ahead! 

Tropical II, six 21" blocks. Normal price $12.00, for a short time this pattern is our Internet Special for only $10.00.  Buy yours now. 

Did you know? With the growth of the Modern Quilting Movement solid fabrics are making a huge come-back. It has been decades since fabric shops carried good selections of solid fabrics. Not so any more! And this is wonderful news for Hawaiian quilt-makers who want to use high-quality solid fabrics in the original tradition of Hawaiian quilts. Next time you visit your local quilt shop, be sure to appreciate the solid colored fabrics - finally! What's old is new again. Live long enough and everything cycles around again.