Jo Avery

How did you first get into quilting?

I spent a lot of my childhood sewing with my big sister Jane, especially soft toys. When I was ten years old Jane showed me how to sew hexagons together (what we would now call EPP). Much later when I started living with my husband, I remembered how much I had enjoyed stitching those hexagons and so I bought some templates and fabric and started making my first quilt. Looking back now I can recognise this as a strong nesting instinct! 30 years ago, when we moved from London to Scotland, I joined a local quilt group, the Abbey Quilters. They taught me what to do once I’d finished my quilt top and introduced me to rotary cutters and cutting mats. This was the start of a lifelong obsession.

Where did the name of your blog and store, myBearpaw, come from?

The first quilt I actually finished, for my best friend’s wedding, was a Bear Paw pattern. I started a little business selling quilting supplies like batting and fabric. I used to visit local quilting groups to teach and bring my little pop up shop