Biography

Kim Norton is an experienced and award-winning quilt maker and longarm quilter.  She began sewing at the age of nine, taught by her mother and their involvement in the 4-H program.  After getting married and having two sons, Kim used her sewing skills to start piecing quilt tops.  Eventually her interest in quilting led her to invest in longarm quilting machines and in 2009 she began A Busy Bobbin. In just a few years, Kim became one of the most in demand longarm quilters in the Houston area.  Her work has been displayed both regionally and nationally.  After moving out of country and living in Bahrain for 5 years, Kim is now back in the states and continuing her longarm business in the Hampton Roads area.  In addition to her edge-to-edge longarm quilting services, Kim teaches longarm free-motion, template/ruler quilting and quilting design.

 
Program Lecture and Trunk Show Description

You've finished that top with love, dedication, and perseverance, but now the words "Quilt as Desired" reads at the end of the pattern. Sometimes, those words can be the most dreaded words of any pattern.  Kim Norton is here to help you make the decisions on what to quilt onto those quilt tops you've been putting off until "further inspiration".  She will show your group where to get ideas, how to mark on your quilt tops, and how to transfer ideas onto your quilt top for quilting.  She will show the easy to the complex quilting designs keeping in mind that there are all levels of quilters and that no matter the experience, you can quilt that quilt top. This program will include a small trunk show for quilting examples.  Your group members will be inspired to go home and quilt away.

Price for Program Lecture - $300 plus mileage to and from Kim's home and accommodations (accommodations are negotiable) ​


Workshop Description

Kim will take the concept of what to quilt onto your top from her lecture and bring it to a more personal level.  She wants to show that the quilting possibilities are endless.  During the workshop, Kim will discuss in greater detail marking and transferring patterns onto quilt tops allowing the group to handle each of her favorite tools for marking, and transferring.  The most important aspect of this workshop though is that Kim asks everyone attending the workshop to bring quilt tops that they have finished but would like to know what to quilt onto it.  She will spread each top out in front of the group and discuss and show them ideas on how to quilt them.  The ideas that flow are amazing when this is done with a group.  As Kim wants to teach the group that their ideas can work just as well as hers, she is always encouraging them to come up with an idea and then she can show them how they can make it happen.  The group will gather around a table and preview ideas on each quilt, thinking about the overall design, the skill level of the quilter, and showing them what can be done on their tops.  Kim asks that the workshop attendees bring a camera and/or a sketchpad to record all of those ideas.  Again....the possibilities are endless.   

Price for Program Lecture - $350 plus mileage to and from Kim's home and accommodations (accommodations are negotiable) ​

Workshop Set Up

In the beginning of the workshop, I will be speaking to the students about tools and how to come up with design.  The students can sit at tables so they can draw and take notes.  After the lecture part of the workshop, the tables will be pushed together and we will gather around them (either sitting of standing).  Each quilt will be laid out on the table for us to preview each quilt top. 


Workshop Supply List

An unquilted quilt top. The students may bring more tops to preview but we ask that each student is given a chance to get design ideas on one of their unquilted tops.  Kim will go through the extras after each person has had their turn and only if time allows. On the other hand, if someone would like to attend the workshop and does not have a completed top to preview, this will be fine as we will be learning quilt design and the student can see how design is applied on others tops.

Camera – to record the ideas Kim will preview on the quilt tops.  The camera on phones work very well for this.  Kim also allows people to shoot a video while she draws a design.

Sketch pad or paper – to draw any ideas and take notes.

 

 

 

Professional Longarm Quilting 

A Busy Bobbin