About Jim Shore & More

From Jan~ This is not our first project together!  After 20 odd years of marriage we’ve had our share of joint ventures, everything from raising kids to running a business to figuring out what’s for dinner. We’ve had quite a ride together and for the most part it’s been a lot of fun. But this particular project is special because we’ve dreamed of it for such a long time, a place where people can come and see our lives and our art together, a combination that we think makes each of us better! 

Just some shared history…both our mothers were quilters, as were their mothers before them.  In fact Jim’s maternal grandmother, with her crazy quilts and intricate Trapuntas, is still one of the finest quilters we’ve ever known.   We both learned a lot living with these women… things like patience, perseverance and thrift, some of the basic attitudes essential to quilting have served us well in every part of our lives. But more than just the basics of how-to and what-it-takes, we saw in their passion for quilting an undeniable spirit of creativity and a boundless imagination, translating ordinary, mismatched bits of cloth and thread into something intricately constructed and beautiful. That passion, that desire to create something wonderful out of the things at hand is at the heart of quilting and is the basis of what the world calls folk art.
We’ve always tried to keep that spirit in our own lives. When we first met Jim was working as a mechanical engineer. But seeing where his heart was, early on we made a commitment as a family to follow his passion, to give up engineering and do whatever it took to allow Jim the opportunity to create.  It was quite a leap of faith and led to some pretty hard times. But it was also the start of a great adventure that changed our lives forever. Jim’s artistry and drive fuels what we do.  Our shared love of quilts and the interaction we’ve developed over the years provides common ground for our work and makes us both better at what we do.  We’ve learned something in the last 20 years that quilters when they get together have understood for generations. Creativity is best when shared!