A cat in a witch's hat. A bat winged creature sitting on a skull in a puddle of goo. These are the kinds of characters you'll find living inside a Quilts of Whimsy pattern.
Diana Galea is the designer behind them, working out of Melbourne, Australia, with Maltese roots running through both sides of her family. Quilting wasn't love at first sight for her either, she actually found it boring, until one scroll through Pinterest changed her mind for good.
From that first bargello quilt, things moved fast. A birthday cake block turned into a card, a Hulk block turned into a question, could she design these herself, and from there she fell down a rabbit hole she never climbed back out of. These days, her patterns lean dark, funny, and proudly out of the box.
Personal Background
Diana, as we dive into your story, could you provide a snapshot of who you are and take us on the journey that led you to where you are today?
I'm Diana Galea, 45 years old, and I live in Melbourne, Australia. My heritage is Maltese: my father migrated from Malta and met my mother here, whose parents had made that same journey before her. I was born and raised in Melbourne, and I've never wanted to leave, this city has my heart.
Quilting Journey
When and how did you start quilting? What drew you to quilting as a form of expression?
I started purely by accident. I had always gravitated to fibre arts so crafts of all kinds shave always been around. I disliked quilting I thought it was boring when my mother and sister were doing it.
Then I saw a bargello quilt on Pinterest so I pulled out my cheap sewing machine bought a bunch of fqs and off I went. Then a little more of a look and I see foundation paper piecing.
The first one I had attempted was a birthday cake and I turned it into a birthday card and thought of that’s fun. I then did a hulk block and decided ok there must be a way to make these patterns and off I went to fall down a rabbit hole and now I create patterns that are a little out of the box.
Pattern Designing
What inspired you to start designing quilt patterns? How do you approach the creative process of designing a new pattern?
After my first to very small foundation paper piecing blocks I realised I could make anything come to life with fabric, there was no longer a restrictions I was a cat at the end of a bench threatening to push the glass off the edge. My first design was of chopper read as a gift for my partners father. That design came out great but with a multitude of errors but I worked around them. I soon found a group of foundation paper piecers on fb and there was no turning back from there!!
I have ADHD so when I fixate on something I’m like a dog with a bone. One day I’m designing a cute cat design the next day it’ll be a a 50s house wife armed with a knife. I sometimes will draw a subject or I would purchase artists assets and occasional I will use the dreaded ai.All the images I use I would edit them in Affinity designer then pop them into Quilt assistant where they take on a life of their own. Some designs see the light of day some are hidden in folders. Once I finalise a design I would have some one test out the pattern for me and luckily I have 2 wonderful regular testers who do phenomenal work in both quilting and picking up my errors. Then once it’s tested I release the pattern. .
Style and Aesthetics
How would you define your pattern style? Are there specific themes or elements that consistently appear in your designs?
I lean towards a darker style of design, so dark humour with the completely unhinged and unhinged sewing, I have a cat in a witches hat and another wearing bat wings sitting on a skull in a puddle of goo. And sometimes I’ll take a request and make a pattern that I pop in the shop. I am trying to stick to themes and a collections but I have so many designs in my head it’s hard to sit in one style or on one subject.
I have no particular element other than a little bit of quirkiness. That being said I do have a lot of cats and skulls present and more to come.
Color
How does color play a role in your pattern designing? Do you have a favorite color? Are there certain color combinations you find particularly appealing?
I love colours, lots of them and all of them however. I do try and keep my pallet to a minimum. Usually something that has a person in it I set my pallet to 5 skin tones hair I usually use 3 colours. I like bright and cheerful. Each pattern demands its own set of colours . I do enjoy putting a teal and purple together and I find I use purple a fair bit in my patterns.
My favourite colours are red and purple.
Business Activities
Apart from designing patterns, what other activities are integral to your quilting business? (Membership, notions, courses, etc)
I’m all digital patterns. I am working on a few print on demand items like goodies, stickers and things like that that can be produced by a third party and sent straight to the purchaser. I am hopeful making some kits at some point. I am planning at some point to revisit fabric design that would go specifically with my quilting designs to help take the guess work out of selecting fabrics for complex designs. I am mid way through
Online Presence
Where can people find your work online? (Website, social media handles, online marketplaces). How do you use online platforms to connect with your audience and fellow quilters?
I am at quiltsofwhimsy.com, Quiltink, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Patreon. I am quilts of whimsy on all platforms.
Upcoming Projects
Can you provide a sneak peek into any upcoming projects or designs you’re working on? Any exciting collaborations or events?
Absolutely! At the moment I am working on daddy unhinged which is the third in the unhinged quilt series. I am planning more series quilts one in particular I’ve been working on is a Medusa and with her I’ll be doing some other goddesses or woman of power
QuiltInk Experience
How has QuiltInk contributed to your quilt pattern design business? Could you share your experience with the platform and how it has influenced your creative process and connected you with fellow quilters?
Quilt ink has been great, I’ve met a whole new audience I didn’t have before. My customers can go and colour in my complex patterns with fabrics from their own stash or with collections from a variety of fabric designers.
