JEAN RAY LAURY

I think of Jean very often. She was a gracious lady who always considered what the person to whom was speaking would need to hear. She was a supportive teacher, I watched her and learned. I appreciated her friendship which lasted from the mid-eighties until her death.

I met Jean Ray Laury at a class taught by C&T Publishing authors to quilting class instructors and quilt shop owners. I invited her to teach at my shop, The Quilters' Studio, 10 years ago. Her generosity was astounding. She is one of the people who started the Art Quilt movement and and we all will miss her.

Jean's guidance, creativity, inspiration, and incredible sense of humor at workshops and quilt camps changed my life. The encouragement that she gave me greatly helped me to realize that it was perfectly acceptable to allow myself to be creative, as well as to acknowledge my creativity. I will forever treasure the incredible opportunities to be around Jean - she was an extraordinary woman. Please accept my sincere condolences to Jean's beloved family.

I never knew when I called to book Jean for a speaking engagement that she would answer the phone. We had a delightful LONG conversation. This was just the beginning of a wonderful friendship. She was encouraging and supportive of my work and my writing. Everytime I saw her she was warm and generous. She even drove down the hill one day when my car stalled to pick me up. I'm shocked and saddened by her passing. I've kept the notes she wrote me and will cherish the memories of this sweet,...

I met Jean at a party of mutual friends in Fresno. Not being a quilter of cloth, I described INK QUILTS, as I named them, the quilting done with ink. She wanted to see them but as hard as we tried, her health got in the way, and we were never able to show and tell. I enjoyed over the years the joy she brought many of my friends at Quilt Camp. Her humor is what I will remember the most, enjoyed at many gallery showings of her work over the years. She made a difference.

Jean made this earth much better than it was when she came to it. She was among the most generous, fun-loving and talented people I ever knew. Thanks for letting me share a small part of your life.

I knew Jean through her books first and met her in [finally]2004 while I was teaching bookbinding in Fresno for a week. I got to say to her " I have seen all your movies!'' she laughed and we then had a great correspondence for a while. I was yesterday showing one of her books to a student and today I learned of her passing. I think she is a brilliant one and I count myself fortunate to have met her even so briefly.

I took stitchery classes from Jean in the late 1960's, when she was teaching through Fresno State extension. She was so generous to her students; a wonderful teacher; a fun person. What I learned from her: you don't need patterns. This was possibly the best thing I have ever learned. Some of the pieces created in her classes are still with me. I loved the simplicity & directness of her designs. She was the best instructor I ever had, no matter what the subject.

Jean was a wonderful inspiration to us when I was growing up. It was always so fun to play at her house and create cool things out of extra felt bits and other objects. I still treasure some of the things she made for me over the years. She was someone who always made the world a little brighter and more beautiful.