At the age of twenty-four, health issues kept Rebecca Roach at home. She suffered from gallbladder complications and often felt very ill. There were occasions when Roach couldn’t do much at all and relied on crafting shows on HGTV to quell her anxiety, pain, and nausea. During bedrest, Roach discovered complicated techniques, like Hawaiian appliqué, through watching Simply Quilts with Alex Anderson, and she felt particularly inspired because Anderson, like herself, was left-handed. When Roach was eleven, she’d taken quilting class during the summer, but quickly bored of templates, hand cutting, and thick, waxy thread. She only tolerated the class because the teacher allowed her students to jump on the trampoline in her backyard once they completed their projects. Roach never imagined picking up quilting again, but episodes of Simply Quilts were a revelation to Roach, a lifelong crafter who was faced with a new challenge.
