About Brigitte Giblin

French-Australian Brigitte Giblin inspires students by her passion for contemporary patchwork and quilting using traditional hexagons, colour, shapes and modern fabrics.

Brigitte Giblin is an Australian quilt designer and teacher who has been making quilts in the naive, antique and traditional styles for over thirty years. Considered one of Australia’s finest designers and teachers, Giblin brings a unique sense of style and an unconventional approach to quiltmaking. Her well considered designs are inspired by old quilts and reflect her love of fabrics, colour and geometric shapes, as she deftly applies old techniques to  current fabrics. Recreating and capturing the look and feel of antique quilts, her quirky style continues to evolve in response to current fabric trends. She likes her quilts to be functional, her coverlets utilitarian. Born in the historical walled village of Aigues-Mortes, France and raised in Australia, Brigitte’s lifetime passion for fabric and design was ignited when, at age 18, she went to live in France for several years. She quickly embraced the culture of her parents, and her love of fabric was fostered by her aunt, who ran a successful dressmaking studio. The process of discovering old fabrics and quilts and exploring the flea markets quickly became a way of life. She returned to Sydney, where she married and balanced a career in Events Management with raising her three daughters. Like many quiltmakers, what began as a hobby in the mid-1970s has evolved into a lifetime passion for Brigitte. Starting out learning traditional patchwork techniques, it did not take long for her to graduate to the faster machine pieced quilts. She opened her own shop and quickly learned more about combining fabrics, then focused on designing and teaching patchwork. Now in demand as a teacher, Brigitte says she has “settled down, and I’m really enjoying playing with fabric and the hand piecing process.” Her designs are considered, and reflect her sense of colour and her innate ability to choose fabrics that work together. With her classes perpetually full, she virtually eats sleeps and breathes quilting and, inspired by old quilts is forever designing and planning new quilts. Many of her patterns have been published in Australian patchwork and quilting magazines.