The first thing you should know about this blog is why it has the title it has. I’ve named a lot of things in my time, and I always try to find a name that conveys the attitude of the product. In this case, I wanted a name that did three things. The name should 1) specify that I’m talking to a specific group of people who 2) decorate. I also wanted a name that would reflect the sort of civilized behavior I hope to see on this blog. DecQuorum, which is a combination of decoration - The act, process, technique, or art of decorating and quorum - a particularly chosen group, and which echoes decorum - politeness, manners, dignity seemed to fit the bill.

The first thing you should know about me is this: I’m a writer. It seems obvious, given that I’ve written the words you’re currently reading, but I wanted to get that fact established early, so that we all understand. I’m not a decorator. I have zero artistic talent when it comes to anything visual. My art is words, which is a good thing, because I couldn’t draw a straight line even if given a ruler. Trust me on this.

Given the fact that I’ve just admitted to having zero artistic talent when it comes to decoration, you might be wondering why Stitches is allowing me to write a blog on that very topic. The answer to that is simple: While I may not be a decorator myself, I’m surrounded by a very talented group of them every day. My job is to learn how they do what they do, and why they do what they do, and to then translate the explanations I’ve been given into interesting and educational material. It might be a blog post, like this one. It might be a video. It might be a white paper or a brochure. It could be a page on a Web site. I take all the years of decorating experience that surround me and distill the wisdom and knowledge that has accumulated. Think of me as a bard, in a way. I watch the events and listen to the words and then create a tale that allows everyone else to share in what I’ve learned.

Currently, my decorating lab, workshop and school is a company called EnMart. I’m director of marketing for EnMart and its parent company, Ensign Emblem. In addition to this blog I write two blogs for EnMart. One, EmbroideryTalk, deals with machine embroidery. The other, SubliStuff, deals with sublimation, ChromaBlast and direct-to-garment printing.

I’m very grateful to Stitches and Nicole Rollender for giving me this platform and I’m excited to join my colleague Erich Campbell, who has set a very high standard for Stitches bloggers. My goal for this blog is the same as for the other blogs that I write: I want to inform and educate in an entertaining way. I hope to share stories and experiences. Mostly I’m aiming to create a decoration resource, where we discuss old techniques and new discoveries and all come away from the experience having learned something.