Delia Pettway Thibodeaux was born and raised in Gee’s Bend, Alabama, and is a third-generation quilter. She was named after her grandmother, Delia Bennett. The eighth of ten siblings, she grew up on a working farm, where long hours and hard work instilled values that have carried her through life’s challenges.
Delia learned to quilt from her mother and older sisters, creating her first quilt at the age of 13—a two- toned, brown bricklayer pattern made from corduroy. Though fabric was scarce, she and her family made do with every scrap they could find, resulting in quilts that were not only functional but deeply meaningful. Like her mother before her, Delia has passed down the art of quilting to her daughter and granddaughters, who often sit beside her, crafting their own small creations for dolls and teddy bears. Even today, she continues to use every piece of fabric she can, staying true to a tradition of resourcefulness, creativity, and zero waste.
At 17, Delia joined the U.S. Navy, launching a military career that spanned over two decades and took her far beyond the borders of Gee’s Bend. Despite frequent moves, she never stopped sewing, often packing and unpacking her quilt pieces with each new assignment. Her travels exposed her to new ideas and perspectives, which have left lasting impressions on her work. Some projects she began more than 40 years ago are only now being revisited, with a renewed excitement for how they are evolving.
Like many of the women of Gee’s Bend, Delia has a gift for transforming fabric into “imperfectly perfect” creations. Her quilts often take on lives of their own, turning out differently than planned—but always beautifully, as if that’s how they were meant to be.
Delia is the founder of Reap What You Sew Nice, an Etsy shop she opened to share her work with a wider audience. Her style is inspired by the natural world, the places she has lived, the people she has met, and most deeply by her older sister Stella, whose quilts beam with her kindness and artistry. Delia earned her Bachelor of Science, cum laude, from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, and a Master of Education from Seattle University.