Quilting Books

This is a great book for quilters of all levels. The blocks are relatively easy to piece and the birds are beautiful! The book has so many great ideas of how to use the quilt blocks. I am going to get a lot of use out of these patterns - both for myself and gifts for others.

I am giving this book 5 stars, in part because having picked up the book at the quilt shop I could not put it down. I just had to own this book. The photos of finished projects are varied enough to give you some great ideas of your own. I can't wait to get started on some of these birds!

Having said that, I agree with a previous poster that the instructions for the actual sewing together of the projects are very confusing. I read through the complete instructions for several of the projects and I can see a beginner having a heck of a time with them.

Recently got this book for myself and was very pleased after having a look . The projects in the book are foundation paper piecing which gives very accurate results . The Birds given are just soo beautiful , I am looking forward to complete a sampler quilt with all the birds in it . There are various other projects too. If you are looking for a book with complete instructions and variety of projects , with paper piecing and birds ...this book is for you !!

I really enjoy this book and have shared it with bird loving friends and relatives! My daughter wants crib bumper pads made with these birds on them for her infant daughter. It is a fun book to look at and I can hardly wait to get started making some of the blocks. Only down side is I wish there were MORE birds in the book. I will be looking for vol.2.

The directions for the paper piecing are awesome. That said, the sewing instructions for the projects in the book have a lot to be desired. I sew a lot so I was able to make my way through making a pillow out of a bird block. I started out following the directions in the book but finally gave up and went my own route. Beginner sewers would have a lot more trouble. I gave it four stars because it is mainly a paper piecing book and it does that part well. I would have given it five if the directions for sewing the actual projects would have been better.

Baltimore Elegance
I have taken classes with Ely. I own just about all her books. This is the best out of all! Easy to read, great pictures for visual understanding. Great information and explainations. Must have book for applique...

Elly has outdone herself with this book...the techniques she teaches is invaluable to anyone who wants to learn to applique. And the patterns are among her best yet. Plus it has projects that are fun to make too! This is a 'must-have' for every quilter who likes applique....whether you applique now or you want to learn!

As a seasoned quilter, I had always avoided applique. There were too many conflicting methods floating around, and none of them seemed to work for me. Elly's book clarified everything! She explains all of the methods in easy to understand steps. She explains the hows and the whys, and tells you what to look for to avoid problems down the road. The lessons are terrific, and presented in clear, concise steps with good illustrations. Her patterns advance in skill level as the lessons progress. My projects were a success, thanks to Elly, and I now feel comfortable with applique.

Elly has done it again for all her fans and is sure to gain new ones with this simplified approach to a classic style. Her "voice" can be heard in every written line for those of us lucky enough to have attended her academy classes. Add this to your collection, or start a collection with this wonderful book. Keep them coming, Elly!

Elly has written many books on Baltimore album quilts, but this is one of my favorites. It has 8" block patterns, rather than the more traditional 12". It's full of instructions for applique, stitching, transferring designs, and lots of color pictures. Plenty of ideas to work from. The only applique method she doesn't explain is the Templar Starch method, which I think is a good way to do applique, but I won't mark down her score for this.

I love it when I can find 2 or even 3 projects from a book that make it on my 'to do' list - but out of the 18 I would say that at least 12 have made it! Great quilts - great color combinations - and quick to finish. A+

This is a wonderful book full of nice patterns for small wallhangings. Wonderful instructions and nicely laid out. It's become one of my favorite quilt books and I have made about half of the projects in the book already.

This is a terrific book, full of well illustrated original ideas for producing individual quilts making use of your existing stash (and avoiding the mass-produced look of so many similar books). I have been quilting for many years, but found a number of new ideas in this volume and will certainly be making more than a few of the designs. Interesting for the experienced quilter, the instructions, diagrams and photographs are of such high quality that beginners should also have no problems here - also the small sizes are very attractive to those wanting a quick project or not yet confident enough to face a big quilt. Another plus is that the book is honest about how many fabrics you need to get the desired effect - so often in books the instructions say '5 assorted fat quarters' but when you look at the photo you can count 14 different fabrics. Not so here - what you see is what you get the instructions for. A recent addition to my extensive quilting library, this is already one of may favourite books. A winner from cover to cover.

I had bought a bunch of fat quarters and no idea what to do with them. A friend said she had the perfect book/quilt/wallhanging for them. She brought her book and I was off and running to find the book. It will be perfect. The book arrived very quickly and in perfect condition. Thanks for having such fun quilt patterns and easy to understand and follow directions.

The instructions in this book allowed me to make beautiful small quilts from my "stash" without buying more fabric. However, one could certainly buy fat quarters to make small quilts with a more organized palate. The directions were clear, with lots of pictures. I loved the book and highly recommend it.

I was asked to put together a t-shirt quilt in less than a month for a raffle and I was quite daunted by this challenge. I got Lauren's book and I could not have been happier with the quilt! I was able to finish it in about 1 1/2 weeks. She stressed the importance of proper planning and takes you step by step and when it came time to put it together, it was a breeze! She had lots of tips to help working with the t-shirt material and now people are lining up for me to make more. Her book is a great addition to my quilting library!

Lauren's book is terrific for guiding you through making a T-shirt quilt. And what better way to preserve your memories (and your closet will have more room once you have added the "T"s to your quilt).
It's a fun process - and it's very, very doable! I highly recommend this book to anyone considering making this quilt!

I just finished making my first T-shirt quilt using this book and it turned out incredible! Although I have done a bit of sewing, I realized that I needed some guidance on this project because I had never made a quilt before and because I was using T-shirt jersey which can be tricky for sewing. Based on earlier reviews of this book, I bought it and it was perfect. The author, Lauren Kingsland, literally goes step-by-step through the process and her writing is so clear that I had absolutely no problem understanding what I needed to do. She gives a lot of helpful hints and the appendices are quite helpful too. While I really appreciated the complete and clear instructions, I equally appreciated the emphasis she put on the importance of careful planning and design. Because of this emphasis on design, I ended up with a quilt that was not only technically well-constructed, but was also a "piece of art". I am proud to be able to give this quilt as a gift to my teenager. If you want to make a T-shirt quilt, this is absolutely, positively, the book to have.

I decided to make T-shirt quilts for my daughters, nieces and nephews as HS graduation gifts. I'm so glad I bought this book before I started the first quilt. It was very helpful, especially with design elements and measurements.

I always buy a t-shirt when I travel -- why, I'm not sure. I wear them once or twice and they end up in a stack in the corner of my closet. Now I know why I have been saving them. Lauren's instructions area clear and clever. Her illustrations and examples are fool-proof. I've selected a great sashing fabric and am on my way to a "scrapbook I can sleep under!"

I bought this book for the additional information/ideas on mediums and techniques it includes. I viewed the inside of the book before I purchased it so I kind of knew what I was getting. I've created a few of the beads so far and the guidance and ideas have been helpful. I believe I've avoided a few problems by having some of the "testing" done by the author. Some of the photos and materials lists have led me into other areas of exploration for my own versions of fabric and paper beads.

This book was a birthday gift I had long been in love with Ms. Wicks fabric beads and wanted to make my own to incorporate them with my own art beads of polymer clay . I was delighted when I found out she had published a book on her art! It's everything I had hoped for and more! The colors are breath-taking and the instructions are so detailed anyone who buys this book will cherish it. It is a must have if you make and design your own jewelry. She is a wonderful teacher and I cant wait to see what else she will come up with!! You can bet I'll be there when it happens!!

Fabulous Fabric Beads: Create Custom Beads and Art Jewelry by Kristal Wick published by Interweave Press ([...]) focuses on using fabric to create as well as decorate beads. It is actually surprising how many different types of beads you can make with fabric as either the primary material, from simple roll and glue fabric beads to more involved cross stitch beads and even mini-quilt beads. To read my full review, copy and paste this URL into your browser:[...]

I was just given this book as a gift, & I suspected when I saw the colors & beautiful beads on the book cover, that I was in for a treat. Now the question was, could I produce something as beautiful as what was on the book cover! Her beads are not the basic &/or multicolor beads that you see in Michaels, Target or in multi-bead kits. These are what I call "grown up" beads & the jewelry looks like ... well .... not something home-made or cheap that's for sure! Instead, everything looks like it could be found in a unique, small out-of-the-way boutique jewelry shop in Malibu!

For someone like me who isn't "crafty" or "creative," I suddenly feel like a genius for what I made. I am proud to wear it & smile every time I get compliments! Which is OFTEN! I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants to take a moment to relax, try something new &/or to simply have a little bit of fun! Even better, invite your girlfriends that you've not talked to in a while & have a wine/cheese get together & gossip & laugh while you make these beautiful beads & create your art jewelry!

ENJOY!

What a treat it is for the eye to read Fabulous fabric beads. The minute I received it I went throught it from cover to cover, wow!
The photos are wonderful, they are so clear & the colors are beautiful.
I just can't wait to try the projects. The instructions look like they are very clear & will be easy to follow.

I just received this book yesterday and couldn't put it down. Being a new quilter (very new), this book answered by many, many questions and did it in a colorful, precise manner. I highly recommend this book to new quilters, such as myself. Well worth the few dollars it cost. Buy it ... you will not regret it.

New to the subject, what I appreciated about this book is that there are a variety of authors, so each chapter was wrtiien by an expert and I was not limited to one view point. Very readble. I learned lots!

Although I have been quilting for years, I am self taught and only started free motion quilting bout five quilts ago. I did find many useful tips in this book and well worth the price.

I would recommend this book for anybody who is looking to be inspired to machine quilt on their domestic sewing machine.

The book is well layed out, especially if you have little quilting experience. A lot of good information and gives very detailed instructions.

This is a wonderful book for reference to help any quilter improve her skills. I had created my own methods for "painting with fabric. Ms. Anderson makes it much easier.

This product is good if you have already ready Charlotte's first book. It is not enough otherwise.

Exceptional simple explanation and illustrations. A valuable addition to my library

This is an excellent book. I'll keep it forever as a reference book. It arrived in perfect shape and in a short time from when ordered. Thank You.

This is a great book. Charlotte brings people to life in her quilts. I am truly amazed and inspired by her work. She guides you thru the process to approaching quilt making with her techniques. I am still working on making my first face quilt and although it takes some work...it is well worth it if you are interested in this kind of quilt art. Another great book i am happy to own.

Until search engines get a heck of a lot more intelligent than they are now, the best source for web site recommendations is from human beings. Particularly humans passionate about their subject matter. Judy and Gloria won't waste your time with a bazillion irrelevant links. They know their subject matter, and they know a good site when they see one. They're also a stitch. Or perhaps two stitches. Buy this book!

In addition to extremely helpful tips throughout, this little book is jammed-packed with great sites that are nicely arranged. No more wasting time with a search engine for me! I give it two thumbs way up!

Judy and Gloria have done it again! They've boiled down all the obfuscations of the net into discussions that quilters will enjoy. They offer their picks for the best Web sites to find free patterns, free quilting how-tos, and even free stuff for doll-makers. It would be hard to find this kind of stuff with a searcher. The net information in this book is completely different from what's in their Quilter's Computer Companion. That's a good book too, but this is more updated and complete. This is a very easy book to read, learn from and enjoy.

This book is a valuable resource for quilters at all levels of computer knowledge. It explains away a lot of the "mysteries" of why your computer acts the way it does and points you in various directions to research out your own particular interests. Written in an easy conversational tone, it imparts a lot of information without talking down or over your head.

Every quilter should own this book. Thanks Judy and Gloria for putting together such a wonderful book. Keep up the good work!!

It is always a great experience to buy books from you.I know that I will get the merchandise in speedy time and in great shape.

Thanks

Excellent resource, highly reccommended by my quilting instructor, lots of great ideas, easy to follow. LJC, BC

Was a good overall basic review of machine quilting. I was hoping for a few more ideas/patterns, but will use those in the book and go from there.

This is a great book for anyone who is interested in machine quilting. It has step by step directions and sample pieces to practice on. Great color photographs.

I actually took the Machine Quilting class from Sue Nickels. It was a great class and the book has all the information contained in the class. It has helped me so much to have the book as I would rather be sewing in class instead of taking notes. I highly recommend that you take Sue's class but if you cannot the book has everything we learned in the class explained thoroughly. If you can take the class I recommend that you also get the book. Great class - great book!!

This book was just what I wanted. Priced less than on my quilting site, shipped quickly and recieved in perfect shape.

Ilene Bartos' MAPLE LEAF QUILTS: 12 PROJECTS, 9 TRIANGLE TECHNIQUES offers a new twist on the traditional Maple Leaf block quilts, presenting some 12 projects that feature new ways of using Maple Leaf blocks. From making triangle squares to points, this packs in plenty of tips for personalizing a quilt.

This book has wonderful quilts! It suggests beautiful colors and the instructions are great and easy to follow. If you like leaves, this book is a must have!
Sandy

The quilts are stunning and relatively easy to make. You learn which technique for half square triangles works best for you and the directions are easy to follow.

I LOVE FALL and this book puts me in the mood to quilt for those cool autumn days coming up. Plus by making the maple leaf block, Ms. Bartos makes that one block look like many others just by the way she orientates the block itself.

The author shows us nine ways to make half triangle squares which is the main square that makes up the maple leaf block. Read the how-to's and decide which method works the best for you. Once you have chosen how you want to make your half triangles, go on to the how to make a stem section. There are three ways to make these and one should work for you.

Pick one of the twelve patterns and start sewing. Before long, you will have a table runner, a quilts or a wall hanging from half triangle squares. Each pattern has a materials and cutting list with a photo of the completed item. The finished size of the item and the finished block size are given as well.

Instructions on how to make the blocks for the project are listed next and there are graphics to help explain the instructions. Assembling the project and finishing suggestions complete the pattern. What are you waiting for? Grab a copy and start working on that comfy cool weather quilt.