Quilting Books

Beautiful advanced needleturn applique patterns by Marie Webster, who designed and sold her patterns in the first half of the 20th century. These quilts also call for lots of intricate hand or machine quilting. Gorgeous results from challenging patterns!

I cannot wait to start making a quilt using the designs in this book! If you've seen a quilt with roses, irises, daisies...before and weren't impressed, try this book for designs that are fresh and clean. According to this book, a lot of the designs of the 1920's-1950's were based off of these. I have not seen these patterns used in this way ever before. In this book you will find patterns for many flowers including: iris (pictured on the cover), daisy, may tulips, poppy, white dogwood (fabulous!), french baskets, and a very beautiful grapes and vines pattern.

If you've never appliqued before, this book will be a challenge to you. The instructions are written for a quilter with some experience. The beginning of the book gives wonderful details of the life of Marie Webster who is the original creator of these designs.

I also enjoyed Marie Webster's Gardent of Quilts which, I think would be a bit easier for a beginner eager to try traditional designs.

This is a peek into the life of a very productive quilter and it adds so much more depth of enjoyment knowing the person who designed the patterns and the life she led.
The patterns are so stylish for the period and readily adapt to todays fabrics as well.
Every time I page through this book I feel as though I'm getting a hug of encouragement from all of our quilting ancestors.
You will enjoy the pictures, patterns and story.

An absolute treasure! Inspiring. Delightful reading and well-drafted patterns to use. A must for your quilt library.

This is a superb book for anyone interested in American quilts of the 20th century. I was intrigued to discover that Marie Webster's designs, introduced to the public as early as 1912, were the originals from which "traditional" quilt patterns of the 1920's and 1930's were derived. These include the sunbonnets (gentle here, not saccharine), the poppy applique, and the medallion floral appliques. Also, it was an eye-opener to see Webster's dogwood and sunflower designs, extremely close variants of which were popularized years later by a manufacturer of quilt batting. The photography is excellent, and the book is printed on beautiful heavy-stock paper. The essays (written by Webster's grand-daughter) are joyful and respectful and a pleasure to read. The book includes patterns for 12 of the quilts shown. I can hardly wait to get started with my needle.

This beautiful book would make a wonderful gift for a quilter. Arrived in excellent shape.

The newest in the Kaffe Fassett book line is a new standard of color, vibrancy, and pure delight. When the phrase eye candy came into vogue, it must have been first said about the wonderful colorful interpretations Kaffe gives to the old art form of quilting, making it fresh and new. I found that having new contributors to the book makes it even more approachable. I can do it, too!! With his deceptively simple patterns, and somewhat crazy color and print variations, everything is possible.

I've just developed a taste for Kaffe's fabrics. This book is just the perfect way to focus them. The designs are one step up from simple as only a true artist can do. The simplicity of the designs let the fabrics sing. This is a great book for quilters and fabric lovers!

this book has beautiful photography, is well written & easy to read & understand the instructions

It's another winner from Kaffe Fassett! Like a garden, the variety of quilt patterns and luscious fabrics featured in this book are sure to inspire quilt artists of every skill level. Although I do not quilt (yet), I have learned to look at color in a different way with each of Kaffe's books. It is a feast for the senses! I especially enjoyed Jane Brocket's description of the creative process that went into the design of her "Allotment Quilt."

I am truly enjoying this book. I have already begun one of the projects from the book, adapting it to make it mine. The book inspires me in that I don't generally work with so many printed fabrics so it is a good challenge and a wonderful experience. The patterns are well written and easy to follow. Enjoy!

I was very happy with this book. A prompt delivery and it arrived in good condition. This is a truly beautiful book full of lots of colour and inspiration.

I love the overly-patterned new quilts in this book by Kaffe Fassett and Liza Prior Lucy. I can't wait to get started on them!

I loved this book. The quilts are so colorful, and very easy patterns. Nothing terribly complicated, and yet with magnificent colors that give you many new ideas to do in the future. In general I like Fassett's books because they are fearless in the use of colors.

A truly stunning quilting book. In Quilt Road, Kaffe has achieved even more exciting designs. His use of colour and blending of fabulous fabric is amazing. His work is a breath of fresh air into the quilting world. Nothing boring here! It has the potential to appeal to all ages including the modern younger person. Beautiful photographs illustrate these wonderful designs. Also recommend his Museum Quilts (inspired by the V and A museum) book.

Despite the boring cover, this is a great book on quilt history with wonderful photographs. I urge you to buy it. It's a steal at these prices.

A beautiful, colorful coffee table book with quilts of every imaginable design, color, shape, and size. Most old, some new with a comprehensive look at the history of America thru quilts. Also, a unique look at how to live with you quilts in a decorative way.

This book has some very nice photos of some very nice quilts. It shows how much quilts are a part of American life/culture. I also like that she has chosen to show some modern examples such as the domestic violence quilt. It shows traditional ones as well as contemporary.

I own many quilt books, ones with patterns, coffee table quilt books, etc. This book has the most interesting and extensive history of quilting I have ever read. It is a visual feast for the eyes. I was a little skeptical at first because I had read that Pyllis George was not a quilter, but she really knows her subject matter. Two thumbs up!

It's called "Living with Quilts" but the real question is how did we ever live without them? This fascinating book caters for the real hardcore quilters like myself, yet is accessible too to those uninitiated in this fascinating craft. An ideal coffee table book for those expecting middle aged women or gay visitors.

This book is great for intermediate quilters and those who ready to tackle a log cabin as their next quilt. Mary Ellen's Slap and Sew methodology makes the piecing a breeze. The samples in the book give you idea after idea about how versitile this block really is. I'll be using this book to teach my next quilting class.

Note to Andrea above re yardage: You'll need 1 1-1/2" strip of light and 1 1-1/2" strip of dark, plus a center for each 8" block in the quilt.

Mary Ellen Hopkins really knows her stuff. Learn from her years of experience and helpful advice. For example, she writes about what size logs look best and how many light logs vs. dark logs to use. This book makes reference to her famous book, "It's Okay If You Sit On My Quilt" which I highly recommend too.

Mary Ellen Hopkins tells in her special way how to lay out your log cabin to achieve the look of different quilts which would be more difficult to make. She shows you how to make a variety of star quilts without sweating the triangles. She shows how different colors can make a quilt look unique. I wish there was more help in determining how much fabric is needed, as I am still an amateur at this, but then you can make a scrap quilt!

Want to praise the book and the SELLER. I purchased my LIKE NEW/used book from Lameade and I give the service a five star rating. It was my first time ordering a used book and I can't say enough good things about the transaction.

Mary Ellen Hopkins has directed all her enthusium into this book. Imagine making stars using only strips of material. This book cannot but help to turn your enthusiam on. Start with a one block wallhanging and go on from there. Excellent fun!! Use all your scraps and no cutting triangles, or squares. Only strips and all the same size. I have never had so much fun!

What a wonderful book! So many wonderful designs and ideas for incorporating them into quilts.

This book is great. I've made 3 of the projects already. They sew out beautifully and the instructions are easy to understand. This is a great book for the beginner since most of the projects are pretty quick to make.

This book is great for someone who loves both quilting and machine embroidery. Numerous examples as well as detailed instructions for several projects are included. The included designs are worth the price of the book. The designs stitch out great. The projects are for small (wall hanging or table topper) size quilts, but could be adapted for larger quilts.

I bought an embroidery machine about a year ago and really didn't know what do with it until I came across this book. The book explains how to make adjustments to just about any quilt layout to include embroidery. The projects are all relatively small and easy to complete. In addition, the embroidery CD that comes with the book is great with lots of different embroideries. With the cost of embroidery software being so expensive, the CD alone is worth it.

Excellant book but, beware! This book's CD designs can not be downloaded to Husqvarna machines using the older reader-writer cards.

I have developed an affinity for Mariner's Compass quilts, due in part to the quilts shown in this book. I kept renewing it in the library, and finally bought it.

I also purchased WedgeworksII - Mariner's Compass in conjunction with this book, but will be returning this small patternbook which exclusively uses piecing from enclosed templates(not as accurate or beautiful as the quilts in Mathieson's book). Actually, Mathieson does offer template piecing as an option, and she even reviews a freezer paper method. I look forward also to drafting my own mariner's compasses with help of chapter 2. I only wish there were more quilts for inspiration - even though there are plenty, I can't get enough!

I have taken a Mariner's Compass class from Judy, and I have both her MC books. They are great! I highly recommend them.

This books covers the lotwith regard to designing a Mariner's Compass quilt. The author uses examples of her own work as well as others. There are excellent instructions on how to create your own quilt using a variety of piecing techniques. The examples given cover a range of colour themes. One of my favourite books.

Here the author stretches to show you repeatedly how to break down what appears to be a difficult project into a very approachable project. This book is both a technique book as well as a project book. You CAN complete this project from all that is provided in this book.

Take the time to study the examples and question why those choices were made. This book has volumes to teach you as well as aid your growth as an accomplished quilter. There is such joy in mastering points and excelling in this art of quilting and this book is a marvelous practical gift to yourself.

This was my first purchase through Amazon and I am very pleased with the promptness of the service. The condition of the Mariner's Compass book by Judy Mathieson is excellent and I am very happy to actually own it. I have taken it from our quilters library but always had to return it before I could do much with it. Now that I own it I can take my time, study it, and finally decide on which project to do. Thank you to the family in California for their help in getting this into the mail so quickly.

This is an insightful book to help artists of all levels get in touch with their inner self through a variety of exercises and explorations. The open-ended exercises could easily be adapted for use by artists of all ages. However, more male artists should have been featured.

When I saw this book was due out in mid September, I jumped on the opportunity to order one. I am a doll artist, very interested at the current time in delving into my persona and pulling interesting elements about myself out and transferring those into images which I can use to create a piece of art. What is more interesting than ourselves? This book should be considered a self portrait bible of sorts. It's amazing!

The book starts out discussing a little bit of history of self portraits and why they are important for each artist to do. The book is written in a very fun, and easy to decipher way-it's not like reading an art history book. Quite the opposite, the book is very entertaining to read with many illustrations, photos and examples of work to inspire the reader. It's filled with lovely images, incredible color and a fun layout.

Chapter 2 gives exercises such as using color to describe your personality, a "Who lives here?" quiz, a quick drawing lesson on the scale of anatomy in relation to drawing the human body and many exercises with instructions to do self portraits with specific themes. This to me is wonderful, because she gives you the instructions with just enough information to allow you total freedom to make each one of these self portraits a true work of art. There is also a section on how to generate ideas. Many projects are 'led' by well known mixed media artists such as Kelly Rae Roberts, the Artgirlz and Loretta Benedetto Marvel among many others.

The self portrait projects are so diverse, ranging from digital photo alteration, to fabric, to art dolls, to caricature, to art books, to masks, assemblage and so much more. It's truly a plethora of inspiration and will reach virtually any type of artist out there.

What is so wonderful about this book in addition to the actual self portrait art projects is the way the book promotes self acceptance, self-love and art therapy through the creative process. I absolutely love this book. If there was one additional thing I'd get to rescue out of a burning building besides personal photos, etc, it would be this fabulous book. Don't hesitate a moment longer. Click on 'add to cart' now so you can have this great book in your hands within a week. I assure you, you will not regret it. In no time, you will be itching to start a self portrait!

Have had my eye on this one for a little while, waiting for the price to come down. Saw it at the bookstore and got a very good look at it and don't want to wait any longer! Amazon now has my order!
Doing self portraits is an old, much used, tried and true subject for artists. The idea is, when you run out of subjects, use yourself. You don't have to be an experienced artist or even particularly good at drawing or painting because mixed media has so many possibilities. You can sew your portrait, manipulate a computer image, use an old photo, make a collage, the list goes on.
There are many artists represented here, who have used all kinds of techniques, which are described. It's well laid out and easy on the eye. This book isn't for the absolute beginner because you do need at least some familiarity with media and materials but if you have that much, you can experiment and learn. And the process of making self portraits is an interesting way to get to know things about yourself that you may not have known before.

I could not wait for this book to come out. I am always looking for new sources of inspiration. This book is a keeper! The book has a nice selection of artists with different perspectives. There are different self-portraits using different media. Cate Prato has done an excellent job with this book! It is not often that I find an art book that I keep going back to as a reference and for inspiration in what I am currently working on.

It can be a difficult thing to look at yourself in the mirror and turn that into a piece of art. This book gives you a great jump-start on the process.

The book starts out with a bit of history behind self-portraits. Don't skip this part. It was very interesting to me to read about other artists' self portraits. There is a little section on getting yourself out there and on blogging. I am a huge blogger myself. Love to keep one and love to read other artists' blogs.

Some of the artists do not do just one self-portrait. Some do several different ones and some do variations on the same picture. There are all sorts of tips in the book to help you - such as digital imaging. I enjoyed reading the thoughts behind each self-portrait. Some of the reading was very personal. You could see it in the very revealing self-portraits.

As I said before, there are a lot of tips and techniques to help you get started on your own self-portrait. There is even a short quiz to help you think about yourself. There are some detailed exercises to help and inspire you. The techniques are easy to follow.

You do not have to be able to draw to make use of this book. I am a mixed media artist that cannot draw diddly. I used a headshot I had, altered it on the computer, and used that to create several different self-portraits of myself.

I really liked how different materials are used in the self-portraits. The pictures are very large and are in color. I love to work with fabric. I really loved seeing how I could incorporate fabric into a self-portrait quiltie or art doll. I will have to see how I can create my own copper self-portraits.

I loved the details and colors of Kelli Perkin's journal dolls. It was a very original idea that I am going to have to try. Kelli's section on how to draw your own self-portrait looks very fun. I am going to try that and see if my self-portrait comes out as well as hers does.

I recently bought Kelly Rae's book. Her part in this book was an added bonus. She does a wonderful job of layering, making use of textures, and blending colors. Debbi Crane's masks really spoke to me. I thought about the different masks we all wear every day. I do a lot of assemblage and thought it was great that there was an assemblage section to the book. Self-portraits can make use of found objects and be 3D!

I pre-ordered Mixed-Media Self-Portraits and was thrilled when it finally arrived. It was worth waiting for and everything I hoped it would be. I'm a mixed-media artist and have been wanting to do some self-portraits for a long while but didn't know where or how to start. The title says exactly what the book is about: inspiration and techniques. Just thumbing through the pages makes you want to jump right in and create your own self-portrait. There is a whole chapter just on drawing eyes! But first you are shown amazing self-portraits other artists have done. Next are warm up exercises to get you in the mood. Finally, hands on instructions for creating your own self-portraits. If you need inspiration to get you started, this is the book for you.

I enjoyed looking at the quilt talked about in the Elm Creek Books. I love to quilt my try and make one from this book.

I just had to have the entire Elm Creek series and the coordinating books to make the quilts.

It is a verry good book with plassent story's about the ladies that are the quilsters of the paterns.

I love to sit and read the books while I am looking at the pattern books. It gives me a better visual of what I am reading. I love this series by Janet Chiaverini. I hope the adventure continues.

I really like the book. It gives you the patterns that you read about in the novel.

Another excellent book by Marsha Michler. Wonderful motifs that one can add to their crazy quilt. It sparks ones imagination. If you are looking for ideas this is a great place to start.

To be honest, I checked this out of my library twice before I finally resolved to buy it. Money well spent as I have used this book over and over again. Lots of ideas and lots of motifs to trace and use.

I love this book. Sure, I could find many pictures in other books but this one has the motif outlines by catagory. If you know nothing about some CQ techniques, get a different book.

This book shows how to transfer your designs, how to create your own alphabet and has lots of designs to copy. Many flowers, bugs, dragons and such. Some surface techniques I had not done. (a vintage lady with 3D clothes)

This book is a joy.

I've read and own several books on crazy quilting. THIS IS THE BEST!! It has tons of information on embroidery stitches, motifs (patterns, sorta) and instructions. Michler is a knowledgeable author and I highly recommend any of her books on crazy quilting but this is my personal favorite.

I have really used this book. It has lots of designs and has given me great ideas.