Quilting With a Modern Slant

The other day I received my copy of Rachel May's new book, Quilting With a Modern Slant: People, Patterns, and Techniques inspiring the Modern Quilt Community.
I first met Rachel at Quilt Market when I was premiering my a stitch in color fabric collection for Moda. She's young and energetic and enthusiastic and didn't have to work hard to get me excited about her book project and participating in it.
Fast forward a few months and Rachel is interviewing me over the phone, asking me about my influences and interests and my take on modern quilting in general. She also asked me to design a project for the book.
Though I could tell by Rachel's personality that the book would be well done and interesting, I was frankly blown away by how comprehensive, colorful, and downright inspirational it turned out to be.

This book is so much more than a how-to book or a profile book. It touches on every aspect of contemporary quilting and makes it personal. Here you'll visit with some of the best known crafters in this field and be inspired by what they make.

Nancy Crow

Anna Williams

You'll also learn about the groups within the larger group that is Modern Quilting and you'll discover a few folks you hadn't heard of before. I did and was pleasantly surprised to find new sources of inspiration.

Debbie Grifka

Maritza Soto 

Truth be told, I've been familiar with Maritza's beautiful work for a while, but I think some of you might discover her here and be happy you did.

As I mentioned earlier, I'm also proud to be included in this book and was happy to contribute a project. 

I got a kick out of reading my interview, but I think my favorite part of the book was the feeling that there was so much to discover here and that this was the kind of book I could return to and get something new out of each encounter.

Weekend's coming up! Maybe you need a new book ??

Mastering the Art of Fabric Printing and Design

Yoohoo! Remember me? I haven't been in this space for a couple weeks, but I thought I'd pop beck here today to tell you about a fabulous new book by an amazingly talented and local gal, Laurie Wisbrun. If you've been in a fabric store or online in the past few years you've seen and fallen in love with Laurie's designs for Robert Kaufman. The colorful and whimsical and very unique. Well now Laurie has written a book all about fabric printing and design, aptly titled, Mastering the Art of Fabric Printing and Design.

This book is full, I mean chock full, of techniques and instruction, and inspiration.

 Laurie has written extensively about planning and executing a host of techniques with a special emphasis on digital printing, but she's also gathered an array of crafters and designers to write tutorials on everything from screen printing to block printing to shibori and wax resist.

 Full disclosure: I might have written the last two segments mentioned, but, even if I hadn't, I couldn't help but be impressed by the scope of techniques covered in this book.
If you're looking for a reference book about fabric patterning, this is a book for you. If you're curious about what today's contemporary artisan fabric designers are creating, this book is for you. If you want to marvel at the variety of design techniques possible, this book is for you. If you just want to be inspired, this book is for you.
Who's this book not for? I don't know. I haven't met them yet.

Sew Wild by Alisa Burke Blog Tour

I am super excited to be part of Alisa Burke's blog tour to promote her amazing new book, Sew Wild. I actually met Alisa in Cleveland a couple of years ago when we were both there to tape segments and workshop DVDs for Quilting Arts TV and Interweave Press. I remember seeing her work laid out on a table ready to be taken over to the taping studio. It was energetic, raw, colorful, and full of surprises. I was instantly drawn to it.
Now, lucky for us, she's written a book detailing her many techniques, her work and design philosophy, and how she finds inspiration. Plus, the book has scads of wonderful projects that you'll really want to make.

Hey, did you notice that note in the bottom left-hand corner? This book includes a bonus, instructional DVD.
This book is visually beautiful, well-illustrated, and chock full of inspiration, but I think one of the most important statements in the book is found in the introduction. There Alisa writes,

I want to break down the stigma that often goes along with sewing—that it’s scary, that there are rules to follow, that you have to be technical and always use a pattern. Instead I want to encourage you to experiment, find your style, embrace mistakes, be messy, let loose, and explore. 


Oh my, that philosophy speaks to me and, I think to a lot of folks who create.
But, Alisa doesn't just send you out there without lots of information. There is everything from standard sewing techniques to sewing with alternative materials to an extensive, and I mean extensive, surface design techniques section. And, these aren't techniques that you need an amazing, jam-packed full of materials studio to re-create. These are simple, doable, yet striking techniques that can transform your fabric and give you a palette of materials to work with. I especially love her take on incorporating text into surface design and stitching.
Plus, once you've played with patterning fabric, Alisa has designed fun projects for you to craft that fabric into. Everything from quilts to pillows to cuffs, scarves, hats, and more. I mean it...much, much more.
You know what I think you should do? I think you should go here or here and order yourself a copy. 
I don't think you'll be disappointed. Also, don't be surprised if you see me post a project or two inspired by this book, cuffs, maybe or a tote decorated with fused plastic. Just sayin.   

In Which I Review Two Books

I'll get to that in a minute...or two.
First, our two randomly selected giveaway winners are Monika and Christina. Yay! I've already sent both of you an email with the PDF of the pattern attached, so enjoy and congratulations!
Next, the obligatory picture. This has nothing to do with this post and, truth be told, I could have shot some related photos because both the books I'm going to review I also own. But, my camera battery is charging and my dog ate my homework, so I'm posting something completely different.
Here it is:



I guess it's not that far afield. Both the books I'm discussing are craft/fiber books and that's a picture of some fabric, also a fiber, so I guess I'm still on topic.

Now, I'm really going to digress, I think...possibly.
I might have mentioned before that when I sew or dye or knit I like to listen to the radio. But, I don't like to listen to music, I prefer talk. I'm very picky about the talk that I hear, so I listen to NPR. I prefer to limit my name calling to when I'm driving my car, so I'm not interested in standard talk radio. This is all well and good when my local NPR station, KUT, is playing All Things Considered or Morning Edition or Fresh Air, but the majority of the programming is music. I thought I had solved that problem by purchasing an HD radio. By the way, apparently HD doesn't stand for High Definition. It doesn't stand for anything. Anyway, on my HD radio I could listen to the HD NPR station which was devoted to all sorts of talk programs around the world. I happily listened to Talk of the Nation and enjoyed the lilt of Neal Conan's voice as he said, "Bye-bye," to callers. I heard what can only be labeled as British Tabloid News on the radio when I listened to BBC's World Have Your Say and marveled at how many folks from the small nation of Ghana seem interested in calling into this show. And I discovered what can only be termed as Slow Radio when I listened to Diane Rheem S.L.O.W.L.Y. interview all types of movers and shakers. With my HD radio in my studio, I was a happy and productive camper.
Sadly, after less than a year, it broke. I was at a loss. I know I can live stream these programs from my computer, but that meant bringing it upstairs and making sure it was plugged in and, frankly, the live stream included a fair number of music programs. I was pretty despondent until I my youngest gifted me with an ipod and I downloaded an audio book. Not, just any audio book, but Steig Larsson's The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. I love, love, love this book. What a wonderful, suspenseful story with an incredible twist at the end. Over the course of one week and while doing an amazing amount of work, I listened to The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest. Even better, I've listened to all three books again.
Now, in the course of my exhaustive research into the benefits of crafting while listening to audio books, I've also listened to Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. I can't rave as much about that one, despite the fact that the book runs at least 35 hours, quite the bang for your buck. I particularly wanted to like it because it's part of a series and I figured if I enjoyed Outlander I was set for audio book entertainment for a while. I found the book to be pretty much a soap opera set in 18th century Scotland with, albeit, some AMAZING sex scenes written in. But, my studio is accessible to my kids and I had a little trouble explaining the blushing.
Right now I'm listening to Colim Tiobin's novel Brooklyn. I'll let you know what I think when I've finished.
What I'm prepared to review right now(see, I segwayed back) are two newly released craft books, New England Knits: Timeless Knitwear with a Modern Twist by Cecily Glowik MacDonald and Melissa La Barre and Craft Hope: Handmade Crafts for a Cause by Jade Sims. I'll be succinct because I've gone on for a while here, but both books are worth your time and attention.
New England Knits features the knitwear designs of two of my absolute favorite designers. As I'm typing, I'm wearing one of Cecily Glowik MacDonald's designs for Quince and Co. Yarn and I've made two of Melissa La Barre's Designs, the Tea Leaves cardigan and two versions of the Tea Leaf tee. My admiration goes back a bit and I was not disappointed with this book. The designs are not only wearable but doable, that is I can see myself sitting down and, with ipod headphones firmly planted in my ears, knitting these patterns.
I had a different but nonetheless powerful reaction to Jade Sim's book Craft Hope. I was deeply touched by it. She does such a wonderful job of communicating the value and joy inherent in combining a love of making with a passion for helping others. There's such an array of projects and each one is paired with a charity that want, needs, the work of our hands. I don't know that I can pinpoint exactly how Jade inspires the reader to get involved through crafting, but that message is palpable. More importantly, it's not said in a finger-wagging sort-of-way, but with kindness and sweetness. I think you should get this book, pick a project, make it, and donate it. I can't see how you would ever regret it.
Also, if you do make these projects, whether from New England Knits or Craft Hope and simultaneously listen to a great book, pass that recommendation on to me. I'm definitely in the market for my next, good listen.

I've got mail

Today my eldest daughter was beginning the college application process. Pretty daunting, but that's a whole other post. Anyway, she wanted to know what to list my profession as. I answered her over my shoulder as I opened the day's mail, saying " I guess you can call me a textile designer...that seems pretty accurate." Then I opened my mail and decided my job description needed amending.


" Add author to the job description," I said, because today the mail carrier brought me an advanced copy of my book.
There are things that you assume you'll do in your lifetime, so when they happen, you're pleased, but not surprised. I always thought I'd get married, so happy as I was on my wedding day, I wasn't exactly astonished. The same is true for being a parent. I was thrilled, excited, nervous, but not taken aback because I never thought it would happen. Even with my work and business, which I thoroughly love, I never had a hard time envisioning myself in that role. But, being an author, having a book out there with my name on it, I never imagined that happening. It makes me realize that as great an experience as writing the book and designing the projects was, the best part of this journey has been being surprised by life. That's the real gift.

#21

I wanted to find some creative way to link the subjects I'm going to mention in this post, but the only thing that came to mind is the idea of patterning. When you see the images, you'll realize that that's not terribly inciteful, but there you have it.



I've been making pillows for a new store that opened up this week. Nourish is a new boutique for handmade goods in Athens, Georgia and I've been asked to send a few pillows their way.


Working on these pillows has definitely fed my already acute love of patterning. But so has this book.


It just came in the mail the other day, but I have had so much fun looking through it. Lotta Jansdotter has such a fabulous design sense.


Now she's applied it to printing patterns on a variety of surfaces. It's terrific eye-candy, but also a wonderful beginner's introduction into the world of surface design or patterning.


The book is divided into sections devoted to different printing techniques, but my favorite is the part about potato prints. Maybe it's because I use potatoes for printing with wax or maybe it's because I love the idea of my art supplies coming from the humble grocery store. Whatever the reason, I so enjoyed this section of the book.


She also prints on an amazing array of surfaces. If I had a thumbs-up icon to add to this post, I would. I am definitely recommending this book!

#13

Oy! Should I skip the number thirteen? Is that being superstitious? I love that line from The Office when the bumbling manager, Micheal, says," I'm not superstitious, but I'm a little stitious." Well, I'm only a little stitious myself, so thirteen it is.
First off, I have to say a huge thank you to Beth over at Sew, Mama, Sew for mentioning my quilt as part of their Quilt Month extravaganza. I got a huge kick out of seeing it there and reading all the comments folks made. I have been following the daily updates at Sew, Mama, Sew and have really enjoyed seeing loads of wonderful quilts, reading a terrific feature about Denyse Schmidt, and discovering the almost boundless passion people have for quilts.
I also want to say thank you and hello to all the folks who've stopped by here after having seen my Twinkle quilt. I'm waving hello. I know you can't see that, but I am really waving.
I was asked by one of my newest internet friends if I had any recommendations for books about fabric dyeing.


Well...Yeah! But I've decided that rather than recommend a bunch of books, I'd focus on my desert island favorites.


If I was Tom Hanks in Castaway and I had to decide between saving Wilson the ball or this dye book, well Wilson wouldn't stand a chance. Surface Design for Fabric by Richard Proctor and Jennifer Lew is my all-time favorite reference book. It's incredibly complete and thorough, covering everything from direct dye processes to batik to basic shibori. It's been revised several times and despite the lack of color is a great beginners book.

Creating Color by Judy Anne Walter is my other must-have dye book. Like the Proctor/Lew book, it's not big on images. Come to think of it, I don't think there are any pictures in the entire book, but there are so many dye recipes.


This is how my copy looks after several years of love. If you want a basic recipe for mixing a dye bath, this is your book. If you want to know how to make graduated colors, this is your book. If you're the scientific type and want to know exactly how many grams of dye powder you'll need to dye a sheet in your washing machine, this is your book.
Neither of these books is big on inspiration. Their focus is information. But I'd be lost without them.

What I'm thinking

Lately, I've been spending a lot of time rediscovering some well-loved books. Most of these books have been with me for a long time, but might have gotten a little dusty while my nose was in some newer book. For whatever reason I'm suddenly called to reacquaint myself with these old friends.
I've looked through this book so many times that all of the pages are loose. Consider that a rousing endorsement. Like Maude Wahlman's Signs and Symbols this book was one of the first I bought when I started making quilts. And it's still one of the best.
Also, like Signs and Symbols, the focus of Who'd a Thought It is showcasing African-American improvisational quilts and their makers. I'm continually struck by how energized these quilts are and how fresh the interpretations of traditional patterns seem.
I love so many of these quilts, I could have easily photographed each quilt in the book.
I particularly love this piece and the way it's organized. It feels new and unique. I haven't seen a lot of medallion quilts lately. Well, until recently. I realized when I was looking at this image this afternoon that one of the quilt projects in Joelle Hoverson's new book, Last Minute Patchwork+ Quilted Gifts reminds me of this quilt. It's probably obvious to everyone else, but that newly published quilt is also a medallion quilt.

What I've been up to

What I've not been up to is posting a lot lately, but.... What I have been up to is this:I made a skirt out of Sew What! Skirts.
This is an absolutely fabulous book. I can't recommend it enough. The amazing thing about the book is that, rather than just providing you with patterns, it teaches you how to draft a pattern based on your measurements. The book is full of helpful hints. For instance, it has the simplest and clearest directions for sewing on zippers that I've ever seen. It suggests and gives clear instructions for a variety of waistbands and has lots of inspiring photos of ways you can vary your skirt patterns. I've already bought fabric for another skirt for myself and one for my littlest. Also, I'm planning on dyeing and batiking some yardage to make a skirt from my own fabric. Can you tell I'm really excited about this book?
But. Wait. I've been doing more than just sewing. I've also started a beret for the Charmed Knits knit-along.

I'm using Knit Picks' Andean Silk. It's a terrifically soft yarn and knits up very quickly. This picture was taken this morning, but I'm practically done now. I ordered two balls of each color, so I'll have plenty to make a second hat.