People often ask me what to do with Oriental fabrics….. This book by Julia Davis and Anne Muxworthy can answer that question. There are projects in all sizes – from a cute little scissor case to a beginner easy bed quilt. There are also three great totes. There are a couple of projects that use plain muted tone on tone fabrics in simple designs. Enhanced with sashiko stitching these have a calm elegance.
My personal favorite is the Kinkakuji wall hanging which blends together panels and large prints and is enhanced with sashiko. I want to try it with some of the large scale Australian quilts as well as the Orientals.
The book includes necessary templates and lots of detailed pictures. Even a beginner should be able to do most of these projects.
Everyone should have a design wall – unless of course you’re really young and spry and have lots of floor room to lay out your quilt blocks. The problem is some of us don’t have wall space to put up a design wall. Problem solved!
The GIANT Cheryl Ann’s Design Wall comes in a small tote bag measuring about 5″ x 5″ x 22″ and weighing less than 7 pounds. It is easily assembled in just a few minutes (its about as difficult as pu-tting up a tent) and provides a giant 72″ x 72″ flannel surface that is stretched tight on a stable frame. The flannel is a high quality, 100% cotton, preshrunk flannel that has been measured and sewn to fit the frame. Because it is stretched tight and standing at an angle, adherence is marvelous and pinning is never necessary. A design wall like this will not only help you create wonderful projects, but will help you avoid sewing blocks and rows together in the wrong order. Your seam ripper may get lonely! And because it is portable you can stand this really close to your sewing machine – or move it really far away if you want the exercise. When you are finished, just fold it up and put it away. This is perfect for anyone who teaches quilt classes. The 72″ square comes in pale gray and white and is $174. There are also smaller versions – 54″ square ($133) and 36″ square ($107) available in white. These are perfect additions to your Santa list.
For those who have a wall – Fons and Porter have a 60″ x 72″ design wall sheet that you can tape or tack up. It is gridded which is really useful to keep you straight. You could easily add a sleeve for a dowel (or maybe a folding tent pole?) for hanging.
Welcome to the KickAss Quilt Blog. I’ll be providing reviews of new products as they come into the store, telling you about some of the exciting new fabric lines and quilt kits, and sharing ideas on how to make your quilting experience faster, easier, and more fun.