What's your favourite quilting book?

I don't think I can possible choose a favourite - it might vary with time and place (and mood!). However, I can give you my least favourite book - or category of books: those where the quilts included in the book are computer generated and not made up examples. OK, the instructions are probably not robotised, but I definitely dislike them. And, it seems to me, looking around, that the more common the ownership of computer aided design programs becomes, the more frequently such books appear on the shelves. Nothing against CAD at all - not everyone loves drawing; but please can the author (or a team) make up the quilts. . In message , Janner writes

There are so many patterns available online I tend to buy technique books rather than pattern books.

Color Play by Joen Wolfrom is hands down my favorite book. Tied for 2nd are Soft Edge Piecing by Jinny Beyer and Hidden Block Quilts by Lerlene Nevaril.

~*~ Jeri

Well that is hard to answer because different quilting books perform different functions for me. My library of quilting books is divided into two areas to start with: 1) those full of quilts and patterns and

I just today received a little gem of a book, called "The Patchwork Cat" by William Mayne. It is about 30 pages, and tells how a grey tabby is in love with her patchwork quilt and how she goes on an adventure when it gets put into the bin and she falls in trying to rescue it! I think the bit where she gets tossed into the rubbish truck is a little scary, so will keep it a while before showing Tristan, but it's a gem of a book for children 3-4 years and upward. I just thought I'd use this space to plug this book.... the illustrations are really fabulous and obviously done by someone who knows and loves cats (Nicola Bayley).

I think if you want one book that has pictures of quilts, inspiration and probably technique sections as well, you need Maggie Malone's "1001 Patchwork Designs" which I have and can thoroughly recommend, or "5,500 Quilt Block Designs" which I have checked out from the library but do not own. These are both great books and good for specific quilts or just inspiration, plus, you can use either of them as a doorstop in a pinch.

For technique, I like "Quilting Makes the Quilt" by Lee Cleland, and I think I have every book by Judy Martin - she is my quilting hero. I quite like her "Pieced Bordersr: The Complete Resource", as well as "Scraps" and the older, harder to find "Yes, You Can! Make Stunning Quilts from Simple Patterns", published in 1992. I think if you really pressed me, this last one might well be my favourite - it has nice quitls to look at, shows her interesting technique of using "short strips" and cutting along the selvage instead of across the width, uses up scraps! and makes it all look so easy and explains it all clearly. I think this one is permanently beside my bed for late evening inspiration.

-- Jo in Scotland

Just one? Tops would be The Art of CLassic Quiltmaking by Harriet Hargrave and Sharon Craig. Great all around basic book that is fairly up to date. A close second would be Barbara Brackman's Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns. Over 4000 patterns in this one. Great for references and ideas. Both are must haves imo for most any quilter. I could go on with other favorites but these are tops.

Taria

OK, what's your favourite quilting book and why?

I keep looking at books online, but a lot seem to have the same patterns, just different colours.

Janner France

Wonderfully Whimsical Quilts by Carol Burniston is one everybody should have in their collection if they've already got the basics. I've made nearly every quilt in her book - you'll remember the goofy-eyed sheep, for example. Sooner or later nearly every quilter is going to want to make a crib quilt. And if you're going to buy just one magazine, a neighbor brought me McCall's Quilting America Quilts for the Home, Spring 2011. It is a keeper. I think I'll keep my neighbor's. Polly

This one:

She also explains how things are done for all her projects in that book; one page shows the hand sewn version, the other the machine sewn one. A real treasure for a novice like me. And she explains about chenille (something I had always wanted to know but never dared to ask here).

U.

Oh, it just seemed that it was something so obvious and everybody knew about it, at least *what* it was, that I thought it a bit silly to interrupt threads like 'feelers of insects in chenille' (or what that thread was) with such a simple question before I hadn't at least googled it or read somewhere else about the basics. I know that you are never mean here - never seen an unkind posting here since I read. But one mustn't tax one's fellow creatures' patience on purpose.

U. ;-)

I just had to jump in here - "shizu" means "peaceful" and "ko" means "child" and is often added at the end of girls/womens names much like the -a or -y endings in English (think Ann-a, Am-y, etc). So her name means "peaceful" and her quilts sound like it too!

By the way, the city at the foot of Mount Fuji is Shizuoka - Peaceful Mountain.

-- Jo in Scotland

I saw on the La Vie en Rosie blog (schnibbles patterns blog) that Quiltmania is publishing it in french/english but I don't know that they are distributing it to US sellers. You can order from them if you're ok with ordering from France.

I hope someone does know; but don't build your hopes up, Susan. I was desperate for a Japanese book I had seen and *wanted*. I did get help, and it was found; but the only place that could be found outside Japan, at the time, was a place in France.

Perhaps trying Amazon? They might then transfer you to one of their European sites with it? or not .....? If Ursula got it, maybe the German Amazon might have it?

I had to follow mine without a translation. Luckily the measurements, though metric, were intelligible. . In message , Susan Laity Price writes

I cannot stop at one!

Techniques

• "Setting Solutions" and "Great Sets" by Sharyn Craig -- both of them make me want to whip up a bunch of blocks just so I can set them as cleverly as Sharyn does.
• "Around the Block" by Judy Hopkins (she wrote two others, but I go to this first volume time and time again when I need "just a block").
• Any of Bonnie Hunter's books (three so far) because (a) I love scrap quilts and (b) I'm a major fan of Bonnie Hunter.

History

• "Textile Designs" by Meller & Elffers:
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  * "American Quilts in the Modern Age," by the International QuiltStudy Center
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  Nann

I wondered if my own favorite book place had a copy. There are 7 - located in Germany. Lowest price was about $29 and shipping to UK was about $20. You can check on it at

"Susan Laity Price" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com...

Oh, I got it via Amazon, so that shouldn't be such a big problem. I mean, I ordered books from Amazon.uk and from their US branch.

U.

Howdy!

Roberta, my dear friend, that was EXCELLENT. You just stuck that Beg into that note, so nifty & sweet.

R/Sandy - favorite quilt books: the ones I just got & the ones on the shelves