quiltersmuse.com Blog

A few new quilt books have just been announced and they are being raved about by those who have seen them at Quilt Market. I thought I’d share their titles with you.

Quilts of the Golden West by Cindy Brick is a book that has come to my attention online, in several spots, already. Apparently, one of its features is a set of patterns. I’m intrigued and can’t wait to see this one.

The second hot-off-the-press book is the much awaited one, Amish Abstractions by Joe Cunningham. The name of it is Amish Abstractions, and that is all I can say for now.

Another book in the “news” is Patchwork and Quilting, a book in English, by Larissa Denisova. The goal is to extend the awareness of quilting done in Russia today. I have no information yet on where to find this book to purchase.

Jinny Beyer has recently published a new book, The Quilter’s Album of Patchwork Patterns.

A fourth book that looks very interesting is a catalog published (or “to be published”) in the United Kingdom, titled, Quilts 1700-2010: Hidden Histories, Untold Stories by Sue Pritchard. If I find out how this item can be ordered, I will post that information here.

So many books, so little time. That is my mantra. I LOVE books! My house looks like it. So, I share this information with you, in case there are any other book lovers out there who want to be kept “up to speed.”

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications

Laurie Aaron Hird, author of The Farmer’s Wife Sampler Quilt (Cincinnati, Ohio: Krause Publications, 2009) created a quilt inspired by contest letters in January 1922 to The Farmer’s Wife: A Magazine for Farm Women. Women were asked to respond as to whether or not they would want their daughter to marry a farmer. The consensus was in the affirmative.

In this new book, Laurie offers up a dose of farm wife sentiments via reprinted letters from that contest. She has included photos of quilt blocks throughout the book, and on a separate CD, she provides templates that can be printed out, one to a page.

The book features clear diagrams that demonstrate how blocks can be put together, one block per page, with a colorful thumbnail view of the block in the upper left hand corner.

The letters are charming and are truly a piece of United States History. The blocks utilize reproduction fabrics from the 19th century and that may confuse a few people if they expected the hues to coincide with 1920s colors. If we use our imaginations, we might think of this quilt as one that used left-over scraps from the former century. Laurie hand-pieced the entire quilt, but “farmed it out” to be longarm machine-quilted.

Some of the letters writers had strong opinions. One woman from Cheshire County, New Hampshire ended her letter with:

When someone offers my daughter love, marriage and a home, I would much rather it would be a clear-eyed, clean-hearted, penniless farmer than a city man with a white-collar position and a large salary.

This book is worth collecting, if only to read the letters from farm women and see all of the 111 quilt blocks they inspired. If one is ambitious, one can choose from different sizes of quilts to re-create Hird’s vision and make a quilt of their own. The Bonus CD offers 106 templates for piecing. It is abundantly clear that this book was a lot of work to create!

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications

After months of waiting, and having this book on pre-order with amazon, on Friday, the book, Border to Border: Historic Quilts and Quiltmakers of Montana by Annie Hanshew arrived in the mail. This is an oversize book with many beautiful photos of quilts from sugans to quilts that depict the activities of Montana’s Indian (Native American) population. For good measure, there is even the story of a Sanitary Commission Quilt thrown into the mix. Anyone who loves quilt history will be delighted with this latest state documentation book, the work of many dedicated volunteers. From the beautiful quilt on the cover, to what is written inside the covers, to the introduction and the contents, this book is a page turner. I’ve yet to devour every word, but even a brief overview shows this book to be one of interest and note.

Many congratulations for work well done, and to those who served as advisers on the project, including Margo Kramer, a quilt historian and a shop owner.

Patricia Cummings

The Eastern States Exposition includes agricultural components: livestock shows and exhibits of vegetables, such as the “Great Pumpkin,” seen in the photo from 2007. Charlie Brown might be jealous! This year, the event will be held from September 18 – October 4, 2009. Mark your calendars!

This ESE file photo, courtesy of Eastern States Exposition, was taken in 2007 and shows a huge pumpkin! I can bet that a forklift probably was needed to transport it! We can only guess how many pumpkin pies that would make!

Ever since I was a child, I heard about the “Big E,” an annual enterprise that is sure to please the entire family. I believe my older brother, Steve, showed a heifer, or a cow, there. I would verify that with him, but he is no longer with us. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture from the University of New Hampshire.

The “Big E,” its nickname, always hosts great music, rides, and exhibits. Features include vendors and food stands to suit anyone’s taste.

Here are a few of the quilts exhibited in 2007. Photo courtesy of Eastern States Exposition.

I recognize the pattern of the quilt, on the far right, as the one called, “Calico Garden,” designed by Florence Peto, noted quilt historian. I wrote about Mrs. Peto in my book, Ellen Emeline Hardy Webster (1867-1950), Her Amazing Quilt “Charts,” Her Writings, and Her Life. Mrs. Peto’s observed that it is not necessary to be didactic about nomenclature, when it comes to designating quilt block names.

My 355 page, 240 photo biography of Mrs. Webster, a New Hampshire quilt historian in the 1930s, is an e-book on CD. This is still available to order, on the products available page of our website.

As an aside, a number of simulated quilt patterns that Mrs. Webster made were based on quilts she saw at Eastern States Exposition and at Storrowton (a re-created old village with antique buildings moved onto the site. I wrote about Storrowton for my “Pieces of the Past” column in The Quilter magazine. Mrs. Webster was a quilt judge at some of those exhibitions, and my book has a list of the quilts and their origins upon which Webster based her work in saving quilt designs.

Click on this link for “Calico Garden,” and you will be able to see my re-creation of the same quilt, using Froncie Quinn’s pattern. My quilt is registered, as a reproduction, at the Shelburne Museum.

More information about the quilt, and ordering information for Froncie’s pattern, are located here.

Pumpkins seem to be the theme of my week. Please click link to read an interview with Anne Copeland, author of Pumpkins, Pumpkins (cookbook and more). I feel gleeful to see this other photo of a truckload of pumpkins at the ESE event in 2007. I am thankful to Eastern States Exposition for making these photos available for use in this press summary.

Please do go to the gala happenings this year, if you are in the area. The Eastern States Exposition is located at 1305 Memorial Ave., West Springfield, MA 01089. (413) 737-2443.

Patricia Lynne Grace Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications
Concord, NH
http://www.quiltersmuse.com

Book cover quilt by Barbara Williamson

Read my interview with Anne Copeland, on my website.

http://www.quiltersmuse.com/Pumpkin-Cookbook-author.htm