March is National Craft Month. I have not had much time to craft but did start working on a quilt today, so I decided to share some of the quilt books I have been thinking about trying today as well as the one I did try. We will start with Sew Very Easy Quilt Favorites: 12 Skill-Building Projects from Laura Coia.
As the cover says this book has 12 projects in it. Each is meant to help you build your quilting skills. There are some about piecing as well as choosing fabrics or using directional fabrics. Most of the patterns are somewhat traditional, but with twists.
The quilt above is the Chevron Chic. It works on not having squares or triangles and working with columns. The one below is the Irish Pansy which helps teach about matching darks and lights.
The quilt below is Simple Simon and the skill is in the placement of the squares. I love the simplicity of this one.
The instructions were very easy to follow and the pictures help as well. The book is perfect for those looking to build some quilting skills!
Our next book is Playing with Patchwork and Sewing by Nicole Calver. This book has three projects for six different classic quilt patterns. The patterns are simple patchwork, grandmother's puzzle, Irish logs, Dresden plate, hexagons and New York beauty. All of the projects take the patterns and give different projects from quilts, pillows, picnic blankets, eye mask and more. The three projects are of different sizes: mega, medium, and micro, and each project is rated for level.
The above is the micro project in the simple patchwork section and is the tuck and roll cutlery wrap. It is rated as an advanced beginner project. The one below is also an advance beginner project and the micro project from the Irish logs. It is petite coasters.
The photo below shares the mega and medium projects from the Dresden plate chapter. They are the quilt and the pillowcase. Now I have played with Dresden plates before and they can be quite fun.
The instructions are easy and I love that there are different size projects in it. There is a something for everyone in it.
Our next book is Quilts with an Angle by Sheila Christensen. There are seven chapters that have projects to work with triangles, trapezoids, diamonds, hexagons, parallelograms, and more. There are ones with the shapes as well as strips. There is a final chapter to encourage the reader to try their own ideas with 60 degree blocks.
I love that this book is all about geometry and using geometrical shapes to create designs. I could see using this book to create some geometry lessons with the shapes.
Our final book is Tantalizing Table Toppers by Judy Gauthier. This book has patterns for table runners, place mats and napkins. Here is the table of contents with photos of the projects.
The projects are fun and bring some style and celebration to a table. I love the uniqueness of some of these projects. Some seem for certain holidays and events and others are a bit fabric specific. However the instructions are easy to follow and there are a variety of ideas in the book.
I love the table runner above. It is called Where All Roads Lead. I think I would use pink instead of the yellow though. What changes would you make? The placemat below is called Pure Elegance. The fabric choices definitely give it more elegance but it is a fun shape.
The photo below is of the table runner called Have a Happy. It is perfect for a birthday celebration as it reminds me of the birthday cake. It would be a fun project to make and pull out every year for a celebration. Or perhaps to have birthday party guests sign as a memorial of a special celebration.
So these are four of the books I have been playing with and thinking about what to make from each. Since my crafting time has not been much, I decided to share them this way even though I haven't gotten to try projects from all of them. I hope you will check them out.
