January Book Reviews Part 2
Blackwork Made Easy – Techiques, patterns & samplers by Lesley Wilkins
I was lucky enough to receive a set of beautiful blackwork pictures for Christmas 
so I was very interested to learn more about this stunning form of embroidery. This book covers the history of blackwork as well as the materials needed. It gives advice on choosing a design, setting up your workspace and using charts.
The rest of the book features several designs, both photos and charts, split by theme: Flowers & Plants; Figures, Birds & Animals; Fill-In Patterns; Borders and Alphabets. At the end of the book there is advice on how to mount your finished design.
This book is ideal for someone wanting to learn Blackwork, as the title suggests it is a simple start to Blackwork ideal for beginners.
This book is published by Search Press and can be purchased here. Look inside this book here.
The Sewing Machine Classroom by Charlene Phillips
This book is split into 2 sections: Taking Control and Increasing Your Sphere of Influence. The first section gives in depth advice on the different fabrics, threads and needles that you can use, machine maintenance, presser feet and the most common problems. The second section then goes into different techniques such as buttonholes, zips, hems and piping.
There’s a useful appendix in the back covering things like stitches, stabilizer & interfacing chart anda glossary of terms. It’s all broken down into easy to follow instructions with useful tips scattered throughout and colour photos to help demonstrate techniques.
This is a fresh easy to use reference guide that would be helpful for those trying to figure out their new machine.
This book is published by Krause Publications and can be purchased on the RUCraft website here.
Colour in art quilts by Janet Twinn.
When this book arrived I didn't even give it a second glance as I disliked the cover, a bit too grungy for me. But as they say, never judge a book by its cover. The inside the book is completely another matter and is of the highest quality with the work of quilting superstars such as Pauline Burbridge, who incidentally works with a monotone palette these days.
The book makes connections between how and why colours work and how different makers respond to them. Janet Twinn describes her own working methods with dyes and paints without being prescr
iptive. As she says in her conclusion:
'I believe that everyone given time and practise, will be able to find their own 'colour' voice. Making quilts is like any other art-based activity; it is a never-ending journey, rich in anticipation, often fraught with disappointment, but full of excitement.
Quilts are multi-layered both in the way they are structured and in the meanings they hold and convey. Hung on walls they appear flat, but they are also 'objects' that can be draped and folded, disrupting and fragmenting their surface design and transforming themselves into sculpture.'
This book is published by Anova Books and can be purchased on their site here.
More Layer Cake, Jelly Roll & Charm Quilts by Pam & Nicky Lintott
From the queens of pre-cut fabrics comes another 14 new quilt patterns. Working from pre-cut fabric packs means not only do you cut out some of the preparation time but you know that your fabrics will all be co-ordinated too.
All the projects are accompanied by clear step by step instructions, large colour photos of the finished quilt and colour diagrams to help you with the cutting and piecing. There’s also a basic techniques section at the back of the book covering tools, seam allowance, pinning, cutting and binding. One thing that would have been nice is a difficulty rating with the projects, some look more complex than others but it would be nice if this was indicated. If you are a fan of the Lintott’s previous books you will love this one too.
This book is published by David & Charles and can be purchased on their RUCraft website here.
