East-Meets-West Quilts: Explore Improv with Japanese-Inspired Designs

by Patricia Belyea

Overview

Improv quilting, in which quilt designs emerge organi­cally as fabric is cut and stitched, is simple, popular, and fun. In this book, expert quilter Patricia Belyea offers improv instruction and shares her appealing Quilt Manifesto of five simple rules. While providing quilters with a starting point, the fifth rule of the Manifesto, “Break any rule you like,” opens the door to creative freedom. (However, the solid instructions allow even the rule-breakers to create beautiful quilts on the first try).
 
Fourteen projects combine authentic Japanese yukata cottons and contemporary fabrics; each is finished with bold hand-stitching. The quilt-making process is presented in detail, and each quilt shows the irresistible wabi-sabi influence of Japanese design. The sense of discovery in each project is inspiring and out of the ordinary.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781683351146
Publisher:	ABRAMS
Publication date:	10/17/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	65 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Patricia Belyea is the founder of the Seattle-based com­pany Okan Arts. She is a former graphic designer turned quilting professional, and an influencer with a strong presence in the quilt industry (she is a past president of the Contemporary QuiltArt Association). Belyea is a sought-after lecturer, teacher, and quilt journalist.

Editorial Reviews

10/16/2017
Belyea invites quilters “to create something new—something that is totally yours” in this neat book. Her designs are based on the Hachi Quilt Manifesto, five rules that end with, naturally, “Break any rule you like.” Her support for creative freedom makes sense in light of her background as an improv quilter who pieces together random scraps of fabric in novel ways. For Belyea, an American and longtime admirer of Japanese culture, that means using her vintage Japanese yukata cottons. Each hand-dyed piece bursts with colors and patterns. Belyea adds an unexpected element to each quilt—a remnant of bright red hiding in a corner, L-shaped forms of gold cloth connecting blocks with wilder patterns. The body of the book lays out 14 projects calibrated for beginners as well as experts. The quilts’ backs prove as interesting as the fronts, and Belyea’s stitching designs are innovative, too. With fresh designs and useful directions, Belyea’s book is both practical and aspirational. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly