Country Living Country Quilts [Hardcover]

The Editors of Country Living Gardener (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Country Living | Publication Date: December 31, 2001

The art of quiltmaking has emerged as one of the most popular crafts today. Now, in a tribute to America's endearing symbol, Country Living's Country Quilts provides 20 patterns for classic patchwork and applique quilts, combined with authentic how-to instructions. Over 200 color photos, 120 watercolor illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

A woman stitching a quilt one hundred years ago had little reason to suspect the work she was doing would someday have historic impact. Her intention those busy days was to sew bed coverings to keep her family warm and, perhaps, enjoy the conviviality of an afternoon or an evening out in the company of other women. Even though other chores were always pressing and a family's needs were never quite fulfilled, women took the time to stitch. The legacy they have left in the form of beautiful quilts is a testament to their skill and ingenuity. And to the lasting value of work invested with equal parts care and craft.

Why do quilts have an enduring effect? Why do people continue to search for ways to include them in their lives? A quilt seems to have resonance, embodying more life than an ordinary bedspread or comforter. Handstitching shows that time and care went into its making. The very look of a homemade quilt seems to invest a room with soul. The quilt stands alone as a symbol of talent, love, and pride.

Simply defined, a quilt is made from three layers of cloth: a top, filler, and a backing. The process of stitching these layers together is called quilting, yet over the years the word quilting has come to mean the entire process of making a stitched bedcover. This is most often done with a pattern of tiny, even stitches over the whole surface. The surface can also be patterned by using different fabrics or fabric arrangements.

While quilting reached a form of high craftsmanship in Europe by the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the earliest American quilts were simply two solid-colored pieces of cloth bound together with fancy stitching. Known as whole-cloth quilts, they resembled today's comforters.

Excerpted from Country Living's Country Quilts. Copyright 1992 by The Hearst Corporation.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Hearst; 1st edition (December 31, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 068810620X
• ISBN-13: 978-0688106201
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 9.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,258,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Though born and raised in Baltimore, MD, Eleanor Levie's persona is less Baltimore Album and more Crazy Quilt. Since 1978, she has worked as a needlework and crafts editor, author, and book producer, with quilting as a specialty. Elly's best-seller, Skinny Quilts & Table Runners, features the signature styles of 15 of today's top quilt designers; the stunning sequel, Skinny Quilts & Table Runners II, comes out October '09. At the same time, the first of a green series will be available--a book of tote bags, also full of great designs from diverse and well-known quilting talents. Previously, Elly produced eight volumes of the Rodale's Successful Quilting Library series, authored Great Little Quilts, Country Living's Country Quilts, and American Quiltmaking: 1970-2000, among many other books and magazines.

A resident of Bucks County, PA, Elly edits books by other authors and presents lectures and workshops to quilt guilds and groups. She proudly shows her own quilts--eclectic, eccentric, artsy, and fun; shares her exciting collection of antique, vintage, and Skinny quilts; and inspires quilters to push the envelope, and stretch beyond their comfort zones. Visit her at www.EleanorLevie.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wrap Yourself in Quilts, October 18, 2000

By 

PJ McCosker (Mill Valley, CA. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Country Living Country Quilts (Hardcover)

For lovers of traditional quilts and how to make them, care for them, and show them off, you can't find more inspiration. Quilts are photographed in homes, on porches, on tables, on the walls of houses of all styles and tastes. If you are just starting to quilt or have rooms full of fabric waiting to stitch, this book will give you new ideas. A great gift and a wonderful book to curl up and read under your favorite quilt.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Large range, small style., May 12, 2005

By 

Kotori (Australia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Country Living Country Quilts (Hardcover)

Printed in 1992, this thick tome (207 pages long) contains a huge variety of quilt patterns, traditional and funky. Unfortunately like most interior decoration or themed books from that still 80's influenced era, it has not dated well.

Interesting for reference without containing too much inspirational material, the book includes 20 quilt projects illustrated with high detail and good instructions.

It also photographs myriad pages of quilts separated into different themed sections - "amish" "Log Cabin" "Caring for Quilts" & many more subcategories.

Whilst being an excellent compendium of quilts of the past, photographing them in such dated settings detracts from the charm of the quilts themselves.

Understandably this book was created from a collection of "Country Living" photographic shoots therefore the approach is a reasonable one.

Not recommended as anything more than a library borrow, unless purchaseable for under $5.

kotori

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Depends on what you are looking for, September 26, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Country Living Country Quilts (Paperback)

This book features traditional quilt patterns, a variety of pictures of quilts in country home settings, and some historical information. Nothing earth-shattering here. The quilts are beautiful in their own way, but if, like me, you are looking for fresh new ideas and exciting fabrics and colors, this is not the book for you. If you love traditional or antique quilts, then you might like this book. It would make a nice coffee table book.