Quick Watercolor Quilts: The Fuse, Fold, and Stitch Method [Paperback]

Dina Pappas (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1999

Create the wildly popular look of watercolor quilts in a wink of the time! Instantly reduce the number of seams to sew, using fast fusible interfacing and as few as three fabrics. This all-new technique speeds up construction and creates beautiful watercolor-style quilts in a snap. Now beginning and advanced quilters can all join the watercolor craze! Learn how to:

* Create 13 gorgeous watercolor quilts featuring wreaths, hearts, baskets, and other motifs

* Stitch 85% fewer seams than traditional watercolor quilts require

* Align seams perfectly without expert rotary-cutting skills (the interfacing forgives inaccurate cutting!)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The lovely painterly effect of watercolor quilts appeals to many quilters, but the technique is generally quite labor-intensive and time-consuming. Dina Pappas has refined a method that greatly simplifies the process, and her book explains it all clearly. Her secret is gridded fusible interfacing (bought with a printed grid or penciled on), on which the fabric squares are laid out and fused on; the whole piece is then folded on the grid lines and stitched. Not only does this greatly simplify and speed up the procedure, but it also allows for easy rearrangement of the layout before fusing; it also prevents quilters from accidentally rotating or mixing up the squares when stitching them together. The other element that makes this approach so easy entails keeping the designs fairly simple and small, though the technique can certainly be adapted to larger, more complex designs as quilters become more comfortable with the system. Pappas includes a good general overview of quilting basics, and the 13 step-by-step projects let newcomers practice the method under her tutelage before branching out on their own. --Amy Handy

About the Author

Dina Pappas sewed as a girl, but it wasn't until she was engaged to her soon-to-be husband that she made her first quilt. She crafted a queen-size quilt as a wedding present. Soon she was hooked and her quilting passion grew as she moved around the country with her Air Force pilot husband. Dina's quilting has been influenced by living in Arizona, California, Washington, Alabama, Michigan, and Alaska.

Dina is now an award-winning quiltmaker, shop owner, teacher, lecturer, author, and pattern designer. Her work led to the development of Pellon's Quilter's Grid, a preprinted interfacing for use with watercolor piecing. In addition to authoring three books, Dina owns her own ever-expanding quilt shop, Dina's Cozy Cabin Quilts, which has been in business since 1992. She has also appeared as a guest on HGTV's television program, Simply Quilts.

Dina lives in Eagle River, Alaska, where quilting is not limited to long winter nights but is a year-round passion. Endless summer days produce beautiful flowers for inspiration (and an occasional snack for the neighborhood moose). Dina enjoys her Alaska adventures with her husband Jim and their two sons, Jack and Charley.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Martingale & Company; 1st edition (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564772705
• ISBN-13: 978-1564772701
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #293,456 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, informative guide for creating wonderful quilts., November 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Quick Watercolor Quilts: The Fuse, Fold, and Stitch Method (Paperback)

Beautiful color pictures of all projects. Clear, concise instructions on fabric selection and on the fold, fuse and stitch method. Dina is an excellent teacher, who conveys her love of color and design in a no-nonsense manner. She simplifies the watercolor process, so even beginners can produce stunning results.

61 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Watercolor Quilts Couldn't Be Easier!, February 10, 2001

By 

Sharon Darling (Quilter's Review) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Quick Watercolor Quilts: The Fuse, Fold, and Stitch Method (Paperback)

Here are some excerpts from my review of this book. You can see the complete review on the Quilter's Review website, along with a review of the fusible grid that Dina uses.

"If you think you're too busy to quilt, think again. As a mother of two small children, Dina Pappas needed to find a way to quilt that used a minimum of fabrics, could be worked on in short blocks of time, and could be assembled quickly. So Dina developed a formula that does all three.

"Dina chooses just three fabrics for a project. One is fairly plain and serves as background. Another provides strong visual interest....

"The third fabric type serves as a transition between the plain background and the dense floral print. Dina calls this the edge fabric....

"Dina doesn't spend much time cutting fabric -- her method doesn't fussy-cut. She just cuts strips of fabric that she then cuts into 2" squares....

"When it's time to lay out her design, Dina looks through her cut pieces for just the right edge pattern type to place in each spot. By careful selection, Dina creates striking watercolor effects time after time. Seeing how Dina sorts pieces by edge pattern type triggered the "Ah-ha!" I've been waiting for to really understand watercolor quilts....

"To assemble these watercolor quilts quickly, Dina uses fusible interfacing with a 2" grid drawn on it to ensure proper alignment of the squares. After she positions her 2" squares, she fuses the squares to the interfacing.

"Piecing is then a simple matter of folding along a grid line (right sides together) and sewing a 1/4" seam. One long seam along each grid line and she's done. Dina doesn't spend hours chain piecing, clipping threads, and pressing....

"If you have wanted to make watercolor quilts but felt overwhelmed by the work involved or the fabrics required, then these quick watercolor quilts are for you."

43 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Time Saver, December 30, 1999

By 

Tonya Caudle (Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Quick Watercolor Quilts: The Fuse, Fold, and Stitch Method (Paperback)

I have been watercolor quilting for a year now and have found it difficult to complete the projects in a timely manner. All that sewing! Well, no more! Quick Watercolor Quilts is a wonderful book showing a very quick and easy fuse technique which saves valuable time at the sewing machine. Also, the author goes into great detail in the design of curves and angles, which give my projects a more dimensional look. I love this book and can't wait to get started on the four seasons wreath wall hanging for my bedroom!