Customer Reviews

Thinking Outside the Block: Step by Step to Dynamic Quilts

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Once every few years a quilt book comes out that completely changes the way you think about making quilts. This is one of those books. I just got my copy a few days ago and I am already wearing it out. It is full of ways to make beautiful, one-of-a- kind quilts easily and intuitively. After taking you through some vital information about choosing fabrics, Sandi has you start with a familiar star block, and go on to add a few "transition" blocks that make your stars suddenly turn into a whole new kind of quilt. Then you learn how to create all kinds of new free-spirited designs using methods that are as fun as they are easy. For example, Sandi has you cut a simple square or block in a couple of places and insert contrasting strips, then cut again and use the pieces in a variety of ways. She offers several methods and variations for "cutting double," in which you freehand-cut two blocks at once and then trade alternate pieces, and she offers a plan for making gorgeous strip-pieced garden quilts that will have you pulling out all your large-scale florals. There is also advice on setting up a group, on working in series, and on quilting collaboratively. And take a look at the fabrics Sandi uses! Her mix of hand-dyes, batiks, and commercial fabrics is spectacular, and a valuable lesson in itself.
This is not a book for those who like traditional, matchy-matchy quilts, but if you love making interesting and original works of quilt art, this book is a dream come true.

If you are one of those people who hate to do the same thing over and over again, this book is for you. It gives you some basic design ideas then turns you loose. I love working with fabric, and this book is a fresh aproach to going your own way. There are three or four main block ideas, as well as ideas about how to buuild and learn from doing a series, getting feedback from other quilters, and using up your scraps. I quilt like I cook . . . learn the basics, then substitute what you like for what you don't . . . keeping what pleases you. This book may upset some of those who like to "stay inside the box" keeping the rules and never taking a chance, because of a fear of what the established quilting community may think. But, the methods are easy to learn, and let you make your own statement. I loved this book!

The previous reviewer who stated that this is "one technique done over and over" clearly only looked at one PAGE of this book. There are at least SIX distinct techniques, along with multiple gallery examples for each, ideas for combining trad blocks with unique "transitions", beautiful color photos, an ending section on combining leftovers and layered throughout is a wonderful narrative of design basics and creative encouragement! Quilters who like watercolor quilts should check out the Garden Lattice technique - stunning! And the Irregular Checkerboards will appeal to Nancy Crow fans. There are art quilts, baby quilts, pictorial quilts - my personal favorite is Searching for the Light by Marilyn Felber. This book will be a boost to anyone's creatvity and imagination (providing you have some to begin with!).

I have bought 15 quilt books for my wife. When I saw this one, I asked her to get it for ME. I've designed a quilt using the design overlap method in Ruth MacDowell's book "Patterns". This book gives me six new methods for creating quilt designs. These techniques are considerably more versatile than Ricky Tims' Convergence Quilts. Besides I like the quilts in the book. My wife, an experienced quilter, agrees. But, "concerning taste, there can be no dispute", so look before you buy.

I've fallen in love with scrappy quilts, strip quilts, and quilts that grow a design as you work. Pattern quilts are pretty and fine--but process quilts are so fun and surprising that I look forward to working on them. What I love about this book is that the authors show you how to easily make transition blocks with motion added to them. They work with a 7" block that becomes a 6 1/2 inch block after a strip insertion--which is wonderful--because
I can add all kinds of process blocks that are freeform to these and cut them out with a 6 1/2" square--which adds zillions of possiblities. I like the way the author treats value as important as color--but what I really love is now I can put motion into my process quilts. Most of the process blocks I have been putting together are variations of the blocks in Gwen Marston's books--but Sandi and Karen--bring in some refreshing new shapes,like the inserted strip block and irregular checkerboard block. The little block within a block is fun too. I know it's not
new--but the way it's used as a small block sprinkled through a quilt is very fresh.
I was forced to buy this book to take a course at a local quilt shop and now that I've read it--I'm glad I did. The color plates of the quilts are clear and bright and it is a joy to look at the blocks and the quilts. There are some great ideas for backgrounds
with depth and movement against applique foregrounds that really get my eye used to a dynamic quilt. So far, we have made two of the blocks in class and they were very easy and fun and allow you a lot of time to play with the color, value, and motion without worrying about the block. Also--striped fabrics are explored--and
I'm now on the lookout for striped fabrics to add to my stash. :)
The Accidental Quilter
www.accidentalquilter.blogspot.com

This is just a notch above stack and whack. I was expecting more art and less craft. Many of the shown examples are repetative so you feel like you are reading the same exact method over and over again with a slight twist. I expected many different art quilting techniques, not the small unimaginative handful that is illustrated in this book.
This book doesn't elevate the craft of quilting into the realm of art. Even the sample gallery pictures are much more folksy-crafty then the wow I associate with art quilts. Overall, I was disappointed with a book that I had high hopes for.

Loved this book! Sat down & read it immediately upon receipt. Beautiful quilts. Clear instructions/drawings. Can't wait to try Sandi's techniques. Beautiful yet simple designs. If you are wanting to try your hand at more contempary quilts, you will enjoy this book. Love it!

The patterns are great. I cannot wait to get started. Book is in great shape. Would recommend to other quilters that want a challenge. This book is not for beginners.Thinking Outside the Block: Step by Step to Dynamic Quilts

Sandi Cummings is an art quilter whose works grace public buildings throughout the west. Kaiser has hung many, as they are fascinating and calming to patients. In this book Sandi shares design and construction techniques with us. Note that only two quilts are presented from start to finish here. The rest of the book is filled with tantalizing, fascinating photos and directions on how to achieve effects and construct the various designs and quilt units Sandi has often used in her work. More than that, she gives design exercises and helps the reader learn to see what makes a good design and have the courage to create on their own.

I reviewed this book from the library before I purchased it. I made a fast and different baby quilt. It was fun because it was not matchy matchy every seam. The cutting was quick and easy. Plan to make several and try larger blocks with more cuts. It really is "thinking outside the block".