Mary Schafer And Her Quilts

Mary Schafer and Her Quilts provides an account of the quiltmaking history of nationally-recognized quilter, quilt educator, and pioneering quilt historian, Mary Schafer. Her quilts reflect a passion for historical accuracy, creative adaptations of traditional designs, and skilled quilt construction.

The story of the woman who helped create the modern American quilting revival

Masterpiece quilts and Master quilters--both are honored in The Quilters Hall of Fame. The book profiles more than forty of the quilting world's most influential people--from early twentieth-century quilt designer Ruby McKim to quilt curator Jonathan Holstein to contemporary art quilter Nancy Crow. Lavishly illustrated with one hundred glorious color photographs of their quilts, plus historical photographs, ads, and pattern booklets, The Quilters Hall of Fame is essential for every quilter's bookshelf.

Mary Black's Family Quilts includes a foreword by Michael Owen Jones, Professor of Culture and Performance, University of California, Los Angeles, and author of Craftsman of the Cumberlands: Tradition and Creativity.

For generations, quilts have both preserved history and furthered artistic innovation, leading to personal and creative discoveries that have changed lives. In Quilts in the Attic, author and quiltmaker Karen Musgrave presents 30 stories of great quilt discoveries, including hidden masterpieces, fascinating finds, and treasured family heirlooms. The tales in this book are both heartwarming and thrilling, whether about unearthing breathtaking pieces at summer flea markets or finding Grandma’s priceless antique quilt hidden away in a box. By sharing stories from all over the world, Musgrave uses these wonderful works of art to explore the complex patchwork of human history, from 19th-century Jewish life in Southern California to the Sears National Quilt Contest at the 1933 World’s Fair in Chicago, to a 12th-century castle in France. Each memory embodies the inherent human drive to craft something of purpose and meaning while shedding light on the works of well-known quiltmakers like Mary Lee Bendolph from Gee’s Bend, Marie Webster, and Ruby Short McKim. Featuring stories from unknown and famous quilters alike, Quilts in the Attic uncovers the mystery and significance of the quilts we love.

A bold and unconventional tribute to artistic collaboration by two internationally recognized, award-winning authors. Freddy Moran and Gwen Marston have made beautiful quilts together despite their physical distance from each other--the stunning photos of their many creations prove it. They reveal the secrets of their success, including how to bridge style differences and use each person’s strengths to best advantage. Freddy, an expert in color, discusses her specialty, while Gwen talks about design principles. In addition, each artist offers ten personal tips and structured and unstructured projects to try, as well as ideas for putting them all together. A gorgeous gallery of quilts is sure to inspire needleworkers to combine forces. A Selection of the Crafters Choice Book Club.

Provides detailed patterns for miniature quilts featuring Amish-style designs

Drawing from 167 examples of decorative needlework—primarily samplers and quilts from 114 collections across the United States—made by individual women aged forty years and over between 1820 and 1860, this exquisitely illustrated book explores how women experienced social and cultural change in antebellum America. The book is filled with individual examples, stories, and over eighty fine color photographs that illuminate the role that samplers and needlework played in the culture of the time. For example, in October 1852, Amy Fiske (1785–1859) of Sturbridge, Massachusetts, stitched a sampler. But she was not a schoolgirl making a sampler to learn her letters. Instead, as she explained, “The above is what I have taken from my sampler that I wrought when I was nine years old. It was w[rough]t on fine cloth [and] it tattered to pieces. My age at this time is 66 years.” Situated at the intersection of women’s history, material culture study, and the history of aging, this book brings together objects, diaries, letters, portraits, and prescriptive literature to consider how middle-class American women experienced the aging process. Chapters explore the physical and mental effects of “old age” on antebellum women and their needlework, technological developments related to needlework during the antebellum period and the tensions that arose from the increased mechanization of textile production, and how gift needlework functioned among friends and family members. Far from being solely decorative ornaments or functional household textiles, these samplers and quilts served their own ends. They offered aging women a means of coping, of sharing and of expressing themselves. These “threads of time” provide a valuable and revealing source for the lives of mature antebellum women. Publication of this book was made possible in part through generous funding from the Coby Foundation, Ltd and from the Quilters Guild of Dallas, Helena Hibbs Endowment Fund.