Get inspired to learn new techniques with this gorgeous how-to guide! Written for new and seasoned fiber artists alike, this all-in-one resource includes everything you need to create one-of-a-kind art quilts and more. Peppered with gorgeous imagery and expert advice, The Quilting Arts Idea Book will help you hone your skills while enjoying the creative process. Inside you'll find: • Step-by-step tutorials for everything from surface design and mixed media techniques to themed quilts featuring people, pets, landscapes, and more, as well as projects to make for--and with--friends. • Inspiring project galleries with graphic designs, festival favorites, and featured projects showcasing techniques from the book to show you the variety of items you can make with your new skills. • Articles on finding inspiration and nurturing creativity as well as tips and advice from artists and contributors invite you to become an active maker in the art quilting community. Whether you're just getting started or looking to up your skill set, The Quilting Arts Idea Book has everything you need to make your quilting arts dreams a reality.

This is Art Quilting 101 in a book! Patricia Bolton, founder and editor-in-chief of Quilting Arts Magazine, has assembled some of the most popular topics, articles, and artists from past issues of Quilting Arts Magazine - plus innovative new techniques offered by today's most respected contemporary quilt artists - in this definitive art-quilting technique and inspiration book. Inside, readers will find everything art-quilt related, from art and design principles for quilters to in-depth techniques for surface design and embellishment. Each chapter showcases various art quilting concepts along with step-by-step photos of every technique. Stunning art quilts by the world's leading quilt artists are shown throughout the book for endless inspiration.

Celebrate the first 10 years of the groundbreaking Quilting Arts magazine with The Best of Quilting Arts, a collection of the best articles, projects, and techniques. Pokey Bolton, founder of Quilting Arts magazine, has compiled the most popular articles that have inspired quilters and artists alike to move beyond the basics of art quilting and re-explore machine and hand stitching, fabric embellishment, surface design, and more. Inside you'll find: • Quilt art techniques from fabric collage and applique to resist dyeing, stamping, and foiling. • Machine-stitching and thread-painting tips and tutorials from award-winning art quilters. • Ideas and advice for the professional quilt artist. • An array of binding and stitching techniques to make your art quilt stand out. • Methods for making realistic representational art quilts, including portraits of pets and people. Whether you're making your first art quilt or are a seasoned quilt artist eager to enhance your designs, you'll find endless instruction and inspiration in The Best of Quilting Arts.

Quilting is a craft, rich with tradition and homespun, practical applications. But it’s also an art--which, with needle, thread, fabric, and an idea, can give us a new way of looking at, and wrapping ourselves in, the world. This book profiles twenty American practitioners of that art, quilters whose fascinating, innovative work takes the craft one step further and makes it into something new. These remarkable quilters describe their inspiration and methods and show us several examples of their best work. Among them are Jeanne Williamson, a celebrated mixed-media journal quilter; Pam Rubert, whose large-scale quilts showcase her humor; Loretta Bennett, the youngest of the beloved Gee's Bend quilters; Boo Davis, a hip crafter who pieces together quilts with heavy-metal themes; Susan Else, who constructs whimsical quilted sculptures; Ai Kijima, a Brooklyn-based artist influenced by Japanese anime; and Jane Burch Cochran, whose folk-art quilts feature thousands of beads and buttons. Through personal conversations with the quilters, author Spike Gillespie gives us an inside, in-depth look at what inspires each, what methods they use, and how their art has evolved. Along with these close-up views of the quilter’s studio and process, each profile features firsthand tips and inspirational advice. Quilting Art serves as an idea book for quilters, as well as a gorgeous representation of the quilter’s art.

This compact guide will make a huge impact on how you choose to express yourself in quilt art. Think of the artists whose work you admire, individuals with a distinctive style or perhaps several styles developed over the years. You might like their use of color, materials, craft expertise, and subject matter. But above all, you recognize in these makers an authenticity, a confident approach to the quilt medium. That is their artistic voice. Develop your own unique artistic voice, see your work mature, and become confident and happy with what you are doing in the studio. Renowned quilt artist Sandra Sider acts as a companion along the path to discovering your voice, and offers photos of dozens of her own quilt design successes and failures as examples to learn from. Even blind alleys, detours, and the road not taken can lead to developing one’s voice as a quilt artist—indeed, as any sort of creative maker. Topics include how to write a powerful artist's statement for yourself, when to stop experimenting, and using your voice once you own it. Looking to broaden your quilting experience, or simply curious about the concept of an artistic voice? Look no further—this is the perfect guide for you!

Provides instructions for a variety of small quilted projects made from vintage quilt blocks, fabric scraps, beads, and other embellishments, and features a gallery of finished items.

Crafters are altering everything -- clothing, shoes, handbags, journals and much more. They start with an existing item -- a cotton jumper or a jean jacket -- and embellish or alter it in a variety of ways to make it something new. "Altered Art" is the newest trend in the art and craft world. The first section of the book features tips and techniques that show how to do various creative alterations on fabric: ripping, tearing, painting and dyeing, beading, adding images and letters, and adding hardware such as grommets, snaps, jewels, and more. The second section of the book includes 30 altered clothing and accessory projects the avid crafter can make at home. Step-by-step photography details the techniques, and large, vibrant color photos of finished projects show off the fashionable projects. The book is filled with accessible, idea-inspiring projects for people interested in creating their own look.

Turn old uniforms into quilts, bags, and more: “Because the projects are so nicely designed, they manage to be casual and classy at the same time.” —Generation Q Magazine All members of the Armed Forces have to buy multiple uniforms, some of which become decommissioned. In this book, quilter and military spouse Jen Eskridge shows you how to recycle these uniforms and blend in some cheerful, contemporary fabrics to create useful, one-of-a-kind family treasures. Even if you don't have a service member in your life, you can make these cool projects using camouflage fabrics or uniforms purchased from surplus stores—and show your support in style!

Mr. Quilt will teach your quilters how to machine quilt like a pro! Get professional-looking results on a home sewing machine with new techniques for drawing and stitching quilt designs. From needle to thread, Mr. Quilt walks you through every aspect of free-motion machine quilting.

ATCs are all the rage! Making artist trading cards (ATCs) is a hugely popular activity for artists. Originally a paper/collage-based art form, ATCs have caught on with crafters working in a range of mediums.