Sunday, June 10, 2012

Fuse-and-Tell Journal Quilts

I promised Paula that I would review Fuse-and-Tell Journal Quilts first, so here goes.

Fuse-and-Tell Journal Quilts is a book by Laura Wasilowski, who has since published Fanciful Stitches Colorful Quilts which I have previously reviewed on HubPages.



The information is only from Fuse-And Tell Journal Quilts, although a lot of  the information probably applies to both.  The quilts were made using the technique of fusible applique.  They also use Fast2Fuse instead of or in addition to batting.  As Laura says, "Fusing is a fast, easy way to assemble a wall quilt without sewing seams, using templates, or following a pattern."

A journal quilt is like a small diary in cloth.  "Whether geometric or pictorial, they tell of happy memories, sad events, funny anecdotes or flights of fancy."  There are many ideas in the book on how to find inspiration for journal quilts.



The book shows you how to make six colorful and fun journal quilts, and has many other examples scattered throughout. These are journal quilts in that they allow you to journal the stories of your life.  These quilts are not limited to the size of a piece of paper that another journal quilt project used. This makes it much easier for me, since I have difficulty following size constraints.  Some of the quilts do have stitches on them.


The first section discusses Fascinating Fusing Facts, materials and tools for the fusible journal quilt. Then it goes into the six journal quilts, with facts about the inspiration of the quilt, and step by step directions (with lots of photos) on how to make them.  You are not limited to making just these six quilts, of course.  There are lots of other quilts that serve as inspiration throughout the book.  The final chapter explains how to finish a fused journal quilt.  There are ideas about how to quilt these journal quilts and three different ideas about how to bind them.  I am going to try the Wrapped Binding method for the quilt I am making now, just as soon as I finish adding the photos to this post.  There are also instructions on how to add hanging loops.  The final section has some templates to make the six featured quilts.


Amazon is offering a preview of other pages of Fuse-and Tell Journal Quilts. Click on the link and see many other pages of the book, or buy it there.  I will get a small percentage of Amazon's share of the price if you do.


3 comments:

Bridget said...

I have always enjoyed Laura W's fused quilts and this book might be just the ticket to get me to try it myself.

Paula, the quilter said...

Thank you for the report. The binding technique sounds interesting.

Allie said...

Thanks for the book report - this book is on my list!