cover image Quiltmaking

Quiltmaking

Susan Denton, Barbara Macey. Sterling Publishing (NY), $14.95 (200pp) ISBN 978-0-8069-6871-1

Australian quilters Denton and Macey offer instructions for traditional piecing, applique and quilting techniques, but move beyond the conventional quilt block to consider ``what the lines and shapes are `doing' in their own right.'' By inventively distorting the grid of squares that forms the foundation of most patchwork, they produce designs that curl and undulate in closely graduated colorsand explain how readers can plot the curves and cut the pieces. Full-color photographs of three dozen quilts illustrating these innovative principles will lure even traditionalists (hands-on instructions are given for six). Also noteworthy is the curious wagga, an Australian ``for-warmth-only, no-frills'' bedcover improvised from recycled clothing and other textiles. Advice about borders and bindings logically concludes this imaginative, practical volume. Better Homes & Gardens Book Club selection. (Feb.)