Follow-the-Line Quilting Designs Volume Four: Full-Size Patterns for Blocks and Borders
I have been eagerly anticipating the publication of a new quilting book and was very excited to see it finally available. Realize that I machine quilt my quilts on an 18" long-arm machine, so I get excited about quilting, not just quilting books. Secondly, I believe that the more quilting motifs I have available from which to choose, the better. And third, I already own all of the other books in this series and have been waiting for months for the publication of the next volume in the series.It's Mary Covey's latest volume in her Follow-the-Line Quilting Designs series. Technically, these aren't books as much as they are separate sheets packaged in a box, but I call them books for lack of a better word. Somehow "sheets in a box" just doesn't sound right. Anyhow, volume four in this series has just been published by Martingale and Company and it promises to be as wonderful as the previous three volumes.You may ask why I like these designs so much. Well, there are several reasons. I like the fact that these are continuous-line designs. I am a "hurry up" kind of gal and like to get things done quickly before I lose interest (yes, it does happen), so continuous-line quilting designs are my favorite motifs to work with. I don't have to stop, re-position and start quilting again.Sometimes you may want to quilt blocks separately. If this is the case, Mary has an answer for this too. For each continuous-line design in the book, there is also a block design in various sizes. That's great, but what is even better is that she also provides corner triangles to match, so you're covered no matter where you want to quilt. Oh, did I mention that her border designs include turning the corner, so you are able to keep right on going up the side of your quilt without having to turn and match motifs? Yes, Mary has thought of everything.Sometimes I have trouble determining where to start and how to follow a continuous-line motif. Again, Mary comes to my rescue. She includes a "start" point and has arrows and numbers for you to follow so you don't get confused stitching the patternsAnother feature that I like in this series is that each design is on its own page. The pages open up and the border motif, with the turning corner and side repeat, are there. This is easier, and more accurate, to use than trying to trace a quilting design from a book.Best of all is Mary's choice of designs. I find her motifs easy enough for a beginner, yet interesting enough, and with enough variety, to complement any project. --chatterboxquilts.com