Applique' Outside The Lines

Appliqué Outside the lines with Piece O Cake Designs, by Becky Goldsmith and Linda Jenkins, published by C&T Publishing offers fun to quilters and want-to-be quilters alike. It is such a delightful book, that I’d love to see it in lieu of traditional coffee table books! Techniques taught in this book emphasize “no rules – no rulers”. It is a well written book, with great organization, excellent use of photography, and of course, great designs and inspiration. I found the entire book inspirational, and found the chapter on color and contrast to be one of the best I’ve ever seen. This book is also full of great tips. Did you know that Piece O Cake Designs worked with Superior Threads to create a set of MasterPiece thread called Frostings? This thread is prewound onto bobbins especially for appliquers. The 36 different colors come in 3 sets of 12. Each bobbin holds 85 yards of thread. Small, compact, and convenient, these bobbin sets are a great way to carry your thread. Personally, I can wait to try this set of threads. Sounds like a must have for anyone that enjoys appliqué. And I think it would also be very helpful to those that like to do hand piecing, while on the go. There are eight (8) different patterns in this book, all of which are beautiful. The book also makes it look easy to mix appliqué patterns, from this book, to create new designs too! It is difficult to decide which design I like best, but I’m planning on starting with “Peppermint Sparkle”. Or maybe I should start with the “Tree O’Life”. But then the “Bird on a Branch” also looks irresistible. Instructions and photos, included in this book, would also support anyone that has never quilted, as well as anyone that has never appliquéd. Various appliqué techniques are also included: hand appliqué & fusible appliqué. I also believe that if someone is looking for a simple quickie project, the techniques & designs shared in this wonderful book would also be transferrable to placemats, purses, and other quick projects. But again, all of the designs and techniques in this book are delightful and presented in a way to make them very easy projects. I highly recommend this book, for any quilter’s library, as well as for those looking for a gift for others. Piece O' Cake at http://www.pieceocake.com/ POC Blog @ http://pieceocake.typepad.com/piece-o-cake-blog/ Note: Eratta on this book, since it was published shows: We've just learned that there is an enlargement percentage that is incorrect. We and our tech editors are very sorry about any inconvenience this may cause you. If you have the book, on page 36 under "Note" and on the Tree O' Life pattern pullout page, please change the enlargement numbers from 50% to 200%. In conclusion, my personal perspective is that this book would be fun to create quilts with regardless of designs being enlarge to 50% vs 200% of the images provided, for enlargement, in the book. This is truly a delightful book, that makes quilting a "Piece O'Cake". Copyright Notice: All photos displayed in this article are copyright protected. Permission was given by C&T Publishing to be used in this article. Please do not use or print these photos without seeking permission by the publisher.