Old and New

AQS's two most recent books span quilting's timeline in America from the very old to the latest rage.

A Baltimore Album: 25 Applique Patterns by Marsha D. Radtke came about serendipitously. Marsha discovered a Baltimore Album quilt in the attic of the rural Maryland parsonage she shared with her husband. On close examination, she realized there were two inked names on the quilt, and they were locally common names. A certified quilt appraiser dated the quilt as circa 1850! This means Marsha found a truly original Baltimore Album quilt in the area this style was created and made popular.

When the old beauty began to deteriorate, she decided to replicate the quilt. Both new and old quilts are shown in the book. The original had 25 blocks, one of which was a duplicate pattern. The color palette is red, green, and gold -- typical of the era. Just as the work on the original was very fine, so is Marsha's rendition.

Baltimore Album and applique lovers will want this book as a library of genuine, dated patterns created near the source of this ever-popular applique style. Ask for AQS item #7927 and enjoy creating a piece of history yourself!

And as time has gone by, quilters now create masterpieces using machines. To help your quilts stand out anywhere, Nan Moore wrote Machine Freehand Patterns. Every one of the 95 pages has one or more machine patterns drawn freehand. You can follow these exactly, shrink them or enlarge them, alter them or use them as inspiration to create your own freehand quilting designs.

Nan provides a very basic guide to using continuous motion patterns - it's almost entirely visual, so if you've wanted to try machine quilting, this could be the very book you're looking for. Her book is AQS item #8022.