Nyberg Amanda Jean - Sunday morning quilts : 16 modern scrap projects : sort, store, and use every last bit of your treasured fabrics

FROM CHERYL

For Baba, Nettie Ciona, who I think would have been proud of this (even if her definition of success meant working in an office). May my house be as filled with quilts as hers was with cross-stitch.

FROM AMANDA JEAN

I would like to dedicate this book to Nancy March, the wonderful woman who taught me how to quilt.

Without a doubt, this book wouldnt exist without two people. First, my husband, Morgan Arkison. His unflinching support and pushes along the way are a testament to his being the bestest husband ever.

Second, without Amanda Jean this project never would have happened. This was a true creative collaboration from concept to completion.

I cant forget the whole host of characters in my life who encourage (or at least tolerate) this passion of mine. My kids, whose hands pulled threads or pushed the foot pedal on many a project. My immediate family, who did everything, including watch the kids, test patterns, and call me when I needed to be working, and tried not to be too shocked when I quit my desk job to be a quilter and writer. My friends who dont quite understand this passion of mineIm thankful you keep me from being too much of a nerd.

I would like to thank God, my creator, who has given me the ability to create.

I would like to thank my husband for being ever so supportive throughout this whole process. Thank you for believing in me, for helping me step out of my comfort zone, and for being beside me every step of the way. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Thanks to my wonderful kids, who understood when I said, Not right nowMoms working. You are the best kids any mama could ask for.

Thanks to my extended family and friends for being there for me and for helping me along the way. Your encouragement made all the difference. I could not have done this without your support!

Last but not least, thank you to Cheryl, my coauthor and friend. Im so happy that we teamed up to do this.

Thanks to Stash Books for the opportunity to bring our scraps to the world. Thank you to Susanne Woods, Lynn Koolish, and the entire staff at C&T. A special thank-you to Diane Pedersen, who went above and beyond by answering our 101 photo questions. Thanks, Diane, for your patience and guidance as we worked through this project!

Thanks to the folks who contributed their own scraps and fabric to the cause: Bernadette Kent at Traditional Pastimes, Beth Schmidt, Jacquie Gering, Jan DiCinto, Natashia Ciona, Marisa Haedike, Pat Sloan, Clair Wolters, Laura Conaway, Beth Bitts, Terri Wilhelm, Heather Bechtold, Carolyn Strug, and all the blog friends who have shared their scraps with us throughout the years.

Thanks to the folks who tested our patterns: Jennifer Bailey, Natashia Ciona, Pauline Francis, Katherine Greaves, Wanda Hanson, Meredith Helgeson, Andrea Homer-Macdonald, Pam Lincoln, Tara Rebman, Barbara Robson, Lesley Wade-Woolley, and Terri Wilhelm. Thanks to Susan Lutjen OConnor for brilliantly naming The Original Ticker Tape and Splash quilts.

Finally, thank you to the readers and friends weve shared our lives with through our blogs. It is thanks to your cheerleading and encouragement that we continue to push ourselves creatively and bring our projects to the world. You also keep us honest and humble. Thank you.

As long as there are quilts there will be scraps. As long as there are scraps there will be scrap quilts.

With the proliferation of new, bright, and modern designer fabrics, many quilters are left with fabric so precious to them that they are hanging on to every last inch. With the modern quilt movement growing, in terms of both fabrics and techniques, modern quilters need options for sorting, storing, and using their scraps effectively and beautifully.

Making quilts from your scraps is partly about embracing the frugal history of quiltmaking. Long before there were stores devoted to quilting cottons, there were the leftovers from home-sewn clothes, linens, and cloth feedsacks. Buying fabric just for quilts was sometimes a luxury. Many quilts were made with what was available rather than what was wanted.

In the modern age, when new fabric is easily at hand and overwhelmingly inspiring, its easy to put the scraps aside and move on to the next project and the next group of fabrics. Just because we are modern quilters, we shouldnt forget those traditional roots. Nor can we ignore the waste if we just throw out the scraps.

Scrap quilting is about celebrating gorgeous fabric. It is about making something amazing out of the odds and ends that are causing havoc in our sewing space. It is about being mindful of what we have. It is about pushing our creative limits to find a way to utilize every last piece.

Sunday Morning Quilts marries the notion of the scrap quilt and modern quilt design. These quilts are bold, appealing to the new generation of quilters. They are at home in a modern settingcovering a platform bed, as an art installation, or on the back of a streamlined sofa. Better yet, wrapped around a pile of legs on the couch or used as the walls of a fort.

Ultimately, thats what its all aboutmaking a quilt to be used. We may love our fabric and thrill in the creative process, the best part is curling up with a quilt. Looking down from our mugs on a quiet morning to see the fabric from both our first and latest quilts is satisfying, and we encourage you to take your scraps out and make your own Sunday morning quilts.

Combined, we have almost as many years of quilting experience as we are old! Weve made more than 250 quilts. As you can imagine, we have a lot of scraps. A lot.

We came together through the power of the Internet. Okay, thats giving a lot of credit to the Internet. Beyond our blogs, were both busy moms with a tendency to go crazy over clutter and to drown in our fabric. We share ideas and help each other out when were stuck on a quilt or life in general. This book emerged out of those conversations.

We arent the same type of quilter. Our fabric preferences vary, our goals are different, and the rate at which we work is light years apart. But we do come together when we talk about scraps. There comes a point when they take over your space, your life, and your inspiration. If they arent dealt with right now then nothing else can be done. We totally get that about each other.

Scrap quilting isnt new to us, or to anyone. We wanted to make quilts that we loved making and using. And we wanted to deal with every last bit of fabric we had.

Could quilts be made with just those little bits? It turns out that the answer is a very obvious YES!

Sunday Morning Quilts is a direct response to that question. Stunning and bold quilts can be made with those little bits! And you can make a dent in the scrap pile while making those quilts.

The first step is effective sorting and storing of all your scraps. You cant get to the creating part without this step. In addition to strategies for sorting and storing, weve included a great project for storing those scrapsmade from scraps! After that weve provided 15 inspirational designs to help you use up every last bit.

Not everyone will move through his or her scrap bin from one design to the next, but there is at least one quilt among all the designs here that will get you running to your scraps, if not your stash.

We want to encourage you to make each quilt your own. Not only will your personal scrap selection inspire differences, but you can adapt the designs for the sizes and colors you want. Each project includes a few of our suggestions for design alternatives. We cant wait to see what you come up with.