These are the books by Paula Nadelstern that I have been using for my inspiration for my quilt design. There are also loads of tips on fussy cutting and how to use different areas of your fabric to get different effects. My fabrics are not quite as solid as the ones she uses so my kaleidoscope will not look quite as rich in colour.
Both these books are difficult to get hold of so I was lucky enough to borrow the top one from my teacher and the snowflake one I borrowed from the library. Paula has a new one published in November on the subject of Kaleidoscope quilts - one for the Christmas list!
This next photo shows a selection of the fabrics I am using. I wanted to show that I am using all 4.5 inch squares. All these have come from ebay and are the original squares sold in packs in the Laura Ashley shops in the 1980s.
A couple of years ago I bought this book from a sale at a local quilt show for £1. I thought I had hit the jackpot as it is an invaluable reference of the fabrics that were on sale in 1984. I therefore know that all the fabrics I am using in my quilt are from 1984 or earlier.
Both these books are difficult to get hold of so I was lucky enough to borrow the top one from my teacher and the snowflake one I borrowed from the library. Paula has a new one published in November on the subject of Kaleidoscope quilts - one for the Christmas list!
This next photo shows a selection of the fabrics I am using. I wanted to show that I am using all 4.5 inch squares. All these have come from ebay and are the original squares sold in packs in the Laura Ashley shops in the 1980s.
A couple of years ago I bought this book from a sale at a local quilt show for £1. I thought I had hit the jackpot as it is an invaluable reference of the fabrics that were on sale in 1984. I therefore know that all the fabrics I am using in my quilt are from 1984 or earlier.
This page from the book has the details of the patchwork packs sold in the shops at the time. These are what I collect and often you can buy them still in the original packaging. I will have to post some photos of my collection at another time.
I have photographed these next 3 pages to show that the fabrics I am using appear in the book and also perhaps to jog the memories of a few fellow Laura Ashley fans.
1 comment:
This was a trip down Memory Lane for me (and others no doubt!) In my 20s I dressed pretty much completely in Laura Ashley (her designs or more usually her fabrics), and those fabrics are so iconic. I can even remember back to when the scrap fabric packs were simply offcuts from the clothes, all different shapes and sizes, where collars, sleeves etc could clearly be seen as negative shapes! I think I have used all my pieces up now so am envious of your ebay finds!
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