When Patricia Belyea of Okan Arts first approached us about a collaboration, we were honored. We’d worked with her on a number of giveaways and had always admired her designs with Yukata Cottons. She shared news of her book deal and we started to hatch a plan. It’s been a long time coming and we are now delighted to share news of Patricia’s book in partner with Abrams, East-Meets-West Quilts.
The book is a stunning celebration of improv quilts made with Japanese or Japanese-inspired fabrics. It heralds color, showcases a variety of traditional Japanese Cottons, shares insight into Patricia’s process, and drops little nuggets of knowledge, all wrapped up into the titles and inspiration for the feature quilts. Patricia covers it all, from embracing the improv quilting process to working with Yukata cottons, from piecing to quilting to finishing… It is a marvelous and beautiful guide for anyone looking to get started on a Japanese inspired quilting journey.
We are particularly taken with the photography, done by Kate Baldwin Photography.
Patricia’s coordinating thread set includes three hues of indigo plus a selection of seven vivid colors. We are in love!
We’ll have more news on the thread set next month, including an interview with Patricia to learn more about the book, her inspirations, her creative journey, and her new found love for Aurifil threads. Today, we’re thrilled to have an opportunity to show you a bit of the book… and of course, there is a giveaway!
“The Japanese flock to see cherry blossoms, known as sakura, in early spring. They adore the clouds of delicate pink overhead and see the season as a new beginning– a time for optimism and hope.” [from East-Meets-West Quilts by Patricia Belyea published by Abrams ©2017]
[from East-Meets-West Quilts by Patricia Belyea published by Abrams ©2017]
“Off the beaten path, you can encounter many strange attractions in Japan. How about the Parasite Museum, an island inhabited by cats, a town with more life-size dolls than residents, and a nightclub made totally of ice?”
[from East-Meets-West Quilts by Patricia Belyea published by Abrams ©2017]
“Teenage pop singer Nori-P (Noriko Sakai) exploded onto the JApanese music scene in 1986. At that time, many novelty yukata cotton designs featured her autograph– a cartoonish little man with three haris on his head.”
[from East-Meets-West Quilts by Patricia Belyea published by Abrams ©2017]
“Kabuki, a classical Japanese dance-drama, was first performed in 1603 by a shrine maiden in a dry riverbed of Kyoto. The dramatic style became popular, first with all-women troupes and later with men laying the male and female roles.”
[from East-Meets-West Quilts by Patricia Belyea published by Abrams ©2017]
These are just a few in the gorgeous lineup of quilts and we so adore the bits of information that Patricia has collected to inspire and accompany her quilts. We can’t recommend this book enough!
GIVEAWAY!
We are thrilled to offer a pretty awesome giveaway in celebration of East-Meets-West. To enter to win 1 copy of East-Meets-West by Patricia Belyea for Abrams, 1 yard of Yukata Cotton from Patricia Belyea, and 1 Small East-Meets-West Thread Collection by Patricia Belyea for Aurifil, please leave us a comment on this post answering the following question:
Have you ever made an improv quilt?
Entry is open until 11:59pm on Wednesday, November 1. We’ll pull a random winner and announce here on Thursday, November 2. Giveaway is open to all, including all of our International friends. Book + fabric ship from the US, Threads ship from Italy — so the winner will receive two separate packages. Good luck!
East-Meets-West Giveaway Tour!
There is an amazing group of industry influencers involved in a series of giveaways for East-Meets-West. So many chances to win — so many fabulous designers!!
Pat Sloan (giveaway closes Nov. 1)
The Quilt Show (giveaway closes Nov. 1)
The Crafty Planner (giveaway closes today, Oct. 20, at 12pmPST)
Modern Sewciety (giveaway closes Nov. 1)
Victoria Findlay Wolfe (giveaway coming!)
Denyse Schmidt (giveaway coming!)
Heather Jones (giveaway closes Nov. 1)
Blair Stocker, Wise Craft Quilts (giveaway closes Nov. 1)
Susan Briscoe (giveaway coming!)
Jane Sassaman (giveaway closed)
Lovely designers, we salute you! Thank you for your help and participation! To Patricia, Congratulations!! <3