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Sewing & Survival is a thoroughly researched narrative based on original sources, diaries, personal letters, and other notes highlighting Native American voices. Indigenous Americans have been sewing, weaving, making pottery and other crafts for thousands of years. Starting in the late 1800s, a fascinating shift took place as some makers turned their needle skills to quilting. To uncover the story of how quilting arts first took hold in the 19^th century requires a look-back at a tumultuous period of American history to a time when Native American culture was under attack. Indigenous lands were taken away, missionaries swarmed onto reservations, children were forced into off-reservation boarding schools, and there were countless injustices forced on Native individuals. Remarkably, in spite of this chaos, quilting emerged as a preferred form of needlearts, and this book will explain how that transformation happened. While quilting skills were forced on some women, others came to quilting willingly. Equally compelling is the fact that quilting remains popular in Native communities today, and in fact, quilts are the cornerstone of Indigenous give-away traditions. In addition, numerous makers have turned their artistic talent to creating gorgeous contemporary art quilts and powerful story quilts that are coveted by museums and collectors.

Sewing & Survival: Native American Quilts from 1880 – 2022

Soft cover, 172 pages

9 x 11 inches

Richly illustrated with over 60 quilts, dozens of stunning historical images, and portraits of collectors and artists.

Publisher: Third Floor Quilts

For every book sold, the author will make a $4.00 donation to the American Indian College Fund, a 501(c)(3) organization.  

Once a year, tens of thousands undergo a pilgrimage to Houston, Texas, for the International Quilt Festival—an enormous confluence of exhibitions, shopping, competitions, educational opportunities, and, most importantly, a gathering of kindred spirits like no other. Standing behind this magical show are two of the most influential trailblazers and business leaders in the quilting industry. Karey Patterson Bresenhan and Nancy O’Bryant Puentes are cousins who were raised as sisters, and their shared history
is a colorful story of five generations of quilters. Through numerous interviews, Teresa Duryea Wong shares a mosaic of memories and histories not only from Karey and Nancy, but from an array of quilters and Festival-goers. With over 200 photos spanning more than half a century, Magic and Memories celebrates the resilience and passion of all who love quilts—young and old, beginner and expert, traditional and contemporary—and the history they make.

I have a limited supply of Magic and Memories for sale at a special price of $15.00!

Discover how quilting came to be a favorite pastime for an estimated 3 million quilters in Japan today, and a multimillion dollar business that was once dominated by American influence. Contemporary Japanese quilters, with their own national style, seek inspiration, museum shows, and audiences in the West. Yet, modern-day Western quilters covet all the trappings of the distinctly non-American Japanese aesthetic. Meet more than a dozen prominent award-winning quilters, including Yoko Saito, Keiko Goke, Noriko Endo, and Yoshiko Jinzenji. Each has a distinct, mature style, yet they share the impeccable technical standards common to Japanese artists. Learn the inside story of these former painters, seamstresses, homemakers, graphic designers, and former manga artists who have made a career in quilting. In over 200 photographs, view stunning, contemporary quilts, the studios where the artists work, and some of the antique American quilts that once inspired them.

I am out of stock of this book. Available online at Amazon and some quilt retailers.

The fascinating history of cotton and indigo in Japan and a rare look inside Japan’s textile mills where the world’s finest quilting cotton is made. Learn where all this cotton comes from and see more the beautiful quilts by Shizuko Kuroha, Keiko Goke, Yoshiko Jinzenji, Yoko Saito and others. Meet talented Japanese artists who are designing modern quilting fabrics; treasured indigo dyers who are creating stunning textiles and fashion; revered sashiko stitchers alongside the contemporary stitcher Akiko Ike. Learn the traditions behind cotton folk textiles such as boro, katazome, kasuri and handcrafted wovens. Unravel the mysterious yukata (summer kimono) and tenugui (hand towel) and go inside the studios where these precious textiles have been made using the same techniques for centuries.

This beautifully illustrated book tells the important story of the American cotton farmer, his daily life and struggles, and the cotton he grows and sells. Readers will be introduced to high-tech, agile growers, both men and women, who operate ‘smart farms’ and produce the world’s finest cotton. Quilters are the single most passionate consumers of 100-percent cotton fabric, and this book explains how and where American textiles were made in the first-half of the 20^th century, as well the many ways women shopped for their beloved fabric. Cotton batting, the stuff stuck in the middle of quilts, is a critical element of quiltmaking and the author has gone inside today’s mills to explain how millions of pounds of American cotton are made into batting. Finally, the book explores the efforts of a few intrepid individuals and forward-thinking companies who are determined to bring back 100-percent cotton fabric that is both grown, and manufactured, in the U.S.