Brioni Greenberg25 Ways to Sew Jelly Rolls, Layer Cakes and Charm Packs: Modern quilt projects from contemporary pre-cuts

It took me awhile to board the Modern Train, but I'm so glad I bought my ticket in time for Brioni Greenberg's 25 Ways to Sew Jelly Rolls Layer Cakes & Charms. Had I not, I might have missed a lot of unusual, inventive, and charming projects. I am struck by how unique they are, yet the designs whisper "Aren't I fabulous?" instead of shouting "Look at me!" Greenberg provides us with the whole package, going beyond just using modern prints: new techniques, mod-appropriate finish work, and a consistently exuberant flair.Take, for example, the "Starburst Tote Bag". It's basically a folded triangle application. Bright prints make the finished item appear reminiscent of rick-rack on little girls' dresses and endless gum-wrapper chains, both of which always make me grin. But this one's not for short attention span crafters. While the process may be straight forward, the sheer amounts of folding, careful placement, and the number of rounds are daunting.The "Hexagon Flowers Notebook" shows how a simple design can become subtly extraordinary. English paper pieced units dress up a basic notebook cover, resulting in a layered look that makes a feature fabric even more splendid. The simple beauty reminds me of Japanese stitchery crafts.Now for what I do not like so much about the book: The hand-drawn step illustrations are insufficient for many projects. The whole coming together aspect is missing. And the instructions are too compact, with sentences running together with no distinct details. Take that "Starburst Tote Bag"; you've got to look pretty hard to determine just how many pieces and cuts are involved. (The answer: quite a lot.) Additional drawings for the actual assembly process would be hugely helpful. As it is, you've got to read almost every project's dense text very carefully and picture your own diagrams.As for skill level, there are many beginner-appropriate projects. But the very compact instructions, abbreviated or absent diagrams, and a few advanced techniques (templates, unusual joinery with multiple seams) make this book more accessible to intermediates and above. Still, my philosophy has always been that if you find a project you love, you will figure out how to make it. (Some of us learn best outside our comfort zone.) And trust me, there's a lot to love in this book.

I made the quilt on the cover. I used a lighter gray and tried to find fabrics like those but I had poor success at the time. My quilt looks blah, not enough contrast. Try to use brighter colors because it needs contrast very badly. There are several quilts that I like in the book but that is up to your taste.

This book has a collection of quilt designs that I haven't seen in other quilting books using jelly rolls, layer cakes and charm packs. I purchased this book because I liked the flower pattern on the cover. I was a little disappointed that the applique throughout the book is raw edge applique using fusible material.

I rarely write book reviews but this book has so many beautiful quilts I had to take the time to write a review. There is something for every skill level. If you want something really pretty and quick you have options. If you want a challenge there are a few to try. Love this book 💕

Great reference book

Sigh. I love this book. I am about to make "Stars and Stripes". I have the perfect jelly roll and charm square pack. However, the whole reason I am online and not diving in right now is because I was hoping to find corrections or edits to the pattern. I have already found a couple glaring mistakes in this one pattern, and I fear there are more before I go cutting into $60 worth of fabric. I would not suggest this book to a beginner, it would just frustrate you. Also, author, I love your draped quilt photos, I really do, but we need to see the whole thing laid out. And those poor hand drawings need to go. Okay, maybe I don't love this book, but I want to, there are some nice, original patterns in it. Next time this author writes a book she needs to employ some pattern testers.

Great Ideas for quilters who love the shortcut methods (not cutting strips) to make their quilts faster. Some good patterns for beginners too!

There is a lot of inspiration in this book, but as one reviewer has already said, there are some things lacking when it comes to the instructions. I don't know if the publishing company tested the patterns and the layout before publishing the book, but it seems like it wasn't thoroughly tested.I've also found some basic math errors on the first project I've made. The background fabric called for in Criss-Cross Patches (one of the most basic projects) is off by 1/2 yard. Maybe it was the translation of Metric to English measurement, but after doing the math 3 times to verify the cuts, we found the original measurement off. Fortunately I had enough fabric to cover. I strongly suggest reading the cutting instructions before purchasing your fabric, especially if you are going to go bigger than the original size.There are also several instances where you are told to follow the photograph for laying out your blocks for assembly. This would be okay if the photograph was a straight on shot of the quilt instead of the quilt draped prettily over a chair. A shot or drawing of the finished blocks for all of the quilts would also be helpful. Sometimes you have one, sometimes you don't.I will be doing at least 4 or 5 of the quilts in this book, but I'll also be buying more background fabric than is called for when it comes to the straight yardage. When using precuts as background everything appears to be spot on.