Riel Nason: Modern Selvage Quilting

I have been collecting and sewing with selvages for years. I can pinpoint the exact moment when I paid attention to what was written on the side of the fabric. I was working in a quilt shop and we had some bolts of fabric by Michael Miller: Dumb Dot. It has become somewhat of a classic,  and you can find some here.

Dumb Dot tickled my funny bone. And from that moment, I became enchanted with selvages in general, and dots in particular. In fact, it became my obsession mission to collect anything with the word "dot" in the selvage. I made a quilt with nothing but dotty fabrics, and carefully pieced that collection of selvages into the cornerstones.

Along with Dumb Dot, I even found some Dopey Dots.

Then I discovered Riel Nason, who gave a whole new meaning to sewing with selvages. A soul mate and inspiration!And now she has written a book all about selvages!

I probably don't need to tell you that I hit the preorder button on Amazon as soon as I could. I received my Kindle version the day it was released and it did not disappoint.

First of all, let me start by saying that Riel is a writer. And by that I mean an award-winning author (more about that later). So when Modern Selvage Quilting was downloaded on my Kindle, I started my usual new-book routine by paging through from beginning to end to get a feel of what it had to offer. Then I went back to the beginning, and started with the Foreword.

I can say without a doubt, that for me at least, this book is worth the purchase if for no other reason than the Foreword. Did I mention that Riel is a writer? She paints word pictures. It begins like this:

"I have no idea who started all this.

I never met--in fact I don't even know the name of--the woman who first made me think I could be a quilter. And there was another woman who helped too, but alas, I don't know anything about her either. I only remember what she once told me.

'Well, if you want,' she said, 'you can fill a whole bag for $5.' That is what is most important to this story."

I sat there with my cup of coffee and drank in the story of how Riel started quilting.

The "Working with Selvages" section, which includes what they look like, how to build your selvage stash, and different methods of sewing with selvages, is complete and well illustrated, and concludes with some good tips on pressing, dealing with bulk seams, etc. There are also tips on estimating the amount of selvages you will need for your project.

And then come all the selvage projects.

Riel begins with a small project, pincushions. You don't need a large supply and this is a great project to get your feet wet.

This is my version. I even found a selvage with my name on it. :)

While I have sewn wall-hanging size selvage quilts, I definitely need to make something larger. The thing is, when people find out you sew with selvages sometimes they start donating to you. So because I have a seemingly endless supply, I plan on making either this fun quilt

or this medallion quilt.

Or both. I have LOTS of selvages!! And a small confession: when I first started collecting, I sorted selvages by "theme"--anything with a flower theme, animals, Christmas, Halloween, fabric designer. It's easy to get hooked on selvages.

For sure I will be sorting some selvages by color to make this pillow.

I love the way Riel moves through the book using different techniques with different projects. Whether you are experienced in sewing with selvages or a newbie, whether your collection is large or you just have a few, you will find just the right project.

I hope you will check out her blog (because she sews lots of other fun things besides selvages) and this link to her selvage projects on her Pinterest page.

I also highly recommend The Town That Drowned. This remains one of my all-time favorite novels. And I'm so thrilled that her second book will be coming out in fall.

Ready to sew with selvages? C&T Publishing is generously giving away a copy of Riel's book (hard copy if you are in the US, ebook is you are elsewhere). So just leave a comment and let me know if you already have a collection of selvages. If yes, what have you made with them? I'll choose a winner on Saturday, May 14.

Check out these other selvage lovers too!

May 10 Riel at C&T Publishing Blog

May 11 Cindy at Live a Colorful Life

May 12 Yvonne at Quilting Jet Girl

May 13 Diane at Butterfly Threads Quilting

May 16 Krista at Poppyprint

May 17 Casey at The Studiolo

May 18 Leanne at She Can Quilt

May 19 Sandy at Upstairs Hobby Room

May 20 Mel at The Quilting Room with Mel

May 21 Riel at The Q and the U