I’m so happy to be a stop on the blog hop for my friend Mandy Liens’ luscious new book, Wanderlust Quilts.

Mandy and I met a couple of years ago at Quilt Market, and I was privileged to see a few sneaks of these quilts while she was working on them. I loved seeing how she interpreted the things that fascinate her through quilting.

11115D

This is a really interesting book, full of inspiration to create work from the world around you. Mandy’s background in classical archeology is evident in the projects, but it’s her love of classical art that shines through. It’s great to see a book that’s as much about making your OWN ideas as it is about making the projects offered.

I recently returned from a trip to Europe and, in my wanderings, found a few things that could definitely inspire a wanderlust quilt or two:

These are the columns on the front of the Basilica of St. Denis in Paris, France. Each column and base was carved with a different repeating pattern. I could imagine making a row-by-row based quilt that uses these carved textures as starting points for the design.

Wanderlust + St. Denis

It’s also easy to see that many of the motifs we use in quilting have been in the design canon for centuries – this building was mostly finished in the 1200s! Check out the double wedding rings on the third column from the left!

Below is another image that gave me some more quilty inspiration. This one is a tiled mosaic bench from Gaudi’s Park Guell in Barcelona, Spain.

DSC_0396

I see applique, border prints, piecework, and prairie points!

It you’d like to own a signed copy of this sweet book, go here to purchase it directly from Mandy (and if you want to know how the profit slices on a book, read here).