Kansas Connections

Rating:
Summary: AMAZING!!
Review: Get ready quilters because this pattern is addictive. There is so much you can do with it. Mary Ellen's instructions are very easy to follow and just by twisting and turning one square you can have several different turn-outs. She also shows ways to make the prettiest stars by using the Kansas Dugouts. I don't think anyone should be without this book in their collection. It's an adventure every time you open the book.

Rating:
Summary: Uninformative
Review: I saw Mary Ellen Hopkins on HGTV and was so impressed with her personality and knowledge, that I decided to buy one of her books. I bought this one. If you are unfamiliar with Kansas Dugouts and how they are assembled, this book is not for you. On the first page of showing a picture of one, it says that if you want more information on assembling a "dugout" refer to previous books. Since I have never sewn a dugout, I'm not sure how to go about it and was upset to see that I will have to buy an earlier book (which one I have no idea) to learn it. Each book should not have a "prerequisite" book.

Rating:
Summary: just a note to the lady from New Mexico
Review: I think the book you would need is "Connecting Up" also
by Mary Ellen.

Rating:
Summary: One pattern, so many quilts!
Review: I think the book you would need is "Connecting Up" also
by Mary Ellen.

Rating:
Summary: What a disappointment...
Review: if you ordered this book after seeing Ms Hopkins recently on "Simply Quilts" and seeing her demonstrate the "Kansas Dugout" block and the "Mississippi" block and quilt (supposedly based on the Dugout block and this book). The book came today, and guess what? No pattern, picture, or diagram of the block or quilt "Mississippi"! There are plenty of colored diagrams of her designs, but (as is true of many of her other books) woefully little in the way of instructions, sizes, yardages, etc. This is mainly a 47 page combination coloring book for her designs...and a "new" design for "Barn Raising". It is not, I believe, worth the price.

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding!
Review: Instructions with diagrams for layout are easily understood, even for the beginning quilter. These blocks are so easy and simple, yet leave endless design possibilities dependent upon creative layout and color selection. Some of the most detailed quilts break down very simply and are absolutely beautiful. These are wonderful "starter" projects.

Rating:
Summary: One pattern, so many quilts!
Review: This is another excellent "how to," easy to follow guide for the beginner who has made at least one block, and a seasoned quilter looking for inspiration. It's full of color graphs, encouragement, and innumerable variations on one quilt block pattern. You are limited only by your own imagination. One reviewer mentioned the block "Mississippi," also known as the "Friendship Star." It's shown on page 22. (The pattern appears also in Hopkins' earlier work, "It's Okay If You Sit On My Quilt," as graph No. 194, page 61.) I'm a self-taught quilter of over 20 years and still learning. Mary Ellen Hopkins is one of my favorites - she can make the basics seem new. And I like her attitude!