A Quillwork Companion: An Illustrated Guide to Techniques of Porcupine Quill Decoration

Rating:
Summary: Noted quill worker "gives up the shop" & tells the real deal
Review: Ms. Heinbusch does all re-creators of indigenous American culture a great service with the publication of her book. The basic techniques of porcupine quill work embroidery have long been available in various published forms. Much of the old techniques have been lost forever and we the modern crafters need to do our best to re-learn , recreate or create new techniques. Ms. Heinbusch, very early in her book, reveals a treasure trove of her personal experimentation in the dying of the quills. She has been able through trial and error to get a beautiful simulation of the "old time" colors using modern fabric dyes. She spells out the eaxct formulas in almost foolproof recipes. The book included photos of the completed techinques as well as illustrations in the working of the particular technique. A useful chapter in making buckskin had been included and here too, Ms.Heinbusch is free with tricks and tips. I have a few quilling tricks up my sleeve that are not revealed here, but the quillworkers that taught them to me have sworn me to secrecy. I have never met Ms. Heinbusch, yet she has given freely of what she knows to those that learn it, Thank You