Publications

Illinois Amish Quilts: Sharing Threads of Traditionamishbook1
By Janice Tauer Wass
Published by the Illinois State Museum and Illinois State Museum Society, Springfield, 2004

Discover the beauty and diversity of Illinois Amish quilts in this historical overview, featuring sixty quilts, most of which have never been published before. The work of Illinois Amish quiltmakers is relatively unknown; however their exceptional artistry is revealed in this selection of masterworks from the Illinois State Museum’s collection. The book surveys a wide range of styles, including early handwoven wool quilts, “classic” Amish quilts, one-patch quilts, and medallion and framed quilts. These quilts are some of the best documented Amish quilts in the country and information about the makers has allowed connections to be made between family quilts that illustrate the sharing of “threads of tradition.”
171 pages, 180 color photographs, bibliography, index, and maps, 4 appendices, including 37 easy-to-duplicate quilting designs. 12 by 9 inches
ISBN: 0-89792-166-6
Paperback: $24.95
To order contact jan@janwass.com

Connecting Stitches: Quilts in Illinois Lifeconnecting stitches
Edited by Janice Tauer Wass
Published by the Illinois State Museum, Springfield, 1995

This volume offers five essays on the history and significance of quilts as artifacts of material culture and expressions of the human spirit.
• Gathering the Scraps: The Goals, Methodology and Results of the Illinois Quilt Research Project by Cheryl Kennedy
• Piecing the Top: Quilt Stories as History by E. Duane Elbert
• A Covenant in Cloth: the Visible and Tangible in African-American Quilts by Raymond Dobard
• Frugal and Fashionable: Quiltmaking During the Great Depression by Barbara Brackman
• Beyond Tradition: Modern Expressions by Quilt Artists by Caryl Bryer Fallert
64 pages, 30 color and 12 black-and-white photographs. 11 by 8.5 inches.
ISBN: 0-89792-148-8
Paperback: $15.00
To order contact jan@janwass.com

Dolls in the Looking Glass: The Joy E. Orozco Collectiondolls
By Janice Tauer Wass
Published by the Illinois State Museum Society, Springfield, 1999

This book interprets the history of childhood, the artistry and technology of dollmaking, and the economics of the doll industry based on the outstanding collection of over 1000 dolls assembled by Joy E. Orozco, a United Federations of Doll Clubs judge. Her collection was donated to the Illinois State Museum by her husband and this volume showcases the encyclopedic nature of the collection. This is an excellent introduction to the history of dolls for beginning collectors and cultural historians. Dolls discussed include peg-woodens, German porcelain heads, French fashion dolls, French and German bebes, character dolls, Kewpie dolls, googley-eyed dolls and cloth dolls.
108 pages, 77 color and 17 black-and-white photographs of about 270 dolls, bibliography, and index. 11 by 8.5 inches.
ISBN: 0-89792-159-3
Paperback: $29.95
To order contact jan@janwass.com

Weaver’s Choice: Patterns in American Coverletsweavers choice
By Janice Tauer Wass
Published by the Illinois State Museum, Springfield, 1988

This handbook of the collection of coverlets at the Illinois State Museum introduces the history of patterns created by the following weaving techniques: overshot, summer and winter, double, and Jacquard.
76 pages, 49 color and 26 black-and-white photographs, weaving drafts, bibliography, appendices with checklist of the collection. 11 by 8.5 inches.
ISBN: 0-89792-118-6
Paperback: $25.00 (only a few copies left)
To order contact jan@janwass.com