Kawaii appliqué quilts from Japan How one country's love of all things tiny powers today's most intricate quilts

Ichikawa, publisher of Quilt Diary Japan magazine, and art historian Wong (Sewing and Survival) serve up an enchanting celebration of kawaii ("small and cute") quilts, which are characterized by their intricately detailed scenes featuring tiny, cartoon-like figures. Delving into the history of the kawaii sensibility, the authors explain how 18th-century laws meant to discourage extravagance by banning large dolls, among other goods, led toymakers to specialize in meticulously crafted miniatures that became wildly popular. Ichikawa and Wong profile quilters who incorporate the kawaii aesthetic into their work, discussing, for instance, how Yoko Sekita's background as a manga artist shines through in the paneled scenes that decorate her designs (one quilt depicts the bustling preparations for a traditional wedding in each room of a house). Projects show how to make simplified variations on the quilters' work, as when the authors describe how to create a strip of pastoral cottages in the style of Reiko Kato and incorporate it into the sides of a fabric basket. The cultural history illuminates, and the profiled artists' elaborate work stuns (Akiko Yoshimizu's quilts feature as many as 1,500 panels, each displaying a three-inch-tall girl with her own unique look and outfit). Crafters will marvel at this. (May)