Sandra Dallas Library at RMQM: How do you find what you are looking for?
Sandra Dallas Library at Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum (RMQM) How do you find what you are looking for?
What can you find at the library?
- Research Library regarding historic quilt patterns, block patterns, fabrics and techniques throughout the American Quilting experience
- "How to" books from the last 30 years including many out-of-print classic instruction books you may have been trying to find.
- Really unique collections of magazines, specific publisher's series, specialty collections of historic publications that really defined the quilting experience in America.
- Fiction such as Sandra Dallas's wonderful novels based on historically accurate story telling of typical situations and people's life stories that represent the American Experience and how quilts intermingled in people's real lives.
So how do you find what you are looking for?
You start just like you normally look for something in 2024---- with a search online.
You find pictures, or on someone's blog or email, they are talking about something - and you decide you want more info... So you pop into RMQM.org - select EDUCATION from the Main Menu - then LIBRARY - then look for the SEARCH THE LIBRARY link and click on it.
You find pictures, or on someone's blog or email, they are talking about something - and you decide you want more info... So you pop into RMQM.org - select EDUCATION from the Main Menu - then LIBRARY - then look for the SEARCH THE LIBRARY link and click on it.
Viola! You are in the RMQM Library Search!
Now you need to use those keywords and phrases you found online - and insert them in the SEARCH bar. A couple tips to help you find what you are looking for...
Realize that the search defaults to thinking you mean OR between each word you enter!
This means if you enter HAND QUILTING the search engine defaults to giving you everything that has the word HAND or QUILTING in it's title or description.
You likely are going to be overwhelmed -
in a library that is centered on quilting information!
in a library that is centered on quilting information!
So to zero in on what you are REALLY looking for - add quotation marks around the phrase --
"HAND QUILTING" -- you will be much happier with the results you get.
Next - you can review the books that you find on the list- by stopping by the library, locating those books on the shelves and seeing if they provide information that will help you.
Locating the books on the shelves is as easy as using the author's name (or publisher's name) and looking for it - they are filed alphabetically. If you know a specific book name, but not the author - you search on the website by the book name and find out the author to find it on the shelves.
It really is that easy!
Members can check out the How To books and Fiction books for a month at a time - no limit on how many you have out. Buying one book in a store will likely cost you as much as your Annual Membership to RMQM.
Creating your own templates from the instructions in many of the books - will save you buying expensive templates for patterns you don't even know if you like working with yet - and you can make templates for A LOT less than purchasing them - and it isn't hard.
Additionally, your membership at the RMQM gets you a lot of other benefits.
So next time you start looking for You Tube videos, books, or classes on HOW TO ----don't forget to check out the Sandra Dallas Library at the RMQM!