So, over the last 2 or so weeks I had some nice luck! First of all my 3rd place prize from Men Quilt Too competition arrived on the doorstep! It was this:
A lovely box full of Aurifil thread! I'm sure these will keep me going for about a year!!
And then, I was one of The Chosen over on Sarah (Narcoleptic in a Cupboard)'s blog! And my prize was this lovely book - Dare to be Square by Boo Davis http://tinyurl.com/c6j5aws . which is full of pictures, many of which I can see (or see enough of to get the idea! all the patterns are bold colours which means I can see the contrasts!) of quilt patterns using squares! ... I always knew it was hip to be a square, and this book proves it ... even if I am a little dodecahedral at the edges!
Talking of books... yesterday I went to Joanne's to look for something $10-or-less for the quilt club Secret Santa. The only restriction was no fabric! I found this book marked at $10, Free Motion Quilting, From Practice to Perfection (I think that's the title!).95 and thought it would be perfect! So when we got to the checkout it turned out to be $24!!!! now that's a pretty price for a book no matter how nice! But, I had a 50% off coupon so bought it anyway ...
Now I'm having second thoughts because it is a bit much value for the Secret Santa and I don't want to be not in-keeping with the other folk ... so I might take it back ... pennies are a bit tight, what with having to replace the Jeep a couple of weeks ago (and then the wheel bearings last week!), and with all the medical bills and Christmas coming up... I can't really afford to keep it no matter how much I'd like to. lol, but I shall try photographing it and OCRing the pages before I return it... whether that will work is anyone's guess, but it might!
Apart from that I'm afraid I haven't done much quilting ... I did get a new pack of the self-threading needles yesterday, and they do appear to be a lot sharper which is what I wanted, so maybe I'll have a productive week with my new needles :) ... I haven't forgotten that a couple of you asked about those needles and I did try to take a photo but without any success... but there is information on the web and this link ... and here is more general info for those who are visually-challenged or just find threading needles tricky! (apparently they are very good for burying your thread ends inside a quilt - when you finish with a piece of thread you don't knot it, which can create a noticeable lump- you just leave the end loose and then thread it onto one of these needles, and you can then sew it into the center of your quilt! ... or something like that ... Google it if you want instructions, there's lots of pages about it!)
Aren't you a lucky boy? Threads and a book!
ReplyDeleteoh aurifil thread... lovely. you will have to tell us what you think of it.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the wins - the thread looks great and the book from Sarah is a fabulous one, I'm sure you'll have lots of fun choosing a project to make from it! I hope you find a suitable Secret Santa present!
ReplyDeleteoh the downloadable version of that book was half price on weekend at leah day's e-store... someone needs to invent a printer that prints quilt designs in braille so you can feel them. you'll have to train the kids to run paper through the machine on the lines so you can feel it.
ReplyDeleteWhat great colors of threads, and Aurifil is the best. I always used Mettler (and still do when I can't afford Aurifil), but this is such a nice thin thread. I hope you've added to your list of want-to-do from the book!
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