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I finished 8 books in July. That's kind of a slow month for me but when I have a lot going on I have trouble concentrating on books and listen to podcasts instead. Even with only 8 books, I'm happy to report that I was only disappointed with one, The Last Revival of Opal and Nev" Two of the books I read this month are ones that were left as recommendations in last month's comments so be sure to read other's recommendations too! Also be sure to leave your own recommendations in the comments. I added a bunch of books from last month's comments to my various electronic wish lists. I'll get to them all eventually. DNF Books: Island Queen by Vanessa Riley - Couldn't keep track of the characters with the narration.  The Museum of Ordinary People By Mike Gayle, Read By Witney White Another great book from one of my favorite writers. Mike Gayle writes wonderful books about relationships between people: family, friends and random strangers. Jess is dealing with the sudden loss of her mother. It's month's later and time to clean out the house to prepare it for selling. She can seem to make herself get rid of the encyclopedia set that her mother gave her as a child. Her boyfriend is pressuring her to get rid of them because he doesn't want them in their tiny apartment. Then a friend tells her about the Museum of Ordinary People housed in the back of a warehouse. She's intrigued and becomes the unofficial curator along with the warehouse's new owner. This book is all about the deep meaning in ordinary items but also about friendship, family and finding your right path. Gayle is a master of character development so you know these people and want to spend time with them.  The Indispensables By Patrick K. O'Donnell, Read By Will Damron Over July 4th weekend I felt it was only right to read some American history and chose this book....wisely. Every state education system teaches American history with a little different spin. In Virginia, we have a lot of history and our education (at least on the 1960's) focused heavily on Virginia and Virginia's heroes. We did get a lot of Revolutionary War history but it was Virginia focused. This book added a lot to my education because it about the Marblehead Regiment if Massachusetts. The book delves into the pre-war lead up in Massachusetts as it pertains to the soldiers and mariners of Marblehead. These are the people that rowed Washington across the Delaware and did so many more heroic acts during the war. Also, because Marblehead (the town) was highly integrated, the Regiments was also integrated with white, black, Hispanic and Native American troops. It's very interesting book but I think I'd recommend that you read the book instead of listening to the audio. I like Will Damron as a narrator which makes me thing that something was off with the direction or editing.  The Kitchen Front By Jennifer Ryan, Read By Jasmine Blackborow I picked up this recommendation from Carole's blog and it was a good one! I usually don't remember where I got recommendations but this one was read within a week of raeding her blog post because the mibrary had it avaiable to check out right away. It's the middle of WWII and everyone at home is suffering from fear, loss and a lack of access to good food. The BBC has a shows calle The Kitchen Front and is looking for a female co host. They decided to have a contest in the local area where the current host lives. Four women enter the 3 stage contest. One dish will be prepared each month: a starter, a main and a dessert. There's a war widow with 3 children who needs a better way to support her family, a kitchen maid wanting to escape life downstairs, a trained chef trying to break into the man's world of being a head chef and a manor lady wanting to escape her brutal husband. The story follows the 4 women through the three months of the competition. The character development and story pacing is excellent and there are some very poignant moments.  Code Name Blue Wren By Jim Popkin, Read By Jim Popkin I think that Kristen F. recommended this one to me. I'm not sure I'm glad I read it although, it was very interesting. It's the true story of Ana Montes, a high ranking official at the Defense Intelligence Agency. She used that position to spy for Fidel Castro's Cuba for 17 years. Her intelligence unmasked US spies in Cuba and led directly to the death of a Green Beret in El Salvador. The book is riveting and frankly, reveals the ineptitude of the FBI in finding spies within our government. No wonder they turned their focus to parents at school board meetings and Catholics attending Church. Those groups are easier to find and intimidate. The reason that I'm not sure I'm glad that I read it is because Ana Montes is now free after 20 years in jail. How does that happen? In all seriousness, it is a very interesting and well written book.  The Final Revival of Opal & Nev By Dawnie Walton, Read By a cast It's difficult for me to describe this book so I'm going to start by sharing the publisher's summary: Opal is a fiercely independent young woman pushing against the grain in her style and attitude, Afro-punk before that term existed. Coming of age in Detroit, she can’t imagine settling for a 9-to-5 job—despite her unusual looks, Opal believes she can be a star. So when the aspiring British singer/songwriter Neville Charles discovers her at a bar’s amateur night, she takes him up on his offer to make rock music together for the fledgling Rivington Records. In early seventies New York City, just as she’s finding her niche as part of a flamboyant and funky creative scene, a rival band signed to her label brandishes a Confederate flag at a promotional concert. Opal’s bold protest and the violence that ensues set off a chain of events that will not only change the lives of those she loves, but also be a deadly reminder that repercussions are always harsher for women, especially black women, who dare to speak their truth. Decades later, as Opal considers a 2016 reunion with Nev, music journalist S. Sunny Shelton seizes the chance to curate an oral history about her idols. Sunny thought she knew most of the stories leading up to the cult duo’s most politicized chapter. But as her interviews dig deeper, a nasty new allegation from an unexpected source threatens to blow up everything. Provocative and chilling, The Final Revival of Opal & Nev features a backup chorus of unforgettable voices, a heroine the likes of which we’ve not seen in storytelling, and a daring structure, and introduces a bold new voice in contemporary fiction. This book has fantastic reviews but, from my perspective, it's kind of a hot mess. The narrative perspective is all over the place. That's the "daring structure" mentioned above. The cast is great but it's awkward when a character starts to speak and they introduces themselves first "Opal Jewel: blah blah blah". But it's not always like that. Sometime the Sunny character speaks for the other characters. Opal is not particularly likable either. She behaves like a big star but the largest crowd she had ever performed for is 20,000. She so impetuous that she has her stage temper tantrums without consideration for the people who came to see her perform or he fellow performers. She seems to feel that her principles come before all else. There are 2 major incidences of this in the book and we can understand why she is not popular with promoters. She's immature and unprofessional. Opal and Nev, as performers, are set well into the actual music and cultural history of their time so that you feel they might be a real band that you have never heard of. I found the story tedious and couldn't wait for it to end. But, this book gets RAVE reviews so you might like it.  Careless Love By Peter Robinson, Read By Simon Prebble This is #25 in the Inspector Alan Banks series set in the UK. A young college student is found dead in an abandoned car but she didn't die there. It appears to be a suicide. Near the same time the body of an unidentified man is found in gully. By his dress, he appears affluent and appears to have died from head trauma. Inspector banks must decide if the cases are related and there's a side story that's related to a previous book. The side story was distracting to me and got a little confusing. I don't think I've read the book that carries that backstory but it does carry a lead up to a future story. These books are entertaining. To me, they aren't as good as original John Sandford or Nick Petrie, but it's still a good series.  Exiles By Jane Harper, Read By Stephen Shanahan This is the 3rd installment in the Aaron Falk series. It's a series that I've enjoyed and I'll keep an eye out for future releases. In Exiles, Aaron Falk is on vacation in a small town in wine country in Southern Australia. He's there for the christening of his friend's daughter but it also marks the one year anniversary of the disappearance of Kim Gillespie. At the annual festival a year ago, Kim's baby was found tucked in a stroller, alone, at the festival. People have been searching for her ever since. Falk can't avoid getting involved. Good mystery, interesting characters and kept my focus during a week where I was completely distracted.  Sparks Like Stars
By Nadia Hashimi, Read By Mozhan Marno In Kabul in 1978, Sitara Zamani lived a very privileged life as her father was a senior aide to the president. But when she was 10 years old her entire family was killed during a coup and only she survived. She was smuggled out of the palace and eventually out of the country and found home in the United States. In 2008, her name is Arianna and she's an oncology surgeon in NYC and a surprising patient arrives in her office. It's the man who saved her from the massacre but also may be the man who murdered her family. It's finally time to return to Kabul and learn the truth. This was a very interesting historical fiction novel. It's about Afghanistan, the effects of trauma on children and how trauma is often bottled up and carried into adulthood. I'm glad I found this nw-to-me author. Neither Mom or I wanted to talk about or do anything related to her move yesterday. She got a day of rest and I got a day of yarn and thread.  Yesterday afternoon I went to crochet with the local library group. I finished a winter hat that I started last month and then added the leftover yarn to my scrappy blanket. Whatever project I finish I add the leftover yarn to this blanket. It can probably be donated as a wheelchair blanket whenever it gets finished. The most important thing is that I don't have scrap balls of yarn.  Then after dinner I got buys and got the veterans quilts quilted. I think I can get the last one loaded and quilted before we leave and might even be able to get one or more of them bound.....we'll see. I'm not making myself commit to it.  Gail left a comment on the last post asking if there's a pattern for this quilt so I thought I'd share my "pattern" here. It's just a simple sashed quilt that I mocked up in EQ. The blocks are 12" finished so they are based on a 4" grid. The red and white could be cut from jelly roll strips (2.5"). The sashing and borders are all 3" finished. Ignore my diagram, I also made the top and bottom borders 3".
Gail, I hope this is enough to help you draft it out yourself. It's pretty straight forward. I hope everyone had a great weekend!  Imperfect Pineapples by Patricia Caldwell, 70.5 x 78.5" We are accustomed to Patricia Caldwell's stunning art quilts but she's surprised us this week with a new bed quilt! She said that she always wanted to do a pineapple quilt since she started quilted long ago. She came across the Creative Grid Pineapple Trim Tool Mini and it worked great. These are 6 inch finished blocks. She used the Bliss Gradient as her background and coordinating Shades packs for the blocks. For sharing, Patricia received a 20% coupon for the shop that's good for 3 months! If you have made anything with my hand dyed fabric I hope you will consider sharing it in the Customer Gallery. The only rule is that projects have to be complete. It doesn't have to be made totally from hand dyed fabric, just include a recognizable amount.   The Goldfinch 30" x 40" This is the last time you have to see this quilt because it's officially done! It even has a hanging sleeve. I'll get a label on it this weekend and it will be ready for the exhibit in September. All of the history and details are on the Goldfinch page but I'll share a few notes/observations:
 Don't forget to check out the Gradient sale! The sale ends July 25th!
 This is the 7th blanket that I've made with this pattern and line of yarn. It seems a little insane but I love the yarn and bought a ton of it on clearance and I'm going to keep making blankets until it's all gone. I think I only have yarn left for 1 or 2 more blankets. I will not start another until the weather cools down. This one got a little hot to work on but I wanted to finish it before vacation as I want to use the project bag for my travel projects.  I've been calling this my "dude" blanket because, so far, I've given them all to men in my family. But this one has a more feminine look so I'll probably give it to a deserving woman. Maybe someone not in the family but someone that has done good things for me. Here are all the details: Cascade Cartwheel Yarn, 6 balls Pattern from BagODay Crochet, pattern repeat is 8 stitches plus 3 I used a K hook and chained 131 stitches (with an L hook), all of the others have been 147 stitches but I wanted this one a little smaller. 6 balls made a blanket that finished 46 x 64 and that's plenty big.  The best part is that on the last row I had this much yarn left!
 Just checking in for a quick minutes to day to report that the Goldfinch is quilted! It took a lot of time but 80% of that time was for procrastinating and worry. The ACTUAL quilting time wasn't all that much.  The denim as batting worked great. It was a dream to quilt through and the piece will hang nice as a tapestry without any puffy areas. YOu can see some white through the stitches in the dark area but I think a nice steaming will take care of that and you can't see it from any distance anyway.
Next up is binding (or facing) and then I think I'll be able to easily get my 3 veterans quilts quilted and bound before we leave in 2 weeks. Today I'm in the dye studio for the last time until Spetember!  Using denim as the batting is working great! As I said last week, I'm doing really simple quilting. I started with the branch.  Then an orange-brown thread for the feet and beak.  Then a dark variegated for the feathers. I could have finished it off yesterday but I got sidetracked gathering things for the thrift store and doing some chore. Chris is coming home today and I didn't want him to see that I've been a total slob while he's been away.  Saturday afternoon was the tax document burn party. I know most of you shred your documents but, I promise you that a big burn is much more satisfying! We followed that with a nice cookout. It was hot as hades (because it's July in Virginia) but so worth it.  Yesterday I was ironing the new fabric for the shop when I saw that I had a visitor. I watched him for about an hour as he hunted around the pond. He did get in one good strike but, sadly, missed. I haven't seen a heron in a while so this was my excitement for the day.
Chris comes home today and I'm expecting a cooler full of fish!  Seahorse pillow cover by Ann Jensen Ann Jensen is back this week with another of her Hawaii-inspired pillow covers. Each pillow cover is hand appliqued with batiks and gradients on a gradient background. She is masterful at fussy cutting the gradients to get just the effect that she wants. I believe that she used the Oasis Gradient in this one.
For sharing, Ann received a 20% coupon for the shop that's good for 3 months! If you have made anything with my hand dyed fabric I hope you will consider sharing it in the Customer Gallery. The only rule is that projects have to be complete. It doesn't have to be made totally from hand dyed fabric, just include a recognizable amount.  Kim is still here and we have been having fun hanging out in the sewing room for a few days. She leaves today but she got a lot done on her new quilt.  I decided that I needed to get busy and start looking for a project to take to Maine. I already knew that I wanted to use up some of my blue scraps. I've made a purple and yellow scrap quilt, a quilt using green scraps and one using brown scraps. It's time to tackle the blue drawer. I got out a stack of books and started searching for a simple pattern.  This is the quilt that excited me to make and it's made with all squares. It's from Kaffe Fassett book called Simple Shapes Spectacular Quilts.  Here are all of the fabrics that I pulled for this quilt. I will not do any cutting before the trip. I'm just going to get it all packed up and ready.
 I have one kit cut in patriotic scraps and then I found these fabrics in my stash. I bought these YEARS ago and, clearly, have used them in some projects but I've lost interest in them. They are printed ombres that are overprinted with various leaf prints. I thought it might work in the same type of layout. So I cut all of it into 4.5" squares and picked 2 shades of gray for the inner and outer borders.  I think it will actually work out OK and will all tie together with some leaf quilting. Stay tuned for updates on all of these projects in August.
Now I need to get back to that Goldfinch!  It was sewing weekend with my quilt club and that means I worked on a veterans quilt. This time I made blocks using scraps from all of my Paula Nadelstern projects. I love string blocks!  The veterans quilts are 48 x 60 so I make my blocks to finish 8" x 10" so that I get 3 diamonds across and down. These were easy to sew and I got all the blocks done by the time we wrapped up Saturday afternoon. But with this approach you have to be careful to do half of the blocks angled left to right and half the other way.  I was so close to being done that I decided to keep going when I got home. I trimmed and layed out all the blocks and got this. Oops! That was enough for Saturday.  Yesterday Chris left for a bucket list trip to Alaska to go fishing and my friend Kim came over to hang out and sew for a few days. The first thing I did was make a new block and get this top put together. I love it! It's in the to-be-quilted closet awaiting it's turn on the longarm.  Kim is working on a quilt project of her own. This one is called Scrapbooking or something like that. I'll show you when there are more blocks but I think it's going to be really cute.  After I finished my quilt top I didn't really want to dig into something else so I decided to clear out the bags of batting scraps. I had enough for 7 pet beds to donate to Richmond Animal League. The are all different sizes because I use whatever fabric I get for free and make as big a bed as I can from the fabric. Different sizes for different animals.
That's one more item checked off my July goals list! Today Kim is going to work on her quilt more and I'm not sure what I'm doing but I might start planning my project(s) for Maine or I might start some placemats for my brother. The Goldfinch quilting will come this weekend after Kim leaves. |
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In Bloglovin you need to search "Colorways By Vicki Welsh" to find the blog. About Vicki
I'm Vicki Welsh and I've been making things as long as I can remember. I used to be a garment maker but transitioned to quilts about 20 years ago. Currently I'm into fabric dyeing, quilting, Zentangle, fabric postcards, fused glass and mosaic. I document my adventures here. Categories
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