Working On...
-a tiny hand sewn/quilted piece that will eventually be a pocket on a fidget quilt
-an old button, covered with a piece of batting and muslin and embroidered
-quilted fabric beads. I saw these on Silly Boo Dilly's blog a long time ago and fell in love with them. I finally ordered her instructions from her Etsy Shop and have another way to use scraps and keep my hands busy. These little beads become a bit of an obsessive/compulsive habit. I've made many more since taking the above picture.
Books/Reading
Recent finishes:
Michael J. McCann's new book Sorrow Lake. I enjoyed his previous series featuring Hank Donaghue and Karen Stainer and hope he hasn't abandoned them, but I enjoyed this first novel in his new series as well. It introduces Detective Inspector Ellie March of the Ontario Provincial Police and Detective Constable Kevin Walker. An excellent police procedural with no emphasis on the gory or bizarre.
Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea is the story of a young girl who, after seeing The Magnificent Seven, leads her three friends on a journey to the United States to find seven Mexican men to smuggle back into Mexico to defeat and rout the banditos who have invaded their village.
A fascinating look at both Mexico and the United States with great characters!
Delano Ames' She Shall Have Murder, written in 1948, is the first in the Dagobert and Jane Brown series. It takes place in postwar Britain and is full of humor as the amateur duo attempt to solve a murder. I will definitely be reading more of this series. Delano Ames himself was quite a character and worked for British Intelligence during WWII.
I have heard about She Shall Have Murder. It sounds like a title that I'd really enjoy.
ReplyDeleteYour pocket and beads....cute as buttons, as always. Bright and colorful and happy. In other words, perfect for a fidget quilt. I'm going to check on this fabric bead business. Love yours and I need some hand work on our next vacation since we're planning a long drive. This could be it since I need some quick finishes. I love hand work but it relaxes me too much, I end up napping in about 10 minutes! No kidding. Every time. Snow White Syndrome, I guess.
She Shall Have Murder was a fun read and a great look at post-war Britain! :) The beads are a lot slower than I imagined--in fact, Silly Boo Dilly warns about this---but they are sort of compulsive. Hand work does relax me, but perfect for watching television or a listening to an audio book. Ha! Snow White Syndrome doesn't work for me. Hand work keeps me up at night!
DeleteThe fabric beads look intriguing, and I'm sure you will find plenty of uses for them.
ReplyDeleteI'm including some in the next fidget quilt, but I'm also thinking of a necklace using the beads. I'll let you know how that turns out.
DeleteThat's a great pocket for your fidget quilt, and such great colours too.
ReplyDeleteFabrics beads I have yet to try. Yours are rather inspiring though, and so creative, great work.
Thanks for the book reviews. There are two that I will be looking out for at my library.
I love using tiny scraps to make the beads. In fact, I love finding ways to use all those scraps that can accumulate, but seem too small for anything substantial. The books are all enjoyable; if you read them, I hope you enjoy them as well!
DeleteLove these fabric beads -- I might have to check out the pattern. I've written down these author names and will be searching them out. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteLove these fabric beads -- I might have to check out the pattern. I've written down these author names and will be searching them out. Thanks!
ReplyDelete