The Book Depository - a review...

Disclaimer:  This is not a paid advertisement.  These people have no idea who I am!  I'm just pleased with their prices and service.

One of the things I love about reading other people's blogs is hearing about new (to me) websites and businesses.  Places with great customer service and good prices.  In an effort to pay it forward, I thought I'd share one of my favorites with you.  Just in case you haven't heard of it before.  It's called The Book Depository.  I can't remember the first time I ordered from them, but I've been pleased with their service and prices every time.  Here's just one example...

Several months ago I was in a quilt store when one of the customers brought in a quilt with her.  I don't know if she was shopping for a backing or just wanted to show it off.  As it was jaw droppingly gorgeous, I don't blame her if she just wanted to brag a little.  She also had the book the pattern came from with her.  It was called Quilt's from Grandmother's Garden by Jaynette Huff.  This lady had made the quilt from the cover.

She warned all of us that she thought the book was out of print.  When I got home, I searched for it online but couldn't find a copy.  I also looked at The Book Depository.  Although it wasn't there either, I was able to request that they notify me when it was back in stock.  Then I forgot about it until earlier this month when they emailed me to say they had several more copies.  Not only had they gotten it back in, but they didn't charge me full price for it either.  On top of that, there is never a charge for shipping and they ship worldwide.  Yep, you heard me right, they ship all of their books worldwide for FREE - all the time!

The book came today and I'm pleased as punch with it.  I'm adding the cover quilt to my list of quilts to make one day.  As you can imagine, that's a very, very, very long list already.

So let me sum up my review of The Book Depository...

Pros:

• A large selection of books
• Most of them are priced less than the cover price
• Free shipping worldwide
• Great customer service
• The Book Depository Live - You can see what books other people are buying all over the world, but don't worry, it's anonymous!

Cons:

• It will take a little while for the book to come.  It took 18 days for this latest one to come, but considering how little I paid for it, I didn't mind.  Besides, I think they're located in the United Kindgom!

So the next time you're looking for a book, quilting or otherwise, you might want to take a gander at this site.  Oh, and if you have any other sites that you just love, feel free to share them with me!

Also, if you haven't entered my giveaway yet, you still have time.  Just leave a comment on this post!  

Until later...

Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord. 

Psalms 119:1 (NLT)

Sewing together...

Just a reminder - I can't respond to comments right now.  Once I return home, I'll be able to send email again.

Also, if you haven't entered my giveaway yet, you still have time.  Just leave a comment on this post! 

One of my plans for this trip to visit my family was to spend some time sewing with  my mom.  We both started embroidering the blocks for a Winter Wonderland quilt last fall and finished earlier this year.  But this is the first chance we've had to get together to move forward on it.  All of our blocks still needed to be cut down to the right size and we had hoped to get the center of our quilts assembled.  Everything went well cutting the blocks and before long, my mom had hers put together...

Robbie and Mom holding up her top

However, when I laid out my blocks in order, I noticed a problem.

My Winter Wonderland  Blocks

I was bothered by the one block that's so much darker than the rest.  My mom tried to convince me it was OK, but when my dad came in, he pointed it right out!  I knew I wouldn't be happy if I didn't change it, so I pulled out some more material and traced another one.

New Snow Angel Block

Fortunately for me, this is the smallest embroidery in this quilt.  It only took me an evening to embroider another one.  But once I laid them side by side, I'm still not convinced it's going to work.  When I traced it out, the new fabric looked so much lighter than the other.  Now with them laying side by side, I'm not seeing that much difference.

Old and New Snow Angel Embroideries

I'm going to wait until I return home, lay them all out again and then decide if I'm going to make a 3rd version.  I also discovered I don't have enough fabric for the inner border so it doesn't do me any good to assemble the blocks until I have that.  I suppose that means another shopping trip when I return!

While I worked on my embroidery, my mom got started on the Fly Stitching that goes between each block.  It didn't take her long to finish one of the rows and start on another...

Moms adding the Fly Stitch on her quilt

I so enjoy spending the time sewing with my mom and when she retires (hopefully soon), I plan for us to do a lot more of it.

My dad bought Gabriel another new baby today.  She already has one she's been playing with, but if one is good, then two must be better, right?

Gabriel and her new baby

Until later...

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 

 Lamentations 3:22–23 (NIV)

Star Crossed done...

So last week, I finished not one, but two quilts.  That might be a first for me.  Hmmm, I wonder if I could ever complete 3 in one week?  Perhaps if I gave up everything else that week - including sleep!

Star Crossed is a Twister quilt, meaning I used the special Twister template to make it.  For the smaller version, you start by sewing some 5" squares together and adding a 3" border.

Initial Twister Quilt

Then you use the special template and cut your blocks from your initial topper.

In the middle of cutting out the Twister blocks

Sew them back together, add your borders and you're done!

Star Crossed

This is a small quilt (37" square) and only took an hour and a half to quilt on the frame.  I used the Hedge Pantograph by Meridith England.  I've used this pantograph before but had some trouble with my stitch length this time.  The machine would tend to stutter at a certain point on each pass.  Nevertheless, I managed to work through it.  Here's the back of the quilt showing the panto...

Back of Star Crossed

This quilt will hang in my sewing room after I finish repainting it.

Here are the stats for this quilt:

• Size: 37" square
• Fabrics: Mary Jo's Cloth Store and Quilts Like Crazy
• Batting: Warm &White
• Thread: Aurifil (piecing), Superior Threads #425 (quilting)
• Pattern: Twister
• Quilting: Hedge Pantograph (10 passes and 2 bobbins) (1.5 hours quilting time)
• Started: May 2011
• Completed: June 2011
• Recipient: I'm keeping this one!

Until later...

We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield. 

Psalm 33:20 (NLT)

Man Cave done...

I've finally finished a quilt for Mr. Quilting Bug!  I made this quilt for him to use during those cold winter nights. Luckily I finished it just in time for - summer.  What timing on my part.  Oh well, it'll be ready for him when the weather changes in another 6 months!

Man Cave

Although I can't claim this for every quilt, I know pretty much all the stats for this one.  I bought the fabrics for it and cut it out in November of 2009.  The center of the quilt is made from a 2.5" batik strip roll I bought from Love 2 Quilt in Williamsburg, Va.  It languished on my shelf until another quilting retreat the following November where I turned it into a flimsy.  I loaded the quilt on the frame back in March of this year but only finished quilting it last week.  What can I say, I was in a bit of a slump for a while.

I quilted it using a new (to me) pantograph called Square Spirals by Keryn Emmerson.

Square Spirals Pantograph

I really love the look of the pantograph on this quilt and I'll definitely be using it again in the future.  I took a picture on my last pass quilting so you can better see the pattern...

Square Spirals Pantograph on Man Cave

I had to do one thing different with this quilt on my frame and I wanted to share it with you in case you ever run into the same issue.  I usually load my quilts sideways because they quilt quicker that way.  However, I couldn't do that this time because I wanted the pantograph to go horizontally across the quilt.  I had already prepared the backing to load it the other way and found that I had very little fabric left on either edge once it was on.  I can't remember where I heard this but someone once suggested pinning an additional piece of fabric to the edges to give you that extra room for your machine.  It adds an extra step, but was totally worth it.  If I hadn't pinned the canvas to either side, my machine would have kept bumping into the clamps that hold it there.  Hopefully this picture will make things clearer.  My first choice is always to cut the backing/batting large enough to give me this clearance, but this is a quick fix if it isn't.

Temporary side leader added to the quilt

Here are the stats for this quilt:

• Size: 63" x 71"
• Fabrics: Top and binding from Love 2 Quilt, backing from JoAnns
• Batting: Warm & Natural
• Thread: Aurifil (piecing), Superior Threads #425 (quilting)
• Pattern: Bali Boxes (out of print) - I made slight changes to the pattern
• Quilting: Square Spirals Pantograph (30 passes and 5 bobbins) (7.5 hours quilting time)
• Started: November 2009
• Completed: June 2011
• Recipient: Mr. Quilting Bug

Just a reminder that you can still enter my giveaway by leaving a comment on this post.

Until later...

Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 

Hebrews 10:23 (NLT)

Stash Report Week #24...

June 11 - 17, 2011

FYI - I'm out of town this week and unable to send email.  If you've commented, please know that I'm reading them, but can't respond until I return home!

This is the first week in a while where I used more than I bought.  And I can safely say, I won't be repeating it next week!  The only incoming fabric was 2 yards of this black stripe.

Out of Africa 5764 Black Wood by Blank Textiles

I used this fabric in the Star Crossed quilt I just finished as well as for the binding.  I'm also using it in another quilt I'm currently working on and didn't have enough to finish.  I really think this fabric is striking - especially when used for the binding.

I somehow managed to finish not one, but two quilts this week!  Wow!  That hasn't happened in like forever.  I'm going to write a separate post for each one so I can quickly refer back to the details in the future.  Therefore, I'll wait until then to show more pictures of them.

The quilts I finished were Star Crossed and Man Cave.  I used 2 yards for the backing and binding of the first and another 4.5 yards for the second.

So...
Purchased-this-week: 2 yards
Used-this-week: 6.5 yards
Purchased-to-date: 140 yards
Used-to-date: 78.5 yards
Net used: -61.5 yards

 I took a picture of Cricket (my parent's cat)  hanging out in a window today.  She's the mom to my Jack and Sam.

Cricket in the library window

Just a reminder that you can still enter my giveaway by leaving a comment on this post.

Until later...

By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 

2 Peter 1:3 (NLT)

Visiting family...

Gabriel and I are taking a long over due trip to visit family for a week.  Do you think she's enjoying herself?

Gabriel and Gracie hanging out together

I also forgot to bring one of her babies with me.  Even though she's 5, she still plays with them every day.  So we picked up a new one for her today.

Gabriel and her new baby

It's a dog's life here!

Don't forget I'm having a giveaway to celebrate my 2 year blog anniversary.  Leave a comment on the post here to enter.

Until  later...

For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time - to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. 

2 Timothy 1:9 (NLT)

Giveaway Time!

As I mentioned in my last post, June 12th marked the 2 year anniversary of my blog.  In that time, I have met people I would never have known otherwise and made some wonderful friends.  And I love, love, love having this 'journal' to look back on.  I so easily forget what I've accomplished over time and I'm always surprised when I look back at it.

So in honor of this milestone, I'm going to have a giveaway.  Of course, it's quilting related - as I believe that's what most of my readers are interested in.  I have 2 prizes for you.  The first is a Reverse Applique quilt kit called Herd of Turtles by Pacific Rim Quilt Company.

Herd of Turtles Quilt Kit

The second item in the giveaway is this fat quarter bundle consisting of 6 fat quarters.

Fat Quarter Bundle - 6 FQs

To enter, all you have to do is leave a comment telling me which one you'd like to win!  You don't have to blog about this giveaway or share it with anyone else.  I'd really just like to reward those who come here to my small world on a regular basis.  That being said, your chances should be pretty good of winning!

I'll draw 2 winners on Friday morning, June 24th.  That's over a week away, but I'm out of town right now and can't mail until then anyway!

Earlier this week I took a quilt down off the wall so I could paint the ceiling.  It wasn't 10 seconds before David claimed it for a nap.  He's a strange bird...

David on my quilt

Until later...

He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way.  

Psalm 25:9 (NLT)