Thimbleanna – Page 87 – My little online diary.

Happy Birthday Billy Collins!

19 Comments / March 22, 2011 March 22, 2011 / Chat, Holidays

Well . . . I had perfectly good intentions of posting a recipe for Randi’s Recipe Box Swap tonight, but this morning, The Writer’s Almanac arrived in my inbox and promptly announced that today is Billy Collin’s birthday. If you’ve been around here for awhile, you know what a huge Billy Collins fan I am, so, being that this is practically a national holiday and all, I just couldn’t let the day pass without a big Billy Collins Happy Birthday Wish. And I certainly couldn’t ask Dear Billy to share billing with my paltry pork chops, now could I?

No. that would NEVER do. So, the pork chops will have to wait a day or two, while we pause a moment or two to revel in all the beauty that is Billy Collins.

I’ve written about Billy Collins before, HERE and HERE. He’s written so many poems that I love that it’s hard to mention only a few. (My top two are noted on the previous posts). If you really want to reward yourself after a long, hard day, spend a few moments with a book of Billy Collins poetry. Preferably in a nice, hot, bubbly bath.

The Writer’s Almanac for today tells a bit about Billy Collin’s background. Here’s my favorite part: “He was an only child. Before he even knew how to read he would page through books and pretend that he was reading whenever his parents had company. He said, “I would say it was a fairly happy childhood. But they say he who says that is just better at repressing things.”” He has such a wonderful sense of humor, which is certainly why I love his poetry.

The Writer’s Almanac also included his poem Forgetfulness, which you can listen to him read here:

If you happen to live in or near Long Beach, you’re a lucky duck. The Carpenter Center will be hosting an evening with Billy Collins on May 21st, 2011. The cost is a meager $35 and based on past experience, it will be worth every. single. penny!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BILLY COLLINS!!! May we never forget your name!
XOXO,
Anna

P.S. If you’re interested in The Quilter’s Bible, don’t forget to sign up for the drawing HERE. I also forgot to mention that the book was originally published in the U.K., so, if you’re in the U.K., even though you’re not eligible for this drawing, you should easily be able to find the book.

The Quilter’s Bible

80 Comments / March 21, 2011 March 21, 2011 / Books

Hi there — have you all had a good weekend? It’s been beautiful weather here — a teaser for spring and I think I might be over my snow fever. I’m still not ready for yardwork though!

A few weeks ago, the nice people at FSB Media asked if I would review a copy of The Quilter’s Bible and I said yes. I’d seen pictures of this beautiful cover, so I couldn’t resist. (I love that cover quilt!)

The Quilter’s Bible is 256 pages full of most everything you’d like to know about quilting. It’s divided into 5 sections: Getting Started, Patchwork, Applique, Quilting, and Finishing Off.

The Getting Started section contains lots of good information about tools, fabric, templates — mostly everything you need to be a quilter. There’s even a two-page spread on using technology in quilting, which is something you won’t find in older quilt books LOL!

As you might expect, the Patchwork section is the largest section. There are lots of pages showing different block types (I found a few new blocks I’d like to make.)

There are also many technique pages that show you how to construct blocks. Obviously every block can’t be covered, but the instructions vary from the more basic to even some tricky blocks.

A lone star quilt is on my someday list.

The cathedral window is on that list too.

There’s lots of good information for putting the blocks together. All the details are explained — from block settings to the proper way to measure borders before cutting your fabric.

I forgot to take a picture of a sample page from the applique section, but the format is the same as the other sections. All of the “standard” applique methods are discussed, along with some not-so-common methods like Hawaiian, Applique Perse (known as Broderie Perse here in the U.S. — which I always thought was Broderie Purse, so I learned something!), and Shisha.

The quilting section is comprehensive too. Techniques include hand, big stitch, sashiko, long-arm, and many more. Not only does the book explain how to do the actual quilting, there are also sections on choosing quilting designs that flatter your quilt.

Here’s the page on whole cloth quilting — another technique on my someday list.

The finishing off section contains fun ideas for binding and finishing quilts, to include techniques for hanging sleeve placement. There’s also a page of useful information like half-square triangle formulas, diagonal measurements of squares, etc.

There are lots of “Make It Now” projects throughout the book too, to give you practice on a technique that has just been taught. Shoot, I can’t possibly tell you all of the pop-outs and techniques and projects. This is a really nice book — all of the pages are color and the paper is heavy. It’s a wonderful resource for all quilters — and especially if you’re a beginning quilter. One thing this book is not though — it’s not a pattern book for making a specific quilts. And, imho, that’s a great thing! This book contains all the info you need to go off and create a quilt of your own, which is just how I like it. And, as a bonus, there’s some really pretty photography. I love this quilt (see previous lone-star mention!)

So the verdict? Highly Recommended!

Aaannnnddd, the good news is that the nice people at FSB Media said that if I pick a winner, they’ll send one of you a copy of this book! (The bad news is that you must be in the U.S. or Canada to enter — sorry.) Please leave a comment if you’d like to win your own copy of The Quilter’s Bible and I’ll draw a name on Saturday, March 26th.

XOXO,
Anna

Giving

16 Comments / March 17, 2011 March 17, 2011 / Chat

If you read many blogs, I’m sure you’ve seen the “For Japan With Love” disaster relief posts popping up all over. Like Gina , I’m not usually one for public displays of giving – or of grieving, for that matter. There’s enough sadness in the world, and I like to try to keep things light and happy around here. But, the events in Japan this week make it hard to remain peppy.

Tomorrow marks one week since the devastating earthquake and many bloggers will be “observing a moment of silence”. They will be silent, in hopes that we’ll all think about the disaster and be moved to donate to the relief efforts. The charity chosen for “For Japan With Love” is Shelter Box. They provide emergency shelters and lifesaving supplies for those in need. You can read more about this organization HERE. I also found an interesting, up-to-the-date article about Shelter Box HERE.

I’m not a charity expert, and don’t know the good ones from the bad ones. But, the shelter concept seems to target the greatest need for so many people who have lost their homes. Tomorrow (March 18th), I hope we can all take a moment to realize how fortunate we are and maybe do a little bit to help. If you choose Shelter Box, you can donate HERE.

XOXO,
Anna

P. S. If you have an embroidery machine, Embroidables is donating 100% of their sales tomorrow (March 18th) to the earthquake disaster relief.

March Hangover

43 Comments / March 14, 2011 March 14, 2011 / Chat, Quilting

Did you all have a nice weekend? I had a good one — I made the trek to visit TheSecondChild and check up on him. And cook and clean. And do what moms do. His freezer is now stocked to keep him happy for awhile. I was tempted to go down there and make him come home. He’s doing well, but I miss the little booger. Oh, and I forgot — I fixed the fly on the boxers that I sent him for Valentine’s Day. I’d accidentally sewn it shut. Oops!

The trip was only marred by the awful weekend news. It’s a six hour drive each way and I was glued to the BBC (love that satellite radio) the whole time. Then tonight, I’ve been watching a few of the videos online. I think we should just take March off of the calendar entirely — have a do-over and skip right to April, where there won’t be any natural disasters and spring will have sprung in the Northern Hemisphere. Garrison Keillor definitely nailed it when he said March is like a hangover. If March didn’t contain the first day of spring (TheSecondChild’s birthday), it would surely be my least favorite month.

Ah well, sorry it’s been so boring around here. Too many un-exciting things going on. I hate to leave you without a picture though, so here’s a peek at a new quilt I started a week or two ago. I’ve made about nine blocks out of I-can’t-remember-how-many-I-need. With the limited amount of time I have for quilting during the hangover, this project promises to take some time.

One other little picture. It was Pi Day today at work. Due to my weekend absence and the fact that TheManoftheHouse worked all weekend and didn’t get the groceries needed for the pie, we failed to take some pie goodness. We’ll have to have Pi Makeup Day. Anyway, the spread looked much like last year except for this guy who brought in these yummy salted peanut marshmallow bars and put them in the shape of the Pi symbol. He also brought Moon Pies which I thought was pretty funny.

Ok, I’ll stop talking now. Hope you have a good week!

XOXO,
Anna

A Post Like March

48 Comments / March 9, 2011 March 10, 2011 / Sewing

Wow! Thanks for all the wonderful advice on kitchen countertops! If only I could take all of you along with me when it comes time to make a decision. Although, there were a lot of different opinions, so it could be a heated discussion LOL. We were supposed to meet with the countertop lady tonight, but she got sick so we’ll have to wait until next week. I hope this isn’t a sign of how long this project is going to take. ;-) I always joke with the kids that “I’m the Decider!”. But really, when it comes to stuff like this, I’m NOT the decider. I hate these hard decisions!

So…moving right along … I managed to sneak a bit of sewing in last weekend, and since there weren’t very many votes for the toaster countertop, I decided to use the fabric for some pillowcases.

I’ve always loved that Cosmo Cricket toaster saying, so when I saw these Metro Cafe toasters, I knew I had to make some pillowcases out of them. I got a little carried away when I bought the fabric too — I think most everyone I know is going to get some toaster pillowcases … poor dears.

I also snuck in a few quilt blocks for Jenny’s charity quilt that she’s making for an AIDS fundraiser. I think it took all of 20 minutes to make these blocks — if you have a bit of time and fabric, I’m sure Jenny would appreciate your contribution. You can read all about it HERE.

That’s about it for excitement around here this week. I did have a fun evening last night with BigDaddy, MyDadLovesMeBestSister, and CrazyBIL. We went to see Garrison Keillor. I was amazed that, at 68, he spoke without a break, or even a drink of water, for two hours. It amazed me even more today when I read that he suffered a mild stroke a little over a year ago. He was funny and entertaining and I loved that he made us all stand up at the beginning and sing The Star Spangled Banner. And for those of you who are sick of winter, he had this little quip…”Here we are in March…the month that God provided so that people who don’t drink will know what it’s like to have a hangover”.

Ok, one last thing … do you all know what this is?

It’s the famous Brandenburg Gate in Berlin Germany. And look, here’s another version:

The new logo for the Berlin Modern Quilt Guild. Isn’t it Awesome? I think that’s the coolest logo I’ve seen in a long time — I love how the spools and needle have become part of the gate. I saw it on Julia’s blog and I asked her who designed the logo. Turns out it was her! Congratulations Julia — it’s gorgeous!

Ok, now … WAIT! Did you see this super cute Pinocchio? I need another little boy so I can make it — I LOVE it!

Really. NOW I’m leaving. Hope you’re having a great week!

XOXO,
Anna