STITCHING TIME....

Sharon over at Pintangle hosts Take A Stitch Tuesday.  This weeks stitch.....

Feather Stitch

I've also been working on my Buttons and Stitches project....

Also It's Daffycat hosts TUSAL( Totally Useless Stitch A Long).  Snips of leftover threads saved.  This is my January and February snips....

Hoping you all have......

SECRET STITCHING SWEETHEARTS BLOG HOP.....

While I was blog hopping a few weeks ago, I found Seredipitous Stitching.  She is holding a Valentine Blog Hop.  What is this about?  Here's some info.....

"In February we will have the Secret Stitching Sweetheart for Valentine's Day - send me a suitable picture and I will forward it to another participant, hop around the blogs to see who got your picture."

So I sent my picture to Jo and she sent it to someone else.  Now I need to do some blog hopping to find out who got my pictures.  This is the picture I got.....

Isn't that a cutie!!  Now I just have to wait until the person who sent this hops to my blog and lets me know with a comment.  I'm off to start hopping to find who got mine. 

UPDATE:  Kate over at Jeremiah's Mom is my Secret Valentine.  Head over and check out her place.

BOOK REPORT.....CAMINO ISLAND

Camino Island - John Grisham

Product Description(Amazon.com)
A gang of thieves stage a daring heist from a vault deep below Princeton University’s Firestone Library. Their loot is priceless, impossible to resist.
Bruce Cable owns a popular bookstore in the sleepy resort town of Santa Rosa on Camino Island in Florida. He makes his real money, though, as a prominent dealer in rare books. Very few people know that he occasionally dabbles in unsavory ventures.
Mercer Mann is a young novelist with a severe case of writer’s block who has recently been laid off from her teaching position. She is approached by an elegant, mysterious woman working for an even more mysterious company. A generous monetary offer convinces Mercer to go undercover and infiltrate Cable’s circle of literary friends, to get close to the ringleader, to discover his secrets.
But soon Mercer learns far too much, and there’s trouble in paradise—as only John Grisham can deliver it. 
Paperback: 368 pages 
Publisher: Dell; Reprint edition (March 6, 2018) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1524797154 
ISBN-13: 978-1524797157

MY THOUGHTS:  I really liked this book and who wouldn't.....it's all about books.  The author has several books and authors included in the story line.  It also takes place in one of my favorite places, a book store.  Not the big company book stores, but a mom and pop book store.  Lots of books and cozy places to sit, even has a coffee shop in it.  Mercer is hired to work her way into the book stores owners circle of friends.  Bruce Cable owns the shop.  He also has a good collection of rare books.  He is also suspected of having the stolen manuscripts stolen from Princeton university.  The FBI, the thieves, and a private contractor all want the manuscripts.  And does Mercer get into the circle?  Does she fin the manuscripts?  Read the book, it's a really good.  I give this book 5....

This book is for 4 of my reading challenges.....
Alphabet Soup Challenge
Library Love Challenge
Outdo Yourself Challenge

BOOK REPORT.....HOMEGOING

HomeGoing - Yaa Gyast

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Ghana, eighteenth century: two half sisters are born into different villages, each unaware of the other. One will marry an Englishman and lead a life of comfort in the palatial rooms of the Cape Coast Castle. The other will be captured in a raid on her village, imprisoned in the very same castle, and sold into slavery.
Homegoing follows the parallel paths of these sisters and their descendants through eight generations: from the Gold Coast to the plantations of Mississippi, from the American Civil War to Jazz Age Harlem. Yaa Gyasi’s extraordinary novel illuminates slavery’s troubled legacy both for those who were taken and those who stayed—and shows how the memory of captivity has been inscribed on the soul of our nation. 
Paperback: 320 pages 
Publisher: Vintage; Reprint edition (May 2, 2017) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1101971061 
ISBN-13: 978-1101971062

MY THOUGHTS:  This book is my book clubs choice for February.  The way this book is set up is a little confusing to me.  Each chapter is a different family.  Some are short chapters and some are long.  I'm not really fond of reading books like this.  Not the content, but the way the book is set up.  The story is awesome., following these 2 girls and their families through history.  Really good book.  I give this book 4.....

This book is for 3 of my reading challenges.....
Alphabet Soup Challenge
Library Love Challenge
Outdo Yourself Challenge
Try Something New Challenge

ONE MONTHLY GOAL.....FEBRUARY

Over at Elm Street Quilts it's One Monthly Goal time.  What's the rules.....

New to One Monthly Goal?  Welcome!  To join, share a photo of your project, some words about what you want to accomplish in a blog post, an Instagram post or a post on Flickr.  Return t the end of the month and share your results.  

My Goals....
To tie these 2 quilts.....

To sandwich this quilt....

So hop over to Elm Street Quilts and see what everyone will be working on this month.

 

THIS AND THAT......

What have I been working on?  What I would like to read?  Well.....I've kind of been all over the place the last few months.  Plus I am just now getting over a nasty cold, so haven't gotten much of anything done.  So first off, I've got a quilt in the hoop I want to tie.  It's a tiny Easter Quilt.

As for embroidery...my 365 Buttons and Stitches project.  Haven't put anything on this for 2 days.

As for the weather.....well it's still winter, don't care what the groundhog said.  The kids were out playing in the snow, having lots of fun.

As for what I've been reading.....I've started a book called HomeGoing by Yaa Gyasi.  Have gotten very far yet so can't give my opinion. But I've got lots of TBR books on my list.  Would like to read some of them, but other books keep side tracking me.  So thought I'd ask your opinion on what to read.  They are linked to Amazon if you want to find out something about the books.  Just leave me a comment on your vote as to which one I should read. 
The Identicals - Elen Hilderbrand

 Death Masks - Jim Butcher

The Giver - Lois Lowry

 








I'm linking up with.....
Kathy's Quilts
Caffeinated Reviewer
The Heard Presents
Because Reading

BOOK REPORT....HAVE FUN ANNA HIBISCUS!

Have Fun Anna Hibiscus! - Atinuke

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Anna Hibiscus lives in Africa. Amazing Africa.Anna Hibiscus has never been away from her home in Africa, surrounded by her parents and baby brothers, as well as all of her aunts and uncles and cousins. But now she is going to Canada to visit her grandmother for Christmas. She has never met Granny Canada and she can't wait to see snow! Canada is very cold and it takes Anna a little while to get used to wearing lots of clothes and eating different types of food. She also has to get used to Granny's dog, Qimmac. And though she misses her brothers and cousins, Anna soon makes lots of friends and has a wonderful time playing with them in the snow and celebrating Christmas with Granny Canada. 
Series: Anna Hibiscus 
Paperback: 112 pages 
Publisher: Walker Books Ltd (October 4, 2010) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1406320676 
ISBN-13: 978-1406320671

MY THOUGHTS:  Anna is off to visit her Grandmother, who lives in Canada.  Anna lives in Africa and has never been away from home.  When she gets to Canada, she finds it's very cold and lots of snow.  Her grandmother has a dog, Qimmac, who Anna doesn't trust.  In her country dogs are bad, they bite, they are dirty and they give you sickness.  So seeing Qimmac, she thinks he's a bad dog.  But they soon make friends.  Anna also makes friends with the children of the neighborhood.  She learns how to slide down a snowy hill.  Anna has all kinds of memories to take back to Africa.  Very nice book.  I give this book 5......

This book is for 4 of my reading challenges......
Alphabet Soup Challenge
Library Love Challenge
Outdo Yourself Challenge
11th Canadian Challenge

BOOK REPORT....THE PEOPLE VS. ALEX CROSS

The People vs. Alex Cross - James Patterson

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Alex Cross has never been on the wrong side of the law-until now. Charged with gunning down followers of his nemesis Gary Soneji in cold blood, Cross is being turned into the poster child for trigger-happy cops who think they're above the law. Cross knows it was self-defense. But will a jury see it that way?
As Cross fights for his professional life and his freedom, his former partner John Sampson brings him a gruesome, titillating video tied to the mysterious disappearances of several young girls. Despite his suspension from the department, Cross can't say no to Sampson. The illicit investigation leads them to the darkest corners of the Internet, where murder is just another form of entertainment.
As the prosecution presents its case, and the nation watches, even those closest to Cross begin to doubt his innocence. If he can't convince his own family that he didn't pull the trigger with intent to kill, how can he hope to persuade a jury? But even with everything on the line, Cross will do whatever it takes to stop a dangerous criminal...even if he can't save himself. 
Series: Alex Cross (Book 23) 
Hardcover: 432 pages 
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company (November 20, 2017) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0316273902 
ISBN-13: 978-0316273909

MY THOUGHTS:  This is the last book of the series or is it?  I don't think so.  I'm sure there will be more.  Alex has been charged with 3 first degree murders.  As the prosecution keeps pulling out more evidence, even I was doubting Alex's innocence.  But once his lawyer got her turn, she really slapped the prosecutor down a notch.  While Alex is on trial, he's also helping his best friend and fellow cop with a case of missing girls.  These guys are bad, bad, bad.  Does Alex and Sampson find the girls?  Does Alex win his court case?  Read the book and find out.  I give this book 5.....

This book is for 2 of reading challenges.......
Library Love Challenge
Outdo Yourself Challenge

STITCHING UPDATES.......

Thought I'd pop in and update some of my stitching.

Year of Buttons and Stitches - I've added a few more buttons.....

Laundry Cross Stitch - A few more stitches added.....

TAST - This week the stitch is Herringbone Stitch.  Piggy 5......

I'll be stitching this weekend on the Laundry Cross Stitch and the buttons. 

READING MONTH IN REVIEW......

Katheryn over at The Book Date is the host for Reading Month in Review.  Hop over and check out all the great books everyone is sharing.

Total Books Read this month - 9

Books Read....
Book of A Thousand Days - Shannon Hale
V is for Vengeance - Sue Grafton
Circling the Sun - Paula Mclain
The Lioness is the Hunter - Loren D. Estleman
An Echo of Murder - Anne Perry
Break and Enter - Norah McClintock
Last Christmas in Paris - Hazel Gaynor/Heather Webb
U is for Undertow - Sue Grafton
The Backyard Parables - Margaret Roach

New to me Authors....
Paula Mclain
Loren D. Estleman
Hazel Gaynor/Heather Webb

Top Book for January....
Last Christmas in Paris - Hazel Gaynor/Heather Webb

Reading Challenges Re-Cap
Creativity Reading Challenge - 1 of 12
Read The Rainbow Challenge -  1 of 12
Epistolary Reading Challenge - 2 of 12
Memoir Reading Challenge - 1 of 12
Alphabet Soup Challenge - 5 of 26
What's In A Name Challenge - 2 of 6
Strolling Through Non-Fiction  - 11 of 20
Library Love Challenge - 8 of 60
Outdo Yourself Challenge - 9 of 75
11th Canadian Challenge - 12 of 13
Try Something New Challenge - 2 of 10
The Backlist Challenge - 0 of 10 

BUTTONS AND STITCHING......

Don't know if you remember me mentioning a challenge I wanted to do.  It's called One year of Stitches and Buttons.  The gal who did this is Ashley.  You can see her finished piece here.  She did this last year, so I've decided to make one myself.  When I found her sight it was already January 21.  So that is my starting date.  Here is what I have now.....

I also joined a Cross Stitch SAL.  It's over at Heather's place, Stitching Lotus. 

Got a cross stitch kit and have started it.  Not very far along right now, so am showing the picture from the package....

This is what I have done so far....

I realized after I started doing the border that you have to start in the middle of fabric.  So I'm going to have to pull out the edging.  Thank goodness I didn't get the whole thing done!!  That's it for now...

BOOK REPORT....BOOK OF A THOUSAND DAYS

Book of a Thousand Days - Shannon Hale

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Based on a classic Grimm's fairy tale, this is the story told by Dashti, a maid from the steppes of a medieval land, who sacrifices her freedom to accompany her mistress into exile. Imprisoned in a remote tower after Lady Saren refuses to marry the man her father has chosen, the maid and the lady have almost nothing in common. But the loyalty that grows between the two, the man they love in different ways for different reasons, and the lies they tell because of and in spite of each other, combine to evoke the deepest bonds, transcend the loneliest landscapes, and erupt in a conclusion so romantic, so clever, and so right that no reader will be left dry-eyed. 
Hardcover: 320 pages 
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens; 1 edition (September 1, 2007) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1599900513 
ISBN-13: 978-1599900513

MY THOUGHTS:  New author for me.  I'll be looking into some of the authors other books.  This written in diary form.  Dashti is writing the story of her time with Lady Saren.  From the time they are locked in the tower, to their travels to a new land after theirs is destroyed.  It is full of heartache and romance.  With a very wonderful ending that makes you believe LOVE conquers all.  I give this book 5.....

 




This book is for 4 of my reading challenges.......
Epistolary Challenge
Library Love Challenge
Outdo Yourself Challenge 
Try Something New Challenge

BOOK REPORT....V IS FOR VENGEANCE

V is for Vengeance - Sue Grafton

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Private detective Kinsey Millhone feels a bit out of place in any department store's lingerie section, but she's entirely in her element when she puts a stop to a brazen shoplifting spree. For her trouble she nearly gets run over in the parking lot by one of the fleeing thieves—and later learns that the one who didn't get away has been found dead in an apparent suicide. But Audrey Vance's grieving fiance suspects murder and hires Kinsey to investigate a case that will reveal a big story behind a small crime and lead her into a web that connects a shadowy “private banker,” an angry trophy wife, a spoiled kid with a spiraling addiction, and a brutal killer without a conscience... 
Series: A Kinsey Millhone Novel (Book 22) 
Hardcover: 448 pages 
Publisher: Marian Wood Books/Putnam; First Edition edition (November 14, 2011) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0399157867 
ISBN-13: 978-0399157868

MY THOUGHTS:  Very good book, filled with lots of characters.  There are really 5 stories in this book.  Kinsey's job is to connect them all together to find murderer.  Plus there is a dirty cop involved, and a thief.  At first Kinsey can't see the shoplifter being murdered.  She starts digging and still can't find anything.  But Kinsey is the kind of person who doesn't give up.  Kinsey finally gets a clue about a shoplifting ring and runs with it.  The five stories in the book are all inter-connected with this ring.  Does Kinsey catch the murderer and break up the shoplifting ring?  Read the book....it's really a good one.  I give this book 5.......

This book is for 4 of my reading challenges.......
Read The Rainbow Challenge
Alphabet Soup Challenge
Library Love Challenge
Outdo Yourself Challenge

Blog Hopping......again.....

I started at Susan's place, Yellow Flower Meadow, and ended up at Heather's Stitching Lotus, which sent me to Heather's Smalls SAL 2018.  I used to do Cross Stitch a lot.  Put quit for some reason...I've been wanting to start again, I figured this would be a good one to get started.  What is the Smalls SAL?

The Smalls SAL is a very low pressure SAL. All you need to do is stitch a small design every month and then head over to my blog on the last Friday of the month to share a link to your blog post where you share a picture of your finish. If you don’t manage to finish something one month, or two or three months, that’s no problem. Participate whenever you can.

So if you cross stitch, hop over and check it out.  I'll be picking up a kit this weekend.  

ONE MONTHLY GOAL......

I've been trying to get some of my Quilt UFO's under control.  So I've joined Patty over at Elm Street Quilts for OMG(One Monthly Goal). 

Select ONE of your creative goals for the month that uses fabric, thread and / or yarn.  This could be to make a few blocks. cutting fabric for a project, sewing on a binding, or finish a quilt top.  Any goal that involves a step in the process of making with thread, fabric or yarn is a valid goal.

 

My goal for January was to sandwich 3 quilts.  Well, that didn't happen.  There were several problems I ran into this month.  

!. I ran out of fabric for the backing and didn't make it to Joann's for more muslin. 

2. We had frozen water lines...had to run new ones.

3. The washer broke...had to buy a new washer.....and had a week's worth of laundry to do...

But, the good news is I actually got 2 of the 3 quilts sandwiched.  The Easter Quilt is in my hoop ready to be tied.

I also got the 4th of July quilt sandwiched.

Both quilts are small.  The 4th of July quilt is laying on a twin bed.  The Easter quilt is about half that size.  I'll be making a trip to Joann's for muslin this weekend, so am hoping I can get the 3rd quilt sandwiched this weekend.  It is my Spring Quilt and is about the same size of the 4th of July Quilt.
Hope you all have a.......

TAST....DETACHED CHAIN STITCH

The stitch for TAST this week is # 4....Detached Chain Stitch....or more commonly called Lazy Daisy Stitch.  This is my Detached Chain Stitch.....

Piggy 4....
My detached chain stitch has been turned into flowers.  The piggy looks like he's eating them.  Want to know more.... head over to Sharon's place....Pintangle.  She has lots of embroidery stitches to learn and lots of other stuff to see.  You can also go to the group, Take a Stitch Tuesday,  at Facebook and see all the things people are sharing.

EMBROIDERY AND QUILTING......

TAST - Take A Stitch Tuesday - Pintangle
TUSAL - Totally Useless Stitch A Long - It's Daffycat

Take A Stitch Tuesday is learning embroidery stitches.  Sharon is the host.  She gives an embroidery stitch every Tuesday for you work on.  This weeks stitch was the Fly Stitch.  This is my Fly Stitch.....

Piggy 3...the Fly Stitch is at the bottom of the pig.

Totally Useless Stitch A Long is saving all those clipping from threads and filling a jar, box bowl or how ever you want to save them.  Daffycat is the host.  I did quite a bit of embroidery this month, mostly on the pig and some on the pillowcase, which got one done.  This is my ORT's for January.....

I picked up a Ball Jar and started filling it.  So I really need to dump this out and wash the jar, it looks rather messy at the moment.

Slow Sunday Stitching - hosted by Kathy
I also got my Easter Quilt sandwiched and in the hoop.  I'll start tying it today.  This is my hoop on a stand.  I use it to tie my quilts.  My mom got this for me for Christmas one year.....a lot of years ago.

 This week Kathy is having a photo challenge for Slow Sunday Stitching.  It's all about hoops.  I have one 8" hoop I use the most, but at the moment the outside ring has come up missing...searched but haven't found it yet...but I will, if I have to tear the house apart. lol

This is the hoop I'm using now, I don't like the bigger hoops much, as I can't get my fingers behind the fabric to feel what I'm doing...does that make sense to anyone???

I was blog hoping and found this awesome project to work on.  While hoping off of Slow Sunday Stitching to Quilting by the sea, I came across a 365 Project.  You can check it out over at Ashley's place.  She put buttons and stitches in a 10" embroidery hoop.  You have to see the finished project to appreciate it.  I have been looking for something I can work on all year.  So I think I'm going to hop on this challenge.  Have to make a run to Hobby Lobby to get a hoop and some buttons.  So I'll be starting mine either tomorrow or Tuesday.  I'll update once a week to let everyone see how it's coming along.
Hope you all have......