Quilts and Books

Back in January, modern quilter Elizabeth Hartman showed off a pattern she was working on , called Aviatrix Medallion. It didn't really catch my attention, though, until in March she showed a version done in Kona Solids , with this as the center medallion: (You can view the full quilt here , and I encourage you to look. It's a remarkable collection of traditional blocks turned into a stunning modern quilt.) As you can see from the picture above, the color shadings turn a lone star block into birds pointing toward the center. I've never seen this pattern before, but Hartman said it's a traditional pattern called Doves in the Window. When she published it, I purchased the pattern. To be honest, I found the whole quilt rather busy, but I was determined to make the center medallion, at least as a wall hanging. In April Hartman announced she would be making another version of the quilt and she encouraged her blog followers to make it along with her. The quilt-along...

This is my first TBR post since November. I am totally cheating. This month's theme is RITA . Susan Wiggs has won 3 RITAs. This book was published June 24, so it's been on no one's TBR for more than 3 weeks. But it was due back at the library yesterday, so I had to read it and return it lest I start wracking up fines. My library TBR pile is often a delicate dance between books I have to read right away and books I can renew. And that doesn't take into account the books I own and would like to read. Anyhow, my library has started this interesting program called "Quick Picks." In an effort to attract people back into the library, high-interest books are made available only to walk-in patrons. If you get lucky you can by-pass the reserve lists, but there is no renewal. The program has only been in place a month and I go over a couple of times a week to check what's on the Quick Pick shelf (the library is only 200 yards from the back door of the law li...