Valerean

The Curse of Penryth Hall by Jess Armstrong is a debut mystery novel I spotted on a bargain books table at B. Dalton in Oviedo last month. Since I'm not a fan of first books I tend to pass these by and wait for the author to get some experience before I try them. First books are usually over-written or chock full of too many ideas, rest somewhere around the borderline of professional writing, and are often so terribly earnest that they're painful for me to read. Please understand, I am not a conceited snob -- my own first published novel was just as bad, and to this day I can't reread my own debut. Yet I love a good curse story, so on impulse I decided to give it a try (the discounted price definitely factored in, too.) I had no reason to regret the purchase, turns out, as the book is very well-written for a debut novel. The deft text, interesting protagonist and somewhat brooding/paganish/haunted storyline were excellent, and I remained completely absorbed to...

I'm still spinning my wheels as far as the design for my August tote goes, but while we were out thrifting I spotted this huge bundle of sewing fabric And thought "instant challenge." What if I have to use only fabric from the bundle to make my tote for the calendar project? That's also something I do a lot -- use fabric that someone else provides or chooses to make something -- and it gave my enthusiasm a serious boost. The bundle turned out to be so large I'll have to show you all the fabric in two pics. Here's half, with a salsa/chili novelty print that is adorable, a coffee print I've used in the past and loved, a cute and vibrant bug print, and even some upholstery samples. Second pic. Most of the prints are at least a yard long. There's a lovely finished cross stitch piece, and the linens and lace butterfly are just as pretty. I don't often work with novelty prints so this is a good pile to use as a challenge for this month...

I had remarkable good luck thrifting clothes last weekend; I was looking for jeans and white or light t-shirts, and scored these three finds. The jeans still had the store tags on them; they've never been worn. Blue tags were also half off the day I went, so I got the jeans for $5.99. The white t-shirt was also half off at $2.99, and the blue sewing machine t-shirt was $4.19. I added a round-up donation, and paid $14.00 for everything. Here's my receipt.

While I was on vacation last month my guy and I visited the Dunlawton Sugar Mill Ruins and Botanical Gardens in Port Orange. This is a fascinating place that provided a glimpse of early 19th century Florida. The botanical gardens were amazing, too. To walk around the place with us, check out my album of pics here .

My ancient ironing board (which I thrifted) is coming to the end of its long life; the locking latch isn't working as it should and I will definitely need a new one in the near future. During our last visit to IKEA I noticed this tabletop ironing board for $9.99, and grabbed it. It's very lightweight, and not particularly heavily padded, but I prefer that. It also comes with a built-in hook for hanging, which is frankly brilliant. The tabletop design is appropriate for light items or piecework like quilters do. At 28-¾" x 12-½" it's not going to handle huge items, but for everyday ironing it's perfect. The fact that I can hang it on the side of my sewing room bookcase is even better. Recommended.

I have not enjoyed a summer vacation as much as this one in a long time. Not only did I get to spend sixteen days with my daughter, but I celebrated my birthday in a beautiful place and got to do so many fun things. On the last day my guy and I went to the beach to walk and bask in the sun and wind down from a busy but happy vacation. I do like lake country a lot, but I'll always be a beach girl at heart. There's something about the salt air and watching the waves that soothes my soul. Before we left we walked the pier, where a bunch of fisherman were trying to catch something bigger chasing the schools of shiners (the wee little fish on the pier in the pic) that had come in close to shore. We watched a flock of pelicans diving for their lunch and it was one of those unexpected, spectacular sights that you often experience by the sea. Perfect day, perfect end to a lovely summer vacation.

My lot of three quilting books arrived, let's see if they were worth what I paid. All three books are in pristine condition, and chock full of ideas for making bags and small quilted projects. The projects are beautiful; here's one from bags book. These projects are interpreted from quilting traditionally done in different countries. I love the crazy quilt book, which not only details how to make the projects, but offers stitch maps for the embroidery involved. Smaller projects are more doable for me now, so I'll like find a lot of inspiration from the Japanese quilting book. Let's look at the numbers. Japanese Quilting Piece by Piece by Yoko Saito retails for $32.99. Foolproof Crazy Quilt Projects by Jennifer Clouston costs $27.95 to buy new. Yoko Saito's Bags for Everyday Use appears to be out of print and runs around $44.72 for the cheapest used edition. I'd pay $105.66 retail total for all three, so paying twelve bucks for the lot...