End of October: Fabric Use and Book Recommendations

Fabricwise, it was a good month.

Though two yards of fabric came into my stash - one yard of black and white stripe, and one yard of lime solid - I made seven Christmas gifts (can't share those), and pieced two quilt backs. 

These backs have already been sandwiched and pin-basted, ready for my domestic machine quilting.

In the process of making quilt sandwiches, I discovered that I'm now completely out of useable-sized batting. These two quilt sandwiches were pieced. Batting for Sunny was pieced from five smaller pieces of Quilter's Dream Cotton Request; batting for Modern Maze was only two pieces.

Though it's a bit difficult to see, to join battings I cut a wavy line through two overlapping pieces. The curve is so that the join isn't apparent; a straight line might be more obvious on the outside of the quilt. Then I remove excess batting and hand stitch the curves together. 

It takes considerable time to herringbone hand stitch but the result gives me the same feeling I have when I piece a quilt back - I'm using up everything. 

This is the back of Modern Maze quilt (right side of photo above) that will be donated. Piecing this used 2.7 yards of fabric.

This back is on Sunny, the foundation paper pieced quilt I worked on - on and off - for 25 months. Piecing this used 3.9 yards of fabric.

When piecing quilt backs, I'm trying very hard to use only print fabrics, and not use fabrics from my solids stash. I'm saving those for modern quilt fronts.

Outgoing fabric was basically 5 yards, with the net (after two yards were added) being 3 yards out of my stash.

Book Recommendations

I listened to seven audiobooks this month, including two titles I consider classics - Dracula (published in 1897) and Fahrenheit 451 (published in 1953). 

In order, out of a possible 5.0, these are my personal scores for each title. 

• 4.5 - The Lumber Baron's Wife, Lynn Austin
• 4.5 - A Rose in Winter, Kathleen E. Woodiwiss (published in 1982)
• 4.4 - Mad Mabel, Sally Hepworth
• 4.4 - Dracula, Bram Stoker (published 1897)
• 4.3 - Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury (published 1953)
• 4.2 - Road Trip, Mary Kay Andrews
• 4.2 - Yesteryear, Caro Claire Burke

I think I pretty much like everything written by Lynn Austin, though The Lumber Baron's Wife was especially good. I appreciate that her stories are clean and have an underlying theme about faith... though if you aren't a believer, her books still excel. 

This story takes place in 1873 when felling trees in Michigan was making millionaires out of dozens of men. In New York City Hannah and her doctor husband have suffered a huge loss and need a new start, so when war friend and lumber baron Henry and his new young wife Kate invite them to their booming Michigan community, it seems like an opportunity for a new start. Meanwhile, in the present day, newlywed Ashley moves with her husband to Michigan where he's taken a job in forest conservation. Ashley hopes she can find work in her field of passion - historic conservation. When she learns of the 1873 mysterious disappearance of Kate, she hopes to find the answer.

Ahh... Kathleen Woodiwiss. Who doesn't remember when her first romantic novels were published? I was a young mother then, and found total escapism in several titles I read.

Ms. Woodiwiss is considered the pioneer of historical romance when her first book The Flame and the Flower was published in 1972. Though I read the book shortly after it came out, I haven't been able to find it in audiobook format. 

It's 1750, and Erienne is living in the small town of Mabry. She's the daughter of the mayor, and brother to a drunkard. Money (for drinking and gambling) is tight, so the mayor determines to sell Erienne as a wife to the highest bidder, though he forbids Christopher Seton to purchase her. The dashing Christopher sets every woman's heart afire, but he has eyes only for the beautiful Erienne. What kind of scheming will it take for him to win her for himself?

While I did read A Rose in Winter back when... I didn't remember the story at all. I found it delightful, though the number of lustful men who scheme to ravish pretty women is a bit scary. 

Sally Hepworth is at it again with Mad Mabel. It's another engaging book, this time about 81 year-old Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick and her annoyingly delightful neighbor, 7 year-old Persephone and her mother. While Mabel has a history she's not sharing, behind her curmudgeonly exterior is a heart of gold. Mabel has been treated unfairly most of her life, having served time in prison as Australia's youngest convicted murderer. Two podcasters are now getting her to tell her story.

I thoroughly enjoyed conversations between grumpy Mabel and chatty Persephone. Their relationship turned into something very touching. 

Dracula... what can I say but, "Read it." I had never read the book, depending only on movies to understand Dracula. The book is good, and as a blog commenter stated... very scary! 

Mr. Stoker uses letters and journals as the means of conveying this story. Though I found some of the language archaic, and would pause the audiobook to look up a word's meaning, it was definitely an engaging story. Dracula was very subtle in his movements and identities, always watching for an unsuspecting woman or child to quench his thirst for blood - the elixir that made him younger. It takes a two women and a group of highly educated men to figure out who he his and what he's doing. 

Fahrenheit 451 is the name of a crew of firemen whose job it is to burn books and the houses of those who dare try to keep and hide them.

In this futuristic dystopian world, everyone must conform. No original thinking is needed when life can be played out on screens or by taking sleep-and-dream pills - all designed to keep one's life bland and calm. When fireman Guy Montag has a brief conversation with a young girl, Clarisse, who later disappears, he begins to question his own views, and what his firehouse boss says about the evils of knowledge. 

Road Trip by Mary Kay Andrews is about American sisters Maeve and Therese whose mother has just died in Savannah, Georgia. Their mother's greatest wish is that the sisters, who don't get along, go to Ireland to learn about their family history and the story behind a portrait that has been hanging in their home for years. Is it real? Or a fake? While in Ireland, they encounter interesting people, one of whom creates an unexpected situation for the sisters. 

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke takes an eye-opening look at the life of a social media influencer, Natalie, who lives on a farm with her cowboy husband. They're raising their four home-schooled children (she's pregnant again), raising their own meat, growing their own food, and baking bread. But a producer and a filmographer and a nanny or two behind the scenes are making their life look idyllic. When Natalie's mind starts to fall apart, the truer dark side of her life settles-in, and the realization of what this is doing to her family becomes apparent.

I'll mention that a couple of the audiobooks are long listens:

• Dracula is 16 hours, and 
• A Rose in Winter is 22 hours

But no regrets! I was well-entertained this month. 

Nancy, a blogger-friend in Minnesota commented in my previous post that she wanted to see my recently-finished knitted Easy Shawl being modeled.

I like it with the dress I made the shawl to go with. Also, my grandmother's brooch - a pair of fall leaves - suits it too. Thank you for asking, Nancy! Linda