Book Read and Quilt Done

I finished the book...I think we all have.  And I finished my quilt.

My quilt is small.  It is going to be an AAQI quilt.  In the book, Nell is re-proposed to by the Hudson river.  This is also the spot she goes to to sit on the rock and think.

I machine pieced the background and hand appliqued the tree, leaves and rock.  I also hand quilted my little quilt. 

I look forward to seeing what everyone else is working on.

Hugs, Cathy

Progress

I have been making slow progress on my quilt.  I made the stems out of a red, green, and white paisley.  I wanted the stems to be like a transition from the red "blood" stain to the cream of the new wall paint.  I have started putting the flowers on, but I am just learning how to applique and they are going very slowly.  I added the border to tie in the leaves.  So far, I am pretty happy with where it is going.

How are the rest of you doing?

Starting my quilt

I spent some time today working on my quilt for the book.  I was struck by how the death of one person helped free Nell from her old life to begin anew.  I was also struck by Eleanor's attachment to the quilts of her former teacher and mentor.  I built some fabric for the background of my quilt.  The red represents the death.  I wanted it to look like a stain on a quilt like the one in the book.  Out of this stain will grow beautiful flowers to represent the new life Nell and Eleanor are headed toward.  I know the flowers will be applique but I am still deciding on applique or embroidery for the stems.  The background piece is 15" x 15".  I will probably put a border around it before I quilt it.  I will post my progress as it happens.

Finished it a couple times over

I tend to get engrossed in stories and miss important details. So in order to make sure I've got all the important information, I made sure to read this one a couple times. I believe I've decided on what I want to do with my quilt. It might take me a while, I've never designed one like this before. I am thinking about doing a maze with arrows.  Arrows will represent the "archers",  in the center of the quilt, I'm going to put a panel with a "garden" on it and have that represent the "rest".  The maze is going to represent the complex twists that Nell has to figure out in order to solve the mystery.  Opinions?  Pretty sure I'm going to stick with mostly neutrals and small pops of color.

Enjoyed the book

I finished the book and read the next one in the series, A Drunkard's Path. I'm waiting on the next one, The Double Cross, from the library. It's fun to read and try to figure out a quilt based on the book. I'm keeping pen and paper close by as I read.

I finished the book

I made some time this afternoon, after finishing up some friendship stars, to finish the book.  I am not sure who has finished and who has not, so I won't give away the ending.  I did find so many interesting things about quilting and the philosophy of quilting as I was reading.  I was really struck on page 195 when Natalie explained why quilting helped her deal with stresses of everyday life.  She says:

Nancy says it's a right brain, left brain activity . . . . .There's a lot of math and figuring out patterns and amounts of fabrics, so that's one side, then the other is taken up with the whole creative process.  So when you're quilting, you are completely involved it it.  There's no space in your brain left over for worrying about your problems.

I find that is so true?  How about the rest of you?
I am toying with a couple of ideas for my quilt.  It will be a small wall hanging I think.  I really like the idea of a watercolor style quilt with some applique, only using solids instead of florals.  I will have to sketch my ideas out and see how it works out.

I would love to hear from the rest of you.  How are you enjoying the book?  Do you have quilt ideas?  Congrats to Cathy for being the first one done.

I Finished the Book!

It was an easy read.  I was surprised how fast I finished it.  I'm looking forward to see what mischief Nell will get into in the future.  Her grandmother Eleanor is one cool lady.  I hope everyone is enjoying the book.

Since I finished the book, I decided to start my quilt.

I sewed the background and then placed the pieces to be appliqued on the background.  I took a picture so I can place the leaves in the right spot.  Do you know where this is.....I will tell you after you've read the book.  But if you think you know, let me know.

This quilt is killing two birds with one quilt.  I made it small so it will also be an AAQI quilt.

Hugs, Cathy

Find out more about Clare O'Donohue

I spent a little time reading the author's website and blog, Clare O'Donohue: Author, and discovered some interesting things.  First, and most importantly, she is a quilter.  I think I could tell that by the way she describes the quilts.  Secondly, Archer's Rest is based on a real town set between the Hudson River and a cemetary - Sleepy Hollow, New York.  Above is the cemetary, and below is part of the town.

Another tell that the author is a quilter can be found on the bottom of page 25 of Lover's Knot.

"With every quilt you make you have a picture in your mind of what it should be,"  Bernie continued.   "Then you start.  You pick fabrics, you cut the fabrics, you sew the pieces together.  All along there are compromises, mistakes, inspirations.  When it works, then you are truly holding your dreams in your hands.  When it doesn't . . ."  She shrugged.

This is very true for me.  What about the rest of you?

I've got it, finally

I was so excited to find the book in my mailbox today.  I have read the first three chapters, and I am enjoying getting to know the characters.  So far, I find Eleanor to be the kind of grandmother I can relate to.  I have hopes that Nell will develop into an interesting protagonist. 
O'Donohue's writing style is very straight forward.  She describes the settings in a no-nonsense way.  It is when she describes the quilts that I think her descriptive writing shines so far.  I have a feeling this will be a fairly quick read for me.  Then I can start designing the quilt.

Yay!! My book finally arrived!

I'll be playing catch up, now! But with a holiday weekend, maybe I can do it!

It does seem to be a quick read, as others have said, and I'm enjoying learning about the characters. So far, I find Eleanor appealing; unless she surprises me down the road, I think she is someone I would love to know (and have as a quilting buddy!).

Jacque
aka Snoodles