Thursday, August 20, 2015

Let's Get Crafty!


Great news! We are delighted to bring you a series of kits to bring a little DIY to the library! Are you interested in learning how to knit or crochet? The library has new kits (two knitting, two crochet) that you can check out - so you can try it out before spending time and money gathering supplies and tools. Each kit contains a set of needles, a book, and a DVD that must be returned with the kit; users supply their own yarn. Now that you are armed with the tools, there are no more excuses!  Let's get out there, and get crafty!

Generous funding from the Friends of Somers Library made these purchases possible, and we hope to add more of these types of kits in the future. Don't forget to check out our supply of Wilson cake pans that are also available to borrow!

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Quilting Books @Your Library

Over the last several years there have been quite a few new quilt books published. They cover everything from using pre-cut fabrics, which cover topics, such as jelly rolls, layer cakes, fat quarters to short biographies about current quilters and the design of their studios. There never seems to be a shortage of books with patterns that are traditional, traditional with a twist, vintage, modern, vintage modern, applique, machine applique, scrappy, mini, foundation or paper pieced. And all those categories just describe the piecing of the fabrics for the quilt top, not the actual quilting of the three layers; referred to as the quilt sandwich!! So without making you wait until the International Quilt Festival in Houston, at end of October, below is a list of good quilt books.

For Keeps: Meaningful Patchwork for Everyday Living, by Amy Gibson.

Savor Each Stitch: Studio Quilting with Mindful Design, by Carolyn Friedlander.

By The Block: 18 Surprisingly Simple Quilts, Siobhan Rogers.

Lucky Spool’s Essential Guide to Modern Quilt Making: From Color to Quilting: 10 Design Workshops by Your Favorite Teachers, by The Editors of Lucky Spool.

Quilts! Quilts!! Quilts!!! The Complete Guide to Quiltmaking by Diana McClun and Laura Nownes.

Vintage Quilt Revival: 22 Modern Designs From Classic Blocks, by Kate Clarke Blakesley, Lee Heinrich and Faith Jones.

Quilters, Their Quilts, Their Studios, Their Stories: With Access to More Than 80 Online Quilt Patterns, by Jo Packham.

Kaffe Fassett's Quilt Romance: 20 Designs From Rowan for Patchwork Quilting, by Kaffe Fassett.

Quilting with a Modern Slant: People, Patterns and Techniques Inspiring The Modern Quilt Community, by Rachel May.

Beyond Neutral: Quilts Inspired by Nature's Elements, by John Q. Adams.

Jelly Roll Inspirations, by Pam Lintott.

Layer Cake, Jelly Roll & Charm Quilts by Pam Lintott.

101 Fabulous Rotary-Cut Quilts, by Judy Hopkins and Nancy J. Martin.

Denyse Schmidt: Modern Quilts, Traditional Inspiration: 20 New Designs with Historic Roots, by Denyse Schmidt.

Quilts Galore! Quiltmaking Styles and Techniques,  by Diana McClun & Laura Nownes.

Little Quilts: 15 Step-by-Step Projects for Adorably Small Quilts by Sarah Fielke and Amy Lobsiger.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Pinterest

If you haven't already seen our boards on Pinterest, or are looking for something to read, check out our Pinterest boards. With over 230 book-related boards (and growing), all of our boards have been organized by topic. Each board contains approximately fifty to one-hundred pictures of books. Clicking on any particular cover twice will take you to the source where the picture came from, and there you can read a brief description of that book. So next time you are looking for your next great read, check us out on Pinterest. Over 41,000+ people are already following us and getting great book recommendations!