quilty sewing - what is that?

Since my last post, I don't think I've sewn anything quilty!  If it wasn't for the cat rescue sewing, I might have forgotten how to use my sewing machine, but not to worry, the ginormous stack of fabrics is getting smaller.

Salem would like to take you on a trip down memory lane with this Laura Ashley-like fabric that was in the donation.  I remember the days of these long dresses in large florals, sometimes with large bows tied just above our behinds, but maybe not too fondly, since I'm not much into the girly stuff!  Salem, however, is very gentle and sweet, so perhaps this suits her better?

When they aren't "helping," the kitties can be found snoozing on this sofa-chair in the sewing room.  Usually there's at least one cat, sometimes as many as four, gracing this soft landing spot.  It works nicely for me, too, as they're out of the way.

Salem would also like to show you this very pretty blue fabric.  It is one of my favorite colors and was a hard one not to squirrel away into my stash.  But it's meant for the kitties, so it gets used for the kitties.  (And really, I don't need any more stash!)

Lily also "helps" with fabrics and ironing and whatnot, but she is embracing her goblin phase of life, and rarely sits still long enough for me to even snap a photo if I was ready, never mind having to get up and pick up the phone and get it unlocked and the camera app open.  So you mostly will see her when she is sleeping.  I love her kitten curiosity and craziness, but I do look forward to the goblin phase ending.

Finn, Freddie and Toby also supervise, but they're older and much less crazy, so mostly they just steal my chair, lay on the floor behind the chair so I can't move it, or sleep on the chair/sofa.  (I sit there sometimes, too, and read, which means I have a pile of cats helping, but snuggles are okay.)

Since the carrier covers aren't very interesting to show, no photos of anything finished there, but trust me, I'm making a lot of them!

What I do have to show is my annual 4th of July book sale haul!

The sale is still being divided up into smaller sales throughout the year, and this year they've let members of the friends of the library group shop on the day before, but I still found a lot that seem to have potential.  Nothing on my "want to read" list, but I learned a LOOOONG time ago that this was not the place to show up with a list.

34 books in all, which is a few more than I anticipated, but they all (just barely) fit on my cart where they're stored until I read them, so all is well.

And the reading of books is where Gabby excels.  She is VERY good at destroying bookmarks.  I have to hide them from her, or she snags them and hooks a claw into them and then tears them apart with her teeth.  I think she's part gerbil (though her method is probably more carnivore).

This weekend a new bookstore will be opening in my little town and I'm excited.  They'll have new and used books and maybe I'll allow myself to splurge on a new book every so often to help support them?  (Perhaps if they have gift cards, this could be where I direct family who don't know what to get me for birthday and holidays...Barnes and Noble is great because you can get just about anything online, but local is great for a whole other set of reasons...)

Time to get back to the sewing - or reading?

Happy quilting (and sewing and reading and cat snuggling),

Katie