BOOKS!

Some of the sewing and quilting books in my collection

So since September I've been taking a break from sewing or any creating, really.  I have been on a reading jag!  Like many of you, I'm sure, there is limited free time in the day.  I find that my leisure activities go in spurts.  I sew for awhile, then draw for awhile, then read for awhile.  If I'm reading, then my free time is used for that rather than sewing.  But I do find that the reading I am doing inspires my creative endeavors, and refreshes me, so that when I come back to creating again I am excited to get going.

The last book I read was Barbara Kingsolver's Flight Behavior.  This was a lovely book to read and I learned a lot about the Monarch butterflies while following the story of Dellarobia.  If you also like to read I recommend this book.  The writing is well done and the author has a degree in biology which infuses her work with wonderful biological information.

Now I feel the desire to sew percolating again, and I have a few sewing books to share with you.  I have been looking at these books on Amazon and considering ordering.  They are inspiring me to head into the sewing room.

The first is Modern Holiday by Amanda Murphy. I love the quilt and those trees on the cover. I am partial to Christmas things in non-trad colors, so that is part of the appeal for me.

Next up is Amy Butler's Style Stitches. I am an unabashed Amy Butler fan and loved her earlier book Stitches.  The first quilt I ever made was from a pattern in that book. I love the bags in this one.

Quilt A New Christmas by Piece O Cake Designs also grabs me.  I MUST have color - bright color - and I also love lots of pattern so things by this design duo are right up my alley.  I have never made one of their designs - I am one who always does my own thing and flies by the seat of my pants, but I LOVE their work for inspiration!

And last but not least we have Scandinavian Stitches by Kajka Wikman. I could drool over this cover for hours!  The color! The whimsy! The folk art feel! Really inspires me to get sewing.

Do you find inspiration in books and reading?  What refreshes you when you need a break from creating?