Thursday, October 18, 2012

My first book review

I believe I have promised you guys a book review, right? One that I'm EXTREMELY nervous to write, mainly because I don't want to do it the wrong way. But, I figure the main thing about a review is giving your opinion of the item being reviewed. Right?
 I sure hope so, cuz that's how I'm going to be doing this. I have read this book literally from cover to cover over the past few days, figured why not, I was so sick I could barely get out of my bed. I tried to make good use of my time!


The book I'm going to be reviewing is Pretty in Patchwork Holidays by John Adams of Quilt Dad. He is an amazing quilter!!! And yes just like the cover says, there is really A LOT of projects in here!!!
Let me just give a littler bit of a DISCLAIMER here before I begin: I purchased this book with my own money, I am NOT being paid in ANY FORM OR FASHION to write this review, therefore I have NO OBLIGATION to say ANYTHING good nor bad about this book, Everything written here is directly from ME! It's my thoughts and opinions of this book. Period. No one else's!!

So, I will begin at where else? The beginning!!! John starts off with a chapter on "The Basics", here he gives us all a brief explanation of, well, the basics of quilting in general. He even goes into some embroidery!!! The only thing that I found I didn't like about this book was this chapter. The main reason I didn't like it is because while it is "beginner friendly" it's not too "beginner friendly". If you are planning to make a quilt from this book, you need to have a basic knowledge of quilting. He really explains everything quite well except for the binding part. To me, binding is EXTREMELY important. It's what finishes a quilt. He doesn't explain it too well. But again, this is MY OPINION!

This book has A LOT of great projects in it! This pillow case called "Read Between the Lines" is just adorable!!! And it even has the "how-to" on how to do EVERY letter in the alphabet, so you can personalize it HOWEVER you want! I think it's a great idea! It is for sure on my "To-Do" list!
From pillows to quilts to ornaments and table runners this book really does have something in it for just about any quilter out there! And the best thing is, there are variations in this book for every project so you don't HAVE to make the project Holiday at all!!! Pretty cool, huh?

Ahhh, the Modern Maples quilt!! I've seen SOOOO MANY of these around, especially on IG. This is my favorite quilt in this book. And you can really make it any size you want, just have to do your own calculations to make bigger than a 59"x70" quilt (which to me is a generous throw size). So, if any of y'all had been wondering where to get this pattern, now ya know! It's in this book!!!! I love it!!!
These are a great idea for a gift bag! Especially for handmade items. I'm sure you could tweak those measurements around and make them as big or small as you need them for ANY gift! Plus like the book says, they are a gift all in itself! John gives us the pattern to make either bag, but really your imagination could take over and you could do whatever you wanted with the front of it!
I think this project is my favorite! This table runner is just adorable! I am almost positive I'll be making this as my first project out of this book! I wish I could start on it right now, but, my to-do list is already big enough for the time being! I just love it though!
And for your last sneak peak into the book I'll show you an ADORABLE wall hanging!

I know the glare of my light makes it hard to see but it's got some embroidery on there! "Home Sqaush Home" cute huh?
So in my opinion there is a TON of really cute projects in here and I really can't wait to make EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM! I know that won't be any time soon, but hey, a girl can dream right? I could make little mug rugs for the adults and softies for the kids. Or I could just make really cute little ornaments for EVERYONE? The possibilities are endless with this book! Yes, it does say "Holidays" in the title but if your one of those "bah hum bug" peoples and the holidays isn't really your style, this really does have TONS of options for you! I'm very glad with my purchase. I have a lot of ideas boiling in my head and projects on my "hope to get done" list from this book! I didn't want to spoil the book and give you too many previews. But if I had to say "yes go buy this book" or "no don't buy it" I would say "BUY IT!"
And right now, you can find it here for a GREAT price! So yes, go ahead! My opinion is this book was very well thought out and put together, and has a lot of inspiring projects for anyone! Not just beginners! So if you are reading this Mr. John Adams, I hope you are happy with this post, because I really do LOVE your book! You worked with some amazingly talented people to put this together and I can really tell that you put your heart into making this the best book you possibly could! Thank you!



Alright, so what do you think of my first review? Please leave me a comment and let me know. Did I do good or bad? What would you change, or not change? You won't hurt my feelings, I promise!!! Constructive criticism is better than none!!! I hope you guys really do enjoy the book!!!!

~Hope y'all are having a great day!!~

4 comments:

✾Jamie Lee Cooley✾ said...

Great review, I like that you were honest and since this wasn't sponsored you could be truthful. I like the photos you shared. The home squash home is so cute!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the review~ makes me want to go and get the book! I also appreciate your honesty. And I do love your comments about what you've gleaned by reading it and what you'd try.
I've been following Quilt Dad's blog for a couple of years and am glad to see that he has a book...


Jan said...

This is actually a very good, honest, and helpful review. I don't purchase many quilt books, I'm a huge reader and usually buy novels or memoirs; but based on your fair review, I might get this one.

barbara woods said...

you did good!!