tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70287687153244595022024-02-18T19:32:00.749-08:00Moonwishes Reads and ReviewsA blog about reading books, reviewing books, collecting books, buying books, and selling books. For book lovers to share in my reading joy.
Now including product reviews. I'm happy to give honest reviews of many products. Email me to ask if your product is appropriate for me to review.Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.comBlogger108125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-9027400712511670692017-02-08T18:22:00.002-08:002017-02-08T18:28:24.724-08:00Rice Bags for Hot and Cold Packs<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2d2bpGV9MvXds0pnPzXUap7etYBIi6FUUTMsySAlDLj-nHGM0FWIWpThJggkXIxId11RBhLO2FwsKhu5chAXj-Mh4QO3yZs31m256kR3d5yRIL5ciV0ANB2_Cqapv14HutEbPPv_Vl05T/s1600/Rice+Bags+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2d2bpGV9MvXds0pnPzXUap7etYBIi6FUUTMsySAlDLj-nHGM0FWIWpThJggkXIxId11RBhLO2FwsKhu5chAXj-Mh4QO3yZs31m256kR3d5yRIL5ciV0ANB2_Cqapv14HutEbPPv_Vl05T/s320/Rice+Bags+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">This is a review I did for Amazon's Vine program for some <a href="http://amzn.to/2lpYZ3k">washcloths.</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The minute I saw these washcloths as available for a Vine
pick, I wanted them. Not because I needed washcloths as such, but because THESE
washcloths had evenly spaced channels down them. I make rice bags for myself
and family members for all our various aches and pains. Rice bags can be heated
in the microwave (cautiously!) or put in the freezer for cold packs. They can
be made in any size or shape, but the easiest and most efficient that I have
found is to make them with washcloths. Generally, when making them I should
measure out the spaces since you can't just fill two washcloths together and
fill them with rice. With these already having the spacing, all I had to do was
pin the channels in place, sewed down the channels with a triple thread stitch
for sturdiness, fill each channel with rise, and then sew up the top and you are
good to go. They make a nice practical, quick to make, if not a bit homely
gifts. Each rice bag takes around a pound of rice, being sure to leave space at
the top so you can flattened the end enough to sew the ends closed without
sewing over rice. For use in the microwave, until you are used to each bag and
how they respond to your microwave and its wattage, heat them for 30 second
increments checking on them as you go until they are very warm but NOT burning
hot. And yeas you can end up with problems when overheating them. Other than
maybe another layer of toweling wrapped around them during use to keep them
clean. Do NOT wrap them up in lots of towels etc. - ask me how I know this??
They can spontaneously combust if you heat them too hot and then wrap them up
too much. Be very careful using these with the elderly, children or those that
do not have good nerve sensation in their skin. You can just put them in the
freezer to use as ice packs when needed. Before a couple of knee replacements,
I made a whole bunch of them so I could keep rotating them. Besides the
warm/cold properties they also add some extra weight to the sore, achy spot
which in itself can help remove some of the pain. I've gone through 4 knee
surgeries as well as suffer with arthritis and I don't know how I could have
gotten through the surgeries without the constantly rotating cold packs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I'm sure they make good washcloths as well, but these won't
be used that way! And they come in other colors as well.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ3OuF89X72DZ0Ojo_wiWzNPzsnhKSEs7CaTLzoX1RmYV31_cvq5v-wNbwkMw_Tcrwnsfv14PB4de65jLiN5V6bkZjvINtw68mhe3f6CAlqjEep5X6fgopH1eBvO9G9qcZwZm0hsx_pHgx/s1600/Rice+Bags+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ3OuF89X72DZ0Ojo_wiWzNPzsnhKSEs7CaTLzoX1RmYV31_cvq5v-wNbwkMw_Tcrwnsfv14PB4de65jLiN5V6bkZjvINtw68mhe3f6CAlqjEep5X6fgopH1eBvO9G9qcZwZm0hsx_pHgx/s320/Rice+Bags+2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=moonwishesreads-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01KCPHOHE&asins=B01KCPHOHE&linkId=0b2ae932ffb2e4d539d1ac27afbe3616&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-8000341650328447662016-11-27T08:38:00.000-08:002016-11-27T08:38:52.637-08:00Magdalen Girls by V. S. Alexander<a href="http://amzn.to/2fBGcP6">Magdalen Girls</a> by V. S. Alexander, to be publishes December 27, 2016 by Kensington. ISBN <strong>ISBN-10:</strong> 1496706129 or <strong>ISBN-13:</strong> 978-1496706126. Paperback, Audio CD or Kindle e/Book. <br />
<br />
I had the privilege to read this book for the <a href="http://amzn.to/2foj7V8">Amazon</a> Vine program. If you are a frequent reader of my blog, you know I don't consider it a privilege to read a lot of the books from the Vine program as many of the newbie writers just aren't that good. Below is my review of <a href="http://amzn.to/2fBGcP6">Magdalen Girls</a>. <br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">From the first
sentence, I was immersed in this book. The book is based on the true happening
at places called Magdalen Laundries. Where girls if they were unwed, too
pretty, flirted too much, mentally challenged, etc. were sent to live and work
without due process of law. These laundries, many of them attached to convents,
were run in silence for the most part, cruel nuns, poor food, poor clothing,
inadequate heat and light and no education for girls that were still school
age. If one of them somehow managed to escape, the Guard/police (this book
taking place in Ireland) would find the girls/women and bring them back. New
girls coming to the laundry/convent were placed initially in a penitent’s room.
It contained a stool, no windows, no lights, complete blackness while the girl
contemplated her 'sins'. Note that for many of the girls, they may have done
nothing at all to be sent away, but had been trapped by what others had done to
them. </span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">This book covers a
little over a year in the life of three of the girls as they managed to make
friends with each other. One of the first things they had to give up on
admission was their own names and take on the ones assigned to them that were ‘Godlier’
apparently. Then they had to give up their hair as it was chopped short and
kept that way. They were given uniforms and aprons to wear with no variation.
Monica and Teresa spent every minute they could contemplating escape. Teresa (real
name Teagan) is the main character in the book had been caught up in a lie by
her parish priest. Monica (Nora) had been caught kissing her boyfriend. Some of
the women were 'fallen' in the traditional sense of the word, yet did they
deserve a life sentence washing dirty clothes because of it? Remember, these
young women were sent here at family’s requests, not by any legal means. They
were not released on their coming of legal age birthday, but had to stay there
until or if, and it was a very big IF, someone such as a family member came and
requested their released.</span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">This was a
fascinating story of the inner workings of the inner working of a fictionalized
Magdalen Laundry. If you would like more information about them, do an internet
search for Magdalen Laundries and I'm sure you will be very surprised. The
thing that surprised me the most, was not that this was happening in the
1860's, but the book took place in 1962! the last one closed in 1996. Some
women too old to live on their own and with no family left, and after having
spent their lives as inmates, are still living at the convents. A movie about
this has also been made that can be rented via Amazon. Actual copies seem hard
to find and expensive.</span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</o:p></span></span></div>
Many thoughts came my way as I read this book. The horror of it for one thing; that a girl can be happily be going to high school, starting in with a first boyfriend, and due to circumstances beyond their control find themselves locked away in a place such as these Magdalen Laundries....for the rest of their lives! One of the simple things that I find hard to comprehend while reading this book as well as the fictional Jane Eyre and others like them; was why were the cooks in these places always burning the toast, burning or undercooking the food constantly? Considering that many of these places emphasized frugality, why were they purposely wasting food or making it so terrible that no one would eat it. Wasn't it enough that the people are locked up and their freedom taken away, but they had to eat deliberately spoiled food? Why would any cook worth the name deliberately make food bad as an extra punishment? I talked to my Mennonite cleaning lady about this and she too was appalled at the thought of wasting food in that way by deliberately not cooking it correctly. It takes less effort to make toast without burning it than burning it intentionally. <br />
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Lousy food was just one way to poke these girls with a stick. They also were rarely allowed to talk to each other. In this book they slept in a unheated attic garret in winter and with only one window that could be opened in summer until the nuns nailed it shut. And they wore rags. This book, as I had to keep reminding myself, took place in 1962. These were teen aged girls that had grown to like pretty clothes and showing their personality through what they wore and how they did their hair. Not so at the laundries. They wore uniforms with an apron and their hair was kept super short with haircuts every two weeks to keep it that way. No way would or should these girls look desirable to any guy was the apparent reason. The whole idea of these laundries was awful; yet they or similar ones were operated around the world until the 1990's! Who knew?<br />
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-85311874238535306232016-11-12T06:17:00.000-08:002016-11-12T06:17:25.289-08:00Heat Press Batting Together Book-Build As You Go Machine Quilting This is a review for <em>Heat Press Batting Together Book-Build As You Go Machine Quilting</em> by Amy Smith and Jean Harwood <span id="titleEDPPlaceHolder"></span> <br />
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This book was more of a booklet than a book. I didn't realize just how few pages there would be. The only color photos were on the back and front cover of the booklet. The quilt on the front cover is in reality, a table runner and not nearly big (at least from the instructions measurements inside the book) as it looks. So if you think you will get a baby or twin size quilt if you make this, you would have to add more blocks to get it wide enough.<br />
<br />
ALL the illustrations inside the book were small black and white photos which made the steps difficult to see. For me doing a quilt as you go type quilt, literally means that! When you have finished the last block and attached it to the quilt, other than the binding, the quilt is done. In this case, once you have the quilt put together, then you add the entire backing and use machine stitches to tack it down so it will stay in place. I'm also hesitant to start a project that requires extra supplies that need to be bought whether at a store, if any of my local fabric or quilting stores have them, or buy them on line.<br />
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One thing I was hoping to see more of was the decorative stitches. This was sort of the case where like many quilt instructions end with a quilt as desired - period, the end. I would have liked to see some info on best stitches to use if you have them such as which looks better satin stitches or a single stitch decorative design. I realize fully that many don't have all the wonderful stitches that are available to use, but at this point, every book I have ever seen that talks about using the decorative stitches, just seems to do the decorative stitches as desired thing. Perhaps I need to write a book that gives some guidance here!<br />
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The book does give some interesting ideas that can be used as part of a quilt as you go quilting method, but to me, it seems to be adding steps, not taking them away. I'm in the midst of a quilting project currently, but when I'm done I will probably try another quilt as you go quilt and see if some of the book's ideas will be helpful. Since we all approach quilting in a different manner, some might find this book to be of tremendous value. It would still help if other editions were made to have the photos in color though.<br />
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According to the description of the book <em>Build As You Go</em>, This second book includes the backing as part of the building process. Wish I had bought it first to see how the authors deal with all three layers of a quilt at the same time as well as attaching them. <br />
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-45678701572964333452016-10-21T14:33:00.000-07:002016-10-21T14:33:18.725-07:00GeoSmart Educational Set - THE Children's Gift This Holiday!<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">What a terrific
thing that I got from Amazon to Review this time. Some of the toys I have been
sent were cheaply constructed, hard to put together, didn't have much to hold
the child's attention, but this one, YES! I will admit to be about to turn 61
at the end of the month, and I had fun playing with this set and had to drag
myself away because I had other things to do. You do need to check this <a href="http://amzn.to/2efYLxV"><span style="color: blue;">GeoSmart Educational Set</span></a>. Here is my Amazon
Vine Review:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">If you are
going to buy your child only one big (price wise) gift this year for Christmas,
Hanukkah, birthday, etc. this <span style="color: #111111;"><a href="http://amzn.to/2eeFTwC">GeoSmart EducationalSet, 100 Pieces</a> </span>should be it! Buy this toy!!! If I could I would give it
10 stars and 5A+++. Someone with a brain or a team with a brain designed it. I
opened the set with no kids around (my boys are grown-up) and got myself lost
in making things and seeing what this <a href="http://amzn.to/2eeFTwC">GeoSmart Set </a>could do. I made a mini-version
of the Pope-mobile. As a quilter, I was putting together some quilt blocks. You
or your child could spend hours making things and rearranging the pieces. I can
hardly wait for my cleaning lady to bring her boy over for him to play with the
set as I know he will love it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Of note, just
like my other favorite children’s toy, <a href="http://amzn.to/2e8u3mF">Legos</a>, this set also has more sets that
can be purchased with will add on more pieces and more specialized pieces to
make all sorts of interesting things, especially space related. With the other sets,
you can make a <a href="http://amzn.to/2eC9Epw">lunar rover</a>, <a href="http://amzn.to/2eu93Xq">space station</a>, <a href="http://amzn.to/2erkUX4">solar spinner</a>, etc. Of course, as
anyone knows that the more sets of <a href="http://amzn.to/2e8u3mF">Legos</a> you have the more things you can make
whether the <a href="http://amzn.to/2e8u3mF">Lego</a> folks thought of it or not. The add on sets to the <a href="http://amzn.to/2eeFTwC">GeoSmart</a>
main set works the same way and we aren’t talking 3-4 piece sets. Some of the
add-on sets have 70 more pieces including the specialty pieces for that set.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I was delighted
to find that the pieces were much bigger than they looked on the computer. For instance,
the wheels for the set are 2 1/2” across, the square pieces are 2 ½” on all
sides. The set is for ages 5+ and up, so the bigger pieces will be easier to
manipulate for small hands. They seem just the right size for making projects
so they don’t get way too big or too tiny to work with. The set is made in nice
bright colors and the different colors come in multiples of two, four or six,
so whatever you are making you can have a matching color on the opposite side
of the first color. The magnets are imbedded in the pieces and don’t feel sharp
at all. All pieces seem to be big enough so that younger brothers and sisters
can’t swallow the pieces. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">This is a great set and I highly recommend it!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-14266226464737953102016-09-21T15:31:00.001-07:002016-09-21T15:31:39.144-07:00Reading on a KindleWhen the Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble Nook first came out, I couldn't imagine using one to read on. I love to read and love the feel of a solid book in my hands. At one point I finally had a chance to get a Kindle and fell instantly in love. I have had it for 3 or more years at this point and my actual style of Kindle is no longer made. I have a Kindle Keyboard which makes it easy to type into the Kindle if I am looking up an author or a word from the dictionary. Even when reading a 'regular' book now, if I run into a word I don't know the meaning of, I will look it up in my Kindle rather than having to get up and pull a very heavy dictionary off the shelve, look up the word and then put the dictionary back without dropping it of breaking a fingernail. I have found that the Kindle is a blessing to my arthritic hands and if I read all evening my hands aren't screaming at me like they would a regular book, especially paperbacks.<br />
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Amazon has come out with another model of a <a href="http://amzn.to/2cuJiGr">Kindle</a> that is reasonable priced and offers almost all the conveniences that I have wished for in my <a href="http://amzn.to/2cuJiGr">Kindle</a> (or any book for that matter). The ability to translate a foreign language into English, instead of getting up, finding the right dictionary from our 7-8 English to Foreign Language dictionaries, and looking the words up in that super tiny font that they think all high school and college kids have the ability to read. No longer do you have to jump through several pages to get your word definition as it will display right on the page you are reading. There are other things that make it so much easier to read and understand what you are reading. I still wish they would have an on board atlas for looking up current spots on a map as well as places that no longer exist since World War II. Reading any book before the 1950's, it is especially difficult to figure out where in the world the characters are. I don't know if they are working on this, but I suppose it would be a complicated project because of all the changes over 100's of years of time.<br />
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With the holidays coming you may want to consider a <a href="http://amzn.to/2di4NJq">Kindle</a> for you child that is meant for children only. It is the regular <a href="http://amzn.to/2cuJiGr">Kindle</a> only bundled for children, with a 2-year long guarantee period, it has the ability to not allow a child to download 'adult' books, it is thinner and lighter for a child to hold, and it can help a child set reading goals. It comes with a vocabulary builder, dictionary, etc. It doesn't have games or email which means when you child is looking at their <a href="http://amzn.to/2di4NJq">Kindle</a>, they are reading! I have always felt that books are one of the best presents for children and so you might want to think about this gift for your child with the holidays coming!<br />
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Deciding to buy one now you can save up the money as well as being on the lookout for any sales that Amazon might have on this <a href="http://amzn.to/2di4NJq">Kindle.</a> If you have been good all year, you might want to do the same and move up to the newer <a href="http://amzn.to/2cuJiGr">Kindle</a> as well.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=moonwishesreads-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01KMSKNGU&asins=B01KMSKNGU&linkId=d0070a67121d6b977f269be259f68f48&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=moonwishesreads-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B00ZV9PXP2&asins=B00ZV9PXP2&linkId=9d31d9d37a70680f1aacd63ccc4cfb08&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=moonwishesreads-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B018SZT3BK&asins=B018SZT3BK&linkId=04f2ca8b2488aa668ab278bd71ba4bdd&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-3222933930260838182016-07-31T08:16:00.000-07:002016-07-31T08:16:17.082-07:00September is National Sewing Month! Get Ready!<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">September
is National Sewing Month! What will you be making? Will you finish a UFO or
just keep on with your regular sewing that you are doing? To help promote
National Sewing Month, we are putting ALL our inventory on sale at<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>10% off for the entire month of AUGUST 2016
in both our Amazon (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/shops/moonwishes"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.amazon.com/shops/moonwishes</span></a>)
and eCRATER stores (<a href="http://www.moonwishessewingandcrafts.com/"><span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.MoonwishesSewingandCrafts.com</span></span></a>).
For multi-item purchases (all at one time) there is a discount on shipping costs
so don’t be afraid to add a few things to your cart. </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Garamond; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Garamond; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">We
realized that in our eCRATER store our Christmas items were scattered
throughout the store, so we have set them all up within a ‘Christmas Store’ in
our eCRATER store to make things easier to find.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now you can find our Christmas patterns
including Santa suits, craft kits and fabric there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please visit our Christmas Store (<a href="http://moonwishesstore.ecrater.com/c/2058415/christmas-store"><span style="color: blue;">http://moonwishesstore.ecrater.com/c/2058415/christmas-store</span></a>).
We still have a lot to list in the Christmas store, especially Christmas fabric
panels and Christmas fat quarters, so keep checking back as to what you might
find! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-22165485154227853532016-07-29T06:10:00.000-07:002016-07-29T06:10:40.439-07:00Revlon RVST2160 Pro Collection 1" Wide Fast Pass X-Long Plated Flat Iron<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM0kBKAW6IGEEqOy99UkmQ5kRZSXsDI6lCsY-viHq5nqKW0UYaH2px61rhpNhEeGHq6iXGh8nMPNXbQLynO2A5O2CeuzW9Le78r_Hxh_YMqj8DwFiRiPH7O64CW9EAOfba8NVA1cjbnKMb/s1600/51l3%252B9yBzQL._SX522_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM0kBKAW6IGEEqOy99UkmQ5kRZSXsDI6lCsY-viHq5nqKW0UYaH2px61rhpNhEeGHq6iXGh8nMPNXbQLynO2A5O2CeuzW9Le78r_Hxh_YMqj8DwFiRiPH7O64CW9EAOfba8NVA1cjbnKMb/s320/51l3%252B9yBzQL._SX522_.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://amzn.to/2alVhpa">Revlon RVST2160 Pro Collection 1" Wide Fast Pass X-Long Plated Flat Iron</a></div>
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Here is my review of this Flat Iron for hair that I received from the Amazon Vine program:</div>
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As a girl that grew up during an era when every girl that could manage it had long straight hair, I was the odd one out. I had wavy, unmanageable hair. Fast forward many years and I'm much older, still have wavy hair and as it has been growing out for several years, it is long and wavy and fly away so I was delighted to try out this flat iron for hair. After I got past trying to turn it on. I had to look in the directions to find that you have to hold the on/off button down until it comes on. The control buttons are tiny! It heated up very fast and I then got to try it out. I soon realized that I needed hair clips to hold most of my hair out of the way as you are only supposed to use a 1-inch section of hair at a time in the iron. But I made do with what I had and at least got the top hair in the front straight. So for the first time in my life I saw myself with straight hair! I actually did it before going to bed, and this morning the areas that I had straightened last night were still straight. I did like the fact that you use this iron on hair that has already dried as showering and washing my hair are exhausting for me due to chronic health problems, so doing anything to wet hair is out of the question. This iron did everything that it was supposed to. I'm sure most women using this won't have the physical problems that I do and so will find this a quick and easy way to straighten hair.</div>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=moonwishesreads-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B01H917A7S&asins=B01H917A7S&linkId=8ee1c03c4c05c2e0eaf7d541329d30c4&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-55403671866160463532016-07-04T08:11:00.000-07:002016-07-04T08:11:02.097-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifXj_E5c0XNXl6shVQYl9jqRJoOfwng4KJRi_9v8cLWDTRJbJiRNKeEQgYy2cLDsBe55CChkMf7Y06N9BP45eOQpXY4zf9nak6t5q8de9gOut3h9FERpF4EEZ_gCBzYwoU6ErX0-hPEX-P/s1600/the+murder+that+never+was.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifXj_E5c0XNXl6shVQYl9jqRJoOfwng4KJRi_9v8cLWDTRJbJiRNKeEQgYy2cLDsBe55CChkMf7Y06N9BP45eOQpXY4zf9nak6t5q8de9gOut3h9FERpF4EEZ_gCBzYwoU6ErX0-hPEX-P/s320/the+murder+that+never+was.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
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I received this book from <a href="http://amzn.to/29dASDz">Amazon</a> to read and review as part of the <a href="http://amzn.to/29dASDz">Amazon</a> Vine program. <a href="http://amzn.to/29enMSV">The Murder That Never Was</a>: A Forensic Instincts Novel by Andrea Kane, published by Bonnie Meadow Publishing, (c) 2016, ISBN 9781682320006, Hard cover with dust jacket, 382 pages. This is the review I wrote:<br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">This was my first book by this author, Andrea Kane.
Apparently the book is the fifth in the Forensic Instincts series. On the dust
jacket, they give short terms to classify each member of the FI team. It
reminded me of the TV show Scorpion and each of those geniuses’ particular
skills. The book did give some background on the team and bit about they have
done in the past, but not so much that you felt like half the book was taken up
with retelling the first book. In some respects, I felt like I was having to
juggle too many main characters in my head. Generally, in most detective type
books, there is one or at most two people working their way through to a
resolution of a crime. In this book, there were 6 people plus a dog on the main
team and then add in several boyfriends, girlfriends, wives and brothers and
team grows. Two of the women’s names started with the same letter so for about
half the book I kept mixing up Casey and Clair in my head. Then add in the
clients, three more people. The ‘bad’ guys numbered six named individuals.
There were a lot of folks to remember. I think this is why, even though the
story itself was interesting, I wasn’t devouring the book at my usual pace.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Much of the team’s actions revolved around one guy, Ryan,
and his remarkable computer skills including hacking. Another team member,
Claire who could see into the past by holding onto an object of another person
and could feel and see them in their distress. There were several scenes of
couples having sexual marathons and thank goodness the author didn’t feel the
need to describe them in detail, but in my opinion they didn’t add a thing to
the story. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Perhaps if I had read the first book in this
series, I would have been able to identify with the characters better, but
somehow I felt something was missing from the book that I can’t put my finger
on. Not saying the book was bad, it did have an interesting story involving athletes
working towards the prize of a place on the Olympic team and performance
enhancing drugs (PED). Something else that I had to figure out for myself. Unless
I missed it, from the beginning of the book they referred to PEDs but it was
many chapters later that you understood what those letters stood for. In this
case if you aren’t into sports or sports news, this would perhaps go right over
your head. For those that have missed being able to ‘boo hiss’ at Russians (in
novels) since the USSR dissolved there is even an evil Russian to hate in the
story.</span><br />
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This is one of those books that you want to be enthusiastic about. It has a different slant on a topic that would be very newsworthy if the book were true. It lightly touches on what some children go through as part of the foster care programs. There is a competent team of detectives racing time to solve the mystery, yet it just didn't highly impress me and I gave it 4 out of five stars. If you read it, perhaps you could comment on your take on the story or any of the other books in this series. <br />
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All the books in this series are available on the <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20target=%22_blank%22%20href=%22https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZV9PXP2?ref_=assoc_tag_ph_1466545194622&_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=pf4&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=cbbb31c9054d9a6f3249fdd0a4d20a5e">Shop Amazon Devices - All New Kindle 6-inch</a><img src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=pf4&o=1" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Kindle</a>. Don't have one? Today is a great day to buy one. I thought I wouldn't like one and would miss the feel of a book. Believe me, when reading on my <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20target=%22_blank%22%20href=%22https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZV9PXP2?ref_=assoc_tag_ph_1466545194622&_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=pf4&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=cbbb31c9054d9a6f3249fdd0a4d20a5e">Shop Amazon Devices - All New Kindle 6-inch</a><img src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=pf4&o=1" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Kindle</a> I don't miss the feel of a books in my hands at all as I didn't realize how much of my hand pain was associated with holding a book open, especially a paperback.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=moonwishesreads-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=1682320006&asins=1682320006&linkId=d772255ee54d98e9edf8c0a5a94e0b59&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>
<iframe border="0" frameborder="0" height="250" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//rcm-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/cm?o=1&p=12&l=ur1&category=amazon_kindle_6inch_2016&banner=0PKYRJ1Z4MXX3X5P91G2&f=ifr&linkID=e7c84bda39db7640baf5b8e9005860c7&t=sipandsew-20&tracking_id=sipandsew-20" style="border: currentColor;" width="300"></iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-6524900484760048662016-05-22T12:31:00.000-07:002016-05-22T12:31:39.735-07:00Country Living Chadwick Nightstand, Cherry <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGxBlZeGf9Rfcvg3QhITmE7I92aPnhcQOGE9CuuR216Hu0pM2IcYgzhOkM0XsNYrEW70xRfaP0bRdzjVG8KI9x9vm3wIbxUb6DlIYzQaXJSYaryqZuK8hFBnc1LUA8lpIOGGfongcfcW8W/s1600/300e+table2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGxBlZeGf9Rfcvg3QhITmE7I92aPnhcQOGE9CuuR216Hu0pM2IcYgzhOkM0XsNYrEW70xRfaP0bRdzjVG8KI9x9vm3wIbxUb6DlIYzQaXJSYaryqZuK8hFBnc1LUA8lpIOGGfongcfcW8W/s320/300e+table2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">This review is for the <a href="http://amzn.to/20nq3i2">Country Living Chadwick Nightstand, Cherry</a> that can be purchased on Amazon ASIN <span style="font-family: "times new roman";">B0116M9Y16. You can get the entire bedroom set as well. This is a review that I did for Amazon.com.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">First off this nightstand is gorgeous! The wood is beautiful
and the color of the wood gives this nightstand a rich warm look.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPp1Ve4o9YdrzH65tDLuqkP5LUBzq5caO4I47rduAU5kSiyFfcW0a6dRE1tGp9WjK7A1Uif0EOokhNZ60JKgBf4So_lkmZq4xUOKDsHi4tqaC_91sfVQOXGxEzeqC2wlnxV6ApR-eLKRF2/s1600/300e+table3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPp1Ve4o9YdrzH65tDLuqkP5LUBzq5caO4I47rduAU5kSiyFfcW0a6dRE1tGp9WjK7A1Uif0EOokhNZ60JKgBf4So_lkmZq4xUOKDsHi4tqaC_91sfVQOXGxEzeqC2wlnxV6ApR-eLKRF2/s320/300e+table3.JPG" width="267" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Secondly, the nightstand came fully assembled. My husband
had already told me no more bits of things that need put together. I really
read the product page but still wasn’t sure if it was going to come in a box of
wood and screws, but I was crossing my fingers that it would be in one piece. Coming fully assembled, it meant it could be put right into
place. I am not using it for a nightstand, but as a table to hold my <a href="http://amzn.to/20nrixJ">Janome 300e (the latest model being the 400e)</a> embroidery
machine as well as the machine’s hoops. The drawer I had been keeping them in
also had a large amount of quilting rulers and templates and so things were a
bit of a jumble when I needed to pull out a hoop. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQqi8glRMjk9oxgwF5ZnqmlCmwDr1jom9-W56nxhFFa8CqvFneboOrdDnfHyV6JV52NfextPvEnK3SHeeYBvL6euXrOcpvjDvFyC-VhaZ3RLWd8j4sxGlI8zq2zmUnReb8HL3YkweWhIe6/s1600/table+top+drawe2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQqi8glRMjk9oxgwF5ZnqmlCmwDr1jom9-W56nxhFFa8CqvFneboOrdDnfHyV6JV52NfextPvEnK3SHeeYBvL6euXrOcpvjDvFyC-VhaZ3RLWd8j4sxGlI8zq2zmUnReb8HL3YkweWhIe6/s320/table+top+drawe2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">It will be so nice to embroider something without having to
reach up and aggravate my shoulder arthritis. I’m trying to turn my whole
sewing room into a place that is easier to use as this disease eats away at me.
I have gotten many things that help, but this piece of furniture is the best
looking thing by far. My husband loves it and felt it was well put together. As
he works with wood in his business, he was also very impressed with the
construction and the wood used in the nightstand.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAB_DOzKbswvCdQesktOcamPpWD7SS3yqjP6YCg8hEzpJWacAfuH2LXrjDmjrzkWNhCw5fVMoW8E6eZ30Xw26FKmiLaq5AFNNpIWXYiDro9QKwrHeVtSs7nvHl7IfB15jrrAcRlB33LFvR/s1600/bottom+drawer.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAB_DOzKbswvCdQesktOcamPpWD7SS3yqjP6YCg8hEzpJWacAfuH2LXrjDmjrzkWNhCw5fVMoW8E6eZ30Xw26FKmiLaq5AFNNpIWXYiDro9QKwrHeVtSs7nvHl7IfB15jrrAcRlB33LFvR/s320/bottom+drawer.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Please note that that in the attached photos, the ones with
the drawers open show the color of the nightstand best. It has one top drawer
and one bottom drawer, although it looks like two drawers, the bottom drawer
looks like it can hold a lot depending on what you are using it for. I would
have no problem using this piece anywhere in the house. It does come with
levelers if needed as well as care instructions. You do not need to use
furniture polish and its use is discouraged.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">My sewing room is slowly starting to get sorted out and I have a stack of projects waiting in the wings, especially some embroidery projects. Janome has been coming out with some spiffy new machines lately. I've downloaded the manuals to read, and they sound wonderful, but they are not in the budget of someone that lives mostly off a SS check! Also another one called the Janome Memory Craft 9400 is coming out in a few days, that is strictly a sewing machine with 9mm wide stitches, and about 100 more stitches than my 7700. This is dreamland for me.</span></div>
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-83984819866955358612016-03-25T13:50:00.001-07:002016-03-25T13:50:58.004-07:00Review of DII Zig Zag Weave Kitchen DishtowelsI was given the opportunity to review these towels for <a href="http://amzn.to/1o56jlx">Amazon. </a><span class="a-size-large" id="productTitle"><a href="http://amzn.to/1o56jlx">DII 100% Cotton, Basic Everyday, Machine Washable, Monogrammable, 16 x 28" Zig Zag Weave Kitchen Dishtowel, Set of 4- Neon Lime</a>. Here is my review and what I did with one of them and what I plan for the rest.</span><br />
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<span class="a-size-large"><span class="a-size-base review-text">There are three things that I check for when buying towels of any kind. How well made they are, including how thick or thin. Towels that are too thick can take a really long time (thus money) to dry in the dryer and if you line dry your laundry, they can take a lot longer than other things and end up scratchier and stiffer than your other towels. So on this item, these towels were exactly right. Not too thick or thin, and as they would generally be used for dish towels, they have enough 'oomph' to dry more than one or two dishes before getting saturated. In regards to washing and drying them, the tag states that they are 100% cotton, made in Pakistan, wash in cold water and tumble dry low, low iron. Does anyone really iron their dish towels? By their very nature and what use they are put to, I don't ever wash towels on cold water. I wash them in hot or at the minimum warm water as I want at least a bit of a chance of killing off any germs they may have picked up. They also get the hottest drying of anything else in our laundry. So I do need to report that if you wash towels like I do, you can expect them to shrink up lengthwise about an inch and half. I saw no measureable difference in widths between the washed towel and the unwashed one. See photo. The top towel was the one that went through the wash and the bottom towel was still brand new. A piece of white paper was inserted between the two to highlight the difference.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVkriYNghvGkuU6o5XzzN6zg77RzbHcUpecCH3VFEbgPMbHiNLkjTrBCWa2Tc39A3NPP_CThyphenhyphenFgib82KCz6FqpxcrUOdPFE4E95mGufg1etOCUzZ1aRlUqocxNgQs5vDGACgbndydTX-GI/s1600/green+towel+shrink+gap.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVkriYNghvGkuU6o5XzzN6zg77RzbHcUpecCH3VFEbgPMbHiNLkjTrBCWa2Tc39A3NPP_CThyphenhyphenFgib82KCz6FqpxcrUOdPFE4E95mGufg1etOCUzZ1aRlUqocxNgQs5vDGACgbndydTX-GI/s320/green+towel+shrink+gap.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="a-size-large"><span class="a-size-base review-text"><br />The second thing I look at, actually probably the first as that is what catches my eye, and that is color. Believe me, I would never ever pick lime green towels to come into my house but that doesn't mean I didn't find a use for them! So far I have turned one into a burp rag for a baby. The rest will follow made up as the first. </span></span><br />
<span class="a-size-large"><span class="a-size-base review-text"><br />The third thing I am concerned about is whether or not I can hoop the towel and do machine embroidery on it. If a towel is too thick the hoop pops open in the midst of the embroidery which pretty much spoils the design. These towels were great for embroidery as the pictures show. I make Project Linus quilts and the ones that I am currently working on are blue and green frog based. So for the mostly blue based frog quilt (boy) I made a burp rag with a frog design on one end and a saying "Burp Baby Burp!" on the other. The frog design is from <a href="http://www.emblibrary.com/EL/Products.aspx?ProductID=C7977&Catalog=Emblibrary">Embroidery Library #C7977</a>, my most favorite site for getting machine embroidery designs. Don't forget that when embroidering on terry cloth, to use a <a href="http://amzn.to/1o55olf">wash away stabilizer</a> on top of the towel to keep the terry loops from getting in the way. I'm not sure what happen to the close up photo of the words as I'm just getting used to the camera and downloading photos.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpevZ9E8fphOf7YUIWlY76UcJI1Lz6f34_hlZ9PMxMqTd9t37OJC8YpeIpWEncONMtQkVcXFNTKzmMWQTSCeVWvDaZTnJqG56S81D2TXnawc_0TG06ksaIWnGbM-7W3Y0y3xBrcIHj65GT/s1600/frog+on+lime+towel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpevZ9E8fphOf7YUIWlY76UcJI1Lz6f34_hlZ9PMxMqTd9t37OJC8YpeIpWEncONMtQkVcXFNTKzmMWQTSCeVWvDaZTnJqG56S81D2TXnawc_0TG06ksaIWnGbM-7W3Y0y3xBrcIHj65GT/s320/frog+on+lime+towel.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="a-size-large"><span class="a-size-base review-text"><br /><br />These towels I would give 5 stars and wish I could have gotten them in colors I would use in my house, but instead they will eventually be part of a charitable gift, so the color was actually the perfect one to receive. I hope this gives you some ideas if you end up with some weird colored towels that you don't know what to do with, make them into fashionable Burp Towels for baby.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCUTfSCEHhLYZzUfBJTr68A7uh9wtlga8K7_Crbr99jXT_yAy-c0QY2B_dZfAKT4Oj8h9fXdGg66p3rsREagEZOK8nPmhw4GfJOoOgeFGcMLmiEL_hBngBwobIcaPYAdZn7AeT4WlDgkSJ/s1600/burp+towel+quilt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCUTfSCEHhLYZzUfBJTr68A7uh9wtlga8K7_Crbr99jXT_yAy-c0QY2B_dZfAKT4Oj8h9fXdGg66p3rsREagEZOK8nPmhw4GfJOoOgeFGcMLmiEL_hBngBwobIcaPYAdZn7AeT4WlDgkSJ/s320/burp+towel+quilt.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="a-size-large"><span class="a-size-base review-text">.</span></span>
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-22016032089845101802016-03-11T11:26:00.000-08:002016-03-11T11:26:07.032-08:00DII Home Essentials Foldable Fabric Storage Containers<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I was delighted to use and review these <span class="a-size-large" id="productTitle"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><a href="http://amzn.to/1UlQ4x8">DII Home Essentials Foldable Fabric Storage Containers</a> being sold by <a href="http://amzn.to/1XiN8ki">Amazon.com</a>.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxeOG2vpd6dug4CQnUTjJVYnrjfz067moAsS8oHht3ae3hEM3DoyTc7-vmRB9DKQPwRGgLpc5aiXbqoezpVSkcEd8lbMEE7SiTqnu7B3WH0v8v0P-CuEKMqJ5ZaMp5gedZjPccWfBlov7a/s1600/quilt+boxes.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxeOG2vpd6dug4CQnUTjJVYnrjfz067moAsS8oHht3ae3hEM3DoyTc7-vmRB9DKQPwRGgLpc5aiXbqoezpVSkcEd8lbMEE7SiTqnu7B3WH0v8v0P-CuEKMqJ5ZaMp5gedZjPccWfBlov7a/s320/quilt+boxes.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I was pleased to have a chance to try these collapsible
boxes out. I’m always on the prowl for items that I can use in my sewing room
to make me more efficient or to help me better organize items. When I received
these, I was in the process of cutting up scraps pieces for scrap quilts. Since
scrap quilts are my favorite, I have specific sizes of pieces that I cut and
those can make many different types blocks. However, I was running out of
storage places especially since I decided that when possible I would cut a 10”
square out of the scraps in case I needed a larger or more sizes of pieces or
for the Kaleidoscope quilt that I just found in a magazine. I’ve wanted to make
one of those for a long time and this one called for 10” pieces to cut down. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTparGWdzFuUdRyg_22zWYI0mkVRFXF45sqfP7WDLSl-mPtX0cmhj4pjMBKlftTr8PrxvJqDawjStEDnLkElyyST4FqS_00qknFQuKDyfFvw6UfjVx1LDeavpQfqFIAyrkUqwmZxG368wb/s1600/quilt+boxes2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTparGWdzFuUdRyg_22zWYI0mkVRFXF45sqfP7WDLSl-mPtX0cmhj4pjMBKlftTr8PrxvJqDawjStEDnLkElyyST4FqS_00qknFQuKDyfFvw6UfjVx1LDeavpQfqFIAyrkUqwmZxG368wb/s320/quilt+boxes2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">It was very easy to set the boxes up and for those that
wonder what the ‘loose’ square is for, it fits in the bottom to give strength
and help the boxes stay open. It would be nice if they had a lid.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg0CpKeU5MAO-X5a_vX5L_9umoJS-fNx_JEotszoapyKMsv0V_JvPOY6xyROnqnIUmFco_X95uDUBCLs7kikc4JhaXWPPJunaYhwgReuZl2Oh4-RX9dJOBwMN-NFErCwcdAPjE6a2TVD_v/s1600/quilt+boxes+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg0CpKeU5MAO-X5a_vX5L_9umoJS-fNx_JEotszoapyKMsv0V_JvPOY6xyROnqnIUmFco_X95uDUBCLs7kikc4JhaXWPPJunaYhwgReuZl2Oh4-RX9dJOBwMN-NFErCwcdAPjE6a2TVD_v/s320/quilt+boxes+3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">This is my first time using this camera and I don't know how to set the date yet. This box shows four different sizes of quilts pieces; 2 ½” squares, 4 ½”
squares, 2 ½” x 4 ½” rectangle and a 5” square that can be used as is or used
in triangle production. All of these sizes fit easily in the second box. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are going to be a great help in my
quilting process.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p>I especially like the color of the boxes since red is my favorite color. However, there are many different colors as well as sizes to chose from when purchasing.</o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=moonwishesreads-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B015UBCKO2&asins=B015UBCKO2&linkId=293643273d1fce56c73093326747e909&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>
Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-4087446551689617942016-02-04T11:50:00.000-08:002016-02-04T11:50:37.460-08:00DII 100% Cotton, Professional Stripe Bib ApronHere is a review of a great apron I just got through the Amazon Vine program. I love it but there are a few things to think about. One things I didn't notice until I had finished my review and looked at some others, this is a rather long apron. Since I like wearing longer skirts, etc. I didn't notice, but if you are short and don't have the ability to hem the apron up you might want to reconsider buying this particular apron. Since it is a heavy cotton, I would recommend for hemming the use of a sewing machine instead of by hand. For the current price of $10.99 it is a good value as well when you consider the time and cost of fabric to make it yourself . <br />
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<br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I love wearing chef's or butcher type aprons. When I make
aprons for myself, this is the style I choose, so I was very happy to get this
one to try. Right out of the package it had a slight funny odor to it. While it
is advertised as having two front pockets, mine only has on large one. If I
feel the need for two, I can sew a seam down the middle of the pocket and end
up with two pockets so this is not a problem for me. If I got that ambitious I
would also make a loop to have a towel hang from which is also a preference of
mine that I make when making an apron.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The apron is also advertised as having the ability to have
the ties wrap around and tie in front. I think that ability is solely dependent
on the height and weight of the wearer. This apron has something I have never
seen before and I wouldn't mind trying to mimic it on the next apron I make. Instead
of the separate neck loop and separate side ties, the ties come around the neck
and through a casing on the upper edges of the apron and then come out to be
tied in back. This is great for being able to adjust the apron to cover you
where you most want it and to accommodate different heights of cooks. For me at
5'8" and overweight, I can only tie the apron in the back which is fine
with me. Unless you are super skinny and a bit on the short side, I don't think
you will be able to tie the apron in front. Or if you can manage to tie it in
front, you will only get just a small bow or knot. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The apron is made of 100% heavy cotton fabric which will
help prevent spills from soaking through. I like it very much and it is
comfortable to wear. Once I wash it, I plan on machine embroidering a design on
it but I want any potential shrinkage to happen first. The tag states that the
apron is made in India for those concerned about where your products come from.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Even though it doesn’t coincide with what is stated on the
product page, I am very happy with this apron and plan on using it often, thus
the 5 stars.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=ss_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=sipandsew-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B00Z2Z7ZTM&asins=B00Z2Z7ZTM&linkId=N7YBLUEQB4Y7SX5S&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-90083811411304436252016-02-03T09:30:00.000-08:002016-02-03T09:30:10.732-08:00Fiskars 18 Inch Billhook Saw - A disappointing Product<span class="a-size-base review-text">I received that <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019EXCSBW/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B019EXCSBW&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=XCAEF62LYD4YW5ZK">Fiskars 18 Inch Billhook Saw</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B019EXCSBW" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Fiskars 18 inch Billhook Saw</a> through the Amazon Vine program. I really looked forward to trying it out since I had high hopes for it, but was sadly disappointed. I'm not sure if I have ever mentioned, I never look at others reviews until my own is written. So once I posted my review (below) I looked at other reviews. Many also were disappointed in the dullness of the blade. One reviewer said it took him a good half hour to sharpen it. Others were very interestingly written. They gave high praise and 5 stars, but never actually admitted USING the saw. Others gave high praise claiming they had been able to accomplish much work with the saw right out of the package. Did they get a sharpened saw unlike most of us or are they making up stories? Enquiring minds want to know.</span><br />
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<span class="a-size-base review-text"></span><br />
<span class="a-size-base review-text">I really wanted to like this item. I have Fiskar scissors and punches in my sewing room so expected at least that quality. I received this saw right before an onslaught of snow so I had to wait to try it. It got warm and the snow melted (we are having the craziest winter!) and so with high anticipation a few minutes ago I went out to my weed/flower patch to get rid of the dead, dried out stuff. I first attempted to use the smooth saw side and it couldn't cut anything....Period! I tested the edge of that blade with fingers and thumb and it wasn't sharp at all. I don't think when you buy a brand new saw you should have to go find a way to sharpen it, if it is even possible. The packaging doesn't indicate that it is necessary. So I tried out the jagged edge of the saw. I did manage to cut down some 1/4" - 1/2" stems. But the cuts were very jagged and it wouldn't bite down and stay in one place. That could have been due to my poor muscle strength, but the harder and more pressure applied, the worse things got. A gardener probably doesn't care as much if trimming down weeds etc. you don't get smooth cuts, but if you used this to trim small branches off of trees and the like, it would leave a lot of jagged wood exposed which would be an invitation infestation and infection at the spot. Any tree and bush trimming needs to be done with smooth cuts to make it easier for the wound to heal. It did come with a nice sheath for storing the saw. Like I said, I really wanted this saw to work would have </span><br />
<span class="a-size-base review-text">accomplished more by using my usual gardening tools.</span><br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=ss_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=sipandsew-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B019EXCSBW&asins=B019EXCSBW&linkId=FAGIVRDYCEKNQWXB&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
</iframe><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B019EXCSBW" height="1" style="border: currentColor; margin: 0px;" width="1" />Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-74305544822462060852015-12-19T16:18:00.000-08:002015-12-19T16:18:21.778-08:00Ready to Stitch: Borders & MotifsHere is another book review of a great book that I purchased for myself.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1844489094/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1844489094&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=I5HVJXOTX3FJMVY5">Borders & Motifs</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1844489094" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Borders & Motifs</a> by Michaela Learner ISBN 9781844489091 Published by Search Press 2014 UK, Printed in China. 96 pages of text with color photographs of completed work and diagrams for color use, plus 32 pages of 84 iron on embroidery transfers. Softcover Book. From the Ready to Stitch Series.<br />
<br />
This book has many lovely designs that are classic in that they should be as lovely now as in 20+ years if someone wants to use them. One thing I really did like about this book is that many of the samples were stitched in two ways with different colored threads and different stitches so you can get ideas for how you might want to use the designs themselves. I don't recall ever seeing this in an embroidery book before and I do think I would like to see it more often. The only designs which I'm not sure I personally like, are the ones with fairies in them as they look like a cross between cherubs and fairies. Just a bit strange to me. Please note that in this book there are no fonts to embroider.<br />
<br />
One of the designs in this book I have seen the UK magazine Stitch, October/November 2015 Issue 97 page 20 being used as a design on a tote bag. Before purchasing this book, I had already flagged this project as a possibility to do. I could flag just about every design in this book as possibilities to make as well. If only my hands could hold up for the job!<br />
<br />
If you like to embroider, are looking for project ideas, or just like to read and look at needlework books, this is a very good embroidery book. Seeing the designs embroidered in two sets of colors and stitches makes it even more likely that you will come up with more ideas of how to use the designs.
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</iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-13932922130204255632015-12-12T15:27:00.000-08:002015-12-12T15:30:40.842-08:00Christmas BakingWell I won't claim to be the champion cookie baker this year like in many years past, but I did make one batch with the help of a mix. I did get to try out some new great products that I got sent via Amazon Vine. I just love it when I get stuff for the kitchen the office or sewing room. Lately it has been the kitchen. So here is the review I wrote for <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tovolo-Jelly-Roll-Baking-Mat/dp/B00OT40NYQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8">Tovolo Mats</a>. I used my new set of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-Classic-Mixing-Bowls-Assorted/product-reviews/B009XI11L2/ref=cm_cr_dp_synop?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending#RDLKI0GNFLNKK">Kitchen Aid Bowls</a> that were also from Amazon Vine. The cookie mix and candy mix ins courtesy of Betty Crocker and M&M's.<br />
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
As someone that grew up and learned to cook and bake in the pre-microwave era, it has always been hard for me to get past my reluctance to use rubber when cooking or baking. Not so my husband. Ask me what has happened to my rubber spatula for use when using the mixer? He honestly thought it was silicone! So anyhow I am faced with silicon baking sheets to put in my pans. They were a little to big and as they said they can be cut to size, I might try that next time. I haven't been up to baking Christmas cookies in a very long while, so by 'cheating' (using a Betty Crocker peanut butter cookie mix and some Christmas M & M's) I mixed up the dough in my NEW <a href="http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-KC175OSA3A-Mixing-Bowls-Assorted/dp/B014FOEQEW/ref=sr_1_19?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1449962921&sr=1-19&keywords=kitchen+aid+bowls">Kitchen Aid bowls</a>. They are lightweight to use and I didn't have trouble with them scooting around or holding on to them. I put the cookie dough onto the pans on top of the Tovolo Mat and then popped one pan at a time into the oven, which I have found is best to not have unbaked or over baked cookies. When done I took the cookies off the pan and they slid right off onto the spatula, and some did try to scoot around on the mat, but I think that was because of me taking them off of the pan as soon as I got them out of the oven when the recipe said to wait 2 minutes. All in all I think these will be a great asset in anyone's kitchen that bakes. Since nothing sticks to them you also, if you lack sufficient quantity of pans, won't have to clean off the baked on crumbs off of the pans in between batches. My taste test of the cookies showed them to be yummy!<br />
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<br />
It was only when turning the big oven on that I realized just how dependent we have gotten on our little toaster oven that I got about a year ago from the Amazon vine program as well. We use it all the time and big oven isn't using up lot of electricity and is rarely used anymore other than the burners. I have really appreciated the things I have been sent to review.<br />
<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=ss_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=sipandsew-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B0058RNX4A&asins=B0058RNX4A&linkId=NLKOPOIH6WHUKLS3&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
</iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-9485750319149579732015-11-28T09:43:00.000-08:002015-11-28T09:43:42.823-08:00Brooklyn on Fire by Lawrence H. Levy<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHN98DmJw9wL568ospAn2xZKPnX3YxuX87VTrFOd4o_aqaDS3PkljSazXOJAAQg_wvsN3DYWDlp5jZXWGACPTVyz5jkS2HkwFsE46Ei8FR0gpSkI9VZsiMpDQBQVfPuT1X_0IyJ8zMaewY/s1600/Brooklyn+on+Fire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHN98DmJw9wL568ospAn2xZKPnX3YxuX87VTrFOd4o_aqaDS3PkljSazXOJAAQg_wvsN3DYWDlp5jZXWGACPTVyz5jkS2HkwFsE46Ei8FR0gpSkI9VZsiMpDQBQVfPuT1X_0IyJ8zMaewY/s320/Brooklyn+on+Fire.jpg" width="202" /></a></div>
<br />
I read <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0553418947/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0553418947&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=R4SUMAM26PSZNNV3">Brooklyn on Fire</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0553418947" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Brooklyn on Fire</a> by Lawrence H. Levy for the Amazon Vine Program that I am part of. It is the second book in the Mary Handley series, the first being <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NKDMCEQ/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00NKDMCEQ&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=TBQ7GMQYRF5TT5IJ">Second Street Station</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00NKDMCEQ" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Second Street Station</a>. If you have a chance I would read the first book in this series first as the second book builds a bit on the first book. However, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WPQHNKM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00WPQHNKM&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=MK7VNREQQLZSKCV4">Brooklyn on Fire</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00WPQHNKM" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Brooklyn on Fire</a> is fine as a stand alone book. I liked the book and gave it 5 stars while I noticed others were not so thrilled with it. Is this book going to go down in history as a pivotal piece of literature? Hardly. Undoubtedly within 10-15 years people may no longer even care to read the book which happens with a majority of cozy mystery books. I do think that at times you might enjoy a book more than if you had set down to read it on a different day and time. I needed a book to relax with and get absorbed in so that I would forget some of the pain I was in. I did find it interesting to read all the historical portions and how life was lived in the 1890's. I hope you enjoy the book as well.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’ve read many books, but it is rare to find one that jars
my way of thinking in the very first paragraph. This book began with an old
woman talking to her friends Vicky and Albert while thinking on her life. As
she reminisces she realizes that she is in her 7<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> decade at the age
of 64. That might not mean much to some of you younger readers, but nearly a
month ago I turned 60 and I never thought about the fact that I was in my 7<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>
decade. In my mind that means you are in your 70’s and that does sound old.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Age aside, this was a rather interesting cozy mystery novel.
The author took a chance that most authors don’t and that is including many
historical figures in the story. And I’m not talking about someone obscure in
history, but the Rockefellers, the Carnegies, and the Vanderbilts including
Geoge Vanderbilt that built the Biltmore mansion in North Carolina. Even the
main character in the book, Mary Handley, was a real person and worked at one
time under the Chief of Police and helped bring a murderer to justice for which
she earned a $1000 reward. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Needless to say this book this book was a bit different with
a very different heroine for the era that she lived in. Women detectives have
come a long way since the first one appeared on the scene and it is interesting
to seeing authors lately that instead of having the sleuth working during the
current era, they have gone back into history such as several WWII female
sleuth novels and now this book goes even further back to 1890 where ‘Ladies’
apparently had weaker constitutions than they have now and all news and crime
stories were kept from them as much as possible. So it is very interesting to
see a book where they have no telephones or fancy cars to get around in. No
internet to research from. Families that are embarrassed and shocked that their
daughter would want to do so masculine a job and how would she ever get married
if the eligible men found out what she was doing. But Mary Handley didn’t care
about that. She was thrilled with her office that was located in a used book
store and her 20 business cards that a friend had had made for her. Once the
call came for her to help, she didn’t waste time and took no thought for
herself physically to the point that in one scene she needed a blood
transfusion. At that point only 50% of those getting them survived the process
(no blood typing at the time). She also donated blood and when she later passed
out for lack of fluids and food a doctor was about to do a ‘bloodletting’
procedure to help her when someone remembered she had donated some blood that
day. Interesting thought, you pass out due to low fluid balance only to have a
doctor try to fix the problem by cutting you and letting more blood out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">These item mentioned, not to spoil the book for you, but to
let you know some of the interesting things about life over 100 years ago in
the life of a young woman that was not following the normally mores of the
time. And interesting book that is also a fairly quick read.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-66993477947730936002015-11-22T09:42:00.000-08:002015-11-22T09:52:22.395-08:00Reynolds Oven Bags - Best Pork Roast I've had in Years!When I signed up for the Amazon Vine program I assumed that I would only get books and at the beginning that is what I got. However I now get all sorts of products and my latest one was a box of <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000LM495E/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000LM495E&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=QA4WMNFG27NEWWLX">Reynolds Oven Bags</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000LM495E" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Reynolds Oven Bags</a>. Below is my Amazon review of the bags which I found to be great and gave them 5 stars.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZQAdfB2zk7Lt7GPbxIUa1R0YX1GA3xUawWICIk0USGPnDBoF1uTNuBImCoF49ovZhwySpYWbODtjM2nqqJ8IhqIC4y4Dv7leUPM8mhCD_sOBMy7qjNK-M-cefizOanTo0fnkyY8srrHgL/s1600/reynold%2527s+oven+bags.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZQAdfB2zk7Lt7GPbxIUa1R0YX1GA3xUawWICIk0USGPnDBoF1uTNuBImCoF49ovZhwySpYWbODtjM2nqqJ8IhqIC4y4Dv7leUPM8mhCD_sOBMy7qjNK-M-cefizOanTo0fnkyY8srrHgL/s320/reynold%2527s+oven+bags.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I gave up trying to roast pork years ago since except for one roast, they all were dry and nearly impossible to chew. I got these bag in the mail right as I was about to go grocery shopping. So I read the instructions on how to use them and thinking I would try to make a roast using one I shoed up at the meat department and when I saw the prices of beef vs. pork, I decided I would give pork one more try. The only other time I had made a decent pork roast I had cooked it with a canned pineapple. So I decided to try this again except in the Oven Bag. Well I didn't realize I had no pineapple at home, but I did have all the other ingredients that I used when making sweet and sour sauce so I mixed that up and poured it into the bag with the pork. If I had it to do over, I would probably have marinated the meat in it enough ahead of time so all sides of the meat would have had the taste of the sauce. Following the instructions, I popped it in the oven and was totally surprised when I cut into the meat after letting it set for a few minutes. It was juicy. It was tender. It tasted good. It almost melted in your mouth. It was wonderful. I suspect we will be eating more pork (especially with it's lower price than beef currently). These bags truly made the difference as I had tried doing something similar with roast before long ago.<br />
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Here is what I did (for something like this I measure by eye, not by measuring cups):<br />
~4# pork butt roast with bone it<br />
~3 tablespoons Soy Sauce<br />
~1/2 c. Apple Cider Vinegar<br />
~1/2 c. Brown Sugar<br />
Onion powder, garlic powder, red chili pepper flakes<br />
1 tablespoon flour<br />
1 <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000LM495E/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000LM495E&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=QA4WMNFG27NEWWLX">Reynolds Oven Bags</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000LM495E" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">Reynolds Oven Bags</a> (large size)<br />
If I had one, I would have stirred in one <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dole-Crushed-Pineapple-Juice-Ounce/dp/B00GFRP1D8/ref=sr_1_20?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1448213754&sr=1-20&keywords=pineapple">can of crushed pineapple</a> in it's own juice (not canning syrup)<br />
I coated the inside of the bag with the flour as instructed on the box.<br />
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Inserted the roast in the bag and placed in a <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20rel=%22nofollow%22%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FN3M480/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00FN3M480&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=KRKHEQU3TFZDQ6KN">13" x 9" Baking Pan</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00FN3M480" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">13" x 9" glass pan</a>.<br />
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Mixed the other ingredients in a bowl and then poured them in (next time I will let the roast have a soak on each side before putting it in the oven bag).<br />
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Stabbed 6 holes in the top of the oven bag as instructed on the box (this is why you need to coat the roast all over with the sauce before roasting as you won't be able to turn it over while cooking as the sauce would come out through the holes.<br />
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Placed in a pre-heat oven at 350 degrees using the convection setting for about 90 minutes until a thermometer registered 160 degrees at least. <br />
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Let rest for at least 5-10 minutes to let the internal juices stabilize. Carve and enjoy.<br />
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You may not like this recipe, but I hope you do. This is what I did and I enjoyed the roast very much, especially the pieces that were on the bottom that cooked in the sauce. Make a cooking sauce to please yourself or try cooking the roast with just salt and pepper and in the floured bag to see what happens.<br />
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While the price of these may seem high to some, at the price of meat these days, you waste money if your meat comes out dry and inedible. So try out these bags to reduce the possibility of that.<br />
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-73242836892950120372015-10-30T18:11:00.001-07:002015-10-30T18:11:24.114-07:00Gingham Aprons of the '40s & '50s by Judy Florence Book ReviewThis is a copy of a review that I also posted to Amazon. I received this book as a birthday present from my incredibly long Amazon wish list and was very happy to get it.<br />
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I enjoyed reading the book very much and loved seeing the many close up photo details although I am stumped in why these aprons look so pristine! I am an apron wearer and I make my own aprons and most of them with use would never make it to a collection of 'Aprons of the 1980's to 2020's'. They are pretty mucked up within a five to ten year span, but then that is the whole point of an apron isn't it? I can see that some of the apron would have been set aside for good, or like my Christmas apron only for certain special occasions.<br />
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Most of the aprons in the book were homemade using machines, while some were completely sewn by hand. The worse looking aprons were made in factories and it certainly shows the difference between tender loving care when sewing and seeing just how many you can whip up in a day when being paid via piecework.<br />
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While it was nice to see some approximate values on the aprons, you have to remember that the book was published in 2003 and with the plethora of on line selling venues available since that point, those values are most likely highly inaccurate at this point. My favorite thing was seeing how the makers worked all sorts of rick rack into the aprons as well as embroidery and 'Chicken Scratch' embroidery. I have all sorts of vintage rick rack that I have acquired at my local thrift store and it was good to see the different and attractive ways I can use it. It is obvious though, that the ladies of long ago who made these aprons had no access to Pinterest and its many ideas and links to websites that showed some magnificent ways of doing Chicken Scratch embroidery! If they had they would have really gone to town with Chicken Scratch! It seems that the more ideas spread on Pinterest the more people are trying to out do each other.<br />
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All together a very interesting book to those that love aprons, embroidery, rick rack, vintage sewing and/or vintage garments. It is about research and study and has no instructions for making any of the aprons although it does reference a few vintage apron patterns as well as embroidery transfer patterns. The author does have a legible photo of a vintage apron pattern instructions in the book and you should be able to follow them if you like since there are no tissue patterns involved and it even includes two different charts for doing counted cross stitch to embellish the apron. For more apron patterns, you should be able to find both current and vintage as well as vintage pattern reprints on sewing pattern selling sites including mine at Moonwishes Sewing and Crafts. Since reading this book, I have put the author's other book; <a class="a-link-normal" href="http://www.amazon.com/Aprons-Mid-20th-Century-Designers-Collectors/dp/076431341X/ref=cm_cr_dp_asin_lnk">Aprons of the Mid-20th Century: To Serve and Protect (A Schiffer Book for Designers and Collectors)</a>on my Wish List.<br />
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-12413488116105769142015-06-20T12:36:00.000-07:002015-06-20T12:36:10.502-07:00The Shirtmaking Workbook by David Page CoffinMy latest book review was one dedicated to making shirts, so I slipped it into my craft blog. If you would like to read my review and additional comments on <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1589238265/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1589238265&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=LR5JBH7REZ4W5A3V">The Shirtmaking Workbook by David Page Coffin</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1589238265" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />">The Shirtmaking Workbook by David Page Coffin</a> You can pop over to my blog <a href="http://sipandsew.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-shirtmaking-workbook-by-david-page.html">Moonwishes Crafts</a> and read it.<br />
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</iframe><br />Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-86963115398689926132015-06-06T17:21:00.000-07:002015-06-06T17:21:09.244-07:00Creative Kids: Complete Sewing Guide to SewingOn the Amazon Vine program that I am in to give product and book reviews, I rarely get a sewing book to read and review. The other day I was offered two, so I grabbed them. This one is <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1589238230/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1589238230&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=NEMUTV7GHMAOA6FB%22%3ECreative%20Kids%20Complete%20Photo%20Guide%20to%20Sewing%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1589238230%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">Creative Kids: Complete Photo Guide to Sewing</a> by Janith Bergeron and Christine Ecker. Published 2015 by Creative Publishing International. Softcover. 144 Pages. ISBN 9781589238237. Full color photo illustrations.<br />
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I had some problems with this book and many times, other than for the projects, I felt like I was reading a beginning sewing book for adults with children's projects thrown in to make it a 'child's' book. Here is my review:<br />
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I really, really, really wanted to like this book. I am all for teaching children to sew and to love and enjoy the experience. My life revolves around sewing as I have made 50+ quilts, have made most of my own clothes for 45 years, and also embroider both by hand and machine, I also sell sewing patterns on line under the name <a href="http://www.moonwishessewingandcrafts.com/">Moonwishes Sewing and Crafts </a>and studied education in college, so I think I have the sewing knowledge to critique/review this book.<br />
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The first thing I looked for when I got it in the mail was what age group was the book for? Unless I missed it in several times going through the book it was not mentioned, nor did the Amazon product page. Why did I want to see the age group it is geared for? So many things hinge on the age factor when producing a book, such as font size, word usage, phrasing, clarity of photos and the need for adult supervision. The only hint as to age in the book was the actual photos with child models that looked to be in elementary school and photos of one of the author’s two children that were hand models. They also looked to be in elementary school. I grew up in a home where sewing was happening so I was ahead of the curve when it came to learning for myself. The author’s children most likely had been around sewing much of their lives also so if they had been asked if the understood something, then most likely they did, but that doesn’t mean other children would also find the instructions clear or easy to read at that same age level.<br />
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Why am I concerned with font size? I have a children's book sitting next to me that I will be reviewing next and the fonts in it are more than twice as big as the fonts in this book. Younger children that might be fairly new readers could have trouble with the smaller font. I know with my bifocals I was having trouble reading the book as the text was too close together. Of course if the book is for young or older teens, then that might not be a problem. There were words and phrases in the book that a younger school aged child probably can't read or understand yet. If a book is written for them, they should be able to read it without difficulty and with understanding.<br />
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I found it difficult to follow the photos and think a child might as well when the text says to do one thing but the photo is showing something else as well as there being photos that are literally hiding what the needle is doing. The text is poorly edited and does not always have the correct letter to signify each photo. The text also references using at one point a circle pattern that is not included in the book but is supposed to be. There is a tooth fairy pillow pattern at the back of the book that runs across two pages. I’m not really sure how the authors expected a child to trace it out when the lines go right into the gutter of the book on both sides. I would expect that to accomplish this, either the pattern will be the wrong size or the spine of the book will break leaving the book in danger of falling apart sooner than normal.<br />
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When it came to instructions on sewing techniques, they showed making a knot on the right hand finger. I’m not sure how most sewers do this, but I have always used my left hand for making a knot in hand sewing thread. There was no indication from the author that the child might want to try different hands if they couldn’t do this fine motor action of making a knot on a thread wound around your finger. They also instructed on how to thread a needle by pinching the thread around the needle and then threading the needle by pushing the thread bend into the needle eye. I’ve seen occasional references o this technique over the years in other books and have tried it previously but couldn’t get it to work. I tried again using the largest chenille needle with the biggest eye that I had and 6 strands of embroidery floss. It took 5 tries before I semi-accomplished it. This is yet another fine motor skill that might not yet be developed depending on the age of the child. How much easier it would have been to give the child a feeling of satisfaction of learning something new by using a needle threader. When the authors mentioned pinning a pattern to felt, they depended on the photo to teach as they didn’t explain the ways to pin something so that you aren’t poking yourself or getting your threads tangled when working with the pinned item.<br />
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When it came to giving instructions on sewing on the sewing machine, the child is instructed to read the manual (and I assume comprehend it). I know when my mom got a new machine when I was in 12th grade, I was not allowed to touch the machine until I read the manual thoroughly. This is yet again a problem perhaps with younger children. Are they able to read the manual with understanding. When discussing presser feet it seemed as if the author’s were expecting the child to possibly be buying more accessory feet as they got better with the machine. Whose machine is this, the child’s or an adult’s? At times they throw in the mention of doing something with adult supervision but it is rare. Most of the time it seems like the child is on their own on their own voyage of discovery.<br />
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The first project that the child was supposed to do with the sewing machine was sew on lines on papers without thread in the machine. Some computerized machines will not run without thread in them and the book doesn’t mention this. Sewing on paper, in my opinion, is a total waste of time as it just does not really give the same sense that sewing on actual fabric can. So much better to learn with fabric and feel like you have actually learned something. The first machine project, Scrappy Cards, would give the same learning focus with something to show for it at the end.<br />
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I suppose that many of the projects might interest a child depending on their age and personal interests in learning to sew. There are three garments to make, shorts, kimono robe and hooded poncho. All use the child’s measurements which are used to draft a pattern. None of those instructions suggest that they might want a sewing buddy whether an adult or child to help with the measuring. There is no explanation of using a simple manufacturers sewing pattern to make a garment so that would need further instruction.<br />
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You might want to try to see the book in person or download a sample, if available, before deciding to spend your money on this book. Take the time to go through it and be sure that you understand the project and what is being taught so you can be ready to handle problems and questions from your child.<br />
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After posting my review and trying once more to find an age group, I saw that the book was for grade school students. Depending on a school district that could be anywhere from K-6, K-4 or any other set up. It still remains that the younger students, won't have the vocabulary to understand what they are reading. Young teens who may come upon the book might find it and it's projects 'babyish'</div>
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Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-41966050894363735202015-06-01T11:27:00.000-07:002015-06-01T11:27:26.735-07:00DII Kitchen Millennium 4-Piece Heat Resistant Seamless Non Stick Dishwasher Safe BPA Free Silicone DII Kitchen Tool Set, RedIn my time as a reviewer of books and products for Amazon and some other companies that send me things, I have received some great products. Other products are such a waste and yet they garner so many positive 5 stars reviews that I wonder if the reviewer had even tested them (much less seen them or taken them out of the package). Such is the case today. My son Steve and I were making spaghetti last night, both sauce and noodles. This gave me a chance to try out this silicone kitchen tool set. I ended up giving them one star because no stars isn't an option. I thought they were absolutely worthless. I never read other reviewer's reviews until I have actually posted mine. I was shocked to see all the 5 star reviews and they had an average score of 4 stars with 80 reviews done at that point. What did I miss or did they 'cheat'. I will never know.<br />
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I also found it interesting when I saw more of the product information on the product page. They made a big deal about them being hygienic and that the red color stimulated the appetite. Since most kitchen tools are left in the kitchen when the food gets served I wouldn't count on them being much in the appetite stimulate department. Anyhow here is my review for these poor excuses for kitchen tools. Hygienic, possibly/probably but I have cooked with wooden spoons for years without dropping dead from a food borne pathogen hiding in the wooden spoon.<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;">This is my third time attempting to try out and use silicon
kitchen ware. Even the one item that I had thought turned out while even after
scrubbing it clean I discovered it to have congealed grease several months
later when I went to use it again. Other than prep to be able to use these, I
haven't technically washed them and I'm not sure they are worth the time. I
tried the spatula while making a scrambled egg and it is a good thing it was
scrambled as the spatula has a very thick and short 'ramp' up onto the flat
part of the spatula. I don't think I could have gotten a friend egg out without
scrambling it since it was too thick to get under food in a pan without the
food being damaged.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;">Yesterday I made spaghetti sauce and tried out the spoon. Just
stirring the sautéing onions and garlic the spoon didn't want to do much and as
soon as I included thawed, loosely packed hamburger and tried to stir it in the
spoon bowl literally bent in half! Again and again and again. Nor was it
possible to scrape up the fond (those yummy brown bits on the bottom of the
pan) without the spoon bowl bending in half. It was only once I had some tomato
sauce in the pan that the spoon stopped bending with every stir. I would it
consider impossible to stir things like cookie or bread dough by hand with this
spoon and certainly won’t try as I don’t need the frustration.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;">Then I tried the pasta server thinking there couldn't be much
difference between this one and the super cheap one I have used for years.
Wrong. The tines or whatever you call them were so thick that they pushed the
noodles out of the way in colander instead of collecting them so I got about
half the amount of noodles in it at a time as my other one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;">I haven't even tried the slotted spoon and doubt if I will.
Working with these things made me honestly wonder what the manufacturer was
thinking and did they even give them a casual test in a kitchen? These are
worthless and don't waste your money on them! And just to be clear, I'm not a
newbie to a kitchen. I've been cooking for about 50 years now at this point. I
know that cooking with a spoon that bends when you need it to be stiff while
stirring something.</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;"></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-66657108693445921502015-05-31T13:25:00.000-07:002015-05-31T13:25:36.553-07:00The Joy of Kindle Unlimited!I love to read. I mean it. I read lots and lots of books. While I thought I would never enjoy reading on a <span id="goog_1610730988"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/">Kindle<span id="goog_1610730989"></span></a>, I discovered it was much easier to hold for my hands. I could read while eating since I don't have to hold pages open and with <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Kindle-eBooks/b?_encoding=UTF8&ie=UTF8&node=9578129011&pfShowFeatures=&qid=1433101920&redirect=true&ref=spkl_4_1_2098132962">Kindle Unlimited</a> I have so many books at my finger tips I'm in readers heaven. I truly thought that the only 'free' books would be cheap romance novels written by 6th graders. Instead I have found some terrific authors that write serious pieces of work. <br />
<br />
Before you download any book to read on the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Kindle-eBooks/b?_encoding=UTF8&ie=UTF8&node=9578129011&pfShowFeatures=&qid=1433101920&redirect=true&ref=spkl_4_1_2098132962">Unlimited program</a> or buy for that matter, most have book samples to read of around 5-10% of the book. If you get through that sample and go argh! because the book is so enticing, exciting, etc. when the sample is finished it is so great to be able to download the book and find your places and continue reading. This is one thing that I would like to see improved since the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_n_2?fst=as%3Aoff&rh=n%3A2102313011%2Ck%3Akindle&keywords=kindle&ie=UTF8&qid=1433101725&rnid=2941120011">Kindle</a> can keep track of our places in all the books we may be reading at one time, I don't know why when we finish a sample and then download the book we have to manually find our place where the sample left off. Perhaps there is a way and I just haven't found it yet on my Kindle keyboard which I don't think they make anymore and if someone knows how to do that, please let me know!<br />
<br />
I read serious books as well as cozy mysteries and vintage books that are hard to find in print anymore. My constant companion when reading any book taking place in the US is my large print atlas (10 cents at the thrift store!). A book that takes place in other parts of the world I have an atlas for that as well, but much more difficult to find some countries that keep changing their names and boards. The worst being the former Soviet Union and the eastern side of Europe where battles seem to be continually fought and the boundaries keep changing. It would be nice to have an atlas built into the Kindles as well with maps for the different time periods. But even with a current atlas that shows only our more modern world, I'm still learning more geography. One of the last books that I read to review on Amazon, took place between 1912 -1922 mostly in Russia and India where boundaries constantly where changing then. It was hard to follow the character's travels without getting lost. <br />
<br />
Now that was a 'serious' book which meant I had to clear my mind out before reading another serious one and so I found a new cozy mystery writer who writes in a series and so far I have been able to read her books for 'free' through the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Kindle-eBooks/b?_encoding=UTF8&ie=UTF8&node=9578129011&pfShowFeatures=&qid=1433103096&redirect=true&ref=spkl_4_0_2098132962">Kindle Unlimited</a> program. Why do I need to clear out my mind? Many times on the Amazon review program that I am on I get books by new authors and lets just say they may never get past that first book. I rarely ever do reviews here of books that were disappointing to me. I would prefer to review here books and products that I truly like and if most of my recommendations are ones that you find that you like as just as I do so why bother with the lousy books? You can always find my reviews on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/cdp/member-reviews/AHH7IEK2QPMMZ/ref=pdp_new">Amazon here</a>.Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-54981380413069904522015-04-03T14:19:00.000-07:002015-04-03T14:23:43.378-07:00Vaseline Intensive Care Healing Serum Advanced Relief<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifH7RB6J5_VM1yKzIXZcKkEsK9r6gDzFBAs739sNMOI4_czgaUjFhggJg77JqaKzbDB6E2g_zKexHoaXt_omX6HctGEzJQ-lv2rHa9PaGAmgw6lI4_LQ8ADmwx_PYXz9Jy19Atxt7n_MTj/s1600/Intensive+care+lotion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifH7RB6J5_VM1yKzIXZcKkEsK9r6gDzFBAs739sNMOI4_czgaUjFhggJg77JqaKzbDB6E2g_zKexHoaXt_omX6HctGEzJQ-lv2rHa9PaGAmgw6lI4_LQ8ADmwx_PYXz9Jy19Atxt7n_MTj/s1600/Intensive+care+lotion.jpg" height="320" width="138" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I got to try this <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SI4SSAO/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00SI4SSAO&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=XPKHLXI5BCYB53ZS">Vaseline Intensive Care Healing Serum</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00SI4SSAO" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
lotion as part of the Amazon Vine Reviewers Program. Here is the review that I left and then additional comments about the product.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 19px;">I'm always dubious about claims of great performance when it comes to lotions and potions, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that after using this serum my skin did look and felt better. I have noticed over the years that most hand lotions within an hour or less of putting it on you see the same flaky, dry skin. I did not notice that with this lotion. When using it on my feet, not only did the skin look better, but the day after using it it still looked better and some of the calluses were easier to remove than usual.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #111111; line-height: 19px;" /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 19px;">Why the 4 stars instead of 5. I don't like the smell of this item. Reminds me of men's aftershave.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; line-height: 19px;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 19px;">When I do a review of a book or product from the Amazon Vine program, I do not look at what others have to say about the product as I don’t want to encourage ‘lemming’ behavior, even if unconsciously. So I wrote my review for this serum and after posting it, looked at the reviews that have been left for it. At this point in time almost ALL the reviews mention the scent as being too overpowering. A male reviewer felt that it was flowery smelling, I thought it smelled like aftershave, other compared it to room deodorizer, etc. I think the point has been made. If you are sensitive to scents, you are not going to want to use this product. If it doesn’t bother you what something smells like, then you might like to try it.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #111111;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="line-height: 19px;">Others also mentioned the viscosity of the product. The manufacturers call it healing serum and as some noted, serum is usually a thin clear fluid. This looked and acted as a lotion just like any other kind of lotion. I thought it felt tacky the first time I tried it, but didn’t have that sensation after that, perhaps because I used way less.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #111111;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 19px;">The product seems to work as it should, by it is important to know some of the problems with it prior to buying. If you can test a sample first, that would be much better than buying the full sized container, especially at around $10 a pop for it.</span></span><br />
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</iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-22950038613137263182015-03-15T00:05:00.000-07:002015-03-15T00:05:11.729-07:00Fisher-Price Thomas Wooden Railway SetWhen I signed up several years ago to be part of the Amazon Vine program, I thought all I would get to review is books. Over the years, I have gotten more and more products and less and less books that I would be interested in reading. Like the last type of book I want to read is one aobut Vampires or witches and those paranormal themes and I seem to be offered a lot of those. However, I have gotten some excellent products to review and this is a review about one of them.<br />
<br />
I love children but my youngest is going on 32 and no grandchildren in sight, so I don't have kids toys around any more. I've had plenty of opportunities to review kids toys, but with no child to help me out I've had to pass them by until this month. So here is my Amazon review about a great toy train set called<br />
<h1 class="a-size-large a-spacing-none" id="title" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #111111; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.3 !important; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
<span class="a-size-large" id="productTitle" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.3 !important; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MYL98OM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00MYL98OM&linkCode=as2&tag=sipandsew-20&linkId=I5IBNIZZ4SKMROCU%22%3EFisher-Price%20Thomas%20Wooden%20Railway%20Set%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=sipandsew-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00MYL98OM%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">Fisher-Price Thomas Wooden Railway Set</a> .</span></span></h1>
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<span class="a-size-large" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.3 !important; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="font-size: small;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span></span></div>
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<span class="a-size-large" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></span><br />
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<span class="a-size-large" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">Over a month ago, the lady who cleans for me had to bring her son with her as she had no one to watch him for that time period. Jasper is a real cutie-pie and is 4 years old. While he brought some crayons and a coloring book with him, it dawned on me that I had no toys at all for him to play with if he had to come again. When you have a good cleaning person you want to keep them happy, so when I was offered a chance to review this Thomas Wooden Train set I grabbed it. It came on a day that she was cleaning again so I showed it to her and asked if she thought Jasper would like to play with it and ‘absolutely’ was the answer. So I asked if she could bring him by so he could play with it.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">When he came over he looked as if he was anticipating Christmas the grin on his face could have lit up a room! As soon as we got the box unpacked he started building. While he did look at the instructions a bit, typical guy, he proceeded to ignore them. Built the train tracks on his own. I only had to help with the fireworks piece which he very much enjoyed the way it worked. A little over half an hour later he asked if he could do something else and so we packed it up and got out crayons and paper. After spending about 10-15 minutes coloring, a Chevy emblem, a Case tractor (this kid is all boy!) he decided to play with the train set again. So he pulled it all out and set up his track with ‘mountains’ (pieces of track that didn’t meet but slanted off of boxes etc. Soon he was totally lost in his own little world, talking about riding the train and singing a song about going on the train. Later I asked mom if it was a Thomas the Train song and she hadn’t heard of it so in his angelic voice he was making it up as he went along playing. After about 45 minutes, it was time to go home. So I asked him to be honest (he is a Mennonite child and thoroughly understand what being honest is about), did he think this was a fun toy to play with? With a 5 star smile and he said yes! </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">There can be no greater praise for a toy than that it takes the child into imagination land and they play with it for much longer than normal to be involved with one task for their age group. It was fun, and because of all the track pieces, the tracks can be put together in different ways each time it is played with. The curved track pieces are cut to be used without regard to up or down. Depending on with way you want the curve to go is how you can put it into the tracks. Everything seemed well made and sturdy. I believe that you can also buy supplemental parts for the train set for even more fun. Now on those days that Jasper has to come with his mom, he has something fun to look forward to playing with. I would highly recommend this train set! It was a real joy to watch him play as it has been a long time since I’ve had little ones playing in my home. </span></div>
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`</div>
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</iframe>Moonwisheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171117321017923042noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7028768715324459502.post-82852145936502027062015-02-25T19:54:00.001-08:002015-02-25T19:54:52.545-08:00Cole Shoot by Michael MaxwellHere is a copy of my Amazon review of Michael Maxwell's 5th book in the Cole Sage series.<br />
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Yet another terrific book by Michael Maxwell. The worst thing about this book is the fact that now I have to wait until his next book, Cole Fire is finished and published before I get to read another of Michael Maxwell’s books. I hope it won’t be long. Mr. Maxwell’s, main character is Cole Sage. He is in many ways a ‘mild mannered newspaper reporter‘, but when necessary for the sake of friends and family will don his super-hero cape to bring help to them. Each of his books deals with the different evils that permeate our society today. This book deals first with gang violence and the second the care and respect our special needs mentally handicapped citizens should have. We see again some characters from an earlier book as well as they help Cole’s newspaper intern out of a very tough spot.<br />
<br />
I love seeing that a writer can have a character function in a book without all the trappings that most seem to feel are so necessary, such as Cole not drinking, or jumping into bed with his girlfriend. Cole has a moral compass so lacking in many these days. While he doesn't follow rules blindly, he does feel deeply the ethics of the choices he makes and his decisions. This book especially shows it so very well.<br />
<br />
There are scenes showing genuine love for people, especially Marco and Cole the first time they see each other which was a delightful scene in the book. For those that would be bothered by it, there are some scenes of gang violence in graphic detail. There are however, no scenes of gratuitous sex to skip over.<br />
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Mr. Maxwell writes from a Christian perspective yet without constant Biblical references. This book has two verses brought up by Cole’s friend Kelly. And they were appropriate and in context. One of the things that over the years that has turned me off of the regular so called “Christian novels” is the almost constant quoting of the Bible. No one seems to have a voice unless they are quoting Bible passages and that sure isn't the norm for most Christians that I have met. So even if you don’t live your life with the same religious philosophy as the author and Cole, you can still read the book and enjoy it.<br />
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