A pinwheel baby quilt ++
Some days have more interesting things than others and today was a good one. First I thought you might like to see what we use as insecticide. These are the baby Bantams you saw two months ago.
Another beautiful iris has opened.
The first broccoli of the season from our garden. The one was absolutely delicious for lunch and I may have been a little over exuberant on the other and picked it a bit too soon. But I’m sure it will also be delicious.
I was asked to make a quilt top for a baby girl arriving in July. When I asked what color, I got no response. Since she will be flooded with pink, I decided on something a bit different. What do you think?
For backing, I’ve picked out this fleece. They are now mounted on the quilting machine. My thinking was that they will be able to use it with the next baby, even if it is a boy. Any guesses how long it takes to get back to this project?
I saved the bad news until last. The coyote came to visit when the dogs were in the house because the neighbor thinks they are noisy at night (coyotes live in his yard) We now have only two geese left.
Fir Island
We took the day for an outing and went to Conway, Washington, particularly Fir Island This is a major wintering spot for Trumpeter and Tundra Swan as well as the Snow Goose. The state Fish and Wildlife has an area set aside so these birds will not be bothered. This area also attracts many other birds. I believe the sign said they have sighted more than 100 varieties.
In addition to checking that out, (of course we found out about this island too late for wintering birds to still be there) we drove around the small island and took in the sights. Most of the island is in food crops. I was surprised to see the name of the company from where we get our organic strawberries has their farm there. They do Sunday market here in town, so I didn’t think about them being on the island. So here are some views of the very beautiful land.
It appears someone wanted to remember the old country with the pile of rocks and a pretend goat.
And yes, we were happy to be in a small car when we had to turn around in a place that didn’t expect one to have to turn around. I had to get out and direct as the car barely fit the road. Deep drainage ditches were on each side.
Sock pair #5 finished
Today I slacked on creating with fiber and the garden to do house cleaning. If it gets too dirty, I find it difficult to work on projects
May is the fifth month and this is the fifth pair of socks, so I’m right on schedule. Somehow this yarn found its way into my yarn stash. While they may not be my choice in color, I do know two women who would love to have them. So they will have a home.
Our first peony is just opening.
My prayer is that all of you have a safe and happy holiday.
May Sew Fun purchases
Just sharing the nesting space. The bantam (now in back) lays claim to this spot, but can be pushed over for another to lay her eggs.
An interesting quilt I saw on the wall at the store yesterday.
And they still had what I consider a Halloween quilt up.
But this one REALLY caught my eye. The picnic cloth is 50″ square. What is cut off in the photo, is the quilter had embroidered a drumstick on the back of the oven mitt and ants marching across the towel.
So this cute pattern came home with me. I should be able to get this done in a month, don’t you think? Especially a month with lots of company. I’m with you – won’t happen this year, but there will be another summer.
This Angler 2 looks like a very handy tool, so it came to live at my house as well
Corner Cut 60 will make sewing these triangles so much easier and faster because the ears are cut off before you sew. Also because of that, the 1/4″ seams should be more accurate. I love tools that make life easier.
And the big prize was this “glue” paper. I have used rolls of Seam a Steam 2 lite. But they are having production problems and people are saying they like this just as well, if not better. This is what I use to do machine applique. I press this on the back of my applique and then draw the design on the paper on the reverse of this. After that I cut it out and position it on the background fabric where I want to make the scene. Since I have several quilts in mind of this type, 3 packages of this paper came to live with me.
It was a very good day. It is unusual to find so many usable items at one of these “infomercial: Sew Fun programs.
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May Sew Fun
This was an interesting month with a new educational consultant – fancy name for a demonstrator. Here is a cute baby cuddly made. with Minky. There was a pattern for a frog, pig, dog and cat. The head is stuffed with fiberfill so the child can hug it or have the blanket around them. If I were to make this, I think I’d enlarge it just a bit so it would be usable for a few more months.
Here is the pattern
She showed several quilts made from the book Simply Fat Quarters which were fast and easy.
Here are a couple more, These are made using only fat quarters
One book she had, Sew On the Go. was patterns for making a bag for your cutting board, a bag for your long ruler, various bags to carry other sewing equipment to a class including this cute bag.
Interestingly enough this flag is made from cutting tubes according to a pattern and sewn right sides together, then turned and adhered to a backing. The tubes were stitched on and quilted . This is easer than it looks. Oh and if the points don’t come out exactly right in the center, no worries, just embellish with a button.
Along with the patterns, she showed us various rulers and other gadgets to make our quilting easier and more fun
The lottery, May Sock progress and lunch out
Upon opening my email tonight the first thing I saw in a subject line was “YOUR IN” It didn’t take much reading to find that I won the lottery for a place in Judith MacKenzie’s 2 day spinning workshop the first week of July! It will be using the little electric Hanson spinner. I am so excited, this class is not offered often and many people enter the lottery. As well it usually is on a weekend and I needed it to be during the week. I just secured my hotel room for the event.
The sun gets up so early now, so if I take advantage of it, I can knit before Bill gets up and it’s breakfast time. That is exactly what I did yesterday and today. Here is the progress so far.
My daughter-in-law took me to lunch today at a raw restaurant in Tacoma. I got a bit lost getting there, but finally found it. We had a great meal, and an even greater visit. I will make the effort to spend more time together as she’s one terrific person.
Garden revisited May 19
The rain we were suppose to get today didn’t happen. But it was cloudy and cool. – good gardening weather. The beds have been cleaned out, so we are concentrating on filling them, and then we will address the issue of the banks between the beds which are filled with weeds.
This is the strawberry bed which did not get enough attention last year, so after it is through giving its fruit, we will take the runners and fill the bed on the other side of the aisle.
Bill is repairing one of the boxes that wanted to slide on down the hill. Nothing is planted in this box or the one across the aisle from it yet.
Here is last year’s garlic at the front. Behind them I planted beet seeds and behind them are the cauliflower (?) and behind them are the red onions. Across from them way down at the other end are a few volunteer potatoes I left in and I still need to put carrots and other items in the rest of the row.
These are volunteer tomatoes and if you look very closely, you will see some of them already flowering. I am afraid the flowering ones may be the tiny ones that are not fun to pick. I’m fertilizing heavily hoping to get them to be bigger. Then there is always the chance that they will lose these blossoms as they started in the greenhouse. Maybe they will wait and get bigger first.
These are potatoes with straw already around them in the first photo and the second is more potatoes with onions in the back. All potatoes this year were volunteer that we are letting grow where they are happy. I should have purchased some to plant. Maybe next year I’ll be more organized. Then again I’m not taking bets on that.
The beds are not difficult to keep weeded as I mulch quite a bit, but I’m trying to talk Bill into torching the hillsides before it gets warm enough to be a fire hazard. I’m hoping that will help as the hill is too steep to stand and weed whack.
Quilting will have to wait for a rainy day
Garden and a new block
It’s rather difficult to show you dirt and expect you to see what I’ve planted. I did get red onion bulbs in which I hope do better than they usually do for me. Then I planted what may be cauliflower (or broccoli) I didn’t write it down and at this state the plants don’t look a lot different. I planted a few of those I had started. There are more to go in shortly. Then beet seeds and garlic is at the end of that row. So one side of one row finished. And the rains started, which means I go inside.
In the greenhouse I tied up more tomatoes with a few more to go and planted these cute little celery starts which do very good here.
Too soon, it was time to put the animals in and make dinner. I had enough time to cut these out for the next three blocks on the “Knitter’s Gifts” BOM
