Pumpkin Love

Once a week I drive past a field where pumpkins lie. Suddenly they are much plumper and dotting the field with orange as far as the eye can see. For some reason, this always makes me feel happy.  Maybe because I did not grow up with such fields, they now intrigue me or perhaps because I loved Halloween as a kid and they remind me of that.  Or it may be simply that the orange found in nature is so cheerful.
 This made me think of past autumn stitching that featured pumpkins.
 Here is the pumpkin I appliqued for the Sew Spooky SAL a couple of years ago. The design is free at the  Facebook Quilts By Cheri Friendship Group.

And my little hanging

that featured this dotty pumpkin.  I experimented with fusible applique and then hand stitched around.

My biggest pumpkin venture was in 2018 when I made the Laundry Basket Pumpkins designed by Edyta Sitar. I loved working on these shown here in progress. 

Have you stitched pumpkins? I'm always interested in stitching more so if you know of a pattern please let me know.

Sighted in the yard this week, a white tailed deer which I got this photo of before it was gone. For a moment I thought he was going into the garage.

This week,  Hubby and I watched three, two adults with a young one, walk out of the woods at the back of the house. They were wary but did not run away with us both there watching them from a distance.

The dogs and I surprised Tilly the Turkey one morning down near the pond. Just like the last time she ran away as fast as her legs could take her and I wanted to shout why don't you just fly.  Then the next day she was out front calmly scratching and sauntering around the driveway. Obviously our almost encounter did not scare her off.  I took this photo from the kitchen window.  Such tiny heads on such big bodies!

Gone are the hummingbirds...it's been two weeks since the last one sighted so I've taken down the feeders. Hubby bought a second one because they were fighting over the one.  Then they seemed to wage war between the two. I never knew hummingbirds were so aggressive with each other.  But I'll look forward to putting the feeders back up next spring because there was a lot of snacking between the fights.

Stitching on a Sunday will be no pumpkins but relaxing and stress free just the same - adding some quilting lines to this runner. The appliqued flowers, a WIP from several years ago.  The fabric I'd chosen for the borders, one of the  Butter Churn Basics by Kim Diehl came in the mail late spring. Its time has come to have it finished.  It will be long enough to fit the sofa table.

A little echo quilting around the flowers to start with I think.

Sunday, a day of rest no more.  Hope you are finding a moment to rest though or at least to sit a spell with something you love doing.
Linking this post with Kathy's Quilts, I'd Rather B Birdin', Tish's Adventures in Wonderland and Viewing Nature with Eileen.

Counting Blessings and Did I Cut My Hair Too Short

I never take any of the blessings in my "now life" for granted including you who are reading my blog. Thanks sincerely for the care, concern, encouragement and advice you take the time to write me in comments and emails. They always give me a lift.
Here are a few of my other blessings and likes for this week.
More fall colour appearing here and there in the garden. The Sedum is blooming in its unique way.  These are pretty shades of mauves and lavenders.

 The Golden Broadleaf has been blooming well, faring better this year than last.  Bees and butterflies love it as well as the Sedum.

And lots more of the gorgeous wild purple asters that are called Smooth Blues.

We enjoyed having visitors here to the wooden house last Sunday.  It was especially nice to catch up on all the news and they came bearing treats, namely homemade blueberry tarts.  Delicious!

While younger grandson is a Grade One'er, older grandson is a Grade 10er! It was his 15th birthday recently and his aunt made this cake, the Marvel Infinity gauntlet, for him. It was quite a hit with everyone including The Keg staff. It had chocolate and vanilla layers inside and I wound up eating two pieces, it was so good.  What a great night our tiny family had! Little grandson could barely contain himself but did keep the secret of what the cake was this year.

I really liked the summer duvet set I bought at Ikea.  So much like William Morris- his influence lives on!  It caught my eye online and luckily they had it in store too.

I mentioned I was piecing all the pastels and florals scraps together for a someday project. Here's what I have so far.

These are the littlest of the scraps and I think it produces an overall pleasing look. Some time ago I showed you the Quiltmania idea that inspired this venture Their plan includes applique and making a pillow cushion.

 For some strange reason, smaller projects don't come to my mind. Contrarily I prefer longer ones I guess.
Meanwhile I was pleased with this thrift store purchase below and thought I'd show it to you.  A blue and white striped tunic worn over leggings.  It is by Guillaume, a Canadian name I recognized, and the fabric is super nice with pretty embroidered flowers here and there. Comfy comes to mind.

I'd just cut my hair and am thinking I cut it too short; maybe that accounts for my slightly worried look,:). However, I never really worry as I know hair will grow back.
I've rambled on long enough for this thankful, things to like post. Happy Thursday all!
Linking with Not Afraid of Color, The Inquiring Quilter, For the Love of Geese, Floral Friday Foto and It's a Small Town Life.

Early Day, Early Week, Early Fall

This week will be quieter in the garden as rain is in the forecast.

Early evening light gave the Purple Globe Thistle a different look.

So a little more free time to take care of other things hopefully.  Here are some of my TO DO thoughts for this week.
I've bought a new Acer 17 inch laptop to work on and have many photos on my old one. Have to figure out how to coordinate the two but need to cull and group the old ones. A time consuming job whose time has come but will be one of those chores for odd moments.

Sort summer clothes now.  Yes single digits overnight, 3C, are enough of a signal it's time to change wardrobes...a word that makes my clothes sound a whole lot grander than they really are.
 Oh not the true woolies and down just yet, but the breezier stuff is definitely done.

Make decisions about joining stitch alongs!
Gay in  this post at Sentimental Stitches announced she is hosting a QAL starting September 15 featuring a very beautiful quilt some of you who follow Barbara Brackman may have already seen. It is the Ella Maria Deacon quilt and has 85 blocks featuring patchwork and applique.  Beautiful blocks with such pretty colour combinations.
                                  
I am tempted to join in for the applique blocks so I've made note of it. Many of you wonderful piecers would enjoy this project. More about other projects later.

Get the second part of this pattern worked out.  I've appliqued about 17 sets of the scrappy Dresden blades so far and am ready to get the blocks finished. I thought it would give the piece a little modern look by using some of these low volume backgrounds (what I'm using for the flag blocks actually) but I think I can use more neutrals too.

 I settled on black for the quarter circle but have very little on hand.  Need to go fabric shopping this week...what a chore that will be, LOL.

Keep trying out different aspects of my new camera. And about that, I took this photo down by the pond of what I thought to be one of the ravens.  Playing around with it and turned it upside down. The yellow eye is very distinct and makes me suddenly wonder is it really a raven. Adult ravens have black eyes and this guy also looked a little rounded.  Any thoughts?
Perhaps a blackbird of some kind.

Also I started the schedule of getting this little grandson off the afternoon bus twice a week.  The first day, Hubby and I wondered did we need to set an alarm to make sure we remembered to run over to their house which is about 8 minutes away. Yeah, old people!
                                        
So as always I have no end of things to do. No idle hands here!
Happily linking with Home Sewn By Us, Paying Ready Attention, Esther's Design Blog, Quilt Fabrication and Clever Chameleon.

Paradise No Longer

A decidedly chilly air this morning made me glad I'd shrugged on my jacket as I was leaving the basement. Especially dark along the path through the fir trees.  All the talk of hurricanes happening far away make me think twice about further bemoaning the end of our lovely August weather. I hold that thought as I'm shivering in the breeze over the pond. The weather is turning more drastic it seems. Many of these places that seemed like paradise to us here in Canada, no longer appear as wonderful.  The scenes of devastation are so grim and the loss of life heart breaking.

I mentioned purples in the garden.  Here is dianthus (though different from the Sweet William I bought this summer) with a little coleus and hens and chicks peeking out which looked as good as this briefly. The three of these did not fare as well as other years maybe because of the extreme July heat. Several bunches only produced stragglers. I hate to think it was due to my not watering enough.

I'm looking at this magazine, the Autumn 2017 issue of Quiltmania's Simply Vintage and finding so much inspiration there.  These magazines, while expensive, keep well.

Those of you who work in wool would be interested in this autumn project...I think we all love pumpkins and pears. Of course the patterns are included and can be used for fabric as well.

I realized my baskets project is really kind of fallish too with all the browns and mustard yellows. I'm working on a little border for them.  Again using all the leftover scraps of fabrics.

And I've started a new project for cross stitch, Swirling Flowers, another Karen Kluba design from Rosewood Manor.
  I realized two things with the Summer Storm. It was a gray/blue material which made it harder for me to see and I needed a stronger strength of readers. I didn't realize how high they can go. Duh. A temporary fix but I must get an eye appointment as so many of you urged me to do.
I am jubilant that I can still cross stitch!  Back to pretty Quakers on a soft white background.

Oh the sun is emerging as I finish this "and truly the light is sweet to see". Hoping with all my heart that where ever you are you are safe!
Take care all!
Joining the hand stitchers at Kathy's Quilts. And the scrappy stitchers at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework. Also linking with Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, Love Laugh Quilt, Em's Scrapbag and What a Hoot Quilts.



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No More Back to School

What does September mean to you?
 Being a teacher, it always meant back to a new school year which also coincided with summer's end, something we did not want.  So there was excitement but also a little melancholy and trepidation about the early days of this month. Funny thing, even though that's ended for me- there is no going back to school, September still conjures up some of those feelings.  When these first weeks pass, then I will truly welcome autumn, a favourite season of mine.
Welcome to the purple in the garden.  Wild asters are all over with their shades of lavender, mauve and purple.

And I scoured my bits of purple stash and came up with enough to make these purple(ish) flag blocks.

Just For Fun
I mentioned I had a birthday recently. I was a Thursday child in the Year of the Rabbit. Oddly enough, I was called Bunny till about 7 years old. There are many more coincidences about my birth that always intrigued me.  And though I don't believe in astrology as such, I can't deny I'm a Virgo through and through.  What about you?
Birthday Answers is a fun site where you type in your birthday and they tell you all about it.

I loved this video by Jen Kingwell. The fabrics remind me of Halloween so a good one to share just now.  Always amazes me how a block looks so different depending on the fabric choices. It is Part 3 of her Marshall Mystery project and she explains how to make the Courthouse Steps block. Now that is an easy block for many of you and maybe even I could do it but I would have to be careful to keep all those lines straight.

What I Did With the fresh Ontario Peaches
I made a peach crisp kind of dessert, a giant one as it turned out.  I got to add lots of good stuff to the crisp mixture besides the oats.  We've been enjoying it with a scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt.

Murphy leading Hubby and Rex in the tall woods...still lots of green but already leaves on the ground.  Oh.

Happy Thursday everyone!
Linking this post with Not Afraid of Color, It's a Small Town Life,, My Quilt Infatuation, Alycia Quilts, So Scrappy, Floral Friday Foto and Brian's Home Blog.

Quilt of a Thousand Seams and MOM PIE

I was so pleased to eventually see lots of bees, dragonflies, butterflies and grasshoppers around the garden this summer.

I have this special pair of pants that I get a kick out of wearing while gardening.  Featuring embroidered daisies and flying bees here and there, they are very comfortable with a little elastic in the waist.  I found them at a thrift shop years ago and knew they belonged to whimsical me.

I used the pick axe and shovel this week...I'm terrible with the pick axe; never could use it well. But managed to dig two holes and replant two bushes.
I also cleaned and tidied the gardening side of the garage. Always find things I'd forgotten about.  Also sadly found a mouse carcass trapped in a glass bottle. (Might account for some of the odd smells out there.)

Starting a new scrappy project and enjoying it very much.  I love dresdens as anyone reading will know. I always comment on your dresdens when you show them.  This is a partial...quarter dresden to be exact and my inspiration was from Bev McCullough at this post on her Flamingo Toes site. That link will bring you to generous Bev's free pdf pattern too.  Sharing like this is so appreciated!

                            
Mine will be much scrappier than Bev's. I'm machine stitching the blades but will hand stitch the unit to the block. I've already enjoyed working on this project.

My photograph blocks are a flimsy! I think I'll rename it after working up close with the blocks as a whole...the quilt of a thousand seams.  Boy, there are a lot of joins in this thing. But that will happen when using up small scraps.  It's one of those pieces that really looks much nicer in person. Don't know why it doesn't photograph well and it is much larger than I had first thought. But with no plan other than just sewing that will happen.

To Do this week
Harvest those seeds while I can...Temperatures taking a decided turn downward.
Get several blocks of the quarter dresdens sewn.
Make some purple flag blocks and remember (!) to link up with the RSC.
Set up the humane mouse trap we have in the garage...may be able to keep mice out of the cars this winter.
Use up these peaches.

 Diann in this post at Little Penguin Quilts had her mom visit and make fresh peach pie and we all know there is nothing like MOM PIE.  It gave me the urge for peach something which coincided with Ontario peaches ripening.  We'll see.
A cool beginning to the day here, 13 C, but sunny so a great morning for garden work.
Happy to link with Home Sewn By Us, Esther's Design Blog, Needle and Thread Network and Love Laugh Quilt.

Ottawa Views, Last of the Lilies, Free Patterns

 Ottawa itself is known for its green spaces and we are surrounded by farmland here a little outside the city. Our drives in any direction take us through fields of crops and grazing animals. Recently I tested my new camera for action photos and took these as we were driving.

I love that there are still small farms where you can stop in for eggs or locally raised meat.
The corn is getting high.

  Something so calm and peaceful feeling about the sight of farm houses with the barns and silos.

Coming here from somewhere coastal where it's all about the sea and cliffs, I was taken with the pastoral look of things as you can imagine.  I especially like that the roads are flat and straight which makes me less afraid for winter driving.

Last look at the day lilies with all their vibrant colours.  I've shown you the orange and the yellows. Here are shades of pink/red and one that is yellow with that striking ring of burgundy.

My cross stitching piece, Summer Storm, is growing at a snail's pace because I'm trying to be so careful. And about that, thank you all so much for the suggestions as to how to see this weave properly. Hubby and I were talking and I realized I haven't had my eyes checked in almost 10 years. (I conveniently measure events now BH -Before Hubby or After Hubby).  Probably due.

It is our monthly link up with the SAL hosted by Avis at Sewing Beside the Sea. Thank you Avis for keeping us on track! Here are the other participants who I guarantee are doing beautiful stitching.
Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Helen, Linda, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Deborah, Clare, Mary Margaret, Renee, Jenny, Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon

Lynette Anderson has published this new book of very sweet patterns, Lynette's Best Loved Stitcheries available here at the Martingale site.  I like the shades of violet and mauve she has used in that sashing too.
                                          
Before I forget...Hubby wanted me to tell you all that the box the Phoebe had nested on was not electrical so very safe. It's an audio sound box that was connected to the stereo in the shed.  The former owners must have had backyard parties.  I guess that's why it had no signs of bird usage till now.

 The busy Jacquelynne Steeves has collated this group of free projects for the fall I went through all the while thinking can it really be fall!  Several are of interest to me. Here is the link to Jacquelynne's site if you'd like to check it out yourself.

                                       
So on this first Sunday of this new month, Happy September all!
Grateful to be linking with Kathy's Quilts, Skywatch Friday, Letting Go the Bay Leaf and Floral Friday Foto.