Friday finishes!

 

This week I wanted to work on a Valentine project, but didn't have enough time to finish. I have a lot of loose threads and wanted to use them up in a project. This pile is from two smaller boxes and I still have another to go through. With the prices of thread going up, it is nice to use what I have.

I also wanted to try something new for charity. I have been looking at different ideas and the bear was one, that is simple and quick. I made this one up, this afternoon. I used a template that I made out of card stock and traced around that, onto the fabric with a washable marker. When I finished with the face features, I turned it over on the light pad and retraced the outline for sewing. 

Not perfect and I don't like the way the side seam came out, so I watched a video on the ladder stitch, so I will try that on the next one. I have lots of extra fabrics, so this is a great project to use them up and help others. I also forgot to add stitched claws on the hands and feet.

Here is one version, from Wendi's, Shiny Happy World. You can also search online for patterns. I used one that had more curved arms and legs, but I changed them a bit.

Last weekend we went to the backside of a pond, where there is a private beach. We paddle in the inner cove, but this area is nice at low tide since we could walk along the inner cove and on the other side of the dirt road, is the ocean. 

We also stopped in the beach parking lot and caught a group of Brandts and ducks. Then we stopped at the other end of the pond, but no birds were around.

 Our last stop was at the marsh, were I caught a few visitors in the smaller pond. 

I was busy this week, putting all the Christmas away. I have less of Valentines, so the house looks bare. For now I want to concentrate on getting old projects done, and ones for summer. I hope you all had a good week.

Friday finish!

 This week I finished the other Christmas pillow. It was from a design in my Christmas patterns booklet. I did the originals in rug hooking. They are fun to do in any medium and stitchery was something I never did with them. I liked using fun colors, since this is a whimsical design. I used glitter yarn for the edging.

Last week we spent time at the island beaches. It was a little cooler, but still nice to be out.

We spotted this starfish on the beach, it had washed in with the tide, so we threw it back in the water and hopefully it survived.

I also found a few treasures  on the beach, including a little ceramic dog.

This cove always has wildfowl, that winter in our area.

At another area I spotted a lot of White throated sparrows.

Today was a warmer day, so we went to the park for a walk. There was a bit of mud and some leftover ice, but we were able to walk along the dryer paths and got in 6 miles. A bit more than I have done in awhile, but it was worth a few stiff muscles.

After we drove the breakaway and saw that they were dredging the channel. The past storms had washed away all the stone borders and poured sand into the channel, which is where the boats come out to the ocean. They are doubling up on the rocks and getting the excess sand out of the channel, to get the depth back.

And we got to enjoy watching the Long-tailed ducks, diving for fish in the channel. I think these are young ones, they are a bit mottled in color.

I hope you enjoyed your week and are enjoying nicer temperatures, even if for a short while.

Friday Finish!

 This week I worked on finishing my quilt. It is a panel, so I stitched around the black lines of the designs and then used red and green for the smaller areas. It is hard to see the stitching since it is on the lines, but looks quilted in person. I was thinking of doing a couple of large snowflakes in the empty spaces, so I may try to do that this week, before they come for dinner. I really wish I had machine quilted, it took weeks to finish and I have more to do. At this rate, I might get one done.

Last week we went for a ride in Connecticut. The new bike was great on the rougher trails, I do love having shocks. We did a section going up and turned back to the other side and did a few miles on that side. It was a beautiful trail, lots of wooded areas, riding along hills, and along ponds and swamps. We will definitely go back and do more of the trail. 

Today I turned 68 and I wanted to do a bike ride. The weather was a bit cool and my joints a bit stiff, so we went for a walk at the bird sanctuary. It was cloudy and cool, but perfect for a walk. Along the field we stumbled onto this young doe. She was not afraid of me and let me take a close up.

On the other side was her sibling. 

The pond was full of ducks today. I am not sure what we were seeing in the big blocks, but I am pretty sure these were American Widgeons.

We also saw a few that were swimming closer to us. I guess the various ducks flock together as they head south. 

I saw a lot of birds today, but most were high in trees or flew off, when we startled them. With the clouds, I couldn't get clear shots today, so I just enjoyed a walk in nature.

This week I am going to be busy. Three days to get the house organized and cooking. Then three weekends to get the house decorated, get the cards out, last minute shopping and making time to finish at least one quilt. 

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Friday finishes!

 This week I actually got more done, the good thing about being laid up a bit. I still have a black and blue foot, but the swelling is down and I can walk on it, as long as I don't push off on my toe area. But the good thing is, I was able to make up some projects to keep my hands busy.

I tried another Easter egg. I saw the floral design on Pinterest and figured it was ok to copy it, though mine didn't come out as nice. I added a blue butterfly for an added touch. I can never get decent shots of my felted pieces, they look all fuzzy, but not in person. I started with a foam egg and wrapped the white roving around that, then felted it in, so it did warp it a bit. 

I also had one more stitchery to finish. Since I was sewing that and making lavender sachets, I decided to pull some scraps with fun designs, to make more.

I also spent a few days to finish my puzzle. It was not the easiest one to do, lots of details.

Last week we had a nice ride around the beach areas, always nice when I can't walk and it was still cold, but I could get out enough to get some shots. Lots of the ocean areas were fogged over.

At one beach we spotted the Horned Larks and another, I just caught the Kingfisher as he flew away.

We parked by a breachway and ended up sitting in the truck as a flock of gulls kept flying over us. It looked like a few had missing legs, and one with a broken one. They are constantly fighting over food, so they do get hurt.

And at another breachway we watched the Mergansers, fishing. In a pond I was shooting at the ducks and noticed a lone Merganser following the pair. I think it got separated from its flock and being younger, decided the ducks were his parents.

We stopped at another beach since I could get out and stand on the boardwalk, while Bill took Bean for a play on the beach. 

The last stop was at the wall to watch the surfers. It was really windy, the surf was rough and the surfers were not doing too well. I got a lot of shots of surfers in the surf instead of on it and a few legs sticking up in the surf.

This weekend will be windy and nice, so hoping we can get out a bit when it calms down. It is also my son's birthday, so we will have them over for dinner on Sunday. Next week we have nice weather coming in, so I am hoping I can get out and see if I can do a little biking on the paved bike path. I am really getting out of shape with all the injuries I keep having, so that might be a good way to get out until my foot heals.

I hope you all enjoy the coming week and enjoyed following along with me.

Friday finish!

 

This week I decided to try something new with braiding, a heart wall hanging. I used scraps of fabrics and a one inch strip, since I wanted to make small ones. Well, I made my starter piece too large, so it came out larger and longer than I wanted, but I still like it. Since it was bigger, I added a stitched word and a bow for fun. I enjoy braiding and rag braids are easier, since I just tear the fabric and make a slit to attach the pieces. A great relaxing craft, while watching tv.

The colors are off but the bow is the red in the heart.

I also finished one panel of my Christmas quilt. Even with lines, I am still wonky. Hard to work on a long piece, so it takes longer than a regular block. I also need more space on the couch, so I can only work on it when my husband goes to bed. The yellows are not as bright as they look in the photo.

We got out for a ride last week. As always, I enjoy the ride and ocean areas, as well as catching a few birds along the way.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend and doesn't get too snowed in. They are predicting up to 8" in our area. Tomorrow we will get out during the day, before it hits.

Friday Finish!

 

I am trying to finish old projects and found one in a box, in the basement. This was a runner I was making for my sister and for some reason, never finished it. It is a pattern I found in an old Better Homes and Gardens magazine. The original has a quilted middle, but I left that out. The only thing I did was hand quilt around the appliqués and border to finish it. 

It is done with old fabrics from an old fabric store that had sale bins, so not choices I would make now. The only bad thing is, two flowers have staining, so I will try and get those out and then send it to my sister. The side view makes it look shorter.

Last weekend we got out for a ride, still too cold to be outside for walks. We stopped at the breachway and enjoyed some fresh air and the incoming waves, for a bit.

The next stop was at the marsh. Lots of birds in the area and always nice to enjoy the area.

Our last stop was at Point Judith. It's a great place to park and see the ocean, without having to be outside. 

Another gull came in and let me take its photo. There are always a lot in this area since a lot of people get take out seafood nearby and sit here to eat, so they wait for leftovers.

Another day we stayed close to home and took a ride through the old base. Lots of businesses in the area, but a lot of area is left for wildlife.

With the snow and colder weather, I am seeing a lot more birds. There is a flock of Black-eyed Juncos that have decided that they like hanging out in my yard.

And a new pair of Cardinals, they are shy but the female finally decided to eat out of the feeder and stays nearby in the scrub bush.

And today I was able to catch the Sapsucker. It hangs out in the maple tree and has been drilling holes, all over. Usually the sap runs in February or early spring, so I guess he is making sure that he will get plenty when it comes in.

I hope you all had a good week. We are staying in a cold spell and maybe a little more snow next week. It seems the weather is reversing and the south is getting it all. 

Friday Finish!

 

As usual I am working on several projects and started a new one. Most are taking time, so I always like to have a smaller project to finish for the week. I found this design from Dearie Dolls, who seems to have disappeared from the web, but still has her blog with freebies.

I made this for the kids, so I wanted it to be fun. I am still trying to get the blue pen out, but once that is set, I will use glitter in the snowballs. It is still wet, so it looks discolored.

Last week we went for a ride and stumbled onto a ceremony at the Westerly cemetery. It was for an area that only had one grave and later it was found out that there were 172 people buried there. They had veterans from each era represented and this group did the 3 gun salute.

On the weekend we drove into Connecticut so I could get some fabric and then stopped at a park for a walk. Lots of birds along the river, most were far away or constantly moving, but I got a few decent shots.

After we drove to Eagle landing on the Connecticut river and I was surprised when I saw the nesting eagles, hanging out in the trees nearby.

The next day we went into Connecticut again to visit the fish hatchery. They have paths along the river and into fields, so a good place to walk and enjoy the birds. 

Today we went to Jamestown, a nice place for a walk and enjoy some beach time, Beans favorite. I caught this bird, hanging out on a rock. I hope everyone had a nice week and nice weather for this weekend. 

Friday Finish!

 This week was quite the week. We had a nice weekend and then got hit with snow on Tuesday. Now it is cold again, so winter is not over yet. I have been looking at old projects that I started and never finished and found one I could do up quickly.

I had made this design before and. used appliqués with stitching, this one is all stitching. I added a fun border and outer stitching. Even though the piece is primitive, I like how the brighter, fun fabric, works with it. 

One day we spent with Bean, he loves to go out with us, but sometimes we like to stop in shops, so he has to stay home. He enjoyed getting out and playing on the beach for a bit. We got to enjoy some birding, while out, as well.

While trying to get a shot of the Kingfisher, I noticed a bunch of cars, stopping in the road, then I noticed why. A Thick-Billed Murre was sitting in the road and didn't want to move. I have a feeling he got stunned by a car. I stood by him, trying to figure out how to get him back in the water, when a policeman came by. He had no idea what to do, so I explained that the bird has to be in the water, they do not walk on land. 

So, the policeman grabbed him and the Murre did not like that, so clamped onto his hand, with his bill, poor guy. But he held on and we walked down to the water and I told him to just throw it up in the air. He did and the Murre flew up enough over the reeds to get in the water and swam away. Our adventure for the day and a first time sighting for me.

After that, we headed to another beach. It was so nice out, that there were a lot more people than usual. I didn't find much on the beach until I spotted this guy. A baby blue lobster, a rare find. He wasn't moving but looked like he had just washed up, so I threw him back in the ocean, since it was going out. I am hoping that the ocean revived him and he lives to grow up, a happy thought.

Tomorrow a little snow flurry and we planned on taking the boys to the seaport, along with my son. They are having a winter fest, with reindeer, ice sculptures and other activities, so hopefully it will move out quickly and we can enjoy the day without freezing. I hope you all enjoy the weekend and find your own adventures.