Friday Finishes!

 

This week I was testing products for review, so I made a few things from the supplies I got. The first was a needle felting kit. It came with plenty of roving and nice instructions to make 4 snowmen, so I made one for now. I rushed a bit to get it done, so it is not like the original, but I always like to add my own touches. It was fun to do and a fun piece for Christmas. 

Another product I tried was Arteza transfer markers. You are supposed to use transfer paper, which I didn't have, so I used parchment paper. It also recommends using white cloth and I used a darker fabric, so the colors were a bit dull. You use an iron to transfer it to fabric, so something fun to try. I think I prefer to color them in myself, but it will be fun for the boys to use, maybe some t-shirts. I made it into a lavender sachet.

On the weekend we did some biking. The first trip was back at the airline trail, starting from the end point in East Haddam. It was a nice trail and went over two Aquaducts.

We went on this section and continued onto the next section and ended at the Colchester end. It was a beautiful day to ride, even though the foliage was almost gone.

On Sunday I decided to do a shorter ride, over the border and do an undeveloped part of the trail. It ran along a river which was beautiful, but it was also, bumpy and rocky and then we ran into long areas of water. We had to walk our bikes over a foot path, over steep hills and back down, on slippery leaves, not fun. I do hope they finish the trail system, it runs from RI, into Connecticut. 

When we got to the end, I decided I did not want to ride back on the trail, so we went on the road. That was a lot easier, but it was also, uphill most of the way back. That definitely wore me out, so this weekend I am taking it easier. 

I hope you all have a nice weekend, a few views of the moonrise over our town of Wickford, this week.

Friday Finish and feathered friends!

 

This week I worked on finishing a new piece. I finished the stitching, but I still need to make it into a pillow, or maybe a wall hanging. I am not sure if I want to add a saying, it depends on what it looks like when I cut it down and add a border. The photo makes it look grainy but the colors are much brighter and smooth looking. I was trying to go for a pen and ink, with watercolor look.

We didn't do anything exciting last weekend. We rode around and realized we couldn't stop on the side of the road or down a back road with the trailer, so time to use the truck for exploring. We stopped at a bike path, but no parking so not sure how we can walk on it without parking, but we can park at the other end if we ride our bikes. I really wanted to explore a bit on the end, since that is the part that follows along the river.

I have had a lot of visitors this week, something to enjoy during the week. I think the young Downy Woodpeckers are the most fun. They are less afraid of me and they will hide behind the rails and peak out at me, but sometimes they are still enough to catch a shot of.

I also had a new visitor, a female Red Bellied Woodpecker. I had to shoot through the window, or she would take off. 

Today I was able to catch the male. He is a lot more skittish and it took three tries, just to shoot through the window. The minute he sees me move, he takes off, so I have to be sneaky.

You can see his belly in one photo, that is why they are called, Red Bellied Woodpeckers.

And a few others that I was able to capture. I used a different camera body with the zoom and in some ways, the photos are better, but it seems the camera has problems, so I may have to take it back for a fix. The focus wasn't always working and the menu wouldn't work sometimes, unless I shut off and on again. Luckily it is under warranty. It could be the lens, since I didn't have the problem with the other new lens. I guess I need to read my manuals, lol.

Weekend Wanderings!

This weekend we had a day of rain, so I prepped some Christmas pieces, something new and something to finish, so I will have a couple of things to show this Friday. Since we got out for a nice ride on Sunday, I thought I would show you a bit of foliage and the Connecticut sights.

We stopped at the Yantic River to see the falls. I had a feeling that they would be running higher with the rains and we were not disappointed.

Up river, another falls goes past the old mill.

We headed down route 82, and stopped at the  primitive store that I had seen online. It was a wonderful shop, filled with antiques and unique items, as well as prims. I will definitely stop by, more often, when we are in the area. The name is Primitive Crow, and they also hold primitive painting classes, wish I lived closer.

And when you go down the back roads, you find fun things. Love how they used the truck for a yard display, even painting their name on the side.

We made our way to Devil's Hopyard. Connecticut is famous for weird names, they believed that the big indents in the rocks were made by the devil's hoofs. But the name doesn't fit the beauty of the area. The falls were overflowing from the rains and you could just sit there and watch them cascade down the steps.

We walked along the paths and of course had to stop by the covered bridge. Watching all the people come down and head up the path, tempted me to try a hike up to the over look. Tempted but not attempted too well, lol. Getting up the first wet and slippery incline was bad enough, but when we got the a small crossing, the waters were higher and I was in no mood to try and jump over the water or slip on the rocks, so we turned around. I decided to head towards the lower path and avoid slipping down the incline, which was easier and a nicer walk along the river.

Our last destination was Gillette Castle. I really wanted to walk there, but we were running late from the first hike, so we just walked around the main area. The views were spectacular, pops of color dotted the landscape.

All along our drive and the areas, were beautiful displays of foliage, but most of the wooded areas are full of trees that only turn yellow. And of course, any time I saw a beautiful tree, it was in a place I couldn't stop at or go into. It was a beautiful day though and something you just have to do, to enjoy. Connecticut is full of country roads and scenic routes, well worth a visit.

Of course Bean loved going too, he got to go on lots of walks and meet hundreds of people, another reason we didn't have as much time. One guy actually came over and started hugging Bean, lol. He had a Border once and Bean is just so lovable, everyone wants to pet and hug him.

Weekend with Bean!

We had a nice weekend again, so it was a great time to get out and let Bean explore the world outside of our house. We got him a crate so we can use it for him inside while he is training and it is nice for the car since he has his own place to relax.

Our apple orchard is closed for the season, so we went to an orchard in Connecticut. We take the back roads so it is a nice drive with the foliage and the orchard is along the Thames River.

We wanted to make a stop before we went apple picking, so Bean could get out and get some exercise and do his business. There was a park in the same area with a boat launch, so we enjoyed a walk along the tracks and beautiful views of the river. Bill forgot my good camera so I took the photos with my waterproof camera, on this trip.

The orchards were bigger than the one near our house, rows and rows of apple trees. They have a tractor and wagon that will take you into the orchard and pick  you up when you are done. It was a bit slow, so Bill and I walked around, picked lots of apples and walked away with a few bags.

After apple picking, I wanted to go for a short drive to Norwich, which is where we went last week. This time we went to the left and stopped at a waterfall on the Yantic river. The area has rivers running, every which way and was home to a lot of textile mills. The park at the falls was a nice place to stop and listen to the roaring waters as they rushed down the rocks.

Then we walked across the bridge, Bean seemed a bit nervous with the roaring falls, so he got carried most of the way across.

An old trestle bridge makes a stunning photo opportunity with the rich colors of fall.

I wanted to come a round to the other side of the park to see the views from that side and I am glad I did. I found another waterfall coming off a dam near an old mill building. We also saw some beautiful old buildings in the surrounding towns and there are more rivers and towns to explore, so future trips are planned.