Friday Finishes!

I hope everyone faired well during the recent storms. We got hit with a lot of rain and wind, but so far our power has stayed on.

This week I made a couple of items. I got a book from a thrift store and wanted to make the flag pattern. The book is Handmade in the USA by Kindred Spirits. My original idea was to mount the piece on wood, but I didn't have any good wood so I decided to try it on a canvas frame. I used various vintage papers for the background, but thought it needed to be toned down, and basically, I ended up painting over it and then I did some stenciled stars.

First I antiqued the canvas, then I antiqued the flag and once it was dry, I attached it with a decoupage medium. It worked great, the flag lay flat and it is hardened into the background. The problem was, I had used a little of the black stain for antiquing and the medium made that run throughout the piece. The flag came out too dark and the background lighter, so not the look I was going for. I think another problem was, I rushed to get it all together and should have given the piece, a day to dry thoroughly.

I had to lighten it up, so you could see how the flag looks, so the stars are lighter than the actual piece, as well.

Another piece is a lavender sachet, using Kathy Schmitz's newest pattern, from the stitch club. I have a lot of items in boxes, so I can always use more sachets, though this one is so pretty, it is a shame to hide it.

Last weekend we got out for rides, but no eagles. Of course I found some new, old graveyards and a wonderful old church that will be perfect for an art piece or maybe a new punch needle pattern. I do not show photos of items I will be using in art, but I took a few of the unique graveyards.

And the only bird that I could capture this week was a turkey vulture. I thought it was the hawks at first, but this is what I got a shot of.  It was good practice with the new lens, I wasn't sure if I could get good shots of birds in the air and this guy was also far away, so I am pleased with the results. The good thing about getting a better quality lens is that you can get a better result when editing the photo.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and find your own adventures.

Working on Friday!

Not a lot got done this week, seems I am still dragging from taking the kids out. I really have to stop lifting Alex, it does me in, every time. Add the heat to that and it is just miserable, so mostly resting, swimming and a little stitching.

I am finally getting close to finishing my stitchery, by Kathy Schmitz. Since it is so large, I have decided to make it into a lap quilt. I will add a border, than blocks, then another border. I have lots of precut squares that will go nice with it. The design is 16" x 20".

I have also been enjoying the birds in my yard. I showed you a photo of the baby robins, well this is what they look like after one week, they sure grow fast. The other day I noticed them standing up and ruffling their wings and yesterday they were gone.

Mama robin is still close by and feeding them, until they are ready to go out on their own. I think they are in my neighbors yard, since I saw her go behind the fence with a worm.

Lots of birds this week, I think most of the houses are empty now, except for the beach house, I can still hear chirping. It is fun to see the new ones, flitting about the trees, testing their wings.

And today I saw 8 large birds, flying over head. I was all excited, thinking they were hawks, but after closer inspection of my photos, I realized they were turkey vultures, lol. I have never seen so many in our area.

And the final visitor today was a surprise. Two guinea hens came across the street and they had a group of Keets with them. Of course I worried that they would get hit, not sure why they are allowed to wander around. I kept an eye on them and the minute dusk came, they hunkered down in the thickets behind our trailer. Hopefully nothing comes by tonight, the hens are known for leaving their young, the birds are a bit daft.

I hope you enjoyed seeing what I have been up to this week and the feathered friends in my area. I hope everyone enjoys their weekend and be careful in this heat wave.

Weekend wanderings!

We had another beautiful weekend, but Bill had to work on Saturday. Sunday was our day out and we made the most of being out, by going to Fort Getty where we just sat on the beach and enjoyed the views and Bean got to run and play, all he wanted.

I thought the bay would be rough, but the waters were pretty calm and lots of kayakers were out. I wish we had bought ours, someday I want to paddle over to Dutch Island, where you can see this lighthouse.

We had the beach to ourselves, but of course, people started coming in, so we went to the divers beach. Lots of people with dogs go there and I can usually let Bean play off leash, even with people. I was also getting hot, so I slipped my suit on in the car and was able to play in the water with Bean. The water was cool but full of chopped of seaweed and icky stuff, so I didn't go for a swim.

On the way back we saw a big ship, so I stopped to get a photo, this is the Regal Princess, I never realized how big the cruise ship was, till I saw it with all the other boats.

When we went to pull over, something big flew up past our car, so I had to go see what it was.

A turkey vulture, and while I was taking photos, I finally realized why there were there, when the smell hit me, a dead raccoon. 

Today Bill went to work and things were slow, so he decided to come home early so we could go to the beach and watch the sunset. Well, we left the house and headed for the bridge and a huge fog bank came rolling in and covering everything so that you couldn't even see the island. But, we just wanted to get out so we went to the lighthouse first and a good time to hide a few rocks. There were a few kids coming and going, so hopefully they found the fun rocks. As you can see, no sunset tonight, at least on the ocean.

Afterwards we went back to the beach at the forts and enjoyed a walk down the beach, and of course, adding a few more rocks to my collection. I hope everyone had a nice weekend.