Friday Finish!

 This week I wanted to make a little mat for my side table. I also wanted something with reds for Valentines. I do enjoy hand quilting at night, so this was the perfect project to keep my hands busy and make something I needed. It was also a way to start using up old stash and these were precut mini squares, so they were perfect for a small mat.

Last weekend we went to the southern beaches for a ride and look for birds. Lots of birds, but always hard to catch them. I lucked out and found a hawk who was hanging out in the area and stayed long enough for a shot.

Another day we took a trip to the island. At one beach we enjoyed watching a tow boat bring in a larger boat with a long tow rope.

Once they got closer to the bridge, the tow pulled the rope in to be closer to the larger boat. They do this when they get into the narrower channels, for better control.

At another beach I spotted a couple of crows, hanging out on the icebergs. It has been raining today and then cold again, so I am hoping it will warm up so we can go on more walks and less riding. I hope you all have a nice weekend and enjoying the winter months by catching up on your own projects.

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!

 This week I was able to work on my pillow and finish it. It is a design by Whimsical quilts and can be found in the book, For the Birds. The original pillow has a longer side piece, but I wanted to use a material that was not as long, so I modified it to fit my size. 

It is done with a flannel background and wool appliqué. I pinned the pieces in place and did a blanket stitch on them. The background has small stripes that are browns and a blue one, so it fits perfectly with my living room colors. I use it on the back of the couch for decoration and when the sun hits me in the face, I can move it to block the sun. 

Last weekend we went to the island. It was too cold to be out long, but a nice sunny day. A few of the docks and some of the fishing boats.

Today we got out and were able to walk on the beaches, since it got up to a balmy 38. I haven't been able to find as much nice glass, but with the cold, I try to walk more and bend less. There was a ship on a ship next to the bridge. With oversized ships, they cannot get in for repairs, so the larger ship is a dry dock, that they can get on and do their repairs.

I also spotted a group of American Black Ducks.

A male Mallard.

And it's mate. I love seeing so many ducks and other birds that winter on the island. It is a nice way to get out and get rid of the winter blues. This weekend will start out nice and then rain coming in and on Sunday we will get snow in the afternoon. I am not sure how much we will get, since we are always on the line, so hopefully more snow than rain.

I hope you all enjoy your weekend and find ways to get out and beat the winter blues. Making new things to decorate with, is always a good way for me to enjoy my days when I am stuck inside.

Friday Finish!

 

This week seems to have gone by too fast, but I have been busy putting away the Christmas decorations and cleaning as I go. I also had to get the basement cleaned up quickly since we discovered our heater is too old to replace parts. With no idea how long the fan would hold, it was time for a new one. Today they were here all day and got it all done, along with a new air conditioning system. I have wanted one and this way it was included with price and labor, so made it more feasible. Our house has windows in the wrong places for air to circulate properly, so now I can stay cool, no matter what room I am in. 

One thing I needed was another sunglass case. I throw them in my purse and they tend to get scratched and ruined. I found a cute design on the internet and made it up on a wool backing to felt. Nothing fancy, but fun and kept my hands busy. The photo makes it look messy and fluffy, but it is flatter and nicer in person. After felting, I did a simple wet felt to smooth the fibers.

Another thing I did was, prep a couple of projects. One is a long pillow with appliqué that I am working on now, so hoping to have that done by next week. Another is two more panel for the Christmas quilt. The appliqué is on black background, so I tried a little trick. After cutting out the appliqués, I laid the freezer cut out on the background and traced around it with white chalk pencil. This way, when I go to needle turn, I know how much to pull under by keeping under the line. Not the perfect method, but it works for me.

And this is how it looks when done. The pencil stays on long enough for me to work the appliqué. 

I hope everyone is not affected too much by the storms coming through. We will not get much, maybe a dusting when it reaches here. My prayers go out to all those who are devastated by the fires in California.

Friday Finish!

 

I hope everyone is having a good New Year. It seems last year and into this year, I am getting every flu that is going around. My son was sick so I assume I caught it from him. I am not as bad and am fighting it off, but it means resting and finding a new easy project I can put together. I cannot stand just sitting all day and working on something is a good way to pass the time and create something new. I am leaning towards a long pillow to put on the back of the couch, so hopefully I can put that together tomorrow.

This week I wanted to work on something and need more lavender pillows for boxes I will be resorting. I decided to sign up for the new club, PQP Club. You get access to all the back issues of the magazine and 4 new designs each month. I found a valentine stitchery set that was perfect for mini pillows and I reduced it a little more.

We had a few warmer days, warm enough to get out for a bit and walk on the beaches. We went to one of the southern beaches and walked a bit on the point. From there I could get a shot across the water, to the lighthouse. 

At the beach end,  I spotted this guy, trying to keep from being swept up on the beach. He would swim out and then get pushed back.

He seemed to be content to stay at the beach area and enjoy the waters where it was a bit calmer.

Another day we went to the island and walked along the beach. A view of the lighthouse across the bay.

I spotted a flock of geese in one of the yards. I walked up to them, got my camera ready and caught them, just as they flew off.

On another beach I spotted a flock of Brandts. They were not afraid of me and actually followed me as I walked along. On the way home, I spotted a Kingfisher, hanging out on the camera of the Osprey nest. 

I hope you are all doing well this year and not in the storm's paths that are coming through. 

Friday Finish!

 I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays. As usual, it came quick, and went by quick, but I enjoyed the moments. I never took any photos, I like to enjoy the moments and not worrying about posting photos. I also feel for those who cannot spend time with family or have lost loved ones, who are not with them, so I kept it low key this year.

I also got sick as usual, but took meds and rested for a few days. I made up a stitchery, so I had something to keep my hands busy and was able to finish it, just in time. I am not sure who did the design, but it was offered on Facebook. 

We also got snow before Christmas, so the kids came over and went sledding on the school hill. I bought sleds last year and we never got to use them. 

Bill gets the whole week and a half off, so we got out for short walks and rides. Jamestown is always a fun place to go to. Views from every side and we were able to go for short walks, before we froze. There is a path that goes uphill to a point and I decided I wanted to see how far it went. It was a nice path and easy to traverse and came out to the end of the point, so we had nice views from a higher vantage point.

Looking back into the cove. 

After we stopped at the state park and looked for glass, not much luck these days. On the way out, I spotted a group of Snow Buntings, a nice surprise.

Today we did a ride around the southern beaches. When it is cold, places that we can drive to and see, without getting out, is always nice. In one area, we have a view of the pond where the boats and ferries go through. Today we spotted some fishermen, throwing in their pots. Not sure if they were crabbing, but looked like crab pots.

In the marsh, we spotted these guys running around the mud flats. 

Rain is predicted for the next 3 days, which I don't mind, it will keep me in and I can start working on finishing some quilts. I plan on finishing one Christmas one, and others that need finishing and binding. I have several with a summer, Americana theme, so those will be in the next batch to finish.

I hope this finds you all doing well and would love to know what your plans are for the coming year. 

Friday finish!

 

I hope everyone has done all they need to, so they can enjoy some time before the holidays without the stress. As usual, I seem to have picked up another flu bug, but doing ok and will be fine for Christmas. I am glad I got all my shopping and wrapping done, so I could relax this week and not do too much.

I hung the new quilt I was working on, on the banister. It is a cheater piece and I added a border to make a lap sized quilt. It was something I could work on at night, by quilting around the black lines. Nothing fancy, but the design is fun and a nice way to greet people when they walk in.

We were able to get out for a bit last week, mostly driving since it is too cold to be outside for long. I finally caught the Horned Larks in the parking lot, at the beach.

In the breachway, there was a large group of Common Eiders. The black and white male seemed to be the leader and wherever he went the females followed him.

We also take drives around the island. It is even colder there with the ocean breezes, but the views are always beautiful and a way to get out of the house for a bit. We ran into this doe, that was walking down the road.

Today I tested a recipe, cranberry cornbread. I wanted to make something a little different for Christmas and the cranberries make it more festive. I really liked how cranberries gave it a bit of tartness. I use Monks sugar and the recipe called for buttermilk. I don't use that but a trick I learned. I warm up milk and then put a bit of fresh lemon juice into it and let it sit, instant buttermilk. If you want to try the recipe, you can find it at Spilling the Tea. 

Tomorrow will be a rest day, we got a bit of snow, so hoping to get out and get some photos with snowy backgrounds. Then it will be time to get the house ready and start cooking for Christmas Eve. The kids come here for dinner and we go to their house on Christmas. I give them presents at our house, then save some for their house. 

My hope is that everyone has a wonderful holiday, no matter how you celebrate it. Even if you cannot get out or be with family, take the time to make the day special, for yourself. Christmas blessings to you all.