Pumpkin Picking Weather

 

Today’s weather was about as perfect as an autumn day could be. . . a perfect pumpkin picking day. That’s the name of this cross stitch pattern by Priscilla Blain of Stitching with the Housewives. I have a link to Priscilla’s blog in the right column where I list some of the blogs that I enjoy. My intention is to stitch a Halloween ornament to hang on each hook. 

I had been stitching on the September cottage seen in my previous post and this pumpkin piece for the last five or six weeks. I do stitch each night and for me, cross stitching is a slow but satisfying process. 

If only the weather had cooperated yesterday morning when members of the Crosstown Quilters Guild gathered in the parking lot of the Pond Plain Improvement Association for a socially distant, outdoor gathering. It was not a regular meeting, but many ladies showed projects they had worked on since the last time we gathered in March of 2019. There were some beautiful quilts! Unfortunately, about twenty-five minutes in, thunder rumbled and the darkening skies gave way to steady rain. Oh, well, the get together was very short, but it was worth it to see familiar, friendly,  albeit masked faces. :-) Hopefully, the weather will cooperate the next time we gather.

Funny, true story . . . I am still being very, very Covid careful, but I am continuing my weekly flute lessons. Sometimes we have had lessons in my teacher’s two car garage with the doors wide open. The ceilings are high, and you would not believe how amazing the acoustics are; it’s as if we are in a concert hall! The other day was gorgeous, and so we had the lesson on her deck. Here’s the funny part. At least one bird was chirping along happily throughout my entire lesson. . . No kidding!!! He, she, or they didn’t even seem to mind when I missed a note or blew a clinker or had to repeat a section  ;-). My friend and flute teacher Donna says the birds chirp and sing along whenever she plays her flute out on her deck.Who knew that birds like Bach and Mozart? I practice inside my house, but I’m going to start practicing on my sunporch to see if the birds at my neighbor’s feeder enjoy Bach, as well. On that note, I will wrap this up ;-).

Please stay safe. 

Wool Applique, a Cross Stitch FFO, and Miss Emma, Too!!!

 

I saw this wool applique kit on two floss tube episodes, and even though I have a number of pieces that I have yet to finish, I ordered “Festive Fall Simply Square” from Buttermilk Basin. [Warning : Do not visit the Buttermilk Basin website lest you fall down the wool applique rabbit hole. The site is packed with irresistible kits.]  Anyway, back to this piece. It was smaller than I imagined it would be, but it was quick to stitch and it looks cute on the top of my tiered tray. It comes with a little stand on which I will be able to display other tiny  pieces.

Continuing the wool applique theme for a moment. The kits and projects from Buttermlk Basin are   simple to stitch, and as I already suggested, way too cute. They come with clear instructions, and there are  a number of tutorials on Youtube which woulds show you how to get started. Anyone would find the kits from Buttermilk Basin and other wool applique shops enjoyable and satisfying to stitch. They are a world apart, however, from the designs and projects created by Sue Spargo which call for a variety of specialty stitches and a wide range of threads/yarns. I enjoy both types of wool applique, but the Sue Spargo version calls for far more time and effort, and I might add cost.

I had purchased the kit with beautiful wool, threads, and embellishments for Sue Spargo’s Squash Squad last August, but only completed four of the nine blocks. I am determined to work on that project and get it completed.

Speaking of completed pieces, here is the “September Cottage” from Country Cottage Needleworks. I usually display the monthly cottages on a metal easel, but not this time. I had purchased this red blackboard with apple last year at Michaels figuring it would eventually come in handy to display a piece of cross stitch and so it has. :-) I love how it turned out! In my next post, I will show you another FFO cross stitch piece of pumpkin picking cuteness that I also FFO’d today.

Now, it wouldn’t be a blog post from me lately without an obligatory bee photo so here is one taken yesterday.

Finally, my sweet Emma went to the groomers on Tuesday. I couldn’t decide which photo to post, so here are all three. :-()

Enjoy the rest of the weekend. As a New England Patriots Buccaneers fan, I’ll have another Sunday of back to back games to watch which means plenty of time for stitching. Brady, Gronk, and the Buccaneers are playing the New England Patriots in Foxboro next Sunday and that should prove to be really something!!!

Stay safe and have a great week.

Housing Boom for the Birds and Some Birthday Fun

Emma and I walk by this tree in my neighborhood several times a week. There were only a few houses at first, and then Tuesday I stopped short. There had been quite a housing boom!!! The next day I brought my iPhone to grab a couple of quick shots. Check out the fireman’s helmet in the front. 

What fun!

Speaking of fun, yesterday I attended a friend’s socially distant birthday party which was great fun. I made party favors . . . yes, colorful masks for everyone!!! No one wants to take any chances at this point.

The B-day girl sent out this meme today. ;-)

Recommendations: 

1) Saturday marked twenty years since that horror filled, sorrowful day of 9/11. If you have Apple+ TV, check out the filmed version of the Broadway hit, Come from Away. This musical celebrates the people of Gander,  Newfoundland, who welcomed 6,600 people when international planes were grounded on 9/11. It is well worth watching. (Forty planes and 8,000 passengers were also diverted to Halifax, Nova Scotia.)

2) Alex Anderson is offering a new paper piecing project on her Youtube channel. I’m planning to join in. 

3) Autumn Jubilee Is Coming . . . Follow the blog From My Carolina Home for autumn themed quilting, patterns, crafts, and recipes.

Let me leave you with this wonderful photo montage. I read somewhere that Queen Elizabeth is only 5’3,” and so she wears coordinating bright outfits so she may be more easily seen. 

 

    

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 Yesterday it was announced that 1 in every 500 people in the United States has died from Covid. The death toll in the United States now stands at 668,000. Please stay safe. Get vaccinated. Wear a mask. 

Birds Do It; Bees Do It / Let's Fall in Love

 Today was another glorious day. As I was surveying my estate this afternoon I pulled out my iPhone to capture one of the roses still in bloom.  Then I headed over to the autumn joy sedum which the bees love.

I was focused on this one large bee when from the corner of my eye I caught another bee coming in fast and then just hovering with wings flapping furiously. Well, the next thing I knew, I had a close up view of how bees do it!!! Mercy sakes!!!

 

 

Well, that was certainly interesting :-).

 

 Take a moment and click on Ella Fitzgerald singing Cole Porter's "Let's Do It (Let's Fall in Love."   I promise you will enjoy it. What an incredible voice she had . . . There is a longer version also taped in the recording studio where she tries different approaches to the song. This link is to the shorter version.

                                                          ____________________   

I belong to three quilting guilds. Decisions have been made and none of these guilds will be having in person meetings at this time. In one guild's survey over half the respondents said they would not be comfortable attending meetings. Two of the guilds will have zoom meetings. All of this makes me very sad.

Tomorrow (Wednesday), I was supposed to meet friends for lunch, and I had been looking forward to it, but I changed my mind about going. All of these lovely ladies are fully vaccinated. Even though we were going to a restaurant with outdoor seating, it made me uneasy. . . eight people in close proximity around the table. I do have a couple of medical issues that put me in the higher risk category, but I wonder whether I am being too cautious???  I just don't know.

                                                          _____________________     

Covid Deaths

World - 4.55million

United States - 651,000

Massachusetts - 18,298

Holding on to Summer

I finished  stitching Hello Summer from It’s So Emma from the Fat Quarter Shop two weeks ago, but I didn’t know how I was going to display it. At first, I thought I would turn it into a pillow, but the fact that I hesitated so long meant that really wasn’t what I wanted to do. I have seen this display piece many times on The Real Housewives of Cross Stitch. I enjoy their flosstube episodes very much, but sometimes the displays are a bit much for my taste. I hemmed and hawed whether to get this piece at Hobby Lobby, but I  did purchase it last week when it went on sale.

The piece had a black wire basket attached which had to be removed to allow space to display the cross stitch piece. Let me just say it was a bear to remove that basket. I used every tool I could think of, but it wouldn’t budge. I sprayed the bolts repeatedly with WD40, but nothing budged. Now because I am a very determined lady, I kept at it. Finally, I was able to remove one side of the basket, and after an hour of trying everything, and I do mean everything, the rest of the basket came off. I’m telling you this in case you might be tempted to purchase one.

Once the basket was removed I gave it a couple of coats of whitewash as the barnwood backing would not go well with my decor. Next I hot glued on five strong magnets.

I also glued washers to the back of the cross stitch. You can see that I also made a plastic template indicating where to place the washers on future pieces. These magnets are more expensive than the washers so I glue the magnets to the display and the washers onto the back of the cross stitch.  I learned that from watching the Housewives flosstube episodes and tutorials. (Note: If you are going to purchase a package of washers, bring a magnet with you as not all washers will stick to the magnets. (Ask me how I know :-)

For fun, I added a popsicle stick under the sweet treats.

 

In spite of how difficult it was to remove the basket, I do love this display idea. I already have an idea for  how it will look at Christmas, and I haven’t even stitched any Christmas pieces yet. :-)

Have you seen the new Aleene’s Tacky Glue packaging? You store the container cap down, and it is always ready to use . . . no clogged nozzle or globs of glue . . . It’s a game changer!!!  Yes,  indeed, it doesn’t take much to make me happy!!!

So, are you tempted to try cross stitching? Why not check out Cross Stitch University? The Fat Quarter Shop is offering a series of episodes for beginners on Youtube to get you started. There is a free downloadable pattern and there will be step by step instructions. Be forewarned; take it from me . . . cross stitching can become highly addictive.

Last thing . . . I took this shot Tuesday night in North Weymouth, and while it is a perfectly fine sunset, it was nothing like the sunset Monday night. That one was beyond magnificent with a sky awash in deep purples, pinks, and oranges. Did I get a photo of that shot? Nope! I was standing in a crowded parking lot. . .  absolutely mesmerized by what I was seeing. I hoped last night would be a repeat of that glorious sunset, but alas it wasn’t. 

 

Stay safe.