Photo of the Week and Garden Update

Photo of the Week . . . 

Wednesday morning I headed out to do some photography. There are days when everything comes together and you are able to find wonderful subjects and places to photograph. Wednesday was not one of those days for me. I had been hoping that going out with my camera would be a mood booster as my friends and I recently lost a close, long time, dear friend. From time to time, I have mentioned “my friend also named Janice” in posts on this blog. She had been struggling with serious health issues for a number of years. This funny, caring, gentle spirit went home to God two weeks ago. Though we know she is at peace, it still doesn’t seem real. 

Anyway, after visiting two spots and photographing nothing, I headed to Jenny Pond in Plymouth. These are the only images worth sharing. 

If you click on this photo, you will be amazed by the luminous color of the mallard’s head. (For that matter, click on each photo as pretty pictures are good for the soul!)

 In my last post, I wrote that I had planted about thirty pots and hanging pots so far, and I realized that seemed somewhat excessive, so let me explain and show you a few photos.  On my front porch I have a schnauzer planter which was made by my neighbor. (He makes breed specific planters and cat planters, too!) I also have a large pot filled with impatiens on the bottom step. The wrought iron chair in front of the garage is filled with pansies. (I’m told that this chair was once part of a kitchen set which many, many years ago had belonged to my maternal grandmother. )

There is a stockade fence on one side of my backyard and along it are four double shepherd’s hooks. (8) There are two large pots on either side of a bird bath. Along the chain link fence separating the front and backyard are three large pots with geraniums, white petunias, and scaevola (blue). There are also hanging pots around my large garden and hanging from two large trees down back. (My theory is that eyes will be drawn to the hanging pots, and visitors won’t notice all the weeds lurking around the plants below. :-)

There are six pots on my deck all with different plants. I love the color combo of the light pink and purple petunias.  This large pot of pansies is in front of my lamppost out front. (I planted them at the end of March.) All in all, things are taking shape. I have even started making steady progress on my large, overgrown garden. :-) 

Having said all this, I’m going out now to plant a few flats of annuals. (I really have to push myself while the temperatures are still cool because I know me and once it starts getting warmer, my intentions might still be good, but my follow through will be sorely lacking. ;-()

Happy Gardening! I hope you all are experiencing the same perfect spring weather that we have been having here in New England.

Irises, A Spring Stitch, and “Radium Girls”

The irises and poppies are blooming. I’ve put together about thirty hanging pots and planters. Whew! Now for the hard part. I have to tackle my gardens; my large garden is a complete disaster. I lost a number of roses and other plants probably due to our warmer then normal and drier winter. Sadly, the weeds seem to be exceptionally healthy, and I could spent more than a few hours digging out all the maple saplings. I keep telling myself that bit by bit things will get done.

Here is a new spring stitch . . . Spring Tulips by designer Priscilla Blain of Stitching with the Housewives. I mounted it on a wood watering can piece from either 141 Designs. com or Paisley and Polka Dots, both on Etsy. I say either because I cannot remember from which company I purchased the watering can kit. Both companies sell unfinished wood kits which you paint and assemble. (This kit with only two pieces was a breeze to complete; some kits contain multiple pieces.)

My young cousin Miss T enjoys acting, and on Saturday afternoon I attended the Arlington Children’s Theatre production of Radium Girls. The entire cast did a magnificent job presenting this very intense play. It told the story of young women who worked in factories painting watch faces with self-luminous paint made with radium. Besides watch dials, the young women also painted dials for instrument panels. They were instructed by their supervisors to point the tip of their brushes by touching them to their lips. Many of these young women later died slow painful deaths due to radiation poisoning.

 I have read quite a bit about the Radium Girls in the past last few days. There are many articles and photos online from the period which document this tragic story. The lawsuits filed on their behalves in the late 1920s led to improvements in worker safety in many fields. 

We had an excellent speaker, Patty Sawyer, at this morning’s meeting of the Crosstown Quilters Guild. The title of her talk was “How I Became So Judge Mental.” She discussed how judges evaluate quilts, the critique process, and tips for quilters who want to enter their quilts in judged shows. Her talk was very well received by members. If your guild is looking for a dynamic speaker, check out her list of lectures and workshops.

So, does anyone want to come help me tackle my big garden? There are plenty of weeds to go around. ;-).

Have a great week.

Flora’s Basket, Wool Applique Tulip Topper, and Goodbye Maple Tree

This sweet piece is Flora’s Basket by Cindy Young of Luhu Stitches. There were nineteen different flosses used to create the shading in the roses and apple blossoms. When I purchased it, I thought it would be a quick little stitch; boy, was I ever wrong!!! Still, I do love it, and I had just the perfect thrifted frame in my stash. Could this frame color be any more perfect?

In a recent post I showed a bowl of perle cotton threads that I was using on a piece. It was a wool applique April tulip topper from Shabby Fabrics. In the second photo there is a stained glass box which I made for my mom many years ago during my stained glass crafting period. :-)

This maple tree shaded my sunporch (and clogged my gutters,) but for the last few years a hole near the base kept getting bigger and deeper. 

The arborists that I consulted all agreed that sadly, it was time for it to come down. So, yesterday morning, bright and early, this was the scene in my backyard.

Earplugs in place, I sat on my neighbor’s deck sipping my ice coffee and watching the well choreographed  process. It was incredible!!! 

Precision . . . The crane operator swung huge sections of the tree to the crew below. At the end when the crane operator stepped out of the cab, I gave him a standing ovation. He had a grin on his face and nodded. Could that have been his first standing ovation? Honestly, I could not have been more impressed by the professionalism of the entire crew. It was masterful. [FYI: I used Bogan Tree Services of Quincy, and I could not have been more pleased with their work.]

It was a bit disorienting and a little sad when I took Emma out last night seeing the space where the mighty maple had stood. On the plus side, my large garden will now receive more sunlight.

Covid-19 Update:

Today the United States’ declaration of a public health emergency due to Covid-19 came to an end. There is one troubling note though . . . according to the CDC, there were more than 77,000 new Covid cases last week. Since many people test at home, that number may be far below the actual number.

Stay safe and have a lovely rest of the week.

Spring Is Here!!!

 Don’t these photos just suggest spring to you? This morning I attended a meeting of the Herring Run Quilt Guild in Norwell, and when I returned to my car, I spend a few minutes photographing these pretty blossoms. 

At the last meeting of the Crosstown Quilters in Weymouth, I picked up two pieces of fabric from the back table. (The back table is a wonderful place; you never know what you may find there: fabric, books, magazines, notions, etc.) I like it because I know that whatever I leave there will probably go home with a fellow quilter. 

Now, I do have one pretty hard and fast rule about taking things from the back table. Anything taken must  be used within the two week period between meetings. . . if not, I must bring it back to the next meeting. 

The exception to the rule would be a particular notion or pieces of trim which I am confident that I will eventually use when finishing a cross stitch piece.

Anyway, here’s a quilt for a child that I made from the fabric that I picked up from the back table last week. 

Here’s a close up of this fun fabric.

The backing is a green print also from the table. I added batting and a red binding from my stash, and this quilt went together quickly. It will be donated to DCF (the Department of Children and Families.)

Now for Emma fans . . . here she is after a trip to the groomer on Wednesday.

And happily, the rain has stopped after a period of cool, damp, dreary, drizzly weather.

Life is good. Have a lovely week ahead.

Wheelchair Quilt for a Veteran

 Back in February, I read about SAHRR 2023, Stay at Home Round Robin. Each week the organizers took turns suggesting what each row should be. I started with a center block which I had from a previous project and then added enough rows to make this wheelchair quilt for a veteran.

One concern with wheelchair quilts is preventing the quilt from getting caught in the wheels. After searching online, I located a tutorial created by a nurse. She suggested cutting out a 6.5 inch square from the bottom on both sides. Then bind all around except for the cut out sections. Sew those seams together and add binding to these seams.

Here’s a photo of the back of the quilt.

For a detailed, step by step Wheelchair quilt tutorial please go to Better Done Quilts. 

A Medical Milestone:

For the first time in over three years, a Boston hospital, Tufts Medical Center, announced that they had no inpatients with covid. South Shore Health also had no patients with covid. Let us remain vigilant but  hopeful that the worst is behind us.