Phone Photo Tips and Keeping Busy

Yesterday afternoon I made a quick run to Staples to get ink. My printer is old, and unfortunately they only had a black cartridge in stock. Leaving the store I glanced up to see this impressive sky. I snapped this image with my iPhone.

Photos taken with my iPhone never fail to amaze me. My tip: don’t be afraid to move in close. For example, start by taking an overall shot.

Then maybe shoot from a different angle.

Move in for a closer image.

Then go in still closer. With my iPhone, I simply use two fingers to pinch the center of the image then move your fingers apart to zero in on the center of the flower. 

We had a bit of rain off and on on Saturday which allowed me to photograph raindrops on this ruby throated hibiscus.

Straight on . . . 

From an angle . . .

Going in still closer to capture this lovely image.

What else have I been up to? I’ve been prepping the 269 pieces of wool applique for my current project. Did I just write 269 pieces??? Yes!!! Heaven help me! (Some of the pieces are teenie tiny.)

My friend Edith and I headed down to West Dennis on Thursday to visit Cape Cod Quilts and Cottages. The owners have decided to close their lovely quilt shop. Currently, all purchases made with cash are 40% off and purchases made with a credit card are 30% off. Yes, I broke my resolution not to buy any new fabric. They are no longer offering online sales. They still had lots of fabric to choose from, but if interested, call first to be sure the shop is still open. We also stopped at Quilt Corner Studio in Sandwich. It was my first time visiting this shop, and I didn’t leave empty handed. :-)

Besides my wool applique project, I’ve been trying to “fully finish” some stitched cross stitch pieces which should be ready to show in my next post.  I’m thinking that I may use one of the fabrics that I purchased last week to make a fun summer bag.

Our hot and humid weather has precluded much gardening, and since this weather will continue for the next few days, I should be able to get some “stitching things” accomplished.

One more thing . . . my friend Kathy invited friends for a game night. Well, actually it was from 4:00 to 8:00. Her mom who turns 101 in July joined us. She is fun, sharp as a tack, and simply incredible!!!

Keep cool and have a great week.

“Farm Fresh Berries, “ Crosstown Quilters Guild, Casablanca, and Emma, Too!

Priscilla Blain of Stitching with the Housewives always designs fun, colorful cross stitch pieces, and I couldn’t resist stitching her “Farm Fresh Berries” for my kitchen tiered tray display. This stitching was fully finished on a wood piece from Paisley and Polka Dots. As mentioned in previous posts, the wood pieces in their kits arrive unfinished. You paint all the individual parts and then glue them together. You provide your own paint and glue. I buy small bottles of acrylic paint and use Ailene’s Tacky Glue to assemble the parts.

Yesterday was the last guild meeting of the Crosstown Quilters before our summer break. It was great fun. During Show and Tell, my friend Laurel showed this lovely quilt which she had worked on during the pandemic. 

[An oops update: Laurel emailed me to point out that the posted image was upside down. Oops!!! Here it is right side up. :-). ]

Mary D. showed her gorgeous Kaffe quilt.

A highlight of the meeting was the gifting of a Bruins inspired quilt to Tim who sets things up for our meetings at the Pond Plain Improvement Hall.  He is a diehard Bruins fan, and he seemed thrilled to receive this special quilt which was designed by our guild president Nancy H. I forgot to ask if I could post a photo, but trust me, it turned out great!!!

Back in March, I attended a screening of Casablanca at the Randolph Cinema. Though I have seen this film many times through the years on my TV, seeing it on the big screen was a whole new, amazing experience. If you love Casablanca or, indeed, films in general, I have a recommendation for you. Go to Youtube and search for “Casablanca: An Unlikely Classic.” It is a brilliant, thirty-five minute documentary from Warner Bros. Entertainment that examines the making of this film and its lasting impact. I guarantee you will find this documentary fascinating and well worth your time.  

For Emma fans . . . Here she is after a visit to the groomer this afternoon. Emma humors me for a few minutes, so I can pose her in front of my flowers. :-)

That’s it for today. Enjoy the rest of the week, and be sure to check out,  “Casablanca: An Unlikely Classic.”

Hingham Shipyard, Air Quality Concerns, and Wool Applique Wednesday

This morning I had an appointment at the Hingham Shipyard. For those not from this area, the shipyard today is a place with shops, restaurants, medical offices, apartments and condos. Around the area are signs and photos telling the role of this shipyard between 1942 and 1945. During those three years, 227 ships were built for the Allied War effort.

Today pleasure crafts fill the harbor.

 I only took a short walk after my appointment as we have been receiving air quality warnings. Our air here in Massachusetts seems better than yesterday, though when I returned home I stayed inside. As an asthmatic, I didn’t want to take any chances. For the last few days our sky had been grey, and you were able to smell the smoke from the fires up North.

This poor air quality is caused by four hundred wildfires raging across Canada. The air quality alerts have been issued along the East Coast all the way down to North Carolina. The images from New York on the national news this evening were frightening with the whole city blanketed in an orange smog.

It’s what I call Wool Applique Wednesday  so I broke out a kit that I had purchased a year or two ago. It’s a large piece, and I have been planning to get going on it. There were forty-two pieces of wool in the package. That didn’t worry me, but then I took a look at the pattern which has at least a zillion pieces!!!!!!!! What was I thinking????? Undaunted, I plan to start working on it tomorrow. Wish me luck ;-).

Flower Market FFO, Bunnies, and a Change in the Weather

We have had the most glorious spring weather for the last two weeks. The temperatures even reached ninety on both Thursday and Friday, but by late afternoon Friday, a cold front moved in along with lots of rain. By Saturday morning, the temperature had dropped forty degrees! Yes, we have traded May weather for March weather! Between the cold and the rain, there has been no gardening getting done. You won’t hear me complain as we had such a wonderful stretch of weather. I’m hoping that the rain heads north to Nova  Scotia to help put out their raging wildfires.

Wednesday was a beautiful day. I went to lunch with a group of friends and then back to a friend’s home for dessert. Fourteen lovely ladies, all former teachers, were present. In the evening, I went to another friend’s home for dinner. Yes, indeed, it was a fun doubleheader kind of day.

Last year, we had chipmunks everywhere; I haven’t seen any this year. There are, however, rabbits all over the place. Tuesday night I looked around before letting Emma out. As she dashed out to begin her backyard perimeter check, I spotted bunny ears sticking up from my small garden. Oh, no!!! I dashed out and succeeded in getting Emma back inside. I grabbed my phone and took this photo. The rabbits will freeze in place if not being actively pursued. I watered a few hanging pots and then spotted him/her in the front of my large garden. Obviously, he/she wanted to check out my pretty, new hydrangea.

 

I also took a moment to capture this lovely, blue iris. When I sold my aunts’ home many years ago, I made sure to bring home a clump of these pretty irises.

Now, continuing the flower theme, at the top of this post is Flower Market, a design by Priscilla Blain of Stitching with the Housewives. It was finished on a house display piece from Paisley and Polka Dots. I don’t love painting all the tiny pieces, but I sure do love how it turned out. I was working on another finishing piece today that I will show in my next post; it’s too cute for words.

That’s it for now. Dodge the raindrops and keep warm. (It’s June 5th, and I turned the heat on twice today!!!) 

Have a happy, creative week.