More fall colors

 hello my dear devoted bloggers,

I am still on the look out for fall colors for photos.  It's been windy here in Central Oregon (weather is changing!) and my chance for the colors is getting more limited.

I found these this weekend!

This one is a cheater--those are all deciduous pine trees which obviously don't change colors.  But early this morning, the sun was just coming up behind me and I thought this was a cool picture.

Sign of the changing weather here in Bend is this little bush that had tiny beads of ice early in the morning.  The temps here in the morning are in the low 30s, or even lower.  We had one morning when it was 16*!

We are heading back to California this week and because the weather is obviously warmer, the fall colors are later.  I'm pretty sure my Japanese Maples will be spectacular later this month.

I put away the sampler spree kid quilt and will deliver it to my small quilt group when we meet in a couple of weeks.  So once again I was in the "between quilt projects" funk.  I decided to pull out my purple baskets which were swapped between Wendy Reed (constantquilter), Barb Vedder (funwithbarb) and myself last May.  

I struggled with the setting squares and must admit that i bought some fabric this weekend for those squares.  I'm much happier with these little checks.  And the border stripe, I think, is perfect.  One detail in this process that I love is doing mitered corners! In case you're curious, all these purple fabrics are from Betsy Chutchian's line "Susannah's scraps".  I think I could buy them all (and did order a layer cake...but that's all).

Now I just need to quilt it and it'll be amongst its sisters on my small quilt wall.  I'll  need a ladder hang it, though! ;-)

Now once again I'm in that between quilts stage and stumped as to what to work on--so many ufos.  I'm working on my October mini little by little and did start something using scraps that I saw on a facebook page.  I saw a similar quilt last night that i might opt for instead but it's pretty brainless and goes quickly.

Hope you're going to have a great week! Stay healthy and safe, my friends!

xxxx

Randy

More fabric?? What was I thinking??!!

 Just what I don't need is MORE fabric!  But who can resist Pam Buda??

Some time ago, I responded to a sign up call for a kit and fabric that she was just releasing.  I completely forgot about it.  Well, much to my surprise, it arrived this week.  What fabulous fabrics!!  It's called "Needle and Thread"!  This is the pattern!  It doesn't look complicated although I will admit I found the initial instructions to be a bit confusing.

Here are some of the fabrics!  There's a load of gorgeous fabrics that you can't see in the layer cake but aren't even the whites fabulous?  I do love her neutrals!

I am going to resist cutting into it until I get my Sampler Spree put together.  I had originally thought I'd do a child's quilt for a donation to my small quilt group (which has started to meet again) but I realized it's too large for their parameters.  So I think I'll continue to make it larger and then decide what to do with it.  I made nearly 100 6" blocks so I still have a large stack of blocks! 

I usually put tops that are too large for the wall onto the floor while I'm working on them, but my DOG loves to eat fabric so that is a definite NO.  ;-). I tried and he started chewing on a corner.  My old dog Max used to plop down on the fabric regardless of its size.  I found that annoying but now I think it was endearing.  This is truly annoying!  Zeke steals my strips from my ironing area all the tie!

Fall continues to dazzle here and I'm sharing some of the more recent photos I took.  I find it so interesting that several trees in the same area will change colors at different paces!

I did get to kayak this week and it was just wonderful.  It was a little chilly initially but once inside the cockpit of my boat, it was just perfect.  The lake was empty (one other kayaker only) and we leisurely toured the perimeter of the lake.  The water was like glass, so still.  It was a little cloudy but still beautiful.

That's my friend Carol, my "partner in crime" who is always up for an adventure!  I loved the reflections and fall colors in this picture!

We came across this bush that was so interesting, with red berries and beautiful yellows.

We may try one more day if it's not too cold later this week.  The weather has turned for sure but if we bundle up, it should be ok.

GREAT news today. I went to the library, waited on line and got my BOOSTER shot!

Just FYI--that's a diagram of Oregon and the heart is just about where Bend is located in the state.  Pretty cool, hunh??  Very appropriate--my heart is definitely here in Sunriver/Bend!

Hope you're having a great week!

xxxx

September mini etc

 Happy Fall  dear bloggers!

I can't believe that September is gone and we are now into October.  I do think fall is my favorite season and I'll be sad to see winter arrive but we sure do need the rain/snow!  Think snow shoeing!!

I saw this fabulous fall tree the other day and would love to know what kind it is so I can find one for my yard!  I plan to show the picture the someone at our local nursery.  Maybe they'll even have one in stock still!

Great hiking weather and I went with a group to one of my favorite local hiking spots right in Bend!

I did get my September mini finished last night but was too tired to post it while still in September.

I'm calling this "Going in Circles"--might be a nickname for my life!!

I wanted to show you this close-up of the center to show you that I tried something different for the quilting based on a quilt I'd seen in August.  I did a different quilting pattern in each little square.  I had fun trying that out.

Sewing circles has been something I've been doing throughout Covid, thanks to my circle mentors, Wendy Reed (constantquilter) and Barb Vedder (funwithbarb), my Covid quilting buddies!  They're quick and easy!  Definitely don't use up much of my stash, though!

I've also been slowing putting my Sampler Spree top together.

I found a fabulous bird fabric last weekend and thought the colors would really make this quilt pop!  So I have my borders all ready to add once I get the top done.

My sewing has been slowed down because our puppy is like a baby and wants my attention--he is very affectionate and wants to put his paws on my legs or chest .  Here you can see how large he's gotten already--

Here's a sign of the changing seasons--there is snow already on Mt. Bachelor.  I don't expect it'll last since it's going to be warm this weekend--it'll be my last chance to go kayaking this year so I promise to send you some pictures from the lakes!

Have a great weekend.  Stay safe.  Be careful.  Get vaccinated!

xxxxx

A little garden show

 I haven't done much sewing since I went to my son's in Virginia for a couple of weeks to help them out.

And my dh and I had a small trip to North Carolina for business.  We went to a small but very picturesque botanical garden and I'm going to share some gardening photos.

First, one of the most unusual parts of this garden was their display of repurposed ceiling fans.  They had them everywhere, mounted on wooden posts.  I couldn't tell if they were only moving when the wind blew or if they were hard-wired.  This was one of my favorites:

And then there was this, which was fascinating:

Can you guess what this structure is for?

I'm not sure what this bug is, but I enjoyed watching him

And look at this butterfly!  BLUES

Then there were these plants, which were so interesting in textures and shapes,

Check out this lily:

There was a Japanese garden with dozens of Japanese maple trees (my favorite) but this meditation area really caught my eye.  The ground is sand/rocks.  They graded it in such a way as to create a beautiful circular pattern.  Note the tree on the right is a Japanese Crepe Myrtle, which I'd never heard of.  It was immense.

As we were leaving, we were treated to a most spectacular group.  It was unclear to me if it was for an event, if she was a bride or if it was a photo shoot.  But I was mesmerized by the woman.  Unfortunately I couldn't get her face up close but even her make-up was spectacular.

And one last scenery picture.  We stopped at a brewery for lunch (who knew that there were so many breweries in North Carolina??!!. The name of the place was called Bearded Bee Brewing and it was in a very charming small town called Wendell, outside of Raleigh.  I believe the building was a factory and is abandoned now.

I did get some sewing done recently but will save those pictures for my next post.

Fall has definitely hit Central Oregon.  I have had to put on a jacket in the morning and today I needed a coat mid-day to take the pooch out.  He did go for a swim this week, though.

Hope you're having a great week and staying healthy!~

A little quilt show and August mini

 Greetings my dear bloggers!  Hope you are enjoying these last weeks of summer.  Can't believe Labor Day is next week.

I was not able to get much sewing done but I did manage to make two cute washcloths for my grandkids in Virginia!  So I'm calling them my August minis!

One turned out way too large and I didn't care for the yarn.  The second one was getting much too big so I finished it and folded it over and closed the edges up!

This wound up looking Christmassy, which wasn't my plan.  My grandson loves red so that was what I saw when it was all wound up!

This second one is fun.

Both patterns are on Ravelry.  I am going to use the leftover yarn and whip up a couple of others before I leave Virginia.  My grandkids love playing with the washcloths I've knitted over the years.  I'm always the one giving baths to all the kids so knitting them washcloths is entirely appropriate!

Before I came to Virginia last week, I managed to stop by a very small cute quilt show and thoroughly enjoyed it.  Here were my favorites.  Some of the quilting was really well done; not in the sense that it was over-the-top at all!

I thought the piecing on this was really interesting.

This was one block from a quilt with 9 blocks.  I was very impressed with the quilting.

This modern little quilt was awesome and I took a close-up to show the quilting.

I think a closer look reveals that she changed her pattern for each part of the circles.

I also liked this version of a string quilt.  Very random but effective.

On another note, I love to read and just finished a book that I was sorry was over.  Know what I mean?  It's called The Rose Code by Kate Quinn.  Highly recommend it.

I'm flying back to Central Oregon next week where I'm hoping to get lots of kayaking done before the cool weather and fall sets in!  

Have a great week!

xxx

More 6" blocks done

 It's mid-August already.  YIKES

I did finally finish the Sampler Spree blocks that were navy and I enjoyed all of them (I left out the boat, which really didn't speak to me).  I am being very liberal with my alternating colors since this quilt will have many colors.

I've  started the next week's blocks, which are supposed to be coral and purple.  I''m using lavenders and don't have many coral fabrics. Oh well.  I think I'm on week 7 and we are on week 9 already.  Just a little behind.

My granddaughter came to stay with us this weekend and she always enjoys playing with my pins and arranging them in a pin cushion!  This weekend she wanted to play with a variety of the pins and pin cushions and I am always amazed at her creativity.  She turns 9 on Tuesday.  She has been using my Shawnee glass collection this time.  She also seems to enjoy drawing donuts a lot!! ;-)

I went to the local Barnes & Noble bookstore on Friday and came across this adorable book which I really enjoyed reading.  It's a kid's book and I don't think my grandkids would necessarily enjoy it.  I certainly did.  I may have to go back and buy it!

Hope you are all enjoying the last part of summer!

Can it really be fall?

 I know I suggested fall by my July mini but I noticed two trees in the last couple of days where the leaves are already turning!!  This is one of my Japanese Maples -- it's probably one of my favorite trees and I have many!  I was really surprised to see these leaves already orange!

And then on my walk yesterday, I saw this tree!

I am hoping for many more warm days to kayak up in Central Oregon when I get back in early September!

Here's a funny tale!  My new puppy seems to love grabbing my fabrics and running around the house with them!  It's pretty annoying and I have to hide all loose pieces. Let me tell you that he's FAST!  We keep his leash attached so it's possible to grab him when he's running around!

We had him neutered two weeks ago and I'm anxious to see him calming down!  He's a very sweet dog but so strong!! 

Hope you're having a great week. I'm working on my Sampler Spree blocks!  These are some of the navy blocks--I'm two weeks behind but it's not a race, right??  It's really kind of an interesting process--the blocks are pretty basic but are a little different.  I'm enjoying this.  Not sure how they'll all go together since the colors are all over the place.