Small stuff.................

Yesterday morning I worked in the basement. again trying to get things put away and get table tops cleaned off.  In one box I found the batik pieced sections that made these blocks.  I sewed the blocks and then made them into a table runner top.  I will look for the light fabric I used for the background and if I find it, I'll add a narrow border all around.

Last night I quilted the Australian/Aboriginal table runner and sewed on the binding.  I'm almost done with the hand stitching on the binding.

While I was in the basement I auditioned 2 Martha Negley fabrics for backing for this quilt.  I have 4 yards of each of them which I just figured out isn't enough.  I will have to figure out a creative way to add an additional fabric.

I actually do have another smaller piece of this fabric in addition to the 4 yards.

Even though they are both darker than the quilt top I think either of them would work.

This is how I know it is time to cut another Peony bouquet.  I'll be carefully removing these flowers from the vase as they drop their petals everywhere.

I did cut the new bouquet and it is mostly light colored blooms.  It is in the garage overnight for all of the ants to crawl out before it comes into the house.

About a week ago I showed a Coral Bell plant that was growing between 2 pavers.  Yesterday I pried up one of the pavers and pulled the plant out and replanted it in a bare area.  It had added some new leaves since I took the first photo.  The leaves are green, purple, and red on this plant.  They change during the summer depending on how much sun the plant gets.  

I have lots of weeds to remove and then plant something behind this plant.

I don't have Tiger Lilies in my front garden any more but a bird probably planted this one for me in the crack between the sidewalk and steps.  I'll let it bloom and then cut it down.

I have several small Cranesbill volunteer plants this year.  This one is too close to the big Coral Bell to leave it there.

Today I'll work on my May monthly recap post fomorrow.

Mindless sewing again...........

Since yesterday was errand day and I didn't have anything lined up to sew, I just went to the 3" Kaffe collective fabric component bin and continued sewing some Broken Dishes blocks, like I was making in April.  

I have lots of dark triangles that were cut over a couple years but didn't have any more light ones.  I looked through my Kaffe 'large scrap' box and found a few more light ones to cut.  This is the next batch I will sew.  I have a table runner I may quilt and finish today.

My cousin and his wife who moved to Virginia 6 years ago stopped to see me Wednesday morning.  They were in the area for a college graduation of one of their grandchildren.  They had told me about one of their daughters and husband that are a foster home and that they are adopting a couple of the kids.  I sent this quilt (finished April last year) home with them for the children.  It has a lot of conversation/novelty fabrics in it.
 

Two tops....................

The border doesn't show up that much in this photo but it's there.  This quilt is 7 Martha Negley fabrics that I had chosen 2 years ago and finally got around to using.  It ended up at 69.5" x 85".  Now I'm trying to decide whether to use Martha Negley fabrics on the back, or to go with a light color print from my stash.

Thanks to my friend Mary G, I caught the 2 four patch blocks turned the wrong way in the last 2 row segment.  I'm glad I hadn't sewn it on to the other sewn part of the top before I showed it yesterday.  This one is 64.5" x 80".

The layout was found in a Mary Ellen Hopkins book, mentioned in a post a few days ago.  I played around until I had a center I liked.  The choices for this quilt were dark, light, and red.  Both dark and light are many colors.

I had been talking about using my new die and several people inquired where I found it.  It is in this new Qube for 16" blocks, so the shape is 8" finished.

I don't usually buy the new products but I had been looking for larger shapes to cut up the big prints in a Kaffe collective layer cake (10").  Since this Qube also includes the 2 dies for the Bow tie block and the chisel shape, I knew I would use all of them.  I already owned dies for 4" squares and 4" half square triangles so I have all I need to use these dies.

I decided to use up the ends of several balls of yarn for another dishcloth.  I have used 4 so far.  To finish it I may just choose one more color because the rest of the leftovers are so small, only a couple rows each.

With all of the hype about rain, we only lucked out with 1/4".  They are talking about possible pop-up showers for a couple days so we are hopeful we might get a little more.  Next week is predicted to be mid to high 80s, maybe even low 90s.  We really need the rain.  Our deficit for the year is close to 5" and for this month, 2+".

 

Almost done.............

The last two rows have been pieced and are ready to add to the top section.  I could have sewn it on last night but I need to press the top after it's done and it was too late for that.

I also cut the border strips and sewed the border on the Martha Negley fabric quilt.  Another one to be pressed today.

More Peonies are blooming.  I cut some of the ones that fell over for a bouquet for my living room.

I did a little clean up in the front garden.  I had been watching this plant on the left that came up where I didn't have anything planted last year.  My plant app told me it is a weed.  I was suspicious because I have had it in my back garden too.  It looks like some type of Rudbeckia when it first comes up but then the leaves become a brighter green.  That is a black-eyed-Susan to the right of it.  I dug it out yesterday afternoon and also dug out the volunteer Violet.  I have hundreds of them in the backyard in the garden and in the grass.  I don't need them in the front garden too.  Last week I dug out the Salsify.  Now I need to fill in the spot where a plant died over the winter.  

Today is Tuesday......

How many times today will I have to remind myself that today is not Monday, repeating to myself Tuesday, Tuesday, Tuesday.

Rows 1 through 8 out of 10 are sewn together now.

And then I folded it and pinned to make room for the bottom 2 rows.

Then I placed a few pieces up on the wall to continue the design.  I'll work on placing the final pieces on the wall today.

The red Weigela is starting to bloom.  It is my favorite.  I need to trim back some branches after the blooming so my neighbors won't get hit in the face by branches when they mow that area.

My Bleeding Heart only has 3 blooms.  I won't give up on it yet, it might still produce more.

In that same part of the garden the little white star flowers are showing up, mixed in with the Lungwort/Pulmonaria.

This is the first volunteer tomato plant in the raised bed.  It's about 8" tall.

About 10" away there is another little plant that might be a tomato plant.  I will be able to tell when it gets a little larger.  I didn't buy any Sun Gold tomato plants this year, figuring that I should get a couple volunteers.  Last year there were 5 and they all produced fruit.  I gave 4 of them to my neighbor because I had already purchased a plant last year.

64 blocks sewn.....................

I designed all of the rest of the blocks that would fit on the design wall and sewed 29 to add to the 35 from yesterday.  Now I need to sew this big section together and move it up the wall so I can design the last 2 rows.

With any luck I will get this top sewn before the end of the month.

I pulled all of the pieces I needed for the last 16 blocks and put the unneeded pieces in the 4" storage bin.

This is the best looking section in my front garden.  My rain gauge is between the front two plants.  I lost one plant at the back but it was pretty crowded so I won't replace it.

As I turn and look behind this section, there is one volunteer Columbine in front of my Zinfin Doll Hydrangea bush.

In the last 2 days I got all of the Velcro weed pulled and cleaned up some more in the area where that was.  I pulled weeds near my Lenten Roses and tied up one Peony plant so my neighbors don't have to worry about mowing over it.  

 

More layout.............

I moved the blocks another 4" to the left and now the width of the layout will fit on the design wall.  The height though is not ideal.  I have to add 2 more rows at the bottom.  I may end up sewing the top part and double it up on the wall to design the last 2 rows.  I have 35 of 80 blocks sewn.  There are 40 of each style block.

Here is how much the tomato plants have grown.  May 11 on the left and May 23 on the right.  This one is the Early Girl.

The other plants, same dates, are halfway up to the second ring on the cages.  Now that our cold week is past, they should grow faster.

The Pansies have enjoyed the cooler weather.  I was so happy to find a few orange ones.  They are the scented ones.

The Petunias in my porch pots are white with black veins.  I had never seen this kind before.  I hope they survive.  I have mixed luck with Petunias; some years they take over and grow huge and other years I struggle to keep them alive. 

Moving blocks............................

I moved part of the blocks to the left but I can see I need to move them a few more inches.  Everything on the left side is sewn into 8" blocks.  I need to fit 3 more 8" blocks to the right of the top rows.  I finished cutting the squares that I need to finish the layout so I just need time now to design and sew the blocks.  I'm happy that this one is working as a scrappy quilt.

I have the first blossom on a tomato plant with more forming.

 I was down at the far south corner of my lot and see there is an invasive non-fragrant Honeysuckle growing there.  I was in that section pulling out Velcro weed.

I found another Jack-in-the-Pulpit with giant leaves and a tiny bloom.

I thought there wouldn't be any Peonies by Memorial Day but the first ones have bloomed.  This plant only had a couple buds.

This is always the earliest Peony to bloom and only beat the pink one by one day.

It warmed up to 67 degrees yesterday with sunshine most of the day.  No rain predicted all weekend and we are at a 2+" deficit for May.

More designing, a little sewing.................

Center #4 seemed to be the favorite in yesterday's comments.  I haven't made a final decision but I think it will be the one.

I took this photo as a reference because I need to start sewing blocks.  I have to move 2 sets of 8" blocks to the left on the design wall so I can get the rest of the layout up there.

I have sewn all of the blocks in the first 2 columns and the top 2 blocks in the 3rd column.  Today I'll start moving pieces to the left.  I cut lots of light squares and triangles yesterday but am still short of the number of squares that I need, both red and light value.

It got up to 59 degrees yesterday and there was sunshine part of the day.  I filled the bird feeders and dug out some Burdock.  I cut down a Tree of Heaven that comes back every year even though I have tried to kill it.

Continuing from yesterday.............................

At the left is the photo I showed yesterday of the beginning of a layout, inspired by a Mary Ellen Hopkins layout (also shown yesterday).  On the right is my box of 4" components, cut over a period of a few years.  I did some more trial layout choices to see if scrappy was going to work.

I don't have a lot of light fabrics already cut but there were enough to get a feel for how this is working.  I tried 4 different centers and this was the first one.

Here is number 2 center trial.  This is one of the centers in the quilt from the book that I showed yesterday.

Since I had some 4 patches sewn in the components box, I had to try them for trial #3.

Then as I sat there knitting and staring at the design wall I tried center #4.  Now that I have decided scrappy is going to work, I can start sewing the 2 side triangles to the elongated hexagon shapes.  I will do some more cutting of squares before I start sewing the eight inch 4 patch units.

This is the dishcloth I finished knitting last night.

Yesterday was grocery shopping day.  Our normal high right now 72 degrees and it was 52 degrees yesterday.  We only got .6" of rain over a period of 24 hours.  I was hoping we would get over an inch.  I have my rain gauge near my front porch so I think I'll move it a little farther away to be sure I'm getting a correct reading.