Mid-May / Spring 24 ~ Some Bramble Berries , Some other Quilts, Pansies, Asparagus.

 

Hi everyone! Another grey and dreary day, more November than May. [except November here is beautiful] I read a weather story and it said, if I got it right, we have had only 3 sunny days so far this year?! No wonder I crave bright colors!

25 mph gale blowing too. My pansies are struggling wind damages their delicate petals.

I remember the first year I lived here. I excitedly filled my then-extensive crock collection with red geraniums, rosemary and lavender. I had this very Med theme in my head. I planted in early May, on KY Derby Day, as my dad always did all my life in the Midwest. By June all the plants had rotted off and were done. This year my coreopsis is flourishing though. Years of experimenting and lucky choices of mixed seed packs have helped my little garden adapt and grow.

This week I worked diligently on Silent Night! I may make my deadline of June 1st! Tho prob not the backing. 

I find I am loving the deep blues again, inspired by the current curated group of quilts on Instagram's Flying Geese.  @_flying.geese_ 

 All her quilts are inspiring, as is her dedication to donating a portion of sale proceeds to charitable causes, focusing often on women's needs. Here is the Flying Geese website, for those who don't do IG. The sale is I believe this Thursday, May 23? click HERE 

and archive of beautiful ''sold'' quilts, for an enjoyable online quilt show: archive HERE

This fabulous stack [all hand washed!] makes me wish I had only bought indigo quilts all these years! Exquisite one at a time, stunningly beautiful in a stack.

This week I purchased Jan Patek's Noah's Ark Quilt pattern, on sale for around 5.oo. I've always wanted to make a red and white Noah's Ark quilt! But seeing these blues, I wonder if it should be blue and white instead? ...Or, realistically, made in Jan's original prim colors, as my vision is to reduce the size and display it with my wooden Noah's Ark, carved and painted by my parents, gifted over many years. [a new pair of creatures! maybe more!---every Christmas. 33 pairs!]

Anyway it will be one of my sit and sew projects for the coming summer when Mo and I have our outdoor hour together each afternoon. ( "rain stops July 1, Mo, I promise!")

                                                     pattern pic, below/ vintage original by Jan Patek

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This week I had a huge positive breakthrough with Bramble Berries [Bramble Blooms1]. After losing out on wonderfully right vintage blocks 

a few weeks ago, persistence paid off and I won an auction from the same eBay seller @ebay.evintage. Only 12.50! Nice and clean, no musty smells or stains--always a bonus.

The Plan:

It arrived Monday after my medical treatment, but I couldn't wait to open it and I was so filled with joy. It is so perfect! 

Yes it's very bright and very wonky. Yes!  Wonky is so good! And improv-ish. The energy of a creative impulse. I love wonky. I rarely fix the oddities of the old quilt tops and blocks I use. 

Lizzy colors!
  

I even found, gasp! polyester doubleknit squares.

There's one damaged section but easily removed or reworked.

I hung it up to just look and enjoy. I love the wonkiness, the movement the exuberance. 

It took me until today to discern a pattern or plan. It seems to actually be a strip quilt. There are rows of Four Patch / Nine Patch blocks in an Old Italian Pavement setting; separated by bright solid sashing. Then alternating rows of wide sashing and Nine Patch blocks. I'll explore this in a future post, it's okay if you can't see that. And it's fine if you're horrified by the  wild colors and crazy piecing. Because...it is exactly what I imagined, even though BB1 is improv, I always just ''knew''.

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Meanwhile, in the kitchen: this past week I ordered asparagus even though I never cook after an IV treatment, too groggy to cook safely.  A bundle of the oddest skinny stalks arrived, about the size of worsted weight yarn, I mean 3/16". Eeeew. Like eating grass trimmings! 

But I can't bear to waste food, and the fresh veggies don't keep forever, so I chopped the spears and sauteed them in butter and olive oil with sliced lemon and garlic, added a dollop of fat free Half and Half cream and some leftover bearnaise sauce I found on the fridge shelf. Lots of black pepper and tarragon. Tonight's dinner, tossed with pasta or fresh ravioli, perfect for yet another rainy night.

Mo says Hi! and it's time for his walkies. 

Have a lovely week.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach...

surfing beach, not this May.