Gone To The Beach

Saturday, October 14, 2023

Garden Peeping ~ Looking for Fall

Hi! [some quilt notes at he very end, if you're here for the quilting.]

We are having a true autumn this year---sweater weather!--- not that there is much ''fall foliage'' to be seen. Much chillier than normal, alternating stunningly blue days with grey cold rains. Only a hint of tan, ocher, and umber on the dunes.

Mo and I went out looking for items to draw in the nature journals.

Mostly on the hunt for goldenrod.

Though with the rain and flooding I also went back looking through old photos. I loved this one. Rather like like @dogwalkdiarynyc 's work, though my flatlay was done years ago, before I ever saw her beautiful collages.

I was happy to see some fun Halloween decor showing up.

below: note the coleus on the right, deep purple, has developed delightfully spooky purple flowers now left to bolt.

Marigold love October, the cooler days, the very damp nights.

And the hydrangeas and beach grass rarely disappoint.

My friend brought me this fabulous big blue Cinderella pumpkin! I may add a crock and some autumn leaves--or keep it minimalist?

And cheeses and pumpkin bread from Trader Joe's.

She popped in early yesterday morning, Mo and I were barely awake! But we really enjoyed the pumpkin bread with poached eggs for breakfast. Do you make microwaved poached eggs? So fast and so tasty.

Today I'm roasting mini honey-nut squashes

...and maybe baking cornbread or biscuits. Mostly because it's a drizzle of a Saturday---the oven will warm the house a little. I'll have them for dinner with quinoa or rice pilaf.

Tomorrow I should cut back my zinnias and meadow pots. The storms last week, with the blowing salty air, has decimated my pots. And not a single bee or butterfly has come all week. Is it too chilly? or have their short lives come to their ends.

Last nature note. I'm seeing many flocks of small migrating birds, Vs of geese, and the loose motley skeins of ocean ducks. Some hawks flying over too, looking for prey as they too head south. Also a beautiful, amazing, large flock of monarch butterflies last week!

Now Mo and I must gear up and brave the sodden afternoon, for our walk.

see you soon!

love

lizzy

gone to the beach...

PS on a quilting note, I took screen shots of this charming antique quilt, sold by Vintage Blessings. The single border of stuffed work birds is very special, something to use someday may. Besides loving the birds, I like the idea of only one intricate border. Much less intimidating/ boring / than three or four sides.

Friday, October 6, 2023

Projects: Liberty Pumpkin, Journals...not Fall yet!

October 2023

Hello, hello, yes it's finally October.

The floods from Storm Ophelia Part 2 are gone, the skies have been eye wateringly bright and sunny.

I started the changeover to Early Autumn, even I can hold out for so long, resisting summer's end.

But then, again, "ten best summer day", day after day. Mo had the right idea--deck time.

''Seize the day, mommy!''

We enjoyed the hot sunshine while I hand appliqued Liberty Pumpkin. So far I like it. Those woolen penny circles I got 10, 12 years ago from The Rusty Crow are probably the best $13.99 I ever spent. Always come in so handy, berries abound on primitive quilts.

It's BIG though, even at 90%. [why are Jan Patek's quilt patterns, even small quilts, so huge?]. The background here will be trimmed when I do the border, planning half square triangles not fussy pyramid appliques.

Maybe if tomorrow is rainy, hello Storm Phillipe?, I'll make the HSTs, I think I can gauge the size at this point.

Someone asked me if this is one of Jan P's kits, but no. Kits are sometimes available, but I used mostly fabric from my TQC Shop Scraps Baggies or my stash. I enjoy using what I have on hand. The main drawback is the white ground stars are off-cuts from a percale sheet that was made into pillowcases. Percale is a b!#ch to sew through.

***************

Journaling Round up.

First the tiny paint boxes that interested readers. These are glittery or iridescent, so just for fun. Not heavily pigmented.

These are the colors done as swatches.

And I did a little watercolor pumpkin to test the handmade tea dyed paper. [it is is not finished, but truly, so far it isn't any better. I used a Pinterest reel for a how-to, went by in maybe 20 seconds and it shows in my results.] The paper is interesting, but not a delight.

Perpetual Nature Journal

This recent week is the funny little puffballs that suddenly are in the grassy sidewalk verges. I never saw puffballs here til now, just big ones in the woods.

Presumably this ongoing journal would become more interesting as the years go by and more drawings fill each week. But truly--ho hum, right?

I also did a wide layout with collaged butterflies to celebrate the beautiful tiny creatures who have visited this year. I left space for the future week, in case I don't want to keep this here.

********

Scribble Journal was mostly pressed flowers, not drawings. It can be anything I like, no rules or parameters.

..............................................

This is my other Perpetual Nature Journal, where I note birds and full moons, storms and world events. [like this week noting the shocking resurgence of Covid!] It's my second full book and since I have begun adding my Scribble pages, it is very full. I'll end it at 2023, and begin a new book.

Glimpses of the pages pasted in. Artist Marjolein Bastin's beautiful page on the right. Even if I paste over one of her drawings I leave my paper loose to be lifted to see her illustrations.

************

This weekend I'm making classic spaghetti sauce Bolognese.

And my version of this salad bowl :

My friend and I went specifically to this new to us takeout place bec I love fancy salads. But we were stymied by the menu and the salad prep, bored teenage girls brandishing tongs and yawning. We escaped and went to Sephora, hahaha.