It's Phenomenal

On August 4th, I linked up to
Sew Bitter Sweet Designs,
committing to finish my Wish Upon a Star quilt
by the end of the month.
Well, I did it with one day to spare!

If I hadn't linked up,
I probably would still be working on it!
So, today I'm linking back up with a finish!
Just click on the button below to see
who else achieved their goal!

*
Last weekend, I was lucky enough to witness 

A Phenomenon of Nature...

...A murmuration of Least Sandpipers

in Grand Pre, NS.

These migrating wonders are feeding

on little mudshrimps.

Each bird will spend 10 to 15 days foraging on the exposed mudflats

during low tide.

A bird can double its weight over that time, building up the 

fat stores to fuel its non-stop transoceanic flight south.

As the tide comes in,

it forces the shorebirds closer and closer to the shoreline

Click on this picture for a better, clearer view!

where they rest on the ground in tight nervous flocks,

vulnerable to predators and most susceptible to human disturbance.

On another shore not too far from here, 

we obsrved ten plus times this amount... of 

Semi-palmated Plovers.

It was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen.

I believe that next year, if we travel to Grand Pre

a week earlier, we'll see even larger numbers.

Plugging Along

The machines are humming

as I try to tick items off my list.

I'm STILL working on the same quilts I started

at the beginning of the summer.

*sigh*

But,

I did dig out this old, leader/ender flimsie.

Borrowing a page from Lesley's book,

I decided to try spray quilt adhesive

because I really detest laying quilts out on the floor

and pin basting them.

The only space available to work with the spray adhesive 

is on my front deck.

Mother Nature hasn't been kindly to us up here this summer,

so I had to wait patiently for a nice dry morning

with no/little wind off the water.

I'm pleased to say it's about 2/3 quilted.
Spray basting works like a charm.

Can't wait to show you when it's finished!

*

I was digging through my 'stuff' and came across this 

foundation pieced pattern and fabric from 2002.

I never did finish collecting the other fabrics.

The focus fabric is Michael Miller

and is a half yard cut.

The little boy I was going to make it for

is now a grown man.

So,

it's up for grabs!

It's a shame for it to sit in the bottom of a bin forever.

If you are interested,

just sign your comment with an XO,

and you'll be included in the draw.
*
This sweet thing visited me every day for three weeks.
"These birds are sociable at all seasons,
and it is rare to see just one."

At first, I thought it had been separated from its flock,
and I found it's constant thin, lisping cry
from the tops of my trees disturbing.
Then I decided it was nesting, and I felt better.
Cedar Waxwings join the American Goldfinch as late nesters
because they eat berries.
(American Goldfinch, of course, eat thistle seeds.)

"Named for the red tips on the secondary flight feathers,
which suggest beaded wax, but the fact is that the entire body
of the Cedar Waxwing seems poured from wax.
From the sweptback rakish crest to the yellow-tipped tail,
every feather on the adult seems seamlessly set in place."
(Pete Dunne's Essential Field Guide Companion)

Check out this cool video.
I'd love being able to do this!
Notice the red tips on their secondary flight feathers.

Stay sweet!

~karen

Really? A Finish?

I have so few finishes,

I'm excited to be able to share one!

This was actually a July finish,

but the weather prohibited me from taking photos out of doors.

This was a kit, but my daughter added the aqua to the mix.

Good choice!  I love going fabric shopping with her.

I straight line quilted it according to the direction of the rectangles.

Let's talk labels.  I think there are still some of you out there

that don't take the time to label your quilts.

After all the hard work, 

no matter how simple and easy the pattern is to sew,

like this one,

it still deserves a nice label.

It doesn't have to be a major work of art

to compliment your quilt back

and document your efforts.

This one is simple, basic, and took about 15 minutes to throw together,

another 15 to stitch to the back.

I also stitch in the ditch around the borders on the inside

so it lays down nicely, providing a nice, finished look.

Do you get that nice, soft velvety feel to the backing from this picture?

I backed it with corduroy...on sale, 3 metres for $9.99!

How could I resist that price?

I love it.  I'm going to use corduroy more.

I'm so glad I have Stephanie's book,

which happens to be on sale at Connecting Threads right now!

I'm glad I bought 3 metres of raspberry corduroy, too.

Yesterday, this quilt was delivered to a friend

who lost his wife to cancer one year ago this week.

It's been a tough week for him.

I hope it helps to bring him comfort and peace.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit today.

Look who else stopped by to say hello!

Life is good!

Quilty Goodness

August first was a momentous day.

Summer finally decided to make an appearance,

and I joined the other ladies of the NSQBQ,
(Nova Scotia Quilting Bloggers' Quartet),

Lesley (The Cuddle Quilter),

Linda (Scrapmaster),

and Sheila (Sheila's Quiltworld),

for a day out!

Attending the Northumberland Quilt Guild's quilt show together
in Pictou, NS has become an annual event.
Following our quilty adventure, we went out to lunch
and caught up on all of our happenings,

as well as determining our 2nd annual winter challenge.

The quilt show was very nice.

The only picture I am going to share from the quilt show

is this delightful little critter!

You all know how much I love bugs and birds!

The lighting left a lot to be desired at this venue,

so I didn't take very many photos.

If you are interested in seeing more, pop on over to Scrapmaster,

where Linda shared some beauties.

Speaking of sharing beauties,

Linda brought her latest quilt, I Love Chai, 

for us to oooh and ahhhh over.

The front.

And the very cleverly pieced back.

We had a lovely time, as always.

Plans are to meet up again in October

at the Fibre Arts Festival in Amherst, NS.

In preparation for our get together, I baked and decorated cookies, 

and had a package for everybody.

I don't think many of Linda's cookies made it home.

I'd like to send a special thank you out to Lesley

for being the taxi on Saturday. 

You're the best, Lesley!

I've seen quite a lot of foundation piecing

the last few months, and thought I'd share how I keep mine organized.

I like the quick accessibility of using a large accordian organizer.

And when closed up, it sits right up on the bookshelf

with all my notebooks.

I'm going to link up today to Sew Bitter Sweet's

A Lovely Year of Finishes.

My goal is to complete my Wish Upon a Star Quilt

by month's end.

I'm doing the blanket stitch by hand around all the letters.

My biggest challenge will be sitting still long enough

to complete all the handwork!

Thanks so much for stopping by.

I leave you with a photo of a frequent July visitor to my yard.

I hope you have a lot of quilty goodness this week.

Not a quilter?  Well, just have lots of creative fun!!

~karen