Still Looking

I drove to Maine yesterday afternoon. After walking the yard in Lexington I couldn't help but make the rounds here at the condo....just to look because there's always something new to see.

What surprised me the most was the Stewartia tree right outside my kitchen window. Last time I was here I took this photo and it was yellow....

...but now it's bright orangey red. What a difference a week makes. How can you not celebrate that!

I was quite taken with this oak leaf....did a bug make these neat and tidy holes?

Thank you October!  I've loved every minute!

Look

Just yesterday my sister Marilyn asked me if my gingko tree had dropped its leaves and I told her it hadn't even turned yellow yet.  I was wrong!  As I was walking around my yard this morning I noticed the south side is almost all yellow and the rest is well on its way.  How did I miss this!  Last time I looked it was still green.  A good reminder to take time to look.

For those of you who are new to this blog or aren't familiar with ginkgo trees.....they tend to drop their leaves all on one day and it's one of my favorite days of the year.  A few years conditions weren't right and the leaves just went from yellow to brown and fell off over a few days....but most years there's a spectacular day where it rains yellow leaves.  I wonder what will happen this year!

You can celebrate a ginkgo day here and read about why it happens here.

There still is a lot of beautiful color in the yard....so I spent some time looking.

Even the little mouse ears hosta is beautiful as it fades away to rest.

And the dwarf goats beard is a lovely shade of peach.

I was surprised to see a blossom on my thistle....I wonder if it will have a chance to bloom before we get a frost.

It was a beautiful fall day outside....but I channeled spring inside and sat with my morning coffee at my puzzle table making just a tiny bit or progress.  I'm starting with pink and pinky red.....and they all kind of looked the same.  This one is going to take some patience, attention to detail, and lots of looking!

Panoramic

This puzzle has been in my closet for years...it's not my usual style so I've avoided it.  I think the colors are gorgeous so I'm going to give it a go. 

It's a long 1000 piece 14" x 39" panoramic and takes up the whole width of my puzzle table. Yesterday at project group I sorted the edge pieces and did the best I could separating the rest by color.  I think it will help....I'll need all the help I can get. 

A few days ago I started strip piecing some Kaffe stripe scraps with solids and wasn't quite sure how to use them.  This morning I started sewing them into chunks and alternating the direction of stripes in the next chunk.  The solids will be nice pops of color here and there and the stripes going each way will give it interest. I sound like I know what I'm doing....but I'm just winging it hoping for the best. 

Blog Questions

"She believes in the smallest of things because she believes that is where magic lives." Jm Storm

I love hearing from people and am always happy to be as helpful as I can. So although I've responded personally to these questions....I decided to post answers here just in case others have the same questions.

Speaking of the smallest of things.....
the skinner the strip of paper
the tinier the star.

I got a comment on yesterday's post from Elle asking about a tutorial for making the stars.  I've written many many posts about these stars....but never a tutorial. I learned how to make them from Adam....and I will say I had to practice for a while before I was successful.  I have contacted Elle directly....but thought I would add a couple of links to directions I found on line here on the blog.

This site has pretty good pictures:

 https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/make-origami-lucky-stars-4107161

And here's a video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SG6e7blVS8

They take a little practice...and the hardest part is getting the hang of puffing them up at the end.  I found this one page instruction sheet here.

Several weeks ago Gale asked about the trivet on my counter in one of my photos.  I replied on the blog...but thought I would write more about it here.  

It was made by Ellen out of recycled magazines.  I believe she folded the strips in 1/2 and coiled them up tightly and glued them secure. She tied the coils together and coated the whole thing with a sealer.  I haven't officially put anything hot on it but I think it could handle it....I just love it sitting on my counter!  

I took a few close-ups....and I'm sure there are tutorials on-line for paper coils.

 

And...finally Linda asked me about the difference between watercolor pencils and regular colored pencils after reading this post.  Regular colored pencils are the most common.  They can be blended with a blending pencil or a tiny amount of baby oil on a Q-tip.  Watercolor pencils are water soluble so once you color in your area you can activate the watercolor with a damp brush and push the color around to blend or fill and area. Water pencils will always be labeled accordingly on each pencil. 

I always love hearing from you....creative connections are one of my favorite things!

One Cup of Coffee....

....and the Michigan puzzle was done.  This was a fun one!  Thanks Emily!

I spent some time with friends Amy and Lisle chatting about the new spaces in their house remodeling project. One of the things we talked about is how to work in a permanent puzzle table into their fabulous new family room.  I like the way they think!

According to this article jigsaw puzzles:

1.  exercise the left and right sides of your brain at once.
2.  improve your short-term memory.
3.  improve your visual-spatial reasoning.
4.  are a great meditation tool and stress reliever.
5.  are a great way to connect with family.
6.  are a great for needed alone time.

I  got back to my random strip piecing today.  I like this color scheme so much that I'm going to turn it into a small art quilt giving me a chance to practice Maryline's technique before I make a larger multicolored one.  I randomly laid out the strips and can see I need more skinny strips and a better balance of lights, darks, and golds. It's so easy to slice somewhere and add in another piece.

I pulled more scraps from my stash in Lexington and will do the same in Portland.  I'll start pinning on a board at some point soon so I can stand back and make final decisions. 

I'I also started sewing solid scraps to some of my Kaffe stripes.  I'm not quite sure where this might go....because I think unless the solids are longer pieces they just look like another stripe. 

Here I randomly put all the solids to the center.....and I'm not sure that's any better.  I love the colors....and I love the fabric so I know there's a project here.

This and That

"Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go." 
author unknown

The process of letting go....from the same clethra shrub.

When I was walking in the woods yesterday I brought home some bittersweet and decorated the base of my birdbath.  Do you think we'll draw more birds?  One can hope.                                                                                       

I folded stars until I ran out of strips during the drive from Portland to Lexington.  

I love filling my little jars...then finding them a home.  

It may seem like a little pile...but they're little stars going into little jars.  

I'm always grateful to Adam for teaching me how to make them.

                                             

Scrap Quilt

When I need inspiration I go to my Pinterst boards.  I've been itching to sew but got a little stuck a week or so ago because I didn't have any direction.  I will go back to my purple and orange scheme...but I'm setting it aside for now because I found something I want to try.

I made my way to a Mary & Patch post by Maryline Collioud-Robert, one of my favorite quilters:  http://maryandpatch.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-making-of-new-art-quilt-with-scraps.html

In the post Maryline describes how she used her scraps to make these colorful small art quilts. I think they're fun.

If you have interest...I highly recommend taking a look at the post.  It's mostly great photos showing her process.....just the inspiration and guidance I needed.

Over time Maryline randomly sewed together scraps of similar color being sure to include complimentary colors, skinny strips, and solids. I think the solids and the skinny pops of complimentary colors are what make it really work!  

So for the next little while when I have time and the urge to sew I'm going to build up a big stash of these simple strips of color.  I was outside most of the day today walking in the woods and moving things around in the garden...but I spent an hour this morning getting a starting.

I dumped out a pile of scraps and started sorting by color.  I started with plums and purples and am inserting light and dark solids and complimentary golden yellows.

I stacked up sets of two to sew together by feeding the into the machine one after another....called strip piecing.   

I ended up with a long string of pieces to snip apart and I got as far as getting them ironed.  When I quickly laid them out I can already see the potential....and what I still need to include.  

 

I will do some trimming making sure I have those important skinny strips and then make another pile to strip piece again....and again and again.  I think I'll find this oddly satisfying.

As I write this evening and look back at Maryline's post...I realize that her prints are very simple....almost solids themselves.  I've picked some busier batiks but I think as long as I continue to use batiks throughout....it will give it a different look with nice texture.

Birds

"We are convinced that there is much to be learned from the winged world.  Birds, nimble and spontaneous, masters in the art of life, have much to tell us - if only we will listen." 
Philippe J. Dubois and Elise Rousseau, A Short Philosophy of Birds

Paul picked up this book called A Short Philosophy of Birds.....we so enjoy watching the birds in the backyard.  He started reading it out loud today as we look....and listen. How sweet is that?

We have quite a bright line-up of colorful shrubs along our condo.....a few of them have some pink in them and are just lovely up close.

Are they going from yellow to pink?......or pink to yellow? 

 

Soaking in October....

....still.  I hope you don't mind.

I walked downtown to the farmers' market yesterday.....and couldn't help but pause and soak in a little more October.  This green space at the Buckman Tavern was just beautiful with as many leaves on the ground as still in the trees.  It was like a wonderland.

I love our little Farmers' Market....it's just the right size and I always find what I'm looking for.  It's very satisfying buying from local growers.....and I love the energy...and the colors.                                                                                       

Paul and I drove to Maine this afternoon....so it's time for a puzzle update. I'm learning all kinds of things about Michigan and I'm down to one box of pieces.  

Home stretch on this one when I get back.