a "Little" goes a long way

Hooray!  Our scattered bunches of snow-in-summer have bloomed.

The magnolias, too, are magnificent...and they haven't even reached their peak yet!

And other beauties...

At home, it's all bouquets, all the time.  Bringing the outside in is a concept much celebrated around here.

I love seeing all the new growth.

Speaking of new growth, how much fatter can this cat get?

Clotilde is so sweet and she's got me wrapped around her paw. I love seeing her little face when I'm working outside.  I am never out for more than a minute or two before hearing her little meow.  Although she impedes my progress by wrapping herself around first one ankle and then the other, I wouldn't have it any other way. 

I'm also feeding a feral cat I've named Blackavar (from Watership Down).

At first he refused to come onto the deck until I'd closed the doors, but now he comes running when I bring food.  He still won't come too close, and thanks me with a series of growls and hisses, but he's definitely coming around.

The newest arrival is Rook.  I originally chose a Finnish (or Danish?) word for spirit (or smoke?) that rhymed with rook, but I kept forgetting it, so Rook stuck.  She's very friendly, but only comes at night.  She seems well-fed.  I wonder if she has a home?

I've been working on my quilt in my free time, and recently splurged for a new fabric collection.  It's called Little by Jenny Lumelsky.  I chose my five favorite prints from the line and ordered a yard each.  It's the most I've ever spent on yardage ($16/yard!) but the patterns are so dreamy that it made the decision easy.  Birds, deer, and rabbits?  All in that peach color that I like so much, with navy accents?  Sold, sold, and sold. 

I got an extra yard of the center blue fabric, since the color is an element of each print.  I'm also going to look for the perfect ivory white shade (Maybe Moda Bella Ivory?) to stretch this project even further.  Six to eight yards of fabric are needed for a full size bed, so I just need a yard or so of ivory (and the perfect pattern!) and I'll be ready to go!  After all, it's about time for a new quilt around here.

Have a great week! 

green convenes

Now is the time when exciting things are happening outside.

I, who used to be so indifferent to spring, am now a convert.  The sweet fresh air, chorus of spring peepers, and tiny green things unfurling everywhere have made me a believer.

I can't stay indoors and not even the rain is enough to keep us inside on the weekends.

Oh, the anticipation!  The magnolias are going to be glorious in a couple of weeks.

Old friends have returned.  I know to expect hyacinths, hellebores, and early-blooming daffodils right now...

Meanwhile, snow-in-summer, forsythia, the bulk of the camellias, redbuds, dogwoods, and azaleas will be right around the corner.  What a delight to daily check their progress!  In the interim, I enjoy the appearance of other new arrivals...

...which is not limited to flora.

In Indiana I would not make the "spring switch" until mid-March or perhaps a bit later, depending on the weather.  But here in South Carolina, I brought spring indoors on February 15th.  All red throws, tablecloth, napkins, placemats, pillow covers, and general accents were put away.  In their place, lots of cream, green, and light blue.  Bird nests were returned, filled with real and ceramic speckled eggs.

Simplicity.

Bouquets all around.

The quilts are still out for cool mornings...I think Bosewichte would strongly protest if I put them away! But at least I'm using the "cool colors" quilt. 

It feels so good to make this seasonal switch.  Since we don't really have four distinct seasons here, it feels like a needed acknowledgement. 

I've also been working on several projects.  I quilted an autumn wall hanging/table runner, but it was accidentally washed with an ink pen.  What a mess!

You'd think that it was ruined, but repeated applications of rubbing alcohol and Grandma's Spot Removal took care of all but one small spot.

I'll gradually bleach that out.  I think I've decided on "table runner" for this project and will use some of my batiks for the autumn wall hanging that I've been mulling over.

I've also been slowly working on my big quilt.  I've completed twelve 15" blocks, and need at least twelve more.  I hate to say it, but I'm not enjoying this quilt.  I am not a fan of making flying geese, and each 15" block needs 20 geese.  This means that I'll have over 500 flying geese for the blocks alone, not to mention the sashing that will go between each of these blocks.  I love the way it looks, but I am going back to a sampler quilt after this, I think.  No more geese for a while! 

I've been knitting a tiny bit, literally.  Having no desire to knit any more socks, hats, cowls, or gloves, and not ready to commit to a sweater right now, I've started knitting miniature things to hang on the Christmas tree.  These tiny mittens will have a little braided cord to connect them.  Although the pattern had directions for a 4-stitch thumb, I decided that it would be a little too fiddly for me. 

Otherwise, work, regular life, and cupcakes.  :)

Have a great week!

The Big Chill

Happy New Year!  Todd and I celebrated by putting on our pajamas early, hashing out resolutions together, and sharing olie bollen - one of our new traditions.  It's Dutch for oil sphere - think tiny, fancy donut holes.  I first read the sanitized version of the tradition: The round shape symbolizes the end of one year and the lucky beginning of another.  The real tradition, though, is much more interesting. Perchta, an evil goddess, would fly with her evil-demon posse to collect tributes of deep-fried dough (my kind of tribute!) from Germanic tribes.  Perchta had a penchant for slitting open human bellies, but those who proffered olie bollen were saved...the fat in the olie bollen was greasy and caused her sword to slip, which saved their lives.  I certainly don't need the specter of a sword-wielding demon goddess as an incentive to make donut holes.  Still, I was disinclined to fry, so instead made four small round sweet cakes in my mini pie pan.  They were delicious!

Winter has really set in here now.  No snow, but with temperatures dipping into the twenties or even the teens at night, it finally feels like a new season.  I love the cold.  In the early mornings, I open the french doors to feed Clotilde, and the cold air hits me.  It's so delicious and fresh.  I love my quilts, hot water bottles, knitting, flannel and fleece pajamas, cozy hoodies, warm gloves, hats, wool socks.  I love bundling up for chilly walks, like the one we took yesterday.  I have to grab this season while I can.  Already I see very early signs of spring, and know that we will probably start warming up again in 4 - 6 short weeks.

Some early spring bulbs are already coming up!

Early-blooming magnolias are already budding!

And more...

The paper bush shrubs have their flower heads already, and the branches are growing and splitting.  They'll be blooming in a few weeks.

Of course, camellias are blooming everywhere, dropping petals and flower heads in a very pleasant way.

At least lots of plants are in their "hibernation" phases.  I love seeing those dried leftovers, too.

And, of course, winter berries.

We have our usual suspects for this time of year...roving flocks of cedar waxwings!

Some of our old friends were just congregating outside of my office window...bluebirds, cardinals, chickadees, and so many phoebes!

It's always a pleasure to see them...and plentiful evidence of beaver activity, too.

Todd and I are going to get as much outdoor time as possible before the dreaded summer heat returns!

(Borga too!)

I've been doing some various textile work - a cross stitch winter scene, and making long, even lines on my sampler quilt.

Meanwhile, the Christmas decorations have come down and I'm looking forward to a chilly and peaceful January.  I've got my usual set of resolutions, more gentle and forgiving than my usual:  LOSE 'X' AMOUNT OF POUNDS!  OUTLINE THE WHOLE BIBLE!  LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE!  I'm focusing more on small, attainable goals that will help me to become a better person.  Todd and I anticipate making a great deal of changes in 2018, so I'm more focused on:  breathe, relax, focus on each day as it comes.  A few years ago, I made a 'vision board' that is very applicable to my 2018 goals.

Health.  Home.  Creativity.  Animals.  Textile work.  Self-expression.  Outside, outside, outside.

Here's to a happy and productive 2018!