Summer Break

 

July and August are the months I close the doors to my longarming business and enjoy the warm summer days.  We have been heading out in our kayaks and taking along my camera to capture any wildlife encounters.  We have been checking in on a loon family on Clearwater lake along with the otters, turtles and a muskrat.

Snapping turtle sunning on a rock.

Muskrat heading into an abandoned beaver hut.

I have been stopping by the rookery to see the Herons every Sunday and watching the chicks grow.  They are still in there nests but ready to fly any day now.

June 4th - returning to the nest with sticks to fix the nests.

June 18 - chicks are starting to show their heads.

Adults busy flying back and forth with food.

June 25 - Chicks are growing and very hungry.

The chicks in these two nests are a few weeks older than the ones pictures above.

July 2- Nest are getting pretty crowded with 3 and 4 chicks. They are getting aggressive with the other chicks as well.

This is where I take my photos from, along Highway 71.  We have had a few cars stop to see what I was taking pictures of, most have no idea this rookery is right there. 

My view from the road.

July 9 - Chicks are almost the size of the adults.

 Photos are a bit blurry as they are taken through a lot of dead trees ( see photo above)  to get a view of this particular nest. 

She is making her getaway as there is no room in the nest for her.

I can't believe there is still 4 chicks in this nest.

I didn't go check on the herons today as it was raining but noticed them in the nests yesterday when we drove by.  Hope to get one more day of photos to complete my photo journal of their development. 

And as always I love photographing my hummingbirds!

 

Today Tim noticed that when it was raining one of the male hummingbirds was hiding in the sunflower by the garage.

He was preening his feathers and  keeping dry under the large leaves.

Oh and I had a cute porcupine visit the yard last week.

I have been getting ready for another craft sale and busy making more bags.  I'm also working on finishing one of my own quilt which I will share when that is done!  

Hope you have having a lovely July!  

Pineapple Pop Quilt

Bev pieced this fun Pineapple Pop Quilt using a pattern by Stacy Iest Hsu.  She used a mix of Grunge, Art Gallery fabrics and solids to make the pineapple blocks.

She ask it be quilted with the Square Spiral pantograph which added perfect texture.  The thread used is a pink So Fine and the batting is Quilters Dream Blend.

The backing is a wide Shot Cotton called Peppered Cotton.  I absolute love Shot Cottons on quilt backs as they are yarn dyed so there is never any thread spin where the needle pokes through.  It also has a lovely sheen to it and very soft to the touch.

 

Hudson Bay Point Blanket Quilt

Before you see the whole quilt I know you know what it is.   This iconic Canadian design is one I'm sure most Canadian quilters have thought about making, or have made, and it does not require a pattern. The Hudson Bay Point Blanket is probably found in most homes in this country or out at the family cabin.  Kim pieced this quilt using Fableism's Sprout Wovens for the background and Art Gallery Solids for the stripes.

 Kim asked it be quilted with the Serpentine pantograph which gave it movement and lovely texture. I used ecru So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting. 

 

Broken Star Quilt

Kim pieced this lovely modern Broken Star Quilt, pattern by J.Coterie Designs.  She using Essex Linens from Thread Count Fabrics which gives a quilt great texture.

I quilted it with the Gatsby pantograph, used grey So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.

The backing was a Mammoth Flannel so this quilt felt amazing!

 

Seniors Club Anniversary Quilt

Lori helped put together this wonderful quilt top to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Stratton Senior Center last year.  This past year my local sewing group has been meeting at the Seniors Center once a week to sew. But you won't find my name on this quilt as I'm not a member of a seniors group yet, I'm just a guest at their center who fits right in! Quilting has been a great hobby for socializing with women of all ages and I always leave a gathering having learned something new, quilt related or not.

Since this quilt was small I was able to do some custom quilting which I generally don't do anymore but I made the exception for this one.  I quilted continuous feathers in the border and sashing, and diagonal lines in the blocks.  I used purple So Fine thread in the borders and white MicroQuilter in the blocks.  Batting is Quilters Dream Blend.

Its finally raining around here so I had to do the photoshoot on the deck.

Love the quilting texture those feathers create!