Binding Options for Parsonsfield

I finished quilting Parsonsfield and now it's ready for a binding.  But what color?

I thought of red first, because there are seven fabrics in the top with small, red prints.  Then I thought maybe stripes would be good.  If only I had a red and cream striped fabric.  But this is such a busy little quilt.  Maybe just cream/off-white would be best.  Decisions, decisions.

This is another view of the binding options.  I think red would draw attention to itself and cream would blend into the quilt.

This will be my first completely finished quilt for the year when I finally get the binding stitched.

Our climbing rose bush is in bloom and it's laden with flowers.  My phone's camera makes them look a little garish but they really are a beautiful rosy red.  And they smell delightful, too.

I don't know much about taking care of roses. This one's canes arch and bend toward the sidewalk and driveway and we have to walk around it to avoid its thorns. I thought of cutting it but that would reduce the roses by nearly half. Maybe it needs tied back toward the house somehow.

We have honeysuckle blooming, too.  I adore it's gragrance and am enveloped in it when I step outside.  Sadly, it began blooming in June, on the very day summer's heat intruded itself into the last several weeks of spring.  So it's too hot to open the windows for its fragrance to waft inside.

I loved our long, slow, cool spring.  I wilt in hot weather and always hope spring will last longer.  Some years, summer weather begins in March, or April, and we get hit with the heat when we walk outside.  This year's spring was, in my opinion, perfect!

I'm linking this post to Finished (or not) Friday at Alycia Quilts.  You should click through to her blog to see her beautiful newborn colt.  Well, you could also see her newly finished quilt (which is really grand (but not as grand as a newborn bold)) and see links to others' post.

I hope you're having a good Friday and will have a good weekend, too.

--Nancy.

Parsonsfield Update for One Monthly Goal

The colors in this Parsonsfield quiltlet are so subtle that it's hard to photograph.  (I wonder how professional photographers can take such beautiful photographs of homes that are all whites and creams.  Oh, I know!  They're professionals with lots of experience.)

This photo was taken with my phone camera and without a flash.

My One Monthly Goal for May was to choose a backing and get this layered and basted.  I did that and I'm happy to say that the quilting is almost finished.  I'm echo quilting the seams using size 8 perle cotton so it's been easy and quick to quilt.  Of course, when taking big stitches, mine are absolutely not even.  I work at it but haven't succeeded.  On a little quilt like this that will probably one day lay on the kitchen table between meals, I don't think perfectly even stitches matter that much.    

I'm linking this post to May One Monthly Goal Finish Link Up at Stories from the Sewing Room.  Thank you for hosting, Anne-Marie.

--Nancy.

It's Parsonsfield's Turn to Be Quilted

This is Parsonsfield, a small quilt sewn with Lori of Humble Quilts when she hosted a sew-along about a year and a half ago.  It seems I'm usually behind the times when it comes to layering and quilting sew-along tops (or any tops, for that matter!).

I decided a small quilt would be perfect to hand quilt after finishing Everyday Patchwork, so my One Monthly Goal for May is to choose backing and batting, then layer and baste this quilt.  Maybe I'll be able to begin hand quilting it, but that's not part of my goal this month.  Just choosing backing and layering and basting.  (Because verrtigo has returned again, I'm not sure how much I can get done.  Better to meet the goal and get more done than not meet the goal.)

Thoughts on backing fabric.  I used mostly reproduction-style fabrics for this quilt but this does not look like an old-style quilt to me.  It looks more modern, maybe only because of the light colors.  At first I thought of the backing fabric you see beside the quilt, the tannish and off-white print.  The tannish fabric is linen, somewhat loosely woven.  I doubt this quilt will get much wear or need to be washed often but so it should be fine on that point, but it seems just a little boring to me.  So I'm on the hunt for other backing fabric I can use.  There must be pieces I have on hand that I could stitch together to make a 30" square, or maybe one piece that large.  (The quilt is 23½" square but backing needs to be larger for hand quilting.)  Maybe fabric with red, since there are several pieces with red on the front.  I'll look again tomorrow.

I'll probably use flannel for batting.  I like small quilts to be flexible.

I'm linking this post to May One Monthly Goal at Stories from the Sewing Room.  Thanks for hosting, Anne-Marie.

--Nancy.

Parsonsfield, Tubas, Tomatoes, etc.

I finished Parsonfield (the top only) a few weeks ago but have had trouble getting a good photo.  Lori's quilt is white leaning to greys.  I knew I'd be happier with whites, creams, and tans.

Who knew low-volume/pastel quilts were so hard to photograph?!  In real life, the colors are somewhere between these two photos.  The above photo was taken with a flash, the photo below with natural light.  My top measures 23" which, I think, is slightly larger than Lori's. 

Parsonsfield was a sewalong offered by Lori of Humble Quilts.  I'm linking this post to Lori's linky party along with others who finished the quilt.  Thank you for recreating this little quilt and giving us the opportunity to recreate it, too, Lori.

Attending Merry Tuba Christmas has become one of our Christmas traditions.  This past Monday we enjoyed hearing the tubas play Christmas carols.  I like to sit in the balcony where the sound flows up from the tubas and descends from the ceiling to envelope me.  I think it must be like sitting in the middle of the stage surrounded by tubas.

It's hard not to appreciate the glitz and glitter (even though it's not my usual style) of the tubas.  In this photo, above, the players were giving a tuba cheer which is causing the blurry appearance.  Since their hands aren't free to clap, they lift and lower their instruments again and again.   It's a fun sight to see in person and almost as fun on video.



You can watch the tuba cheer at 17:20 minutes.  And you can hear one of my favorite tuba Christmas songs, "Santa Wants a Tuba for Christmas," with its history, beginning at 23:54 minutes.

We've had more than a few days with beautiful blue skies.  Of course, the weather has been cold and we've had wind most of those days, but it's been great to see the sun.  We did have two really grey days and one snowy day with snow that stuck to the ground.  I've always loved snow but I'm finding more and more that I love it most when I'm watching it through a window in a warm house.  Snow or not, freezing temperatures or not, I won't get to stay inside this winter with Nona here.  I may have to invest in some warmer winter wear.

The tomatoes are ready for Christmas!  I, on the other hand, am having a hard time, not just getting ready, but even wanting to get ready.  My theme song for this Christmas could be, "Where Are You, Christmas?"  The usual joy of the season has bypassed me.  Not that I haven't done some preparation.  The gifts are bought, but not wrapped.  We put up a small tree and added lights, but no decorations.  There are candles in the windows but only because they're in the windows  year-round.  Our front door has no wreath and I haven't pulled out any other decorations.  I haven't baked cookies or made candy.  I'd rather sleep or read, or maybe stitch or watch a movie, than do anything else.  I push myself to do, but my heart's not in it.  Dear Christmas, where are you this year?!  I realize that some years are just like this and accept it.  Next year's Christmas will probably be a wonderful one!

I hope you're making great memories this holiday season!

--Nancy.

Parsonsfield in Progress, Growing Things, Soup

Except for the borders, this is my version of Lori's Parsonfields quilt.  She used lots of greys and whites, but I chose whites, off-whites, and creams, plus a few tans.  Mine looks less "dotty" in real life.  She posted the original quilt and final steps for us last night, two borders.  I hope to finish the top sometime this coming week.  (Unless I spend too much time on Bramble Blooms, which seems likely at this point.)  Many thanks to Lori for hosting this sew-along.

Most of my time has been devoted to trying to clean and tidy the room where I sew and to Bramble Blooms -- choosing colors, fabrics, trying to decide background and flower colors for the center, etc.  I hope to post about that soon.

Growing things....
Most of our trees are now leafless but we still have plenty that are holding their leaves, giving us a brilliant show in the late afternoon sun. 

The other growing thing is this little pot of sweet woodruff, also known as galium odoratum. 

I have two large pots outside that I hope will withstand the winter in our breezeway.  Because they are shade-loving plants I thought they might grow inside.  I dug out a little section of plant and potted it about two weeks ago.  I was beyond thrilled when I saw three little runners around the edge of the pot.  Woodruff is a sweet little plant that, when dried, smells like sweet clover, meadowsweet, tonka beans, a little like hay, or, some say, like vanilla.   It is also called sweet-scented bedstraw in some parts of the world or at various times in history.  I would love to sleep with its fragrance nearby, though not necessarily with the leaves stuffed in my mattress.  Maybe these plants will take off and I can have enough to put near my bed.

And food....
If you like French Onion Soup, don't want to make your own, and happen to live near an Aldi, you could try their Bremer Bistro French Onion Soup.  It's not quite as good as homemade but we think it's delicious. 

I always add more croutons.  This time I cut up an Aldi ciabatta roll to divide between the two bowls of soup.  And we always add more Swiss cheese--a slice or two on top--before putting it under the broiler.  Perfect for a cool or cold evening.

And one parting photo of clouds at sunset.

I don't believe I've ever seen clouds quite like this--great rolls floating across the sky.

I finally worked out the problem with comments not coming to my email (mostly, except for Jeanne's comment).  In Blogger settings, I had to subscribe to comments.  Crazy because I never had a problem before and then, suddenly, I did.  Technology offers so many opportunities for old people--me!--to learn.

Thanks for visiting and, if you do, leaving a comment.  I hope all is well in your life.

--Nancy.