Green Strip for Betty

It was time to make another strip of scrappy blocks for Betty’s group quilts.

As the colour for Rainbow Scrap Challenge this month is green, it made perfect sense to make a green strip.

Once again, all fabric came from my little scrap tub.  The useful pieces in there are now rather depleted, which isn’t a bad thing.  I think it is nearly time to have a sort through and throw out the really tiny pieces.

I’m linking up with So Scrappy.

Now to finish the actual RSC blocks.

An Adopted Orphan

The things people throw out is sometimes amazing to us that do craft, but for others are just junk that has to be discarded when someone has to move from their home into care at short notice.

This was the story of one lady that lived in the same complex as one of my stitching friends.  My friend literally retrieved many items from a skip bin, all in their project bags.  Some went to op shops, while others were offered to those of us who may be able to finish them off.

I was happy to take this rug, as it won’t take much to get to size to donate to Wrap With Love.  The crochet has been nicely done.  The rug is already long enough and wide enough with three blocks.  I just have to finish off the three extra squares, do a couple of borders and weave in lots of ends.  The lady has joined the blocks with crochet as she went.  It gives a really nice finish and will now be a new technique for me to learn.  

Hopefully, I will have this completed before long.  I’m sure there is plenty of yarn in my tubs to finish it……of course there is.

There were the start of a few more squares, so they may be the starting point of another rug.

A Fun Day Out at the Sunflowers

On Sunday we had our first Fun Day Out together for the year.

Last year, after the event, we heard about a sunflower farm being opened to the public to raise funds for charity.  It was the first year of the event, so when we heard that it was on again this year we put it in the diary to go and have a look see.  Sunday was the day that finally worked for us.

After several days of temperatures in the high 30s and low 40s, Sunday was a bit better, with some rain about the district, not that we received more than a sprinkle here at home. It did however, make some stunning scenery of the summer grasses against the dark sky.

Our first stop was at the pub in Newbridge for a nice counter lunch and a mosey in the craft and bric-a-brac store next door.  Mick found a vintage LP and Wilbur Smith book and I found a metre of 1970s cotton to add to my growing collection.

We knew roughly where to find the sunflowers, at Hobbys Yards, but it wasn’t until you were nearly there that there was any signage.  You can’t see it from the main road, rather you have to turn up a very minor country road.

The story behind this is that the lady owner of the property wanted to plant some sunflowers, so last year they planted five acres, just for fun.  When there was quite a bit of interest, they opened it as a fund raiser.  This year their charity is Motor Neurone Disease, with the aim to raise $1,000.  They are confident of reaching their goal.  So what do they do with the sunflowers after they have finished flowering?  They let their sheep into the paddock and they make short work of eating them all.

When you get there, there is a paddock for parking and just the paddock of sunflowers.  There is an honesty box for donations and a bucket with a couple of pairs of secateurs for you to pick some flowers.  They are open every day from sunrise to sunset.

The flowers are looking a little worse for wear this year, as the weather has not been very kind.  It has been so hot and dry that they are suffering.  However, they are still lovely to visit.

We had a nice wander around.  We were surprised that there were only a couple of other cars in the car park, so you felt like you had the flowers to yourself.

The bees were enjoying themselves.

We took the obligatory selfie.

And picked a small bunch to take home.

It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.

Our bunch of blooms are making the kitchen look nice and cheerful.  

To cap off a wonderful day, we were treated to a firey sunset.

My February Wishes

February will have a bit more going on than January, so my wishes will be tailored accordingly. 

MY MAIN MONTHLY GOAL

My main goal for the month is to finish my Swoon Quilt.  The top was completed in January 2023. Another quilt that was added to the quilting queue for when I was brave enough to quilt it on Monique. The binding had already been prepared, but there was no backing fabric with it.  Fortunately, there was a suitable wideback in the stash. Now is its time to shine.

RAINBOW SCRAP CHALLENGE AND BETTY BLOCKS

The colour this month is Green.  It won’t take me too long to get these pieced.  I have plenty of green scraps to make the crumb blocks and to make Betty’s strip.

USING ELLY MAY

The Swoon Quilt is the only goal for the month.  It would be nice to do some more, but any will be a bonus.

STITCHING DAYS

I really don’t know what I will work on.  Now that my Christmas tree skirt stitcheries are done I have to made a decision. I’ll let you know at the end of the month.

KNITTING AND CROCHET

Once again, there are no plans set in concrete.  I have a few options that I will consider, but I do want to work on something.

SECRET STITCHING

I have something in the back of my mind that I think I would like to make, so would like to make a start this month.

15  MINUTES A DAY

Of course, I would like to work on something for at least 15 minutes each day.

As you can see, my goals are rather vague and fluid at this stage.  Hopefully, there will be plenty of progress to share as the month progresses.

NON STITCHING WISHES

They are pretty much the same as usual:

1. Try a new recipe.

2. Read a book.  I still haven’t finished the half read one sitting beside my chair.

3. Have a fun day out.

4. Finish my jigsaw.  It didn’t get finished in January.  It really needs to be completed so we can reclaim the dining table.

It is a short month and we will be heading away for a few days, so we’ll see how we go with everything.

Other Happenings in January

Other than stitching, there were a few other bits and bobs happening in the background and I had those other few wishes to achieve.

Let’s start with my wishes.

TRY A NEW RECIPE

Yes, I made the quiche with the wrap instead of pastry.  Very simple, but ticked the box.

READ A BOOK

Well, I never did finish the book sitting beside my chair.  I still need to get back to that one.

However, I did listen to two audio books.  They came up on the list on Borrow Box when I was looking for something else.  They were both very light hearted, but a nice listen.  I have reserved the third in the series and hope it becomes available soon.

They are the Tea Lady series, set in the fashion district in Surry Hills, Sydney in the 1960s.  These are cosy murder stories.  I’m finding I prefer that style rather than gore and guts lately.  An interesting look at how things were back then, and incorporating some current happenings that affected the way we lived.  The narration really made them.  I think the audio books would be better than just reading them.

HAVE A FUN DAY OUT

That didn’t really happen for me, but Mick had one.

While watching Day Four of the Sydney Test Cricket, it became apparent that there would be a fifth day that could prove to be interesting.  At short notice, Mick and his brother decided to drive down and have the day at the cricket.  Despite being a Test Cricket tragic, Mick has never been to one.  They had a fantastic day out.

It was extra special, as it was the last day that Usman Khawaja played for Australia.

We did go for a nice walk along the river, here in town one morning, before it got too hot.

There were a couple of water dragons sitting quietly beside the path.  They weren’t the least bit disturbed by us walking past.

We did notice a lot of corellas having a drink.

COMPLETE THE JIGSAW PUZZLE

That hasn’t happened.  Mick has put in a few pieces, but I have done very little.  I really need to get it done and off the dining table.

On the home front, it has been hot.  Very hot.  We can normally get the occasional day reaching the low 40s C, but we have had over a week of it and also lots in the high 30s.  Add in some hot winds, and the garden is really suffering.  We are fortunate that the orientation of our house means that our living areas are not on the north west side, so cooler than it could otherwise be.

Our garden has been providing zucchinis.  The beans have taken a beating.  They may come good again.  We hope so.  There are lots of flowers.  The tomatoes have pretty much failed.  That seems to be the story right across town.  We are getting enough for eating, but there won’t be enough to make sauce or relish, which is a shame, as we are down to our last bottle of sauce.  We may have to buy tomatoes to make more.  That is not good at all.  Anyway, there is nothing we can do about it.  Just hope for better seasons in the future.

So, that is January in a nutshell.  Now to look foward to February.