Granny How Does Your Garden Grow?

It has been a long time since I looked at my Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt. But the other day I realized it has been about a year since I started it and I thought it was time to get back at it!

As you can see, since the last update I have made a bit of progress, not much though. Here is a list of the previous posts about the quilt. First post, second post, third post, fourth post

The little bag was a birthday present to myself. It is my on-the-go project bag!

I still have not started on the fabric I bought last summer for the quilt and have a lot of scraps to use up still. Right now I am working on sewing the last batch of scraps I rounded up into flowers and then I will start on the new fabric! As I don't want all the new fabric to end up in the outside edges, I will wait until I have all the flowers sewn up and then sew them together.

As you can see, I was getting distracted from my Flower Garden quilt! When we had our "Sewing Camp" a couple of weeks ago I finished up this quilt top. My version of a "Ticker Tape" quilt from Sunday Morning Quilts. (The quilt is on the back cover of the book.)

 Mom found these little pre-cut pieces for me from Moda. They are just the cutest things in the world!! I knew right away what I wanted to do with them.

Apron Finds on Etsy

1930s Ladies Apron

Poking around on Etsy today I came across these lovely 1930s apron patterns from Mrs. Depew on Etsy. She has quite a few lovely patterns that are French and quite a few lovely patterns that are American! One of my favorite places to visit for inspiration.

 

1930s Ladies House Apron

I love the contrasting hem and pocket bindings on the apron on the right. And isn't the stripes on the skirt of the apron on the left cute?



1935 Girls Apron Dress

Too cute! Love the polka dots.

Outside Updates on the House

Over the summer we have also tried to perk up the outside of the house. We have plans of re-doing the sidewalk, driveway and stairs in the fall or spring, but in the mean time there were a few other projects we could do.
 

The most noticeable improvement is no more overgrown bush! It was not only overgrown, but a thorny bush! (Whose name escapes me at the moment.) Yuck! We also painted the steps, removed and replaced the house numbers, replaced missing siding corners, planted a few geraniums, painted the front door and removed those odd triangular decorations, and scraped and painted the wood trim around the porch. To see what it looked like last fall, go Here
 

 The tree in front. I have a bit of a love/hate with this tree. I was so sure it was an Eastern Redbud and eagerly awaited the little pink buds this spring. Turns out it is a Flowering Pear Tree! It isn't so bad, but I was so disappointed! The tree is also planted perfectly lined up with the front door and sidewalk. I don't know if this was on purpose or someone's brilliant non-planning. So I go back and forth about whether I cut it down and re-plant something else. At this point it is way down on the to-do list, so it only crosses my mind every once in a while.

 

There is something about making small changes that really makes a house your own. The house numbers were adequate, they did the job, were visible from the road. But I thought they were rather chunky and being on the end corner of the house too far out. I love how they look on the door, rather English and there is no mistaking this house is 2219!

 

 

 The geraniums in the front flower beds (kind of hard to see in the other pictures). Pink of course!

 

 I also hung a little welcome sign on the door to the house, thought is was kind of fun with the reflection of the porch and me taking the picture.

Curtains

Don't you think curtains make a room look more homey? I am so excited to share with you my new living room curtains! It is amazing how much more lived in and cozy the house looks. The furniture is still kind of helter-skelter. (Sorry the pictures are a little dark, I am still trying to figure out the best time to take pictures. It actually was too bright in the room!)

 A view toward the dining room.

 

 The curtains are from Lowe's by Waverly. They actually have a nice little selection there. The real problem was finding a long enough curtain rod that wasn't going to break the bank as the windows are 98" wide! I stumbled upon these at JoAnn Fabrics that were on sale. Yey!

 I was trying a taller angle. Yes, those are ships on top of the bookcases. Something are just to hard too pack!

 

 Kerri, waiting patiently in the hall. Because of the light, the walls in the hall always look darker. But they are not, the same paint as in the living room!

 

 The dining room window. The stove is temporarily in the dining room because we are still working on the cabinets in the kitchen. We have had several "picnic" lunches here, hence the menagerie of seating.

 

 A close up of the curtain fabric. I love all the colors in them. We certainly have our choice of accent colors!

 

The view out the front window into the porch. We are so looking forward to have this space renovated for next summer.

Summer Reading

You hear a lot about summer reading lists and having more time in the summer to read and all that. I love to read and am not sure if I do more of it in the summer, but there certainly is something nice about reading on a summer day with a warm breeze blowing! Sometimes it is also a survival technique on those hot scorching days.

Lately, I have been on a Mary Stewart kick. I have read most of her books several times, but they are always good for a re-read! Mary Stewart is an amazing storyteller, one can feel the sun, see the birds swirling overhead and feel the peace of the country side.

This Rough Magic is one of my favorites to read in the summer.

"When Lucy Waring came to Corfu to visit her sister Phyllida Forli, she was elated to discover that the castello above their villa had been rented to Sir Julian Gale.
A very minor cog in the London theatre, Lucy not unnaturally felt something close to reverence for Sir Julian, one of the brilliant lights of England's theatrical world. But any hope of meeting him was quickly dashed by Phyl, who indicated, with uncharacteristic vagueness, that not all was well with the great man and that his composer son, Max, discouraged visitors, particularly strangers . . .
Lucy encounted Max Gale the first morning of her arrival—and a tempestuous meeting it was. For Lucy had made friends with an enchanting dolphin by whom she had first been thoroughly frightened then completely captivated. It was when she was sunning on the rocks above the cove that the shots came, and the only person in view was Max Gale . . .
Thus begins a series of mystifying and thoroughly frightening events which tinge the otherwise sparkling setting of Corfu with the dark hues of violence. In every way This Rough Magic measures up to its predecessors—in spirited characterization, vivid description, glowing romance and unrelenting excitement. This is storytelling at its best."
—jacket William Morrow edition, 1964
Mary Stewart is probably best know for The Moon Spinners, which Walt Disney adapted into a movie. You can see a complete listing of her books on this fansite.

Do you find more time to read in the summer? Or do you have year round "reading lists"?
 

Cherry Berry Summer

My cherry tree had cherries this summer!!! Yes, the fruit was ripe weeks ago, these pictures are almost a month old!

And not just two or three cherries, but a couple of handfuls! Around 25 to be precise. Yep, I counted! This was a momentous occasion. The most cherries it previously had was three. I think it finally got mature enough or maybe it is just a good cherry year? Not sure why this was the year. I was a little unsure if they were ripe, but the cherries started splitting open, so I guess that was a sign.

 

The tree is huge now. Around eight to nine feet tall. I was pretty sure the tag stated it was a dwarf, but I am not sure if I trust my memory.

The cherries were certainly tasty! Though there were quite a few people you were disappointed there wasn't enough for a pie.......... Maybe next year!