SPRING HAS SPRUNG

 It's April 23 and sure feels like spring.  I was happily surprised my Salad Burnet made it thru the winter and is renewing its spring growth.

Here it is growing in the upper left-hand corner of my raised garden bed.  Salad Burnet is a green that tastes like celery and a nice salad addition.

I still have my straw covering the bed.  Next weekend I plan to go to Lowe's for bags of composted manure to add to my bed.  I will also get some tall stakes for my tomatoes planned this summer.  I may even buy a plant or two of herbs.  Though I have chives, parsley and bunching onions inhouse under lights, they are getting leggy and are really needing to get outdoors so they may not make it til my bed is prepped for the season.  Next year I will start them indoors later than I did this year.

Our patio garden area is sprouting some daffodils and the smaller jonquils.  I love that we have triple white paper-bark birch trees in our patio garden.

Here is the other section of the garden.  Its so nice to see flowers blooming at last.

Have a nice day my friends. 

'UNICORN SWEETIES' IS FINISHED

I was able to finish my "Unicorn Sweeties" wall hanging today.  It measures 16 by 20 inches.  I think I have enough unicorns for now.

I have been checking in my WIPs container and my Current Projects containers to see what I should finish next.  I have some blocks that finish 4" square in colors I liked a lot when I made them.  They have been sitting around for over a year, maybe three.  I probably should do something with them.

I could put them together to make a mini-quilt to put on the wall.  I am undecided right now whether to add lattice strips between the blocks or not.  Decisions, decisions.

For now I will have some lunch and then I plan to go play Bingo later today.  They have the games right here in my building so I do not have to go outdoors and be among strangers.  I will, of course, wear a mask.

For several months we were not allowed to congregate here in the building so all pot luck dinners, karaoke, Bible Study, and Bingo games we halted.  It will be nice to chat with my neighbors once again and even win a time or two in the coming months.

Have a good day. 

MY 'UNICORN SWEETIES' DOOR HANGING IS COMING ALONG PRETTY WELL

It's been a busy morning for me.  I am working on my next door hanging.  As friends of mine know, I love unicorns and fairies.  This one titled "Unicorn Sweeties" features a guy and a gal and there is even a fairy hovering.  As of today it is satin-stitched and the next duties are adding borders, layering, quilting, and binding.  A little touch up with eyes and shading is a final effort as always. That will come another day.

I always have a tough time with color decisions and the borders are the next step.  Luckily I have several fat quarters that I can choose from so the matter is the final decision.  Maybe that's a job for another day.  

As for my gardening efforts, my seedlings are starting to pop and looking healthy.  I only started chives (both onion and garlic chives), Italian flat-leaf parsley, thyme, and bunching onions (aka scallions, green onions, spring onions) but all are looking good.

I think this month I will need to get some compost to add to my garden bed but my tomato and pepper plants ordered from Territorial Seed will not be shipped til the middle of May as I ordered.  In our southwestern Maine zone 5a, the last frost date is usually around Memorial Day so I won't be putting them in the ground before then.  I may have to up-pot them when they arrive but I am saving 2-liter soda bottles, cut down in half, for that purpose.  I find that tomatoes, which need lots of room for their roots, get strong and bigger in the 2-liter bottle bottoms while they await their transplanting in suitable warmer weather.

As you can see from this older photo above, the transplants in the bottles did very well for me in the past.

Between my sewing and my gardening this spring, I will stay busy.

Have a good day.

  

"Bunny in a Flowerpot" is finally finished today.

It's another great day here in Maine.  The sun is shining and though its cold, its warmed up a bit.

I finally finished up with my latest door hanging, "Bunny in a Flowerpot" and it's on my front door.  Just in time for the Easter Holiday.  It measures 13 by 15 inches.  I really like it.  I sewed on a little lavender buggy button on the top of the flower on the right of Bunny and the brown rabbit has a cottontail and Bunny's ears and nose are shadowed with pink pencil.

I have cooking planned today so won't get back to my next door hanging I call "Unicorn Sweeties" which has been started.  I am so eager to get on to it, but I have Lithuanian bundies to make today and they take lots of time and effort with me resting in between parts.  But my family and I all enjoy them and I expect to see my family this week.  I made some bundies last nite and put them in the freezer for later in the week when my daughter comes to take me to my doctor's appointment.  I will have more on hand tomorrow when my son comes for his visit.  All is good. 

Have a good day.