mystery progress

 Good morning from the East Coast , it is a simply gorgeous day , the humidty has lifted and the sun is shining , what more can a gal ask for !! First off I want to share some activity at our bird feeders this morning , I do love the birds.

 A cute little woodpecker enjoying the mixture we stick in holes drilled in that post .

I know this is not that clear as I did shoot this through the kitchen window but a Downy woodpecker was actually enjoying a drink from the hummingbird feeder , I had never seen them do that before .

 Trying to get some niger seed from this feeder .

 Having better luck pecking it out of this sunflower , so neat to watch and he wasn't the least bit nervous of me poking around taking pictures ;-)
  I had planted sunflower seeds in a planter on the deck and both planters produced some flowers but each is different , oh and the seeds were compliments of my friend Annette . Thanks Annette from me and my feathered friends .

This is where the flower that is hanging on the feeder came from , it had gotten to heavy and broken away . Here is one that hung on there and has been a banquet table for many birds .

Isn't that so cool . I love that they can enjoy it straight from the plant am I bet they do too :-)

 Now on to some sewing , yes I have actually been doing a little and working diligently on my mystery quilt being shared with us by Kaaren of the Painted Quilt . I have all 88 flying geese made but need to attach some 2.5" squares to some but have two sides complete with one already sewn on .

  Yes I am using my very trusty vintage Singer 15/91 for this job and it has been a real champ and had made this very huge job enjoyable . There is a ton of piecing and cutting with this mystery quilt but oh just look at the results , I am loving it .
 Also on the sewing front I have completed this months BOM by Buttermilk Basin , love doing these , very relaxing to sit and stitch those wooly pieces to the cotton .

Fun litte project and should make a sweet quilt , thanks Stacy for sharing this pattern with us .

Today is also my hubby's birthday so I would like to wish Bill a wonderful and very Happy Birthday to my best friend and partner of almost 44 years , giving away my age now huh , but hey I was a child bride ;-)
 Thanks for the visit today and hope you have a great one .
 hugs Sheila

Another quilt show to share

Last Friday myself and three other ladies headed off to Bible Hill to a quilt show and sale at St. Davids church .It was a beautiful show and I was really pleased to see so many hand quilted quilts . Let the show begin ...

Doesn't it look pretty with all those gorgeous colourful quilts draped over the pews . Lots of admires :-)

 This was one of three whole cloth quilts  , incredible quilting , those stitches are super tiny .

This scrappy goodness became my favorite at the show , I will show a better picture of this later .

This picture does not do it justice , it was a three colour log cabin , all hand quilted and was just $500 , a real bargain I thought . They had the option for visitors to ask to see a quilt on the bed they had set up so we asked to see this one and this next quilt , both are stunning quilts .

I just loved this quilt , such an old fashion flare yet a bit modern too . It is called Film Strip . 

 So that is all the photos I have to share , they did have a lovely tea with cookies and some smaller items for sale in the basement of the church . Thanks to Joan for providing the transportation , it was a fantastic day . Oh we also went shopping in the town of Truro at Atlantic Fabrics and of course we didn't comeout empty handed infact I was thrilled to find a FM foot to fit my vintage singer , yeah !! 

 Thats it for me today , I do have some sewing to share but I have kept you long enough , hope you enjoyed this little show . Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you have a super creative day .

 hugs Sheila

A few things to share

I haven't been sewing quite as much as usual but when I have even a minute I stitch a little . I am totally in love with my Singer 15/91 and being set up in my dining room was the best decision I could have made , when those veggies are cooking so am I on my little Black Beauty . I guess I should have called her that as she has so much horse power and just whizzes along . I have been making a few string blocks as well as some nine patch on this machine and I did make a tea cozy on it as well .

                                     She is a joy to sew on , she makes my soul happy :-)
Yesterday I went to the guild sewing session and I showed a few of my friends how to make a sweet little tea cosy , My friend Annette had gifted one to me and I showed the girls and they asked me to figure it out and show them how it is made . I did some measuring and mine is not quite as fancy as the one Annette made as hers is reversible with a lovely quilted Christmas theme on one side and nautical theme on the other . I brought along my FW to make one yesterday at sewing and this is what I made .

Here is Annette's 

nautical 

 Christmas , so I have all the bases covered :-) 

 The tea cosy I made on the 15/91 I left with the girls yesterday so no photo of that one . I had to leave early and just in case they needed a reference it was there for them . They are fun and quick to make and the girls were pleased as punch . We are planning on having a tea cosy display at our next quilt show , we had one this year as well and people seem to enjoy seeing them .  Thanks Annette for the great idea and the great tea cosy .
 I need to stop joining new projects , I was visiting Frances of Tea Time Creations  and she was sharing her House project from Kaaren's QAL and also another Mystery QAL by Deana  , I was smitten the moment I seen this one , how could I resist a quilt with houses and a clothesline between with little quilts hanging on them . Frances you are an enabler lol . It was very late in the month when I signed up and I had to really scramble as you needed to have at least one block completed to receive the next step in the mystery . I managed to get all three houses done , they are rather odd looking but I will call them whimsical , that should cover it :-)

 There are connecting blocks between the houses with the clothesline , I have obviously not gotten to that part yet and I have not started August either but I best get cracking . All you wonderful quilters out there please don't show me any more cute projects I might be attracted to .
  Now on  different note , Bill and I went to Truro a couple of weeks ago to see a miniature horse show . We have a neighbor close by who has five of them and they are adorable so when we heard about this show we thought it would be neat to see , I didn't know such a show even existed .

They pull these little carts through obstacle courses .

They are so neat to see and so friendly , more like dogs than horses in size as well as temperament . The owners might not appreciate that comparison . 

 Our weather has been strange lately and lots of storms have rolled in and out and I couldn't resist taking a picture of this sky the other evening .

 

 It might be difficult to see it here but it was incredible at the time . Big rumbling clouds along the tree line with pink and lavender above , so pretty .

 So that is it for me today , off to do a little cleaning  as much as I would prefer to be sewing , these things are necessary at times :-)

 Thanks for stopping by today and hope you have a terrific day .

 hugs Sheila

St. Davids Quilt Show

On Saturday morning Bill and I headed for Cape Breton , we had two destinations in mind , first off a stop at the quilt show at St. Davids Church in Port Hastings then on to watch our granddaughter Elise play baseball in Judique further up the coastline . My stay at the quilt show was brief and as luck would have it my camera batteries died part way through my picture taking . On the bright side the show was fantastic , what talent in the Strait area !! I met up with Lesley who was busy with the visitors who were there at the time , she was a busy little bee but it was great to talk with her for a while .

                     A view from the front of the church towards the entry , isn't that amazing .

                             A cheerful star quilt plus I love the red and white quilt behind it ,

                                                One of Lesley's beautiful quilts !!

                               Another view of the many quilts on the church pews.

                          I love that they are able to display quilts from the balcony , gorgeous quilts.

                  This one took my eye with the houses surrounding the blocks , great idea .

                                This was a stunning whole cloth quilt , the quilting is amazing .

                                          This trio was just behind the whole cloth quilt.

              This stunning woven scarf was lovely to see among the quilts .I love the colour of this scarf.

 It was at this point the camera quit , a notice came up on the screen telling me the batteries had exceeded their limit :-(   I was disappointed as I was heading down the other isle and Lesley's beautiful Downton Abbey quilt was on display there and I would have loved to show you that one . seeing a quilt in person is so much different .
 If you have the chance to visit the show this week you won't be disappointed , now there may be a few missing as they are for sale . There is another room which is selling smaller quilted items and even some fabric .
 The baseball game was rather interesting , things are done differently with this age group and everyone gets a chance at bat before the next team goes up . They were an enthusiastic group and it was fun to watch their antics . Elise is a real keener and did very well .

 Now here are a few quilts of a different sort , barn quilts . One day we just happened upon these barn quilts and I was thrilled to see them , I had no idea they existed anywhere in Nova Scotia . This is a project by the 4H in Upper Stewiacke area and quite the project it is . There are 15 quilts in total with the hopes of doubling that amount by next summer along with the making of a quilt using these blocks .

                                                Isn't this a great way to decorate a barn !!

 We had a long chat with the man who owned this barn and the horse block was perfect as they had several horses in the pasture .

                                                  A little different pattern :-)

 This one is quite intricate , just lovely and the last one to show you at the moment . I thought I had more photos but can't locate them right now but maybe it would be best if you take a drive over to see them for yourself . I wish I had a barn to put one on .
  That is it from me for today , I do have a little sewing related things to share but will save those for another time. As always thanks for taking the time to stop by for a visit , I love to read your comments .
 Hugs Sheila

Northumberland Quilt show

I am a little late reporting on my visit to the Northumberland Quilt Show last weekend in Pictou . It is always fun to view a quilt show with other quilters and I had the priviledge of sharing it with the Nova Scotia Quartet , Lesley the Cuddle Quilter, Linda of Scrapmaster  and Karen of KaHolly  as well as Lindas daughter Nicole , so nice to see everyone and catch up on the news .   We had a wonderful day together and enjoyed the show , would you like to see a few of the photos I took ?

 Every year the guild members make and handquilt a quilt to sell tickets on , this beauty will next years quilt to win , oh it would sure be nice to own this one .

 I thought this one was very striking and different too ,

This one has an old fashion feel and I happen to love samplers , it was also hand quilted which adds to the old fashion appeal.

They always have a Christmas corner and these two quilts stole my heart , love the colour combinations .

Love this one too , if you remember Lesley did a version of this quilt a while back .

A wool project was a nice thing to see .

I like this layout for a log cabin ,

Another really striking quilt with wonderful quilting .

A pretty applique quilt

This looks like it might have some Australian influence , really cute .

A pretty braid quilt , always wanted to try this one .

String quilt , great scrap buster but I am sure you don't have any scraps ;-)

I think I would call this one a modern quilt  I like the pattern and her colours.

I loved the quilt in the center  , it had raw edge applique and was really beautiful .

This quilt wasn't part of the show but a private viewing for us by Linda , this is the back , isn't it amazing!!

Here is the front , a real WOW , Linda is so talented and machine quilted this herself , clever lady !! Thanks for bringing it along so we could see it upclose and personal .

So that is it for this years quilt show in Pictou County , however if you want to see another gorgeous show head on down to Port Hastings as there is a show starting today at St. Davids Church and you can read all about it on Lesley's Blog .  I attended last year and I can say it was well worth the drive , lots of talent in the Straight .

I did have a couple of other things I wanted to share but will  leave that for another day I have kept you long enough . Thanks for stopping by today and I hope the sun is shining in your neck of the woods , it is a gorgeous day here .

 Hugs Sheila