My posts about our trip to Maine wouldn't be complete without a post on boats.
We saw lots of boats.
So many different boats.
Can you tell I loved the shore?
I have a couple of other fun places to share with you next week.
Found
We found lots of treasures on our walks on the beach.
There were lots of interesting shells,
and sea creatures.
Rock hunting was fun too. We found a few heart shaped rocks.
D found this BIG heart shaped rock. It gave his sister a thrill!
I even found time to do some stitching on my Daisy Chain Sampler.
Maine - hiking in Camden Hills
Yesterday I told you about what was down hill from our campsite. Today we go up the hill.
There are many trails in the park but we had limited time so we chose the trail to the highest point, of course.
It was a steep climb and we were trying to make it to the top for a sunset view. Some of us got tired and waited at a spot near the top with a great view and a few wild blueberries while the boys dashed to the top.
I let them take the camera so we could know what we missed.
Beautiful. (Our view was similar just not from the very top.)
You can see Camden there at the bottom.
Maine - on the shore
While in Maine we camped at the Camden Hills State Park. Our campsite was a short walk from the shore.
The Maine shore is very rocky.
So. many. rocks.
The rocks are great for climbing
and skipping.
I do love the places where water and land meet.
I had a lot of fun taking photographs -over a thousand pictures of the trip!
I'm warning you that there might be a couple more posts on our vacation.
Canada!
We have been traveling!
Our trip started by driving east through Canada. We made a quick stop at Torontoand the bluffs just beyond.
We were thrilled to leave the mosquitoes behind in Michigan and enjoyed a little wading at Sandbanks Provincial Park.
We had lots of fun squishing the "seaweed" together and squeezing the water out to make balls to toss around. They were a lot like balls of felt but they fell apart again when they got wet.
We stayed the night on Amherst Island and continued through Canada to Main. The scenery was lovely, especially in the "magic hour" light.
We even saw a MOOSE cross the road just at dusk!Stay tuned for more from our trip.
Summer Thrifting
I haven't done much thrifting this summer. But, I did stop by a garage sale this weekend and pick up these two summer spreads. The top is a twin and the bottom one is a queen. The chenille fluff on them is in perfect condition!
At the same sale I picked up a small chest of drawers. I thought I might put it in P's room but it ended up in my sewing room. It's in the corner behind my sewing table.
M actually walked into my sewing room yesterday and said it looked NEAT! Now, that is progress. I guess two days of organizing and the little chest have paid off!
Simple Spinning
Some of you already know this, but we used to own two Samoyeds.
They were big, white, fluffy dogs. Actually, the dogs were B's before we were married. They required a lot of brushing and shed a lot of hair. Eventually I started saving the hair. I had bags and bags of it. I thought I would learn to spin so that I could make something for B. It has been TWELVE years since we have had either of the dogs and since their death I have learned to spin. I practiced and practiced on prepared wool. I didn't want to practice on the dog hair because I only have a limited supply of that.
I still have not made anything from the dog hair because as first I didn't think I was good enough at spinning to make nice yarn from the hair. Also, if I were to start saving hair from brushings now I would do things differently. I would only save hair from a CLEAN dog and only save the hair from the neck and chest. I have a lot of wirey guard hairs in the fluff I have saved. Maybe someday I'll do all the prepwork and spin enough fluff for a scarf or something. In the mean time I'm enjoying spinning wool.When I spin, I usually just make plain vanilla yarn. I spin a single and then ply it to itself for a simple two ply yarn. I thought I'd share my lazy spinner approach to simple yarn. I start with a big pretty ball of fluff that is already prepared as a roving or top.
I fluff out a section of the ball and make it ready for easier spinning. When that bit is spun I'll unwind a little more from the ball and fluff it up.
I fill a bobbin with a single ply of spun yarn.
Then, I wind that single ply onto my ball winder creating a center pull ball.
I ply this back on to the bobbin pulling from the inside and outside of the ball at the same time.
I know that the yarn will fit back on the bobbin because the single ply fit and it is the same amount of wool. And I don't have to worry about the singles being the same length, I just spin until I come to the middle and end at the fold!
Thoughtful Sunday
"The barn was very large. It was very old. It smelled of hay and it smelled of manure. It smelled of the perspiration of tired horses and the wonderful sweet breath of patient cows. It often had a sort of peaceful smell -- as though nothing bad could happen ever again in the world."
Charlotte's Web, E. B. White, 1952.
Picnic at the Playground
P and I are sad that our favorite items (the slide, merry-go-round, and monkey bars) at our favorite park in town were removed this summer.
Last night we took a picnic dinner to the school playground where everything is very shiny and colorful.
I tried to ignore the giant inflated plastic objects scattered around the playground.
P had lots of fun on the swings and started thinking about going back to school and playing with her friends at recess.
P tells me that you know you're swinging really fast when your hair blows in your face! That is some fast hair!
We had lots of fun but I still miss the old park equipment.
Wardrobe Update
Yesterday P decided that SHE wanted to make something for her doll. We settled on a simple waistband with gathered skirt. We measured the doll, did some math, (2.5 times the waist size for the skirt piece) and cut out two rectangles of fabric.
I helped with cutting and pinning but she did all of the sewing. P thought the magic of pulling gathering threads was pretty cool.
I showed her how to hand stitch the inside of the waistband.
She got the hang of it pretty fast.
Just look at these tiny little stitches.
She was tired of hand stitching after sewing the waistband down and opted for a machine stitched hem.
She thinks the skirt looks great with the sweater I made last year.
We were both pretty thrilled with our afternoon time in the sewing room.
P says we need to make the panties today...
Wordless Wednesday
A New Wardrobe in the Making
My friend, and knitting partner, Adele came for a quick visit not too long ago. She brought P and me some goodies. P got a doll that she LOVES and we also got a dressmaking book for dolls.
P and I looked through the many designs in the book and decided on our first project, a pretty simple dress with bodice. I wanted to make sure the pattern size that we had chosen would fit the doll.
Then we made a pinafore to go with the dress.
I have to say that this book, The Doll's Dressmaker: The Complete Pattern Book by Venus A Dodge, is pretty spectacular. It has basic pattern pieces for all of the dresses in five different sizes. It gives good directions for choosing the right pattern size and how to make adjustments. There are also directions for making MANY different styles of dresses from the basic pattern pieces and lots of ideas for dressing them up for more grown up dolls and making them simpler for baby dolls. The possibilities are endless. There are a few simple styles that I'll let P try too.
The book also has shoe patterns, hat patterns, and directions for other doll accessories.
I think we'll be using this book a lot. P has marked a lot for dresses that she likes.
Next up, panties - because every doll needs some panties. And then a slip, and a bonnet, and a dress with some lace....Thanks Adele. We have been enjoying our time together in the sewing room!
Lady of the Lake - Finished
I finished the Lady of the Lake quilt last week.
It has been washed and fluffed a little in the dryer.
I had fun piecing a back for it too.
I like the back as much as the front.
The quilt measures 45 inches by 52 inches.
August in Bloom
I thought I'd share a bit of what's blooming in the yard as we move into August.
Butterfly bush
balloon flower
zinnias
lily (in the white garden)
hibiscus
mystery tall yellow-orange flowers
I hope you have a bit of color in your August.
On the Grid
I've been doing a little quilting on the Lady of the Lake- stitch in the ditch.
Wordless Wednesday - anticipation
Thoughtful Sunday
"One, two, tie up my shoe."
1, 2, Tie Up My Shoe a New Look at an Old Nursery Rhyme, Liz Underhill, 1990.
(We shopped in the hand me down dresser for some new school sneakers. I showed her ONCE how to tie them. That was all she needed.)
A Great Ride
Thursday evening we watched M's last show with the Chelsea House Orchestra.
There were lots of fabulous shows, festivals, and fun times in the five years we were associated with the group.
This years graduates were making the most of their last show.
It was a real crowd pleaser.
Thanks to all involved with the group and especially Fritz. It was a great ride!
Better than the Best
Yesterday morning we picked lots of blueberries at the local u-pick farm. Buckets full - close to twenty pounds. It was our third trip to the farm this year and I have only frozen a few trays of them. We have been eating them like CRAZY.
Later in the day, I rolled out some dough for cinnamon rolls and spread it with butter, brown, sugar, and cinnamon...
There on the counter was a big bowl of fresh picked blueberries. So, I tossed a bunch of those on the dough and rolled it up.
(my helper had to get a photo too)
They really turned out great. I was so eager to try them that I put the frosting on as soon as the came out of the oven, I should have waited a couple of minutes for that.
They were so good that I'm making them again today!
I know that I posted my cinnamon roll recipe as the Best Ever Cinnamon Rolls but I think we have succeeded in making the best BETTER!
