Study Shelves Seemingly Everywhere

You know how the last 10% of any project can be the hardest to get done? We're still working to finish out the Stone House study and a couple of projects in the Stone House kitchen. 

I have an enchanting vision of built-in white bookshelves and a desk surface for the gorgeous dark green study. And the bookshelves are finally getting done! But there's nowhere in the Stone House to paint them, so they're taking up my sitting room for part of the week. 

A Shawl of My Own Devising

I've made a handful of the Alabama Chanin ponchos--they're the simplest thing you could ever sew, and they are nice! Useful!

 But I'm not a huge fan of asymmetry and I don't want to have to be constantly monitoring accessory placement. So I tweaked the design and put the seam in a new spot (and stenciled it with a little bit of the Magdalena stencil):

Just right for the symmetrical shawl-wearer.

The Rabbit Barn Looking Nice

Daisy's new rabbit barn sits nicely tucked into an unused corner of the yard behind the fig tree, and right beside the vegetable garden.

The Composer did a great design job, using inexpensive hardware store materials in a way that's actually quite elegant--see the "skylight" panel inset into the metal roof. Next up, the rows of cages for the rabbits.

Log Cabin Quilt: Dakota Sandstone

Clara and I made this quilt as a wedding gift for her geologist friend who was getting married . . . to another geologist.

He's from the Black Hills of South Dakota, so we drew our color inspiration from images of the layers of sandstone there.

Tans, faded purples, rusty pinks.

"And that house did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock."

It's Hydrangeas and Hospitality

We are in between houseguests for a few days--I don't think I mentioned we just finished hosting a friend from Taiwan who stayed with us twenty years ago and was brave enough to come back :)

We had a great time showing her the ins and outs of our daily life--from organ practice to Sunday dinner to tattooing the rabbits' ears to picking blueberries.

Tonight we celebrated Felix's birthday, a joy. The Composer suggested gifts inspired by things Felix had borrowed recently, so he got a cat carrier and an ice chest. I guess he's a grown-up now.

A Landscape and a Still Life

Two recent pieces.

Mid-Afternoon

Mid-afternoon in mid-June. A day full of work, laundry, errands, and hospitality. 

I've moved my work computer upstairs into the Composer's studio and can't tell if I love or hate being out of the thick of things. 

I can concentrate, and there are no parrot squawks to apologize for when I'm on the phone, but on the other hand, what's going on downstairs without me? Is the laundry ready to turn over? I'm so far from the coffee! Does a cat need in?

Some Embellished Jersey Skirts in the Shop

Hop on over if you like gorgeous jersey things to wear!

June Looks Like This

June looks like this.

 It also looks like cars to buy, insurance policies to deal with, paperwork to complete, tree trunks to cut up and remove, gardens to tend, grass to mow, and trainings to attend . . . .

A Year for Giles and Tia

In honor of their one-year anniversary, Giles and Tia!

And these two . . .

 . . . met a year ago.

Daisy at the Organ

Daisy's piano teacher is also a church organist, so she was able to begin organ with her today!

Little sandals, big sound.

Zinnias at The Meadows

After dinner the Composer and I drove over to The Meadows (Felix's house) to deliver that lucky boy a load of goat manure. 

Marriage certainly changes people. Felix has become a super-gardener, and Molly, who grew up in New York and its surroundings, has started carrying a pocketknife so she can cut flowers whenever necessary.

Some Pinks Hanging Out in the Blue Room

Intense pink hydrangeas hanging out with some butterfly bush and some feathery pink spirea.

My Duck Egg Filofax, Pretty and Blue

I continue to love my Filofaxes. I have a Original Nude Patent for work, this Original Duck Egg Patent for personal projects, and a raspberry Finsbury I use for my Bible reading plans and prayer lists. I LOVE having separate gorgeous notebooks for different parts of my life.

This binder is divided into a General Notes section (where I keep a running list of things I need to do, remember, schedule, etc.),  Festive Plans (where I work on whatever big do is coming up next--guests, menus, sleeping arrangements), Menu Tracker (where I note general dinner plans), Sewing (all kinds of notes about current, past, and future projects), Correspondence (I actually keep notecards, stamps, and addresses here so I can write a letter when I have a few minutes. I also keep a record of who and when I've written), and Weekly Goals (I write these across the appropriate week but without scheduling them. I generally pick 5-7 things outside my usual daily routine that I want to complete or make progress on).

For some reason, being able to hold all these in my hands makes me feel very connected to my projects and constantly inspired. 

Tic Tac Toe

Saturday night a raging thunderstorm rolled in. At 1:00 a.m. I heard the loudest crack of lightning I ever remember. A few minutes later the Composer (who always gets up if there's weather) came back to tell me that our huge red oak tree had been struck by lightning. . .

and had fallen on all three of our cars. Only two are even visible in the picture because Bella's is so thoroughly covered by tree trunk.

Yes, we've got three cars out in the driveway smashed under a tree. Hoping that when the tree guys get them uncovered, there will be one that isn't totaled.

But seriously: we can hardly believe that this monster didn't hit the house. Parts of it were *under* the overhang of the porch roof. Thank you, Lord!

Dresden Plate Crib Quilt

 There were five of these Dresden plate quilt blocks in my stash--not six. So I just embroidered the outline of the last one. I like it!

Available in my etsy shop.

Little Bit of Barn, Lots of People

Our barn-raising weekend started the night before with plenty of hot tea and love from Sister.

Then it was up early to build a barn for these Dutch rabbits! Jonathan is halfway through vet school but will never know enough about rabbits to satisfy Daisy . . . .

The guys broke ground behind the fig tree. 

Measure twice, strip the sod once.

Meanwhile, Jonathan and Arthur and Daisy dealt with a little backlog of manure in the barns. Goats and chickens needed some housecleaning.

Molly and Tia were assigned to the Universal Assistants crew. Apparently no one needed any help.

Until they did. Bella ran the kitchen. Girls, there's pimento cheese to make.

Emma ran back to the stone house for forgotten tools.

I have no idea what is happening here. 

It took almost all day to get the frame in, cement poured, and everything square. When they quit for dinner, the rafters were also in place. There was so much trigonometry going on in the yard.

By late afternoon some people needed a break . . .

  . . . and some had actually earned one :)

Log Cabin Quilt: Quercus Alba/ White Oak

A gift for a friend who just graduated from his master's program in public health, heading into medical school.

"He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water."

"Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."

Don't you love that promise? I do. Thanks, Psalm 1.

Barn-Raiser

Whew! I have been fully occupied with a houseful for the last few days. The young adults gathered over the weekend for a barn raising on Monday (photos to follow). With three houses in the mix for hosting now--our Schoolhouse, the Stone House with Eliot and Emma (that's them at the end of the table below, Emma in the red sweater and Eliot up on the stool), and Felix and Molly at the Meadows--there seems to be no limit to the number of people we can include! Everyone ate here, and everyone worked together to build and garden on Monday--it was fantastic. Much accomplished, a few sunburns, and lots of food eaten.

Several of them are taking off tomorrow on a road trip to points north, and life will settle down. I have quilts to show!