Birds and Bags

Hello Friends!

So good to be back blogging again!  I've had a wonderful summer so far. My days revolve around  hooking, knitting, painting, gardening, reading, swimming,  and visiting with friends.  Of course I've also been cleaning, cooking, pulling weeds, paying bills, watering, watering watering .... you get the picture..... everyday life.

What I've really enjoyed this summer is bird watching!  I'm a card carrying, binoculars on a strap around my neck, member of the Audubon Society.  My hubby bought me a pair of super duper binoculars for my birthday. I now can see things far away, really really close up, and crystal clear!

 The above shot is me looking up at our family of yellow crested night herons.  Four of these "cuties" are now learning to fly and are all over our yard.  I can practically walk right up to them, as they seem to be very used to us now.  They've been watching down from their nest as we work around the yard and have our evening "deck time".  Deck time is a nightly affair that involves wine, sitting, and doing nothing.

We are also enjoying the family of adult cooper's hawks with their four new babies.  These sweeties are huge, and they whistle all day.  They swoop among the trees, and I can hear them whistling right now as I write this post!

These babies usually can be seen in the bird bath trying to battle the 100 degree plus temperatures!

And what outdoor nursery wouldn't be complete without triplet baby fawns and their mother roaming about?  These little guys suddenly appeared the other night.  They ran all over the place while mama drank from the pond.

So, it can be hard to get much done around here aside from wildlife watching and photographing, but I have managed to be a bit creative.

Below is my gazing ball pillow.  The pattern is from Primitive Spirit. 

 I think it turned out absolutely gorgeous!  I wasn't sure where I would put it, but seems to work nicely resting on my little gold-checked wing-backed chair.

I'm sooooo excited to be going to New York in the fall!  One of the things I'll be doing is attending a wool festival.  This trip was just what I needed to put me into high gear and make a new fall tote to carry on my journey.  I was trying decide color and design, when the obvious choice came to me.  My love for hedge apples!  I love the color, texture, and shape of these fall beauties.

The colors I chose evolved from the greens.... I knew I wanted a grey background.  I think hooked bags look their very best after being carried awhile with a bit of wear.  This one may come out late summer to very early fall so it will be nice and a bit frumpy for the New York trip.

Below is a quick shot I took of the inside before I assembled the bag.  I wanted roomy pockets so I wouldn't be digging for stuff all the time.

I've made other bits of this and that, but this has been sort of a lengthy post, so I'll share more of my life and creative endeavors here at the doorstep on another day.

xo
dulcy

Heat, Hawks, and Hooking!

I'm going to share with you a few odds and ends I've been working on here at the doorstep, but first I just want to take a moment to give all of you a huge "Thank You!" and an on-line hug.  I was a little bit apprehensive about posting all about myself turning 60 and such, but the comments you gave back  just blew me away!  It was like getting 27 awesome birthday cards......... very special to me.  I'm going to print off my comment page (if that's possible) to save and read when I'm feeling a little blue.

It's been very, very hot here!  I've been watering morning and evening, then try and spend the rest of the day inside.  As a result of the heat, I've gotten some studio time in this past week.  Last weekend we went to visit our friends Mike and Amy.  You may know Amy from Amy's Dusty Trail.

Amy has all her wool worms organized on specially made shelves by her husband, Mike.  She uses bread baskets for storage.  Its' all so organized and pretty.  So..... I perused Walmart yesterday and found five similar baskets on sale for $9.00 apiece.  I bought all five, and with a couple of others was able to become somewhat organized myself!

 

I was digging through plastic freezer bags, and it just wasn't working for me.  Now I can see what I've got..... so much easier.  I keep my uncut wool in the house in a cabinet I bought just for showing off the beautiful colors.  I keep it open, and looking at all the rich color every day helps to keep me inspired.

Here's what I've been hooking lately.....

It's sort of a totem piece.  Our home with the various wildlife that grace our property. I've prodded some clematis climbing around the edge.  I've been using all worms for this piece, so getting organized has saved a lot of time and frustration.

I've also been playing around some with my pastels.  I've been working on this heron which is a long way from being finished.

I'm so loving working with the blues and greens!

And since we're on the topic of large birds, here's a quick shot taken from my laundry room of two young cooper's hawks enjoying some time spent resting on our arbor.  

There seems to be four youngsters in this flock.  They whistle constantly, and you should see them try and fit in the birdbath!  My hubby got great shots of that that I'll post later.

That's it for now.  Stay cool, and have a safe and wonderful Fourth of July!!!!  Oh, and for those of you who don't celebrate this particular holiday, have a fabulous weekend!

xo

dulcy

My Switch Is Flipped To "ON"

Do you ever get that creativity/hippity hop/can't stop/I want to do it all thing going on?  If you're one of my many talented bloggy friends, I know you know exactly what I'm talking about.  My summer switch has been flipped to "on" and I can't stop.... nor do I want to.  So much to do and so little time.  I hope you don't mind me sharing all the little things I've got going on.  My favorite part of blogging is visiting other bloggers and sharing in their creative quests.  It helps keep me inspired!  The following is my current project line-up....

The hooked piece I started in Maine continues with the four cut wool, which is very tiny.... but... love the detail I get with the itsy bitsy pulled loops.  A view of the front door on our rock house.

About a month ago I took a class on needle felting from Vickie (her work is FABULOUS) with my super talented bestest bud and collage artist, Katie (her work is also FABULOUS).  This is just a little experiment.  I'm hooking and felting....  a small mat that I'm making up as I go.

If you've followed my blog for very long at all, you know I'm also a knitter.  Knitting is the thing to have on hand when I can't be at my rug frame hooking.  Hands that can't stay still issue.  The following are my knitted sock (Patience is needed because this can really drive a person crazy using four #1 needles), and I'm loving knitting simple cotton dish clothes.... great to have on hand for quick gifts, and an easy knit, especially when I get the "sock headache".

I've enrolled in an ongoing drawing class to help me with my rug designs.  I love to draw, but really need to hone my skills.  Now it's not much, but it's my first eye.  It took me two classes to draw one eye (I think it may be awhile until I'm doing portraits.....)

This last shot has nothing to do with the subject matter of this post, but I just had to share.  We've had three young Cooper's Hawks soaring and whistling around our yard for some days now.  If hawks can be considered cute (and I believe they can) these fellas are just the sweetest things to watch.  They leap and play and seem so joyful just being alive!  Yesterday, all three were sitting on the garden bench together (let me tell ya, they may still be babies, but these guys are huge!).  I grabbed my camera, but one of them jumped to the top of the bench.  This isn't the greatest shot because I was far away, and in the house.  But if you look closely, you can see the one on top of the bench and the other two on the seat.  I love summer!  Have a beautiful day....
xo

One more thing.... I will be back with more shots from Nova Scotia....eventually.... with a heat index in the 100's, I'm wistfully dreaming of the  breezy Bay of Fundy and the cool climate and roaring waves along the Nova Scotia coastline.