As If ...

... I should start something new

I'll blame it on Kate at Life in Pieces.  I'm going to try my hand at the Mosaic Mystery hosted by Cheryl at Meadow Mist Designs.

Unlike some other mysteries in blogland that have you racing to keep up, Cheryl's clues appear only once a month and extend over an 8-month period.  I think I can manage that!

The fabric requirements were announced on July 4 -- 3 fabrics and a background.  Since I am determined to use my stash, my choice had to revolve around the only background-worthy fabric that I have 3.25 yards of.  I came up with two possible scenarios -- one bright and lively, and one sophisticated and subdued.  Hoping that this might be something that would appeal to GS-1 and his soon-to-be bride, I have opted to go sophisticated.  DON'T EVEN THINK IT!  (That Libby doesn't know sophisticated.)

The white is the background.  The floral fabric at the bottom will be the border.  I used it to guide my other choices.  I may have to rethink the squiggly line piece as I'm not sure it has enough contrast with the background.

Worst case scenario, I might find a replacement at Tennessee Quilts 20% off sale later this week!

Little Pink Cutie

Tiny Tuesday Piglet

My first attempt at this cute little piglet turned into an indeterminate blob of pork.  

It was questionable if I even wanted to try again.  

But once I realized the mess was due to poor fabric choices, I set about making another one.

Priscilla

And I'm so glad I did!

Reporting in at Scrap Happy Saturday with my RSC progress.

Wildlife Wednesday

But first ...

Monday Morning Sunrise

We have had so many foggy mornings on the lake lately, 

I was overjoyed to wake to another gorgeous sunrise Monday morning. 

The lake was so still that morning, the colors are perfectly reflected in the water.

When I stepped out on the deck to photograph the sunrise, this little creature was in my way.

I have no idea what it is.  Just glad it didn't try to hop up on me!
Edited:  Nann was right; it's a Katydid!

And one lonely duck lounging at the spa.

This duck frequently comes by itself and naps on the warm rocks in the afternoon.

Leading ...

... And Ending

Back in the middle of May I wrote about how Bonnie Hunter's Scrap Users Strip System doesn't work for me (read it here).  Don't misunderstand; I'm not saying that there is anything inherently wrong with her system.  It just doesn't work for me because I generally don't make scrappy quilts.

So at the time of that writing I whipped a mixed bunch of 2-1/2" strips into light/dark foursies to make Bonnie's free pattern Strip Twist.

Strip Twist

It was one of those rare occasions where I threw caution to the wind, grabbed two strips, and started sewing.  I did put a little thought into the block combinations, trying to avoid duplicate fabrics.  And I did a minimum amount of redistribution of the blocks in the final arrangement.  Overall, it was very satisfying and I find it a very cheerful quilt that will comfort someone.  With luck, this will be fully assembled by the end of this day, including two borders.

While I had the 2-1/2" strip bin out I also stitched a pile of dark/neutral strip sets which I cut into 2-1/2" chunks.

And, using Bonnie's Leader/Ender system, I worked those into 4-patches in between other sewing and then added a solid 4-1/2" square to most of them in the same manner.  I don't know about you, but at some point my L/E project demands to be finished, so last week I got most of it together.

Needs a name

Five more long seams and it will be a flimsy.  I generally kept the colors in a more masculine palette but I did let a few yellows and pinks in to make it sparkle.

I'll be linking up with Cynthia for Sunday's Oh Scrap!

In the Pink

Angela/soscrappy gave us another easy TT block this week.

Bear Paw - Tiny Tuesday

The rest of my scrappy sewing this week was not pink so I will reserve that for another post.

Garden Update

Apparently I missed the memo about feeding and watering.  I won't say the garden is "thriving," but things have continued to grow.  And now that I'm on a more regular schedule of watering and have added a little fertilizer, we may get a little yield after all.

The Bradley tomatoes are questionable.

Bradley Tomato

These are the only fruit so far on the three plants.  I got these plants from a local person and they have done poorly from the beginning.  The cherry tomatoes, on the other hand, are thriving.

Cherry Tomatoes

Since being fertilized, the peppers have finally set fruit.

Before, the pepper would start to develop then fall off.  The cumbers are doing quite well.

First cucumber

They are not only climbing the trellis, they are grabbing on to anything they can find.

Cucumber clutching the dill

The dill has grown taller than the trellis.

Dill

It's time to make some chicken salad while I have fresh dill!  The rosemary in front of the dill has been delicious on roasted petite potatoes.  I'm thinking of putting in a fall crop of greens after the tomatoes are done.

Bottom line -- this has been a learning experience.  I'll try to get an earlier start next year.

Wildlife Wednesday

A New Bird

New to us, anyway.

Grey Catbird - Stock Photo

Decked out in his grey suit and black fedora.

Too slick and fast to photograph.

He runs like a roadrunner rather than hops like a robin.

Last year we had lots of bluebirds and titmice.

This year it's catbirds and gnatcatchers.

I'm wondering if the mild winter and rainy spring affected their food source ...