Usually, in New Hampshire, we get thaws and melts and warm sunny days in between the winter snowstorms. This winter was tougher.
Our ever too-perky weather girl cheerily informed us that we have endured 44 days in a row when we never got above freezing temperatures, and that the mean average daytime high for those 44 days was 12°F. There were lots of sub-zero nights and even a few sub-zero days with leaden skies. We got it. It was cold.
But "dirty snow" season is really kinda encouraging to those of us who live in the north country. The dirtier the snow, the faster it melts and goes away.
Our asphalt driveway is usually a huge heat sink with the blacktop storing the sun's rays. That was not true this year. It never melted off.
Our star border, Matthew, today sourced some precious sanded salt over at the Gilmanton Youth Organization, whereas the Town Garage had run out. He gleefully spread out the mix onto the icy white snowpack of our beleaguered driveway.
That snowpack had clung to the frozen pavement even after plowing. At last, with the sand, we are beginning to see some of the blacktop reappear again, YEAY!!!
Thank you, Matthew, for finding it, hauling it, and spreading it!
The other very heartening pleasantry that happened today was that I photographed my "Pleasant Times" quilt on some of the snow that is still pristine. It looks great now that it is all bound by machine.
No, I still can't get through the deep snow to the clothesline, but changing the camera setting to it's "snowman" glyph seemed to prevent overexposures.
The burgundy flannel sheet of the backing was a bit short, so I had added onto it with a strip of flannel printed with cherries. That seemed to create a natural spot to place the label.
You may click to enlarge the picture. My labels include the size dimensions, which are 65"x75" for this generous throw.
Who can ever remember the exact sizes a year later when you suddenly want the quilt to be shown in a display?? Put it right on the label! If subsequent washings shrink it up a half an inch, who cares, it's close enough.
I hope to present it to my dear friend, Frances, tomorrow, when she turns 99 years young.
Today was also a play day in the indigo scraps for a few more Week 8 blocks for "Stars In A Time Warp," from Barbara Brackman's Civil War Quilts blog.
I discovered this early relic from my Potholder Pile that looked like a promising indigo candidate, albeit that it had anonymous fabrics.
The indigo star points in the above block may have even come from Walmart's fabric department, gasp! The sacrilege of it, horrors! The cornerstones I know are Abby from Windham.
The next block, below, has a better pedigree with it's Paula Barnes, and Judie Rothermel for Marcus Brothers selections.
Last is a dear little Victorian print from an unsigned Fat Quarter that screamed to be used in the center square of the block.
I had great fun designing these three blocks and on the last one, above, I auditioned several choices of cornerstones before electing the indigo wallpaper stripe. I'm calling it indigo although in these photographs it looks more Prussian to me. Go figure.
I hope that you can have fun and solve some minor mysteries in your designs, too.
Happy sewing!
Our ever too-perky weather girl cheerily informed us that we have endured 44 days in a row when we never got above freezing temperatures, and that the mean average daytime high for those 44 days was 12°F. There were lots of sub-zero nights and even a few sub-zero days with leaden skies. We got it. It was cold.
But "dirty snow" season is really kinda encouraging to those of us who live in the north country. The dirtier the snow, the faster it melts and goes away.
Our asphalt driveway is usually a huge heat sink with the blacktop storing the sun's rays. That was not true this year. It never melted off.
Our star border, Matthew, today sourced some precious sanded salt over at the Gilmanton Youth Organization, whereas the Town Garage had run out. He gleefully spread out the mix onto the icy white snowpack of our beleaguered driveway.
That snowpack had clung to the frozen pavement even after plowing. At last, with the sand, we are beginning to see some of the blacktop reappear again, YEAY!!!
Thank you, Matthew, for finding it, hauling it, and spreading it!
No, I still can't get through the deep snow to the clothesline, but changing the camera setting to it's "snowman" glyph seemed to prevent overexposures.
The burgundy flannel sheet of the backing was a bit short, so I had added onto it with a strip of flannel printed with cherries. That seemed to create a natural spot to place the label.
You may click to enlarge the picture. My labels include the size dimensions, which are 65"x75" for this generous throw.
Who can ever remember the exact sizes a year later when you suddenly want the quilt to be shown in a display?? Put it right on the label! If subsequent washings shrink it up a half an inch, who cares, it's close enough.
I hope to present it to my dear friend, Frances, tomorrow, when she turns 99 years young.
Today was also a play day in the indigo scraps for a few more Week 8 blocks for "Stars In A Time Warp," from Barbara Brackman's Civil War Quilts blog.
I discovered this early relic from my Potholder Pile that looked like a promising indigo candidate, albeit that it had anonymous fabrics.
The indigo star points in the above block may have even come from Walmart's fabric department, gasp! The sacrilege of it, horrors! The cornerstones I know are Abby from Windham.
The next block, below, has a better pedigree with it's Paula Barnes, and Judie Rothermel for Marcus Brothers selections.
Last is a dear little Victorian print from an unsigned Fat Quarter that screamed to be used in the center square of the block.
I had great fun designing these three blocks and on the last one, above, I auditioned several choices of cornerstones before electing the indigo wallpaper stripe. I'm calling it indigo although in these photographs it looks more Prussian to me. Go figure.
I hope that you can have fun and solve some minor mysteries in your designs, too.
Happy sewing!
3 comments:
prussian or indigo doesn't matter...they are very nice of course...you choose such luscious fabrics!
The quilt looks nice, Tell her have a wondrous Birthday!
Yes, it is odd, but brown snow usually means spring is around the corner! Love your indigo blocks!
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