Hello lovely lovelies♡ A beautiful Sunday welcome to you♡ Another perfect summer's day here at the bottom of the world. The summer sun smiled high in the sky for most of the day casting warm, summery rays everywhere.
'Tis the last Sunday in January. Oh no! In my land of make believe it would be January all the time. =) February floats in this week. The last month of summer. How sad. I will just have to make the most of the lazy summer days that are left. I'm supposing that all you lovelies way up there are beginning to see the first glimmers that spring is readying to visit. I suppose the snowdrops and daffodils are beginning to pop up from the cold earth. How wonderful for you. After some of the frigid weather you've had.....you deserve a prelude to the gloriousness that is spring.
But let me talk about summer. It has been a sunny and warm one here. Each lazy day melding into the next. Long, long hours of sunlight. I love all the daylight hours of summer. The garden has been pulling out all stops. The hydrangeas this year have been the best they've ever been, with sweet peas, roses, gladioli, cosmos and now the dahlias are delighting the eye. Though, I must say the weeds have maddingly grown like billy-yo, too. Autumn will be a busy season in the garden wresting with the unruly weeds, me thinks.
Summer in this far rural outpost is cropping time. Our little abode is surrounded by paddocks as far as the eye can see. One can always see cows happily munching away, and there are always crops growing. This summer poppies abound. Paddock after paddock of tall poppies nodding in the breeze.
This week I worked on Into The Woods. I made more triangles and finished the bottom row. It is now a flimsy. I dithered and dithered about a fabric for the border. Unable to find one in the shops I decided on a green and white gingham in my stash. Gingham has always been a favourite of mine. Many childhood memories of nostalgia swirl around hand stitching pretties with gingham. Cross stitch, chicken scratching designs, and even smocking; on tablecloths, aprons, cushions......so many pretties involving hand stitching on gingham. Gingham is a pattern that has stood the test of time. What's not to love about gingham; cheery bright colours and oh-so-fun. Besides, I love the playful feel the gingham adds to this quilt dancing around all the sweet woodland animals.
But, if you are not thinking......gingham can present a few problems when trying to match up the squares. That is of course if you don't look at the fabric carefully and determine if the gingham has squares or rectangles all over. My eyes, and I might add, my muddly brain assumed I was working with squares. Ahh.....not so. As I found out after trying to match the sides to the top and bottom; alas my pretty gingham danced in rectangles. Needless to say I've spent hours today unpicking with my trusty seam ripper and fastidiously lining up each rectangle, and then sewing slowly to match each rectangle in the seams. I don't think I have ever used so many pins so close together. There was quite a bit of fabric manipulation as well. 'Tis a persnickety gal, that I am. It's been a snail-like progress. 'Tis soooo much easier to use an allover print, or indeed a plain fabric for a border, but I do rather love the green and white gingham, so I'm delighted I persisted. Somehow, with some fabric manipulation and a good dose of luck all my corners match perfectly. The gingham pattern is seamless. Such serendipity.
Now for the quilting. I admit there are a few other flimsies waiting in the hand quilting queue. Perhaps they can wait a little longer until Old Man Winter finds his way here. Winter is the perfect season for snuggling under a quilt and enjoy hand quilting. But, I'm not going to give the frigid season another thought; there's more warm sunny days to enjoy. Thank you for visiting my little place, lovely ladies. I might do a little crocheting and join the slow stitching party at Kathy's place later this evening. Hopefully there will be some progress of my crochet pretty to show next week. May you all enjoy a wonderful Sunday♡
Until the next time.......
Well done for matching those gingham corners! It does work well as a border for your beautiful Into the Woods. Your garden is looking lovely - I always love to see your pictures. Is that a field of opium poppies? Looks like a field we used to see in France. xx
ReplyDeleteYour garden is a delight Kim ! So beautiful...
ReplyDeleteLuxurious and colorful....The soil and weather doesn't allow this diversity of plants...
Colorful and beautiful is your quilt too ;)
Have a lovely week !
Hug
Anna
Your home, garden and surroundings are an absolute visual delight. I haven't been reading blogs for quite a while and when logging back into feedly today, I was pleased to see your post up top on my feed. Your hydrangeas are spectacular and in so many different colours. Do you do something special to your soil to achieve this, or is it just the variety? Have a lovely week :)
ReplyDeleteThe gingham did work nicely with your flimsy. No spring here yet, I won't even consider it until maybe April. The temps have warmed up to above freezing, the snow is melted. Now we have rain and it's mud season. Happy stitching!
ReplyDeleteThe gingham is perfect! I would have probably done the same thing at the corners. The extra effort to match everything has really paid off! I just love this quilt top. You flowers are gorgeous. I want to take a walk in your garden…can I stop by for a tour and some tea in the fernery this afternoon??? I wish!!! Rainy and lots of slushy mud here. Winter is not done with us yet …no signs of spring in the gardens yet. Take care! Gail at the Cozy Quilter.
ReplyDeleteThe gingham border looks wonderful with all those flowers. No one would ever guess how troublesome it was! And you garden looks lovely, as always, it inspires me to go and do some prep in ours, though it's not nearly so inviting outside up here :)
ReplyDeleteI'm pleased you are enjoying a fabulous Summer Kim, savour each and every minute. Your photos show so much beauty how lovely to have all of that surrounding you. You have so much patience! well done on getting the gingham to match up perfectly, it's looking fabulous. My first memory of gingham was sewing a blue gingham skirt at school, I don't think I made a very good job of it haha. Have a lovely Sunday. xx
ReplyDeleteJust love those wide gingham borders--they set off all those flowery prints beautifully. Nice work!!:)))
ReplyDeleteThank you for the --much needed here--tour of your lovely gardens--today is yet Another Rainy Day with more gray skies...why now and not in the dog days of dry Summers when we really need it most? Silly to question Mother Nature though, she does what she wants...
Take care and enjoy your fleeting Summer days down there...hugs, Julierose
Your garden is so lovely. What a wonderful place to wander in during the cooler mornings and evenings. I think we've got another month to go before we see much in the way of spring here. The gingham border was the right choice, so so sorry you had such a time with getting it right. Into the Woods is so lovely. Enjoy your slow stitching time today.
ReplyDeleteLove that gingham, you matched it perfectly and those glorious flowers! Thank you for sharing your beautiful garden and part of the world with all of us lovelies, it is much appreciated up north with all the cold, snow and grey skies.
ReplyDeleteyour flowers amaze me all the time. So many beauties in so many colors and varieties! The quilt is wonderful
ReplyDeleteYour garden is beautiful! What a lovely and cheerful place! Enjoy.
ReplyDeleteLovely blooming flowers in your yard and certainly exudes a lovely scent. So true about gingham fabrics. Great patience in use of the seam ripper and many pins. You would not have been happy otherwise. A worthwhile redo!
ReplyDeleteAlas there's no sign of spring flowers here, unless you count the bouquet of tulips I bought in the grocery store. It will be at least another six weeks before we see them outside.
ReplyDeleteGingham was the perfect choice for the border even though it was a challenge to get it to line up.
Now I'm imagining how beautiful fields of poppies must be.
Love seeing the beautiful gardens and all the flowers at your place, Kim! And the gorgeous hydrangeas especially. I think weeds must be a worldwide bane of gardeners - we are always fighting them up here in Colorado, too! The green gingham is the perfect border for Into the Woods! That's going to be a very sweet quilt.
ReplyDeleteThank you for all the wonderful pictures of your garden the sweet peas bounding up on the trellis and the vividly blue hydrangeas all in a row are so amazing! The colors and lushness of your garden are truly inspiring! Very refreshing, Especially since we are still in the middle of Winter...
ReplyDeleteAnd I love your new films! That print with the deer, owls, etc. is so pretty and all the pieced triangles set off the fabric with the animals peaking out. The green gingham is a great compliment to the center. Being a sloppy quilter myself I would not have even notice the discrepancy in the checks but it looks fabulous!
Thanks for the tour, have a great Sunday. cw
You are most welcome to 'visit' my garden anytime and take a stroll around, drinking in the flowers as you go. =) The garden here in Summer is a delight. The sweet peas always delight the senses and the hydrangeas, well, they always perform in the most amazing way. We have cars driving by and stopping for a while just to soak in the hydrangeas. They are a spectacular sight all in a row. You know, if I didn't match all the checks of the gingham it would've bothered me no end. 'Tis a persnickety quilter, that I am. =) Thank you for your beautiful words and sweet visit. Your kindness has blessed my day. Kim Xx
DeleteI thoroughly enjoyed looking at all of your colorful, sunny Summer photos while I look out the window at yet another (over a week) cloudy, rainy Winter day here. Your quilt is beautiful. I used gingham for a chicken scratch embroidered baby quilt years ago. Thankfully I used solid fabric sashing and didn't have to match up the print. I am looking forward to seeing your next project. Enjoy your Summer days!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous, gorgeous flowers as usual Kim. Were those some hollyhocks I saw so tall? I have some hollyhocks that are dark purple/almost black. Love seeing your beautiful world and lovely quilt. I used some gingham for a border yesterday, pink but the squares are so small you don't even need to really worry about matching, probably 1/8" squares. Enjoy what is left of your beautiful summer. I need to go out and conquer some weeds this week before we get rain again Wed-Fri. I need to go trim my hydrangeas back, the poor things. Happy stitching!
ReplyDeleteYes in the U.K. the snowdrops are out in abundance and the daffodils are just coming out. What a brave person you are to add a gingham border! And it looks great! Lovely pictures from your garden too.
ReplyDeleteWonderful pictures! Blessings. Too much rain here in our Summer.
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you, lovely Maristella. I hope that rain stops for a while and allows the sun to shine. =) Thank you for your sweet visit. Kim Xx
DeleteTassie summers can’t be beaten. No humidity like we get in Sydney. Your garden is spectacular. The heat has tested the patience of my new hydrangeas. A beautiful flimsy with its gingham trim.
ReplyDeleteSummer here in Tassie is unbeatable. One of the reasons we left Sydney was the hot and humid weather for months on end. I remember the hydrangeas in Sydney were always rather underwhelming. Here though, they just keep flowering happily for months on end. Love, love, love my hydrangeas. Kim Xx
DeleteLos has unido muy bien Kim y el resultado es encantador al igual que tus maravillosas y coloridas fotos de flores, aquí llevamos tres días con una gélida y densa niebla sin ver el sol y mis macetas de hortensias han sucumbido a las recientes heladas. Disfruta de tu verano y BESICOS.
ReplyDeleteYour persistence and need for perfection certainly paid off! The gingham is gorgeous! I also have wonderful memories of learning to sew tabelcloths and aprons with gingham. Do you remember those sun hats with a braided type band around the centre? Maybe it was some type of smocking? I'm pretty sure I made one when I was in high school.
ReplyDeleteAh, summer. We had a day of drizzle and sleet, so this was a lovely thing to see. The gingham border looks great!
ReplyDeleteEverything is looking so pretty in your garden Kim. I have just picked a big jugful of sweet peas to gift to a friend & I thought of you. Mine will soon finish by the looks. I love the green gingham you have used for the borders on your quilt - gingham is so timeless in my opinion. xx
ReplyDeleteHi Kim
ReplyDeleteWonderful photos, your garden is so pretty. Can’t wait for spring to arrive here.
The gingham border works so well, worth all the work. Enjoy your sunny days.
Best wishes Kay CXx
The daffodils should be beginning to stir there?? I'm glad I persisted with the gingham as it would've bothered me forevermore if those seams didn't match. =) Have a wonderful week, lovely Kay. Hope the sun shines for you. Kim Xx
DeleteOh I sure enjoyed all the lovely flower pictures, I so can't wait we actually are seeing sun for the first time in a long time today and our temps will be above freezing so this girl is happy. Love the field of flowers! I love the gingham in your quilt but you have a lot more patience then I do lining that all up.
ReplyDeleteWho would have thought that naughty gingham would be so difficult. Like you, I imagined it to be made up of squares. But you showed it who is boss, and now that pretty gingham is bordering your beautiful quilt.
ReplyDeleteHand quilting and the chill of winter do seem to go together - but gingham is so summery you can certainly hand quilt that one during the warmer months! Oh how beautiful your flowers look!
ReplyDeleteKim - I know I can always count on you to share the glory of your summer garden, which can pull anyone out of a gloomy day into bright sunshine! And yes, we are starting to see small signs of winter losing its grip - days are lengthening! I never knew gingham could be squares or rectangles - the things one learns from fellow bloggers! Stay well, my dear stitching friend!
ReplyDeleteThe gingham is the perfect choice and taking the time and pinning gave you the look you wanted. Bravo! As always, your flowers are such a welcome view compared to our snowy landscape here.
ReplyDeleteOh, dear Kim, your garden is beautiful. I can literally see you strolling through the garden and enjoying the beauty of all the plants...it's a treasure. What a wonderful area you live in. Thank you for sharing it with us... you can't get enough of this beauty and you can completely lose yourself in it and you should - at least partially - recharge your batteries. Take in the beautiful things. Yes, I take!
ReplyDeleteAnd you can see that in your blankets, which you create so wonderfully.
I can completely agree with you that you had to sew on the check pattern correctly. How beautifully you did it, I like to think it took a lot of effort.
I also break things up when I'm not satisfied... but then... the joy of the successful result. That's how it has to be.
A big hug to you. It was a pleasure to walk with you... enjoy your wonderful summer.
February will still be cool here, but the thawed snow has exposed the rapeseed in the fields (the rapeseed was sown last summer) and it will bloom in May/June, a great time.
And I'm already starting to look for the snowdrops - they start blooming in February.
Viola sends you happy greetings
LJ here - again it won't let me use my Google Account. :( Thank you, God, for not having January stick around forever; it's been a really looong month this year with all our snow and cold. Actually, this is the way I remember winters were when I was growing up. Climate change, I'm sorry to say. Love, love your beautiful garden with all the flowers and an excellent photographer to boot. I realized while I was reading this post that most of your flowers can also live here - not lots of tropical ones - and that makes me happy, too. Enjoy, enjoy all the flowers and the warmth, too. We'll have cold and probably more snow for a couple of more months though March might be more spring-like. Now...to that lovely quilt "Into the Woods". It couldn't be more beautiful. I'm always astounded that you can assemble these quilts for quickly. Honestly, I never realized that gingham can be squares or rectangles! What a grand construction you did on the gingham; your patience is outstanding. One can hardly see the connections and once the quilting is done, they won't be perceptible at all. Marvelous! And...you have so many things around you to help you through this time. Know that my prayers are also with you.
ReplyDeleteSo much flowering beauty in your garden, it must be wonderful to walk around in. Your gingham looks fantastic too.
ReplyDeleteOh, what a sight for sore eyes!
ReplyDeleteSo lovely to look out at each morning, I bet.
Beautiful garden and quilt.
Yes, it is a joy to wake up each morning and joy in the garden which hugs me each day. Thank you so much for your sweet visit and kind words.=)
DeleteWhat a lush and beautiful garden. It just amazes me.
ReplyDeleteAlways wonderful to visit your beautiful blog, Kim.
I love the quilt top too.
What a joy to visit your summer garden and home, Kim; just what we need over here, something so lovely to look at while we are sheltering from so much rain. Thank you :-)
ReplyDelete