Category: Turkey Tracks: My Life in Maine

Our Life in Maine, My Craft Projects, Quilting, Recipes, Book and Media Reviews

Turkey Tracks: “Foxy Blue” Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  April 2015

“Foxy Blue” Quilt

It’s official.  “Foxy Blue” was delivered, by SIL Maryann Enright, last Sunday.

This BIG quilt (97 inches square) does not photograph well in its entirety.  It’s much more subtle than the light/dark the camera is picking up.

The focus fabric is a Foxglove pattern–thus the name.

I wanted to make a low-impact quilt, Kaffe Fasset style, and to use my blue 2 1/2-inch squares.  (I have a whole BIG box of these squares left.)

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I chose a batik backing that works really well.  It sort of glows.  And a sort of seafoam binding.  You can also see that I mixed hourglass/broken dishes blocks into the borders, which gave, I think, a lot of visual interest.

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Here’s a good shot of the focus fabric.

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And one of the movement in the quilt.

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The corners.  I used a pantograph called Hyancith Grande that I’ve had for some time.  It’s by Patricia Ritter.  And I used a low-contrast thread.  The quilting came out really well.

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Another view:

 

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And another:

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The middle is comprised of the stash squares, with no attempt made to order them in any way in terms of light and dark.

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It’s a beautiful quilt…

Love, too, the bits of purple foxglove that punctuate the quilt.

Turkey Tracks: “Scrappy Streak” Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  April 20, 2015

“Scrappy Streak” Quilt

It occurs to me that I never put finished pics of this quilt up on the blog–though I finished it back in the winter–and am enjoying using it so much.

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I apologize for the rug, but it would take two extra people to hold this quilt up for viewing…

I love the graphic nature of this very simple quilt–and it was made with the leftover (now small) pieces of the 2 1/2-inch strips that I used to make the big log cabin and the Bonnie Hunter “scrappy trip” pattern (free on her blog) this past winter.  I am loving having these quilts downstairs.  They are so colorful and welcoming and so much better than the old dog blanket that used to protect the couch.  (The dogs do bring in a lot of mud, especially in mud season.)

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I got the backing on sale at, I think, Marge Hallowell’s Mainely Sewing in Nobleboro.  And I quilted with my clam shell groovy boards.  (This traditional quilt pattern does not fare well with pantographs–at least not in my hands.)

The red border fabric is from a piece I’ve had for over 12 or more years.  Ideas about quilts change over the years, and I no longer wanted to make the quilt for which this fabric had been purchased.  So…  It’s brilliant in this quilt.

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Here’s a final view of the graphic nature of this quilt:

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Quilts like these three quilts all made from my 2 1/2-inch fabric strips remind me over and over of other quilts I have made.  Invariably, seeing a fabric from another quilt makes me smile.

This quilt is No 113 and was finished probably in February.

 

Turkey Tracks: The Swing Mailbox

Turkey Tracks:  April 18, 2015

The Swing Mailbox

Remember the blog post from last winter about my smashed mailbox?

Well, it’s now spring, and it’s time to fix the mailbox.

Here’s the very cool solution:  MailSwing

I picked it up yesterday in Pittston, Maine, from Tim Gay.  This business is now going to be a third-generation father/son business.

Stephen Pennoyer came right away and started digging a new mailbox hole (3 to 4-feet deep) and spray painting all the metal black.

This morning he came early and finished the whole job, and SIL Maryann Enright and I went to the hardware store for sticky numbers for the pole and box.

 

Books/Recipes: NOURISHING BROTH, Sally Fallon Morell and Kaayla T. Daniel, PhD

Books/Recipes:  April 14, 2015

NOURISHING BROTH

 

The “nourishing” genre of food/cookbooks has been enriched by one:  Sally Fallon Morell and Kaayla T. Daniel, PhD’s NOURISHING BROTH.

You may recall that Sally Fallon Morell wrote NOURISHING TRADITIONS with Dr. Mary Enig, who fought the good fight to show how dangerous trans fats and vegetable oils are and how good for you saturated fats from healthy animals are.  And you may recall that Jennifer McGruther recently published NOURISHING KITCHEN and has a great web site that is a constant resource–as is the Weston A. Price Foundation’s web site.

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So, you cannot read this blog for long without knowing I am a big fan of and great believer in real, homemade bone broths.  Of course I ordered this new book anyway–and it is chock full of the science of bone broths, of why they are so good for us.  And, of course, the book tells you all the ins and outs of making bone broths and how to use them in all sorts of soups, stews, sauces, gravies, and so forth.

After reading the book, I have been defrosting my stored bone broths and heating a cup full for breakfast–instead of drinking tea.  I add raw milk and salt if needed, and am thinking of adding a beaten raw egg, such as you might find in a Chinese or Greek egg soup.  I am finding I have no need for coffee/tea after this gorgeous drink–one that feels good right down to my toes.  And look, ma, no sugar/honey in the morning.  Many cultures drink a hot bone broth soup for breakfast–while we are eating and feeding our children a nutrient nightmare of sugared cereal.  It didn’t take me but one morning to realize what I had been missing.

One of the many things that Morell and Daniel point out is that with the advent of fake bouillon cubes (which have no meat in them and are the beginning of the dangerous excitotoxin MSG), we lost the nourishment we were getting from bone broths that were the base of much of the food we ate.  Bone broths build…bones.  Bone broths are full of gelatin (if made right) and lots of minerals and good fats–all mixed up in a hearty hot broth.

So, in a restaurant, if you encounter a “homemade soup,” ask if the soup is made from bones/meat in the kitchen or if a “base” is used.  Avoid the base soup as it is all made from fake products.

Here’s a little video of Kaayla T. Daniels talking about bone broths and bones:

“Bone Broth” Builds Bone Not Because of Calcium.

Turkey Tracks: April Update

Turkey Tracks:  April 13, 2015

April Update

Where does the time fly to?

I am never sure, beyond the certain knowledge that it’s moving really fast…

As you can see from earlier posts, I’ve just returned from an exciting few days of classes and viewing at the April MQX show in Manchester, NH–with friend Gail Galloway-Nicholson.

Here’s our favorite quilt from this show–and I’m sorry that I did not get the quilter’s name.

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I can appreciate the glorious work in this quilt, but for myself, I shy away from trying to make something with so, so much work in it.  I prefer a quilt that can be used and loved and washed.  Thus, I was much more drawn to this Bonnie Hunter quilt–Texas Tumbleweeds–done in a different colorway than what Bonnie did:

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Bonnie Hunter is part of the American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine’s 2015 4-patch challenge.  And as you know, I’ve been making these “Bonnie” blocks right along.  About 10 days or so ago, Bonnie showed how she was going to set her blocks.  Bonnie used aqua, and I’ve chosen a limey green:

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I’m working on the Coastal Quilter’s UFO challenge–due in May–so I’m making these blocks as a kind of leader/ender project at the moment.

And waiting to see how Bonnie is going to set them…

Look what I found along the front walk way today…

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Snow drops!  Aptly named…

 

Turkey Tracks: Mid-March Project Update

Turkey Tracks:  March 21, 2015

Mid-March Project Update

Ironically, today is the first day of spring.

And it is warmer, but it’s also snowing outside.

Though it’s wet and dreary, my heart has been warmed by Kathleen Nixon’s visit for my birthday.

She was to have come yesterday, but the storm grounded flights, so she arrived bright and cheerful at noon today.  We had a sushi lunch at Mr. Wat’s, a coffee at Zoots, and will have what will be a wonderful dinner at the Hartstone Inn (thanks to Gina Caceci).  Tomorrow we’re going to a special showing of the uncut version of LAWRENCE OF ARABIA at The Strand in Rockland, Maine (where we’ll have some POPCORN).  Afterwards, we’ll have an early dinner at Mirandas in Rockland–a favorite place for both of us.  I have to let her go on Monday, but will take her down to Portland and will do some errands on the way home.

I have been working on the big quilt this past week.  It just needs one more border:

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Which is almost done:

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This is a VERY BIG quilt…

Here are some close-ups:

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AND this one, which shows how much of my focus fabric I’ve been able to use:

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It’s interesting and inspired by Kaffe Fasset’s low-contrast style of quilting.  AND by the American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine’s low contrast “quilt along” of last year.

This year their challenge is to work with four patches–and the above quilt actually uses a lot of four patches.  BUT, I am much more intrigued by the four-patches on point that Bonnie Hunter is making for her part in the magazine’s challenge.  So, these patches have become my current leader/ender project.

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I have no idea how Bonnie is going to set hers, and I’m hoping she will do a “reveal” on April 3rd, the end of the challenge.  If not, I’ll open my EQ7 quilting design program and get to work.

Here’s a close-up.

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I have 20 blocks done now, but truthfully, I could just disappear from the world and sew these fun blocks until I drop.

Remember that I have a whole box of two-inch squares that need using…

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Maybe I’ll do a marathon session and sew these into light/dark four patches…

Meanwhile, the chickens are out every day now and hang out at my quilting room windows where they try to talk to me:

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Barb Melchiskey challenged our group to complete one UFO for our May challenge meeting.  I have a handful of planned quilt projects all folded up together.  This one is at least nine years old:

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And it’s pretty fabric that I still like:

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It wants to be a quilt for a male person…

And I have one in mind…

So, I will start it when the big blue quilt is…quilted.

Happy spring everyone!

 

 

Turkey Tracks: Low Contrast Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  March 9, 2015

Low Contrast Quilt

The scrappy low-contrast quilt is coming along.

This quilt is inspired by Kaffe Fasset, who often works low-contrast with lush fabrics, and by Bonnie Hunter’s scrap system.

The little blocks are from the 2 1/2-inch scraps.  I am using a focus fabric I thought would blend with the many shades of the blue blocks.

The right border is almost finished and will go on today.

And, then what?  It’s 76-inches square now, and I may call it a day.  But I’d like it to be a bit bigger–say 10 inches.  I may go out to one more 2-inch border and an outer border of the little squares.  Don’t know yet…

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Here’s a close-up of the outer border blocks:

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I used the Companion Angle Ruler to cut these block pieces–as Bonnie Hunter recommends.  And I LOVED how easy it was and how beautifully the pieces come together.

Turkey Tracks: Wild Turkeys in Spring Video

Turkey Tracks:  March 9, 2015

Wild Turkeys in Spring Video

 

I know I’ve put up many videos about the wild turkeys and the chickens.

But, it’s spring, and the turkeys have formed a large flock again–and will start mating.  I am encouraged by how many have survived February 2015.  I can’t imagine what they managed to eat–beyond my bits of sunflower seeds.

The chickens are wild with delight to be allowed out of the coop/cage.  This time of year is ALWAYS a risk for them.  You saw the shots of one getting stuck in the snow pack posted yesterday.  Her feet, by the way, seem to be hurt, but not lethally hurt.  And fox is having babies now and will need to feed those babies.  Life is always already risky, isn’t it…

 

 

Turkey Tracks: Chicken Stuck in Snow

Turkey Tracks:  March 8, 2015

Chicken Stuck in Snow

Today dawned to be beautiful.  Warm and sunny.  Warm for Maine that is.

It was warm enough for the chickens to agree to come out of their cage/coop.

We are all feeling the rising sap and energy of SPRING, even though the snow pack out here is still about four feet thick.

I dug out the flap to the chicken coop, propped open the coop roof, and out they came to eat the mealy worm and sunflower seed treats.

Back inside, while eating my breakfast and making plans for a run up to Belfast, I saw that the rooster and a few of the hens were up on the upper porch.

When I got back from Belfast, I checked on the flock.

Here’s what I saw up on the hill:

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I called, and she craned her head, but did not move.

Here’s a closer view:

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Something had spooked her, and she had flown up into the snow pack and gotten herself stuck.

There was nothing to do but go get her.

She is fully exposed and a “sitting duck” chicken waiting for a predator.

Out came the snow shoes:

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I had to fit them to the larger boots I got just before John died.  I figured it out.  Thank heavens I have a good pair.  They were a birthday gift from John in 2004 when we knew we were moving to Maine.

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The chickens, as always, milled about, trying to help.

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(The turkeys have spread the old chicken bedding out over the banks and paths.)

I got to her, after working my way around the large white pine.  I was able to take advantage of the paths the turkeys and the dogs have made in the snow.  And, yes, sister Susan, I took my cell phone.

I poked her with the long end of the ski pole, and she didn’t move.  Yep.   Her feet were stuck.  I climbed the hill to her and picked her up.  She was limp and scared and probably somewhat dehydrated.

She could not walk when I put her on the turkey/dog path–and by this time the rest of the flock had followed me.

Were her feet just numb, or were they frozen or badly frost bitten.  Hens do have a way of going limp when they are scared.

I have no idea how long she had been stuck.

I carried her under my arm back the way I came and put her through the flap to the coop.  She ducked inside, so she could walk.

But, as I stopped at the edge of the porch to take off the snow shoes (they have wicked grippers on the bottom), I saw that she had followed me and that her feet were turning a dark red…

…so I don’t know how badly she might be hurt.

Time will tell.

She was eating.