Dance of the Autumn Leaves & Pinwheel Harvest Quilt

 It is so autumn here & I've been enjoying these beautiful days before that white,  four-letter word arrives & the landscape changes again. That is one of the many things I love about living here in Canada's NE Atlantic area.

Let's go for a walk in the woods!

Bridget coming across our makeshift bridge to the woods.

This is the last of the flowers on our property, Bill moved them out of the cement urn that has been stored away for the harsh snow(that bad 4-letter word lol) winter ahead.

Bill on the other side of the little bridge taking the picture of me that you just saw. XO

The Boston terriers, Bridget & Baxter love the new path clearing in the woods! The COVID-19 shut down in the spring allowed Bill to be home & with me for the longest time in our 35 yrs together! XO

Once you are over the bridge, the path really shows up covered with leaves.

Further up you will come to a fork on the path, you can continue right or go left to the pond.

We're going to follow Bill to the pond.

I love the smell & the sound of the rustling dry fall leaves beneath my feet as I walkthrough.

The leaves are now all off of the deciduous trees creating this lovely fall footing on the floor of the woods!

 

Bill & the Boston's are on top of the hill created by previous owners of this property when they dug out the pond.

The Boston's love to play ball on our walks lol

Bridget is obsessed with the ball!

Their personalities are entertaining. lol

There is not much water left in the pond at this time of year but come spring with the thaw, it fills to the brim!

There is still a bit of water remaining & the amount of rain we are receiving today, there will be more. Bill pulled up some moss for me to line a winter wreath that I'm going to make from the found materials on our property.

The house can now be seen through the path with the leaves gone.

There are many fallen trees that help support feeding the animals living in these woods.

And out of the woods again, over the bridge, we go!

There are two layers here. One that Mitch built years back for trees that were long & straight & more recently three planks that Bill layered on top. I look forward to a more stable bridge with railings!

There is a small ditch dugout to relieve the ponds overflowing banks in the spring.

It runs straight out, under the road & into the run-off ditch on the other side of the road, then down to the shoreline.

The geese were set out to welcome Halloween visitors which were nearly none due to everyone staying in their bubble.

I did have my yearly visit from Thomas, he was a firefighter this year. Thomas will turn four this month & he is already 1/2 my height, a tall handsome future for this one!

The fireman uniform was near & dear to my heart as our middle son Mitch, the one that was married last month, received his volunteer fireman's badge from the Elnora AB Fire Dept. I'm a proud momma.

The little grey squirrel found a new home in the heart-shaped vine wreath. We have little red squirrels here & this resin squirrel reminds me of the squirrel that I had for 10 years when I lived in London ON.

Let's Stay Outside!

Bill, the Boston's & I took a trip to Candle In The Window & I'll post the finds in the next post.

Whenever we travelled we always saw the sign of a 'Covered Bridge' & today was the day with the sun shining & the dogs with us, that we were going to venture down that Lyons Place road & view that 'Covered Bridge' that was still in existence.

The road was closed as the bridge is being restored & the thrill of the find was so worth venturing!

It was much smaller than I had envisioned & we look forward to seeing it this spring/summer when it will be functional once more!

It was a lovely Sunday with Bill & the Boston's & we even took a picnic snacking lunch with us as we munched away & talked about how lucky we were to live in such a wonderful part of Canada that was still looking after & restoring its history of these covered bridges!

Ok, now let's go inside!

Rember I was in isolation from October 14-27th, well this what kept me busy!

Putting together the quilt called Harvest Pinwheels Quilt designed by Kristin Gassaway.

The instructions were only two pages, how difficult could that be?! LOL

So many pieces to cut & sew back together! The pinwheel block had 36 pieces & there were twenty of those to make!

I just kept forging ahead with all the cutting & sewing for days!

And I looked out the windows... oh my goodness! The quilt colours were everywhere!!

The side yard was alive with autumn colours!

The front yard still had the golden colour from the birch & the red & orange from the maples!

Look at those Autumn colours in the backyard, even the rust colour from the garden boxes was in the quilt!

Through the evergreens, you can see Bay du Vin Island as it sings with its Autumn colours!

I changed my lens out to capture the island colours & you can see the smelt fishing huts on the island shoreline.

This is what I see from my sewing room window. I feel like I live in a calendar of Autumn scenes with these beautiful views!

Autumn colours, colours of the home views I take in.

And memories are growing with these two evergreens that Mitch planted for me by the shore. I was hoping to give the land some 'netting' underneath with the roots as they grow & mature.

Bay du Vin has no one living on it & it flourishes on its own.

Back to the assembly of the Autumn quilt...

The center twenty blocks are now together!

Rexton the Manx, enjoys the afternoon sun on a small quilt made from the scraps of the Crazy Star quilt that Deb & I made years back over email. It was a big job too with many little pieces!

Rexton finds it warm & cozy on the leather ottoman as she sunbathes.

I was also working with flannel & wool with this Bonnie Sullivan design of Dance of the Autumn Leaves from her A Change of Seasons book.

Their acorn hats were the same but I tried to make the bodies different.

Each wool applique was hand-sewn down, trying to keep my hands moving due to this darn arthritis.

And here is the finished quilt top. I also made a topper from the scraps for the leather ottoman too!

Both are backed with a dark golden flannel backing & have been sent to be longarmed quilted.

This is a quilt kit that I've had since 2009 & finally had the time & what a perfect time of year to open it & 'Get ur done'!

This will be a fond memory of my 14-day isolation!

And the dancing leaves & I made ten of those will be fondly remembered too!

I finished the outer edge with burlap rope & added a coconut button to each tip, I liked the rustic primitive look that it added.

 
Then I sewed on 24 falling leaf buttons to give it, even more, movement & interest.

They were a lot work but I was so pleased with the outcome when I put them together.

They really do come to life in the dining room with all the plants & dried plants that compliment it.

Bill hung the New Brunswick plaid banner over the foyer door. Our plaid has such a Christmas colour vibe to it!

Speaking of Christmas vibe... look at what is in full bloom! The Christmas cactus that Margaret Ann willed me years back upon her passing. I was shocked when her daughter called me & told me I was to look after her plants upon her passing. I still have them & think of her every time I water them & when this one blooms! Memories do give us a hug around our hearts.

It is so good having Bill home so often, he cleaned the glass railings in the front foyer after hanging the NB banner.

This photo says it all - We Are Home!

I tried to capture the sunset the other evening but could not capture the firey red glaze that was happening. Those that have been here though & seen the sunsets know what I'm talking about.

Well thank you for visiting & I hope I didn't keep you too long but there was so much to show you & I hope you enjoyed your time with me.

We are doing well in the Atlantic bubble & those of you outside please be safe, wear your mask, social distance, & wash your hands often. Stay safe, stay healthy.

Have a safe week!

Cynthia