Saturday, June 20, 2020

Trying Out the New Blogger with a New Finish

June has been a month of contrasts this year, bright starry nights with hundreds of fireflies flickering in rhythmic harmony over the hayfield, nearly 90 degree days followed by a killing frost last weekend, followed almost immediately by more sunny 80+ degree temps.  Apropos for the year I suppose.

And this morning dawned bright and clear, the neighboring subsistence farmer who cuts, bales and takes our hay for his small farm finished baling a couple days ago.  The bales were still in the field this morning, and how could I not take advantage of that for a photoshoot of the newest finish!  Last stitch put in the binding at 10:30 last night.


Accompanied by my trusty friend of course!

And now I can't figure out how to left align the text after inserting photos.  Oh well, onward!

This is Joseph's Coat II, the third of the tops pieced during Lori's Humble Quilts 2019 Stringalong Challenge.  Hand quilted with my version of big stitch quilting with Aurifil 12 wt. thread in a variety of bright colors.  Such fun, and to think there's another one, Joseph's Coat I, still awaiting a similar "organic line, nothing marked" quilting.   

Gibbs and I walked around after these were taken, looking for other things to photograph. There was the quilt, in various poses, of course.



Interesting to see how the camera interprets the colors in sun vs. shady areas of the yard.

OK, now suddenly I'm left-aligned for text again.  Wondering how that happened.  There's not much blooming at the moment.  The poppies are just about gone, and the peonies will be in just a few days.
The area in the photo above will be filled with black-eyed Susans and hopefully zinnias before too long.

Peonies are just about my favorite flower after daffodils, and this one outdid itself this year.  

After our walkabout, the quilt went inside for its beauty bath, and emerged all soft and crinkly after a short session in the dryer.   The top before quilting measured 55x72, the finished quilt is 51x68-1/2 inches.  I'm hoping to finish the other similar quilt later this summer.  I think the grandkids will love snuggling under these bright cheerful quilts when they visit next.

As for the new blogger, I much prefer the old version, so much easier to navigate, but I'm very grateful to my blogging friends who have posted tips on how to navigate this new quagmire.  Some have found uploading photos to be cumbersome and excruciatingly slow.  Out here in the country we only have access to HughesNet, the speed of which is sporadic at best, so that part hasn't been much different than in the past.  

We're supposed to enter Phase III next week, depending on the whim of our state dictator.  Wondering if life will ever reach some semblance of the real normal again, or if this is the never-ending year of the oxymoron.  Nuf said about that!

Quilt on dear friends!  Faith over fear!

19 comments:

Debbie said...

Wonderful post, wonderful photos, and wonderful quilt! I really, really like this one for a scrap by the seat of your pants version! I remember bits of your working on this....so much better than some versions. I think I got put off by the diagonal set she showed. I need to go back and review what you did. BTW....the hay bale was inspired setting!!!
Things are awful here....cases are spiking and people not wearing masks or such. Had appt via computer with doctor this week and she was firm that I stay in and away for now. I have just about lost all desire to do much of anything. Just spend a lot of time on the back patio. Still avoiding the new blogger....my form of protest.:)
Ditto.....the year of oxymoron continues.

Frédérique - Quilting Patchwork Appliqué said...

Beautiful quilt, I love the bright colors! Pretty flowers too!

Lizzy D said...

Beautiful quilt and beautiful photos! Like a magazine spread. You'll have something extra cozy and delightful to snuggle under when that first Fall frost comes.
I love poppies and peonies, how lovely to have them in bloom.

Gibbs is such a cutie--but all that fur. I wonder if he is sweltering under it all.

The alignment choices come up when you click on a photo, but...????

lizzy

Nancy said...

Oh, beautiful quilt! What a treat to be able to photograph in the hay field. Do you think the colors are more accurate in the sun or in the shade?
I was sad that our peony bushes had not a single peony on them, no buds, no blooms. And I love peonies.
I'm glad you figured out how to post on the new blogger. I can't get past the dashboard I'm so disappointed with the whole new version. I know I'll have to switch one of these days/months, but not yet -- 2020 has been hard enough already.

Chantal said...

Congratulations on this gorgeous finish. I love that each section is framed. I makes me think of stained glass with all the pretty colours inside. Gorgeous! Love your pooch!
After inserting a photo, click return (enter) to make a space. Then click on the left align (on top, fourth one from the smiley face). It will bring back your cursor to the left. It all depends on where your cursor was when you inserted the picture.
Enjoy your beautiful flowers. I can almost smell them from here. ;^)

Quilting Babcia said...

Thank you Frederique! Comments are not coming to my email so I was unable to respond directly to you. Thanks so much for visiting!

Barbara said...

Your quilt is gorgeous, and I loved your photos. To left align, you might see three dots on the right side of your screen. Click there, and I believe your left align will come up. Also, try widening your view by clicking at the edge of the right side and pulling the window out wider. That will also reveal the left align icon. It’s very weird.

Lilac Joan said...

Faith over fear! That will be my new motto. Thank you. Love the Joseph Coat quilt.

Kyle said...

Beautiful photo ops. Joseph's coat is indeed a quilt of many colors. Sorry about the ftost. It didn't seem to affect your peonies. Looks like you got the jest of blogger. A few more post and we'll all be pros.

Needled Mom said...

Not a fan of new blogger either!! Your quilt is beautiful. I love all the colors and the photo shoot for it is perfect. Your peony is stunning. Wish we could grow them here. I wonder the same about our changes. Everything seems so foreign.

QuiltGranma said...

Joseph has every right to be proudful of his coat.

Pat said...

You are brave to jump in on the new Blogger. We also live in a very rural area with turtle like-speed internet. And I have to use Blogtouch to do any posting via my iPad Pro. So I don’t know what to expect! Just don’t need the additional complications right now. Really like all your photos - that wonderful quilt against the hay bale and blue sky. Love the vibrant red poppy and is Gibbs your border collie? Oh how they love the outdoors and activity...

Sherrill said...

LOVE your beautiful quilt, your backgrounds, your sweet helper, gorgeous poppies!! And now I'm curious about your subsistence farmer..need to look that up. May need to copy your quilt I love it so.

---"Love" said...

Your quilt is absolutely gorgeous! So are your flowers! I'm not crazy about the new Blogger, but I'm trying to master it. ---"Love"

Janet O. said...

A great photo shoot of that gorgeous color-wonderful quilt! Your flowers add to the beauty of your post.
We are in phase three, and more rural parts of the state are in phase four. But our case numbers are rising rapidly. After having been one of the least affected states initially, we are now one of the worst for percentage of positive cases on the rise. Our state epidemiologist is starting to talk about replacing some restrictions. We will see what the governor has to say. I just stay home as much as I can.

Cynthia@wabi-sabi-quilts said...

Beautiful quilt and it's really nice to get shots in both sun and shade. It glows in the shade - so nice. We watch the news in the U.S. with some dismay. Things are pretty much under control in Japan. No doubt in part because *everyone* wears masks.

Barbara said...

What a beautiful quilt with all those bright colors! Nice photo shoot, too! Your flowers are gorgeous. Peonies were always a favorite of mine but I could never get Poppies to grow. Look forward to seeing more :)

FlourishingPalms said...

Such a pretty finish, Pat! And a lovely walkabout with your friend. Your area looks fresh and spring-like right now. I know exactly what you mean about New Blogger! Ergh! There's definitely a learning curve. I found the left-justify thing (I do not like blog posts that are center-justified. They're difficult to read!) but am having issues with pictures. If I don't get them positioned right the first time, I cannot find them in Blogger pictures; I see only blue question marks. I have uploaded the same picture three times because I keep losing it. Yes, Google will get money from me for that! For storing my photos! Are we ready to switch to WordPress? Hope you are doing well and heard good news about your eye.

audrey said...

Had to smile at your state 'dictator'. We have the same thoughts about ours, pretty often actually! And your quilt is so very lovely. Perfect photo shoot on the hay bales. You're definitely more adventuresome than I am when it comes to that!