AND YOU WILL ALWAYS BE THE BELOVED...
I AM HE THAT LOVES YOU OUTRAGEOUSLY....
AND I HAVE SO MUCH TO BESTOW UPON YOU,
SO MUCH TO GIVE YOU,
SO MANY PLACES TO TAKE YOU IN MY HEART...
Some of the words, by Graham Cooke.
Our pastor finished his message with this powerful clip today - I want to listen to it again......
It was a case of less is more. With Miss O's eye for colour and design we removed five colours of the solid coloured hourglass blocks - two shades of pink, a deep teal, light blue and dandelion yellow. Each of these eliminated colours worked well with at least one of the prints from Sarah Watson's Biology collection, however when they were all placed together we had a rabble, not a harmonious swarm! Thankfully I had made extra blocks, leaving enough for a nice sized quilt as well as some lovely bright solid blocks for a future project.
All the blocks have been sewn into their rows and pressed with seams in alternate directions to nest together better. The rows of blocks waiting to be sewn together now look like shingles on a roof or perhaps like the minute overlapping scales on a butterfly's wing.
Sharing at WIP Wednesday.
We love to have them come home and are always sad to see them go, yet it is right that they continue their education, following their dreams, for our eldest two are now 20 and 23. Although their visits overlapped by only three days, we did manage a fun barbecue lunch at a lookout less than an hour's drive from home. I had been here once before, about 17 years ago, when the twins were little babies.
A pleasant drive but not a particularly impressive lookout nor facilitates to encourage visitors (other than cows!). The company however was the very best and that's what really matters.
A little cutting and sewing, pressing and trimming as time allows and slowly my collection of happy butterfly blocks has steadily grown. Next week I plan to begin sewing these together, most likely in a pleasant random swarm of beautiful colour! The feature collection is Biology, a recent Cloud 9 release by Sarah Watson, mixed with some Cloud 9 Cirrus solids along with a Nancy Mim's Pick a Bunch print and a smattering of organic solids also from Robert Kaufman. All wonderfully fresh and organic.
I began with 7" squares of fabric, using a scant 3/8" seam as I find a larger seam more secure, especially when sewing on the bias. Making up my own plans as I go I figure there's no reason to stick with the conventional scant 1/4" seam. I've never really understood why this very narrow seam allowance has become the standard for the unfinished seams in quilting - I guess that's my earlier sewing background wanting to have a secure finish. Each hourglass block has been trimmed down to a 5 3/4" square, although I prefer to think of them as my butterflies. :)
Sharing at WIP Wednesday.
As the Autumn showers lifted the sounds of bird song filled the air this Easter Sunday afternoon, enticing me outside. Then I noticed the unmistakable fragrance of a fresh passionfruit flower. Even though summer is over and some of the plump, delicious, purple fruit already enjoyed, the vine continues to surprise with these beguiling tropical blooms.
A little google search led me to interesting origins of the name of the Passionflower or Passionfruit, so named by 15th and 16th Spanish Christian missionaries due to the symbolism they found within the flower's structure to Christ's final week and particularly his crucifixion. (You can find more here under Etymology and Names).
Symbolic or not, I surely enjoy their fragrance and visual delights - as well as their wonderful seeds!
A very joyous Easter to all!
* An earlier post featuring the amazingly quick opening of these flowers can be found here and while more details of their beauty can be seen here.
