At Last I Can Show You

I participated in a Blackbird Designs Exchange.  We were paired with another participant and each sent the other an exchange gift. 

This is the gift I received.  The lining on the bottom of the box is a photocopy of the cross stitch on the top of the lid printed on fabric. 

This is the gift I sent.  I also made thread winders to go in the needlework folder; I followed Alma's directions to make the winders.  Both of us dove into our stash to do the stitching and we both selected a design from A Schoolgirl's Work.   Mayté stitched Hannah's Small Basket based on Hannah E. Sunderlin's sampler.  I stitched So Fade My Hours Needlebook based on Mary Ann Melton's sampler.  I altered the lettering to create the personalization. 

No Garden Yesterday

We had some very heavy rain and thunderstoms  yesterday.  The worst of it came while I was out taking care of some errands. 

I have just bound off the first three stitches on the left side for the right arm hole. 

You can see the bound off stitches.  From here on the knitting will go more quickly as I will be decreasing on almost every row. 

Here is the current status of the baptismal banner.  It is coming along quite well because it does stitch quickly. 

Rain Today

We have been having extreme rain.  It began yesterday and is supposed to continue for most of the day today and then continue intermittently for the next couple days.  I can already hear people groaning because it is not supposed to clear until Tuesday.  It will be a less than ideal weekend, and a long one at that.  I am not certain I will get out to take pictures of the iris today and there is at least one new one open.  I can see it from inside the house; right now I do not plan to go out in the rain to see if there are any others. 

BUT - - -

I did not post the pictures I took yesterday.  So here they are. 

Black Swan

Here is Black Swan.  I think that perhaps I ought to post it together with Old Black Magic so you can compare them.  They are both very dark purple. 

Lemon Lyric 

Should I post a picture of Lemon Lyric with a picture of Cream Taffeta?  They are very much alike too. 

Ming Dynasty

Ming Dynasty is originally from the Gopher Garden and so is Spartan. 
This particular flower does not show them but the falls frequently have garnet flecks so it looks like a maroon and gold flower. 

Siberian Iris:  Auguary 

 

Siberian Iris Group:  Lavender Bounty 

And finally, the little viola plant.  The first two flowers have faded but there are still a lot open. 

A Few More Iris

To confirm and explain Christine's observation about spring in MN.  Minnesota is in the continental interior; we do not have a large enough body of water to moderate the climate and we do not benefit from something comparable to the Gulf Stream.  The result is that our summers can become very hot and our winters can become bone shattering cold.  Spring and autumn are a little short; autumn generally is longer than spring.  As soon as the temperatures warm in the spring, the perennials are ready to grow.  The past winter was not as severe as we would expect but our spring was a little peculiar.  We had a very early run of warm temperatures followed by below freezing temperatures. 

This is what is blooming in the garden today. 

Cream Taffeta 

Distant Chimes 

 

 

 

 

Gay Parasol 

Spartan 

More Iris

This is so much earlier than usual for the iris to be coming out. 
First, the uncertain iris from yesterday is, in fact, Gigolo.  I went back to my  reference pictures to confirm it. 
Now for today's irises. 
The first one is the one that opened first but I did not go out in time to get a picture.  It normally is not one of the first ones but it is growing along the back of the house and we had such an unusual spring with the early warm temperatures that encouraged it to come out. 

I have a fondness for the very dark iris.  This one is Old Black Magic.  There really is not a black iris, just very dark varieties of red, purple, blue, or brown.  I am fairly certain Black Swan will bloom this year.  You can compare it to OBM.  I have another one, Interpol, which will most likely not bloom this year. 

Another favorite is maroonish, gold, or combined maroonish and gold.  I used to have them all in one garden which we called the Gopher Garden.  We both graduated from the University of MN; the school colors are maroon and gold and the mascot is Goldie, the golden gopher.  It really is not a gopher but a 13-stripe ground squirrel commonly referred to as a gopher. 

This is Kahili.  The next picture is the inside of Kahili. 

Do you remember the viola yesterday?  Here it is today.  The two flowers that were open are the upper two.  Today, two more flowers are open.  Another flower or two will perhaps open tomorrow. 

The weigela is open and has been open since last week.  The bush is still very small; in fact it is so small that it still fits under the birdbath.  I planted it for the hummingbirds.  If you look at the full size picture, you can see a couple ants on the flowers.  The ants also get into the hummingbird feeder. 

One of the Siberian iris.  I am not yet certain which one this is, either Augury or Lavender Bounty.  I have dug them up, separated them, and replanted them all around the garden.  I am inclined to think this is Lavender Bounty. 

Nascent raspberry blossoms.  Once again we foiled the rabbits and will have a decent raspberry crop. 

The final picture, the gigantic rhubarb plant
I did not think to put something in the picture to enable you to judge its size.  Just take it from me that it is huge. 

Catch Up Notes

Do you remember the nest of finches?  The finches did abandon the nest; we wonder if perhaps they were in the process of actively abandoning it when we stepped in and "saved" the nest.  They left it Easter Sunday.

Monday I made up hummingbird syrup and put it out in a feeder.  Yesterday the first hummingbirds came in for a snack.  I do not know if they were transients or residents but I suspect they were transients.  During the afternoon, I was in the garden when a female buzzed up behind me; she circle around me and stopped to take a good look.  Throughout the day, there were at least two hummingbirds and maybe more.

The iris are beginning to bloom; this is an all time early start for me.  The temperatures have been quite high and are blasting the flowers.  I did not get out quickly enough to take a picture of the first one to bloom.

This one is Gigolo or possibly Colortart; I am afraid that neither name is very complementary.  The reason I have trouble remembering which one is which is that the other one is almost the perfect negative of this one.  They both have almost the same colors but in reverse.  They are a very striking pair but I think they are not going to bloom together this year.

This beauty is Arpege. 

I could not resist this cute pair of viola. 

I was trying to take this picture of the dictamnous when the hummingbird buzzed me. 

Do you remember the sweater vest that I started knitting and stopped about a year ago? 

Unfortunately, I have not touched it since.  As much as I wanted to use my new yarn to make my knit lace scarf, I talked myself into finishing the sweater vest.  Currently, I am knitting six rows daily.  Right now, I am half way up the right side between the bottom and the place where I will begin to shape the armscye. 

It certainly was not a good idea to wait so long to finish the second front piece.  I made a couple false starts and I wonder if my yarn tension is comparable.  I was reluctant to start the last piece because I was and continue to be afraid that I will run out of yarns.  I have reached the point where I will use other yarns in place of the medium, dull green which looks dangerously close to running out.  I am keeping my fingers crossed. 

Last week, I spent a day making thread winders.  Do you want to see them? 

Happy Mother's Day to All - - - Mothers, Aunts, Cousins, Sisters

One of our sons is working strange hours today.  He suggested that we go out for dinner this evening but I counter suggested that I marinate some chicken which he can grill on skewers with pineapple.  Since I first saw the marinade recipe, I could hardly wait to find a reason to use it; this is a marvelous reason.  As I began keying in this post, our other son ran out the door as he shouted back that another semi has rolled over in the usual place, a cloverleaf at the intersection of two interstate highways.  I guess that I will drive out to pick up the first son when he finishes work. 

We went to Shepherd's Harvest which combines with Llama Magic.  I like to see the llamas, goats, sheep, and angora rabbits.  The numbers are smaller than the state fair, even the county fair so it is a little more fun.  I also went to find some yarn to make a knit lace scarf. 

A Very Serene Llama

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An Angora Goat with an Itch

An Ewe and Two Horned Dorset Lambs 

I guess that you also want to see the yarn that I purchased.  It is hand dyed kid mohair but not hand spun.  I got it for its weight and color.  With Iris as its color name, you have to believe that it jumped right into my hands. 

My initial choice was a little heavier than recommended for the pattern.  Under the skein of mohair is the pattern for the scarf.  You really cannot see the scarf in this picture but I thought it was a fitting picture to post on Mother's Day.  

Yesterday I picked some lily of the valley for the house.  I went out early in the morning while the dew was still on the ground.  It felt like I was in a magical picture that came to life around me.  The lily of the valley are scenting the entire room and that is just as magical.  Just because they are so perfect right now, I took some pictures to show them to you when we got home this afternoon.  They line both sides of a garden path on the north side of the house.  I sat on the path to take pictures.  It felt like I was in an elven wonderland.  The scent of the flowers was intoxicating.