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Tuesday, August 8, 2023

Sunflowers and Crows- A Summer Freebie

 

Reading , Writing, Arithmetic

Back to school! Take a seat!!!

Pencils , paper, crayons, glue

Here we go!  Let's learn something new!!!










It's that time! Back to School time! 

Welcome , ya'll and a very Happy Tuesday to you! 

 Where has the summer gone for the kiddos? I remember when school started after Labor Day. Aah the good ole' days. πŸ€—

Yesterday was the 1st day of school in our area . The grandbabes went to bed early and woke up wide eyed and bushy tailed , ready to get back into the mix of things.  No sooner had the kiddos stepped into their classrooms when they received news that school was letting out early.  😲Storms were on the way. They did get a whole day in - that means make it through lunch time and then let out. 

The storm is rolling in. 

Fortunately, the storms side skirted us and there was no damage , just a few fallen limbs here and there , but not much to speak of.  

 The youngins' had a great time at school though. My daughter is very fortunate that they love school. 

I spent the day working on a bit of finishing. I finished a few cross stitch pieces including my newest stitch " Sunflowers and Crows"

Sunflower and Crows and Sunflower Mason Jar

 A few weeks ago I was working on a saltbox that has these sunflowers in it. However I stopped  work on the saltbox in order to a stitch just a lone row of sunflowers. Of course , I had to add a few cawing crows to the mix. 

After much thought, I decided to finish mine into a drum.  I watched Vonna Pfeiffer's Flosstube video  , Finishing Cross Stitch into a Drum Pinkeep with Vonna of The Twisited Stitcher for a refresher course on how to make a drum. Vonna has excellent tutorial's. 

Sunflower Mini Sampler , Sunflowers and Crows and Green Apple Butter Quilt

I would like to embellish mine further later, maybe with  some specialty stitches or trim along the top seam. Right now , I just added a silk bow and a collection of strung buttons to give it some character until I figure what to do. Wouldn't it look darling with yellow finishing fabric at the top of the drum?  I didn't have any golden fabric that I was satisfied with so I went with green - using what I have on hand.


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If you are interested in stitching this piece,  just grab , the images. For printing tips, refer to the post Tips for Printing which has loads of tips from my sweet friends.

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Sunflowers and Crows is a small. I stitched mine on 14 count tea/coffee dyed aida. The design size is 75 x 68 which on 14 count would be about 5 3/8" x 4 7/8". I  think it would fit nicely in a 5 x 7 frame.   This is a CHOOSE YOUR ON COLORS chart, but if you are interested , I use DMC 469, 3371, 782, 898 and 3858 (for the wording). 

 CROW FACTS

1. Crows and ravens are some of the smartest animals in the world with their intelligence being on par with chimpanzees. 

2. Crow communities can hold a grudge for generations. 

3. Recent research has found that crows hold crow funerals or wakes when they find a deceased crow.  A crow will let out a large distressful call alerting other crows who gather and create a ruckus. 

4. Crows are social and family oriented . They will gather in large flocks to forage at farms or in dumps. 

5. The total breeding population is estimated at 27 million as of now. 

Green Apple Butter Quilt

Well that's it , ya'll. I hope to post the last of the Country Christmas doodles this week. I am woefully behind  since last week was filled with traversing the roads and enjoying all of the yard sales.  I will show some of my thrifty finds in the future. Anywhoo , I hope to catch up this week. 

Have a beautiful summer day and...

Happy  Stitching and Quilting, ya'll

Melisa

Thank you for the sweet visit. 

Work hard, be kind, and amazing things will happen- Conan O'brien

Hugs and Stitches!!!!πŸ€—πŸ§΅❤

Dedicated to my baby sister, Amy. Love and miss you, Amo . I know you would have been cooking up a storm today for a Grand Back to School Bash. 


The Prim Alphabet Pincushion is a freebie from  Appleseed Prims blog.


39 comments:

  1. Good Morning-I never knew that about crows! So interesting - I just thought they were noisy critters! LOL! Love your new sunflower pattern - sunflowers are my fave. We also had bad storms yesterday along with a tornado watch. That time of year I guess! Our grand kids started school last week - boy it sure seems they start earlier and earlier! Blessings!

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    1. I didn't know all that about crows either until I started reading about the. They are interesting birds. I am glad all is safe in your area, Donna. We are supposed to have more storms move in tonight. Hope your grandbabes enjoy the new school year. Thank you for the sweet visit. Hugs.

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  2. Your sunflower drum is beautiful. Love that mason jar too and just copied the pattern! Wow about crows being so social and smart. I think there are crows in the parking lots where we shop, but I suppose they could be ravens. I always feel sorry for them, but they seem very resourceful. You have such a beautiful view! Glad the storm did not cause damage and that the kiddos got a day of school in. School starts here on Wednesday.

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    1. Happy Wednesday, Linda. Thank you so much on my little sunflower drum. It's fun to try new things every now and then. I hope you enjoy the little mason jar. It was a quick stitch. The crows are very resourceful; I am fascinated by them. We usually have a few on the farm; I love listening to them caw back and forth. Lol. Hope you are staying cool with all of the heat. Have a great week and happy quilting. 

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  3. Sunflowers and Crows is a darling piece, Melisa. I am glad the grandboys had a good first day of school. How fun to get it counted as a full day, but get out early! Happy the storms didn't so much damage.

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    1. Aah thank you so much, Robin. I was happy how my drum came out. I would like to make another soon. I was surprised when the kiddos got out early for school, but it is better to weigh in on the safe side. . We are supposed to have storms move in tonight; they may be headed your way. Stay safe and cool. Hugs.

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  4. The sunflowers are so pretty! It's always so much fun to read your post. School starts Thursday for our grands, that's just too soon. Happy stitching!

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    1. Oh I agree, Gretchen the kids are back to school  way too soon. I told my hubby I didn't get enough time with mine. Lol.  I sure hope your grandchildren have a wonderful school year. Thank you so much for the sweet visit and kind words. Happy quilting. 

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  5. I love those crow and sunflower stitchin's, so cute! If I had my supplies with me I would start one now, well maybe I can later;)

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    1. Aah thank you so much, Vicki. This one stitched up so quick and I had a great time turning it into a drum. I see more drum finishes in my future. Lol. I hope you are having a very lovely week. Thank you for the sweet visit.

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  6. What a lovely pindrum Melisa! And an excellent tutoriel from Vonna,I didn't know her...have a lovely week,hugs from Marianne!

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    1. Aaah thank you so much, dear Marianne. I had a great time working on the drum and Vonna made it so easy. I hope you are having a wonderful week as well. Hugs and Blessings.

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  7. Interesting facts about the crow...who knew? Your sunflowers and crows drum is adorable. I haven't attempted to make a drum but I haven't watch Vonna's turtorial. Enjoy your week and good luck getting caught up.

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    1. I just love crows; they are so fascinating. . Usually in late August and September, I pull out my crow decor as I get ready for fall. Vonna made the drum finish easy; it was nice to pause the video as she went through each step. Have a wonderful week and thank you for the sweet visit. Hugs.

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  8. Hello there, dear lady!!! I love the sunflowers and crows chart. Interesting facts about crows.

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    1. Happy Wednesday, dear Darlene. I hope you have been having a very lovely week. Thank you so much for the sweet compliment on my sunflower stitch. Oh, I learned a lot when reading about crows ( I didn't know they had wakes). They are intelligent. Hugs and Blessings and happy quilting

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  9. Hello - my comment posted as Anonymous but it's ME! LOL Darlene

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  10. This is a very cute new design, Melisa! Thank you so much! I love the combination of crows and sunflowers :) It's so surprising how early school starts in some parts of the country. Here it starts on the 21st which is much earlier than I used to start which was after Labor Day. It sounds like your grandsons will have wonderful school years--that is so great that they love school. I bet you did, too! Have a lovely day ♥

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    1. Aah thank you so much, Carol.. I love pulling out sunflowers and crows for late summer. Can you believe that our grandkids' school registration was the last week of July. I just think that is too early. Lol. But I am so glad they are having a good week in school. It won't be long until your little one will be in school. They grow so fast . Have a wonderful day. Hugs.

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  11. Fun crow facts. I love watching them. This year it seems we had way more than usual. I wonder why that was? Thanks for the freebie. It's cute, simple, and sweet as usual.

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    1. I have always had an affection for crows; I guess because we see so many on the farm. I was thinking there seemed to be a lot of crows in our area as well. They have been rowdy little fellows here lately. Hope you are having a very lovely week, Susie. Thank you for dropping by. Hugs.

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  12. Your Sunflowers and Crows are so fun, Melisa! And I love the Sunflower Mason Jar, too. You come up with the best designs! I was a teacher for 30 years, so I always feel a little twinge at this time of year about going back - but it goes away fast, lol!

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    1. Aah thank you so much, Diann. It is sunflower and crow stitching season for me. I seem to like to stitch by the season. The mason jar is still one of my favorites. I know what you mean on getting that twinge this time of the year. Lol. Have a great week. Hugs.

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  13. I don't know for sure where you are located (I think somewhere in TN), but I always worry when bad weather is headed that direction. So glad you experienced nothing more than a few downed limbs. Kids back to school...a friend showed me a picture of her five great grands. The pix was taken from the back and showed them stair-stepped with their backpacks on. So clever! School doesn't start here until Sept. 1st. Right before Labor Day...Sheesh! Oh-oh. Another cute stitch. I wasn't expecting crows to end up in your field of sunflowers. That was a sweet surprise. Kris

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    1. For the last few years, we have been having some wild and woolly storms roll into our area. I am always fearful that trees may fall on our house while we are in it, but so far we have been lucky . One year we had trees fall on our garage and we had to repair it. Oh my what an ordeal. Lol. Aaah I bet the little ones were so cute - Wow 5 great grands! What a darling photo that must be . Thank you for the sweet visit, Kris. Have a wonderful week. Hugs and Blessings.

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  14. Yikes! School, already! This year is just flying by, isn't it? Your newest Sunflower stitch that you finished into a drum is wonderful! Great job! Thank you for sharing with us. I learned some new things about crows today. How appropriate for the first day of school.

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    1. Can you believe it, Ginny? I sure couldn't. The kiddos go back to school way to quick. Aah thank you so much on my little drum; its not perfect but so much fun to try something different. Have a wonderful day. Hugs.

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  15. I always appreciate seeing what you've been working to do. That storm was a whopper up here! I spent half an hour in the hallway waiting for the tornado to hit - which it fortunately missed us - and then six plus hours with no electricity. Today, the stress from yesterday made me sleep most of the day! Thanks for always being willing to share your ideas and work, and the prim apple site. I wish I knew what happened to her. She was talented, too, and generous. Gentle Arts threads are okay, but I never liked Weeks.

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    1. Oh I am so glad you are safe, Susan. I think that mountain blocked some of the high winds here. How frustrating that you were without power as well. Storms are supposed to move in here tonight and they are calling for flash flooding. So stay safe. Thank you for the sweet visit . Hugs.

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  16. Loved reading the facts about crows! About 20 years ago we regularly had a family of crows visiting us, started with a couple then they bought their young, and so it went on for a few years. Hadn’t realised until recently that they don’t come any more, first we had masses of Parakeets (small green parrots) and now I hear we have Peregrine Falcons living nearby. So it’s all changed, but we still see plenty of birds. I have saved the Crow pattern, not starting it just yet though.
    Love your drum finish, might do mine the same. Love how you show us so many of your darling little quilts in the background too! πŸ˜„ ❤️😘 Barbara of The Flashing Scissors. πŸ™‹‍♀️xxx

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    1. Happy Wednesday, dear Barbara. I hope your week is off to a great start. Aah I bet watching the crow family each year was such a treat. So sad to hear that they are not around anymore. I have never seen wild Parakeets before. Don't you just love bird watching? We have a lot of cardinals and mocking birds here in the holler while on the farm there are a lot of bluebirds and crows. Lol- I have to sneak a quilt into the photo- quilting is my love. Hugs and Blessings.

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  17. Thank you for all your wonderful designs. I enjoy spending part of my day with you!

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    1. Aaah your sweet visit and kinds words mean so much to me. I can not tell you how appreciative I am . I wish you the most wonderful day. Hugs and Blessings.

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  18. Interesting facts about crows, Melisa! I had heard they do hold a grudge but had no idea it was for generations!! So happy you didn't have storm damage and the kiddos got in a full day of school. Our school does that too...they feed everyone early if they have to dismiss early. Thanks sew much for the new cross stitch. I really like how you finished it!

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    1. I didn't know that crows held such a long grudge either, but after learning that I thought about how it took such a long time for some of the birds in my area to return after the previous owners moved from our house ( I think their son was trigger happy toward birds at the time) . After years , we now have birds coming to the feeders . It is a joy to watch them. We are expecting storms tonight too, Brenda. I don't know if they will be coming to your area, but stay safe if the do. Hugs.

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  19. The sunflowers and crows piece is amazing! Last week, I watched a crow patiently drop a nut on the pavement until it cracked and the bird could eat the meat. It was interesting watching the bird amend the angle of the drop! School is around the corner for us in Oregon. The first day was always the saddest for me as a mom because my playmates would be back in the routine of school days and homework. The last day of school was my favorite day of the year though! Our daughters loved school and anticipated the first day every year.--TerryK@OnGoingProjects

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    1. Oh how interesting, Terry. I have never seen a crow do that before; they are so intelligent and resourceful. Ours have been quite chatty here lately; I love listening to them. I am like you- I loved when my children were at home. We always stayed busy doing something, but I am glad that they enjoyed school as well. I hope you are having a wonderful week . Thank you for the sweet visit. Hugs.

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  20. Sunflowers and Crows is so pretty!! I'm glad your grandkids had a great start of school. Here in Upstate NY classes will start till September and my daughter will start a new adventure in High School, I'm so excited for her!!
    Hugs

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    1. I hope your daughter has a wonderful school year . How exciting that she is going to high school! It will be amazing fast how those high school years will pass as well, especially for you.  It seems like yesterday that my girls were in high school and now I have grandbabies in elementary . How did that happen?Lol.   Thank you so much for the kind words on my Sunflowers and Crows. It was a quick and fun stitch. Hugs. 

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