Trampled by deer!

We had 14 tall, bushy tomato plants up until a few days ago, then the deer trampled them. We know it was deer because we saw their foot prints.

Luckily, Dave had brought in several full bins of tomatoes before the attack and I spent the last few days turning them into two gallons of spaghetti sauce to go in the freezer.

The tomatoes and I are enjoying another day of sunny, hot weather before tomorrow's predicted rain. Here are some photos from yesterday's walk in the harbor with the Feet & Forks.

 Have a colorful day

Color in Port Gamble, WA

Yvonne of Gamble Cove Dahlias

I drove out to Port Gamble last weekend for French toast at the General Store and hand-dyed wool at the Quilted Strait, but the highlight was the incredible showing of dahlias in all shapes and colors.

I hit the jackpot at Yvonne's Gamble Cove Dahlias stand across from the quilt store. For $1 a stem (or $2 for the huge dinner plate dahlias) I took home this fabulous bouquet for next to nothing, but the color it brings is priceless.

I love the quote on the back of her card:

"A flower does not think of competing

with the flower next to it.

It just blooms." 

-- Zen Shin

Yvonne's bouquet in front of one of my quilts.

The Kitsap County Dahlia Society also has several display gardens in Port Gamble. Here are just a few of the blooms:

I came across one of the gardeners tending the plants.

He fashioned arrows from flowers to lead people between the two gardens.

The Quilted Strait was just as colorful, with many quilts hanging in what used to be the stables of the historic town.

And colorful baskets lined the sidewalk one block over. It was a relaxing day full of color and inspiration.

Have a colorful day 

STITCH library show is up

Our 5th annual STITCH art quilt exhibit is up at the Gig Harbor Public Library and will hang until the end of November!  Come visit!

Linda with her fabulous sunflower.

We hung almost 30 quilts in the 90 minutes that we were allowed before the library opened today. Thanks to some husbands and the eight of us from STITCH, we got everything up and only went a few minutes over. Whew!

Above is my "Wild Flowers" wool appliqué.

Below is Carol's "Circling the Sun."

We hung everything from the light fixtures with fish line, PVC pipes and hooks.

Many thanks go to the husbands who helped. I didn't get all of their pictures, but here are two of them.

 Have a colorful day

Sun kisses the autumn equinox

"I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house." -- Nathaniel Hawthorne

in The American Notebooks

I agree with Nathaniel, so when today -- the autumn equinox -- arrived with sunshine, I just had to get outside for a photo walk. With temps in the 60s and full sun all day, I felt like we'd been given a special gift that was not to be wasted.

The flowers may be looking a little raggedy,

but they're still beautiful.

The beach was peaceful, with no boat traffic or other walkers ... just me and the birds. This seagull seems to be blissed out in the sun.

Our trees are still green,

but I found this little brown leaf to symbolize fall.

Later, outside the grocery store, I saw mountains of vivid orange pumpkins glowing in the sun.

At home we have our own seasonal abundance, with piles of ripe tomatoes from the garden awaiting processing. My goal is to turn them into sauce tomorrow and stock the freezer for warm winter meals of spaghetti, lasagne and ravioli.

A bumpy gourd from the garden

basks on our dining room table in the sun.

And last but not least, to mark the coming of fall I pulled out this wool table runner that I sewed last year from a Sue Spargo pattern. Soon it will be time to stitch by the fire while rain pours outside and the wind howls. All the more reason to grab the sun while we can.

 Have a colorful fall

Outdoor dining season winds down

We had some friends over last night for dinner on the deck. It was probably one of the last times we'll be enjoying outdoor dining this year, as the rain is scheduled to move in later today. We have one more party coming up next week, and my fingers are crossed that it can be on the deck.

Dave made a grilled pear and romaine salad with a spicy dressing. Then it was fish tacos with all the fixings, including tomatoes from the garden. They're FINALLY ripening!

Dessert was Key Lime Pie -- yum!

Not much sewing is going on, but I DID make the napkins a few years ago. Does that count?

Have a colorful day

Sew Day, Woolies and guild

Woolies meeting and guild quilt.

I'm in a seven-day stretch that includes four sewing meetings. Last week was guild, Sunday was Sew Day, yesterday was Woolies, and STITCH is in a few hours.

Sew Day breakfast at Nancy's house.

For Sew Day, Nancy set a beautiful breakfast table and served quiche, muffins and melon.

Lunch included chicken croissant sandwiches and pumpkin cake on her patio, with views of her gorgeous gardens. She was on the Gig Harbor Garden Tour a few years ago, so it's always a pleasure to sit on her patio.

Oh yes, we did do a little sewing at Sew Day:

 Have a colorful day

Wool notebook cover finished!

I put the final stitches into my STITCH wool notebook cover last night, so after six years of STITCH meetings I can finally go in style!

The front says STITCH and the back has Bunners jumping over the moon. Bunners is going on 11 years old and is as adorable as ever.

For the inside flaps I just turned under the edges and did a big running stitch with size 5 pearl cotton.

I debated saving the pretty thread ends, but in the end tossed them out. I already have bags and jars of thread ends in the studio ... just in case.

Outside, it's a hazy Labor Day weekend due to wildfires east of us. This is Mt. Rainier viewed from a short walk from our house. We're heading to a party later today, and I just baked a Texas sheet cake to  take. It's going to be delicious, but it's not pretty so I won't include a photo. It's a deep, rich chocolate cake with pecans in only half of the icing because one of the guests has a nut allergy.

Have a colorful holiday weekend