Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Design bed progress


 I just happened to recall,I have a very large flannel sheet that was sent me by my son. Maybe it is time to dig it out and lay it over the bed to make arranging easier.

Clearly this is not going to end up as a small quilt for my semi-single futon.

The blocks made so far are laid out overlapping more than half an inch and this is a double bed. I am definitely planning to add some kind of a border to tie it all together ...
once I get it arranged and assembled.

Typhoon winds and rain provided plenty of indoor time to hunt through stash and cut the sashing pieces. Actually, by the time it arrived in Tokyo, it was just a tropical storm. The next day we were greeted by bright blue skies and still a lot  of wind. There was no damage due to the wind, even on the roof outside my greenhouse with many plants.

Actually the only damage was caused by feral cats, knocking flower boxes off the wall. I heard a crash in the middle of the night before the typhoon. It sounded like it came from the front garden and involved the birdbath. Sure enough, in the morning light the flower box was upside down with some of the hostas hanging from the birdbath and the box and soil on the ground at the foot of the wall.

(Our "birdbath" is a large ceramic dish, resting on top of a ceramic umbrella stand). Luckily the dish was not damaged. Someone in the area has been dumping cat food outside in our street late at night. The feral cats use that as a battleground. I posted a sign asking that they not feed cats there, but do it outside their own home but there is the food, less than a foot from the sign. The culprit seems to be someone living on the block, but I have yet to discover who. My daily sweeping and weeding has put me in touch with many of the immediate neighbors and I am beginning to hear the local gossip including who it is that does not pick up after their dog....as I suspected. What I don't understand he how many people can watch it happening and not speak up. I think if the owner knew they had been seen, they would change tactics (or sites) . There is such a thing as SHAME. Come on, if you can bend over and pick up three or four rocks to cover the poop,why not just pick it up?!?

My friend, Pat, of Bird Nest on the Ground, seems to think sleeping in a greenhouse on the roof is romantic. Therefore, I took a picture of what I see in my nest in the air.

If you look carefully, you might even see the plants. There is a step-tansu on the left. (That is a chest/cupboard that can be used as stairs) It contains orchids and cacti and a palm.

The table on the right has cuttings  and other stuff rests on the floor or small stands around the edges.

There is a balcony about a foot deep outside and I  use the railing to air my futon or dry large laundry such as tablecloths. You can see what this room is basically used for ... hanging laundry.

That is a gull kite flying in from the top right. The stairs are directly behind the camera with my futon on the right under the eaves. This romantic spot gets a lot of very hot sun during the summer. One also has to watch the weather to keep out rain. There is a large hole in the floor at the front right corner where rain has rotted out the floor. It was suspected that there was a leak in the roof area but since I have been at home this summer, even through typhoons, and no rain has come in, I suspect that those keeping house in my absence are less likely to think of shutting the windows ... or even notice that it is raining.

Last night it was actually rather cold ... going down to 9c and turning on the automatic heater a few times. I will have to make a few changes in bedding tonight. Time for a quilt or two?
It reminds me of a poem my dad used to quote ...

When it comes to weather, mans a fool.
When it's hot, he wants it cool.
When it's cool. he wants it hot.
What it is, he wants it not!

15 comments:

  1. I'm so glad the typhoon petered out before it arrived at your home. Love that quilt progress, and what a wonderful drying room. Take care if it rains again, Hugs,Jean

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  2. love your new quilt blocks, keep going, a flannel sheet would probably help you. I think of you with these weather reports, I guess you may be used to it by now but how scary that is.
    Kathie

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  3. Typhoon time is a good chance to stay indoors and quilt! Your new one is going to be great looking.

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  4. glad there was no damage x seems as if it might be upin the air .. but is a happy space for you x

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  5. Love that quilt - and glad the typhoon wasn't worse. We have rules here that you MUST clean up after your dog - one man was spotted taking a stick and flipping the poop up into the woods. Another neighbor was walking by and asked him to please pick it up. He shrugged and walked away - some people!

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  6. I like your layout - where did you find the tree blocks? Including them should cut down on your sewing time tremendously - good choice!! - ;))

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  7. I really like how you laid out the blocks in the quilt, unique and creative.
    It is always nice to have the storms dissipate when they land.

    Debbie

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  8. Another gorgeous and colourful quilt in the making! I have been sewing a dress for my granddaughter - Queen Elsa from Frozen's dress. My daughter bought some fabric for the bodice that my sewing machine just won't sew - so most of the sewing is happening by hand. I have been thinking of you as I sew and marvelling at your hand sewing quilts one after the other!

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  9. Hi Julie, your quilt is gorgeous, with its bursts of cheerful color. It just gets prettier and prettier. It's going to look fabulous on the bed !
    Take care, and let us know if you discover the "cat food perp". Probably the same one as the "dog poop perp". We hope they take heed of your sign right away and pay attention to what's going on. You do so much to keep your neighborhood looking nice !
    Blessings, from Marina and Daryl

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  10. I really like the new blocks, and they look pretty good with the quilt under them too. Initially I thought it was all one quilt. We saw about the hurricanes on the news, glad you fared well, you always seem to. Nice that you can have a little greenhouse on the roof.

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  11. Your quilt is going to end up quite big. Putting it on the bed like that gives a good sense of size.
    Seeing all that you have in your Greenhouse makes me realise how well you use the limited space you have.
    Glad the typhoon eased off and caused little damage.

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  12. The quilt is turning out to be bigger than you thought but it is also turning out to be quite beautiful! Your greenhouse bedroom might not be terribly roomy but it is yours and that's a gift in itself. I wish I had such a place to hang laundry. I do have a washer and dryer and I'm grateful for them but they are in a closet in my kitchen so there is no hanging space there...or anywhere else in this house either unless I put it in the middle of a walking space! Like your father said...we all want what we have not. :) blessings, marlene

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  13. I love how your quilt is coming along. I especially love the green blocks!

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  14. Beautiful little blocks equals gorgeous quilt. A very special quilt.

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