We guess that these are 5-in-1 trees, with different varieties grafted onto the same trunk, thus producing the varied blossom colour. The one in our backyard never blooms like this; each variety opens and matures at their own pace so that one branch comes into bloom as the other goes out. These trees are certainly showy.
Back home, Polly has discovered that she loves to dig in the dirt of the flower beds even more than she enjoys tunneling in the snow.
Finished four of eight commissioned antependiums; figured the half way mark deserved a little reward too.
Hubby ordered 5 new queens this year which means that the 5 biggest hives will be split into two, and the new queen added to the split. Once the queens arrive you can't waste any time in getting them in their new quarters; these ladies have already travelled from Hawaii and are more than ready to set up housekeeping in their new land.
Some of the hives are really over-full and the bees have been busy this week building all kinds of silly burr comb on every free surface they could find.
Adding the new queen is quite simple: hubby pokes a hole in the sugar to allow some light and then just places the queen cage in between two frames in the hive. The bees will take care of the rest. Next week we will go back and remove those empty cages.
The hard part is finding the existing queen in the hive, as you don't want to mistakenly have 2 queens in one hive and none in the new split. It's a tedious, slow job to go through each frame looking for the queen. This hive below we went through 4 times before we found her.
We knew she was there, as there were lots of eggs and brood in the hive. The frame below shows capped brood cells in an exceptionally uniform pattern. This shows the work of a very good, efficient queen. A poor queen will leave an egg here and there all over the place, with no rhyme nor reason.
I am not very good at spotting the queen; unlike the other bees who mill around a bit, she moves quickly and with purpose from one frame to the next. Finally, hubby spotted her. Can you see her too?
Two days later, we have 18 happy, healthy hives ready to head to blueberry blossoms next weekend.
As much as I dislike having to rebaste the quilt, it is much easier to remove those pins than to rip out the stitching, and I knew I would not be happy otherwise. Sigh... In the meantime, I heard myself say "yes" to another commission, with a very tight deadline. It took awhile to sketch it out and get the lines of the Gothic arch of the window frame even, (and I think I've been to Dayle's 5 times in the last two days for fabric!) but today it's ready to stitch.
C'mon finish line...Mama needs new shoes *-)
Even though it will only be next to the binding fabric, they all play nicely together and it pleases my eye. I also chose two spools of blue cotton thread in a shade to match. This will be bottom thread only, as I am planning to use a metallic thread for the quilting.
Since Polly's arrival in the household, basting has turned into a bit of a blood sport. She has made a frustrating process even more so. I waited until I was sure she was settled down for her long afternoon siesta before I laid out the fabric.
I followed the same method I've shown in past posts, securing the fabric to the floor using masking tape.
Over this I spread two layers of wool batting.
A good hour later, the quilt is well basted and ready to receive some stabilizing stitching. Then the real fun begins.
Once the top is quilted and bound, I will find another treat - this one a little more substantial - with which to reward myself. Sometimes I buy a piece of fabric I've had my eye on, or a new foot for my beloved Bernina. This time it may even be new shoes (!) Using this little reward system has really helped me stay on track with completing my projects. Certainly, there's usually more than one thing at a time under the needle here, but they all get finished in turn. There is no closet of UFO's. 
The Mayflower Quilter's Guild of Nova Scotia (of which I am a member) has invited me to teach at their upcoming 2013 retreat. This will be their 14th retreat, held every-other-year at Pictou Lodge, N.S. Other teachers on the roster for this event are Cheryl Arkison from Calgary, Alberta and Penny Berens from Granville Beach, Nova Scotia. You can find more information and photos from past years on the retreat blog. Information on the workshops and the Independent Study option will be posted shortly. I understand from others who have attended this retreat that it is an incredible experience, and I can't wait to be part of it. 
The scenes highlighted in the chevrons below were fussy cut from the silk ties.
A little before Easter, someone sent me a link to a tutorial on silk dyed eggs which I forwarded to Tina. She used some of the silk scraps to try out the technique. Here they are wrapped up and ready to go into the hot water bath.
And here they are fresh out of the water.
Once unwrapped, the eggs look hand painted. Aren't they beautiful? I suspect the uglier the tie, the prettier the egg.
Thanks so much Tina for sharing your creativity; John is no doubt wishing he had more neckties.
These partially completed sunbursts will snuggle in between the palm blocks when finished, set-in with a "Y" seam.
As I stitch, I envision how this piece will be quilted. Already I have chosen the thread - a dark brownish- gold metallic Sulky, which will work well with the gold highlights woven into the fabric. Mentally, I am auditioning feather quilting motifs up the palm branches, meandering out to the elongated tips on the top and bottom blocks. 
Most were already out and about gathering pollen. This one is shown on my leather glove (don't want you to think I have alligator skin!)
You can see them busily heading in and out the front entrance with the yellow pollen sacs on their legs stuffed full.
What a relief to have this big job done.
If only I had my spring cleaning done at home... *-)
Kathy made the set as a wedding gift and chose the fabrics to match her friend's blue and green pottery. Doesn't the black in the centrepiece set off the points nicely?
It's lovely, Kathy; our thanks for sharing the pictures. I expect you wowed the recipient! Around The Table has wedge-shaped mats to fit nicely on a round table. If you'd like to make your own set, the pattern is available on my website.
Here it is!
That's a lot of quilts, and a lot of people!
And here's Katie, who looks like she is having a wonderful time!
Sincere thanks to both Carol and Katie for sharing these images. It's so wonderful when friends have your back.
Here is (NY) Roundabout Again. If it looks a bit familiar to you, there's good reason. It's a new and improved version of the popular New York Roundabout pattern. The block is smaller and has been redrawn to fix some of the awkwardness inherent in the first design. It has a smoother overall flow and is a more practical size. It measures 31" x 50", so is a terrific size for a wall hanging or a table topper. As we learned in previous posts, as copyright holder I am within my Rights to present a derivative copy of the original design. I purposely used dramatic colours so the lines of the design would show clearly, which they most certainly do.
Hubby and I took it downtown to be photographed in Amherst's new bandstand in the recently renovated Victoria Square. You can see by the snow that this was awhile back - February, I believe. It takes awhile for things to come together.
After reworking the design, the pattern and instructions needed to be verified and two professional quilt testers stepped up to help. Here is the one made by Mavis Shanks from Howell, Mi. Mavis used Northcott's "Stonehenge" line to piece her Beauty.
Mavis works as a longarm quilter, so it was really interesting to see the designs she chose to quilt. I love that motif in the centre - beautiful work.
This lovely version was made by Darlene Gerber from Geneva, Ohio. Darlene has a blog where she shows her work, as well as more pieces which she has tested for other designers.
I was happy to learn that neither Mavis nor Darlene encountered any issues in making Roundabout Again, and feel confident that the pattern is ready to release. As usual, Polly was involved every step of the way. Here you see her checking the area for stray chickens or mice as we prepare for the photo shoot.
Roundabout Again has been added to the Pattern page of my website, where you can order your copy online.
I am really happy with the way this piece turned out.
