Nancy’s Eastern Tailed-Blue Butterfly
My recent trip home to my parent's home was supposed to be purely fun. What was unanticipated was mom spending a week in the hospital and undergoing emergency surgery. I sewed this little butterfly while sitting in the OR waiting room, trying to...
The Lively Ladybug
.I found this ladybug pattern languishing on my iPad. I designed it some time ago but never made it. I'm not very good at cutting nice even circles so I used a paper hole bunch for these. I hope you enjoy this little weekend project! If you are...
The American Copper Butterfly
The next installment in the butterfly theme is the American Copper. Once again, the limitations of felt colors challenged me. But an endless supply of felt colors could be a problem for me! Rather than tiny pieces of felt for the spots, I used...
The Handsome Black Swallowtail Butterfly
Hannah has a vision for a butterfly tree for this year's WHRL Christmas Tree Festival. She gave me a punch list of butterflies to work my way through. The Black Swallowtail is the first of a few to come. Enjoy! If you're reading this from your...
The Solitary Groundhog
Having been born in Punxsutawney, PA, my father's hometown, groundhogs (aka woodchucks and marmots) have long been part of our family culture. Gobbler's Knob (where Punxsutawney Phil emerges every February 2nd) was just a walk up the road from my...
First Sea Glass of the Season
I finally made my first trip to the beach this year. Granted, I drive by the ocean almost every day, but this is the first day I've taken time for a walk with my girl. We both needed the fresh air and the sound of the waves. Bundled as we were the...
The Great American Bison
The American Bison (or Buffalo) has been an often-requested pattern. For me, getting this felt critter right has been all about texture since they are shaggy beasts. I used Light Brown for the body and Safari Brown (a heathered felt) for the upper...
Sunny and Sixty. In February.
Sunny and 60 degrees - in February. Ten hours and 47 minutes of glorious daylight. The momentum toward spring is eclipsed only by Friday's forecast of 19 degrees and 7 inches of snow.
The Maine Bobcat
My next pattern book will feature my critters. I'm trying to work through the other Maine animals that need to be included - like the bobcat. Trying to find just the right felt color for this one is challenging. You can choose to make him with a...
The Impressive Yellow-headed Blackbird
Struggling a bit to find my creative mojo again, I tackled this Yellow-headed Blackbird. He's not something you'll find in Maine, but the basic color pattern appealed to my desire for uncomplicated. You all west of the Mississippi are likely...
Wood Veneer Column Lights
In December, I shared my first project created with my Cricut Maker 3 - Downeast Thunder Farm birds made from wood veneer. At the same time, I was working on another Cricut Maker 3 project that I couldn't share until after Christmas. Inspired by...
Family and Tradition
My paternal grandfather, John Reynolds Bender, attended Wittenberg University in the early 1930s. My mom attended in the late 1950s, and the tradition continued when I graduated from Wittenberg in 1986. This picture of grandpa is from the 1934 WU...
A Most Curious Experience
The snow had just started to fall this morning as I lounged on the sofa, sipping my coffee. A swoop outside the window caught my attention. A Red-tailed Hawk sat high in the branches of the birch tree. I ran for my camera, but he was gone when I...
Empty Nest Once Again
Yesterday was a momentous day. We moved Hannah into her first apartment. It's a lovely little one-bedroom situated over a barn just 2.25 miles away.Finding rents Downeast is a challenge. Good rentals are far and few between. In this instance, a...
Christmas Deer Friends
One of my favorite things about living where we do is the wildlife that comes to visit. This weekend is was a quartet of Christmas deer grazing by the pond. Their arrival never fails to make us all pause what we're doing and linger at the window.
The Playful Opossum
Here's a new project for your post-holiday crafting. I've never spotted an opossum, but it has been one of the most requested critters over the years. I've dabbled with a design on and off for years, never quite happy with the result. I like the...
Merry Christmas!
Christmas Eve has dawned sunny, very cold and icy. Rains the other night washed away the snow and left us with a thin layer of frosty ice. No white Christmas this year - despite the weather man's assurance there would be. My gifts have been sorted,...
A Note From Santa’s Helper
I received a most unexpected letter in the mail today from Santa's Helper. As a child, Hannah wrote Santa; the envelope addressed to "Santa Clause, North Pole."Santa's Helper returned to me two of her letters - this one written in Hannah's hand....
Downeast Thunder Farm Wood Veneer Birds
I splurged this fall. One little idea spotted on Pinterest that used wood veneer, and I went down the rabbit hole. After tons of research, I purchased a Cricut Maker 3. A couple of small projects behind me, and I started devising wooden birds from...
It’s Beginning to Look Like Christmas
It never fails. I'm so focused on WHRL's Winter Tree Festival that Christmas decorating at home takes a back seat. I finally managed to get a simple wreath up yesterday with a rustic Merry Christmas sign Paul carved the other year. Sunny and mild,...
Hogwarts Magical Tree and Custom-themed Monopoly
Holy moly, it's been a race leading up to WHRL's Winter Tree Festival. While I've shared some of what I've been working on, Hannah has invested her energy into two things. The first is a Whale in Sweaters wreath that is just darling. However, it's...
Judy Returns
This summer, Hannah named our resident bunny “Judy” based on the Zootopia movie. She was befuddled when I showed her this photo one morning back in June. Are they all Judy? I spotted as many as four Judys at a time in our yard. It was a banner...
First Snowfall
This morning was the season's first snow. It's perhaps the latest snowfall I can remember in the 17 years that we've lived Downeast. I delight in the first snow; I delight in almost every snow, even if I wish it away by March. Snow cover outside...
Maine Vintage Map Trees
This entry for WHRL's Christmas Tree Festival and Auction is a trio of minimalist vintage Maine Map Christmas Trees. A vintage map tree I spotted on Pinterest from Bombus in the UK inspired these designs. Paul cut three triangles of wood culled...
The Two Sides of Downeast Thunder Farm
The other morning I was visiting this little doe in the front yard. I stood on the porch talking to it and snapping pictures - Gidget oblivious of her for a bit. I returned inside and sat at my desk, unloading the deer pictures onto my computer,...
