illinois beach

Weekly update: wildflowers, a small indulgence, a flimsy, and reading from With Strings Attached

Don't miss the previous post about the Bisa Butler quilts at the Art Institute!

On a clear day you can see the Chicago skyline from Illinois Beach State Park.

On the same hike I saw an egret and prickly pear cactus. (Yes, it does grow this far north.)

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On Tuesday we drove to Elm Grove, just west of Milwaukee, so I could shop for fabric at Patched Works. 52 miles -- the farthest I've driven in months. Milwaukee highways are a spaghetti bowl and I was glad I was driving mid-day rather than at rush hour.

I could have ...

added by Nann 4 years, 11 months ago. under design wall monday , illinois beach , lake county forest preserves , monday making , oh scrap! , reading , weekly update

Weekly update: out and about, finishes and a flimsy, and more reading from With Strings Attached

On Tuesday Zion Woman's Club members planted pinwheels to recognize Child Abuse Prevention Month. (CAP is a General Federation of Women's Clubs initiative.) I've driven past the corner a couple of times and the pinwheels sparkle as they spin. We took our masks off for the photo and then put 'em on again, though all of us are vaccinated.

Our beach visit on Friday was to the main unit of Illinois Beach State Park. That's one building in three photos -- the long-abandoned bathhouse. This story tells about the innovative architecture.

And this story tells about the ...

added by Nann 5 years ago. under design wall monday , illinois beach , monday making , oh scrap! , reading , waffle stamps , weekly update , zwc

Weekly update: wildflowers, new projects, and reading from With Strings Attached

Spring wildflowers on my walks this week:

(clockwise): skunk cabbage leafed out (the flower is the purply-brown "horn"), violets, swamp buttercup, white trout lily (aka dogtooth violet -- "trout" because the leaves are mottled brown/green like a trout); bloodroot.

Saturday morning: six of us from Illinois Beach Sunrise Rotary joined other District 6440 Rotarians at a warehouse in Northbrook. We sorted the shoes our clubs purchased through Operation Warm -- new sneakers for kids in our communities. IBSR's share was 92 pairs that will be distributed through two local agencies.

Operation Warm also provides new winter coats for kids. Our ...

added by Nann 5 years ago. under design wall monday , illinois beach , monday making , mug rugs , oh scrap! , p.e.o. , reading , rotary club , waffle stamps , weekly update , wildflowers

Friday check in: thread source and batik stars from With Strings Attached

I am not buying fabric during Lent. But thread is not fabric! Someone on an online group recommended Wawak. A few clicks later I had an online shopping cart filled with Aurifil thread. ** $7.95 ** per 1440-yard spool. That's the everyday price! The order came within a week. I am sold!

The batik variable stars are now a flimsy. I made 36 blocks and used 32 of them. It may not look like it, but there is a color arrangement -- warm backgrounds in the center and cooler backgrounds around the perimeter. (The four blocks I did not use were ...

added by Nann 5 years, 1 month ago. under aurifil , batik quilt , can i get a whoop whoop , f , finished or not friday , illinois beach , wawak

Weekly update: hints of spring, multiple projects, and reading from With Strings Attached

March began with a flurry of activities. On Wednesday we got our first Covid vaccine shots at CTCA, the hospital in Zion. It was quick and we had no side effects. The second shot is scheduled for March 31.

On Saturday evening we went to the first indoor concert in exactly a year. (The last time was March 7, 2020.) Only 50 people were in attendance with ample social distancing. The Lake County Symphony Orchestra featured a percussionist (marimba and vibraphone) and a brass quintet.

Spring is in the air with lots of sunshine and mild temperatures. . It was great ...

added by Nann 5 years, 1 month ago. under batik quilt , design wall monday , illinois beach , lcso , monday making , oh scrap! , reading , rsc 2021 , weekly update

Weekly update: some pink, OMG, and a squirrel from With Strings Attached

Lynn and I have known one another since kindergarten. We reconnected last year on our high school class's 50th reunion FB group. She joined me on Tuesday for a hike at Illinois Beach State Park. It was a pleasant 3-mile catching-up.

Wednesday my husband and I went out to discover a new-to-us segment of the lakefront bike trail. It was so calm -- in great contrast to the upheaval in Washington, D.C. which we watched on the news, horrified.

(You can tell it's a different day by the color of my turtleneck. :) )

The sun was out on Saturday ...

added by Nann 5 years, 3 months ago. under design wall monday , illinois beach , lake county forest preserves , monday making , mqg swap , oh scrap! , reading , rsc 2021 , weekly update

Weekly update: hiking, feasting, quilting, reading from With Strings Attached

Thursday evening: the first Christmas Eve service I've attended with my sewing machine. That was so we could watch the Lessons and Carols on our church's YouTube channel. We fervently hope that this was a one-and-only and that next year we can worship in person. We dimmed the lights and lit candles for Silent Night.

Christmas dinner: roast beef, acorn squash, braised parsnips. Pear/spinach salad. Cranberry-pumpkin upside down cake. The vintage tablecloth just covered the table. (The table is mid-19th century and not a standard size.) And when was the last time you used a pickle fork ...

added by Nann 5 years, 4 months ago. under christmas , cwrsrp , design wall monday , grassy creek , illinois beach , lake county forest preserves , monday making , mystery quilt , oh scrap! , omg 2020 , reading , weekly update

Midweek: design epiphany from With Strings Attached

I took a long walk Tuesday afternoon down a new-to-me trail at the north end of Illinois Beach State Park. I wanted to go farther but I could only go until I was half-tired to save the other half for the walk home.

A front is coming through today (Wednesday) with temperatures dropping by 40 degrees.

It was overcast both Monday and Tuesday evenings. We're not going to see the Great Conjunction (Jupiter and Saturn).

(Spring Bluff forest preserve is across the road from the state park.)

Left: abandoned red-winged blackbird nest. Right: muskrat den.

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(c) Kim Diehl

In ...

added by Nann 5 years, 4 months ago. under cwrsrp , illinois beach , midweek makers , wednesday wait loss

Midweek: checkerboard baskets so far from With Strings Attached

The checkerboard and basket blocks are assembled. 60" x 72", 4-1/8 yds. I'm contemplating adding a border because I'd like it wider.

Maybe I'll swap out the block on the upper left. UPDATE: I did! I like the change. Photos to come.

One of the designs that inspired this one has borders on the sides only.

Linking up with Midweek Makers

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Photos from Sunday afternoon at Illinois Beach State Park.

added by Nann 5 years, 4 months ago. under cwrsrp , illinois beach , midweek makers

Weekly update: hikes, waves, some quilt making -- and this week's reading from With Strings Attached

We still have a few forest preserves to visit! On Thursday we went to Nippersink .

The gravity-defying tree has another outstretched limb pointing straight ahead.

A front came through and it rained Friday afternoon and all day Saturday. The weather forecast said waves would be high on the lake and I went to see for myself.

In the upper photo: the seawall (on the left) used to be at the water's edge. The round thing in the middle is a concrete storm drain that used to be covered by sand and gravel and a good 10' from the water ...

added by Nann 5 years, 4 months ago. under cwrsrp , design wall monday , grassy creek , illinois beach , lake county forest preserves , monday making , oh scrap! , reading , zwc

Weekly update: wildlife, RBG, kaleidoscopes, and JAB from With Strings Attached

It was still unseasonably warm on Monday when we went to Middlefork Savanna on the far west side of Lake Forest. The property was formerly J. Ogden Armour's farm. (I have yet to find out the location of the other tallgrass savanna in North America.)

The front came through on Tuesday. It was 30 degrees colder when I walked at Illinois Beach State Park. The frog blinked when I nudged it with my toe but it did not move. The buck watched me for a couple of minutes. His mind was more likely on the does -- I got a ...

added by Nann 5 years, 5 months ago. under cwrsrp , design wall monday , illinois beach , kaleidoscope blocks , lake county forest preserves , monday making , oh scrap! , reading

Weekly update: spiderwebs and nearly-a-finish from With Strings Attached

Wildflowers at Camp Logan, Illinois Beach State Park.

Left top: liatris (blazing star). Left bottom: ? Center top: storksbille. Center: lythrum (purple loosestrife) -- an aggressive invader though eradication efforts have reduced its spread. Center bottom: SEDGE* Right top: Joe Pye weed. Right center: Two-flowered Cynthia (krigia bflora). Right bottom: either water hemlock (poisonous!) or cow parsnip.

*thanks to those who identified this mystery

In the studio: I'm up to 23 out of 30 spiderweb blocks. I know, I know: I said this project didn't need to be hurried. But once I get going it's hard to stop.

xx ...

added by Nann 5 years, 8 months ago. under 30's bin bust , design wall monday , illinois beach , monday making , oh scrap! , shelter in place quilt

Weekly update: wildflowers, wall hangings, and reading from With Strings Attached

I was up early Sunday morning and caught the sunrise over Lake Michigan at 5:52 a.m. That's 38 minutes later than the solstice on June 22.

On the way home I stopped at Spring Bluff Forest Preserve and took photos of some of the wildflowers.

Left: mullein, blue vervain, and prairie coneflower. Top right: primrose. Middle right: tall coreopsis ("tall" is part of the name).
Bottom left: a pretty array. Center: bergamot aka monarda aka bee balm. Right: Queen Anne's lace.

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In the studio: after I finished Triangle Endeavour (see the previous post) I began working ...

added by Nann 5 years, 9 months ago. under batik quilt , design wall monday , illinois beach , monday making , oh scrap! , reading , weekly update , wildflowers

Weekly update: deliveries, small finishes, and new projects from With Strings Attached

The sky was so clear today that the Chicago skyline was visible from Hosah Park. That's 40 miles away. You can click on the photo to enlarge it. Look at the horizon on the right and you can see the outlines of the skyscrapers.

Closer to the ground: flag iris, coreopsis, daisies, spiderwort. I think the plant not in bloom (upper right) is a mullein. It is a huge specimen.

One Tuesday I drove on the Tollway (I-94) for the first time since February when I went to Glen Ellyn. I met first with the incoming AAUW-IL president to ...

added by Nann 5 years, 10 months ago. under design wall monday , illinois beach , monday making , mug rugs , oh scrap! , postage stamp quilt , scrap quilts , shelter in place quilt , weekly update , wildflowers

Weekly update: wildflowers and SIP from With Strings Attached

Early June is a wonderful time for wildflowers! The collage at the left has pictures from Lyons Woods Forest Preserve and Illinois Beach State Park.

Every year I look for wild flag iris. The blue flags are native and the yellow flags are invasive. There are a lot more yellow. (They differ from hybrid iris in that they grow at the edge of marshy area to keep their feet (rhizomes) wet.)

I also look for this patch of misplaced hybrid iris at the Camp Logan unit of Illinois Beach State Park. It has really spread since I began observing it ...

added by Nann 5 years, 11 months ago. under design wall monday , illinois beach , monday making , oh scrap! , shelter in place quilt , weekly update , wildflowers

Weekly update: May round up, June plans from With Strings Attached

There was a protest and some looting in Kenosha last night. A not-funny-prank call threatened looting at Gurnee Mills, prompting a robo call from our local police warning residents to stay home Sunday evening. It was quiet here. I hope it was quiet where you live, too.

Saturday at Illinois Beach: One tree in the water (but still leafed out). Another will topple soon. Still high water on the trail.

Sunday: the nature trail in the ravine (a block from our house):
Rue anemone, May apple, Solomon's seal, skunk cabbage, trillium, golden Alexander, ranunculus (buttercup), aquilegia (columbine).

Our friend ...

added by Nann 5 years, 11 months ago. under design wall monday , illinois beach , monday making , oh scrap! , scrap quilts , stash report , weekly update , wildflowers

Weekly update: masks, houses, and how it turned out from With Strings Attached

Tulips, 6 a.m.

Tulips, 11 a.m.

What a variety of weather we've had! Two warm days (first lawn-mowing of the season) followed by near-record chill with a touch of frost Saturday morning. The parking lot and trails at the Camp Logan unit of Illinois Beach State Park were still flooded from the April 29 rain (3.37") but Saturday afternoon we tried Hosah Park (the one patch of lakefront that belongs to Zion Park District). But where's the beach? Somewhere near Indiana by now. Last summer there was sand at the end of the boardwalk and ...

added by Nann 5 years, 12 months ago. under covid-19 , design wall monday , illinois beach , masks , monday making , mother's day , oh scrap! , rsc 2020 , shelter in place quilt , weekly update

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