Time to Get Away

For our 38th anniversary we got outa Dodge and went to a BnB on the Mendocino Coast. It has been HOT and smoky for weeks at home and the cool sea breezes were so wonderful!

 

The Howard Creek Inn is housed in a ranch circa 1870. It was rustic and somewhat funky. But the breakfasts were amazing and the natural views and flower garden, a real joy.

 

 

 

 

It turns out the ranch is part of 60 acres. On our last morning there we found the trail head into the redwoods and took a hike. The sign post said, "Enchanted Redwoods". We agreed.

It was hard to leave but at least we live in the redwoods, it's not like we were going home to the city. 

Help from the North Wind

I finally finished piecing all 256 Split nine patch blocks and decided to lay it out to check the consistency of the colors. When I make a multi-fabric quilt, I try to create what I call a 'planned random' layout, to balance the shades and spread out the prints so the same ones aren't grouped or bunched up.

I was making good progress and not getting too lost in the layout when North Wind decided to give me a hand. Dang! Back to the beginning. Then I made four or five replacement blocks.

Finally I packed it up with each row in sequence, ready to be webbed into the center portion of the top.