Rusty Crow Winter Time at the Beach

      Winter time at the Beach is raw and somehow more powerful this time of year.   Only the most hardy, walk the shorelines in search of treasures or peace of mind these days.  The winds, so sought by the Wright Brothers and used to make history down the street of me, will cut right thru you when the temprature drops.  

Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge is south of the shop and rich with shells on the beach side.  The bird watchers gather on the sound side to watch the Tundra Swans, Snow Geese, Sanderlings and even Peregrine Falcons. Be sure this place is on your list if you come for a visit. 

Right out of the gate, 2023 had me on the road to Charlotte, NC.  I had a great time with the ladies from the Charlotte Quilt Guild.  I spoke one evening, then the next day did a workshop for them.  This is the Wall Hanging Wool appilque I designed, Fin to Feather.  The beach box houses here are big on windows and not on wall space.  So I made this slim.  We have kits, printed patterns and downloads available on the website. The whale, bird, seaweed, and waves are hand dyed.  So your whale may not look like this one. Mystery of the dye pot. It was great seeing all the different whales in the class.  Kit with pattern is 55.95

Valdani has increased our stock by alot.  Colors once only available in Size 12 Pearl Cotton, are now available in Sizes 8 and 5. For example, Color numbers, 871, 1292, 1297, 1333, 1334, M23 and M66 are now available in all sizes.  We are going to need more thread drawers for our Valdani room in the shop. 

  We also have been getting in new patterns. Hatched and Patched has a great one, Around Town. 

We also got this cute, Sea Turtle Pincushion and Thread Catcher. 

Kitting produces a ton of scrap wool, or at least it does for me.  I spent the day making Wool Scrap Bags.  We are going to add one of our regular scrap bags to every order over $100.00 for the rest of January.  I literally spent the day ironing and triming scraps so they look nice.  I'm so not OCD, but with these it seems to matter to me.  Weird, the things that we do that feeds something inside.  

Oh last but not least, we got these adorable Blue Bird Pins from Riley Blake.  I have gotten rid of all the boring pins in my cushions. Life is too short not to have that spark of joy as you reach for a needed pin.  

On a personal note, JuJu had his torn ACL surgery this week.  Caring for a 120 pound dog that can't walk very well, is a challenge to say the least.  Mike has a doctor's appointment in Virginia on Monday.  We will be closed for Martin Luther King day.  The mail isn't running, so orders will go out on Tuesday.  I'll be home with the furry patient.  

I got sad news last night about a stitching friend in California that passed unexpectally.  She was making plans to move out of CA to Tennesse.  We had many conversations and laughs about making such a huge move at this point in our lives.  I guess what I want to say, is don't hesitate. If you have a dream, that just won't leave you alone, go for it.  Hugs to family and her many friends in and out of our Quilt world.  

Have great rest of your weekend. Sand and Stitching, Shawn