Collage with Prairie Flower saying

I had fun doing a few framed designs with my new

"Windswept..." prairie flowers saying.

The frame is a larger version of the

barnwood frames I've been using for a few

years. The man who makes them is

very willing to make any size.

new stamp

What fun to get a new rubber stamp in the mail!

I've had fun trying it in several ways.

Here are a few notecards:

Many thanks for the stamp, Sue.

It will be used.

late blooming liatrus

these liatrus are blooming like everything!
a few more by my dad's old cement mixer

Where have all the roses gone?!

I picked a large quantitiy of roses from this bush along the highway, and

there were plenty left to form these rosehips.

another view


and a closer look at some rosehips out in the pasture



These rosehips are on a bush that is growing in an old tractor scoop!
They turn a beutiful bright red.

A few recently finished products

small notecards with pansies mini frames with roses on music

a pansy and rose collage

and a better look at the frame...
the openings in the mat are 4" x 6"

In the pasture, on the hill...

This marker has been on the hill in our pasture for as long as all my siblings can remember.

If you have our family cookbook, this is the hill that is in the title. We can see in to the next state and also in to the next coutry from this high spot. Our family often used to take a walk in the pasture and climb this hill. This marker was alway impressive to us as children. Our parents

made sure we treated the marker with respect.

It says if the marker is harmed, it could mean a $250 fine or imprisonment.

Pretty scary to a child!

(complete text on marker: US Coast & Geodetic Survey triangulation station. $250 fine or imprisonment for disturbing this mark.

For information, write to Superintendant, Washington, D.C.)

oops!!!

Well, I lost the original blog. Sorry to all who checked here, hope you come back! I will be adding more in the near future. Hope to add the pictures on a Picasa gallery link, as they are all saved, but I don't think I'll try to remember all the text!

Update, 9/6 Thanks to "google reader" I was able to retrieve the posts, but lost all the comments. I do love to hear from you, and feel sorry for that loss, especially.

Sample of designs from third week of August

This is a 5 inch frame, I've used it to

frame pansies before, but I

like the prairie rose in it, also.

This was an experiment, using stems to

divide the spaces between flowers.

The dark blue background seems to

give the flowers more definiton.

Here are a few prairie roses in mini frames...and a few pansies, also in mini frames

Here's a sort of botanical print in a cloth frame.
The background color is dark brown, and
there are various colors in the embroidery.

more roses in mini frames

The fabric on this frame is like a
very wide strip of grosgrain ribbon.
I like the bergundy color.

scarlet globe mallow

We called these "tomato flowers" when we were children.

This is an older photo. They start blooming in June.

The Goldenrod is Yellow...

When the goldenrod blooms, it's one of the signs of fall approaching. These plants are growing along the road. In the far distance, to the left, is what's left of our closest little town. If you enlarge the picture, you might be able to see the only remaining building, a church.

and another sign of fall: new frames stacked on all flat surfaces!

part of the "work in progress" table...gearing up for the fall craft bazaars!

and a close-up of some works in progress

purple flowers among the gold....

My family will recognize the "old road" that goes through

the east pasture, at the base of "Eagle Hill"

The purple flowers in the foreground

are liatrus

the common name for this magenta/purple

spiked flower is gay-feather!

and this is purple prairie clover...

Road Roses!

June is the traditional month for wild roses, but later in the summer,

a nice little phenomenon* occurs. Along the side of the road,

more little wild roses start blooming. I like to call these "road roses"

and the last few mornings, I've been picking a few to press.

Some of them are even the vivid pink that is especially desirable

for framed arrangements .

and there are still more coming...

notice the bud in the lower left hand corner!* phenomenon: any unusual occurence (Reader's Digest Encyclopedic Dictionary) (!)

Golden Alexanders and other yellow flowers

One of my sisters happened upon these yellow flowers in the pasture a few years ago. They only grow in a few places, but I have found one very good spot for harvesting them. For lack of a better name, I called them "yellow umbrella" flowers for a few years. I was so happy to find them in a flower book recently. Their proper name is Golden Alexander. I like it!!

I included the narrow picture above to show you the red wing blackbird on the fence post. (the golden alexanders are in the foreground)

Now for the rest of the yellow flowers!

First is the wild gallardia. The common name is blanket flower. I love the variation of colors. Some are more orange, some rust, but always with some yellow.

The sunflowers in the middle picture are blooming their hearts out right now. They are tricky to press because they are so thick, but I had some success last year, so hope to get a few picked before their season is done.

Last picture is the little flower known as Mexican hat. I have pressed them, but they are a bit tedious because they need to be sliced in half with a razor to make them thin enough.

Extremely Dark Pink Roses

Lots of wild roses to press! There is a certain sidehill in the pasture that produces these very vivid roses.

I am always pleased to see them start blooming again.

The roses on the bottom are the more traditional pink shade.

Pink Cactus

Does anyone know the name of this cactus? The picture on the left was

taken this morning in bud. This afternoon it was in full bloom. The base is

rounded. I remember seeing a large cactus like this in full bloom in the west

pasture along the fence line. I don't think it bloomed every year.

Revised 6/30 I learned this is a cushion cactus, also known as "pincushion cactus."

Should I dig it up or leave it alone?! It's in the grass (not really lawn) on the west side of the house.

Roses for Lois

...and for everyone else, too!

Yes, Lois, the wild roses are blooming. I was hoping to get a better picture, but since you are waiting, these will have to do!

Rosebuds add an extra touch to my designs, but it's a tedious process to prepare them. I slice each rosebud, and then use a tweezer to remove the bulky filling.

The picture above shows part of the pile of treasures still to be pressed!
(the "yellow umbrella" flowers on the right will have their own post soon.)