Next week I will begin more design work. The quilt needs a few more sunflowers, and the stems need a lot more leaves. It may take 2 days of designing, cutting and fusing to get it just the way I picture it in my head.
Last month I shared a few images with you of painted bed frames. I told you I would post photos of the bed frames after they were set up by the Thread Shed.
This bed frame fence should work nicely to support all of the 8 foot hollyhocks that will be growing along the side of the Thread Shed this summer.
The hollyhocks grow taller than the roof top. They tend to fall over later in the summer and make it difficult to get any mowing done over in this area.
This is the backside of the Thread Shed. This is a daybed frame we put up a few years ago to support the glads that grow back there. It worked so good, I just had to find more old bed frames to support the hollyhocks on the side of the building.
Today was so sunny and nice out......I just couldn't bare to work indoors. This bed of iris is full of buds ready to bloom any day now!
I planted a few petunias and zinnias in this front flower bed. Felt good to get my hands in dirt.
Brad trimmed the vine that grows on an arbor in front of the Thread Shed. It was getting to the point where I could barely make my way in the door to sew.
It was a great day........and now I am ready to get into more stitching again!
The Sunflower quilt measures 100 inches square. In this photo the bottom 18 inches are laying on the floor. The tallest sunflower is nearly 7 feet tall.
Today I added 4 chickens to the bottom of the quilt. The top 18 inches of the quilt is folded back, so you can't see it. I started by fusing down blades of grass, fusing the chickens over the top of them........then added a lot more grass in front of the chickens. If you click this image you can enlarge it and see the detail better.
The first question I always get is.........do you have to applique around each and every blade of grass.........the answer is yes. 
I put on a great movie that I love....or some relaxing music....put the quilt top under the sewing machine needle.....and applique around each and every fused piece.
I was hoping for a subtle affect here with the chickens. I don't want them to jump out immediately when you look at the quilt........I want you to see the quilt as a whole, pause and look at the gorgeous sunflowers........and eventually say.........oh, look down there.....there's chickens!
I will spend the rest of the week tweaking on this.......adding more blades of grass, a couple more sunflowers, and a lot more leaves on the sunflower stems. I think the tweaking part is my favorite.........adding a little of this, a little of that, designing as I go........until it looks just right.
I found an old book of doors........so many great doors. I want to make another quilt like this with rustic barn doors.
Today I did some applique work on the Sunflower Quilt. I am trying to finish this 100 x 100 inch quilt this month. I have a few more days of stitching, adding a few more sunflowers, chickens and grass, basting and quilting to do. I hope to have it completed for an exhibit in September. 
At 7 days old they no longer look like cotton balls with legs.....they have long necks now and you can see the tips of their wings beginning to grow.
Here they are this chilly morning under the heat lamp......14 days old. They have doubled in size in the last week! They all have beautiful spotted feathers. There are 3 different breeds: Barred Rock, Rhode Island Red, Buff Orpington. They will all begin laying big, brown, beautiful eggs at 5 months of age.
While I watch the chicks grow I can also keep an eye on the State Fair Zinnia seeds planted in the kitchen garden window 2 weeks ago. The seeds were planted, watered and covered up.........I peeked under the cover on the 4th day and the seedlings were nearly 3 inches tall. Wow! I have never had anything germinate that quickly!
The tallest seedlings are 5 inches tall, with more pushing through the dirt each day. I have to start them indoors......or the birds will eat all the seeds before they can sprout!
Gunnr is 2 years old.......and we have been watching him grow too. He loves water. His favorite part of the morning is helping fill up the baby chicks waterer.
