Little Penguin Quilts Through the Year

Little Penguin Quilts Through the Year

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

I Like Thursday #124 - Road Trip!

This week we're away from home visiting my mom in Arizona, partly as a break from the wintry weather up north in Colorado, and mostly to help her with some tasks around the house.

I liked visiting a favorite LQS along the way in Las Vegas, New Mexico, called Thread Bear.


They had what will probably be my favorite fabric find of the year from Charley Harper's new line of fabric - 


When we drive this route to see my mom, we always spend a night in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and I liked this picture on the wall of our hotel room.  It was hard to get a good picture of it without glare and reflections on the glass, but hopefully you get the idea!

I think this would make a cool mini quilt!

Just a week or so before we left home, parts of Arizona had gotten a big snowstorm, and we saw this view coming through the mountains just 50 miles away from the desert.

Snow on the mountains!

I knew I would want to take my hand-piecing supplies along, so I packed up the new pouch I finished last week, and it worked perfectly to fit in my suitcase!


Something I always enjoy doing when we are here is picking a grapefruit right off the tree for breakfast!

I'm going to pick some more to take home, too!

Of course, there is birdwatching to be done here, and we found these little guys the other day.

They're called Rosy-faced Lovebirds, and evidently have thrived in this area since the 1980s.  They aren't native birds here, but escaped from an aviary during a monsoon.  More info HERE if you're curious about them!

Hope you're having a great week!  We have a few more days in the sun before we head back north.  Hello, Mary in Peoria, I'm waving at you from the east side of Mesa!


 I'm joining in with the other I Like Thursday bloggers over at Not Afraid of Color.











15 comments:

Libby in TN said...

Lovely list of likes! Love the name of that quilt shop. What a treat to see those birds.

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

such a nice break in winter even if Arizona got snow too - you know it is warmer there and it will be nice. One of the things I liked about visiting Arizona was the citrus trees as well - some day I would like to go back and be there for a good part of winter.
The painting would make a really nice modern quilt - the Charlie Harper fabric looks nice, I have seen it on line of course but I have never bought any for some reason, not really sure why not?

Home Sewn By Us said...

Hi Diann! I have a good friend that lives in Las Vegas, NM (Mary). Wow, that's a lot of snow on the mountain!! Those lovebirds are so pretty yet they almost blend in with the birdbath. Oh, that fresh grapefruit looks fabulous - it makes my mouth water. I'm going to read up on your pouch. It looks pretty darn handy! ~smile~ Roseanne

chrisknits said...

Cute fabric, and yes that pic would make a great mini! And I LOVE the lovebirds.

Mary in Peoria Handmade said...

Hi Diann! Welcome to Az for a great trip! We're having crazy weather- Wearing shorts yesterday and then 20 degrees cooler this weekend. Enjoy your visit! mary

P.S. Those penguins are adorable.

Louise said...

How fun to use your little pouch so soon after finishing it! Just the perfect size. And the colors of the pouch kind of match the love birds :)

LA Paylor said...

OMG fabulous list! Really, I must go back thru them again. The lovebird photo is just so well done... could be an art poster. Or a quilt... you could do it from your photo easily. Imagine it...
Grapefruit... fresh... I miss Florida!!! Love grapefruit especially sweet Duncans with all their seeds. The pouch is just perfect and looks fun just seeing it here.
Be glad you're gone, we got wintery mix again last night, all surfaces are disgusting with sleet and ice.

Jocelyn is Canadian Needle Nana said...

Those particular lovebirds are gorgeous...thanks for showing them. Imagine picking grapefruit off the tree like that. Gives new meaning to fresh!
You have put your sweet little pouch to immediate good use!
I love Charley Harper bird designs...they're inspiring to me.

Suzanne said...

I love Charley Harper image! Enjoy the break for the wintery white.

Shannon said...

I hope you're having a lovely trip! Arizona is wonderful. Those lovebirds are so pretty and tropical looking- even if not native I bet they love it in AZ. Glad you had a use for your new pouch so quickly! Travel safely!

Judy D in WA said...

I hope AZ warms up for you. That penguin fabric is fabulous, I'm so glad you faound it. Oh, fresh off the tree grapefruit. I'm jealous. Have a wonderful visit.

PaintedThread said...

My goodness - is there a tiny cutting mat in that sewing bag as well!?! I think lovebirds are so pretty. That grapefruit looks lovely. And I agree - that wall design would make a great quilt.

Scrapatches said...

I have very much enjoyed my virtual trip to Phoenix today. It is still very cold with snow on the ground here in New England. I especially enjoyed the photo of the rosy-faced lovebirds and the article in the link. Mmmm ... ripe grapefruit picked off the tree in the sun must taste delicious. The penguin fabric is whimsical. The artwork on the walls of hotels near me are usually lighthouses, seascapes and sometimes cityscapes, but not usually abstract works of color. It would make an interesting quilt. The project bag is lovely and useful. I use the plastic bags with cloth zippers from some curtains we bought for my needlework projects, but I should make some large enough for 12" blocks. Thank you for sharing I Like Thursday with me ... :) Pat

QuiltGranma said...

Since you plan on taking grapefruit home with you I assume you drove. Wonderful to get fresh fruit! Wednesday this week we had 10 inches of snow, which is melting now, hopefully not to flood anywhere downstream, but to soak into the soil and be retained for summer use. Wonderful use of your new little pouch! If I try to make things just before a trip or holiday ... something goes wrong and it's a mess. The machine acts up, the threads act up, how is it that you are not so blessed with this offense?

Linda said...

You're making me want to take a winter road trip! Those views are spectacular. Las Vegas NM is one of my favorite places. Only been there once, but I love that whole area. In fact I love NM, period! How fun on the grapefruit, I can't imagine how good they are.
I'm having issues with pressing my hand pieced blocks since they got a little more complicated. And I'm a week behind in posting, but I'm urging myself not to feel pressure - lol!