Tuesday, July 18, 2017

13 Stars and an Old Bird Finally Photographed

Design - "13 Stars"
Designer - Subrosa
Fabric - 28 count Lakeside Basketweave linen
Fibers - DMC - 2 strands over 2 threads
Started - 1 July 2017
Completed - 15 July 2017

I really, really, really like this design.  I started out stitching the blue part of the border and the first set of stars.  As soon as I added the white accents to the border, the design really 'popped'.  It is simple and repetitive and perfect!

We've had day after day of blue skies with temperatures in the low to mid-80's. Perfect July weather.

I've even had a Red-tailed Hawk "making lazy circles in the sky".

It is a juvenile, so it was also yelling and screaming and loudly calling. 

Pretty sure I caught a young Raven with a parent. The bird on the left is much smaller than the one on the right.

A California Scrub Jay echos the colors of the sky.

A male American Goldfinch at the fountain.

The birds eat at the feeders and are also consuming thistle seeds from nature...

...and my feeders.

Here's an infrequent summer visitor - a Chestnut-backed Chickadee.

Nice to see a couple of these agile birds.

The Bushtits have raised their young and are now active in a flock once again.

They are such cuties!

My Upside Down Bird - the Red-breasted Nuthatch.

He's so much fun to watch at the feeder.

Pardon this semi-terrible photo, but I think I finally managed to capture a bird I frequently hear, but rarely see - a Wrentit!  I call this the 'Bouncing Ball Bird" as it's song replicates that pattern.  You can hear its typical voice here.

8 comments:

Margaret said...

OK, that is one cool bird call! Bouncing ball indeed! Nice that you got a pic too! Love your stitching finish, and as always I enjoy your wonderful pictures.

Mary said...

Neat that you got a glimpse of the reclusive wren tit. I think it's impressive that you can recognize the calls of the birds, the cornell site is a great one for helping with learning them. The red tail hawks are plentiful here, I enjoy seeing them hunt for food over the wetlands.
Oh, and the cross stitch is lovely, I love Estzer designs. How are you going to finish this one? Mary

MaryO said...

Beautiful bird pics - so sweet and LOVELY stitching project!

MaryO1230

Maggee said...

Love your 13 Stars finish! Going to look into the pattern... The red-tailed hawk gave you quite a show. Cool! Having the Chestnut-backed Chickadee still around is not a normal occurrence, is it? Looks like it is molting or whatever... Boy, I look forward to trying to see a Red-breasted Nuthatch this year... it is a hard one for me! And again, never heard of a bird you saw... this time the Wrentit. So very very cool! Congrats!

Robin in Virginia said...

Congratulations on your 13 Stars piece! I really like this design and I can see it stitched in different color ways as well. Gorgeous bird pictures, Beth!

RJ said...

Hi Beth! Love your 13 stars stitch. As always such beautiful bird photos. Enjoyed seeing them. RJ

Barb said...

Great photos! I had never heard of a wrentit! 13 Stars is lovely!!

Carol said...

13 Stars is SUCH a pretty finish! You know me, I am a sucker for anything blue and white :)