Under the influence...

The Service Berry trees in our backyard are loaded with berries this year...

the most our 3 young trees have ever yielded. 

Just beautiful.

Their abundance of berries has been a distraction for me, 

and an attraction for the birds...

Many minutes each day,
 have been spent watching young robins
 and parent robins
 feasting upon the ripened berries.  

 

 

Since these are young trees,

 their branches don't hold the weight of the birds very well.

But that doesn't stop their determination to get each and every berry.

 

The berries are mostly now all plucked,

except those hanging out along the outer limbs.

 

 

This is where bird-acrobatics comes in handy...

  Flying up to a branch and making their "pluck" in mid-air.  The birds all claim to "own" these trees...lots of cackling, scolding, and the chasing of others off...no one wants to share! 

 It is quite entertaining to watch.

 

Just a heads up, I will for-warn you... 

 

You will see lots of berries in my future designs,
and birds too!
  (piece pictured is a future release titled, "Paper Snowflakes"....to be released at August market, along with The Noel Sampler & Peacock at Manor Hill...you will find berries & birds on these pieces, too ;) 

 

 

I guess you could say,

 I've been  "under the influence of berries",

 lately....

 

X X X X X X

 

And on a side note...

See the little wooden hoop?

I get emails quite often asking,

"I noticed your hoop on your blog." 

"What brand do you use, and do you sell them?"

 

My favorite hoop is a little wooden Duchess hoop. 

 I purchased a few of these at an antique shop several years ago,

 and I love them. 

 They have a strip of wool felt that holds the fabric,

 just how I like it,

 and it is gentle on my stitches. 

 Also,

 no metal hardware for my floss to get hung up on.

 

Just as the ad says...

The above ad is one I purchased on eBay, while perusing there for more Duchess hoops. 

 This ad is from a 1915 magazine. 

 If you enlarge the picture,

 you will see the hoops sold for 10 cents. 

  If are lucky enough to find one in an antique shop, eBay or Etsy,

 I highly recommend them....they are my favorite hoop!

 

With thy Needle &Thread,

Brenda