Purple Dome Aster
Sedum
Plumbago
72 done!
3 OctShower caddies for the lady residents of Wheeler Mission. This is Elfcroft’s third year to partner with friends and colleagues to give shower caddies filled with gifts at Christmas.
Five pieces cut from Outdoor, water-resistant, mildew resistant fabric from Fabricguru.com ( (1) 11×21″, (1) 8×28″, (1) 8″ round with button holes for drainage, (2) 3″x16″ for handles; about 1/3 yard of 54″width)
Ready for delivery to our staging area and stuffing in early November.
Mandy’s tapestry of the life and love of her family
26 SepTapestry of the life and love of her family
Amanda Emmaline Hall, mother of 14
Murrel is Mandy’s grandson and my dad. Frank is Mandy’s grandson and my uncle. Jimmy is Mandy’s grandson and my uncle who died as a child….
Crazy Quilts explained at Indianapolis Museum of Art Exhibit October 2017
“Encouraged individual expression through freeform stitching,
known as the Kensington stitch”
“takes inspiration from the natural world”
Made with love by Great Grandmother Hall
GREAT Grandparents!
10 SepMurrel’s and Frank’s Reflections on the Way Their Grandparent’s Life Used to Be
Hawkins County, Tennessee
Amanda Emmaline Bruner Hall and David Franklin Hall
born September 21, 1877 and August 30, 1875
Parents of fourteen: Ralph Echel, Burley Edgar, Grady Murl, Monnie Pearl,
Kermit Roosevelt, Eula Ethel, Lillie Mae, Dana Harmon, Paul Maxwell,
Wanda Ruth, Carl, Jaunita and Jonita, Dorothy Marie
“Mandy”, “Mom”, “Big Ma-ma” out of affection for her greatness
Energetic, constant motion
Did what needed to be done
Magical cook, even a hand full of beans would turn into a tasty meal
All of the children loved her cooking
Murrel’s favorites were brown gravy, fried potatoes and creamed corn
Grady claimed his talent at a carpenter was a gift from his mother
She made her own rocking chair
She was also known to build a chicken coop
Mom would pound used nails to straighten them to reuse
She took pride and joy in raising chickens
One particular chicken to a special liking to he and followed her all over the yard
Her favorite hymn: “Amazing Grace”
Grandpa was a stone mason by trade
Inventor, liked to find easier ways to do things.
One invention cut corn stalks, another ginned cotton.
Left for California during the Depression (1930s) to earn money.
Came home and set out orchards and grape arbors.
Quilts were a necessity for the beds
The house was cold except around the cooking stove
There was never any indoor plumbing while they lived on the home place.
Cisterns collected water from the barn for animals and garden,
from the house for cooking and cleaning.
The home eventually had an organ and piano.
No electricity until 1947, twelve years after Grady’s family had electricity.
Never owned a car or truck, never drove.
Mules named Dave and Tom.
Mandy’s legacy was discovered in a cedar chest fifty years after her master piece was completed
A quilt…no a tapestry of the life and love of her family.
Made with love by Great Grandmother Hall
I look forward to sharing this treasure with my new-found third-cousin Amy.
Book Review: A Year of Biblical Womanhood
29 AugLove this!
This book has sat on my shelf for years. This morning it captured my attention and held my attention all day. Smart, witty, insightful, creative, knowledgable, curious, honest…
Rachel’s year of Biblical Womanhood was naturally organized with monthly themes based upon scripture. Each month Rachel had a TO DO list for herself based upon scripture (sometimes the list included cooking, sewing, sleeping in a tent). Occasionally, photos and her husband’s journal entries are included. Raised evangelical, Rachel explored this subject with correspondence exchange with a Jewish woman, 3 day retreat at a monastery, Amish and Quaker experiences, extensive internet research, short stories of women of the Bible….and an extraordinary curiosity.
Fantastic resource!
Another review:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/23/a-year-of-biblical-womanhood_n_2006184.html
From Houzz: Moon Gates in Garden
21 AugWith all the interest in the sun and the total solar eclipse today…let’s balance the chatter with photos of what is blooming in Elfcroft’s Moon Garden.
I love the ideas in this Houzz article on Moongates. Enjoy!
Blued-eyed Buddy Boy
3 AugFound 21 days after the hay barn fire!
Blue-eyed Buddy Boy
Buddy Boy is well on his way to recovery.
Site of former 1970s era hay barn at Nina Bay Farm. Check out more images: Click on Nina Bay Farm page or https://elfcroft.me/nina-bay/
Go and Sew
27 JulUpstairs set up…great in the winter
Brother CS6000
Downstairs set up…great in the summer
Downstairs
Amazon “Deal of the Day” for my new Brother CS6000i gave me the opportunity to set up a sewing station at my home away from home to sew more reversible, tri-fold, top-stitched flannel pads for Days for Girls International…and whatever Mom may come up with 😉
For more information on the extraordinary work of Days for Girls International:
Book Review: A Country of Vast Designs
24 Julhttp://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6895978-a-country-of-vast-designs
Excellent reading for a period of American history that is rarely studied.
James K. Polk committed himself to being the most consequential single term US President 1845-1849 by adding Texas, California and Oregon territories; reestablishing an independent Treasury and reducing tariffs. The territorial expansion fulfilled the national “Manifest Destiny”…the goal of being a nation from Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans (sea to shining sea).
Polk was an unlikely candidate having lost two races for Governor of Tennessee. (However, he had been the Speaker of the House for Andrew Jackson and a one term Tennessee governor.) He won the Democratic nomination on the sixth ballot!
James K. Polk accomplished great things in an era when letters were delivered by horseback. Railroads were a novelty. Newspapers were the media for the masses. Imagine! The author Robert W. Merry brought authenticity with many quotes from Polk’s diary, congressional records and newspapers of the day.
Hot Dog! A New Sink
18 Jul
Best value! $1.5o foot long hot dog and soda at Costco stores (Note: chicken caesar salads are also great for $4). We shared this opinion with Mom, who said she had not had a hot dog in a long time. Next thing we know, she and Dad ate hot dogs when they ate out and bought some at the grocery. Of course when we go to the grocery, we are thinking hot dogs and buy some to take home. The twist in the story comes, when we discovered all our condiments had expired (it had been that long since we had hot dogs at home).
elfcroft 