Saturday, February 25, 2012

Eagle Watch

eagle-12-02-23-dI have spent time lately watching the live Bald Eagle Cam of the nest near Decorah, Iowa where the same pair of Bald Eagles have nested this year.  The photo above I captured from the live video this morning and you can see it snowed overnight and was still snowing some yet this morning.  I believe this is the female eagle.  The female has sort of gray patches of feathers along her eyes and is much larger than the male.  The male’s head is much more tidy and he has an all white head.  His eyes are just a little different than the females too...told you I spent a lot of time watching this pair of eagles.  This is the male below.Untitled-6I will share with you how I got the photos of the eagles.  To capture a photo from the live video I first enlarged the screen by clicking on the dark rectangle at the bottom right of the live video screen.  See photo below.  This opens another window that is just the video.Print-ScreenThe next step is to click on the print screen button on your computer keyboard.  My desktop works a little different than my lap top so will explain both.  On the desktop I just click on the Print Screen button (will probably be in the top row of buttons – mine is on the top right hand side.)  On my laptop I have to hold down the FN button on the bottom left hand side and then click on the Print Screen button.  The Print Screen button is often times abbreviated to "Prt SC" if you can’t find it.

Step 3 is to paste the photo you just captured into a Word program or photo program.  I use Photoshop Elements where I crop it and sharpen it a little if needed then save it.  The close up photos were captured when the Raptor Resource people zoomed in on the Bald Eagle with their camera that is mounted in the tree above the eagles.  The amount of detail on some of the video is amazing as you can tell from this close up photo.  This morning they zoomed in on the female on the nest and were zooming in on the feathers on her back and you could actually see the eagle moving as it breathed.  Amazing to be sure!

If you stop in and look at the video make sure you scroll down and see what else is on the web page.  There is a Facebook site that has updated info, a Social Stream of chatting visitors, captured videos, info about eagle nests, young, eggs, etc.  I can spend a lot of time just watching and reading the Social Stream of chats and the other information on this website.  Eagle-12-02-23-mI am typing this post up on Friday night for posting on Saturday and the chatter is that if the female is going to lay another egg it will probably be tonight.  Will update you if that is the case.  As you can see from the photo above there are only 2 eggs in the nest right now.  This was captured after the male left the nest and the female came back to sit on the eggs so was uncovered only a minute or so.  The third egg was laid around 8 pm on Friday night.  Here are several more photos I captured during the day on Friday if you are interested in seeing them.
Take a look at the website ( www.upstream.tv/decoraheagles )and you too might just become as addicted as I am to watching these magnificent birds.

Until later,
Lynn

Friday, February 24, 2012

Another Win

I have never been so lucky in drawings as I have been this last year.  I have won a free copy of a magazine, a small bag, bookmark and book, a pretty spool and now I’ve won a wonderful pattern by Quiltworks.com.IMG_7265
Actually I won it on their Facebook site and it is a Judy Niemeyer foundation pattern for Glacier Star.  This has the foundation papers for the quilt and is packaged in 6 large ziploc bags so it was quite the package when it arrived in the mail.  One of my sisters also won a pattern so it was a nice surprise for both of us.  I don’t know when I will make the quilt but it is a very nice prize to win.

I guess I will keep entering these give away contests as you never know I just might be a very lucky girl from now on.  Wonder if I should start buying lottery tickets too….Na, will save my money for quilt supplies instead!

Lynn

Thursday, February 23, 2012

One to Send, One to Keep

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I really liked the postcard I made and sent to our relatives in Hawaii so decided to make one for us as a memory keeper of our trip.  As a reminder, here is the one I made to send.

One thing I did not tell you was that when I make postcards to send I make them to fit inside a computer card envelope….you know those computer cards printed on a piece of copy paper that is folded in half both ways.  This envelope is 4 3/8” x 5 3/4”  but make your card to fit what ever size envelope you have, minus a little to make sure it easily slides in and out of the envelope.  The cards stay clean when they are mailed inside an envelope and you won’t take a chance that all your hard work gets ripped up or ruined in the machinery that sorts the mail. 

To make this second card I used the same design, same fabrics for the leaves and flowers but did choose different light blue fabric for the background.  Since it doesn’t have to fit in an envelope I made it a little larger – finished size 5” x 6”.  Here it is all fused onto the Peltex/Timtex (don’t remember which it is) all ready to quilt.  It will be trimmed to size after the quilting.IMG_7214 I used the same threads to quilt the card as the smaller one….YLI Silk thread.  I just love it as it is so beautiful and the colors are so luscious!IMG_7240
I chose to quilt this card differently than the first card.  I quilted a leaf like the fused leaves then quilted bubbles in the background.  I do like to quilt around all the edges of the applique shapes and also like to echo quilt around all the shapes.IMG_7251
I did finish the edges differently on this piece and like it better than the zig-zag edge.  It just looks more finished and neater.  Using a wave blade on my rotary cutter I cut a 1” strip of my background fabric that had fusible on the back.  The top and bottom strips were fused on the front first and were cut about 1/2” longer on each end.  I wrapped the ends around the side edges of the card then fused the binding to the back of the card.  This finishes the corners of the card.  The side pieces were fused to the front and cut the width of the card then fused to the back.  The last step was to straight stitch around the card catching the fused binding.  A very neat and tidy edge to be sure.

I do love this little card quilt and it will help us remember a great vacation.

Lynn

PS Check out the previous post for more hints and tips on how I made this postcard at the following address  http://nebraskaviews.blogspot.com/2012/02/what-happened.html

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

What Happened?

It started out so innocently…I was anxious to get to sewing again after being away from it for a while and had a project in mind.  A good start don’t you think?  I decided to make a postcard to send to our cousins – the ones that hosted us for a weekend while we were in Hawaii.  A small project and the best part I could finish it quickly too.  I settled on a pattern I got from the internet – free graphics of hibiscus and leaves.  I printed the free graphics on paper, enlarged it and used it for the patterns for my applique.  Applique pattern acquired on this webpageIMG_7128
Next step – pull fabrics.  I decided to use batik fabrics as I love the way the colors blend dark to light values on just one piece of fabric.  These are the choices I came up with as a start for the postcard.  I always make adjustments to my fabric choices as I go along as sometimes the colors or values don’t play nice with each other when it comes down to the correct size pieces.  As you can see I did eliminate two of the greens and just selected different areas of the one green fabric for shading of the leaves.  I think the values work ok but will know more after I cut the pieces out of the fused fabric.
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I cut the shapes and arranged them into a pleasing configuration.  I did use tweezers to nudge the petals and leaves into place as it is much easier than using my fingers.  As you can see, the final design is a little different than the free graphics design I printed.IMG_7133 At this stage the flowers and leaves are just fused to the blue background fabric.  I cut a piece of Timtex larger than the finished postcard and fused the backing fabric to one side.  I quilted around the applique shapes then quilted the background with a combination of feathers and echo quilting.  I used silk thread as I love the weight and the sheen of the stitching.  When the entire postcard was quilted I trimmed the postcard to size and fused a message printed on cardstock to the back and trimmed it to size.
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The last step was to zig-zag around the outside through all the layers.  I used burgundy thread – it is OK but after it was finished I wasn’t sure it was the right thread color choice but once the stitching is done with the paper cardstock it can’t be redone.  I sure wouldn’t want to try to hit the holes in the paper a second time and new holes would pretty much tear the paper.

I am sure you are still wondering about the title of this blog…..take a look at the photo below.  Disaster has struck my sewing room.
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I will admit that just doing the postcard didn’t make this whole mess.  I left my finished cup of tea on the table, another lens for my camera in the small blue and black bag and an extra battery for my camera.  The bin that I pulled the postcard fabric is still sitting on a stool and is overflowing, boxes from new shoes with one of my purse/bags on top.  You know when you are in a hurry how you change bags and go on your merry way, well I never got back to it to take it to it’s storage place so there it sits.  Am thinking of doing another project where I need wide neckties so have 3 or 4 draped over thread boxes.  An open closet door and another purse/bag that got set aside after using it hanging on cupboard doors.  I really must put those bags away!  Peeking out behind the tea cup is a ball of yarn and a partially finished dishcloth. 

Of course I was using the sewing machine, iron, starch and the ironing surface but everything else could have been put away and I sure would have had a lot more room to work and not have to walk around an obstacle course to get to the iron.  I don’t know about you but when I am in a zone to create I just forge ahead and clean up afterwards.  If I stop to clean before I am done I just loose my momentum.  Maybe I will get it cleaned up before I get another project started….or maybe not.  I certainly won’t show this photo again anyway!

Lynn

Saturday, February 18, 2012

What I Like and Don’t Like About Some Blogs

imageI read Sew Many Ways blog and on this last Friday she discussed a very interesting subject….what she likes or dislikes about the settings people use, how the blog looks and reads, etc. Sew Many Ways blog Friday February 17, 2012 Read the post she wrote and all the comments people made, especially if you are a blogger.  You can find what people like or dislike and maybe make your blog more appealing to your readers. 

I thought I would follow suit so here is a list of the Dos and Don’ts as far as what I like to see or not see on the blogs I read.  I know everyone likes different things but found out a few definite things that make a good blog in several peoples eyes by reading the Sew Many Ways blog and comments.  Here is my list:

1. I like easy to read print which means no fancy fonts or not many changes of colors or types of fonts per blog post.  Reading on a computer can be very difficult with fancy fonts, they take longer to load too.  Remember everyone is not on high speed internet service.  Changing colors too many times in a blog post is very distracting and hard to read.

2. I do like the print to be right side justified – this means do not center the print as it is very hard to read.   Centered photos and their captions but don’t center all the print.

3. Hyperlink items that you refer to so they can be clicked on to take you to the item being discussed – saves time over typing it in Google, and then sometimes you can’t find the product or article you are looking for without a direct link.

4. Love blog posts with NO music – again it is very distracting and takes longer to load the blog.

5. Do like posts without advertising in the center where the body of the post is located – the odd advertising between posts and in the middle of a post are distracting.  I don’t mind the advertising on the side columns as they do generate income for some bloggers.

6. Do like reading a blog post all on one page – posts where I have to click again to read the rest of the blog post can be annoying as you have to wait again for it to load.

7. I do like good grammar and spelling but overlook it as I know I sometimes make mistakes too, besides a lot of bloggers I read are not native English speakers so how can I expect them to know all our “rules”, especially when I don’t speak,write or read another language at all.

8. Like a search box on blogs or labels to click on a certain subject so I can go back and look at previous blog entries on a certain subject.

9. I like shorter paragraphs with a visible break between the paragraphs – again easier to read than long unbroken paragraphs.  Preview the post for how it looks visually before publishing the post.

10. Photos, Photos, Photos – this should have been at the top of my clip_image002list.  I don’t like to read blogs without photos and they don’t have to be professional quality photos either.  Sometimes it makes the writing make more sense and tutorials make more sense with photos too.  I learned when I started blogging that if I had a photo near the top of each blog post I had more visitors.  I joined a few blog groups like Quilter Bloggers and they show a small excerpt of each blog entry that members post and if you have photo near the top it will be shown on that site enticing more visitors to visit your blog.

11. I like to reply to each person that leaves a comment on my blog and if you are a no reply commenter I have no email address to send a reply.  I have had questions asked of me that I can not answer because there is no valid email address.  So Cal Gal wrote a good blog post on this subject titled “Wanted Quilters That Never Win A Giveaway” posted Dec. 13 2011  She explains how to make sure you have an address that can be replied to.  Make sure you scroll down to the bottom of that post past all the names to get to the rest of her instructions.  Sew Many Ways Sept. 25, 2009 also has instructions on changing from a “no reply” blogger

12. After reading the comment on Sew Many Ways blog post about people not liking the word ID that you have to fill out when leaving a comment on someones blog I decided to change mine to not have it anymore and use comment approval before they got posted to my blog instead.  I got so much spam in the day I had it turned off I turned it back on again.  I guess the word ID keeps spammers from using some sort of automatic commenting so my word ID will stay turned on as I don’t want that junk to come into my email box.

13. I love to know where bloggers are from – I don’t need to know specific town or address but State, Country is nice to know.  So put that on your blog somewhere please.

14. I also like to see a photo of the blogger  - it helps me to picture them when I am reading their blog.

15. I like positive blogs.  Everyone has a bad day once in a while or our friends/family, etc. irritate us once in a while but I really don’t want to read about it.  An occasional gripe is overlooked but if there are a lot of them and I will probably stop reading that blog.  I also try on my blog to not post too much about my health problems although I know I have posted about my clumsy fall down the steps, shoulder surgery but am trying not to report every paper cut or even every medical crisis as most people don’t want to read about that either.

16. Besides the photo of yourself on your blog I like to read personal accounts too, funny stories or interesting things/photos from where you live and work in your blog posts.  What may seem ordinary to you may be unusual and very interesting to me.  Keep the blog fun to read - now that I wrote that I sure hope mine is fun to read.

OK, now I have a few questions for all the readers of my blog.  How are my photos?  Are they too large in the blog or too large when you click on them to enlarge them?  What about my header – is it pleasant to look at, too big, etc.?  I am reluctant to change my header as I had a doosie of a time getting it right the last time I changed it.  Are my blog posts too long as I tend to get wordy sometimes?  How are my tutorials?  Do they explain the techniques so that you can understand them?  What about the things I have on the sides – too busy, too much, etc.?  Does my blog load slow or is it quick enough?

I did not set out to make my blog just about quilting, thus the name Nebraska Views.  I try to showcase my quilting but there are times when I am just not quilting or sewing much at all or have nothing to show quilt-wise.  I like to share what is going on here on our farm, local things going on and other hobbies I tackle once in a while.  I hate it when I go over a week without posting something as I sure don’t want to loose readers because I don’t post often enough.

I am still working on the Pages at the top of my blog and don't seem to find time to get the Finished Projects sorted and arranged like I want....maybe someday.

I am sure as soon as I post this I will think of other things I like or dislike about certain blogs but these are the main things.  I really want people to respond to this blog with their likes and dislikes and please, please, please tell me if there are things about my blog that you wish I would change or add.  I will read all with an open mind and may change something or not depending on if it is something I had not thought of and agree with.  I will also will keep things that I like as well because, after all it is my blog.

So sorry this turned into such a long post - didn't know I had so much to say on the subject!

The cute pictures on this blog post are all from my PrintMaster Gold 18 program.

Happy Blogging – Lynn
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Monday, February 13, 2012

Vacation Memories

IMG_6446Any spare time I have had in the last week I have been working on the photos from our trip to Hawaii…yes we went to Hawaii so if that is what you guessed you were right.  As you can imagine, we had a wonderful time and going to a warm place during Nebraska’s winter makes it even more pleasant.  This was a first trip there for both John and I.  We loved it and want to go back again someday.

We first flew to the island of Oahu for 3 days – toured Pearl Harbor, climbed Diamond Head (560 feet from the visitors center to the top…whew that was a climb), drove around the island, ate good seafood, spent time on the beach, etc.   I couldn’t get enough of watching the ocean and beaches, something we don’t get any of here in land locked Nebraska.

Flew from Oahu to the big island of Hawaii and spent the rest of our vacation there.  We have relatives there so spent the weekend with them in Hilo taking side trips out each day.  The last part of our trip we spent on the other side of Hawaii in a resort.  Again lots of ocean viewing, volcano, green sea turtles, whale watching, attended a luau to mention a few things we did and saw. 

If you are interested click on the following photos to see a few more of the photos we took…hard to believe we took over 600 photos but when you can take digital photos it doesn’t matter how many you take as you can get rid of the bad ones.  Don’t worry, of course I didn’t post that many photos here!  I do want to have a photo book printed of the trip so have spent a lot of time sorting and deciding which ones to use.  Now to get that part done..you know I am holding myself hostage until I get it done as I won’t let myself sew until the photos are sized, tweaked and printed.  I am almost there now though.
I will be back to sewing soon – need to finish that bird bag, need to finish my challenge quilt and who knows what new stuff I want to start.

Until Later,
Lynn

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