Gourdgeous Day at Marcia's!

Above are many of the incredible gourds that Marcia and Bill have stashed around their house! The last one above is one of several that are hanging from the rafters in Marcia's fabulous studio! They remind me and Marcia also of Yellowstone so that probably explains my obsession with them as I still have not recovered from visiting that wonderful park. You can see the bountiful selection from which I got to pick in the last picture. I filled up a basket trying to get one of each of the various kinds. Bill and Marcia kept most of the ones we dubbed the "candle" gourds as they looked like a burning candle with the wax dripping down the side. For those of you who have not visited Yellowstone, so many places had that kind of configuration as well. White calcium carbonate (from geologic times when Yellowstone was at the bottom of shell/mollusk enriched sea - calcium carbonate is all that remains of those shells) laden springs covering greenery with the multi-colored bacteria providing the pastels.

I got to visit the gardens and spotted this beautiful flower called a Japanese anenome.



I loved this ornamental grass which was one of many displayed in Marcia and Bill's beautiful gardens.
This was a flower called statice which I had heard of and had seen but not growing in a garden! It caught my eye and of course lovely Marcia gifted me with a whole bouquet of all the different colors she had growing the last couple of years. I will have some in my garden next year.


This is my beautiful bouquet of statice which will grace the kitchen table this winter!
This is my basket of gourds that I got to take home for display! There are some of each variety! Don't they just look like a quilt should be made out of them -- the textures and colors......

I did manage to get my pelican quilt basted amid all the chatter and ooohing and ahhing over things. I even managed to get all my tick marks done for my next Ruth McDowell inspired quilt -- the Birds of Paradise. This will be curve pieced but first I want to get the pelican quilt to the sewing machine!!