Practicing Making Manx Squares....

I know this week's pictures don't look much different from last week's, but I have been practicing making a few different sizes of Manx squares.  For the record... not that anyone's keeping a record, but last week's finished hotpad was about 10 inches square.  

Wanting to make some different sizes, I cut more 2 1/2 inch strips.

With the goal of making a larger square than the first one, I kept stitching until I finally ran out of room with my backing fabric.  I finished when it got to about 13 inches square, but sewn into something it will likely end up being around 12 inches square.

I have no idea what to do with it.  When I first set out to make a larger square, I though maybe I'd make a blanket of them.  But about half-way through, I began to have serious doubts I had it in me to hand-sew a whole blanket of Manx squares.  At a minimum, I'd need to make twenty squares, and that would only make something the size of a throw, not an actual blanket. 

It's not padded enough to be another hotpad, and it's kind of small for a pillow. I could possibly add one more round and get it to almost 14 inches square, but for now, I've set aside and I'm counting it as learning experience.

Still wanting to make enough to sew some together, I decided I would make four smaller squares.

One 8-inch square finished.  Three more to go...

Meanwhile, I have the itch to cut up some more colorful fabrics in my stash and make more hotpads - in fun colors - maybe to give as gifts?  

Or... another totally respectable choice is to just move onto something else.

~~~~~

On the weather front, it's been gorgeous since late last week, and I managed to do a massive weeding of the strawberry bed.  Once again, I failed to take a before picture, but trust me, it was incredible - grass up to my waist, dandelions with roots the size of carrots, one stealth thistle that I really should have had leather gloves for (ouch!), and a particularly pernicious viney ground cover weed that entangled itself with the strawberry plants.  It required that I dig up the strawberry plants and separate them from this awful invader.  There were a number of strawberry plant casualties by the time I was finished filling over two industrial-sized garbage bags with the weeds I pulled out.  

Last autumn, I prepped the two back sections (above) and mulched them with straw while I left the first (front) section of this strawberry bed to fend for itself all winter.  It did pretty well, but the weeding I had to do this spring was crazy.  I told myself to not let the weeds get that out of control again.  I had such good intentions in April and May, but with temps in the 90's for weeks, and humidity often in the 90's, for most of June and all of July, the strawberry bed sat out there doing its thing - on the other side of the detached garage - somewhat out of sight, I happily put it out of my mind.

Until it turned beautiful on Thursday - and looked like it was going to be like that through the weekend.  Knowing we wouldn't likely have temps like that again until September or October, I got out there on Thursday and Friday, and whipped it into shape. I still need to thin out and transplant some of the plants in the back two beds, then put straw down for weed control, but after that (hopefully) all I'll need to do come November or December is to cover it all with more straw, and tuck it in for its long winter's nap.  

Oh, yes! And I hope to plant some garlic in there, too.  By thinning out the strawberry plants, there is plenty of room for garlic to grow, and be dug out by the time the strawberry plants want to start spreading.  At least that's how I'm picturing it working.

And lastly...  I leave you with a picture of the cutest little watermelon: 

Or maybe I'm partial since it's a first for me.  I hope it is successful at growing into a big delicious watermelon and I can tell you all about it in a few weeks.  :)

Have a great week, everyone!