Thursday, October 27, 2011

Finished for Friday: Which Witch's Boot?




Yay! Doing my happy dance today because I got my Halloween project finished. Before Halloween even.

The original pattern is by Crabapple Hill.   The inner border is supposed to be a stripe, but I couldn't find one I liked in my stash so I used jumbo ric rac instead.  Because ric rac cures everything.  The tinting was done with crayons and I used Cosmo floss for the first time for the embroidery.  Lovely stuff.

In a classic move quilters everywhere will appreciate, I managed to run out of my orange thread with only about 4 inches of the border left to quilt.  Had to stop everything and run out to the quilt shop.  Luckily they had the color I needed.

Now I can sit back and enjoy the next few days until Halloween.  After I make popcorn balls, help the kids with costumes, set up a party for the teenagers...

What have you been up to this week?  Link up and share.  Thanks for stopping by!


Friday, October 21, 2011

Finished for Friday: Revisiting Anne Shirley



On a whim this week, I read Anne of Green Gables on my Kindle.

I realized that the last time that I read this book, I was probably about Anne's age - 12. I might have laughed at all the right parts and enjoyed her eccentricities. I certainly remember some of the episodes. But this week as I read it, I saw the story from the perspective of a parent, and the story was sweet and touching and new.  Here is Anne at the tender age of fifteen:
And when I put on longer skirts I shall feel that I have to live up to them and be very dignified.  It wont even do to believe in fairies then, I'm afraid; so I'm going to believe in them with all my whole heart this summer.
Ah, that tipping point between belief and growing up!  It's a little heartbreaking to watch as they become aware of it.

Anne's wise adoptive mother Marilla echos the sentiments of every mother;
I just couldn't help thinking of the little girl you used to be, Anne.  And I was wishing you could have stayed a little girl, even with all your queer ways.  You've grown up now and you're going away; and you look so tall and stylish and so-so-different altogether in that dress -- as if you didn't belong in Avonlea at all -- and I just got lonesome thinking it all over.
To which Anne, wiser than her years, replies;
I'm not a bit changed -- not really.  I'm only just pruned down and branched out.  The real ME -- back here -- is just the same.  It won't make a bit of difference where I go or how much I change outwardly; at heart I shall always be your little Anne, who will love you and Matthew and dear Green Gables more and better every day of her life.
*sniff*  Hand me a tissue!

Have you ever gone back to re-read a favorite book from childhood?  Sometimes a sweet simple story really hits the spot.

What have you been up to this week?  Link up and let us see.  Thanks for joining in and have a great weekend!


Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Needlework Tuesday: Which Witch's Boot


I've got a Halloween project under my needle these days.  This is a pattern by Crabapple Hill called "Which Witch's Boot?"  It's not easy to see in the picture, but this is what I needed the box of 64 crayons for.  The boot and candy and jack-o-lanterns are all colored in before stitching.


I'm using Cosmo floss, which is the new stuff everyone seems to be talking about all over the internet.  It's very silky and the variegated colors are really pretty.  I could make these buttonhole stitch flowers all day.

I don't know if this will be done by Halloween - there are a lot of pieced borders to make - but it is fun to stitch something seasonal during the actual season.  It will be fun to display next year.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather at Books and Quilts

Monday, October 17, 2011

Makes My Monday: Blossom

This past weekend I attended the Pacific International Quilt Festival.  It's a huge quilt show held every year in October.  I look forward to it all year.

The quilts on display were stunning.  The grand prize winners in various categories were simply breathtaking.  It was such a huge show, with so many amazing quilts to see that I took two different afternoons in order to see it all.

After a few hours though, my brain started to hurt.  When I look at quilts, I can't help but picture the techniques that went into making them.  I visualize doing the techniques myself - and I end up exhausted at the intricacies I view over and over with each quilt.  One woman I talked to there described herself as "visually overloaded."  I know exactly what she meant.

So to break from looking at all those quilts, I visited the vendors who filled the convention hall.  I got lots of ideas, a few odds and ends of supplies, and this kit that is just so stinking cute.


I don't often get kits, because I have so much fabric on hand myself I usually just need the pattern, but the model they had on display for this one was just too wonderful to pass up.  Lots of rich wools and soft flannels.

Blossom the pumpkin girl (or is that the name of her cat?) probably wont get started until closer to next Autumn, but just the anticipation of working on this one makes my Monday.

To see more Monday makers please visit Cheryl at Twinfatuation.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Finished for Friday: Halloween table runner

If you read my last post you got a sneak peak at this project.  I whipped this one up when I realized I didn't have any appropriate cover for my buffet.  I found this incredibly cute fabric in my stash that I picked up years ago.


Isn't that cute?  The great thing about making your own table runner is that you can decide exactly how big it should be.  I decided that this one should just fit on top and not hang over.  I'm pleased with how it turned out.


As you can see, Halloween doesn't really get too scary around here.  A few melty candles and the ghost picture I stitched up last year...


...and a very bad black cat.

What have you been up to this week?  Link up and let us cheer you on.  Thanks for joining in and have a great weekend.



Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Why I Shouldn't Make Table Runners

Cats are attracted to quilts.  I get it.  I've had cats for a long time.  I train my cats to stay off counters and tables however, and for the most part, they get it.  But in the last week there has been an alarming amount of misbehavior, mostly associated with the Fall decorating.  Most of these pictures were taken by the kids, who grab the camera regularly to collect photo evidence for me.

Dear cats, let's be clear; this is where you can hang out.  A nice black blanket at the foot of the bed.  To match your black fur.  (So why is it always covered in white hair?)



This nice wool table runner is NOT your bed.


I don't care if it's a good place for a bath.  Your cuteness will not sway me.


This perch by the window?  Perfectly acceptable.  Hang out here all you want.  I see you're enjoying the batting scraps I put there to keep it cozy.  Have fun watching the squirrels on the fence.


This new runner I just made?  Completely off limits!  I haven't even had a chance to post it on Finished for Friday yet.


I give up.  You're not supposed to be up on this table either.  If you do this while I'm home and you know I'm going to go after you with the squirt gun, what the heck do you do when we're all out of the house?  Raid the refrigerator?? (Sorry for the blur - need to school the junior photographers on proper flash use).


So maybe I should give up on table runners entirely.  Or just call them something else - like CAT BEDS.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Makes My Monday: That Box of 64


Do we ever outgrow the love for a new box of crayons?  I had to get this box for a new project I'm starting that uses crayon tinting on fabric.  The instructions were very specific - I had to get the box of 64.

Good thing it still has the familiar old sharpener in the back, because it looks like that yellow one is broken.

It takes so little to make me happy.  When was the last time you played with crayons?

Visit Cheryl at Twinfatuation to see more Monday makers.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Finished for Friday: Stars Quilt


I got the final stitches into this quilt at last - in time to pack it away for next summer's decor.  How did Fall sneak up on me so fast?  Oh well, this one will be nice to pull out with my other red white and blue quilts next summer.

I wonder if it's too late to get working on a Christmas quilt?  Knowing me, it probably is...

Link up and let us see what you've accomplished this week.  Thanks for stopping by, and have a great weekend.



Monday, October 3, 2011

Makes My Monday: The Taste of Autumn


Hooray for Fall!  Time to break out the pumpkin.  I love pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies., pumpkin everything.  A friend posted a recipe for pumpkin butterscotch muffins on Pinterest and I had to try them.  But of course, this week I don't have butterscotch chips in the house, so I substituted chocolate chips.  As Drama Girl tells me "chocolate chips work in everything."

Delicious results.  I'll put the recipe below.  But first, are you on pinterest.com?  If you would like an invitation to try it out, leave me an email with your email address.  There is a link to my email in my sidebar.  I'd be happy to let you in on the fun.  You can find my boards at http://pinterest.com/threeundertwo/

This recipe is from allrecipes.com, and you can print it easily from there.  I made mine regular size instead of mini and baked for 18 minutes.


Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup melted butter
  • 1 cup canned pumpkin
  • 1 (6 ounce) package butterscotch chips

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease mini-muffin pan with cooking spray.
  2. Sift together the flour, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk together the eggs, butter, and pumpkin in a separate bowl. Mix the flour mixture with the egg mixture. Stir in the butterscotch chips; pour into each cup of the muffin pan to about 3/4 full.
  3. Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 10 to 12 minutes.

Visit Cheryl at Twinfatuation for more "Makes My Monday" posts and start your week with a smile.

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