quilt update

Well, I have been cutting and cutting and sewing and sewing - all by hand. So here is a picture of what I have so far. Finished product will be 50 x 60

Quilting

I mde the Flower Garden quilt as a Home Ec (do they even have that anymore?) project. My grandmother had a good laugh, took it apart and repieced it. Then her and Aunt Virgie quilted it and I still have it.
Later, when I left for the military, she sent me another quilt and told me "This is for you to sleep under - alone."
When I got married a couple of years later she said, Remember that quilt? He can sleep under it now, if he aint already been"
So now, I will step by step share with you the making of a Sleep Alone Quilt I am making for my daughter.

First step cut thousands of pieces like this.

You will need a solid color for the centers and  back ground and small print for the middle ring. then you will have to hand sew, a lot.
You will need to make about 54 of these. OK, that is where I am at so far. Stay tuned for next step

Since I have moved into an efficiency apartment for the work week, I don't have internet, or cable or facebook or a TV. I am getting an amazing amount of real life things done. I have created 4 Advent Calenders, two small ones for my sweetie petie little next door neighbors and two for my older teens.
The smaller ones are 1 yard of felt, and the larger ones are a yard and a quarter of felt. The first thing you might want to do it sew the blanket binding on the edges - one pack for each calender. I learned this like most things the hard way. If you glue the pockets on first it is a very heavy and unwieldy project.
I hand drew my stockings for the pockets on heavy cardboard. I chose stockings, but I thought about Christmas Trees - It would have been hard to get goodies stuffed in the narrow tops, or round bulbs, which might have been fun to decorate but I was on a time schedule.
A little hint, when you are tracing these on felt, trace them from the back so that when you cut them out the ink doesn't show (another lesson learned the hard way).
I found on line for free a stencil for the numbers, it is a lot of numbers to cut, 1 through 25 four times. I hate the number one now. I didn't leave enough room to put the little girls names at the top, but I wanted to put my teens names on theirs. I couldn't find a free stencil for letters. I looked at the craft store, and when I finally found some about the right size, they were priced as much as the rest of my whole project, so I decided to free hand it and hope for the best.
Once you have stitched the blanket binding to the edges, hem your top and bottom. If you are going to insert a dowel to hang it from make sure your top him is wide enough to accomodate. I am hanging mine with pants hangers. I found this to be better due to the weight once they are filled.
Assuming you have cut out what ever shape you are using for pockets and numbers you can begin hot gluing.  I bought the bag of 100 glue sticks - go ahead and splurge you're going to need them. Might as well buy a box of bandaids while you are there.
If you are anal you might want to measure everything out and pin it to make sure it is straight. Or you can be like me and slap it all on there and hope its good. WARNING WILL ROBINSON: You cannot "unglue" from felt. It will rip. (once again, the hard way.)
Now comes the fun (and perhaps expensive part) Fill those pockets. If you are really generous you could get some gift cards. If you are broke like me, get a bag of Hershey Kisses (eat part yourself), some lifesavers or other individually wrapped hard candy. I splurged and bought a few special items, like a pack of pop-rocks for my son, and a few candy necklaces.

This was a fun project but plan on spending about 10 to 12 hours with all the cutting and gluing.

It is the day before Thanksgiving and I am happy to be home in North Dakota with a house full of kids and a lot of food to prepare. I hope all of you are having a wonderful holiday also.
My sewing machine, after 35 years of faithful service has died, leaving me in the middle of a project.
I am borrowing a machine and will get back on task this week, and pictures of my advent calenders will be posted soon

Closing me down?

 got an evil email, threatening to close down my blog, if I didn't well, blog. But with moving again, I don't have home internet so i is hard to write. The good news is I am working on some new things and I will post pictures soon.

Thanksgiving Calender

This is kind of like an Advent Calender, but it is for Thanksgiving.
You need a yard of felt - your choice of color, I used dark brown, on sale at Jo-Anns for $2.99
Then I got 11 sheets of a lighter brown, and tan. I traced my hands just like you probably did as a kid. I used red, orange and yellow and cut extra fingers to make the tails fuller, and also red for the gobbler thingy. I got the felt on sale 4/$1.00
I hotglued the turkeys together, and added a plastic eye on the thumb.
WARNING: If you are going to sew your turkeys on, don't put your eye on until after you do. I sewed three of them on, and it was a big pain managing that much material, the needle didn't want to go through that many layers. I ended up hotglueing the rest of the turkeys on.
You aren't ready to do that yet.
I used orange blanket binding and sewed it down the sides - it took 2 three yard packages.  Then I flipped the top down and machine stitched a hem big enough to allow a wooden dowel to slip through.
You can't see it in the picture, but I sewed orange and gold beaded braiding as a hanger. This was the most expensive part - it was $7 for two yards.
Then I glued all the turkeys on.
Then with white felt, I cut out numbers - I didn't have a stencil so I hand drew them on cardboard and made my own. I glued the numbers on.

One suggestion - I made this for two children and trying to fit two treats in each pocket was tight. It would have been better for one child.
Also, filling it was the expensive part. Except for the braiding for the hanger, the project was about $10 to $12.  Then filling it was about $30.

Some suggestions for filling it - tiny playdough, cute toothbrushes or pencils, tattoos, candy, gum, sachet, hot chocolate packs, jewelry, little cars, little soaps, crayons.
This was fun and I can't wait to make them a Christmas one, I already bought the supplies.

This is a mirror I picked up at an auction for less than $20. It was white and it hung in my dining room, but now I have moved and I am doing a bedroom in pink and gray. I used duct tape to edge the mirror to protect it. It only took one coat, and I can't emphasize enough that using a quality paint makes all the difference. This was done with Valspar, very expensive but I have managed to do a lot of furniture with less than a gallon.

This is an old bed I picked up at a junk store and made a few repairs on. I am doing a pink and gray bedroom. I used Valspar paint, which was about $40 a gallon. But with paint you really do get what you pay for. I still had to use two coats because the bed was black when I was in an oriental phase.
That center is a piece of cheap plywood, but I am on the hunt for an appropriate size mirror to replace it.

Spray paint queen

I love spray paint. I love skeleton keys, which I had been collecting. I rounded out my collection with a few I scored from ebay. My step dad had made this box for my Mom, and she used it for many years. It was laying around one of my buildings, so I spray painted it with Krylon smoke gray. I use Krylon Ballet slipper pink for just about everything I don't turn red. I am going to use that gummy stuff you can use to hang posters to fasten them in, so that you can't see the fasteners. Total cost, about $7 for spray paint, and about $10 for some keys.

Apples are in season and affordable.
so after the wonderful carmel apple pie, I decided to make these apple dumplings. Couldn't be simpler.
Take an apple, peel, core and slice into 8 pieces.
Get a can of refridgerated crescent rolls. Starting at the small end, roll a slice of apple up in one of the rolls and seal the edges.
Put it in a greased pan, After you have all 8 of them made, then melt a stick of butter and some sugar and cinnamon. I am not much of a measuring person, but about 3/4 cup sugar, and the cinnamon to taste. Pour it over your dumplings and then pour over 1/2 can of Mountain Dew.

Bake it in a preheated 350 degree oven.  It takes about 40 minutes, just watch them so they don't burn on top. Very yummy.

Well, I was broke this weekend, so it involved a lot of cooking. My roomie had a few green tomatoes hanging on the vines, so I picked them and fried them. Super easy. Beat an egg in some milk in a bowl, and in a different bowl mix up some corn meal and if you want some Italian bread crumbs.
Slice your tomatoes, the thinner the better.  Dip them in the liquid and then roll them in the cornmeal mix.
Heat your oil in a skillet and when it is nice and hot drop the tomatoes in the hot oil, When nicely browned flip and brown the other side. Set aside on a paper towel and when you have cooked all of them, serve.

Oh, add a little salt and pepper to your cornmeal mix

carmel apple pie

9" deep dish crusts - 2
1/2 C brown suger, 1/4 c melted butter, 1/3 C flour - combine these, mix well and set aside
5 cups thinly sliced apples, 2/3 C white sugar, 3T flour, 2 t cinnamon (I used more), 1 t lemon juice
Toss together in a large bowl until the apples are coated
20 caramels cut in half
...

Put half the apples in the pie crust, 1/2 the toffee mix (the brown sugar-flour-butter concoction) and 1/2 caramels.
Repeat and then put on the pie top and seal the edges well. Cut your steam vents and then brush the top with a little milk.
Cover with foil an bake 25 minutes at 375, the remove the foil and bake 25 more minutes.
Suggestions: I did not peel my apples and my hubs said he wished I would have.
The caramels could have been cut in 1/4ths because they didn't really get melty enough.
My daughter didn't like the toffee part and suggested I leave it out next time.
Serve it hot, even if you microwave it later, because the carmel is nice and soft and gooey that way.

In spite of all the complaining - I made the pie last night and there is only once piece left. The painter and the dryer repairman both ate it and they didn't complain! I ate two pieces, so I don't think I better bake it again for a long time.

This is called Million Dollar Pie, courtesy of allrecipes.com but it should be called Million Calorie Pie. I have managed to limit myself to one piece. It is sort of like a Dump Cake.
Start with two graham cracker crusts and fill them with this:
1 can of eagle brand milk, 1/2 c lemon juice and fold in a tub of coolwhip.
then mix together a very well drained can of crushed pineapple, drained can of mandarin oranges (11 ounce can) and a can of cherry pie filling. Fold this mixture into the whipped cream mixture and fill your shells. Enough for two pies. Give one to someone you want to be fatter than you.

OK, here is the new hair, just like the old hair, but shorter.

I lost almost a whole person

I have now lost nearly 100 pounds. OK, 91, close enough. Lately, I have been stressed and whining and not taking care of myself. I am trying to turn over a new leaf, so I spent $50 I couldn't afford at the local hair salon with the demand to make me beautiful. Well, I guess $50 isn't enough to meet that criteria, but I did get a hair cut. I will try to post a picture.

life can suck

I am not posting much these days. My house in Minnesota was foreclosed on, and I have been working very hard to empty it out. Thankfully I own a  paid for shack in another state. I was able to move the kids there.  A lovely co-worker has taken me in for a very nominal amount of rent, so that I can stay here and earn my whopping salary. My husband has recuperated from his injury and is back on the road, he was able to help me fill a storage unit with most of our belongings. A former boyfriend came with his big honking truck and moved everything else for me last night.
All of these events - on top of my frequent doctor visits to make sure the whoo-whoo hasn't developed anymore bad cells- has triggered a lot of stress related issues. One day I couldn't remember how to get home. Or where I keep pans in the kitchen. Chronic diarrhea, night sweats, day sweats, weakness, fatigue. Oh, and my blood work came back, and now I am on shots and massive amounts (prescription strength) vitamins. I lost 10 pounds in two weeks. Eggs and Doritos are the only food I don't puke back up. (Funny - I was always more of a Fritos fan). I haven't been to work in two days, I slept 13 hours the first day, and 11 today. I am strangely not depressed which is odd since I have been depressed since I was thirteen years old. I know depression. It has been my nearly constant companion for nearly 40 years. Now it isn't here and I just keep wondering when it is going to pop back into my life.
Well, I am rested for now, the eggs stayed down, and I think I will go lay down again. If I can remember where the bed is...

100 year old paint.

I thought it sounded so easy. Get a power sprayer and spray all those old layers of paint right off the house. Fast, easy. Two weekends of spraying, endlessly. Handing the wand off to the next person when your hand is too sore to press the trigger anymore. Did I mention that when you aren't spraying, you are mowing endlessly? And that when you are "taking a break" you are cutting brush or burning brush? The other problem (besides the bats nesting in the garage and the mice eating the Cheetos) is that 100 year old wood, is rotton. So...once we get all the paint off, we will be replacing a lot of boards. I need 12 one by somethings?  Eight feet long. That is for all the rotton corners. Did I mention the frames on the garage door and the windows are rotted?
Then there are the satisfying moments. A beautiful mown acre of lawn, a path cleared through the "woods" to a secret shaded area. Sitting around a fire, a late night game of rummy, shrimp jumbalaya, watergate cake, banana smoothies. A cold beer with pizza at the end of a sweaty work filled day. Visits to and from the neighbors. Driving past green acres of corn, yellow fields of mustard, and golden winter wheat ready to harvest. The cows across the street. It certainly could be worse

We had quite a storm here in Bemidji! I am sitting at the coffee shop having a nice cold frappe and enjoing their wifi and airconditioning, since we have no electric. We start moving all the big furniture this weekend, getting ready for the final push. I can't wait to get my new woodworking shop set up, (separate from the tool shop) and finish up my art gallery, and work on landscaping my huge yard. Have the opportunity to add more land, but the problem is no cash on hand...trying to figure that one out. Thinking of making custom made voodoo dolls complete with pins for sale. Hmmm. Maybe I will call my company Revenge of the ex wife?

Mini Lasagna

These are mini lasagna's I made from a recipe on Pinterest. The bottom is wonton wrappers. I made them a second time, making them spicier and more flavorful. This is a picture from the first time.
Basically, spray your pan, put in two wonton wrappers, layer your meat mixture and your cheese mixture, cover with shredded cheese (which I did the second time I made it). Stick in the oven just briefly - about 10 minutes. Easy dinner with easy clean up.

This is a Shrimp Jumbalaya I made around New Years. Here is the recipe:


1/2 stick of butter, melted in a large skillet
1 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic crushed
Saute these in the butter until soft
Add:
1 1/2 cups of water
1 can diced tomatoes
salt, pepper
1/2 thyme
1 bay leaf
1 cup uncooked rice
Put the lid on and let it cook for 25-30 minutes
WARNING: I burned my rice on the bottom, so either use med heat or stir it.
After the liquid is absorbed and the rice is done, add your shrimp. I got the cheap bag at walmart and I took the tail thingy off. Let the shrimp get warm and decorate with parsely.
My kids did not like the parsley.
also we agreed it was too bland and that it would have been better if we had used the tomatoes that have the peppers in them.

Making a quilt/wall hanging

I love material and buttons and thread. I don't like to sew. I hate trying to follow directions, rules are not meant for me. But I have boxes and boxes and boxes of material. So I decided to make a quilt - a quilt with no rules, a crazy quilt. How appropriate - I have often been told I am a little crazy. I am sure they all mean it in the nicest way. At least I will pretend they did.
Anytime I want to do something - like take apart the plumbing, I go to an ehow website. So, I found one on how to make a crazy quilt, using the flip and sew method. I made my squares, and added all kinds of embellishments, buttons, rhinestones, ribbon, lace and embroidery. Which means it is extremely heavy and not washable. That is how it is becoming a wall hanging.
I have the squares put together, but have noticed some imperfections, so I need to do a little more work before I sit down and figure out how to make it hangable and back it and edge it.
I went to a bead exchange and a nice lady gave me a whole bag of broken jewelry, some of which I sewed onto the quilt.

Anyway, I am not working on it right now, because...the sewing machine is at the OTHER house. I have a reputation for starting projects and never finishing, but I am going to get this one done...someday. These are just a few of my squares

a quarter of a century

When I turned 25 (a few years ago) I started really freaking out. I hadn't finished college, I wasn't buying a home, I didn't have children, I was pretty much a hedonistic party girl. So I made a bucket list, before it was a movie and a popular idea. I threw myself into a photography class, ceramics, horseback riding. I returned to the fertility clinic.
Now I am another quarter of a century old, and I finished everything on the list but one. I need 9 hours to finish my bachelors degree. So, I have a new list. Not a bucket list, cause I have no plans to kick the bucket. It is the how can I have fun with my life list.
I want to ride in a helicopter, I want to go to Costa Rica, I want to ride a zip line, I want to learn to played the Bowed Psaltry (yes I own one!), I want to go to Alaska, and I want to hike the Appalachian Trail. Oh and I want to finally finish writing my book, even if it is never read by anyone. I did do one thing from the new list - I went parasailing. It was wonderful. There is no noise but the wind, it is beautiful and I could have stayed up there much longer.

So bring the next quarter century on, I can handle it!

This is part of a fence I painted last year, there are actually two sections. I planted sunflowers behind it, and marigolds around the bottom. Here is how I did it.
I went to my local home improvement store and bought two sections of picket fence, which they refused to help me load to the top of my car. So I somehow wrestled them up to the luggage rack, got some twine from one of the registers and secured it to the top. I drove home slowly and carefully.
I got a gallon of white barn paint. Barn paint is wonderful. Heavy duty, and comparatively cheap.
When I got home I talked Robert into unloading the fences for me, and then I laid them across my husbands pick up bed and started painting them white. (Sorry about the paint on your truck, but since it is white too, no one will notice, probably) It took me two full weekends just to prime them with the barn paint. By then, the hubs had broke down and let me buy saw horses.

Here is another clever idea. The local home improvement will mix up small quantities of paint as samples for about $3. Plenty for this project with lots of leftovers for the next one. They also had, in the brush department some round foam dauber things. I bought a pack of three with several sizes. Robert had a stencil with some Egyptian stuff he got in a bookfair book, and I went to the local craft store and picked up another one with ivy. The flowers, butterflies and other things are freehand.

Once I got started on the fun part, Elisabeth and her friend decided to help, and it took 2 or 3 weekends to fully decorate all the slats and touch up missed areas.
I had to check several stores to find plain wood drawer pulls, but I got a few and painted them to look like bumblebees and ladybugs. My wonderful Hubs used a drill to make holes so wecould screw them on. We got 4 of those green metal fence stakes, Hubs got busy with the drill and put it all up for me.

Warning! This was not the cheap project I had invisioned. The fence was $19.99 per piece, so that was $40.00 right from the start. Another $13 for the barn paint, another $20 in paint samples, and another $20 in miscellaneous supplies - daubers, stencils, drawer pulls. The total - more than $100.

I haven't put up the fence this year, because we are moving and I am waiting to put it up in front of the new place.

Last night Robert and I cooked one of his favorite dishes. The recipe was originally braised oxtail. We like oxtail, but it is expensive for the amount of meat so we have modified the recipe to use short ribs, which we cut into bite size pieces.  This recipe is for a large pot that will feed 4 really hungry people. I don't actually measure stuff.

In a deep pan, melt about 3/4 stick  of butter. Use the real stuff, don't try to use crappy margerine!
Add 1 chopped onion, a few baby carrots, a a few diced turnips if they are small, or a nice big one, 1 stalk celery chopped.  I added about 6 small potatoes. It stretches it nicely and cheaply. When nicely transluscent, add 2 or even 4 Tblspoons flour and blend well. Then for a broth - I dumped in 3 cups of water and 3 beef bullion cubes. This is cheaper than buying beef broth.
Have your butcher cut the 2 oxtails into 2-3 inch pieces. Or just buy short ribs and cut them up yourself. I bought two pounds, oh and for petes sake, buy your meat from a butcher, don't even ruin my recipes with Walmart meat!  Add these to the pan, with salt, pepper and two cloves. I used 2 t of ground cloves since I didn't have any whole ones. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, reduce heat, simmer 2 hours. Or until the potatoes are done, if you are standing there starving.

Robert and I ate like little piggys,(a teenage boy is a bottomless pit!) and I filled a gallon freezer bag for a future meal. The meat was over $3 per pound but I had the rest of the items except the turnips already. So let's call it $10 for a dinner that could have fed 6 if I had fleshed it out with some bread. Since we don't eat bread we probably ate more than a normal serving size.  Still more cost effective than eating out, healthier, and tastes much better, using vegetables from our local co-op.

 

Well, I have been threatening to start a blog, so here we go. I am going to talk about the things I like to do, and you will like it. That is an order.
I like to take photo's, write, quilt, build gardens, SPEND MONEY, refinish furniture, and cook.
So I am going to share some recipes, and some other crafty ideas. Maybe a little of my philosophies, not too many, because I have found that thinking is greatly over rated. Think a little, do a lot.