Another Apron

One of the receivers of Marlene's aprons liked it and asked me to make one for her for someone else. So here's what I did with my own choice of colors. For myself I probably would have chosen something brighter, but I think she will like it. And when I was finished, I decided maybe I need one too! ;)

View from the back.
Wow, I just noticed that I've done 12 posts so far in less than one month..... it sure is fun to write about sewing!! It also seems like I talk about Marlene a-LOT; I think it's because she's one of the very few friends I have up here that sew. I'm really missing you Mom and Anna! Amy too, hope you are having a great time; I can't wait to see pics of the alphabet quilt! =)

Scrap Reduction

Since my sewing area is now a little more organized, I have these fun totes full of scraps that are sorted by color. Problem is, they are pretty full; and the pink and blue refuse to close (even with cramming!)

So I've been trying to come up with fun ideas to use them up. My first project is going to be a birthday present for a special little girl who is turning 6 next month! She has her own room now (purple) and loves pink and purple, so I went thru and pulled a bunch of suitable pink and purple scraps.

Both of these blocks use the exact same pieces (4 each of two contrasting fabrics), but I chose the second since the first would be better with white backgrounds and the center windmills in various colors.

And here's the neatly sorted stacks. I did the math and it will take 77 blocks (8 pieces each), that's 616 pieces to iron and cut, not counting the squares! I'm going to add a border of squares, so cut them from the leftovers.
I laid the pinks out in piles across the table...

Then put contrasting purples together with them.

Then I put them into neat little stacks.


In the end I had a bunch of smaller 'stringy' scraps, so put them aside for crocheting.

I've got all the blocks sewn, and most of them sewn together; so the top of this quilt should be finished soon. As you can see I've been very busy lately, and chosen sleeping over blogging about it! =)

Dinner in a hurry..... and it's yummy!

My friend Heather gave me a recipe that I've used often when I need to get dinner on the table in a hurry. And it's absolutely delicious! I've altered it quite a bit, so here's my version of Taco Pie.

**The secret of this recipe is to put it into a COLD oven and then turn it on to bake**

Mix together, and pour into 9x13 pan:
3/4 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup white flour

1/4 cup wheat flour

2 Tb. ground flax seed (not necessary, but it adds nutrition and flavor)

1 Tb. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 cup milk

3 Tb. oil

1 egg

1 can creamed corn (another non-important, except for flavor)

2 packets or 4 1/2 tsp. yeast

Cook and sprinkle over first layer:

1 lb. ground beef, pork sausage, venison, etc

1 packet or 2 Tb. taco seasoning

Sprinkle over second layer:

1 cup salsa

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Turn on the oven and bake at 350 degrees for 35 mins.

And here's what it looks like ready to serve.

Top with sour cream and enjoy!

**Did you remember the secret??**

Placemats, Aprons, Candy Canes, and Coffee for Tammy

Marlene gave me these fabrics to make two aprons and four placemats for her to use as Christmas gifts. I used the leftovers for the placemats, and made up a fun pattern I can use for scrap reduction!

This was a fun project for the kids......

And they loved it! Always nice when you can eat the results... =)

For Christmas we didn't have any family within 3,000 miles, so we invited some friends who were in the same predicament. It turned out to be a fun day of food and games! Especially 'Blokus' and 'Blokus Duo'; they are worth every penny!
Anyway, Tammy had asked me to make her some coffee-themed hot-pads a while back, and I had some leftover fabrics.....

So this is what she got to take home with her.

Cherries, Snow-Angels, and Sugar Cookies!

I discovered that quilting cherries is quite fun! This was my first try, but I think they turned out alright. They are in the centers of the blocks, with leaves and circles in between. You can see some cherries out there a ways....

And some flowers on another quilt, isn't the texture on the minkie fabric nice?!?We've gotten lots of snow lately, and the kids are loving making snow angels!

And of course, sledding down the hill.

Breanna's turn

We also went to Clara's house to decorate sugar cookies, and she had a delicious recipe! The kids had a blast and we had to try it again at home.

Hope you are having good luck getting projects done!

That time of year

What I finished yesterday for someone who had seen a photo of the quilt I made Levi; and wanted one of the same fabrics, measuring about 3ft x 3ft....

All rolled up to deliver
And one inspired by the photo they also liked of a doll quilt I'd made for Orianna, my niece, measuring 3ft x 3ft also.














Orianna's Doll Quilt
Rolled up to deliver, I like this view.

Levi's Quilt

Cute little toad at our house....

Well it's that time of year again, and even though we don't do much for Christmas besides a dinner; I've been making gifts for other people and am very busy! Becky, sleep is so overrated..... =) Actually I was getting to bed at normal hours and feeling pretty good, then made a list of all the projects I had to finish for everyone- and realized I had better get working or they'd never get done!

Slippers from Marlene

Marlene stopped by today to drop off a pair of felted wool slippers for Levi! She's always bringing fun goodies and treats, and Levi was excited to have a pair like Breanna and I. They are the perfect colors, his favorite, with lots of orange! He slipped into them and went on his way as if they were perfect. Luckily she made them a little big so he can wear them a long time, because I think it's going to be hard to get him to let go of them. He tried to convince Daddy tonight that he needed to wear them to bed. =)

The kids sure enjoy her visits. And Mommy too, we talk lots of sewing! =)

And this is my new pair! If your feet are warm, all of you is warm; and I have become quite fond of these slippers she makes!

For Billie, as requested, here is a photo of me.

And the new sling I traded for at the last bazaar! That is almost the best part, trading with other vendors without spending money. Andy really likes it too.

Notice the ugly brown door and blue masking tape to cover up the insulation? We've finished most of the house update, but I'll be very excited when that thing's gone and replaced! It's old and doesn't keep much cold out, and I'm looking forward to one with a window to let in more sunlight. We're almost to the shortest day of the year, then more sunlight- yipee!

Another DNP, with Minkie backing

After the success with the last Disappearing Nine Patch, I decided to try another!

Ok, so this post looks kindof wierd, something happened when I was uploading photos, and things are coming up in crazy spots, so bear with me.

I wasn't as impressed with how this one turned out, mostly because there was only one dark fabric (brown) so it doesn't look as random.

I was planning on making two of these identical, one for Andy and one for my nephew Gilbert (the boys were born 5 days apart!). However, I didn't have quite enough minkie for backing; so maybe I'll make a small snuggle blankie for Andy.

The kids love the little monkeys on here.

By the way, this was my first try at minkie for backing, and it was a bit of a challenge because it's stretchy! It's so soft, though, which is nice for babies. I have two quilts to quilt for a friend, and she wants minkie on the back, so I really wanted to try it out first on my own. She said to not worry about it and learn something new, but I wanted to make sure it was possible without making a mess. So, Bethaney, I hope you don't mind Gilbert getting the "practice" one! =)

Disappearing Nine Patch

I've seen a pattern in various blogs, and have been wanting to try it for a few months. It's called the Disappearing Nine Patch, and looked like it would be very fast and easy. Sure enough, and I like the results! This was a Christmas Table Runner I made for the bazaar, and it turned out 25" x 54".

You start with a basic nine-patch block, and then cut it into 4 equal sections. Then you rotate two corner squares two turns, and sew the block back together. After making several blocks, sew them all together and add a border. This is the result:

A little closer.

For the backing I used a white-on-white with various sizes of circles, to resemble snowflakes.

And this is the little boy that's usually quite cooperative while I sew.

He's kindof skinny... =)