Halloween Quilt

I made this for the graphic designer at work. She finished up chemo and got a new job, so I figured I'd whip up a quick quilt for her. She loves Halloween. I used a fabric panel to make the piecing go quickly.

The back is pieced as well. I used some fat quarters in halloween colors.The ghost print on the edges glows in the dark! I didn't know that!

My guild buddy, Frank did the awesome quilting. It's breathtaking! I think he had fun making this quilt sing. Or maybe scream is more appropriate. I know I was squealing when I saw his quilting. Wow.

See the witch?

I even labeled it!

Since I've been working crazy hours and doing stuff on the weekends, a few of our dinners have looked like this. Luckily I have an understanding crew.

Saturday was International Quilting Day

I wasn't able to sew on International Quilting Day, which is held the third Saturday in March, but I got a little quilting in today. CatVent is finally getting quilted. It's been sandwiched on my dining room table for a while. Good thing we never eat in there. The weekend was gorgeous, but laundry doesn't do itself, so I spent most of Saturday working and doing chores so I could play Sunday.

We set out to boat on the lake Sunday, but the winds were whipping. It would have been fun in a sailboat, but a motorboat, not so much. Luckily, the canoe provided some outdoor entertainment on our pond.

Bones kept watch over the rowers even though he wasn't feeling well this weekend. He loves being outside and in the sun, so hopefully that made him feel better.

I had already made picnic type foods to take on the boat, but you can picnic anywhere, even in your own backyard. These prosciutto wrapped asparagus were so good. I think I ate 90. Just toss asparagus in a bit of olive oil and wrap with prosciutto. Grill or bake at 425 degrees until prosciutto is crispy. I made a dipping sauce of Greek yogurt, capers and fresh lemon juice. Also on the menu: pasta salad, grilled kielbasa, deviled eggs. fresh fruit, and sugar cookies. We should probably have celery sticks for dinner.

Edamame are one of my favorites. These roasted edamame are addictive. I used this recipe, but substituted frozen edamame I cooked a bit in the nuclear wave. You have to dry them off really well before baking them. Add Parmesan cheese before baking. You won't be sorry. They are much better than the roasted variety you can buy in the store.

Check out these mind-blowing facts about time. My allergy headache just got worse.

Have a great week!

Fall!

Woke up to 68 degrees and breezy here in humidity land. That's sweater and sock weather in these parts. Brrr! Isn't my neighbor's croton pretty? It's about the only plant or tree that has Fall colors around here. Bones wanted to wander around outside all morning.

Did I show this spinach plant Cara gave me at our last Sew Day? I was lamenting how black my thumbs were and she said this plant would grow and prosper anywhere. Challenge accepted.

Look at that baby grow! I'm happy to report I haven't killed it in the two weeks I've had it. I'm sure the plant has an official name, but I forgot.

Lunch yesterday at Tijuana Flats. Enchiladas bigger than your head. And those jalapeno slices were the size of half dollars. I made a stromboli and homemade marinara sauce for dinner last night, but deleted the picture. The guys loved it and they never figured out I used turkey sausage.

Amy's Creative Side is hosting another of her famous Blogger's Quilt Festivals starting October 25. It's always fun to see all the beautiful quilts and hear a little about their story and maker(s). It's "the biggest quilt show online!" If you have a finished quilt, share it for a chance to win lovely prizes. There are several different categories.

Quilting...Yawn

I started quilting yesterday afternoon. I thought I had an idea of what I wanted to do.

Blech. My idea looks icky and cornered me right away. Plus, I used navy thread in the bobbin and I could see some of that on the top. I think the different types of threads threw the tension off. I hate un-quilting more than I hate un-sewing. Luckily, I didn't get far for the first quilting attempt.

Round two. How about diagonal straight lines? Yeah, that's the ticket. I eyeballed a diagonal and used blue painter's tape to mark it. Then I quilted yawn-inducing straight lines approximately the same distance apart.

Then I did some wavy lines going the other way. The wavy lines were much more fun tolerable. Will I ever finish?

Quilting was still boring. There were numerous snack breaks. I put popcorn kernels in a brown lunch bag, fold over the opening, and nuke for 1-2 minutes. I usually throw in spices before and after. Parmesan cheese is good too. It's a great way to make chemical-free microwave popcorn. Plus, it's cheap. Melted butter is really good on it. Don't you love my fancy serving bowl?

Yay! All done. I did a self binding with the backing fabric. There were hurdles, but I got through them. Now to toss it in the wash. It already looks crinkly with all my man handling while quilting. So happy to finish and work on something else. Whew.

Book Party

I swear promise to myself that I won't buy any more quilting or cook books, and then I promptly purchase more. I'm hopeless really. I've been cataloging my books by scanning bar codes with BooksApp, so I guess I'm a little geeky too. But more importantly, I'm tossing books I no longer want. My rule is four books out for any new book in. Yeah, I'm crazy. Unfortunately, this process makes me want to buy all the books on my Amazon wish list. Help?

My latest acquisition included Quilting Line and Color: Techniques and Designs for Abstract Quiltsby Yoshiko Jinzenji. I caught her lecture at QuiltCon and kept running into her in at the hotel and convention center. What a talented and gracious woman. She cooks too!

I also scored Pretty in Patchwork: Holidays: 30+ Seasonal Patchwork Projects to Piece, Stitch, and Loveif just for the clever paper piecing patterns by Sonja of Artisania. This book is really fun and filled with tons of adorable projects.

Inspector Gadget got lucky over the weekend when I made him Herbed Buttermilk Biscuits with Sausage Gravy. I didn't bother getting a photo of the gloppy sausage gravy, but he loved it. I've never been a fan of sausage gravy, but it's one of his favorite breakfast foods. He rides his bike 20 miles a day, so I guess he deserves a little treat every now and then. The biscuits were really good and the recipe isn't as caloric as some of the others I've seen. I used 2% milk in the gravy and skipped the cream.

Another one of the Inspector's favorites...Waldorf Salad. You'd think I was buttering him up for something, huh? Actually, I was making salmon with a mixed greens salad and he hates both. He'll eat salmon, but he will ask if we have any lettuce when I serve anything different than romaine hearts or iceberg. Funny guy. I made him Waldorf salad, so he wouldn't go to bed hungry. Ha. Don't tell him I replaced some of the low-fat mayo with Greek yogurt. I also threw in cashews, pomegranate Craisins and red peppers along with the normal green apple and celery.

Lizard in the house. Again. I don't know why they come inside, they just dry up and die. This guy is big. He'll scare the crap out of me all week because they usually pop out of hiding when you least expect it. There will be screaming or a gasp involved. Maybe I can get someone brave to pick him up and toss him outside. Or trap him in Tupperware and transport him outdoors. Not that I've done that or anything.

Maybe I'll just show him this picture. Someone thinks it's funny to leave these dehydrated lizards for me to find. No more sausage gravy for him.

QuiltCon Here I Come

It's hard to believe QuiltCon is in less than three weeks. Squeee! I've been quilting around six years, and I caught the fever bad. My fabric stash would choke an elephant. Modern quilting lets my quirky artistic side play freely. I've only had the opportunity to attend two quilt shows in Orlando, so I'm a total newbie to the quilt show and conference scene. I can hardly wait.

There's a linking party to meet some of the conference attendees. I'm lucky to have four members from the Orlando Modern Quilt Guild attending with me, and I'm excited to meet new quilters too. It will be fun to put a face with a blog and interact with others who share this quilting obsession of mine. Plus, I won't have to walk the dog for six days.

So, okay, five things you might not know about me. And I just had to use my Glamour Shot from the 80s. Swanky, huh? Friday night's QuiltCon party is an 80s-themed Dance Party, so I thought it was appropriate. I look exactly the same thirty years later. *cough*

1. I am a snake magnet. If there's a snake around, it will find me. More specifically, it will find my feet and I will step on or startle it. I've had snakes on my screened pool deck, in my house, and generally way too close for comfort. I've been a snake magnet all my life.

2. I love to cook, bake, and especially grill. I rarely make the same thing twice. There's just too much to try. My husband thinks this is the neatest thing ever. Even when the dishes include foods he thinks he doesn't like. I adore all foods. The only thing I'm not fond of is frozen green lima beans.

3. I was a band geek. I played the glockenspiel (loudly) in marching band and the bass guitar (quietly) in stage band. My band mates called me "Peterless" Frampton. Took me years to get it.

4. I've had my own graphic design firm for 20 years after working 12 years in the marketing department of our local newspaper. My company is very small, but I manage to find design projects that interest me and pay a few bills. I'd much rather be quilting.

5. Now that my kids are in college, and homeschooling is not an option, I'd love to be a stay-at-home mom. My husband is not on board, so I make him eat spinach whenever I can. He hates spinach.

I hope to meet you at QuiltCon. I'll be the one with the messy hair and red gloves. See you there!

--Michele

New Year, New Projects

I just loved this block-of-the-month club by Don't Call Me Betsy. Paper piecing is still a challenge for me, so I'm hoping to get a little better at it. Membership is only $10 until January 5 and includes pdf patterns for 12 blocks and one bonus block you get when you sign up. I want to use up some fun solids for these blocks. I love the colors Elizabeth used for her example. I may copy them exactly so I don't get confused.

These improv Love blocks by Tonya have always intrigued me. I was lucky to score a free copy of The Quilt Life with the instructions. If you've never done improvisational letters, Tonya's book walks you right through it.

In another free copy of The Quilt Life I found this pretty Heart Strings quilt. I really need another project to tackle my drawer of color-coded scraps. This quilt looks fun and easy. Right up my alley. And as if I haven't found enough projects to tackle in the new year, I love this idea of using orphan blocks from Karen at the Selvage Blog. I have orphan blocks out the wazoo.

Another fun giveaway bundle arrived Christmas Eve. This one came from the talented Julia at Hand Knitted Things. She has some adorable creations on her blog. One of these days, I'd love to learn to knit. First, I'm going to master the touch pads on my computers. I'm a mouse girl from way back. I need to learn these newfangled devices.

My Christmas ham. I slathered this spiral cut beauty with whole grain mustard and brown sugar and then drizzled honey on it. I poured orange juice in the bottom of the pan and basted every 15 minutes. It was delicious. We have so much leftover. I think ham salad, bean soup, and ham sandwiches are in my near future. Inspector Gadget wanted to toss the bone after he carved off the meat. What is wrong with him?! That's the best part. It was Christmas so I didn't bonk him on the head.

Let the Week Begin

My neighbor's house got TP'd last week. The neighborhood kids must have had a mischievous streak. You wouldn't catch an adult wasting costly toilet paper like that. It was kind of fun to see and brought back memories of my kids' friends hitting our house. Much better than the graffiti some hooligans sprayed on a nearby subdivision's wall. That's not cool.

I love roasting fresh Brussels sprouts with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. The best part...those charred leaves. Better than potato chips.

Bones likes to use his toys as pillows. If you leave a pillow or laundry basket of clothes lying around, Bones will find it. He likes his life cushy. Don't let his sad expression fool you. That dog is spoiled rotten. He turned 12 this month and is the funniest dog I've ever had.

I've been obsessed with all the gorgeous triangle quilts in blogland. I finally found a template and played around with some solids during sew day. Let's see if I can get this baby together. I had no plan or layout so it turned out pretty random. I added an extra row to make it longer, but I was too lazy to cut more black, so the bottom row is an odd ball.

The sweet onions are plentiful and cheap this time of year, so I whipped up a French onion soup. I had mushrooms, so added those in too. I floated a cheese topped crouton and broiled the crocks for a couple of minutes. The kids have been working a lot, so I'm opting for lighter fare for dinner when it's just the two of us. I had a good time at the local produce market last week. So much to buy and try. I'm making Salad Niçoise tonight with the teeniest new potatoes I have ever seen. They are almost too cute to eat.

Someone has a little fun planned later in the week. Ha! It's not me, but I do get to be the driver. I'll try not to giggle much since I know my time for a colonoscopy is coming. It's Inspector Gadget's second time up, so he knows what to expect. He said it was a piece of cake the first time, so that's always nice to hear. Preventative medicine works for me. I'll make sure to have a delicious dinner for his reward. He's too old for a toy.

Date Night

I have to admit, Inspector Gadget and I didn't do too many date nights when our kids were younger. We had College Boy at the dirty mall and Olive Garden two days after he was born. What did we know? Then we drug the kiddos pretty much everywhere we went. Besides, we were paranoid parents and would only let our parents watch our kids. Unfortunately, our parents live out of town. But now that the kids are older they hopefully better behave themselves on their own, we've been hanging out at our local watering hole almost every week.

Fish on Fire is our local watering hole. Ironically, it burnt to the ground a few years ago, but they rebuilt and changed the menu for the better. Every Wednesday they offer $4 seared ahi tuna salads and homemade soups. Their 15-bean soup is $1 and all the proceeds go to charity. At 8 pm, they have trivia. And not that I condone midweek drinking, but the Bud Lights are only a buck. That's cheaper than iced tea. I haven't had much else on their menu, but everyone raves about their food. I can't stop ordering the salad. Unless it's oyster night, then I must have oysters.

It's a fun time to chat with Inspector Gadget and other watering hole patrons. We run into the parents of our children's classmates from way back, older siblings of our kid's friends, old neighbors, new neighbors, our friends, tourists, traveling businessmen and all kinds of friendly people. It's kind of like our own little Cheers. And one time, at band camp, we won a round of trivia. Oh yes we did.

Tonight's dinner is going to be this buttermilk roasted chicken. My chicken has been marinating since yesterday. Going to be good! Not sure what I'll serve with it, but I'll think of something.

I did sneak in a little sewing time yesterday and used these two-inch batik squares. My guild buddy Kathryn gifted us with some of her stash she wasn't going to use. I can never say no to batiks.

I also did some glue painting on fabric. I might have time to add some paint to this today. The washable glue acts as a resist and then you wash it out. We'll see where this goes.

Check out my new tool. Shredder scissors. I'm going to use them for fresh herbs. I got the idea from one of my favorite blogs, Pots and Pins. College Boy played with them yesterday while I tailored one of his shirts. The kid is so tall and skinny and likes fitted shirts. I've taken in two for him after we researched how to do it. There are tutorials for all kinds of stuff on the web. I might even learn how to sew a button on something.