Friday, September 29, 2017

Tomato Basil Toast

I like finding an easy recipe that will jazz up a meal.  Recently my grocery store was doing food demos and this was one of the samples I tasted.

And you know it's always fun to add your own twist to a recipe.  So here is my version.

Tomato Basil Toast


1 tablespoon fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
4 plum tomatoes, finely chopped
1 (6 oz) jar marinated artichoke hearts, finely chopped
finely sliced onions and mushrooms, sauteed
1/4 cup feta cheese
sliced black olives
8 slices frozen Texas Garlic toast

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Chop basil, tomatoes and artichokes. Place in bowl.   Stir in cheese and olives.   Saute onions and mushrooms in olive oil.

Arrange garlic toast on baking sheet; bake 3-5 minutes on each side or until toasted and golden.

Spoon onions and mushrooms over toast, then add tomato mixture on top.  You can serve it this way, or stick it back in the hot oven for 2 - 3 minutes.

Great for an Italian meal.

Enjoy!

Monday, September 25, 2017

Are you working on Christmas projects?




Have you been working on Christmas projects??  I tend to be one who puts off holiday sewing until pretty late in the season.

This table topper was started a couple of years ago, but I have purposed to get it finished so I can use it this Christmas.


It's a pattern from Anka's Treasures.

 The instructions are not clear on how to add the border for this shape, but I will do the best I can.

The holidays are fast approaching!

Sunday, September 24, 2017

Friday, September 22, 2017

Fall Quilts

I love the colors of fall. And quilts always fill my quota of the warm rich hues.






Let's enjoy the warm colors of fall!

Happy Quilting!

Sunday, September 17, 2017

Saturday, September 16, 2017

Roll em, roll em, roll em.

I've started on a project that will take me through the rest of September. Can you guess what I am making?

If you guessed pillowcases, you are right!


It's the All People Quilt Million pillowcase sewathon. I started these and have been working them in assembly line manner. Cut them all out, fold and pin, do the sewing, then press.

Have you been making pillowcases? The best tutorial I've found is from Missouri Star Quilt company. Jenny Doan makes it looks so easy and it comes together quickly.

Happy Quilting!

Friday, September 15, 2017

Life after Irma

They say you should not make decisions after a life altering trauma. Loss of a job, the death of a loved one, a divorce.  But what about waiting for a category 4 hurricane that comes knocking at your door?

Irma made her path known just days after Harvey wrecked havoc in Houston. Recovery and first responder teams stretching their resources nearly a thousand miles away while Irma sat on top of Cuba, making us guess which way she would go.

Meteorologist trying to predict the path of her destruction when she would finally make landfall in the US. They started pointing their arrow straight towards my home town. 

And so we wait, and we watch as the storm inches it's way towards Key West. And because the storm had been heading towards the east coast, supplies and water became non existent when we all realized she was heading our way. Plywood vanished, as did all paper products, canned goods, ice, and the most precious, water. 

Irma stormed past Key West, laying her destructive slap, and made her way north west. But in the wake, she weakened. She started losing strength. Yet that did not settle the nerves that hovered over the entire state. When she finally made her entrance to the Tampa Bay area, there was a lot of wind and rain. Thankfully, Irma started breaking up. She no longer held the strong eye we were watching before we lost power. She shifted north east, sparing us the worst of the storm.

Even so, she did some tree trimming.





We are so grateful none of these limbs hit the roof of our house. 

Even in the aftermath of the storm, the butterfly's returned, just to let us know that they still believed in tomorrow.


Monday, September 11, 2017

Saturday, September 9, 2017

Hurricane Irma

 Image result for hurricane pictures

It's been non-stop this past week as we prepare for landfall of Hurricane Irma.  Every store was out of water, bread and other staples. Even plywood became nonexistent. So we ask for your prayers, as this massive storm shifts west, heading straight to where I live. We've been through hurricanes before, and know the destruction they havoc. But this one is huge! With destruction in it's wake. Being with out power will be difficult, not knowing how long the duration. I've been making ice and water in my Brita filtered pitcher. Hopefully it will be enough, as the water may be unsafe for some time after Irma leaves us behind.

So I will probably be off line for a while. We are still thinking of those victims of Hurricane Harvey, as we face Irma's wrath.

Be safe!

These pictures are from Stanley Goldenberg's facebook page.

As we continue to wait for the approach of IRMA, here are some wonderful pics and videos of IRMA.  They are rather large (one is movie) so I will direct you to my FaceBook post to see them.  It is worth it. 
I think this link will get you there, or just go to my FB homepage.
https://www.facebook.com/stanley.goldenberg/posts/1680068798692234?pnref=story

Thursday, September 7, 2017

Hello Irma

Living in Florida has it's benefits. One of them is NOT Hurricane season. This is what our stores currently look like.

After the disaster in Houston, people seem to be in a panic mode, taking Hurricane Irma very seriously. For days I've hunted the stores looking for bottled water. None is to be found. If a pallet arrives, the bottled water is gone in minutes. 

So short of camping out in the grocery store, I've been making my own water supply.

I'll keep making filtered water and filling them in bottles until the danger of the storm has passed. Hurricane Irma is being predicted to be the worse hurricane we have had in years. Bigger than Andrew that hit Miami 25 years ago. We have been tracking on hurricanes.gov and watching the weather reports. 

Stanley Goldenberg is a federal hurricane research meteorologist. His family experienced the maximum winds of Hurricane Andrew when their house was blown apart. He sends updates when he can. His 5 P's of Preparedness focuses on -
1. Protect
2. Provisions
3. Plans
4. Predictions
5. Pray
 Please pray for our family and friends. Pray for the officials handling the approaching hurricane and those who will be flying into the storm to collect data. 
And of course pray for the people of Houston. They are not out of the woods yet. They may yet be impacted by more rain from Irma. And if you can help, please do so by making a contribution to any of these quality and experienced organizations. 


These volunteers are the feet that bring hope to the victims who have lost everything.  And these organizations know the best ways to help the most.

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Chevron

Recently I watched a Youtube on making a Chevron quilt.  The demo was using a Layer Cake, but I thought I would try to make my own with 6" squares.


I picked out an assortment of fabrics.  Plus white background fabric.

Cut 6" strips and then again into 6" squares.

 
Pair up a white square with one of the color fabric squares.  Sew all the way around.

With your trusty rotary, cut the sewn square in an X.
Press your seams to the dark fabric.
Line up the Chevrons and start sewing the blocks together.
 

I will work on these blocks and see how large this quilt will turn out.  I cut two yards of white background, and various amounts of the red and blue.  

This is an easy and fun quilt to put together. Soooo....

Monday, September 4, 2017

The story quilt

Seventeen years ago I made a baby quilt for my BFF first grandchild. It was a simple 4 patch pattern that I had found in a McCalls Quilting magazine. It was fun to make, and was enjoyed by the family when it was received.

Fast forward to 2011. This family has since moved to the Ukraine as missionaries. At that time they had five adorable children. And the little quilt I made for their first born was passed down to the babies that followed. It has been well loved, holes and all.

When the family was in the states to renew their passports, Mama left the quilt, now affectionately called "Beck" back at home. However when they arrived in the states, mama found a surprise ........... well, this was the email sent to me from Mama Oksana..........

"By the way, you already know that Damara loves the blanket that you made for David years ago. When we were leaving Ukraine, I left it at home because even though she likes it, she is not completely attached to it. How surprised I was to find out that Dalina, our six-year-old, packed that little blanket in HER little personal carry-on for her little sister! So, the "Beck" (as the blanket is affectionately known in our house) has traveled back to America once again!"

During our move seven years, and while I was working on organizing my fabric closet, I came across it's twin. My daughter had made the same quilt top after I made the original. The top was complete but never quilted, so having heard how ragged "Beck" had become, I sandwiched the top and quilted it. I sent it on to them, so it might become another well loved cozy quilt for little children to snuggle with.

  This is it - "Beck" #2

And now seven years later, Dalina still sleeps with Beck. This quilt is still being loved.

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Doesn't it make you happy to know that a quilt you made and gifted was so well loved?

It sure makes for Happy Quilting!

Sunday, September 3, 2017

Friday, September 1, 2017

National Sewing Month

So where will you start??