All Decked Out

Thundernation!

Thursday, August 18, 2011 3 Comments »

The weather here in Eastern PA has been very strange all week -- heavy rain, no rain, big booming thunder, sunshine, humidity you could cut with a knife, and cool, pleasant breezes.

We've got a real boomer going on outside right now, great flashes of lightening, and loud, growling thunder. Maggie the Wonder Dog (heart of gold, brain of dust) is terrified of thunder. I swear she can hear it when it's thundering in Maine. Before she got arthritic, she used to jump into the bed with us and try to get under the covers. Right now she is squeezed under the computer desk, wedged between my legs and attempting to burrow into my skin. I gave up trying to sew because she sat on my feet (and the foot pedal) and stuck so close to my legs that she kept tripping me when I got up to iron. Poor Maggie Mae.

Summer Pasta

Saturday, July 30, 2011 7 Comments »

Boing! Boing! You can almost hear those 'maters popping on the vine. We seem to have a very good crop this year of Bountiful 100's (cherry tomatoes), Italian plum tomatoes, Better Girls, and whatever else Mr. Green Jeans decided to plant. They are coming in all at once, and hubby is trying to pick them before the birdies peck too many holes in them!

My dad used to make a Summer pasta sauce that was quick, easy, required no cooking, and made good use of all of those yummy 'maters. Soory, but the "recipe" has no specific quantities. My dad was an eyeball cook, usually dumping things in a bowl until it looked right; I cook the same way.

You'll need:

• Tomatoes. Lots of tomatoes.

• Green onions, chopped, with both white and green parts

• Garlic, minced

• Fresh basil, minced

• EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

• Balsamic vinegar

• Red Wine vinegar

• any other seasoning you like. I use fresh ground pepper, a little sea salt, Mrs. Dash Lemon pepper, and some of Penzey's Tuscan Sunset. If you've got fresh oregano (or dry), that works too.

• pasta. We are currently on a whole wheat kick, but any pasta will do.

Cut up the tomatoes. I cut the cherries into halves or quarters, depending on the size, and the other tomatoes into a large dice. I don't peel them. Throw in the onions, basil and garlic to taste. How much garlic do I use? Let's just say that there will never be a vampire in my neighborhood. If you have a surplus of zucchini or yellow squash, cut those into a small dice, or into very thin slices, and add those too.

Add EVOO, a splash of balsamic, and a little more of the red wine vinegar. You don't want the vinegar to scream at you, but you do want to taste the bite in the background. You want enough liquid in with the tomatoes to enrobe the pasta nicely later on. Add other spices to taste. Mix well, cover, and let sit at room temp for at least 3 hours. You want all of those flavors to become very very good friends. Yes, you can refrigerate overnight, but bring it back to room temp before you use it.

Cook your pasta. Don't overcook -- it should be al dente. Drain, put the quantity you want into a bowl & mix in ladlefuls of the room temperature tomato mixture. Top with freshly grated parmesan (or other sharp Italian cheese), and fresh pepper. My hubby likes to add those dried hot pepper flakes.

That's it! A super easy, make-ahead meal that has all of the wonderful flavors of summer. You can add a grilled protein (chicken, shrimp, or left over thinly sliced steak), but that's not necessary. Tonight I'll probably add a handful of the chickpeas I cooked up earlier in the week -- they will add some interesting texture. A loaf of crusty bread and a nice Chianti make the meal. Hubby can take me out for a Rita's after!

Hurray for the Red White and Blue

Tuesday, July 26, 2011 5 Comments »

My friend Kathy's son, Sam, is in the military. Kathy loves everything that's red, white and blue, and is a true, flag-waving quilt momma. When I first met her, she was piecing a gajillion HSTs to go into a magnificent flag-themed quilt for her son. I admired that quilt (heck, I coveted that quilt), so she knew I was attracted to patriotic themes as well. She sent me a picture of a flag made with tumbler blocks. I loved it. I thought, wouldn't this be a great thing to make with my Accuquilt Go! Cutter?

So when Kathy's church hosted a Quilt Day on Saturday, I thought it was the perfect project to try. Here's the result:

I used Civil War repro fabrics, but you could use any combo of R,W & B. As a matter of fact, my hubby is not fond of these reds ("too brown", he says) and is pushing me to make another flag with brighter reds and brighter blues. The other revision that I would make would be to increase the size of the field of blue by expanding it by one row to the right and one row down.

The finished flag measures approximately 35.5" x 26". Once it's quilted, I plan to bind it in a muted goldish print, keeping the wavy edges rather than cutting them straight.

The tumblers are cut using the 3.5" tumbler die for the Go!/Baby Go! cutter. For the revised flag, you will need:

15 dark blue tumblers

15 medium blue tumblers

57 assorted red tumblers

50 assorted white/cream with red tumblers

When you lay out the blocks, pay attention to putting lighter blocks next to darker ones to give the flag an undulating effect.

I am so pleased with the result, that I think I will send it to the Accuquilt folks.

ADDENDUM: I went on the Accuquilt forum and someone else had a flag picture posted. It wasn't nearly as nice (she said shamelessly), being made with a solid white and a solid red, and 2 different blues, but it was there none the less. Y'all (sorry, in Philly we say "Youz") are welcome to make your very own variation too!

When I finished the flag at Quilt Day, all of the other quilters broke out into a rousing rendition of God Bless America, complete with harmony and salutes. Indeed!

Spray it!

Monday, July 25, 2011 4 Comments »

I'm addicted to spray starch. I just love using it on my quilt blocks, and love spraying away as I put a quilt top together. Yep, I use steam too, but spray starch is my real best friend.

My very favorite is Mary Ellen's Best Press, in the linen or lavender scents, but it can be pricey. Amazon has the best price that I could find. I have Amazon Prime, and shipping is free, so the cost is the net cost. It's $11.84 for a 16 oz spray bottle ($ .74/oz); $14.95 for a 32 oz bottle ($ .46/oz); and a gallon (120 oz) jug for $38.63 ($ .32/oz). It's probably cheaper at your LQS or craft store, but it's still not inexpensive.

On the other hand, good old Niagra Spray Starch is $2.29 for a 22 oz bottle, or $ .10/oz. I buy it when I see it on sale, and usually three bottles at a time -- one for my sewing room ironing, one for my laundry room ironing, and one as a back up.

I have a good friend who recommends spray sizing instead of the starch. She is in the habit of washing, ironing & starching her fabrics before adding them to her stash. Her hubby was in the military, so she's packed up and moved that stash more times than she could count. Well, starch is cornstarch-based, corn starch attracts little buggies, and my friend learned the hard way that spray sizing was the ticket, not spray starch. I could only find the sizing in an aerosol can, but prefer to stick to non-aerosol if it's available.

I don't usually pre-wash, so I'm OK with starch, but if you are a washer/ironer/storer, you might want to stick with the sizing. Are you a starch-oholic?

Hot Schnibbles

Sunday, July 24, 2011 5 Comments »

We are roasting here in the North East, but I've been doing a lot of sewing. More for selfish reasons than anything else since my sewing room is one of only two rooms in our house with air conditioning!

Anyway, I've got one completed Schnibble, and one flimsy Schnibble to show for it. The first is based on the Dulcinea pattern, but with a few extra blocks added to make it a rectangle instead of a square. I'm not sure if I will hang it on my office wall at work or if it will be a table runner here at home. I had fun practicing my free-motion machine quilting on it.

The fabric is mostly Tweet Tweet, by Kieko for Moda, but there are some interlopers as well. Lesson: if you are going to commit to using one line of fabric charm packs for a pattern, get an extra pack. By the time you almost finished, and figure out you are short a few pieces, the charm pack will be out of circulation and you will be up quilters' creek without a seam ripper.

The second is a flimsy that will probably be going to my friendly, local long-armer with a few other small pieces. It's the Picnic pattern, and is made with fabric from Me and My Sister for Moda. I just love the colors, and could work with stuff from those two sisters all day long. Happy Happy fabric. I have a crisp turquoise and white plaid for the binding. It's a wall hanging, destined for Miss Maddie's room, which is in shades of ocean blues.

If you want something interesting to watch while you are sewing, and have HBO OnDemand, you might want to check out The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. Bobbi (used to be no blog but might be succumbing to bloggification) recommended it. Loved the first (pilot) episode, and can't wait to watch more!