crazy cubed . . .

I had every intention of posting over the weekend, but life is crazy and work is crazy and our weekend was crazy (with Boy Scouts, Disaster Relief training and church picnics all at the camp). Even so, I had time to do a little fall baking on Saturday . . .

I saw a recipe for and Apple, Honey and Brie Crostata in the current issue of Southern Lady and decided to give it a go.

It was very good with a cup of spiced tea as an afternoon snack!

I got some autumnal decorations out, too . . . 

You know it's October when the pumpkins make their appearance!

I won a nifty new gadget from participating in the 2018 Blogger's Quilt Festival!  It's a square set of orange pop rulers by KimberBell . . .

They arrived in the mail this week.  Fun, no??  I love new gadgets!

I also got my first birthday happy of the season!

Janet sent me this fun-filled package with my very favorite pumpkin shaped soaps, some darling prim pumpkin labels, and a tasty treat (which I admit, was opened and 'tested' first thing)!

Only 13 more hexies to baste before I can whip 'em! And I plan on taking care of those 13 while lounging on another early birthday present . . .

Isn't it gorgeous??!  My daughter jokingly told me that I'd pretty much doubled my living space!  I'm so excited, I can't wait for the coming weekend to enjoy it!

And speaking of daughters, the youngest of her's--Edith Rose--is quite the charmer:

I adore pics like this!  She's such a ham (and a pretty good eater, too)!!

Happy hump day -- enjoy the rest of this glorious October week!

:)

a mixed bag . . .

I did some VERY BADLY needed organizing and deep cleaning in the Nook two weekends or so ago, so I've been able to spend snatches of time as they come along, working on an assortment of projects.  One of those is actually two of the same piece, mostly, which I created as a gift and then did another for a swap.  It hasn't been gifted yet, so I'll just show a little intriguing bit . . .

Ha!  In another week or so I'll share it in its entirety and by then I may have made a third one!

I've worked on a couple of UFOs that were (literally) hanging around . . .

I don't know why I let things like this sit around for so long, unfinished. This fun little Halloween piece was a flimsy -- now it just needs some hand quilting.

And I'm not even going to begin to make excuses for this one. I've pulled out the second quarter panel and have been working the alphabet embroidery on it.  It's only been a year and a half. The first panel is pictured in this post.

And this only qualifies as a UFO in that I can't submit it for our quilt show until this label is properly secured to The Pineapple Quilt. Oh yeah, and a sleeve, too.  Ugh. That's my LEAST favorite part.

I started and finished this campy little wool piece . . .

It's a skinny-mini project; isn't it cute? Can you smell the fire? Taste the s'mores??!

And who would I be if I wasn't--in the middle of it all--creating something new (on paper) to add to my project list?!

I got to thinking that each of the grandkids needs a Christmas lap quilt. This one would be easy enough to construct in a day (the four blocks measure at 15" X 18") and could be done in a variety of mix 'n match Christmas fabrics. It's an enlarged version of a Kathy Tracy small quilt.

I'm still planning out my hexi-flower-waterfall quilt. If I get the paper pieces and the acrylic template for my birthday, then it's meant to be!

Finally, another little wool finish, running across the 'mantle' in the living room:

I don't know why I've become so banner-crazy in the last year, but there it is.  And I adore this simple, easy, leafy banner!

Y'all . . . it's October . . . hurrah!!

:)

stuffed pumpkin history . . .

Literally *and* figuratively!  I figured I'd done quite a number of crafty things featuring pumpkins to date, perhaps it was time to do a little baking/cooking.  So I did . . . not just one thing, but four!  Aren't we all lucky?!

First, I did a little research on the pumpkin.  Pumpkin pie is generally a favorite of mine, and one of my favorite Thanksgiving treats!  But seeing as how pie crust was not around during pre-colonial days, chances are pretty good that pumpkin pie was not on the menu.  At first, the early Pilgrim settlers turned their noses up at pumpkins, but as winter came on and they were hungry and dealing with scurvy, pumpkins started looking pretty good!  One dish they probably enjoyed (which later evolved into our pumpkin pie), was a custard type dish that was baked in a hollowed out pumpkin shell, then cooked in the cooking fire ashes!  I read about it here and here, and modified this set of instructions/recipe  and this recipe to come up with this . . .

Fun stuff!

Next up, I saw this recipe of Paula Deen's for Spice Caramel Corn.  But in my infinite wisdom (and quest to change every recipe/tutorial/set of instructions I come upon), I subbed out the cinnamon and added pumpkin pie spice instead . . .

May I just say YUMMY?!!

Then there were some sugar cookies.  No recipe, no link.  Just sugar cookies, frosted with orange tinted buttercream, sprinkled with autumn sugar sprinkles and topped with a candy corn stem . . .

And I had help!  Both in the making *and* the eating!

Sweet kiddos!

And finally, another favorite of the season.  No link or recipe, though.  Since I had to scoop out the pumpkin innards for the custard, I thought I might as well roast the pumpkin seeds!  I separate them from the 'mush' and rinse them thoroughly.

I then soak them in salted water (about 2 teaspoons per quart of water) for at least two hours.  After soaking, I pour off the water and pat them dry.  Add a tablespoon of cooking oil and a 1/2 teaspoon of salt and mix well.  Lay them flat on a cookie sheet (rimmed, if possible) and bake in a 450 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, or until lightly browned and crunchy!

I have a hard time allowing these to cool before grabbing a handful!!

In other news, my stash report for Week #42 is unchanged from last week. Not one iota.  Still holding strong at 19 yards net used.  I can't recall a time in my life since I started quilted when my purchase yardage was under 10.  Craziness!

And for my Slow Sunday Stitching, I thought I'd work on stitching together a few of my birthday chrysanthemums!

Although it seems kinda odd to have all these purples and blues in what's solidly an orange post!

Linking up to Patchwork Times and Kathy's Quilts today. And at some point I'll enjoy a cup of pumpkin spiced tea . . . and some pumpkin-y treats, too!  

:)

pumpkin month . . .

Y'all.  It's OCTOBER!  You know what that means for me, right? 

All.

Things.

Pumpkin!!

And even though October, for some crazy reason, thinks it's March (coming in like a lion, all blustery and wet), I've got my comfy slippers on and am perched with some favorite things . . . 

A TeaTime Magazine (LOL -- the Christmas special publication), a pot of pumpkin spice tea, and a fire in the fireplace!  And I'm all full of Roll Tide Roll happiness, too.  What more could a girl ask for?!

A pumpkin craft, that's what!

I thought it would be fun to share a pumpkin craft that I'm working on each weekend.  Last week I shared a pumpkin coloring page so you could get your adult coloring on.  This week I thought I'd share darling twine pumpkins created from a tutorial my sister found by Simply Sarah, from several years ago.

Aren't they precious?! You may note that one of mine is not made of twine. That is because I had a hard time finding colored twine that I felt was pumpkin-suitable.  I found this roll wandering the aisles at Michael's:

But I like variety (spice of life and all), so I went and wandered in the yarns to see if I could find anything.  I had a skein picked out when I stumbled across this pretty little autumnal-looking skein:

And so I ventured to give it a go.  It was definitely not as stiff as the twine, but I think it worked out fairly nicely.  In retrospect, I could have been heavier handed with the glue on the yarn one.  And been a bit more patient with the drying process, for both of them! When she says in the tutorial that you need to let the twine (or yarn, ahem, as the case may be) DRY COMPLETELY.  Ah well, hindsight it 20/20, right?

Also, being the instruction rebel that I am, I used clear glue instead of white glue.

And I used floral wire to curl (around the end of a meat thermometer) to give me the curly cue vines.

Overall I'm pleased with them and they now occupy a place of honor in my "Ode to Pumpkin" vignette.

And here's a sneak peek at next week's Pumpkin Project . . .

Which will double as this week's Slow Sunday Stitching!

And for my stash report, nothing in and nothing out.

The story of my life this year. I went back and looked at my numbers for this same time last year and found I had a net of -16.25 (36.5 out and 56.75 in).  So I feel like I've been good about NOT buying fabric just for fabric's sake.  (I'm patting myself on the back, here!) Still wish I could push up my usage numbers -- and actually MAKE something quilty!  Ah well, there's always next week, right?

I'm linking up this post with Patchwork Times and Kathy's Quilts. Y'all have a happy Saturday evening and a happier, blessing-filled Sunday!  

:)

acorns, acorns everywhere . . .

Luckily, I'm not talking about the ones that will soon be dropping like machine gun fire onto the roof of the RV!  No, no . . . I'm talking about *felt* acorns!  I finished up the little leaf and pumpkin wool mat:

And decided I wanted to work on another one!

I had to use tissue paper to transfer the embroidery design on this one.  I've got one more leg of stitching to do . . .

And then the acorns can be stitched on!

I think when I'm finished with the acorns, I start on this cute little thing:

It's a Michelle May design/kit.  Isn't it darling??!  Linking up to Esther Aliu's WOW post!

Fall is here ... October is here ... we're officially in my favorite time of year!

And I'm ready for it with my new earrings . . .

:)

a finish, a start, and a ufo-no-mo . . .

Well, a UFO no more, almost.  Well, not even that.  Random blocks no more. Actually, a completed, pieced top in the making and almost finished.  But that doesn't work as well in the title!

I can't believe it's been almost TWO year since I received these Journey Steps blocks from a block swap my Stitcher's Group had . . .

I blogged about it here.  And I took the blocks off my wall and didn't fool with them again.  I didn't particularly want to make any more blocks.  And then there was the dilemma I had with a couple of them being too small.  *But* we'd agreed to share our finished tops as a group at this month's guild meeting. Which is Thursday.  And I was feeling the pressure to participate.  So I pulled them out . . . 

. . . and started playing around in EQ to see if I could find a setting I liked and could work with, without having to make more blocks. These are some options I came up with:

A six-by-six block placement allowed me to square up the setting and use all the blocks .... by using the smaller blocks as cornerstones in the border.  

Then I decided I wanted the corner blocks to be inset in the border:

The center is now pieced!  I like this *SO* much better than the original placement.

I'm headed out to one of my LQSs to pick out a Civil War print for the border and one for the binding.  I do believe I'll have show and tell for Thursday!  (Although when it will actually be quilted, bound, and completely finished, who knows???) Linking up to Judy Laquidara's Patchwork Times and Design Wall Monday!

I also finished up my little September apple block:

What fun it was!  I even bit the bullet and FMQ'd little leaves all over the plaid. I'm particularly pleased with the result.  And now I'm all ready for a new month in my little quilt stand!

Finally, I started a new project . . . 

This is from Edyta Sitar's Seasonal Silhouettes collection -- the October block (surprise, surprise)!  I purchased three sets of the laser cut kits.  AWESOME!  I'll frame it out and then quilt it.  It's too big to go in my quilt stand, but I want to leave them as stand-alones.  (I have two more kits -- November's and December's!)

And I also 'dabbled' in cream cheese mints last weekend ... for a friend's daughter's wedding reception. Three hundred eighty cream cheese mints.  

Whew!  Her colors were sunflower yellow and azure blue.  And sunflowers decorated everything -- my kind of decor! The wedding was beautiful and the mints were a hit. I'm just glad they're not in my house any more!

I'm off to get into my Monday groove!  Y'all have a *great* week!!

:)