Sunday, February 27, 2011

On Sundays I cook

A Barnes & Noble gift card is always one of those Christmas gifts that never gets time to cool in my hot little hands. The one received this year went to purchase Dough by Richard Bertinet (it even comes with a DVD for those of us who are suffer from an unnatural fear of bread failure). My New Year's resolution was/is to learn to bake good bread...something that has always eluded me.

Nearly every weekend since then has included a bread making attempt. The first few weeks proved that my family loves me as they choked down chewy and rather yeasty morsels, generously proclaiming, "the flavor is good." No more. They are starting to get really good bread. Not loaf-shaped tennis balls, but good hearty bread. Today was a two-batch day. Light rye with caraway and whole wheat poppy seed stars. Finally. Hearty bread worthy of the lamb, mushroom and wild rice casserole in the oven.On Sundays, I cook.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Barbara Ruesch's Day Off

Monday was a snow day for all school districts around here. I don't get paid if I don't show up, but since the weather was really awful and the first thing I saw when turning on the TV at 5 am was a commercial of our governor declaring me and all other public employees Public Enemy Number One, I decided not to risk my life getting to work. I emailed my boss, got the OK and stayed home.
I made bread again since the loaf from the day before disappeared...and finally finished this.In the process of finishing it, the problem of those pesky blocks made of the black fabric from which the fruit and berries were cut was solved too. They were all sewn together and became the quilt back. Pretty darned classy I think.
The quilt has a nice plaid binding that seems to frame everything -- front and back -- very well. Good thing I have this stash to tide me over on snow days. It's also a good thing that I own Ferris Bueller's Day Off to watch while doing the hand stitching on the binding. There's nothing quite like the parade scene from this classic stay-home-from-work movie to lift the spirits.

And while hunting up the perfect binding, I also pulled together this lovely little grouping of fabric friends.
I'm not certain what they'll be when they grow up, but I'm excited to find out. First, however, there's that yellow and white number to finish. I'm working on it. I'm working on it.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Quilty kind of day

Last week was work, work, work. The reward for all that hard work came yesterday with a not only a day off, but a great day off. Friend Sandy extended an invitation for a little quilt shopping; that's not the type of thing I like to turn down. We went to the Cutting Edge in Weston and the Quilting Workshop in Wausau. The latter was a first for me; this shop is loaded to the gills with fabrics. Sandy found just what she needed for the queen size Double Irish Chain she'll be making. She's probably got it well under way already. Sandy is not one to let any quilty grass grow under her feet!

My quilty day didn't start until today when I finally got the quilting started on my wallhanging. The center background and first border are done, but there's still the detail and outer borders that may have to wait until next weekend, depending on how the week goes. Still, a lot of progress was made today. While bread was rising and soup was simmering, my machine was humming away. I may not have a finished wallhanging to show for my efforts, but I did have a nice rustic loaf of bread. A pot of chicken and rice soup loaded with carrots and mushrooms and a loaf of fresh bread made a perfect supper for this cold and snowy day. As much as I love to spend a day off at the sewing machine, it just can't compete with the aroma of a chicken in the pot and a loaf of bread in the oven when the snow is blowing and wind is howling.

It's sounding like snow day kind of weather out there. Too bad I don't get off when school is canceled. I'd happily dedicate another day off to quilting and cooking.

Friday, February 11, 2011

The answer was in the glass

Super Bowl Sunday turned out well for me. Not only for the football, to which I don't usually pay much attention, but also because I came up with a plan to finish my bird and basket wallhanging.
At first I considered a pieced border edged in prairie points. Just a walk through the kitchen reminded me that prairie points are not something I find very enjoyable to make. In fact, if memory serves correctly, there was some sort of solemn oath sworn against them after this little quilt. Don't get me wrong, I love this quilt, but the six or seven years since I made it has not been long enough to make me forget pinning all those little triangles. So, no prairie points. That's when my glass of Diet 7-Up came to the rescue. Actually, not the soda, the glass.
Here it is. A Williams-Sonoma juice glass (I found two of these little gems at Goodwill last summer. These nearly indestructible glasses are the best!) turns out to the be perfect template for a scalloped edge that must be made in 3" increments. Who knew? Certainly not me ... until now.

And so, with graph paper, a ruler, my trusty juice glass and some fusible web, I was on my way to a very satisfying border for my little quilt. Since I don't want to spoil the suspense of the finished project and since it's not quilted yet, you just get a peek at the border.

With any luck I'll manage to get this quilted in the coming week so I can get back to my yellow and white project before my daughter rejects me. That's got to get done before March.
Why March? Well, I don't want to give away any secrets, but I happen to know that Alyssa has a really special plan for her blog during the month of March and I'm planning a little something to go along with her theme. So, it's time to get moving. Spring is just around the corner!

Sunday, February 6, 2011

A week later

Still not finished with my little wall hanging, but it is progressing nicely. All the applique is finished and a very simple first border was added.
Maybe just straight borders to bring out the fruit and berry colors. Maybe something to echo the basket and blackbird. I keep digging through fabric, but haven't found just the right thing yet. Other than the basket fabric, I hadn't wanted to buy anything new for this, thereby avoiding adding to the never ending scrap collection. Guess I'll just have to screw on my thinking cap a little tighter to come up with something that will frame and finish this nicely. Looks like another week of pulling out books, magazines and fabrics to find just the right inspiration. It's here somewhere. I just know it.