Today’s serger foot class was very interesting. Here are the samples I came home with using the lace foot and the lace foot and the blind hem foot. The above is sewing lace to lace and lace to fabric as in heirloom sewing.
A finish for this week
I ended up quilting this more densely than usual. It is a crocodile pattern to go with the fishing flannel on the back. I didn’t realize how dense it would be. However, it is okay and it is a finished product.
Then I thought I’m make a pumpkin potholder. Does anyone know how to put bias around a potholder so it looks good? Sally – is there a big secret to this. I’m tossing this one on which I practiced. It is very sad.
Cleaning outside the new house, inside the barn
Today was cleaning day #1. I had the house and decks pressure sprayed. The house needs primer and two coats of paint, the deck foundations are fine, but the boards will have to be replaced. The fellows also helped me by moving the furniture out of the house and into the garage. Now the garage is quite full again, but the leftovers are all in one place. I have to call and see how much of it Goodwill is willing to take. The rest will probably end up as land fill.
And cleaning the barn – well, here are some photos which I took after some of the work has been done.
And this is looking much better than it did. By evening it was more organized, but it will be weeks before we have the barn looking like a horse barn again.
Machines are not inanimate!
If machines were inanimate, then they would do what they are programmed to do. Both my embroidery machine and my quilting machine know – they absolutely know – the second I walk away from them. And just like toddlers or pets, that is the moment they choose to act up.
The pattern doesn’t show well here, but it is crocodiles. It is rather stitch intensive and the machine does not want me to walk away for even a few seconds. Therefore the quilting is not finished. Hopefully tomorrow.
Today was full of phone calls and an appointments. The locksmith has been out and the locks are all re-keyed. I have been to the gym. The power and the sewer have been transferred to our name. The checking account has been set up and there will be checks coming. It’s nice when tax deductible and income are all separate.
An appointment is set for tomorrow to get the moss pressure washed off the roof and the exterior of the house and decks will be washed as well. Then we can stain decks and have the exterior painted.
This weekend, I worked some on my October schedule. Yesterday and today, I followed it (except the quilt isn’t finished) and it still amazes me how much more I can finish when I schedule. I realize that without the schedule, I spend too much time on the computer. Oh, the things one learns and is tempted to make or buy! But at this point, definitely not another machine that must be tended.
Corn Maze, making memories, and CELEBRATION
A corn maze is great fun for every age. Our grandsons decided the best way to make sure we were out before dark was to always take the left road. Since there were no dead ends, it worked. We made the circle by always leaning to the left and arrived back where we started.
Corn maze fact: Did you know that the farmer plants the corn, then when it is about a foot high, he takes a rototiller through it to make a pattern for the maze? Today, one maze was a shark and the other was a seahorse.
After the corn maze, we had to decide what to do next. Many activities were for younger children
The boys decided to pick out some pumpkins instead of the other activities available. This pumpkin was 84#. Of course, they took several small ones and another three that were medium size for the front door. The grandparents came home with fresh Brussels sprouts on the stem.
And since I know you’ve been patiently waiting to see this finished quilt top, and it is now published in the “The Quilt Pattern Magazine” , I’d like to present CELEBRATION
You are welcome to go to their website and get the pattern.
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20 minutes increments
20 Minutes increments will get a quilt done. Today I had several 20 minutes increments. As you can see the top half is sewed together into rows. The bottom has a bit more to go, but will hopefully, I will get the flimsy done between other jobs on Sunday. I see people who don’t start because they don’t have a big area of time, but one can accomplish much even with small time bites. You might want to try it with whatever you’d like to get done. I will also be trying this method to get my goals written down for October, November and December. I have been looking for a big chunk of time and not finding it. So I need to try this.
Little house purchase
This little house with a detached garage on 4 acres with it’s own well and septic tank,
this 36 x 48 horse barn,
and this hoop house are what have been taking so much of my time lately. The property adjoins ours. The owners were not in good enough health to keep things up, therefore there is a lot of work to be done as you can easily see. After a lot of negotiating and biting our tongues, we signed the papers today and will take possession either on Monday or Tuesday, when the sale is recorded by the county. We have a potential tenant (I have had to check out as well as one can), who with his wife is excited about doing the yard work and painting. They will only rent the house, not the land, barn, or hoop house. The barn and land are for the sheep. The plan is to put the garden that is currently on the steep hill, between the barn which is on the lower side of the trees and the hoop house. It is much flatter and will be so much easier to garden. So there are more garden boxes going in this winter. And probably less quilting as well.
Another hour of sewing and bit by bit, the quilt is progressing.
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September Sew fun Ideas and “me time”
I made a brief visit to the Sew Fun program this morning and found:
This shirt is from the LoriAnne pattern, with a cowl made to cover the neckline. What a unique way to change a look!
These quilts made from foundation piecing and Mylar Stars books. Neither were extremely exciting.
Sew Fun had the usual purses and pressing mats, pillows, and even a purse organizer, but I think more thought should have gone into this program. I think the program chair may be running out of ideas, or maybe it is just difficult to keep coming up with new things to sell us.
I left early and got some quotes on lumber prices to fix the stalls in the barn and a few groceries and was back home by lunch.
AND THEN, after lunch, I took some “me time” The weather was so beautiful and it will soon be winter, my soul needed to be nourished by just sitting in the sun enjoying the gorgeous view. Do you ever do that? Just be quiet, sit, and enjoy. I think I will do it more often. Why am I always in such a rush to get things done that I don’t take time to enjoy the little things?
The rest of the day was spent cleaning a freezer and doing credit checks on a potential tenant. Tomorrow we will take the money to the attorney and the following day, the papers should be signed. And then, the real work begins, getting the house ready to live in again.
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4 patches and green squares
Do we ever tire of 4 patches? Remember all those little green squares that I cut at 2.5″ instead of 3″. They wanted to be useful. So now they will have a home.
Here is the applesauce from last night?
And this is what it looked like this morning. I started it on fast cook and after an hour, turned it to the slow cook. It cooked for about 21 hours. And though it is mild, it is yummy. Here is the recipe:
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Enough applesauce to nearly fill your crockpot
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1 cup honey
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1 1/2 T cinnamon
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1 teas nutmeg
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1/2 teas cloves
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Mix together and put in crockpot
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Simmer 12-24 hours until cooked in half. Jar and process for 10 minutes, or just refrigerate and eat within a week.
How to make applesauce in your blender
Before making the applesauce, clean your jars and have them ready. I ran mine through the dishwasher.
You can use your old jar rings. Put the new lids in water and let them soak while you prepare the apples
Wash the apples, but don’t peel them.
Cut the apples in quarters, remove the core and cut each piece across the middle. With about 1/4 cup of water in your hi-power (Vitamix) blender, add one quarter blender jar of raw apples. Turn speed up and as soon as these are blended, keep adding more until the blender is full. After the first blender of apples, you won’t need to add more water as there will be enough fluid left from the previous load. These apples were from the neighbors trees which had not been cared for, so there were lots of spots to cut out. And yes, this way does lose a bit more apple, but I don’t mind because it is quick, easy, and the chickens or compost can have the discards.
Using a canning funnel, pour just up to the bottom of the first ring.
Even if the rim looks clean, put your clean finger in water and run it around the rim to make sure the rim is clean,
Now put on the lid, then the ring.
When you have 7 jars, (pints or quarts) put them in the water bath canning kettle and bring to a rolling boil. Turn down and keep boiling. See there are bubbles in the water, not just on the lids. Boil 15 minutes for pints and 20 for quarts. If you are at a higher elevation, check with your extension agent. OR you can make fewer jars and keep it in the refrigerator for up to a week.
At the end of this time, remove from the kettle and set on a towel until cool enough to loosen the lid and rinse the outside of the jar. Then use a sharpie to write on the lid. I put 10/16, because it is so close to the end of the month. TERRIFIC!. You are done without peeling a single apple or losing the nutrition in the skin. Your applesauce will vary in color with the color of the apple skin. If you desire, you could add cinnamon and/or sugar.
Below, I saved some of the applesauce and added honey and spices to it to make apple butter. This I placed in my slow cooker. It is a new recipe, so I will let you know how we like it.
