Glorious Creations

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use, some cooking and some poetry

Blog about Spartan Arrow Beans.

All recipes, pictures, and writings are my own.

I give credit for items which belong to other people in my blogs . Please do not copy without permission

ONE MAN'S TRASH

2012-01-25T09:12:00.000-06:00

In this case it is one woman's trash. I have written several blogs on the "Trash to treasure" theme. This one is in that theme. I was going through my closets, purging them of clothes I didn't wear. I still had clothes I wore at my heaviest. I noticed several had lots of fabric in the skirts. They were all great fabrics. My mind started reeling by the thought of getting rid of "Fabric". You see I am a self proclaimed Fabricholic. I love fabric of all kinds, not just my quilting cottons which threaten to run us out of our house.

I just came home from a trip west to visit my family. Visions of the three great nieces, swimming in my head. I wish I had taken pictures for you of the clothes I disassembled, but I only have the reconstructed versions of them (It didn't occur to me I would want to blog about them.). I spent five days deconstructing and reassembling dresses for three young ladies.

This is the first out fit I constructed. It was hard to take a picture because of the design in the fabric. It is a herringbone that is not even 1/32 of an inch (you need a microscope to tell it is herringbone).

This dress was made from a long "vest" dress. I kept the hem in the dress and measured up from the hem the length I needed for the skirt of the dress. (my dress was fully lined and I used the lining too. The skirt and bodice is fully lined.) If you look close at the bodice you will notice a decorative stitching down the middle. I joined two pieces to have enough fabric for the bodice. I flat felled the seams. The belt is made from red taffeta of another dress. I used wonder-under to fuse it, so both sides would be finished and I wouldn't have a seam. I covered the ragged seam joining with a piece of grosgrain ribbon that was on the front of the dress (I used the wonder-under to fuse it, also.) This stiffened the belt.

Behind the bow are two very large snaps (which came off the bodice of the vest dress). That is what closes the belt. The belt is the only thing that is not washable. "Washability" is important in a dress for a 6 year old.

This is the back of the dress. You will see three seams on the back that look to be decorative. They are there for the same reason as the ones on the front are there. I ran out of enough fabric and had to piece for the bodice back. The zipper and hook and eye are recycled from a skirt I dismantled. The Belt loops are chained 6 strand embroidery floss.

This photo shows the lining in the skirt, used as it came from the dress. I only needed to seam it and gather it to fit the waist.

Dress number two was actually 2 items of clothing. The oldest niece is 9 1/2 going on 20. She needs clothes which aren't as "fru-fruie" as the younger ladies. I had a skirt and what you would call a baroque style long jacket. (I made the outfit when Nehru Jackets were the thing. I couldn't throw tit away because I dearly loved the fabric.)

The skirt was made from a "sueded cotton". It feels like a light weight velvet. The Jacket was made with a pinwhale corduroy that was so tiny it too, feels like velvet. It is a paisley with a gold thread running through it. The skirt was perfect, all it needed was to take up the hem and take the waist in. It was a simple elastic waist straight skirt, no deconstructing necessary.

The Vest is an over sized style with a long tapered front with large arm holes so a sweater or other over sized top can be worn under it. The jacket I cut it from was long enough accommodate the front pieces and the back was perfect to use for the back of the vest. I am so pleased the fabric is reused. I am really in love with the fabric. I have enough left in scraps to make another project.

This is a plain black skirt, but on it is oh so classy. Since it is cotton/poly blend and not velvet it is totally washable. It gives the look without the "terror".

This vest from the paisley pinwhale corduroy. The light colored designs have the gold threads running through them.

I searched the closet for clothes with suitable fabrics to make a dressy blouse to go under it. Nada, so a trip to Walmart was in the works. I purchased her a black turtle neck shirt. Sent the receipt with it so if it didn't fit she could return it.

Two outfits down and one to go. The next closet reject was a suit made of a light weight polyester. A long skirted "suit". The skirt was a full flared A line. Plenty of fabric as it was a size 24 suit. I used the same procedure I did with the first dress. I cut the skirt off the length I needed. BTW, for a poly blend item it sure was "shreddy" . It shredded like it was a satin. I was glad the existing hem was already serged. (I had taken out the hem when I deconstructed the item, so I had to re-hem the dress.)

The original skirt was not lined. I had lots of white lining fabric in the stash for the task. Since the fabric was light weight, I used the fabric for the lining of the bodice. The belt on the dress is made from two pieces of satin I had in my scrap box. The zippers and hooks and eyes were from the old skirt. The belt loops were made with chaining embroidery floss.

Dresses for three sweet girls,

Their hair they will have to curl,

Getting ready for a place to go,

Their new clothes they will want to show.

I hope you will try your hand at turning your trash into treasures. You never know, you may develop a passion for re-purposing. I have to clean up the mess I made, I know I will get distracted by the fabrics and will have that "craving" to be constructing! I already have ideas for the rest of the paisley pinwhale.

Make it better today.

Other blogs I write:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

http://marijasfabricreations.blogspot.com/

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use, some cooking and some poetry

Blog about Spartan Arrow Beans.

All recipes, pictures, and writings are my own.

I give credit for items which belong to other people in my blogs . Please do not copy without permission.

INTRODUCING A CREATIVE QUILTING BLOG

2011-12-06T10:41:00.000-06:00

You will be doing yourself a favor to visit this quilting blog. She has 3 very quick Christmas projects. The table runner and place mats can be made with Chanukah fabrics and be just as effective. There is also a recipe for a pear cake which looks delicious. (I am going to try it today with apples, because I have those on hand)

I have been baking heavily this week. There is a new article in my blog site with cookie recipes.

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/12/cookies-cookies-and-more.html

Other blogs I write:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

http://www.preparedpantry.com/Macaroons-Recipe.htm

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use, some cooking and some poetry

New blog about Spartan Arrow Beans.

New blog about Chicken Eggs

All recipes, pictures, and writings are my own.

I give credit for items which belong to other people in my blogs . Please do not copy without permission.

COOKIES, COOKIES, AND MORE

2011-12-02T15:12:00.001-06:00

"Tis the season" is the popular refrain. Today is the 2nd of December. I spent part of yesterday getting together a list of the people I wanted to be the recipients of my kitchen productions. I love to bake. I will be making cookies all weekend to get them ready to be shipped out, so they can be enjoyed during the holiday season. If I come across any other outstanding recipes I will be sure to blog about them. I will, of course, be making the standard chocolate chip cookies in addition to the pan cookies. There will be oatmeal cookies (without raisins, too many people disdain them). The macaroons are a must, and the cookies on my other blogs are top of the list.

With the abundance of eggs produced by my hens I have to find ways to use them. (Two people can not consume 2 dozen eggs a day.) I have been desperate enough to try, LOL.

I have fixed quiches and souffle's.
I have found a recipe for baking Challah with a cup of egg yolks (around 13 or so).
Tutorials on making Challah and Cinnamon Rolls, also a blog on making Herb Bread are here:
http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/search/label/COOKING%3A%20BREAD%20BAKING
I will post the cup of egg yolks recipe for Challah on another blog.

The whites are converted to Angel food cake or several batches of macaroons. The recipe on the packages of Sweetened flaked Coconut (I use the store brand) is usually great. I am adding other cookie recipes to the others I have blogged about. (The Blog addresses are at the end of this blog.)
My macaroon recipe is so easy.

December 3, 2011, Hints:
I have been baking some of the cookies and it occured to me to pass on some hints which I have remembered during this endeavor.
If you have a convection oven and are using it in convection mode lower your temps 25 degrees.
Turn your pans at least once during the baking and exchange the shelves they are on.

MY RECIPE FOR MACAROONS:

Pre-heat oven 325degrees F

4 Egg whites, approx 1/2 c. (older eggs and room temperature white fluff more when they are whipped.)

1 tsp.Vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

2 c Sugar ( I put it in the mini food processor for 2 minutes to make it finer. It will absorb quicker)

1 (14 oz) pkg coconut (some store brands are better than others, but when in a cookie you can't tell the difference.) 12-3-11 I used the name brand coconut today and personally did not care for the product. It had hard clumps I had to pick out.

Don't use coconut that is stale, as in, it has become dried out.

Parchment paper to line the cookie sheets (the sheets can be reused a second or third time)

I begin whipping the egg whites, salt, vanilla on slow speed till foamy. Then increase the speed gradually till the whites are soft peaks. At this time I start adding the "pulverized" sugar a tablespoon at a time (you are at full speed) When the whites are stiff and glossy you are done.

Fold in the Coconut. Drop by heaping tablespoon (correction 12-3-11 teaspoon, the tablespoon makes too large of macaroon. on your parchment covered sheet. DEC 3 hint. They are very fragile when hot and after they are cooled you can remove them with a metal spatula. You only need about 1/2 inch between each macaroon. Bake for about 20 minutes (start checking at 18) you only want to get a slight coloring of the whites (light golden not brown)

The following site has a good article on producing "Meringues".

CHOCOLATE CHIP PAN COOKIE

This recipe was cut out of a magazine umpteen years ago. I did not keep the source. The paper is now growing so yellowed it is hard to read. It was an ad from Nestle's.

I have tried other pan recipes and none come up to this one.

2 1/4 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp.baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. butter soften (really makes a difference instead of margarine and shortening)

3/4 c. sugar

3/4 c. firmly packed brown sugar

1 tsp Vanilla extract

2 eggs

One 6 oz pkg. semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 (if you are using a convection oven lower the temp to 350.)

Combine flour salt and baking soda in a bowl

(I sift after measuring so the ingredients are thoroughly mixed) set aside.

Cream butter, sugars and vanilla together. Beat in the eggs, gradually add the flour mixture.

Stir in the morsels. Spread into an un-greased 15 1/2" X 10 1/2" X 1" baking pan. (I have used a 1/2 sheet pan successfully but you have to watch the time because the cookies are thinner and will cook quicker.) The 15 inch pan makes a nicer bar.

Bake 18-20 minutes, cool then cut into 2" squares. Makes 35 squares.

When I package them for gifts I wrap 2 bars in a waxed paper sandwich sheet.

The ones they use in the deli (I cut the sheet in half.)

Two cookie recipes

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/search/label/BAKING%3A%20COOKIES

Brownies and Triple chocolate Cake

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/search/label/BAKING%3A%20Desserts

May your holiday baking be filled with yummy successes.

Other blogs I write:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/search/label/COOKING%3A%20%20SOUP

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use, some cooking and some poetry

New blog about Spartan Arrow Beans.

New blog about Chicken Eggs

All recipes, pictures, and writings are my own.

I give credit for items which belong to other people in my blogs . Please do not copy without permission.

SOUP D'JOUR

2011-11-09T13:14:00.000-06:00

It's turned into a cold blustery day. When I as taking care of the chickens I was subjected to stiff crisp winds from the west. It's bringing a cold front in which is depositing snow north and west of us in Nebraska and Kansas. I was wanting soup for lunch but I was out of cabbage and the garlic soup in the refrigerator I had indulged in several times this past week. What could I have? I wanted quick and easy and satisfying. My mind went to an old blog of mine. It was about tomato soup.

In less than 15 minutes I had my cup of soup in my hands. I made it with vegetable stock I had made earlier this week. I used this as my liquid. It had a plus to using milk. No calories. I had considered having a grilled cheese too but after a couple of bites I knew all I wanted was 2 servings of soup.

Have satisfying bowl of soup and a wonderful day.

You can also visit me at:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/09/treasured-time-time-remembered.html

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use, some cooking and some poetry

New blog about Spartan Arrow Beans.

New blog about Chicken Eggs

A MOTHER'S DAY

2011-11-08T07:20:00.005-06:00

Today is not Mother’s day, but it is my Mother’s day. Today is her birthday.
I have a dilemma, she has everything she wants.

My Mother’s years have been filled with the love of life,
the laughter of the happiness of children,
the hardships and tears everyday living brings,
and the excitement challenges bring.

She raised 6 children, giving us the basic tools to be beneficial adults in society.
I learned many tidbits I can pull out when needed. Things books and computers can’t teach you; the things which are only learned in the school of hard knocks.

She gave me the greatest gift of all. She taught me about love.
I had a wonderful teacher, I found my life’s mate when I was very young.
I was only 17. That was 49 years ago.

How do I repay this gift? There is no way I can.

I want her to know I admire her determination and will power.

How I am glad she is my mother.

Each of us travels a different road,

Our journeys cost us dearly,

The lessons learned along the way,

Sometimes come late, not early.

We’re the driver of our destiny,

Choosing our own way,

Thank you for the gift you gave to me,

I love you Mom, Happy Birthday.

WHERE MY JOURNEY HAS BROUGHT ME.

THIS IS NOT THE LAST TIME

2011-11-04T13:47:00.000-05:00

This last few months the word "time" has been a prominent part of my life.

I have written two blogs with "Time" in them:

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/06/treasured-time-not-time-lost.html

This will not be the last time "Time" will be featured in my blogs.

I am in the process of making another hand pieced quilt in blue in the pattern of "Treasured Time".

While on my trip west I had lots of time to think and remembered a poem I wrote July 23, 2001.

I would like to share it with you.

"STRETCHING TIME"

Lost time cannot be replaced,

Time does not stand still,

We can be lost in time,

If we traveled in time.

Messages float around in time,

There is time in a bottle,

Time stands still for no one,

How about, a race for time.

People say, "In due time,

"Time is staring me in the face,"

We are told, "Take your time,"

Or, "I aced it in time."

Things withstand the test of time,

May I have a moment of your time,

A space in time,

I told you time and time again.

It has been a long time,

It is time to rest,

We don't have a lot of time,

Get finished on time.

It is school time,

Where we learn to tell time,

Which is not keeping time,

That is Music time.

All those times,

Are precious times,

At holiday times,

In olden times.

Time after time,

I looked at my Timex for time,

Changing it in each time zone,

Checking the delivery time.

Punching the time clock,

It's show time,

Dancers counting time,

Exhausted, it's bedtime.

Break time is snack time,

Break time is dance time,

It is time for a break,

Make note of the time.

In our quest for time,

We are rushed for time,

Call us for meal time,

It's closing time.

It is summer time,

Lemonade time,

Which is not lemon thyme,

It is time for a drink.

We are always finding time,

Told to make time,

Which is not the same as "making time",

Whew, done in time.

Can you be lost in time,

In a space in time,

Children are disciplined with "Time out",

There is quiet time.

We spend a lot of time,

Mulling over time,

Cursing time,

Telling kids, it's time for bed.

Things are listed in a time line,

Some people waste time,

It was in the nick of time,

We scraped by in time.

I stopped in time,

It was the fastest time,

There is timed response,

In a time lock.

We take a stitch in time,

Please take the time,

Let someone know you have the time,

To spend time with them.

When tragedy strikes there is no time,

We cannot count the time,

We say, we wish we had taken the time,

To tell the person, we value time spent with them.

Please take a moment of your time,

Tell a loved one, you have loved them for all time,

Quiet time is not wasted time,

But time shared.

Thank you for sharing time with me.

You can also visit me at:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

and

http://www.spirithalloween.com/product/rb-mrtl-kmbt-subzero-adlt-std/

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use, some cooking and some poetry

New article about Spartan Arrow Beans.

Thank you for visiting. I love sharing my projects. All writings, patterns, and pictures shown here are mine. Please ask permission before using. (Credit is given for items not my own)

HALLOWEEN NINJA

2011-10-10T13:40:00.002-05:00

My grandaugther requested for her Halloween costume the following:

To say I was intimidated, by the idea of making it, was to put it politely.

She's ten years old now and does know what she wants.

This is my version of the costume. The A on the Belt is for

"The Amazing Avenger"

The dress form is covered with one of my turtle necks. It will not be part of the costume. I suggested she get a black turtle neck in her size and a pair of black tights. Most of the fabrics came from my stash.

I purchased 1 yd blue bonded vinyl, 1/2 yard of black felt, pattern to use the hood (never opened it, the hood pattern from last year still fit her) and 1/2 yard very stiff interfacing. The cost from Hancock's was just over 15 dollars. I had the iron-on interfacing, satin, wonder

under, elastic, silver lame', silver ribbon, and western pearl snap fasteners in my stash.

There was no way I was going to be able to copy the costume exactly.

I was hoping to do something in the idea of it. The first thing I did was to get measurements from MOM.

They live in Florida and I am in Missouri so the logistics are in the way.

I couldn't believe how many measurements I needed to construct the items.

Neck, around the crown of the head, forehead to base of neck, back to floor, base of neck to waist, waist to knees, (around the wrist, around the arm just below the elbow and the measurement for the length between the two measures), around the calf at the fattest part of the leg, and around the ankle and the length between the two). I still had to call her to clarify more measurements. Now that I have finished it I hope everything fits. If it doesn't..geesh!

BELT AND ITS CONSTRUCTION

The first thing I did was prepare fabrics. I used "wonder under" to bond the felt to the very stiff, heavy interfacing. I used some very light weight interfacing which had bonding on it and applied it to the silver "tissue" lame (this fabric used to be available at Wallmart very reasonable.) I used the waist measurement and added 5 inches for overlaps, incase I needed to change anything. Remember I don't have a plan for this belt yet. I am drawing it on a piece of butcher paper. I picked 4 inches as a width. Mom had said she was 24 inches around. So I drew the belt 29 x 4. The oval belt medallion I made 7 inches high and 9 inches long.

Making the medallion, finding a design I thought she would like and which was simple enough to cut out, I settled on her initial and named her ninja type costume, "The Amazing Avenger". I put a sun and moon on it because the avenger is on duty day and night. I used a paper backed bond to iron on the interfaced lame' and then traced the design on it and cut it out. I peeled off the paper and bonded it to an oval of bonded black felt. This was so the black could show through the cut outs (it also made the belt medallion stiff.) I zig zagged the medallion to the belt. I decided I would use pearl snap fasteners for the belt closure, making them a decorative addition to the belt. I marked the 24 inches and added an inch on either side and Cut the excess off and attached the snaps. I put the belt on the manikin to see how it looks and realized I hadn't asked a very important question. Did she measure her in her birthday suit or with the shirt and tights on? OUCH! The answer was in her birthday suit.

This delimna was solved using the trimmings from the belt. I spilt the belt in the back and added 2 inches of elastic and sewed the two flaps back on. She can now stretch the belt up to about 4 inches larger. The only thing she has to do is after she dons the costume is have someone pin the top flap down so it doesn't flap in the breeze and it lwill look like a solid belt. (BTW, I used a black marker to cover the white edge of the piecing flaps so they would disappear.)

TUNIC CONSTRUCTION

Neck to waist and waist to knees came handy in drawing a plan for this. I realized I need a neck to shoulder seam measurement. This turned out to be 6 inches. This was the measurement I had decided would be good for the tunic. I cut out my pattern and used it on the vinyl. Then I took packing tape and tried to join the shoulders to try it on the manikin. I realized then the vinyl was too stiff to hang right when it was joined at the shoulders. I knew I would have to make a rectangle the width and length of the shoulder and join the seams. A light went on, I could use the lame' and the pearl snap fasteners and make it look sort of like epaulets (I have had these pearl snap fasteners since 1975 when I made western shirts for my boys. In the making of this costume I have used all but two of them. I am so glad to see them gone).

The bottom of the tunic need decoration for two reasons. One because the costume she wants has decorations and two because the tunic needed something to weight it down. The vinyl wanted to curl up (it is stored on a roll in the fabric shop so it has that memory.) This was a wonderful place to use the snap fasteners. They looked like jewels. I had one red one left in the sewing box,

it gave me the inspiration to use the circle/flower like design.

I used the male snap side on the back to add more weight to the bottom of the tunic.

HOOD AND MASK

This part was a piece of cake for me. The last several years The kids have needed hoods for their costumes.

The following blog has a batman costume:

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2008/09/recycle-those-bridesmaid-dresses.html

Last years costumes both had hoods. See them here:

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/search/label/SEWING%3A%20Costumes

I was in luck, her head still fit in the puppy dog's hood. I had the left over satin from the batman costume. The satin was reinforced with some light weight bonded interfacing.

This kept it from fraying while I was working with it.

The mask was made from a triangular piece of jersey like satin (it was already cut the size I needed!). I rolled hem the longest side of the triangle. I found the center of this side and attached it to one of those disposable breathing masks. I whip stitched the edge of the triangle from the ear elastic on one side to the ear elastic on the other side (I used this same procedure to make the mask on the dog and monster costume.) The kerchief like mask is put on first and the hood goes over it.

BACK OF HOOD AND TUNIC

THE GUARDS

ARM GUARDS SHIN GUARDS

I was going to use the bonded black felt to make them and changed my mind. I had the left-over blue vinyl (which will be a hard fabric for me to find a use for). It is nice and stiff and would make good guards.

When I went looking for embellishments I came across left over Christmas ribbon. It was perfect for the arm guards. I cut out the guards using the given measurements (adding an inch to each side for flaps to close them with.) I had planned to use velcro for the attaching method and thought, this would be a great place for those snaps. Hooray!..more gone! I hope I won't regret the decission. I hope I allowed enough room and they fit. This is the hardest part of long distance costuming. You are not able to pre-try something before you put on the finishing touches.

This is my amazing little ninja.

You can also visit me at:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets,

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

and

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/06/treasured-time-not-time-lost.html

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use,

some cooking and some poetry

Thank you for visiting. I love sharing my projects. All writings, patterns, and pictures shown here are mine. Please ask permission before using. (Credit is given for items not my own)

TREASURED TIME, TIME REMEMBERED

2011-09-12T16:23:00.000-05:00

I can't tell you how excited I am to be able to show you this quilt. It is still a top. I completed the top last night while we were watching the specials about 9/11. The hours spent on it I did not keep track of, which made me decide I am going to keep a diary with the one I began last night. Yes I began another one, but before I reveal the other one I will show you this one. The pictures aren't great but I couldn't wait (I will replace them with better ones when the camera battery is charged.)

The quilt top grew to be very large. I was unable to hang it on the wall because it was so heavy and being hand pieced I was worried the weight would pull out the stitches.

Here is "Treasured Time"

The top spread over a queen size bed.

The right side of the bed. The border is Jenny Beyer Eyelash (Navy) from her "Moonglow" pattern about 10 years ago (I used all but a couple of inches X 6 inches). It is 4 inches when finished. The squares are 4 inches finished. The drop on the side is about 24 inches.

The left side of the bed. You can't see it in the photos the navy border is on all 4 sides.

I haven't decided how I will quilt it yet. I was wanting to hand quilt it, but when I realized how large it had grown I am contemplating machine quilting it. I don't have a long arm but I do have a short arm, but I am not sold on the idea of pantographs on it. I do know I will not be using my home machine to quilt it!

The above is the blog I wrote about the top while it was blocks.

You can also visit me at:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

and

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/08/wedding-gift-season.html

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use,

some cooking and some poetry

Thank you for visiting. I love sharing my projects. All writings, patterns, and pictures shown here are mine. Please ask permission before using. (Credit is given for items not my own)

New Blocks revealed when the battery gets charged.

I will be getting plenty of moments tomorrow to work on them. I have a date with the dentist.

WEDDING GIFT COMPLETED

2011-09-08T09:22:00.003-05:00

14" X 37"

For the beginnings of this project see:

This project was an eye opener (lesson) for me. I've never embroidered a table runner before and when it came time to add borders, I added and ripped 3 versions. I should have taken pictures to show you, but at the time I was upset my ideas didn't work (on paper they looked good but when applied they looked tacky). It was the same when I planned the embroidery. I had planned four design sections (see the blog "Wedding Gift Season"), and was glad I completed one section on each corner first. The extra sections would have made it too cluttered. I didn't want to compete with the platters or the vase she might be using on it.

I have only Quilted on my regular sewing machine once and never quilted by hand. I did both here.

These pictures are of the two embroidered units on the quilt:

LEFT UNIT RIGHT UNIT

I don't know if you can see it but I tried my hand at hand quilting. I outlined the two units. I started with a hoop and two thimbles. I used the plastic ones that are fitted to the fingers. I used one on the under finger and one on the right middle finger. I moved them around to other fingers during the experimental stage. I was very interested in learning to do this because I want to hand quilt the huge "Treasured Time" quilt. It can be seen in the following blog. I have attached all but one border which is pinned on awaiting me to sew it on.

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/06/treasured-time-not-time-lost.html

New pics will be available as soon as the border is attached. I don't know if I will be up to the task of hand quilting it but I know it is too fragile to put on the quilt machine. I know from doing this little bit I need a teacher or a good book. Another lesson I learned from the small project is I will have to have the quilt on rails. It is too much to handle in my lap.

I had to discard the hoop when I was half way through one of the units. It was very uncomfortable for me to use. and then I discarded the right hand thimble. I was more comfortable using my finger nails to push and control the needle. I did give it the "ole college try". but I do need help.

I marked the runner with the blue pencil and quilted on the machine. I didn't mention I thread basted the runner every four inches both ways. I wish I had done it every two inches. It seemed there was too much play in the fabrics and batting. I used the even feed quilting foot which came with my Janome machine. I had tried to use the quilting bar once and was very disappointed in my consistency with it. I knew if I measured and marked it would be even.

I was very glad I had not pre-washed the fabric before I embroidered on it. I didn't pre-wash the backing or the batting either (the backing is the same fabric as the front). I used Hobbs 20/80. They did shrink up giving the runner an old item, with a soft feel and look.

On the back I didn't put a lable. I just embroidered my name into the backing. I did not want to personalize the runner till I find out if they like it and want to keep it. If they do then I will take it home and put their names and date on it.

Every gift needs a card to accompany it. I used the embroidery pattern to design the card. It is printed on card stock and colored in with colored pencils. The size is 6 X 9 inches.

For the inside I printed a piece of onion skin with design and line drew the colors. Inside I wrote care instructions with the fabric contents of the runner.

For more blogs by me:

http://www.organicinstlouis.blogspot.com/

This is a garden blog, but it occasionally has recipes on it.

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/04/wedding-quilt.html

Not a garden blog. There are articles which have nothing to do with creating or gardening.

There are blogs on the new born baby kittens we found and are mothering. It is a blog where I will sometimes voice my opinions which will always be environmentally friendly

Thank you for visiting. I love sharing my projects. All writings, patterns, and pictures shown here are mine. Please ask permission before using. (Credit is given for items not my own)

WEDDING GIFT SEASON

2011-08-31T10:35:00.004-05:00

I don't know if there is a season for wedding gifts, around my house they are in season all the time. I suppose it comes with the territory. That territory being a large family. I am the oldest of 6 siblings; 4 girls and 2 boys. My youngest sister has had one wedding recently. The following is the blog about that quilt:

Then we found out there is to be a wedding, The last of October. I drove to Denver last week to deliver a quilt for them, just in case I couldn't go in October. The following is about that quilt:

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/08/let-it-snow.html

My husband's family has surprised us with a Wedding in Vegas. The couple, of course, has their registries. I don't know the wife well. I went to the registries to find her colors. I had thought I would make her a set of place mats and napkins for her kitchen. I saw something I knew would be one of a kind and she wouldn't be able to buy it anywhere. She had chosen the Lenox Botanical Boutique collection. There is a platter in the group (the following is a pix of it)

This picture came from http://www.tableandhome.com/prodbbgefh site.

I copied the picture, enlarged it until it was approximately the size of the actual platter (I had to go to 350%). Then I traced it onto white paper. I had decided to make a table runner which could be used under the vases and platters. The following is the plan, but I still had to deside how to execute it.

I had thought I would probably applique.
My applique skills are on the good side (I don't do iron on applique). But as I looked at the patterns on the paper I thought , "This has to be done by September 11th." No Way, popped into my head.
I re-looked at the googled images and noticed they seemed to have variegated colors.
I am hoping this is not a camera reflection.

I decided to execute the designs in embroidery. My Needlework skills are so-so, but I figured I could do acceptable on at least one stitch. I tried a back stitch and it looked terrible. I pulled out all the stitches and tried a split stitch. It looked worse. Then I tried a stem stitch. It looked nice. While I've been doing it I have developed a rhythm which may not be the correct stitch but it is working for me.

Pencil used in tracing the pattern onto the fabric.

I used a quilt marking pencil in blue to draw the pattern on the fabric.
The fabric is a white on white that has an extremely small design on it.
It gives it the look that is frosted (the glass on the items is frosted crystal).

I am tracing off one section at a time. I have finished one section and am on the second section.
I started on opposite corners. I don't know if I want all four sections I have planned.

Hooped section I am working on.

Finished section unpressed, because I don't want to press in any dirt that might be on it.

As you can see I have chosen 6 skeins. Each one with an "olive" edge to it. These are DMC floss. They are current. I just purchased them on the 29th.

I can't tell you what size needle I am using. I pulled it out of the pin cushion and used it. I picked it because it has an eye, just big enough to get two strands of thread through with a needle threader and it had a great point.

I have not planned borders or any other finishing. I do have a batik downstairs with the correct colors. Right now I think I will only do the two patterns on opposite corners. I don't want it to be too busy to set the items on (when I finish the second pattern I will make a decision if it needs more designs).

Thank you for visiting. I love sharing my projects. All writings, patterns, and pictures are mine. Please ask permision before using. (Credit is given for items not my own)

For more blogs by me visit at:

This is a garden blog, but it occasionally has recipes on it.

Not a garden blog. There are articles which have nothing to do with creating or gardening.

There are blogs on the new born baby kittens we found and are mothering. It is a blog where I will sometimes voice my opinions which will always be environmentally friendly

LET IT SNOW

2011-08-13T12:12:00.003-05:00

I am sorry I haven't worked on the tutorial for the "Sweet Sixteen" Quilt yet. Why? I have had to rush to get a quilt together for another wedding. It seems the stars and planets were aligned, I had available just what I needed. I participated in a block swap with 3 special friends. Friends I met through the Internet. One of them saw this pattern in a magazine (can't remember which one). She wanted to do it. We were visiting her in her home in Chicago. It was the week of the first international Quilt show held in Rosemont. We decided to help her out and make three different fabric blocks each (making 4 of each fabric) and then swap them out. She had a bolt of white on cream which was divided between the 4 of us. This would give some cohesiveness to our project.

We worked on our blocks and swapped them out quickly, but mine sat waiting for me. When the invitation to the wedding came I immediately thought of them. The invitation had deep purple roses on it. The couple lives in the Denver Area. I thought about the snowflakes waiting.

The stash held a purple that looked nice with them for borders. There was just enough for binding (the only left over I had was 2 four inch pieces of binding).

My Stash has been raided and my UFO pile is one less. This is the quilt.

SNOWBOUND 78" X 53"

It has been so long since we made the blocks I can't tell you who designed the quilt or what magazine it was in. I will tell you, the little blocks are only 1 1/2 inches unfinished. Lots of ity bitty sewing went on!

For more blogs by me visit at:

This is a garden blog, but it occasionally has recipes on it.

Not a garden blog. There are articles which have nothing to do with creating or gardening.

There are blogs on the new born baby kittens we found and are mothering. It is a blog where I will sometimes voice my opinions which will always be environmentally friendly.

TWO BITS DON'T MAKE A DOLLAR

2011-08-09T08:54:00.000-05:00

But with two bits of fabric you can start a quilt. Add two more, etc and etc, and you can end up with this:

I call this Quilt Pattern "Sweet Sixteen Gets Kissed".

This is is my own pattern. I made it from the trash I would have normally thrown away. For years I have been cutting the tiny trash into squares and throwing them into a bag. I had no idea what I was going to do with them.

I decided I needed to use the bag of 2" squares I accumulated. I have the need to control the outcome of my projects so sorted the squares (next batch I will sort as I go..lol). I am not one who can just grab in a bag of of darks and a bag of lights and sew. I would obsess when I pulled out a dark that it did not match with the light I pulled out. The sorting began. I made a light bag and a dark bag of each color family.

The squares were joined into four patch segments and the four patches were joined into a 16 patch block. Then I constructed blocks the same size as the finished 16 patch block with a square in each corner which kisses the corner of the sixteen patch blocks.

Hence the name "Sweet Sixteen Gets Kissed".

The construction of these blocks is fairly elementary but I have a couple of techniques which made the top lay nicer. I believe it will help with the quilting of the top.

86" X 69"

Border sashing 6 1/2 inches unfinished.

Construction techniques with pictures will follow in a blog titled:

"Sweet Sixteen Gets Kissed"

All pictures and Patterns presented here are mine.

SCRAPS BECOME UTILITARIAN

2011-06-15T19:59:00.005-05:00

We all have scraps and can't bear to throw them out. We acquire fabric, we have no idea how we will use it. An Internet group had a challenge. One which was to be fun and not demanding and would help get rid of some scraps.

It was called "Iron Quilter Challenge".

The items I chose to use for my Iron Quilter Project.

The rules were:

Pick a focus fabric and 4-6 supporting fabrics.

Any embellishments you wanted.

A fabric that was not quilting cotton

Backing fabric

Batting

Set aside 2 hours of time. Pick out your fabrics (don't use part of your 2 hours to pick fabrics and embellishments) and make a mini quilt 9x12 inches. Use the six supporting fabrics, inserting them into the focus fabric creating another piece of fabric. Finish in the two hours time. This was the general idea.

When I heard the challenge size I immediately thought of a sheet of paper and decided I would make a note book cover. This changed to a note book pouch. I don't have any finished pictures of the project because I gave it to my niece to carry her crayons and paper to the hospital with her for her Chemo/Radiation treatments before I realized I didn't have finished pictures.

This is what I created from scraps. I had the Laurel Burch fabric which I knew I would never use. It would just be sitting in the stash. With the cat theme I used the fake fur for the zipper opening of the pencil hold pocket. The pocket was lined with bright orange dotted fabric. I made a ball of yarn for a zipper pull. I inserted the fabrics so the cats looked like they were peeking out from where they were hiding in a lumber pile. The front was batted and backed with orange dot. I quilted it in the ditch.

For the back I made a zipper in the middle so she could slip a note book inside.

I joined the zipper back to the front and used a binding I had left over from another quilt.

It was a very fun exercise and it was freeing not to have a preconceived pattern. Now months later I used the idea to contrive a folder cover for myself. This is a little larger. I received a fat quarter from a friend in my favorite colors. But as with all fat quarters there wasn't enough fabric to make a quilt or to use for an accent fabric in a quilt. What was I to do with it? Looking at it I thought back to the Iron Quilter challenge. I thought I can make something for my self. I recently bought myself a large plastic file folder to use for filing instructions for current projects. I am always needing things like glasses, rulers, pencils ETC. I thought I will make a "cover bag" for it. I set about measuring it, I knew I wanted to make a bag with a box bottom to accommodate the file case when it was loaded with goodies.

I proceeded to grow my fabric so I would have enough fabric for both sides. If I didn't, I knew I would have something in the stash to go with it. The finished file folder cover is 15"x12"x1 1/2".

The folder cover front.

The folder slides into the top of the cover.

Tthe colors are very purple, orange and a limey army green.

I put a zipper in the bottom row. I put glasses and things like that in there.

Cover Back

The zipper opening on the left is a pocket the length of the cover. I use it for rulers.

This will not be my last experience in "fabric insertion". This has encouraged me to tame other fabrics to do my bidding. I am curious as to what other objects d'art I can produce. Hmm, maybe kitchen accessories for small appliances, or use the technique to make a fanciful set of place mats. Each one different but all matching. I am only limited by my imagination.

Take time and have fun, create something wonderful and utilitarian from your scraps

You can also visit me at:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

and

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use,

some cooking and some poetry

All pictures and writings are my own. Please ask permission before copying from my blogs.

TREASURED TIME NOT TIME LOST

2011-06-14T12:44:00.000-05:00

I finally put a hand project I have been working on for the better part of 6 years, up on the wall. I only work on this when I am waiting. Waiting endlessly for planes or doctors or any place else you have to hurry to just to find out you have to wait. I have recently started taking my project bag with me when I ride along in the car. Every where we go takes at least 30 minutes to get there and when I am not driving I am "Waiting". I've been wanting to speed this project up and the ride along fit the bill. I really get a lot done in that time.

The pattern for this quilt, I think I got from one of the Nickle Quilts books.

It requires 4.5" colored squares, 2.5" X 4.5" colored rectangles,

1.5 inch white squares, and 2.5 inch white squares.

One of those sleepless nights I needed something quiet to do and reading didn't fit the bill. I decided to cut out a quilt. This pattern had been in the back of my mind for several years. I wanted a star quilt and didn't want to piece one that had all the points meeting in the center. This is why I picked this pattern. This was supposed to be a relaxing endeavor. Searching through the stash I found a white on white with a minuscule flower pattern on it. It looked like I had an adequate amount of fabric to complete the cutting (I squeaked through and over the years I have lost pieces and mis-cut when piecing, Now I will be hunting in the stash for a white which is close in pattern and value to replace the shortage.).

When I finished cutting all the white pieces and sat down to read the instructions (remember read the instructions all the way through first!) I realized all the 1 1/2 inch squares were to be attached and then trimmed to make the star points. I also realized how small these 1000 plus squares were, and thought, "There is no way I want to sew all these by machine, who am I kidding!" I put the project in a bag with a copy of the pattern (the pattern has since been lost). That was approximately 10 years ago. Six years ago an Internet friend from Australia came to visit.

This was to begin my interest in hand piecing. She taught me the fundamentals of hand piecing and explained how she could hand piece faster than people machine piece. She could! She was amazing. After she left I looked for appropriate patterns to start a hand piece carry-a-long project. I remembered the fabric pieces I had put away so many years ago. I had been in a 5 inch charm square swap for three years. Another influence was I was privileged to hear Pat Spath speak and take an afternoon work shop with her.

I decided the charm squares would be great to use for this. But I wanted some continuity to this quilt. I am a bit of a control freak. When I do a "pull the strip out of the bag and use it in a scrap quilt challenge", If I come across one that to me doesn't go with the one I pull out of the light bag, I throw one or the other back and draw till I get something that I like. You can see by the above photo I even had to have the 4 squares in each of the blocks be coordinated.

To "coordinate" things I decided all the sashing rectangles should be blue or read as blue. What made me finally hang the quilt blocks and pieces on the wall I needed to find out how many more blues I needed to finish the project (I was running out of rectangles). I am trying not to repeat any of the blue rectangles either. I don't think I have more than 10 blues left in the stash. With the blocks hung up it looks like I will need somewhere over 70 blues. At least now I will be able to re-look at the blues in the quilt to see which ones in the stash I haven't used yet.

I am thinking I am going to add another four block row to each row. I am not happy with the long skinny look of the quilt. If that is the case I will be needing I'll be needing possibly another 80 blues..unless I have mis-counted, which is entirely possible. Any one who knows me personally knows I am mathematically challenged, especially if it requires figuring with a gizmo.

One of the major things I have learned while working on this is; I should have never used a printed white on white. The dyes make the printed areas stiff and are very difficult to run a needle through and you can't do a running stitch of several stitches on the needle. It is too, too stiff. Next time I will pick a background fabric with a looser weave.

Each block of four blocks, represents more than an hour of time. Hanging on the wall I can see time which would have been lost. Writing this last sentence has had a side benefit; I have found the name of my quilt.

"TREASURED TIME"

Not only is it moments which would have been lost forever,

but I was thinking of a friend who I treasured the time I shared with her and treasure her.

The minutes spent with fabric in my hands,

Thinking of friends I have in many lands,

Not counting stitches, not counting the time,

The memories I see, they are all mine.

Each of them, joined as if they were a seam,

Blending the real world and the one in my dreams,

A crazy quilt made of many thoughts,

Of happiness and sadness, life has brought.

These quilts warm me in my mind,

They are there when I need them, any time,

I make another, there's no need to measure,

They are great for storing a memory I treasure,

You can also visit me at:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.

and

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2011/05/challah-made-easy.html

blogs about the wildflowers on our farm

Organic methods we use,

some cooking and some poetry

CINNAMON ROLLS FROM CHALLAH

2011-05-17T16:49:00.002-05:00

It is said not to read the end of the book before you read the beginning. I hope that isn't the case with previewing the final product. The recipe follows:

This recipe began with the making of "Challah". Any Challah or sweet yeast dough will work but for this we are using the reserved 2 balls of dough from the Challah made easy blog:

Everything is the same up to the picture, titled "divided and weighed"

The pans you use should be a tube pan at least 10 inches in diameter. I did not realize until I was well into to making the rolls that I had pulled out the smaller bundt pans.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR CINNAMON ROLLS:

TWO BALLS OF DOUGH FROM YOUR CHALLAH RECIPE

2 TABLESPOONS GROUND CINNAMON

2 CUPS OF SUGAR

2 STICKS OF ROOM TEMP SOFT BUTTER

You need two bowls which hold at least a cup and a half of sugar each. In each bowl put a cup of sugar and 1 TBS of cinnamon. Stir each thoroughly till there is no white sugar visible. Set aside.

Take your two balls of dough, make sure you have enough counter surface to roll them out at the same time. Rolling them out at the same time gets them in the oven at the same time. If you don't have a rolling pin, find a bottle, glass or a jar with straight sides and use it. You can also also push the dough out with your fingers like people do pizza dough. You want to roll out two rectangles. I do about 12 inches X 15 inches I want the dough about 1/2 inch thick or less. As you're rolling the dough out be sure to lift it from the surface a couple of times to un-stick it. (If it's very sticky sprinkle a little flour but not much you don't want to make your dough heavy.)

When I lift it and put it back down it sometimes wants to draw up or get askew ed.

Just stretch it out and square it up and then roll some more.

When you get it to the size you want, spread a stick of butter over each one.

This is the rectangles rolled out and covered with a stick of butter each.

Now sprinkle each rectangle with its sugar/cinnamon bowl. It will be heavy. Don't worry about spilling over the edge, you will pick it up and use it later.

Now you can begin rolling them up. (Do each step in parallel so they end up finished at the same time)

After rolling up you cut each roll into 6 rolls.

I used the sharpest wide bladed knife I have.

Do not use a serrated edge you will tear your dough.

Use a small metal spatula (pancake turner) to slide under each one and guide it into the bundt pan.

You have to hold the sides securely when lowering it down, when you pick it up off the spatula to keep it from unrolling.

These are the rolls sliced and in the pans. See the two rolls off to the side. Because I had the smaller pans I couldn't squeeze them in. I quickly grabbed one of my mini loaf pans and sprayed it with cooking spray and put them in the pan.

The sugary look on the top of the rolls; I scraped up the spilled sugar from each roll and sprinkled it of the rolls it belonged to after the were put in the pan.

Now use you cooking spray... yes there is a time to use it. Spray a length of plastic wrap with it for each pan of rolls. Cover them with the greasy side down. This prevents them from sticking to the wrap when the rise. It also keeps the dough from drying out. Set aside in a warm place to rise. How long? Good question. It will be how warm the area is that decides it (make sure it is not a hot area... it will kill the growth of the yeast.) 80 degrees or less is optimum. I should think less than an hour. Your rolls should look like this..doubled in size.

This is what they look like when ready for the oven.

Place in the oven at 375 degrees and cook 25 minutes. If they still look a little juicy or soggy in their seams give them 5 minutes more. (I turn the oven off when I do this, I don't want to burn the rolls just to get them done.)

This is just out of the oven before they are turned out. You need to move quickly at this point. You need to have 2 platters with edges just in case there is a lot of sugar syrup juices running out. If you don't have edges use a plate that is slightly concave and is larger by at least two inches than the diameter of the rolls.

Place a platter on the top and flip it over just like you take a cake out of the pan. Pull the pan up slowly trying to get all the juices to stay on the rolls not the bottom of the pan. I have a rubber spatula handy to help. With these I didn't need it. BTW.. something I have observed when I have made them. If my bundt pans are two different colors the resulting rolls will brown differently and look different when you turn them out. You can make these in a square and rectangle pan too. They will not be as high. If you use a square pan arrange them with spaces between them so they can spread out instead of up. BTW...the little pan that I sprayed with pam..it stuck so bad I couldn't get them out I had to cut them out.

Cool on racks...They are dangerous to eat just out of the oven! It's one of those things you can't eat just one.

These rolls are not like sticky rolls. They are soft and light and you can pull them apart, eating them while dunking in a glass of milk. I don't put icing on them because there is so much sugar on them. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do. BTW, your fingers do get sticky while eating them.

Any questions please email.

We are ending the blog the way we began it, with our final product.

You can also visit me at:

New Cat Story

and

CHALLAH MADE EASY

2011-05-16T15:28:00.007-05:00

EDITED WITH CHANGES/CORRECTIONS MAY 20.

I hope this has not inconvenienced anyone.

Through the years people have oohed and aah ed over my bread making. I told them baking was easy. They always replied back, "Yes if you have been doing it forever." I remember the first loaf of bread I made. It was heavy but it was edible. It didn't rise properly.

I didn't have anything but a "Joy of Cooking" Cookbook (no Internet in 1963). It was and still is my encyclopedia for the kitchen. Now I run to the Internet and if my hands are too dirty I cursively wipe them and open my "Joy". My first "Joy" which I received at my wedding shower (in June it will be 48 years). It is cover less and the index is gone. It's pages are turning brown with the grease that's gotten on it over the years.

My mother baked yeast rolls occasionally, but usually I wasn't around. I had no concept of yeast dough baking. It was baptism by fire the first time I baked bread.

Making the bread today and taking the pictures was quite an ordeal. Every time I needed to take a picture I had grimy hands. I did accomplish the task and I hope I will be able to convey the procedure to you so you will be able to surprise everyone with a loaf of bread.

THE SHEEPISH WAY OF MAKING A CHALLAH

Things you will need

I never realized how many items I used in the making of the challah. It's not this bad, because you don't need everything displayed all at once. You will use most of the repeated dishes over again, not just once.

INGREDIENT LIST:

NOTE: THIS RECIPE IS NOT CONSIDERED KOSHER UNLESS IT WILL ONLY BE USED FOR MILK MEALS. I USE MILK IN IT BECAUSE IT SEEMS TO KEEP THE CHALLAH AND ROLLS FRESHER LONGER.

1/2 CUP WATER

2 TEASPOONS SUGAR

3 TABLESPOONS YEAST ~~(3 PACKAGES)~~ I use bulk yeast from Sam's club I had reason to reread this recipe I am very embarrassed to say this should be 2 packages (December 6, 2011) I wish someone had complained and told me the dough was growing like Jack's bean stalk.

1/2 CUP UNSALTED BUTTER

12 TABLESPOONS OF SUGAR

2 TEASPOONS SALT

1 CUP WATER

1 CUP WHOLE MILK

7 EGGS

10 CUPS BREAD FLOUR

HOW TO PREPARE THE YEAST FOR BAKING

Warm the water (I use the microwave). Use a 2 cup measuring cup, you will need the room. You want the water to feel warm when you stick your finger in it. Stir in the 2 teaspoons sugar till dissolved. Check and make sure the water is still nice and warm. Use a fork to stir in the yeast. Do it quickly. If it clumps on the fork scrape it off and drop it into the water. It will look like this.

Set it in a warm place to "PROOF". Proofing is where the yeast grows. (If it doesn't grow and bubble then your yeast is dead and your bread won't rise.) If your yeast doesn't grow then throw it out and start over. It could have been your water was too hot and killed it, or it could have been out of date.

It takes less than 10 minutes for yeast to proof.

While you are waiting, fix the first of your ingredients in the mixing bowl.

This is what the yeast will look like when it's ready to add to your mixing bowl.

INGREDIENTS TO PUT INTO YOUR MIXING BOWL

Put the salt, room temperature butter, and 12 tablespoons sugar in the mixing bowl. Heat the milk in the microwave to extremely hot. Pour the hot milk over the contents in the mixing bowl. Mix on slow until the sugar and salt are dissolved and the butter melted. Take the room temp water and mix in with the contents of the bowl. Feel the outside of the bowl and if the contents are nicely warm it is time to add the eggs. (Keep a watch on the yeast make sure it doesn't grow out of your cup.)

PREPARING THE EGGS

You don't need the measuring cup, you just need a vessel large enough to break all the eggs into. The small jar with the lid is for 3 egg whites. Separate 3 eggs, putting the whites in a small container to refrigerate. To the three yolks (which I put in the measuring cup) add the 4 whole eggs and give them a cursory scramble. Mix these with the contents of the mixing bowl. It's time to add the yeast mixture to the mixing bowl and to start adding the first of 6 cups of flour. Use the beater bar not the dough hook for this.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

In re-reading my blog I read something that might be misunderstood by new bakers. The ingredient list has on it 10 cups of flour and the instructions only speak of using 9 cups of flour. Ten cups is an approximate. with humidity levels different in different parts of the United States (and the world) the moisture content of flour varies. I have never had to use more than the 9 cups. This includes the flour to sprinkle the board when I am kneading.

This is what your dough will look like after the addition of 6 cups of flour

If it is not this thick add another half cup.

Change to your dough hook.

Add two more cups of flour gradually with the dough hook. This is what the dough looks like when you have about 8 cups of flour added.

You can finish by machine and not by hand:

At this point with your dough hook in start with a half cup flour and sprinkle it in as the hook is in motion. let the machine work until the loose flour is pulled from the sides of the bowl. Add more flour kneading in with the hook. When the dough looses it's stickiness and is balled around the hook you dough is finished.

I do not do this for a couple of reasons. I can tell with my hands when the dough is absorbed enough flour. the addition of too much flour will make a heavy dry crumbed bread. I have done by the machine several times and have not been as pleased with the results. BTw, you can over knead dough.

When it is over kneaded it goes stale faster. Why, I wish I knew. Maybe this is something I could google the answer too. I hadn't thought about it till now.

Spread the 9th cup of flour on your board.

Dump your bowl of dough onto the floured board.

Now begin to knead it. I will try to describe the process. Reach to the far side of the dough with both hands and pull it over itself. (you have folded it in half.) Now take the heels of your hands and mash it away from you. Pick up the dough and turn it 1/4 turn, reaching for the far side again and pushing it with the heels of your hands.

You keep doing this. If it gets sticky sprinkle it with flour and continue. When the dough is no longer sticky and you poke it, it feels like when you poke a woman's mammary gland (I laughed when I heard that description but it truly does, don't forget to close your eyes so you can feel it not see it). Ever since I learned this, I have no trouble deciding when the dough is ready to set to rise.

Have a large bowl for it to rise in. Put 1 TBS of oil in the bowl and swirl it around. Do not wipe it out.

This is the dough ready for the first rise in the oiled bowl.

Drop the rounded side of your dough ball into the oil and rub it around the bowl to grease it and then flip it over. Now cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put in a warm place to rise.

My cabinets over the stove have mini halogen lights in them. They get very warm. I build a tower with my pedestal cake plates and sit the covered bowl on them. It's my warm place.

It will take about an hour for your dough to rise and double in size. If it takes a little longer don't worry, your area may be a little cool for optimal growth, it will just grow slower, it won't do it any harm.

While it is growing take this time to get your pans ready and if you are making cinnamon rolls too, then get their ingredients ready.

DOUGH READY TO BE PUNCHED DOWN

PUNCHING DOUGH DOWN.

You don't have to beat it to death. Just use your fist to push down and collapse the ball of dough.

PANS TO BE PREPARED

Yes I am a fan of Crisco for greasing pans and making pie crust.
IF YOU WANT TO ONLY MAKE CHALLAHS, THIS RECIPE WILL MAKE FOUR 1 POUND LOAVES. THEY CAN BE MADE TRADITIONALLY ON A SHEET PAN, OR WITH SIDES IN 9X5" LOAF PANS. You can also make 2 loaves and two of the smaller bundt pans of cinnamon roll. I love my long loaf pans (I think they are for baguettes) I discovered when I was writing this, one of the long loaves fits perfectly in the green refrigerator tubs made my Tupperware in the 70's. I don't know if they still make them or not. They were made to store whole celery.

PREPARED PANS

Notice, I am not stingy with the Crisco. I have found using less causes the dough to stick in the pans
(even if they are in a non-stick pan.)

DOUGH DUMPED ON THE BOARD TO KNEAD AND DIVIDE.

If you need to flour the board a little to keep it from sticking, do.

DOUGH DIVIDED AND WEIGHED

I divide the dough according to what I am using it for. Today I will be making 2 pans of cinnamon rolls and one Challah. Two of my dough balls are exactly the same size and the third one is a little bigger. It will be the challah dough.

TRANSITION OF THE BALL OF DOUGH TO A CHALLAH.

It is rolled into a thick log and then divided into 3 equal pieces.

Those three pieces are rolled into "snakes" approximately the length of the pan I will use.

I begin my braid in the middle. I have found this is easiest for me.

When you get to the end you pinch the dough together and tuck it under.

Sorry, out of focus, with greasy hands it is hard to carefully use a camera. This is the completed braid.

Dough in the pan for the second rising.

Challah bakers usually put the dough on the sheet pan for this rising. I use a loaf pan so I have uniform slices.

This is the loaf right before it is to go in the oven. At this point some challah bakers brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds or poppy seeds. This loaf is for everyday. I am skipping the eggs wash because I don't want to have too dark of a crust.

Have your oven preheated to the temp of 400 degrees. When you put the bread in the oven turn the heat to 375 degrees and bake for 25 minutes (till when you turn it out and knock on the bottom it sounds hollow).

Bread just out of the oven. Have ready some soft butter (not to spread it on and eat it).

Use the butter to rub all over the crust. Melted butter and a brush would do it to. The reason you do this while it's hot is to keep the crust soft.

My finished loaf of Challah

In another blog I will post on the using of the rest of the dough for cinnamon rolls.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope my explanations were clear. If you have any questions about baking please write.

Baking is a fun and relaxing endeavor.

However, writing this tutorial was not. LOL

EDIT: WAIT FOR THE TUTORIAL ON THE CINNAMON ROLLS BEFORE BAKING, OR YOU WILL HAVE ENOUGH DOUGH FOR 4 ONE POUND LOAVES OF BREAD. THE LOAF PAN I USED WAS AN EXTRA LONG ONE

IF YOU DON'T WANT CINNAMON ROLLS DIVIDE THE DOUGH INTO 4 PARTS AND USE 4 REGULAR SIZE LOAF PANS. BAKING TIME IS SOMETIMES DECREASED TO 20 MINUTES ON THE REGULAR SIZE LOAF.

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THE WEDDING QUILT

2011-04-20T14:34:00.002-05:00

I needed a wedding gift in a hurry. My sister's daughter decided she wanted to be married. I knew I didn't physically have time to plan and piece a quilt. Especially one that would be memorable to them. It was to the fabric closet to see what I had to work with. There was the box with my birthday swaps in it. The blocks were made and they already had memories attached. Yes, not the couples memories, but memories I could use to make the quilt meaningful.

THE QUILT

62"X76"
If you click on the picture above, it will enlarge it, then if you click on the enlargement it will show detail. You can even see the different white fabrics.

I participated in a Birthday block swap. The people joining me were Internet friends I had known for at least ten years. We had never physically met.

There was a central hostess who received fabrics from each participant. Each person sent (12) 1/4 yard pieces of her fabric and a SASE with the postage it had cost her to mail the fabrics. The hostess swapped them into each participant's envelope.

We had a database in our yahoo group where we placed the guidelines we wanted used for our fabrics. Things like; did you want a specific background.

My guidelines were:

No Red, there was a red flower in the fabric and I am not a red lover. I didn't want to put emphasis that color. You will notice someone used red in their block. See how a minuscule amount made the red flowers show up. The reds in the squares were nescessary to tie the red in the one block in. When I audtioned fabrics and didn't use any red in the squares. The red in the block stuck out like a sore thumb.

No iron on applique, I got an iron-on block. You can't see it because I took the block apart adding white on white squares in the appliques place. It was a nice block except for the iron on hearts. It was a four patch block. It's the second block from the left on the second row.

I mentioned they could use all the purple they wanted.

What would I change if I had a do over? I wish I had stated a color for the back ground. Though I do love the varieties of backgrounds. I wish I had put names on the blocks. So much time elapsed before I started assembling them, I could not remember who did what. It has been least seven years, maybe longer.

Swapping focus fabric added continuity to the quilt you wouldn't normally have in a block swap. I had no idea when I received them what they would look like. When I did get them I had no idea what to do with them. It's seems pressure is the mother of invention. I needed a wedding quilt quick. I have a question, does this quilt constitute re-gifting? LOL.

In constructing this quilt I decided to use White on White background. It would make the blocks with similar background to melt into it. I planned to use the solid background blocks on the corners. Sashing, the only thing I wish I had done was sashed with 4 inch sash not 3. I used the colored squares to tie in the colors in the blocks. Hoping to give the appearance of a quilt planned from its beginning. The dark purple border has several of the purples contained in the blocks. If I had had more fabric I would have put a wider border, every inch was used. I didn't have the luxury of buying fabric because of the time constraints. It forced me to shop the fabric closet which is a very good thing.

This quilt was a true Stash buster. The original swap fabric was from stash (one of the rules of the swap). any of the fabrics I used to complete the quilt were from my stash; the batting, the backing, and binding included.

A big suggestion for when you do a swap. When you have asked for fabrics to be pre-washed, don't trust they were. I have found a product on the market I love. It is "Shout Color Catchers". If you have a suspect quilt, use at 4 in the wash. Even if they come out white do not reuse them in another wash. I used four on this one and wish I had used 5. I had one block that ran onto the white. It isn't real obvious and didn't show till the quilt was dried.

CARD ACCOMPANYING THE QUILT

I make all my own cards. I never can find a card which says what I want it too. The time I spent picking it out I could have made several, not to mention the gas wasted getting to the store.

I usually make a 6" X9" card. Years ago I traced this out of a book/mag, which one, I don't remember. It was maybe 30 years ago. I used colored pencils to color this card. The roses I made yellow with orange tips. I've used water colors and markers before. Under the roses I put the couple's names in fancy script.

Inside, the card reads:

You are starting on an incredible journey though life. There will be bumps and bruises, rewards and dreams fulfilled. You will accomplish much together you wouldn’t have done alone.

Listen to each other, hearing the unspoken words. Support each other’s endeavors. Remember this is your best friend.

May this quilt cover you with warmth and love. It is a union of twelve Internet quilter’s blocks. They were made for me for my birthday using fabric I sent to them. They chose the accompanying fabrics and the block designs, designing a block for me.

These blocks were joined together with you in mind. I thought they represented you joining your lives, bringing the love surrounding you together.

I hope I have inspired you to use your stash and participate in swaps.

Good things arrive in small packages

For more blogs by me visit at:

This is a garden blog, but it occasionally has recipes on it.

I have placed 4 new blogs this last week on it. They are not about my garden. They are about the yard surrounding my garden (which is mostly woods). Also about our new baby pullets, which will be our fertilizer producers and will feed us.

Not a garden blog. There are articles which have nothing to do with creating or gardening.

There are blogs on the new born baby kittens we found and are mothering. It is a blog where I will sometimes voice my opinions which will always be environmentally friendly.

CREATIONS

2011-04-13T12:04:00.000-05:00

A SUN LIT DANDELION

I haven't done much creating lately. I am letting mother nature do it. Our topsy turvy spring is producing some gorgeous wild flowers on our farm. When I do chores I carry my camera with me.

I have posted the pictures of these in my Garden Blog:

http://www.quiltmaker.com/patterns/details.html?idx=5185

The first four entries on the opening page are pictures and a blog about our spring. There is even a blog about the new baby chickens we got Sunday.

The two dandelion pictures were taken April 12 at 6 PM.

Hoping your day is filled with sunshine,

If not may the rain clear by supper time,

Leaving the air fresh and clean,

So you will have pleasant dreams.

WARM WISHES AGAIN

2011-03-16T11:45:00.000-05:00

Warm wishes quilt pattern has come to my rescue again. I needed a quilt in a hurry.

(See blog titled "Three Wishes")

36"X36"

Monday, I learned I was going to be attending a funeral at the end of the week. My Uncle on my father's side passed away. In this age of jobs taking us all over the world our family has been dispersed world wide too. We moved away from the family home area when I was 6 years old and moved several times after that. My parents ended up living over 1200 miles from their birth place. Love and caring was there but the physical being wasn't. I am the oldest of 6 siblings. Only three of us were able to get to know the aunts and uncles on a personal basis. My other siblings only met them a couple of times in the last 40 years.

I will be driving down early Friday morning and returning in the evening (I am the only sibling with in shouting distance who won't have to hop a plane.) It has been at least 7 years since I have made the trip to my birth place. The last time was because my father's oldest brother had passed. This fact saddens me. I have kept in touch with the family and see one of my cousins about once a year. Getting together with the whole family though has been difficult. I have dozens of excuses and they all seem pitiful at this time. What amazes me is how when we do get together as a family it is as if no time has passed at all. The biggest obstacle is the exchanging of all the family doings and accomplishments we have missed out on. Everyone is talking at once.

I was thinking about what I could take which would be a remembrance to his children and grandchildren. Something to jog their memories later of the people who will be there celebrating the life of their Dad. Years ago I made a harvest quilt and gave it to my parents with an indelible pen . The sashings were white. I told mom to use it each Thanksgiving and have the people sign their name and date. Even if they had attended the year before and had signed. (The backing is muslin, when the front fills up, then the back can be signed.) This is that quilt, you can see some of the siggies all ready there. This is a full size bed quilt. The blocks are 12 1/2 inches unfinished, the sashing is 2 1/2 inches unfinished.:

I didn't have time to do an involved quilt like this and thought the warm wishes came together so quickly I'll try it. First I had to wash the muslin, while it was drying I started to plan the quilt. I wondered if the pattern would work as a table topper. The pattern worked at 5 blocks wide and 5 blocks high.

Choosing fabric for the table topper/wall hanging was difficult. I have no idea what my Uncle's favorite color was. Except for his being an electrician I did not know much about him. I know he loved to play cards. What was his favorite card game, I have no idea. My stash doesn't contain card playing fabrics, nor of the electrical venue. Remember I need to raid the stash, not having the time to shop.

I decided to use fabrics which represent the moment. Right in front of me is my stack of star fabrics. When I began quilting I was bitten by the fabric hoarding bug, I bought a 1/4 yd of every star based fabric I could find. A light bulb went on. He was the star in his children's lives. His soul was now among the stars in heaven. I started pulling star fabrics in the browns, golds and blacks, choosing ones that had no obvious stark white. I chose the colors because they were neutral colors on the masculine side. I chose muslin for background because it holds the ink better than other fabrics (at least that is what I have found). When I put fabrics with stark white in them next to the muslin it seemed to clash.

When I finished the top it was time to figure should border or not. I decided to use a dark border strip to frame it. The 2 inch measurement of the sashing strip worked great. I auditioned the top for 6 inch wide outer border or 3 inch wide outer border. The 3 inch measurement, which is the larger sashing measurement, worked best.

I loaded the quilt top on my short arm Gamill and picked a stippling design pantograph. This topper was not just a stash breaker, I was able to use a batting scrap, rather than cut into my roll. I didn't have enough muslin washed for the backing. I found a pastel blue on blue mini plaid in the stash. It was perfect. After quilting I trimmed the quilt and used a black binding with blue stars. I applied the binding by machine and finished it with blind stitching by hand on the back. (Yes, I did remembered to place a label on the back, attached under the binding.)

I hope this "warm wishes" quilt will bring many warm memories in the years to come,

softening the tears of the moment.

I wish everyone could have a warm quilt of their own.

Thanks for stopping by.

TIME

2011-03-08T16:10:00.002-06:00

Taking time to spend time,
Sharing time, all the time,
Quality time beats quantity time,
No time is insignificant time.

It's time for real time,

It can be play time,

You should not ignore time,

Make the most of all time.

Is it listening time,

Is it ask for help time,

Can you donate time,

Are you needed this time?

Is it time for me time,

Or time to do for thee time,

Or time to plan for others time,

Or maybe stop this rhyme time?

Have a wonderful time this week,

with lots of happiness time.
Thank you for sharing your time with me.

THREE WISHES

2011-02-21T10:46:00.002-06:00

I made 3 wishes which turned into four,
By using this pattern.

Quiltmaker Magazine introduced the Warm Wishes pattern in 2000

as the quilt for Project Linus Make-a-Blanket Day.

http://www.quiltmaker.com/patterns/details.html?idx=5185_

I have made this pattern on numerous occasions for gifts for my grand kids and other relatives. It is very simple to make. BTW it is a great stashbuster. It looks different every time it is made up. I was cleaning the sewing room and came across a stack of 6 inch squares (72 of them). They are in a color I do not care for and usually don't have an occasion to use. I don't remember cutting them up but I do remember the fabric. Normally when I pre-cut something I put a copy of the pattern with it in a plastic bag. I thought to myself what am I going to do with all of these. I immediately thought of the Warm Wishes pattern it require 6 inch squares. I had enough squares to make two of the crib size tops.

Went to search the stash for something to use with them and found a scrap of flowered fabric that had flowers in the dusty rose and dusty pink in the squares. Then I picked out the fabric for the narrower rails. I found a blue and a green that would work (there is blue flowers in the flowered fabric.) I figured I'd make one in each color of the rail strips. I prefer having the two inch fabrics in the same colors. It makes the piecing faster because I don't have to worry which rail is on which side.

This is the first quilt from the squares. I used only the green 2 inch strips and the 3 inch strips are the flowered fabric.
size 49" X 62"

I set about constructing the strip sets and joining the blocks on the first one (the green strips.) When I cut the flowered fabric for the 3 inch strips for the two quilts I discovered I still had some fabric left.
I decided to use it for borders.

When I completed the first one I thought I would use two colors of strips like the pattern calls for. (It took me twice as long to construct the quilt because I had to make sure the blocks were
facing the correct direction to get the framed box effect.)

The second quilt:
size 52" X 62"

When I completed the second quilt I realized I had 11 left over rail squares. I also had the left over 11 squares from the first quilt. I thought I don't want 22 orphaned blocks that are similar in nature. If I make another quilt I will have 33 blocks and that is enough to make another quilt. I would have four similar tops not orphaned blocks. I checked the flowered fabric to see if I had enough for the wide rail. Yes I did, but I also had enough to cut 6 inch blocks for the third quilt if I didn't use it for rails. If I did that I would have to scrounge the stash for something for the wide rail in the block. (I had enough dark blue for the two narrow rails). I would also have to find alterantives for borders. The stash relinquished all of these fabrics.

The stash coughed up this 1950's blue mini patterned cloth and there was enough to do the wide rails and to have a 6 inch border when the top was completed (I had enough of the dark blue to do an inner border before attaching the 6 inch border.

This is the third quilt:
size 49" X 60"

The remains of all the other quilts produced this fourth quilt:
size 49" X 58"

This quilt was literally already made. I had left over 6 inch squares from the strips I cut from each quilt, and I had left over rail blocks from each of the three quilts.

I was left with only 1 orphaned 6 inch square and 2 orphaned blocks.

I didn't keep track of the amounts of fabric used to make the blocks and borders. But when I went looking for backing fabric I did measure it. I used 17 yards of fabric for the backs and bindings. That is approximately 34 yards of fabric. The following pictures are the backings I chose for each quilt.

Quilt # 1 backing

Quit #2 Backing

Quilt # 3 Backing

Quilt # 4 Backing

Putting the Binding on:

This last picture is of the binding construction. I used the machine to apply all the bindings. I needed to get these done quickly and they are utilitarian quilts for little girls to play house with and drag around.

I was very pleased with the look. The binding is top stitched on the front of the quilt with the machine and you have an extra row of visible stitching on the back.

Making three wishes was a breeze ,

getting the fourth one free...was the best wish of all.

Is there four wishes in your future?

Thanks for stopping by.

48 VALENTINES AND COUNTING

2011-02-14T09:59:00.004-06:00

It is said, it’s the thought that counts,

Counting the times we sat and watched TV,

Counting the trips to the grocery store,

Counting the days you took out the trash,

Doing things for the woman you adore.

So many mundane things you did,

Repeating them each and every day,

Counting the times you said I love you,

And showed me in every way.

The years rolled by, the moments filled,

With big and little things,

This woman, you constantly thrilled.

With the surprises life brings.

We’ve grown old together,

Our waistlines they grew too,

I have someone I can count on,

To share my life, I love you.

Everyday you make Valentines day for me.
It's the little things that count.

HONEY IN THE SNOW

2011-02-08T14:01:00.000-06:00

About seven years ago we had a small dog dumped at our gate. She only weighed about 15 pounds and wasn't more than 15 inches high. We put out a "found" sign even though we did not think she was lost. We live a mile from the interstate and that night it had poured down rain. The little dog was clean and smelled like perfume.

When my husband found her he said he thought she was tied to the gate. She was so frightened she was plastered to the gate and didn't move. He brought her up to the house and we had a problem. We had four dogs already. We didn't want to introduce her to the family if she was going to be leaving right away. We decided to keep her in the master bedroom. That night she inherited the name Honey. She was so sweet. She immediately decided our bed was her bed. Being she was small this wasn't a hindrance to our sleeping.

Small is another thing. We had never had a small dog. All of our dogs have been 60 lbs plus. This was a whole new experience. A dog that actually fit on the bed with you. Our other dogs all wanted to be in the bed but it was like having a hog in the bed. Honey literally fit right in. Each day ended with Honey still here. Our other dogs were scratching at the door to be allowed in.

After 5 days and no inquiries to our signs we decided that Honey was probably in her new home. We introduced her to the other "pups". Hoping they wouldn't eat her. It took less than 30 minutes to find out there was a new alpha dog in the house.

Honey was at least 3 years old when she adopted us. She has been with us seven years. What have we learned about little dogs? They aren't any different than big dogs except they have little widdlers and have to be let out more often. What kind of dog is she? I usually describe her as "Honey, who shrunk the border collie". She is very smart (when she wants to be). She doesn't like little kids (she snapped at the grandkids when they were little, a couple of times). She adores my son and daughter(they are adults..lol).

Honey has been a very sweet addition to our lives.

TRASH TO TREASURE

2011-01-24T17:34:00.002-06:00

RAG QUILT FROM RAGS

After the blogs I wrote on "shaggy"quilts, writing about the one that got me started,

I realized I had to make another trash to treasure.

Literally this is another Shaggy quilt from rags. The work shirts I used were in the use for paint clean-up and car washing box. They were so worn they could not be given to Good Will or worn again. Now they are re-born again into a quilt. The next step for them when the quilt gets old and worn is to become

a dog bed and possibly a cover in the garden for frosty nights.

It will be a while before it is headed to the trash again.

The shirts yielded buttons for the button box, 8 1/2 inch squares and 6 inch squares (yes there is another trash to treasure in the box.) Even the pockets were useful. If you look at the top row the squares contain the pockets. This quilt is to be used in the den for cuddling under it while watching TV. The pockets can hold the gizmos and tissues and even snacks.

The back was also pulled from the trash box.

It was a flannel sheet and a flannel blanket which were torn beyond repair.

The batting inside was poly batting that I knew I never wanted to use again for anything. It was medium weight not thin. Only recommendation I can make if you go with medium poly is to use a even feed foot. It will keep the wrinkles to a minimum.

The original "Shaggy" was made, I think, in 2000. It was made with 6 1/2 inch blocks and a tremendous varieties of battings. It is still very much a quilt and hasn't made it to the dog bed (although the dog does sleep on it). It resides every night on our bed. (even through the summer).

This pix was just taken of the original.

As you can see I had no plans for how this would turn out. I added pairs of rows at a time. Not a very appealing pattern (I only wanted to find out if I liked making these quilts.) I really thought the result would end in the dog house. It makes up for its lack of beauty in its utilitarian self,

providing the most soft comforting covering.

Is there a trash to treasure in your future?

I can't think of a better way to go green or to keep something out of a land fill.

Another "Trash to Treasure" blog:

http://gloriouscreations.blogspot.com/2012/01/one-mans-trash.html

Other blogs I write:

Where I have stories of my cats and other pets

a blog about my courtship with my husband,

and a blog about my most embarrassing moment.