Tuesday, Tuesday, Can't stand that day

My brother Peter visited Mom on Family Day (a new holiday in Ontario) and sent me photos of the flowers I sent her for Valentine's day. They look so beautiful to me, and I am glad that one can order flowers long distance and the florists have a big enough heart and morals to comply with your request. Mom turned 97 last Thanksgiving and looks so sweet in these photos that I wanted to share with everyone. I wish I could have been there to give her the flowers in person. Maybe next St. Valentine's day!
I got a welcome sign for my lawn that will hold a little quilt and am making plans to get a placemat sized "flag" done for the holder. And got a head start on March by hanging up my St. Patrick's wreath and foyer quilt; was getting tired of February and the Valentine stuff, so they're packed away for another year.
And I finished my red/black jacket, but am still beading along the bound edges of it so will post that photo later. Here's the pics of Mom and her flowers.

Heritage week in Abbotsford, BC

I'm still trying to figure out the plot twist in "Scotland Road", the play we saw in Langley at Trinity Western last Wednesday evening. So if anyone reading this has any idea what the meaning of the play was, please clue me in. I overheard someone in the lobby saying, "Well, you know, Art! It is what it is" But it didn't have a satisfactory ending to me. I hate things where you have to make up your own ending, or it's left open for a sequel. Gr-r-r-r.

This week coming up is Heritage Week and Downtown Abbotsford is celebrating with all sorts of offerings. Such as: Braiding Bread; Making a Vintage Friendship Album, etc. So to celebrate, I am taking a class on how to make infant moccasins at Big Foot Moccasin. Always wanted to make my own shoes and should be able to size these up to make something for my foot too. And the vintage photo album might be an interesting thing to do too, if I have time that day.

I finished my quilted jacket for the quilt show and am starting my challenge quilt tomorrow, so that, with luck, I will have all the things done by March that I will enter in the show. Was hoping to do some journal quilts but am just not all that enthusiastic about making something that has no functional use. I guess I could alwys just stick it in an album to show that at one time I DID at least try to be artsy-fartsy. I cannot do art for art's sake, it must have a purpose to be allowed space in our home.

We got the quote on the cost of renovating the basement for a quilt studio for me, and it seems feasible, but there will be a lot of work between now and when I turn my machines on in the completed room. Almost 5 years ago, I went through everything in my sewing rooms (2 back bedrooms upstairs) and discarded over 3 garbage bags of "junk" mainly lesson plans for things I was never going to teach again, and patterns that were hopelessly out of date. Now I look at the accumulation in there and am just amazed at how little time it takes to completely overload a room. So I will have a major job of chucking out before I move downstairs. I will have to look for a gas firelace too as it can get quite chilly downstairs, and if I'm going to hang out there for 12 hours a day, I don't want to get chilblains.

Happy St. Valentine's Day!

Well, I give up on searching for the choice of colors for this post, pretend it's red! I will be too busy tomorrow melting chocolate to post and wanted to wish everyone a happy day. Wondering today why the Saint was dropped from the greeting.....we don't say "Happy Patrick's Day" on March 17th, so when did St. Valentine's Day become just Valentine's day???

Today I am working on my red and black jacket for the Quilt show in May. The fabric was quilted to the batting and lining on my Inspira frame, so now I have to conceal the seams' raw edges with a Hong Kong finish. It's looking rather neat, but takes so much more time than just zipping along with the serger. But I think it will be worth it in the long run......something else to take up space in my closet while I run around in the same old dorm pants (otherwise known as flannel PJs to us grannies)

I finished my Convertible mittens last night and will post that photo very soon. Since they are red, will try to get it in this post.

Little quilts and little loaves

Looks like the bunny has claimed the little purple disappearing nine patch quilt! Too bad for it has been promised to Emily along with some more diapers for her little dolly.

I think I've got the disappearing nine patch out of my system for now, and will move on to other things. I quilted the fabrics for my jacket entry in the Guild Quilt show for this May, and drafted the pattern to make it. Will post that after I get it together. I did finish my Guild Mystery quilt this week, and it's just waiting for a label. I want to photo it, then print out a black and white label for it, showing the quilt in one corner. Still working on that...if it works, that's how I will do my labels from now on. I use freezer paper, cut to 8'5" x 11" with the same size muslin ironed to the shiny side; then it goes through the printer just like real paper and you can get some really neat labels or fabric that way.

And I finally remembered to take photos of my freshly baked gluten free bread this Wednesday too. I can no longer remember what wheat bread tastes like, so this tastes as good as it looks, at least to me. Here's the recipe for the English Muffins (which I use to make hamburger buns or just sandwich buns if I'm not doing hamburgers:

DRY MIX: (in large mixer bowl)
1-1/2 c gluten free flour mix
1 t. Xanthan gum
1-1/2 t baking powder
1 t. Knox gelatin
1-1/2 t Egg Replacer
1/2 t salt
1-1/2 T sugar
2 T ground flax

WET MIX:
1 c warm water (with 1 t sugar to proof yeast (2-1/4 t) in
1 egg
3 T soft butter
1/2 t vinegar

After yeast is proofed, pour this mix into the flour mix, add egg, butter and vinegar. Beat on med speed for 3 minutes. Fill 6 English Muffin rings (which have been placed on a Pammed cookie sheet and dusted with cornmeal. Let rise for 30 minutes then bake in a 375F oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool on rack. Can be stored in freezer and then toasted when needed. If you double the recipe, don't double the yeast measurement. For Christmas buns or Hot Cross Buns: add mixed peel or cherries and some nutmeg and cinnamon. Bake as usual and frost with Crosses in white icing.

I'm grateful this week:

*that Jane called from Nashville to let us know that the tornadoes that devastated the area between Nashbille and Memphis, did not harm them, except for a few trees down.
*that I can see the end of my editing on my cookbook
*that we are all coping with winter, whether it takes the form of huge dumps of snow in the Toronto area, or too much rain on the Wet Coast, or tornadoes and wild weather down South.

The photos below show the red bag inside and out finished at last! And the layout of the Mystery quilt from Carolyn of the Abbotsford Guild. The predominantly green borders sparked it up a bit from all that black in the quilt blocks. Guess that's the danger in a mystery, you never really know how it's going to evolve. But overall I am so pleased with this one (Peek-a-Bamboo) that I am cutting out the strips tomorrow for another one using a Northcott "Quest for the Cure" fabric , a large print with tulips on it, and will use a bright gold for the background and 2 other colors for the A and B fabrics (likely red and green, though there is black in the background of the tulip print, so maybe throw a bit of black on it too.
I'm still finding my way around the layout of the blog thing, so I'm trying to post the photos and then have a description underneath. but it's coming out upside down, so will try again to right that.
Tomorrow I will quilt this Bamboo quilt and then take a break from quilting for a week or so. Need to work on the recipe book for awhile.