Thrifted Summer Tops, Bramble Blooms 1 &2, Twenty Six Jell-o Desserts

Just like that, our world outside is a million shades of green.

Tony and Ned on the side lawn

I put a mirror up and saw the robin's eggs have hatched. It is a good spot well protected by the house roof which is also under the veranda roof. I got a quick shot of her. We can now sneak in and out the door without disturbing her. 

As promised here are three of  my latest thrifted summer tops. Below is the one I'm most concerned about...such a bright colour with such large blooms. I'm not sure it's really me (whoever the heck I am these days) but I was swayed by the brand. "They will see you coming" as my father used to say about wearing something colourful. But then, I guess summer is when we do go bigger with prints and colours. What do you think?

I've already worn this below a few times...light material and super comfortable. I have a silver necklace that perfectly suited this one. And I love the pockets. 

Here is another Northern Reflections made of a linen/cotton blend, also light weight for summer. Love it.

So, more fabric saved from the landfill! At that thrift store, I also spent time in the book section where they have a collection of very old books, ones bound in special ways that would have been expensive. I wished I could bring home a few I held as I hate to think of their fate. But it was nice to spend some time with them too. 

Bramble Blooms I -My top is a flimsie. Improv is seriously not my thing so this gave me pause many times along the little journey. But in the end, as is true with all my stitching projects, this one too was a labour of love in its own way. Those turquoises are taking on a glow in the sunlight. I like how I used all scrap fabric in this project. So also way out of my comfort zone with these colours which are showing brighter than they really are.

  

And Audrey at Quilty Folk has challenged us to use a pieced center for Bramble Blooms II. I chose a dark teal/blue element from BBI and tested this pieced block. The design really appealed to me. More about this and the free pattern for it in another post. This is also not the true colour...it is very dark in real life as I want to move away from the BBI brights. Frustrating!

The topic of Birds Custard Powder mentioned in THIS POST stirred a lot of interest.

 And jogged our memories for some of us older folks. Any one else remember your Mom setting tinned fruit in Jell-o for a dessert? A couple of people mentioned it and of course, I remember Mom doing this too for a week night dessert. I can't remember the last time I had Jell-o. But it is a great summer time dessert and I found this at the Pioneer Woman site... 26 Easy Jell-o Recipes to Whip Up Anytime For the Retro Desserts of Your Dreams. And that also made me think of Nigella Lawson who elevated gelatin desserts when she used it to make a fancy dessert served in individual glass bowls at a dinner party. 

.

I do hope your week is off to a wonderful and perhaps even delicious start! Please stop by and share it with us! 

Sharing with Songbird Designs, Inquiring Quilter, A Quiltery, My Quilt Infatuation, Good Random Fun, Alycia Quilts and Quilt Fabrication. 

Chookshed Stitchers Challenge, Bramble Blooms, Free Redwork Patterns

I'm amused watching this small turkey flock trot through the front yard. The male is displaying constantly and looking so special. 

But as far as we can tell, the females don't even give him a glance. In fact, one day they all left and trotted off leaving him standing there alone. We felt a little sorry for him. 

What a great gift! My sister always hits the mark with the books she gives me. 

I've enjoyed reading it very much and just love the collection of over 50 easy and healthy recipes Helen has included with her tales of life on the farm. I was interested to see she made Custard using Bird's Custard Powder which was a staple in the house when I was growing up. Would you be familiar with this? I looked up the Rebanks and there are YouTube videos of them as well which I have watched. They herd their sheep and cattle with those Border Collie dogs that are always amazing to watch work. Here is Helen speaking about her life and the importance of women having choices. Amazon link to Helen's Book.

I've failed to mention my Chookshed Stitchers Challenge choice for May month. Deanna chose # 5 which is my Christmas Quiltmania Applique blocks. I just didn't feel like working on Christmas right now in May so I took out another old project, my #7, and put it on the sewing room wall...the FPP Trees and have been joining a few rows here and there. Here is a portion of my colourful scrappy forest.

And I should share an update of my Bramble Blooms...four rows of leaves and embroidered running stitch vines are finished. This was a bit labour intensive but you'll never hear me complain about hand stitching.

 I need to get them sewn on.

 This is turning into my summer of working with scraps which is a good thing. 

While researching spruce tree bark, at Anna Lena Land, I came across her recipe for Spruce Tips Syrup. It sounded delicious and that piqued my interest, living here in a mostly spruce forest as it were and all the trees sprouting such new tips. What you wonder, piqued my interest in spruce tree bark? I'd seen one of the contestants on the series Alone pare a spruce tree trunk and eat the inner layer, the cambian, of bark! I just had to look that up and yes, it turns out to be very nutritious. There is so much more to learn. Never lose your curiosity.

Oh, btw, HERE is the link to Anna's post where she shares the free Redwork chicken patterns she found on Pinterest. The ones she stitched for her kitchen curtains. I've noted these in the distant past so it's funny how things come back round sometimes. 

I hope your week will be a good one with lots of time for you to do what you love. 

Also love sharing with Songbird Designs, A Quiltery, Quilt Fabrication, Quilts Art Whatever, Quilting Patchwork Applique, Life in Pieces and It's A Small Town Life.

Food Hacks, Barred Owls, BB Border Design, Pink Hour Glass Blocks

I just have to share the end of another successful Barred Owls of Indiana season. I so enjoyed watching these three grow and then branch successfully off into the big wide world. I really like how the owl parents are so attentive and make sure all three, even the youngest and smallest, hatched days after the first, gets plenty of food. Their eyesight is thought to be better than ours so imagine emerging from the nest box and seeing all the world in front of them for the first time- no wonder they look transfixed. 

BTW, the Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods series does feature an owl in the group but it is a Barn Owl. I would definitely work it if it were a Barred Owl. I've never seen a Barn Owl though I know they are plentiful here in Ontario. This one is a beauty though. 

Sunday last was Mother's Day. Beth and I enjoyed our usual outing...getting pedicures and manicures at the local Mahogany Spa in Carleton Place, a nearby town. 

I wish I could get my house to smell as nice as that place does. This year I picked the deep pink polish. 

The event includes Mimosas to sip on and a delicious boxed lunch. Beth also gave me a bag of goodies including this information she came across on the web. 10 Glucose Hacks from the Glucose Goddess. I'd never heard of her but I've watched a couple of her YouTube videos since. 

Stitching this week so far... Here are some of the appliqued Hourglass blocks in pinks together. 

And I've appliqued sort of leaves for the Bramble Blooms borders. More to be added to this. I hope I can pull it off -how I'm imagining this in my head I mean. 

Our sweet house guest is still here. Getting me out of my chair and out the door. 

Ned hangs on his every whine!

I've gathered more free patterns to share soon and also thoughts about how to join those Tiny 9 Patch blocks. Think I should begin that before the numbers get overwhelming. I'll also talk about LeeAnna's Not Afraid of Color prompt next time...it has to do with childhood lessons. 

Sharing with Quilting Patchwork Applique and Quilting is More Fun Than Housework.

Bramble Blooms, Future Dreams Wool, Free Pattern

 I got a start when I glanced out the kitchen window. This guy was over close to the veranda seemingly looking in the window. I wondered what had caught his attention. I keep my camera there and took this shot while he kept staring. Then I realized there was a Red Squirrel on the wood pile in front of the window and no doubt that was what he was staring at. 

Got to treat ourselves with a fast food take out meal recently. The fries were good and the wrap was a bacon, tomato/cucumber salad one. It was tasty and very filling. I don't know how they get so much in a wrap and it stays so tidy. Is this something you would like?

Below is my Bramble Blooms improv project to date, the inspiration and challenge from Audrey at Quilty Folk. Mine is definitely the Flower Power version. All the little appliqued orange peel blocks are finished and I did put a little dark turquoise dot in the centers as someone suggested. Thanks! When sorting scraps, I found a small piece of Kaffe fabric and wanted to use it one way or another in this project. It wasn't large enough for four corners so wound up in two. His designs highlight the power of flowers, that's for sure. Now it's time to sort out the next border. 

Maybe this outside shot shows the colours better.

My eye seems to be craving colour more. I saw this yarn below and fell in love with the combination of those reds/roses/pinks and the summer leafy green. I liked it even more when I read the West Yorkshire Spinners had specially produced it for a cause.  It is called Future Dreams and for every ball sold, they are donating one pound to the Future Dreams Breast Cancer charity. I ordered a few balls to try out for a new blanket.

 Being variegated, it is a little tricky to choose a pattern that suits. First I began a crochet pattern, Lucy's Cosy Stripe, to see how the colours would play out. 

Then I thought about knitting for a change since my recent wooly projects have been crochet. I researched knitting patterns best suited to variegated yarn. Several stitchers mentioned Moss Stitch works well with such yarn so I'm going to give that a go this week. 

And one last thing I wanted to share today. I was very taken by this post over at Barbara Brackman's always interesting Civil War Quilts site. The lovely appliqued block, Kentucky Wildflower, is featured.

 She states that overgrown plants in need of repotting are a Kentucky classic quilting theme. The pots are often shown as ridiculously small compared to the size of the flowers. I read about Carrie Nation and her personal war on bars and saloons. Women willing to go to jail for what they believe -that made me wonder about the depth of my own convictions. 

Meanwhile, here is a link to this free pattern for the the Kentucky State block found at the American Quilters site.  I came across it during my unsuccessful search to find out more about that appliqued flower block above. This interesting formation would work well being stitched using  EPP.

This week will be a week of no appointments! I will be free to begin gardening and preparing pots for sowing, etc. The ground is thawed and now is the time to transplant a few flowers that get hidden under bushes later on. I'm no longer planting any bulbs as the 50+ I've put in the soil since coming here have all been removed by the squirrels and maybe the groundhogs. I hope it was tasty eating!

Sharing this post with Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, The Inquiring Quilter, Alycia Quilts, A Quiltery and Songbird Designs.

Sensational Recipe, Bramble Blooms, New Spin on Backbasting

My second Odd Bunch box has arrived and I've been very pleased with both of them. For $20 a box, I think they are a good deal. All of the items have been fresh, nothing even close to spoiling or odd.  I am enjoying the variety of items included, a nice selection of vegetables and fruit.

 I got blackberries in the first box, a fruit I never buy so it was neat to try them. It also had a butternut squash in the first and an eggplant in this one. Two things I haven't cooked before.

I cut up the eggplant and roasted it in the oven last night following a recipe online. I didn't find it tasty till I added a little balsamic vinegar which someone suggested. Do you ever cook these things? Any suggestions for the squash? Getting these boxes is making me try new foods which I didn't expect but is a good thing.

But here is a recipe I tried and will definitely cook again. I found it when I was searching for pasta recipes a couple of weeks back and is a Tik Tok sensation apparently. Very simple and very tasty. It all begins with one of those little Boursin Cheeses and a pack of cherry tomatoes. My additions included spinach and extra cheese and penne for the pasta. Tony loved it.

This goes in the oven and I cooked the pasta separately and added it at the end. Here is the video and you can find many variations online. You could type in Boursin Cheese Pasta and find it for sure. 

Into the Sewing Room....First an update on the Bramble Blooms Improv Challenge...I need three one (sewed two last night) more little orange peel block to complete this border. It is always interesting to see what the camera will show as these are small 4 inch blocks but appear larger.

I've been joining my Panama Pyramid rows and needed to find the yellow fabric I'd used for the solid triangles. I searched high and low and got really down on myself because I couldn't put my hand on it. I had a memory of putting it somewhere I could find easily because I knew I would need more of it for the finishing. The next day I went in the sewing room and the very first thing I spotted was this... How did I not see it! With the Crossroads blocks off the wall, it was there all alone in plain view. It's official...I'm losing my mind! Please tell me something similar has happened to you so I won't feel lonely in the world of lost minds!

As promised, I must tell you about the scrappy project that caught my eye on Instagram and had to give a try. I like applique and have always used freezer paper for the shapes. I tried needleturn a couple of times but went back to the freezer paper.  I've never tried back basting till I saw Jeana Kimball's post where she showed how she was using this particular technique to applique a simply shaped quilt block, in this case, an hourglass. It's like a fresh twist on an old method. Jeana Kimball at Foxglove Cottage 

So I set about and stitched two scrappy blocks using Jeana's method. It worked well and I liked how easy it was for this simple block- no precise cutting or piecing. Anything that avoids the machine is good and using scraps is great too of course. The foundations are from a package of 5 inch Bella cream I've had for ages and wondered what to do with. Wonder no more. This could make for a good, on the side kind of project diving into the scrap bags...yes they are sorted into bags now this time round. 

This promises to be another busy (for us)week with tax stuff in the mix(which is loathsome but necessary). I did order some stitchy mail which will be here this week so it's not all doom and gloom. :) Hope your week is going well!

So happy to share this with Songbird Designs, A Quiltery, Quilt Fabrication, Alycia Quilts, Good and Random Fun and The Inquiring Quilter.

Bramble Blooms, Answering Reader's Questions

It was a record breaking 10C here on Thursday and the temps have remained above zero, unheard of mid February weather, for a couple of days. The foggy air felt almost balmy and the squirrels and birds seemed to be going mad out there. The melting had uncovered lots of tidbits for them. But back to regular winter days now. 

This is another of Robert Bateman's birds in winter...Varied Thrush. Just lovely colours.

I have these two books from the library and started The Snow Child and realized I'd read it before. 

I went on to Snow Road Station and am really enjoying it. I was surprised to see it is set in Lanark County, Ontario which is where I am living. All the names and sights Elizabeth is describing are very familiar to me. It is interesting to read about it through another person's eyes. 

It hadn't been freezing in the sewing room those warmer winter days. I had no excuse not to hang out in there. I played with Bramble Blooms borders and stitched a plain one to steady everything. Then I stitched a few new rows of flying geese to add to a row I'd found in scraps. Now I'm not so sure as I should have used brighter colours or some of the same fabrics to match the center blooms. Also they seem rather large. They are overwhelming and perhaps might work well for a very outer border.  I think I should do the appliqued border first before stitching these on. Any thoughts? All appreciated.

 I am trying for an overall look that my pot of flowers is in a window, kind of recessed. As with many of my ventures, I have ideas but don't have the skill to execute them. However, it is a good feeling to have total freedom with this and especially no time limit. Thank you Audrey, Quilty Folk, for such a great little QAL.

I found a new to me wonderful stitching channel on Youtube called Sew Tattered. Lots of great quilting and cross stitch. This episode features the annual quilt WIP Parade. Watch it at your risk as you will see something you will want to stitch. 

 Daughter gave me local fresh mushrooms and an acorn squash which I'd put in the cold room,

 Pleased with myself this morning that I remembered them. I've been simmering a chicken carcass and the mushrooms with it should make a good soup. But I have a plan to keep some of the mushrooms to fry out with bacon and maybe an egg and have on toast sometime for a quick supper. I must be hungry as everything is sounding delicious to me. BTW, I never tire of reading about your food and recipes. It is a bonus when one of your posts includes something foody.

Questions from readers...

About the wood we burn for heat...it is a mixture of hardwoods...maple, oak, etc. We use as much as we can from old/fallen trees on our own property.  And our stove insert in the fireplace is an excellent Jotul. 

I was asked why my rabbit I showed was not white now in winter.  Ontario rabbits are smallish cotton tails and only small bits of them turn whiter in winter, like tail and paws. That being said, I've taken winter photos of a few with far more white on them than the one under our veranda this year. 

Also there've been queries about the General's Sketch and Wash pencils shown in this post... Here is a link on Amazon where you can take a look and read more about them.

What is my diet? I don't follow a diet as such, just try to eat meals where I know all the ingredients that went into them. The only real constant is just about every day I eat an apple and an orange shared with Tony; blueberries often too. Yes, I'm still practising intermittent fasting so I basically eat two meals a day...all the more reason to make them as nutritious as I can. 

 I just watched a movie, I think it was The Killer with Tilda Swinton being faced by her killer and he asks her what is she thinking right now. She answers...right now I'm wishing I'd eaten more Hagen D'az (or words to that effect). So I'm thinking there should be more treats; yes to more treats. 

The day in ER was for me not Tony.  Though nothing untoward was found during the testing, they booked me for more tests this week under a cardiologist's care. They want to rule out a heart problem for sure and I'm in agreement with that of course. Yesterday was an annual hour long appointment with my gp reviewing everything history wise, etc. Later today is the first test, an echocardiogram. I will keep you posted. Wish me luck! 

 Sometimes I think what I really need right now is a day on a sunny beach. Anybody else feeling like this just about now, this far through a northern winter? 

Sharing this post with A Quiltery, It's A Small Town Life and Alycia Quilts.

Bramble Blooms, Chookshed Stitchers Challenge, Free Patterns

If the sun is making it higher in the sky each day, we will never know here in our corner of Ontario. Even our weather guy said our usually gloomy winter weather has been unnaturally greyer this year.  It is interesting that this seems to be happening in other countries as well. And it makes me wonder if  greater weather change is afoot- or not.

 

I'm reading an ebook version of this book below and must say how much I'm enjoying it. It's about a young couple working hard to successfully homestead, work at marriage and create a family in Alaska in the fifties. If you think you'd enjoy an updated take on pioneering, this story is for you. 

As I mentioned a couple of posts back, I've played some more with my Bramble Blooms QAL project. Since I'm digging out scraps for this, I used a pile of squares cut long long ago that were pastel colours. It made a sort of a piano keys kind of border.  My thinking was this first border should not fight for attention with the bright colours of the center block flowers. 

And I've moved along my  #6 in the  Chookshed Stitchers 2024 Challenge. Lonestar Medallion is gradually getting its white corner pieces. I left the templates in the diamonds on the edges so I could hand sew these large white corners easily to it. So I thought...it's been a bit fiddly to keep it smooth and tight while stitching. But I've got just the last one to go and then I'll have a flimsie. I'd had to wait till I got a chance to buy large enough white material as I usually buy fat quarters which are too narrow for this purpose. Anyway, pleased now it is moving along.

A few sites offering lovely free patterns ...

At All People Quilt, the bluework embroidered pin cushions called Darling Duo from Birdbrain Designs really appealed to me. Blue and white so go together well for winter. 

Here is one I've had in my files for a couple of years. Love orange peel designs and this one in cool wintry colours is so pretty. From The Crafty Quilter. 

Lewis & Irene, the British fabric folks, have a bank of lovely free quilty projects to look through. This one caught my eye. This heart motif design is called Hannah's Flowers. 

This morning, though not bright, all is calm. I'm going to get back to listening to these soothing instrumentals of classical greats...

 while stitching ...wonderful! 

Sharing with Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Creations Art Quilts, Quilting is More Fun Than Housework and Alycia Quilts.