This quilt is the 4th and last in the 1920-30’s reproduction series I seemed to have worked on this past winter. I’m liking it a lot. The leftover fabrics are broken up now and are in my stash.
I had leftover units from the other three quilts and fabric in all the color ways on hand, so I started playing around with the units, and this quilt happened. Maybe they are the best kind? A quilt born of play and creativity?
The panto is Garden Frills Too, and it looks so pretty on this quilt. As do the beautiful Innova quilt stitches. Since Jimmy Hernandez from Carolina Quilt Studio, my nearest Innova dealer, fixed the timing (remember I sewed a nail?), replaced the tension wheel with the newer version, and did all sorts of other refinements, Innova is so happy.
I’m putting together the improv quilt that’s been growing on the design wall all winter too, and as of yesterday, I’m liking it. A lot. But… We’ll see about how square it is and so forth probably today.
The household water filtration system technician is “on the way,” so that’s it for today with the blog.
On Saturday morning I was the host for the Charleston Modern Quilt Guild monthly Sit and Sew as the usual member who organizes this event had another commitment.
We meet at a local quilt shop, Five Eighth Seams, which so generously shares their sewing/gathering space with us once a month,
This store is so colorful and lively. It is a pleasure to visit it. All over the store are so many beautiful hanging quilts.
This picture looks into the main part of the building where most of the fabrics live. And I somehow didn’t get a picture of that main room
This picture below shows the size of the meeting room–which on Saturday morning was divided into two sections by that purple divider. Tables with plugs are set up everywhere toward the back of this room. There are also several cutting tables and ironing boards. It’s a perfect place to “sit and sew.”
It rained Saturday morning, so my granddaughter’s tennis matches were cancelled.
But Sunday morning, the play commenced again. My granddaughter won this US Tennis Association (USTA) competition for 12 and under girls just before a gully washer rain hit us hard. And after, in the semi-final match (a nail biter), defeating the number 1 seed.
Between matches, I dashed home to fix some food–as the week was busy, and I had to cook something.
I’ve never grilled a steak and roasted veggies so fast!!
And now I have food for today.
The gully washer put down 4 inches of water in about an hour! And the rain continued lightly into the early evening, so I sewed and missed my daily 1-mile walk, which has only happened twice this month.
Tomorrow the whole house water filtration system gets installed, with reverse-osmosis water in the kitchen.
And today I have some food errands to run, among some other housekeeping chores. And there will be sewing. There is always sewing.
It is Saturday morning, and I’m up early as the modern quilt group has a Sit and Sew this morning, starting at 9:30. It’s held monthly at a local wonderful quilt shop about 40 minutes from me: Five Eighth Seams. The store has a strong collection of quilt fabrics, but also garment fabrics. They also teach a lot of classes on how to make both quilts and garments. And they have a big sewing room with lots of tables and plugs for machines people bring.
Look at the Shasta Daisy! It not only came back, it is bigger and is blooming like crazy. Yesterday I deadheaded the spent blossoms and, yes, I’m picking off the June bugs that have shown up now–several times a day. I’d like to think I’m making a dent in them. That is Lantana on the right and a Russian sage on the left.
The dwarf butterfly bush is back in full force too, and this year its blossoms are way bigger. I filled a nearby hole in this long bed recently with a white butterfly bush which looks like it is now setting blooms.
So now I have a mixed grouping of flowers to bring inside as I trimmed back the red roses, and they are setting up again to bloom again soon.
I’m on THE LAST ROW of the quilt “Happy.” THE LAST ROW. But, yes, there is the border, but it will sew fast.
I have been so hungry for some fresh chicken salad for days now. So, Wednesday I came home around noon from the very fun Patchwork Gals monthly meeting so hungry and longing for chicken salad. So, instead of making a quick omelet, I started making a fresh chicken salad.
What do you need? Chicken meat (freshly cooked and warm is best as it absorbs the mayo better), homemade mayo, an assortment of veggies, and herbs and salt. It doesn’t hurt to have a base to put the salad on either, like lettuce.
The chicken takes the longest, so I put it in a big pot, covered it with water, added onion, celery, carrots, garlic cloves, and some herbs and salt and started it to cook–as that part would take about 40-45 minutes. I was able to cook it covered so that helped cook it faster–and the veggies in the broth meant I’d have a nice broth when I was done that could be used for soup, a stew, or to cook a grain.
Meanwhile, I prepped the veggies I wanted: grated carrots, chopped celery, onion, red and yellow sweet peppers, and I put some frozen little petit peas in a small pot to cook. The amounts of each totally depends on what you like and how much of it you like. I like a lot of crunchy celery and the sweetness of the carrots. And, for me, the little peas are a must–they provide the pretty green color and are delicious.
Here’s the homemade mayo, which is dead easy to make in a blender. Break at least one egg into the bottom of the blender (I used two today–you could also just use the yolk in the second egg), add 1 or 2 tablespoons of something acid (lemon juice, mustard, vinegar), add salt and if you like some herbs, and have on hand EVOO olive oil for the next step. Turn on the blender (low is best) and start adding the olive oil in a thin stream until the whole mixture congeals, which just takes less than a minute. You could make a double batch, actually, and having homemade mayo on hand to drizzle over foods and this salad is a good thing. (Note to self!)
I also had on hand some baby bok choy that needed cooking, so I cleaned it and rough chopped it and dropped the bits into my simmering broth. It only takes a very few minutes to cook bok choy until the bottom thicker parts are still not totally soft. Remove with a slotted spoon and put aside. Here’s the base for my salad.
Before chopping, isn’t it pretty? So green. And using what I had on hand that needed cooking is how I like to cook.
When the chicken is deemed to be done–remove it to a big bowl and cut the carcass into parts so it will cool faster. If any parts are not quite done, drop them back into the simmering broth. Take the meat off the bones.
Then tear or cut (kitchen scissors) the chicken meat into chunks. And while I did this part, I allowed the broth to cook itself down a lot so it would be really concentrated and would take up less room in the freezer.
Next, just mix up all the ingredients and taste to see if you have enough salt.
AND, now YOU CAN EAT. For me, that’s porch time. Fruit is delicious with this savory chicken salad. Cantaloupe might be my favorite, but it isn’t quite in season yet.
Don’t forget the broth on the stove! I almost did.
And now I have delicious food for a few days, which frees me up to do other things.
I got hungry for stuffed peppers. So, six for me now and six for the freezer.
That’s one pound of organic beef hamburger and a package (not sure how big) of local grass-fed beef hamburger mixed with liver, heart, and gizzards. That’s a great way to eat these important organ meats that can be strong tasting.
This meatloaf type batch has a handful of rolled oats, an egg, some grated mozzarella cheese, some chopped onion, a grated zucchini (adds moisture), a splash of milk, some saved lamb fat, and some dried herbs and salt. I topped each stuffed pepper with some ketchup, which is about the closest I can get to tomato.
I cooked a batch of the Anson Mill’s organic Gold rice–only I didn’t do their method of boiling it, draining it, and drying it in the oven on a parchment covered cookie tin. This rice is naturally starchy, but this boiling/drying method takes away from the flavor of the rice in my opinion. I just cooked it and let it steam a bit.
I roasted some fresh green beans with added garlic and had some “asset” roasted sweet peppers and carrots.
On Sunday, I watched a granddaughter’s tennis match and saw this glorious magnolia tree.
The trunk was especially interesting–a child’s invitation climb up in the branches. And sure enough, when I got back to my car, there were children nestled along the limbs.
It’s a rainy day today, so I’m doing rainy-day home events.
It required attention and patience, but the third time was the charm with cooking these Anson Mills “rough cut” ORGANIC grits.
I soaked them overnight in milk and stirred them for the first 8-10 minutes and then didn’t leave their side until I was sure covering and cooking slowly wasn’t going to make them overflow. It takes about 40-50 minutes adding bits of water (or more milk) about every 10 minutes so the grits don’t burn on the bottom and cook very, very, very slowly until the chunkier bits are soft.
But oh my heavens! They are so delicious. I will be ordering again, but will drop down to the finer cut version, which is still chunky and slower to cook.
Here was my noon dinner on the porch–made with assets and the grits: roast chicken and roasted sweet peppers and carrots (with garlic), sautéed spinach (butter and more garlic), and sliced Honey Crisp apple and an espresso.
And I look at this view while I eat. My neighbor pulled out her struggling gardenias and put in these pink “Knock Out” roses–which are a hybrid made with landscape roses, tea roses, and maybe other roses. They will be smaller than my red landscape roses and will grow wider I suspect.
The taller plant on the corner of the house is a tea olive, which I would love to have, but I don’t have the right spot for one. They get tall over time, but have the sweetest fragrance when blooming. They are a quintessential Southern plant.
There are now lots of colors–this hybrid has been around 20+ years now.
Here’s one up close. They are so adorable!
The 4th and final quilt in the 1920-30’s reproduction fabrics series is off the longarm and has been trimmed and bound. Yeah! I’ve called it “Four Stars.”
We, hopefully, will get some rain today. But NOT a tornado as we are under an alert until 7 pm. A nasty system is moving toward us. Just rain please and thank you.
I’m sewing together the blocks from this year’s online block class with Tara Faughnan into what I hope will make an interesting improv quilt. Certainly it will be a memory quilt for me. So far, so good.
And, at night I’m sewing down the binding on “Four Stars.”
But I have been plodding along with all sorts of projects nevertheless.
Today I’ll finish the quilt on the longarm and will trim and bind it.
I did finish my name tag for the Charleston Modern Quilt Guild. I kept this one simple and…modern.
Along the way I learned how to monogram with my new Janome 6700’s alphabet, which was fun. The camera picked up the shadow lines in the name making it look rough, but it isn’t.
I donated both my old Janome 6600 and the Janome 8900, so there’s that.
I soaked the Anson Mill’s rough grits last night, so I’ll be cooking those at noon today. I can’t wait!! The rest of my meal is already cooked and will just need reheating.
This afternoon a clean water company is coming to test my water and to recommend a whole-house water filtration system. I got spoiled in Maine with my well water. This water has red iron residue and reeks of chlorine–and I know there is fluoride in it as well. I’m not sure about reverse-osmosis for the kitchen sink as I don’t like the taste of it. (RO removes ALL the minerals, some of which we need.)
So, I’m looking forward to learning more about water in this region. And I do use a Clearly Filtered pitcher for my drinking and (some) cooking water.
There have been many, but here are a few that leap into my mind as I sit to write.
There was a morning coffee visit with my backdoor neighbor Patti, where her two beautiful cats were happy to see me. (I took care of them months ago while Patti was away.) This time, surprise, the shy female wanted to love on my bare feet and play.
My neighbor Teri is feeling much better after a bout with something that made her quite sick for about a week.
The magnolias are blooming. We have a number of the small, dwarf “little Gem” versions in our neighborhood. These big blossoms are mildly fragerant. A regular magnolia is a big tree. Way back in the day, my first cousin who lived in rural Virginia (Lovingston) near the mountains, carried a magnolia blossom in her June wedding in a beautiful little rural Episcopalian church. I was in her wedding at a young age–15 or 16–and my parents flew me from Omaha, Nebraska, to be in Elizabeth’s wedding, which would have been a big expenditure for them at that time. My Uncle Jimmy (Elizabeth’s dad) picked me up in a small plane at a DC airport (maybe the early Dulles) and flew me to Lovingston.
A wonderful neighbor has her house here in Moore’s Landing on the market as their dream house is up for sale on Isle of Palms. She included this drone pic of the upper part of OUR neighborhood in the pictures of her house. (She is a realtor.) The lower part of the picture truncates the little cul-de-sac where our development backs up to a pond and woods that separate us from houses that lie beyond.
I marked my house with a tiny black arrow (it is on the right)–and that is the back of the house and my screen porch “outdoor room.” The street leading out of the development on the top leads to the big street where I walk daily (2 miles today). We are NOT this close to the sound and the barrier islands, but we aren’t far either. That would be Isle of Palms on the right side of the picture, beyond the mainland. We get to the barrier islands via 2 “connector” roads that go over the water.
Noon dinners on the porch have been wonderful this past week. Here, roasted chicken; roasted sweet peppers, carrots, and garlic; baked sweet potato; sautéed baby bok choy; sliced Honey Crisp apple; and an espresso.
And some days later, grilled flank steak, roasted sweet peppers and steamed carrot (assets), steamed broccoli, air fryer French fries, sliced Honey Crisp apple, and an espresso.
With FaceTime help from Jimmy at Carolina Quilt Studio (a wonderful and patient man), I was able to switch out the ruler billet foot on Innova with the “quick change” standard foot that can also use the same foot adapter. And now I have now the last of the 4 quilts using the 1920-30’s reproduction feed sack fabrics on the longarm. All looks well. Big sigh.
My name tag for the Charleston Modern Quilt Guild is almost finished. Maybe some hand quilting on the front before adding the back? I do a lot of hand quilting, so that seems to be a good idea.
I’m moving steadily through the last two rows of “Happy” with the hand quilting!!!! This quilt has taken me SIX YEARS to finish it.
A dental procedure involving replacing a bridge involving 3 upper jaw teeth knocked me back for a bit last week, but I have my energy back.
I had good time with Bryan and Corinne’s three girls Saturday, ending with a lamb chop dinner last night cooked by Bryan. (Corinne is in Philly for the weekend.) There was also a visit on his front porch while dinner cooked–which is always good. We have fun talking about ideas and life.
Saturday, neighbors Teri and Mike took some of their family in their boat to Capers Island where Boneyard Beach is located (off the coast of Awendaw, SC) and had a great time exploring. So I learned all about that place after Teri told me all about it. Here is a link that has some pictures.
Here is a Sunday treat for you: pics of a local Serenity Labyrinth Garden that my local dermatologist installed some time ago, given the mature plants that surround it.
These pics speak for themselves I think, so I will remain silent.
My neighbor who saw and filmed the otters in our neighborhood ponds told me that there were THREE otters in the pond where she filmed when she and another neighbor first got to that pond while walking their dogs.
She told me that she, too, has been reading more about otters in coastal South Carolina. Apparently they are somewhat rare and other nearby costal states don’t have them at all anymore. She said the otters travel around through the sewers and culverts. Well, that makes sense as there are A LOT of drainage systems here in the Low Country.
Also, Betsy wrote that her husband Bill gifted her with the quilt pattern for the quilt I showed you yesterday–it wasn’t a kit–which means Betsy chose her own fabrics, and didn’t she do a great job with her choices? (I fixed the post.)
The diffuser has peppermint and lemon in it this morning–and it is lovely and fresh smelling in the big room. (This would be another small moment of joy.)
The sequel to Erica Bauermeister’s novel The School of Essential Ingredients may be even better than the first book: it’s The Lost Art of Mixing. I read/listened to The Scent Keeper a while back, and now I have No Two Persons in my Audible system. I’m listening to The Survivors by Jane Harper, and so far it seems like it will be interesting. It’s set in a small beach town on the coast of Tasmania. Yes, there is a mystery involved. The printed book I’m reading is Jan Karon’s second book in her Mitford series, A Light in the Window.
Today is my youngest granddaughter’s 9th birthday–so there will be cake later this afternoon. I’m getting her card from me ready this morning:
I have for a long time now printed out pics of my quilts and used them in cards. I smile when I see them–and hope recipients do as well–so here’s another small moment of joy.
I am just finishing hand sewing the LAST block in the 4th row of 6 rows in “Happy,” the quilt that has taken YEARS to make. That means the middle is done and I’m over the hump of finishing this quilt as the edge rows are so much easier to get to while hand quilting. The border will quilt fast as there are not pesky, bulky seams to manage.
Betsy also identified the little purple wildflower I saw along my walking path.
It goes by several common names, like Dakota Mock Vervain,” depending on where one lives–all involve “mock vervain” in the name.
From Wikipedia: “Glandularia pulchella is a species of flowering plant in the verbena family known by the common name South American mock vervain. It is native to Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay, and it is present elsewhere as an introduced species and roadside weed.[1][2] It is an annual or perennial herb producing one or more stems growing decumbent to erect in form and hairy to hairless in texture. The rough-haired leaves are divided deeply into lobes. The inflorescence is a dense, headlike spike of many flowers up to 1.5 centimeters wide.[3] Each flower corolla is up to 1.4 centimeters wide and white to purple in color.” (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glandularia_pulchella)
I didn’t think to use my plant ID app, but Betsy did, using my picture. When I tried, yes, up came the ID. Duh!
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