Another Coffee themed towel

You'll notice I used the same fabrics on this towel as I did on Gisela's but with an entirely different outcome. This one's for Allison because likes the ruffly (is that how you spell that?) towels which are showing up in a lot of specialty stores right now. There is a lot of work in this one, but it was so much fun to create!

And now, I think I'll go get a cup of coffee.

For a Coffee Lovin' Friend

I made this for my friend, Gisela, but had to wait for it to be in her hands before I could share it with all of you. I had so much fun making this. I took an ordinary dish towel and purchased the coffee cup embroidery design online. I adapted the colors to go with Gisela's kitchen. I added her name to it. Then I found this cute coffee-themed fabric and paired it with the brown fabric to embellish it. How fun and rewarding to take a dish towel from ordinary to extraordinary.

Freebies

I've been wanting to get a French press coffee maker. I suppose I could buy one, but it would be much more fun to win one. Bon Appetit is having a giveaway! 

I really like this red one.  You see those chocolates next to it? They're not chocolates at all. They're litte pressed clay/soil bundles with seeds in them. You plant them in your garden. How cool is that? You can win those too.

Sunday Dinner

Reading this month's Bon Appetit, I was excited to see they've added a new monthly column devoted to something near and dear to my heart, the Sunday dinner. With so many trends of what is old being new again, I hope the Sunday dinner becomes one of those things.

Sunday dinner was always a big part of my life as I was growing up. As we got older, my Mom continued to have Sunday dinners where all the "kids" continued to come every Sunday. That eventually included spouses and grandkids, too. It was just a given. No invitation needed. Sunday dinner at Mom's. It's a great way to keep families connected and to keep traditions strong within them.

As my girls got busier and busier, and we all seemed to be on different schedules, I rendered an edict: No matter what you're doing all week, plan to be at the table for Sunday dinner. We've done a great job of keeping it alive in our own home and it assures us one day a week when we continue to gather as a family. It's something we look forward to and, often, the meal is something someone asked me to make, a favorite dish of theirs. Everyone is welcome to come-- boyfriends, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends. It's a tradition I love.

Do you have memories of Sunday dinners? Do you still do them?

Two More Wristlets and Two Surprises

This one is for.... yes, you guessed it: it's for Nicole! Nicole has been such a wonderful fan of the wristlet I previously made her, I thought she'd like this one to match her cheer uniform.

The Yankees one is for me.

I made two other projects I'm excited to tell you about, but I'll have to wait until they get to the people I made them for. Here's a hint-- the lucky recipients are Gisela and Allison. Stay tuned...

Baseball Pillow Tutorial

1. Cut two 14" circles from white fabric of your choice (let's call these fabric circles), and two additional 14" circles from fleece (we'll call these fleece circles). (Batting would work, too.)

2. Embroider name (or leave blank) on one of the fabric circles

3. Using narrow double fold bias tape and a fabric glue stick, create baseball "seams" on both fabric circles. (I always use a fabric glue stick to hold bias tape in place, rather than pinning.)

TIP: From the "do as I say, not as I do files:" Only bring bias tape to 5/8" from edges, instead of all the way to edges as seen in these images. It will prevent the pucker you see in my final pillow.

4. Stitch tape in place with a zig zag stitch down the middle of it or, if your machine has one, a decorative stitch that looks like the stitches on a baseball. I stitched both edges of the tape with a decorative stitch to give the baseball seam effect.

5. Pin fleece circles to wrong sides of fabric circles, then baste, using 1/4" seam allowance.

6. Pin circles so that fabric circles are right sides together, fleece circles on the outside. Sew together, using a 1/2" seam allowance, and leave a 3"- 4" section open for turning.

7. Cut notches in seam allowance all the way around circle, except for the opening. You could also pink it all the way around.

8.Turn pillow right side out through opening, push seams out, fill with polyfill, and slip stitch opening closed.

Things Made This Weekend

I made this baseball pillow for my nephew. I took photos of all the steps along the way and will be posting the tutorial later today or later this week.

I made these custom hand towels to fill an order on Etsy. Isn't this a cool idea for a wedding gift?

I made this golf towel for Eric. Many of the ones he has have rings to attach to the golf bag, but I thought I'd be a little different. I added the golf fabric to the towel and put velcro strips on it.

As I get time, I'll be listing all of these items on Etsy, to be personalized in whatever way people choose.

So... did I tell you?

Despite a day here and there of feeling OK the past month, I have been feeling like a dog. I have mono. I first started feeling sick on Feb 22 (my anniversary, which is why I remember).

 I went to the doctor around 2/26, got antibiotics, started feeling better, so wasn't in any hurry to return the calls for the results of my blood work. That is until 3 days after finishing the antibiotics, when I felt sick as a dog again. So I called.

Blood work showed I had mono. Ugh. Not what I wanted to hear. But mono is a virus (caused by the Epstein Barr virus) so it shouldn't respond to antibiotics, right? Well, something was responding to them so the doctor called in another round for me. I knew St. Patrick's Day (my birthday was looming) so I timed the antibiotics so I would finish them right before my b-day, figuring I'd feel better by then. Sure enough, I felt great. That was Wednesday. Friday morning, again my throat is so sore I can hardly swallow; glands swollen like golf balls.

Back to the doctor today. New prescriptions added to the mix. Apparently I have mono but have caught something else along with it. (Again, please do not come to classes if you are sick!!!! I am sick of being sick.) It looks like the mono is going to be around for a while, but these meds should rid me of the symptoms, except for the fatigue. I can deal with the fatigue; I just want to be rid of the rest of it. Keep your fingers crossed that I'll be over this soon.

There's always a silver lining though. Being housebound this much, and being bored as I've been, has given me lots of time to be creative (hence my vest and shirt last week). I have several new things I've made which I'll post a little later.

One other silver lining is a nice sister who brought me egg drop soup because I'm sick. Can't beat that. :)

More fun with my embroidery machine

Yesterday was St. Patrick's Day. This past week I made myself a lined black and green vest to wear, Simplicity 4789 . I changed up the collar a bit to make it more like it had lapels.

I added pockets to it, which I embroidered, mirror imaging the design for each of the pockets.

I also added two cool little shamrock buttons to the lapels.

And then my t-shirt, which I also machine embroidered. I am not a fan of the round neck on t-shirts so I cut mine out and added a green V neck to it and some green additions to my sleeves.

I like the blocked look and how the whole thing came together.

World's Easiest Corned Beef and Cabbage

Sometimes you almost hate to tell people how easy it is to make something when they think you're a wizard for cooking it so well. I hate to let this secret out of the bag, but here's how I make not only the easiest, but perfect-every-time corned beef and cabbage. It begins and ends with the crock pot.

When you purchase a corned beef, you'll see there are point cuts and flat cuts. I recommend the flat cut which is much leaner than the point cut. I also highly recommend Boar's Head corned beef if you can get it. (Not the kind sliced at the deli-- the whole, packaged corned beef.)

Remove the corned beef from the plastic wrapping and rinse it under cold water. Put it in a crock pot or slow cooker along with the seasonings that will come packaged with it. Add whole new potatoes (I like red) and a quartered head of cabbage. Add enough water to just barely cover it all. Put on the lid and cook on medium for about 8 hours. Strain, trim fat from beef, slice across grain, feast.

That is IT! That's the whole recipe. You will have the most tender, moist, delicious corned beef you've ever had. My favorite part of this recipe is that it allows me to party all day on St. Patrick's Day and come home to this delicious feast. I put it in the crock pot before we head out for the day and when we come home, it's ready. I don't have to worry about it over cooking and I don't have to stay home all afternoon and tend to it.

This photo is not the actual recipe, but it looks pretty darned good to me.

The Joy in Giving

I love to make things for people, especially when I know they're appreciated. Since I made this wristlet purse for my niece a few weeks ago, I keep hearing how much she loves it, how all her friends love it, how she uses it all the time. Can you ask for anything more gratifying than that?

Irish Soda Bread

I thought I'd share my Irish Soda Bread recipe again this year.Soda bread is like a loaf version of a scone, if you've never had it. It's delicious. Try it!

Soda Bread-- makes 2 loaves
6 Tablespoons margarine or butter
5 cups flour
4 Tablespoons sugar*
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup currants or raisins
1 teaspoon caraway seed
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 beaten egg

*The recipe that my mother passed on to me used 4 TBS. sugar. I prefer mine sweeter and use 1/2 cup.

Cut margarine/butter into flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in raisins/currants, egg and buttermilk to make a soft dough.

Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth (one to two minutes). Shape into round loaves, about 6 1/2" in diameter. Place onto greased cookie sheet (or into greased cast iron skillet). Using a sharp, floured knife, cut a large X into the top of the loaf, going about 1/4 of the way through the loaf with the slices.

As an option, which I highly recommend, brush the top of the loaves with a little melted butter/margarine and sprinkle about a teaspoon of sugar over the top of the loaf. It gives it a nice finished appearance.

Bake in 375 degree oven until golden brown, about 35-45 minutes.

Now, make yourself a cup of tea, and slather the hot soda bread with butter and jam and you will have yourself a little taste of heaven. Enjoy!

Here's the link to my posting of this recipe last year.

And the winer is...

Congratulations to Alisha@BrooklynArmyWife. You're the winner of the Saints pilsner glass. Thanks to all who entered. Look for the next giveaway coming soon.

Addendum: I was going to change it but it's too funny. Did I really say the "winer" is in the subject of this post??? And did I really flash that typo all over Facebook, too? Yup, I sure did. Too late to take it back so I'm leaving it for entertainment value. 

Sorry Alisha. The WINNER is...

St. Patrick's Day Bassett Hound

I usually wait until I can get natural light to take my photos, but I just finished this (took me about 4 1/2 hours) and I'm so excited, I had to show you. I'll be giving this to my brother. The dog looks just like his dog, Stoli.