The Guest Room – part 3

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I guess it’s been more than a few months for me to get to the painting. We didn’t have any company coming so there was no real rush. I was just twitchy. But first M— came home for a few months, so I couldn’t use her room as a holding cell for all the furniture. Then I got sidetracked by her t-shirt quilt – and the Trip Around the World quilt – details to come on that one. But now I have a push for it. Besides the fact that I cannot stand an unfinished project, D—’s brother, sister-in-law, and mother are coming for a short stay in a few months. So I took a three day weekend and tore the room apart.

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Snickerdoodles

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I bet this isn’t the first image you expected to see for a post on these wonderfully buttery cookies. The truth is that I haven’t made them for years. We are trying to keep our sugar content lower (like THAT works real well – Not), but I had a special occasion. D— entered a painting in a local exhibit and was expected to bring a finger food for the reception. So I made snickerdoodles. Continue reading…

How to Make a T-Shirt Quilt the Hard Way (part 2)

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On to sewing all the t-shirt pieces together. After choosing a background fabric, the first thing I did was to sew strips along the sides.

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This is where the not measuring or doing much math came in. My goal was to section the design into blocks and sew each of those together. If the final design came out a little different in size than the original layout, then so be it. I guessed at the amount to go in between these first few and trimmed it back after I laid them all out on the floor. Continue reading…

How to Make a T-Shirt Quilt the Hard Way

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The Pile

The Pile

A few weeks ago my lovely step-daughter moved to Denver with her boyfriend. Great to see her grow up, but I feel really conflicted about having her so far away. Anywhere I have to get on a plane to go to is far away. They piled a ton of stuff into 2 cars and off they went. In her wake, she left some t-shirts that have meant a lot to her, and she just couldn’t see giving them to the thrift store or throwing them out. Dedicated step-mom that I am, I said, “Keep them. I can turn them into a quilt for you. One, two, three.” I’d made one for a friend a few years ago and there was nothing to it. Continue reading…

The Cookbook Tour

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Do you like to read cookbooks? Not just peruse them for recipes. I mean actually read them? It depends on the cookbook, sure, but I get a thrill from reading how the author learned the techniques he/she did. Or the family history that caused them to gravitate to the recipes they chose for a particular cookbook.

When we had our kitchen remodeled, it was important for us to have a shelf just for the cookbooks. We had been using a secretary given to me by my uncle many years ago. But as cool as that piece is, there was just no room for it in the new kitchen. We actually overflow the shelves we had built.

Under the Hutch

Under the Hutch

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Mini Wall Hanging for Mom

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Almost two years ago, my mother and step-father moved into a retirement community. They had both been very active in their local library, so I was anxious to see the library in the main building of their new residence. It’s a nice little space, but I wanted to give it the Debby touch. So I offered to make a wall hanging for it.

I’ve been quilting for over 20 years, so I have quite a stash of weird pieces. I only had a space of 18 x 36 inches to fit this into, so I knew I couldn’t make it wider than about a foot. I wanted it to be taller than wider, so I just guessed on where it would look good. No pattern and very little measuring.

My Starting Sketch

My Starting Sketch

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Pea Soup for a Winter Day

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Brrr

Brrr

It’s been looking like this in our neighborhood for the last month or so. I expect it has in your neighborhood too, unless you are my insensitive friend in Arizona. He hasn’t been able to stop gloating about the 85° temps there. Humph!

This is perfect weather for a pot of something that you can just dip into all day. A real comfort food. Make sure you have a loaf of crusty bread, and you’re good to go. Continue reading…

Seattle 2013

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I’m back from my travels over the holidays. Get ready for Arty pictures of the Pacific Northwest. We gave ourselves a do-it-most zoom lens for Christmas, and we had some serious fun using it! I didn’t take all of them. D— took some so credit is given on those pictures.

The driftwood is all on the beach in a lovely little park in Mukilteo. If you haven’t grasped it by now, I’m a texture girl.  Continue reading…