Redwork Santa

With all the projects I have going on you would think the last thing I would want to do is start another one!

Well...you see I found this redwork santa that I hand-stitched at least 6 years ago in with the Christmas decorations.  I still had out some of the vintage blocks and bits that I used to make those Christmas pillows...I guess I still have pillows/cushions on the brain!

I think I'll try and make on of these up over the holidays.  I'm debating appliqueing the Santa block down on top of the ring or appliqueing the ring down on the santa?  Decisions....

First I have to decide which ring to use and select a background fabric....ah, playing in the fabric stacks...my favorite part of quilting!

Quilt bee

I actually made it out to a quilt bee this morning. It was good to see some other quilters. Lot so folks showed up so several quilts were pinned, some wool shared, an entire cake eaten, and more challenge blocks given out. A typical quilt bee....
I've got to say it wore me out though. So I came home and played in old quilt blocks (like the redwork above) and then mindlessly cut up a pile of shirts I bought at the church yard sale a few weeks ago. In now have a full box of shirting fabrics...guess I need to figure out what I want to make from it!

I've also started reading some of the quilt history books I got last weekend. This one by Carrie Hall and Rose Kretsinger was written in 1935. The writing style is so different from anything you would read today. I mean, when is the last time you saw poetry in your quilt books? The last stanza of "The Patchwork Quilts" by Carrie Hall is my favorite:

I think a quilt is something very real --
a message of creation wrought in flame:
With grief and laughter sewn into its patches
I see beyond the shadows, dream and aim.

The photos in this book are all black and white. She made an amazing collection of quilt blocks. You need to use lots of imagination (and at times a magnifying glass) but it is still a great read.

Quiet House

With Tonya on her way back to Paris the house is very quiet again. Brownie has slept all afternoon...guess all the attention wore the little cat out!

Today I worked a bit on my Santa red-work. I have finished three so only 9 more to go! They are very fun and relaxing. The pattern is from Bird Brain Designs and is aptly titled "Here Comes Santa Quilt."

While Tonya was here we did a lot of tea drinking. I even got into the kitchen and made some Fruit Scones which go very well with clotted cream. (Calories don't count when friends visit - right?!) She asked for me to post the recipe so here goes....

Fruit Scones
3 cups flour
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots
1/4 cup chopped dried cherries
1/4 cup currants
1 teaspoon grated lemon or orange rind
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk

Glaze: 1 to 2 tablespoons of sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon of water

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl; stir well. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Stir in apricots, cherries, currants, and citrus rind. Add buttermilk and stir until dry ingredients are moistened. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly 4-5 times.

Pat dough into a 10-inch circle on a an un-greased baking sheet. Combine water and egg and brush top of the scones. Sprinkle with sugar. Cut into 12 wedges; separate the wedges slightly (about 1/4 to 1/2 inch.) Bake at 400 degrees for 20 to 22 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve warm. (Though we ate some for breakfast the next morning and they were still good!)

When I made the scones this week I didn't have currant so used more apricots and cherries. I also doubled the amount of lemon rind because I knew I was going to use some of my quilting friend's lemon marmalade...so wonderful!

The photo below shows one of my favorite gardens. It is outside the village of Doddington and for a few weeks in spring looks like a black and white garden (up close you find out the tulips are really dark purple.)