Spring cleanup all around

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Sewfrench

We’ve had such a beautiful run of spring days that I’m not getting much quilting/sewing done, because, as usual, yard work is so much fun in the spring. Hard, but fun. Considering there was a freeze last night, today has turned out gorgeous. 58° never felt so warm.

Crystal Lake, MI

We pondered, last summer, about putting in more space to grown vegetables. Planters are great, but they weren’t deep enough for some things or sturdy enough for others.

deck gardening

Summer 2011

We even considered yanking out some of our 10-year-old landscape. It has gotten overgrown, grass was creeping in, cedar tree debris was deep…. Obviously, or maybe not, this is before this year’s spring cleanup. We don’t live with this mess throughout the summer.

Before you ask, that’s our planter irrigation lines and drops stuck into the deck, to get them out-of-the-way. And yes, we are prepping for painting, having had many of the cedar siding boards replaced on this south-facing side.

our 10 yr old landscape before

We decided to go for it. Nothing could look worse than those creepy/creeping evergreens with dead spots on them. The two Princess Spireas, to the far left, have seen better days, too. What a difference a day makes when you have a strong, willing man with a shovel along with 6 whiskey barrel planters, 24 cubic feet of organic,  soil less growing medium and 2 yards of fresh stone, well one yard of stone here, another yard around the rest of the yard.

Did you know it’s nearly impossible to find, online, how much soil one of these barrels will hold? Just so you know ours took about 4 cubic feet each : )

We will still be able to use our deck planters for lettuces and smaller plants that we might want to move around and the irrigation lines should still have enough oomph for it all. Can’t wait!

be a backyard locavore

We’ve now completed cleaning up the debris all around the house and refreshed the stone. Time to bring out the deck furniture and flower planters.

Time to get the trees trimmed and flowers planted out front

and to get our tiny pond cleaned out and some fishies put in.

And, of course, getting our herbs and veggie plants and seeds put in….

For now, I think I’ll just take a peek and see what my fiends are up to!

Posted in Cottage, Gardening, Landscape, WIP | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Best GF Brownies I’ve ever made!

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Sewfrench

No lie.

Did you know May was Celiac Awareness month? Well, it is.

1 in 133 Americans have the very dangerous form of gluten allergy called Celiac. 1 in 20 have some form of gluten sensitivity. Lots of information available at your fingertips, if you are curious you can Google it. The WSJ published an article just last month. It is obvious companies are listening to their customers. Just look at the explosive quantities of gluten-free foods now available. And not just at health food stores but even your local corner store. Things that you have eaten forever, and which are naturally gluten-free, are now labeled to reflect that.

Do you think the rampant numbers of diagnosed celiac and gluten sensitive individuals has anything to do with the genetic modifications that happened to wheat in the last 50 years? Or that generically modified wheat could be a major contributor to obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, dementia, depression and so many other of our modern ills? It is FrankenWheat — a scientifically engineered food product developed in the last 50 years that is behind so many of our ills, I say. I could be wrong but jeez we eat a lot more wheat, now, than we did 100 years ago.

And I know not everyone is eating wheat free, or gluten-free for that matter, but if you have a friend, co-worker, neighbor, party thrower, you name them, that does avoid wheat or gluten give these a go. They will thank you for your thoughtfulness. But so will the same neighbor, friend, co-worker…. that does eat gluten. They are that good! You could also try them with traditional all-purpose flour. Either way, I bet you’ll think these are better than any old boxed brownie.

Okay, so, back to the best gluten-free brownies I have ever made.

Even if these may be the only gluten-free, brownies I’ve ever made, they are right up there with our favorite, some may even call famous, family brownie recipe which has gluten in it.

In my opinion, these have the perfect balance of chocolate and sugar. Fudgey but not heavy, more cake-like but not quite. You just have to trust me and make them.

Just so you know, I didn’t create this recipe. I just followed a recipe. Seems to be the best way to go when looking into *new* GF recipes. Karina is a goddess of all things GF. For real. She’s been eating this way since before most of us had ever even heard the word, much less put together symptoms and wheat.  She has been creating recipes since before we had the internet at our disposal. She is the actual creator of many of the recipes we see out there on this internet thing.

Here you go.

best ever brownies

And they taste much better than this blah picture. Moist and chocolatey with a perfect crackle on top.

Ingredients:

5 ounces high quality 60-70% cocoa dark chocolate (I used 59% Dagoba chocolate because that’s what my baking aisle has)
1/4 c organic coconut oil, 1/4 c butter (All shortening or coconut oil if eating dairy free)
1 c light brown sugar, not packed
1/2 cup almond meal
1/4 cup brown rice flour
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 organic free-range eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon bourbon vanilla or other GF vanilla

Optional:

1/2 cup chopped pecans
Dark chocolate chips for the top

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line an 8×8-inch square baking pan with foil and lightly oil the bottom.Melt the dark chocolate, the coconut oil and butter in a saucepan over low heat, gently stirring.

In a mixing bowl whisk together the brown sugar, almond meal, brown rice flour, fine sea salt and baking soda. Make a well in the center and add the beaten eggs, vanilla extract and melted dark chocolate mixture. Beat on low-medium for two minutes, until the batter begins to come together. At first it will seem thin, like cake batter, but keep beating until it thickens and becomes smooth and glossy.

If you are adding nuts, stir in the nuts by hand and spread the batter into the prepared baking pan. Even out the batter with a silicone spatula. Or if you’re like me you forget to add the pecans until half of it is in the pan…. You can still mix them in…

Stud the top with some dark chocolate chips and press in slightly.

Bake in the center of a preheated 350ºF oven for 32 to 35 minutes, or until the brownies are set. The top will crack, like a flourless chocolate cake.

Cool on a wire rack; and remove the cooled brownies from the pan by gripping the foil edges and lifting the brownies out as a whole.

You could chill them for an hour before cutting. We didn’t. We couldn’t stand not cutting into their warm gooeyness!

If you decide to give it a go, let myself or Karina know what you think.

And if you’re wondering about serving desserts on smaller plates to make you feel like you are getting more? It doesn’t work. It just brings out the rebellious child in you and makes you want two.

I say Go For It!

Posted in Dairy free, Gluten Free, Recipes | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

I’m backkkk….

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Sewfrench

Wondered if I was returning, did you?

We spent part of the winter, less connected to technology, while playing snowbirds.

Only to return to near snowy conditions, in April, after missing out on the near 90° temperatures Michigan experienced during March. There was at least a week were it was warmer in Michigan than it was in Florida.

Go figure….

We had a great time taking in Tigers spring ball games,

getting up close and personal, with nature, as we walked almost every morning, putting in over 200 miles,

and taking in the sunsets most nights. I feel blessed and refreshed.


I did get some quilting done while we were away, but only on the drive south and back.

My Bubble quilt is quilted and I now have gotten the continuous bias binding attached and ready to hand stitch it down. Then off to the washing machine to bring out all the cuddly goodness.

Stay tuned to see my slowest, continually worked on quilt, ever, finally completed!

Happy Wednesday! Now, go check out the other WIPs over at Freshlypieced!

Posted in Quilting | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

It’s that time of year..

Posted on March 7, 2012 by Sewfrench

…when the hand quilting stack gets so high that I need a distraction to make a dent in it all…
From the bottom up~

Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend~
Yes, she has been patiently waiting since before Christmas, now she’s ready to get a move on.

My untitled wall hanging~
Yes, this one has been around awhile, too.

It’s been marked and remarked. Stitched and unstitched. It is so thick in spots, because of the way I constructed it, that I actually thought I would machine quilt it. But I just couldn’t make myself do it. Especially on such a laborious quilt. I finally settled on concentric circles of equal distance apart and am about 20% complete right now.

Bubbles~
and here, among other mentions, I’m sure.

Finally backed and marked, ready to be hand quilted in the same concentric circle pattern as the wall hanging. This one was tricky because of the size of the circles. The templates I’ve made only go up to 16″ diameter. For these I had to use the string attached to a pin with a marker on the other end. It worked. Okay. Not as neat, as I would have liked, hence no picture, but I can correct the waviness with the quilting. Hopefully.

Untitled inventory reduction pair~
I created these lovelies, a teen and a toddler sized pair, while watching the complete HBO series Big Love, 5 years worth in two quilts. Bam.
What a great series. Not sure what extra memories I have imprinted into these. It’s all about the love, though, that’s for sure!

Lee, from Freshly Pieced, for Moda Bake Shop calls it Cross Terrain. I won’t officially name them until they are quilted. I have to see what they *feel* like to me.

Oh yeah, go check out what else Lee and the rest of the gang are up to this week!

Posted in Quilting | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Do we really need multi vitamins?

Posted on March 6, 2012 by Sewfrench

If we are eating well, we shouldn’t.

And if we are trying, really hard, to get in all our RDA of nutrition and aren’t doing it with simple, close to nature versions, of those nutrients, we can easily run the calorie count up to where exercise alone can’t remedy the weight gain. What’s a girl to do, but go to Google…

We had *just* been talking about this when I ran across this article. I was amazed at how well we are doing with getting the most bang for our buck, as far as nutrition per bite, goes.

We all know which foods we do best to avoid (right?). Despite the alluring appeal of Oreos, Mountain Dew or McAnything, processed foods provide little nutrition and a lot of risks. But when it comes to the good stuff—what are the best foods to put into our bodies? While experts all agree we need a variety of foods for a healthy diet, do you know which are the healthiest of the bunch? The answers may surprise and delight you.

1. Spirulina: While the thought of eating lake algae might gross you out, spirulina is actually pretty tasty, especially blended into a smoothie or hidden in a chocolate bar. It has more antioxidants than any other food on earth and is loaded with protein and minerals making it the most nutrient dense food. The only way I’ve ever tried spirulina is in a green powder form that you add to your smoothies and I was not pleased with the way it ruined my perfectly tasty smoothie. I must find another way to try it again. I wonder if osmosis, through lake swimming, will give me the benefits while bypassing the taste buds??

2. Kale: According to Dr. Joel Fuhrman, kale is the most nutritious food, loaded with minerals, vitamins, fiber and amino acids, as well as important antioxidants that reduce inflammation and can prevent cancer. It’s also delicious and an easy to prepare, versatile food. I could eat this daily and do eat it often in a variety of ways. Chips, raw in salads, cooked up with garlic and a touch of apple cider vinegar. So good.

3. Hemp Seeds: What do you get when you combine protein, fiber, essential fatty acids, antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins and minerals? Hemp, of course. This easily digestible seed is versatile, easy to use and extremely tasty, too. Shelled hemp seeds are called hemp hearts and added to my smoothies, they keep me going, and going and going.

4. Chocolate: Yes, you read right. Cacao beans are so nutrient-dense that scientists haven’t even begun to identify all the benefits in the little bean yet. Don’t grab a Snickers though—the good stuff is found only in raw cacao beans or nibs (or really, really dark chocolate). Minerals, vitamins and tons of antioxidants are great for your heart, skin, and release chemicals in the brain that make you feel like you’re in love. Lower your bad cholesterol, lower your blood pressure and cancer risk *and* raise your mood along with relieving cure PMS? Oh yes, the good stuff, please. Mimi does it right!

5. Broccoli: Mom was right, you should eat your broccoli if you want a healthy digestive system and to decrease your risk of cancer. Broccoli has a wide range of yumminess too, from soups and stews to stir fry. Love broccoli any way you prepare it. Cooked up similarly to our favorite kale recipe sounds great, too.

6. Spinach: Popeye was on to something with that spinach fixation. But skip the canned stuff and stick with fresh or frozen for an antioxidant, protein and fiber-rich burst of healthy goodness. Fresh or cooked, spinach’s sweet and hardy flavor brightens any meal. Easy to get in several servings of greens and 30% of your RDA of iron when you make Aloo Palak.

7. Chia: The Aztec warriors may have died out, but their legacy is alive and strong in the chia seed. This yummy, unassuming ancient favorite is loaded with omega fats, protein and fiber. Dr. Weil says it’s a better choice than flax because “chia is so rich in antioxidants that the seeds don’t deteriorate and can be stored for long periods without becoming rancid.” I just bought a bag of these this week to add to my smoothies. Flax is too seedy tasting for my stomach, chia sits much better.  Pudding, please!

8. Berries: Unlike other fruit, berries tend to be less sugary and full of vital vitamins, minerals and those free-radical avenging antioxidants. Wild berries are always a great choice, especially black raspberries. Blueberries are always in our freezer. Picking wild blueberries, Up North, is always fun. The season, nor the containers, of raspberries and blackberries never last long enough! Muffins anyone???

So how did you do? Eating at least a few of these foods regularly? If not, instead of thinking about what you need to remove from your way life, why not think of it as what I get to add. Consider adding in more healthy foods and your body will begin to crave the basic, closer to nature, versions of the foods we need for our health and our taste buds. Seriously.

It does a body good!

Posted in Eating, Health, Wellness | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

10 things I wish I had known before my first cruise

Posted on March 3, 2012 by Sewfrench

…even though we have always said we’d never take a cruise, it’s just not our traveling style….

Never say never….

So when the sister trip dates started overlapping into our joint anniversary dates and a favorite author was putting on a cruise ship seminar…. you do things you never had intentions of ever doing. Some of us anyway…

Then our good friend hopped on board because you can never have too many laughs on a vacation. Besides, he’s been following the travel dates, of this author, looking for just the right seminar to hit, for quite some time.  And this was it.

I thought I’d share a few things I wish I had known, before we sailed, instead of learning after the fact. I hope it might help another newbie to make easier/better choices.

10.  It’s important to choose the right ship for your lifestyle. Are pools important? Are you looking for the party crowd? What about gambling? Glitz and glamour?  Each ship has its own personality. The median age range differs from cruise line to cruise ship varies, too. Things to think about…

For us it was decided. We chose a speaker we were all very excited to hear from and the ship came with him. Holland America ms Nieuw Amsterdam. About 2000 people. Not too big, not too small. And great food. They all say that, don’t they?? This one really was. We all agreed on that.

More on the seminar, as my thoughts come more clearly into focus…

9.  There is no need to stay in a port town any more than necessary. The ship loads late the first day and kicks you off at the crack of dawn upon arrival back in port. The cruise line will also deliver your luggage directly to the airport, for a fee.

8.  And while you are killing time in Fort Lauderdale know that alligator alley tours are vastly over rated. The air boat ride was less than 20 minutes. The only alligator we saw was the one the van driver pointed out along side the road…. Peter and Gary had gone on a tour, many years ago, and wanted me to see the alligators, too. Well theirs was a private tour, the guide knew all the gators by name, had to kick them off the boat, back in to the water, and they had a really great experience… Now if you can find one of those type tours go for it. Otherwise, just keep you eyes peeled and everyone will still have their 3 hours and 50 bucks. Though you might struggle to find anywhere to spend it. The cruise ship hotels, in Ft. Lauderdale, are near nothing, except the highway…  Okay, maybe not all of them, but from the offerings on travelocity.com and hotels.com most of them are just beds to sleep in. Nothing more. Just so you know…

7.  Book cruise ship dinner reservations, in the alternative restaurants, for every meal, ahead of time. Especially if you are celebrating a special occasions and on formal nights. For us, formal nights fell on our second to last night on the ship and the first full day at sea, which happened to be our 25th anniversary. Peter did great on scheduling our meals and our days. It was a lot to keep up with, but being my front man is one of his strong points.

They treated us right with a special surprise anniversary dessert!

There are professional photographers everywhere you look. Always an opportunity to spend more money on board the ship.

As for dining, you may choose to eat at your assigned table, in the general dining room, on some nights, but you will have a choice if you plan ahead and reserve. Not so if you wait until you are on board. And we did love our Manhattan dining room waiters, Dodie and Edie, they were one step ahead of us, most of the time. Eating gluten-free aboard this ship was never an issue. When you say gluten-free they react as you said celiac.

6.  No one is going to set your daily activity schedule but you. Do it the night before or you may miss out on some fun things you forgot you had wanted to do. We would have gotten in even more fitness as well as wellness seminars if we had been with it from day 1. It was enough just to keep up with our speaker and dining schedules, we didn’t understand all the options before we took off.  Same thing goes for the show schedules. Magic thinking a comedian for the evening, when we needed it, worked for us, might not for you…. Laughing is good for what ails you! I wish I could remember his name….

5.  Shore excursions must be booked in advance or you may not be doing what you had hoped to do. Just keep in mind these day trips, taken from a cruise ship, are not the same as booking a trip from a hotel concierge. Use Google to research the excursion you are interested in, to see if it is even worth it before you plunk down too much money for what feels like a cattle herding experience. Then take it with a grain of salt. Seriously.

Snorkeling in one of the top 5 snorkeling spots in the world was not exactly what we thought it would be. I guess stats can be written by anyone? I had never power snorkeled before. It was a lot less tiring than swimming, kicking and the waves carrying you further and further from the boat. It really isn’t much of a cardio workout when you snorkel with a motor in your hands. Just remind me to bring my own goggles and flippers next time…

4.  Staying aboard the ship when everyone else leaves gives you your pick of lounge chairs. Two if you like. Go for it.

Yes, we had a little sprinkling rain, the day we stopped at Half Moon Cay. But we also had a good sister date, under the umbrellas, ready to run for our choice of chairs, as soon as the sun popped out!

Thank goodness the word Margarita is understood in all languages. *Especially* on National Margarita Day which we celebrated in style!

3.  If you can’t afford an outside cabin, with a balcony, I would suggest you wait until you can, or take out a second mortgage, it was so worth the upgrade. Having the ability to open the balcony door made all the difference in not feeling like we were trapped on a boat. It also helped with controlling the room temperature. Brrr our rooms were cold. Even us thinned blooded Michiganders thought so. We had 3 adjoining rooms, with the balcony dividers opened, ready for a party in the making.

It also gave us a sneak peek of our next stop, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

2.  Check out your ships’ Facebook page or check in at cruisecritic.com for lots of good information specific to your cruise and your ship. Most people who love cruises, love to share the knowledge.

1.  For me, I’m just sharing *my* knowledge. Our next trip will be a road trip.

Okay, that’s all I’ve got except for a few more pictures. Enjoy!

❤ Lori

Posted in Celebrate, Eating, Family, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Please stand by….

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Sewfrench

We have some celebrating to do.

And a makeover, for four, wouldn’t be out of the question….

Posted in Celebrate, Family, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Welcome to this world, baby Lilie!!

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Sewfrench

This quilt is for you!

From the beginning I knew it was for you, great-niece. I thought of you with every stitch that went in to holding it together. How we are all linked as family even though we are so far apart. We’re all connected. I thought about how you’d do tummy time on it, how you would drag it everywhere you went, dissolving it into just threads as your uncles did, with theirs, not so long ago…

Lilie~ what a pretty name for a pretty girl. And to share the name with your ggg~grandmother Lillie Myrtle Tite Wooley is pretty special, too.

Happy Birth Day baby Lilie! I can’t wait to meet you in person ❤

Posted in 2011 completes, fabric, Gifts, Quilting | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Finally, the finishes are rolling in.

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Sewfrench

As for what I am in the process of working on? I’ve got a menswear blouse in the makings, a copycat skirt and an ear buds holder on the cutting board. I will pause work long enough to get the camera and put it to work in a bit!

Remember the Anthropology bathrobe I was copying a couple of weeks ago? Well, it is finished and being put to good use.

TaDa!

I just love it! I found the perfect ribbon for the tie and backed it in one of the fabrics to give it more body. I am also loving Amy Butler‘s Soul Blossoms series in this Bliss palette. It’s just a tad bit heavier than most quilting fabrics. Two layers of the softest, snuggliest fabric, with no filler was perfect. It matches last years Christmas pajamas, too. Bonus!

Enough sitting around, petting myself, there are scraps to be used. Sew Serendipity Bags by Kat Whitt has been calling my name since Christmas.

Now I have scraps of some of my favorite fabrics to put to use in a more public way.

I love to make bags and purses and it’s time for a new spring one. I chose to start with the book cover bag, the Ruffled Hobo. I then set about cutting strips to sew back together then cut that piece of fabric into bias strips, to ruffle, for the bag exterior.

I bought the Acufeed ruffler foot for my Janome for this project. And have put it to use. Look at all the lint built up on it, and my machine, already. That is a complicated gadget with not one good video on how to use it. Several for their regular ruffler but not many for the one that fits the Acufeed system. I should have had the dealer help me with in when I bought it. It would have saved so more time, in the long run and needles, too…

I wish I had had this little puppy when my girls were small and I made them all kinds of frilly clothes. Once you get the hang of it, it is scary fast at ruffling or pleating your fabric. No more double rows of basting to pull and gather into ruffles like Mrs. Summitt taught us in Jr. High Home Ec. This bag has so many ruffles that if you had to pull threads for gathering them all you’d probably want to zigzag over a cord, to pull, instead of just pulling the threads. Otherwise you can cut yourself while pulling and pulling and pulling those sharp little threads. Right across your pinky finger. Soft, tender, bloody skin… Remember that your own saliva cleans blood off fabric. Just so you know.

All in all it was a pretty easy bag to put together and it is huge. It will not only coordinate with most of my closet, it could hold a large part of it, too.

Hey, have you seen the current (March/April) Fons & Porter’s Love of Quilting magazine? The quilt I made and gifted over Christmas is one of the features this month. Not my personal quilt, mind you, but a pattern, for free!

Just another example of being ahead of the game though….

It’s the Brigitte Heitland Zen Chic White Labyrinth. Check it out.

And check out what everyone else is working on over at Freshly Pieced.

Posted in Books, Crafting, fabric, Quilting, Sewing | Tagged , , , , , | 16 Comments

Swoon-along

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Sewfrench

Phooey.

When you say Swoon, in the quilting world, anyway, you’ll be overrun with thoughts of all the beautiful swoon-along quilt blocks that everyone is making. They are everywhere and so pretty with all the modern, well planned color schemes. Perfectly machine quilted…  Perfect in many ways. I kept looking at and drooling over them and thinking how familiar they all are. I need to make one, I have the perfect place. So old-fashioned with repeated blocks. It’s been a long time since I made a quilt of blocks. My early quilts were all block quilts. That’s all I knew at the time. That’s what the books had, that’s what Grandma made. And her grandma, I’m sure.

So pretty, I kept thinking, but haven’t I done one?

It is a new pattern and while I know I have memory issues surely my memory is not *that* short?!!  It must have been in a past life…..

So while digging through photos I came across it. I did make it.  In the year 2000.

It’s a completed scrappy queen size quilt with a mauvy pink theme to it. Some of that fabric I am still trying to use up!

I believe this was the first year myself and 5 siblings decided that our Christmas gifts would be handmade. Sister Kim set up an Excel spreadsheet that had everyone’s name and the next 6 years on it. We could plan ahead. I drew my Kim that first year, hmm…., and this is what she got. Hand quilted and made from my stash fabric.

Well, this is what started the tradition that continues with just a couple of us. I vote for store-bought, starting here and now! (Wait. Who has me this year??!!)

Does anyone know the real name to this old fashioned quilt???

Obviously I wasn’t into photographing quilts at the time….. Can we get a re-do???

And all these years later, she and her husband still sleep under. Even if it is mauve…

Posted in 2000 completes, Christmas, Family, Quilt stories, Quilting, Quilts and their History, Quilts with history, Sewing | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments