Blogger's Choice Fabric Bundle Contest

I just found out about this awesome contest! It is over at Quokka Quilts and if you love fabric, quilting or spending hours & hours browsing Fat Quarter Shop, you just have to go check it out.

The deal is this...you choose 15 fabrics (12 prints, 3 solids) in a combination you love (or think someone else would love) and they will judge and choose 3 winners to receive a half yard of ALL their fabric choices!

When I first heard about it, I poo-pood my fabric choosing abilities because, really, I'm not that good at picking coordinating prints & colors. I'm relatively new at quilting and I usually let someone else pick the fabrics or I get ideas from magazines or books. But to win all that fabric? I was up for the challenge.

My first idea was to match a Pottery Barn wall hanging I bookmarked probably 3 years ago when we were deciding on paint colors for our new house. I love the color combinations! Here it is:

So, I searched & put together this bunch of fabric:


I like it a lot but I don't LOVE it.

So...I thought some more about things that I DO love and things that make me happy and I decided to try to match the colors & patterns of a sunset. I am a bit nuts when it comes to taking pictures of the sky and ooo-ing and aaah-ing at the beautiful sunsets we have here in Kansas. We don't have any pesky mountains or hills around here to block the horizon and I have a particularly wonderful view of the evening sky from my westward facing deck. Here's a sampling of some of my favorite photos:


And here is the fabric I found that I think captures some of the colors, textures & tones:

It's deep & bold & different and I think it would make an amazing quilt!

I don't even want to think about how long I spent browsing fabric for this. But, it was fun. And what would be even more fun is if I was one of the 3 winners. If I'm not...I just might have to get some of this fabric anyway.

So, thank you to Quokka Quilts and to Fat Quarter Shop for this fun project and the chance to win!

My fabrics in order:
Rainbowesque Batiks Navy with Teal Scroll SKU# 22022-497
Aunt Grace Centennial Solids Royal Blue SKU# 5901-2706
Simple Pleasures Purple Cloud Texture SKU# 0871-3
Royal Gardens Purple and Gold Sparkles SKU# 8555-14G

Brown Bear, Brown Bear Purple Paint SKU# 3875-P
Floral Folio Dark Violet Allover Leaves SKU# Y0816-46
Juicy Blossoms Orange Spreading Seeds SKU# 21822-O
Sew Heavenly Orange Rolling Clouds SKU# 0832-2

Early Morning Batiks Orange Leaves and Flowers SKU# 22025-885
Bella Solids Golden Wheat SKU# 9900-103
Little Apples Lollipop Leaves SKU# 18512-46
French Dress Teal and Walnut Woven Texture SKU# 8629-113

Tavern Blues Black Floral Vine Texture SKU# 4047-112
Black Tuxedo Batiks Raven Floral SKU# 2349-494
Bella Solids Black SKU# 9900-99

Christmas Gifts

I had so much fun making several Christmas gifts this year. There's just so many great ideas out there for handmade gifts! Here's some of what I made...

Table runners for Mom & Mom-in-Law:

Both runners are very simple disappearing 9-patch patterns.

Then I got ambitious right before Christmas and decided to make three more smaller 'table toppers' using the same pattern but just one block. I used a "Flurry" by Kate Spain charm pack. I made the reverse side a wintery non-Christmassy print so they could be used after Christmas too.

Then I made some Hot & Cold rice warmers. I absolutely LOVE these things. Perfect for sore muscles or cold tootsies. I used this tutorial from Make It & Love It.

And for my special niece, I used this tutorial from the same blog to make a "Re-purposed Sweater Sling Purse." I thought it turned out cute!

I also made her a Pleated Knit Scarf using another Make it Love it tutorial. It used a LOT of fabric but was very simple.

I hope everyone liked what I made. I know nothing was without it's little charming flaws but I enjoyed making it all!

Now my dining room table (aka sewing station) is so sad & empty now. Gotta come up with some new projects for the new year...

CranPeary Salsa

My husband had some cranberry salsa a few years ago at his work Christmas party. He said he really liked it so he got the recipe and requested I make it. I did and it was soooo sour! And I just didn't care for the combo, even though I love cranberries. I tossed the recipe and I've never had the desire to make it again until the other day when I got this recipe from "Skinny Crock Pot." It's not a crock pot recipe so I'm not even sure why it was on their site, but I'm glad it was! This batch turned out wonderfully, I loved this combination of flavors. It includes pear & apple and I think that worked to tone down the sourness of the cranberries. I added a bit more sugar than it called for. Other than that, I think I followed the recipe pretty closely. Here is how I made it:

CranPeary Salsa
(I came up with that clever name, they just called it plain old 'cranberry pear salsa')

1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
1 pear, peeled and chopped
1/2 apple, peeled and chopped
1/4 red onion, chopped
1/2 jalapeno, chopped
1/3 cup fresh cilantro
juice of one lime
juice of one orange
3 T honey
3 T sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Can sweeten it up or down depending on taste.

I think I'm going to make a batch for our Christmas Eve gathering this year. It's so light & refreshing and it's really pretty & Christmasy looking too!

Super Easy Fleece Scarf

I cannot resist the fabric remnants at Joann's. Especially the fleece! They always have so many bundles to choose from and they are so soft & cuddly. And, I have learned how to really get a great deal on remnants at Joann's...the remnants are always half of the current price of the fabric. So, if that particular fabric is on sale, it will ring up the sale price then they will take another 50% off that. Fleece is now 50% off, so as a remnant, they are 75% off! I can't pass up a bargain like that even if I don't have a need for it at that moment. So, yeah, I have lots of random, odd fabric pieces in my stash.

Anywho, I bought some funky print fleece the other day and decided to use a tutorial I found to make a scarf. This blog, Make it and Love it has SO many fun little projects! I used two of her tutorials for Christmas gifts already. THIS sweater bag and THIS pleated scarf. I can't show pics of my finished projects yet, juuuust in case someone sees them who shouldn't ;)

HERE is the link to the Simple Fleece Scarf. I cut my 'ruffles' a bit wider than she did so it is a little 'chunkier'. I admit, this scarf is a bit funky & almost clown-like, but it's soft & warm & fun & different, so I like it.

Oatmeal Cake

Today was such a cozy day. It was cloudy and cold, perfect to just stay inside and make a cozy comforting cake. I've made this cake many times. It's yummy and I convince myself it's good for me since it has oats in it! It's from an old church cookbook, here it is:

Lazy Daisy Oatmeal Cake
1 c oats
1 1/4 c boiling water
1 c sugar
1 c brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c oil
1 t vanilla
1 1/2 c flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cinnamon

Place oats in a bowl and pour boiling water over them. Allow it to soak in for about 15 minutes.

In a mixing bowl, combine oil, eggs, sugars & vanilla till fluffy. Add the rest of the dry ingredients then the soaked oats. Bake at 350 for 35-40 min.

For the 'topping' combine:
1/4 c softened butter
3 T brown sugar
3 T milk
3/4 c coconut
1/2 c pecans or walnuts

After the cake has baked, spread this mixture on top. Then broil for 2-3 minutes, until it is bubbly but NOT burned.

Today, I sorta didn't follow that last part about not burning it. The broiling part is always tricky for me. I really should've set the timer for 2 minutes instead of 3. By the time it beeped and I ran to the kitchen, the cake was well-done. So well-done I had to run its smoking self out to the deck to avoid the smoke alarms going off :(

But, it was salvageable. One side was worse than the other and it was really only about the top two millimeters that were burned.

**disclaimer about my awful looking pan...one of my good cake pans is still out on loan since it had birthday cake in it...the other good pan was/is currently housing some delicious Sweet Potato Enchiladas that we had for dinner. So, I was left with this pan which is my vegetable roasting pan. It did the job and after this broiling mishap, it's darker & more awful-looking than ever!

Here's a mostly edible piece. Milk on the side is a must-have.