Hi everyone! I'm still alive here on planet earth, I just haven't done the work of a blog post. If I want people to stay interested in my blog I should probably check in here more often. I do have an Instagram page where I post more photos because it's so quick and easy.

I had to look and see when my last post was and it was shortly before Christmas! Gosh let's catch up.

My nieces enjoyed getting my handmade strip cosmetic bags that I put several goodies in like lip balm, moisturizer, a nail file, etc. Since I made Josh a huggy pal a few years ago I figured Connor is at the age for one too and made him a fox. I started getting some vintage Christmas finds on Ebay and scored several nice things at thrift stores like the santa mugs I remember drinking hot chocolate out of as a child. So nostalgic! My oldest brought his family to Florida to see both sides of their family, and my 3rd child flew in from Indiana, and with the other two being in Jacksonville that made it very special for us.

Madison is becoming quite the little chef. We cooked several times together over Christmas break and several times since. I think she feels special now that I've allowed her to chop veggies and use my favorite knife.

Of course I'm trying out new recipes weekly from my Pinterest boards and even FB. In fact Facebook is where I found the recipe for broiled garlic butter lobster tails that I made for Chris and I on Valentines Day. My youngest and I were having lunch recently and he needed to go to Teavanna in the mall. I went in a non tea person and came out wondering why I've never loved tea?

We recently went for a ride on the Wild West Express up in St.

Marys, Ga. What fun riding a vintage steam locomotive, hearing the horn, seeing the steam pouring out as we rode down the tracks being entertained by all sorts of characters.

I have always wanted to see a reenactment of a civil war battle. I lived in and then on the outskirts of Philly for almost ten years but never made it to the battle of Gettysburg reenactment they do every July 4th. Well this year was my year to see one at nearby Olustee State Park. What an interesting and educational experience. It's hard to believe how battles were fought at that time. Pretty up close and personal!

We went to Gainesville for a medieval festival. It was interesting to say the least. This was also a first for us and our niece and nephew we took as well.

Remember the 80's camper we bought that Chris is restoring? He felt certain it didn't have water damage but it did. He's making progress but had to remove all the wood on one side where the table, benches, and hanging bed were.But it's coming along nicely. I've been buying necessities for the camper at thrift stores and have found some fun things.

This is not a man who needed another project but what did he do? He bought a '52 GMC truck that he's going to put back together and I can't wait till she's ready to drive. What fun that will be! We named her 'Miss Ellie.' 

That just about does it. I'm feeling the need to sew something but I'm not sure what? I'm sure you'll find out next time. Thanks for taking some of your precious time to look at my blog.

Blessings,

Gina

A free pattern, recipes and a project

Hi ya'll! I've been busy sewing and trying out new recipes and wanted to share them. First for the recipes. We stayed home New Years Eve to celebrate here with just the 3 of us.Madison and I made a yummy comforting dish called Indecisive Mac and Chili.It's perfect when you're craving both  cheesy pasta and chili.Love it!

http://www.culinaryenvy.com/indecisive-mac-and-chili/

We made a very yummy dessert called Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie with Butterscotch Chips. Oh goodness it is sooo incredibly good!

Here's the recipe http://www.grandbaby-cakes.com/2015/03/chocolate-chip-cookie-skillet/

Hubby and I went to a place in downtown Jacksonville called Eco Relics.We bought an old piece of ship lap, several unique hooks,and he made me an organizer for purses and scarves. I love it!

I was recently reunited with an extended family member who I haven't seen in a very long time. I am going up to Georgia soon to see her and her infant daughter, and meeting her mother who recently moved back to the area for dinner tomorrow.I can't wait to catch up with them. I've sewn up 3 dresses since yesterday, and have some bibs I made and an Hour Basket for the babys' room as a gift basket. The dress pattern is easy enough for a beginner, comes together fairly quickly and the dress is so sweet looking with the elastic straps and flowy gathered bottom.

The pattern can be found here http://seekatesew.com/easy-baby-dress-pattern/

Happy cooking and sewing!

Gina

My finished quilt for Connor and some great "Sewing All Day" recipes

Hi ya'll! I've been busy working on Connors quilt and I'm thrilled to say it's finished and I'm very happy with it. When I planned this quilt it was going to be larger than a generous crib size but of course smaller than twin bed size. It was going to be 6 oversized log cabin blocks, a red, yellow, 2 blue, a green and an orange. By the time I finished the 4th block I realized if I added two more it would be too large. This is for him to lay and play on, then in a few years be a napping quilt. I brought in a bright yellow in my soft, warm, flannel backing which I also used for the binding. I used cotton batting and after seeing the difference in the weight and feel of the quilt I will never use polyester batting again! This quilt is so warm and snuggly. Of course there were many days I devoted the entire day to this quilt, so as usual I found some quick easy recipes on my Pinterest boards for those days. I still want hubby to come home to a great dinner even though I've been busy. I'll share those at the end of the post but first, here's some start to finish pics.

After cutting strips of blues and my white chevron patterned fabric, I completed the first block. It's always the 2nd most exciting, the last block is the most exciting.

 

Then the orange , green and red.

I did the qayg method (quilt as you go), as I have a sewing machine that quilts, not a long arm quilter so I could never get the entire quilt top through my machine and maneuver it through the small opening. I prepared each block and quilted them.

After quilting all 4 blocks, I trimmed them, then sewed them all together. Now I could see what it was really going to look like and the finished size. Flannel only comes in standard 45" widths, so I sewed 2 80" long pieces together for the backing. Now the part I don't like was here, crawling around on the kitchen floor to attach the quilt top to the backing, pin those 75 quilters pins all around the quilt, take my quilters ruler and draw a line 1" around all 4 sides, then trim the excess backing off.

I drew diagonal lines on each corner and quilted those so the quilt top is attached to the backing on each side as well as the binding. I ironed my 1' halfway in and pinned all around the quilt, mitering the corners. Now the most exciting time was here, sewing the binding on! When I got to the 4th side towards the bottom I snapped this pic. I knew I was a minute away from "Done!"

Here it is!

Some of the lines made with my Disappearing Fabric Marker Pen are still doing their magic act. Most are already gone. I can't wait to see Connor laying on his quilt. Now for those "I've been sewing all day" recipes. Hubby loved this one!

Don't let the photo fool you. It looks fancy, and tastes wonderful, but the oven does all the work and the yummy bean salad takes 6-7 minutes. You can find them here:

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2015/07/white-bean-caprese-salad.html

http://www.cookingclassy.com/2015/07/pesto-salmon-and-italian-veggies-in-foil/

 

The next day I sewed all day I made this

Yummy!

http://www.plainchicken.com/2013/03/chicken-in-lemon-butter-caper-sauce.html

 

My finishing day of the quilt I made these baked Cuban sammies with a mustard sauce spooned on top and smashed potatoes. Quick. Easy. Yummy. The oven did the work as there's very little prep.

 

http://houseofyumm.com/cuban-sliders/
http://www.bhg.com/blogs/delish-dish/2015/05/26/fried-smashed-potatoes-recipe/

Well my work here is done. I have a few more sweet little things to make for Connor then some fabric baskets for my Etsy shop. I think these HGTV fabrics I bought will produce some beautiful storage baskets. Till next time, Blessings! Gina

The start of a quilt for Connor and a good sewing day recipe

 Hi ya'll! I'm so excited to share the news another grandson is due in December and his name is Connor William. He's due the 15th and his big brother Josh's birthday is the 14th. I made Josh a generous size crib quilt and I'm working on one for Conner. I decided to do an old pattern in modern geo prints and use primary colors. These are oversized blocks and with the white on white chevron the colors just pop! There will be two blue blocks, a red, yellow, orange and a green. Once I get the top pieced I'll decide if I need to add a border to increase the size a bit. The blue block, which is made up of four small blocks was my first and I just finished my 2nd block, the red one.

In an attempt to be able to devote an entire day to sewing, I usually do crock pot meals or low maintenance meals. We love fish and when I found these recipes on Pinterest I knew they were a keeper. Doesn't this salmon and bean salad look yummy?

It took just minutes to parboil the fresh green beans while seasoning the salmon, spreading the pesto on top and slicing the grape tomatoes. I wrapped it in foil and the oven did the rest. Canned northern beans made the salad a 5 minute side with just chopping some garlic and tomatoes. I found mozzarella pearls at the store so I didn't have to slice the cheese. You can find these recipes here http://www.cookingclassy.com/2015/07/pesto-salmon-and-italian-veggies-in-foil/http://www.skinnytaste.com/2015/07/white-bean-caprese-salad.html

I shared an hour basket with you previously that I made to hold a baby shower gift and boy was it a hit! Several ladies loved the basket and asked if I sell them. I couldn't find the see through plastic I've bought before that you wrap a gift basket in so I bought a 1.00 baby blue plastic tablecloth and wrapped it in that, tied on a bow and cut the excess off and it looked nice. I realized the night before the shower I didn't have a card so I cut white cardstock, pulled out scraps from my scrap basket and made one. It probably took 10 minutes which is much less than driving to the nearest store and back. She loved the card too. That's a bonus!

Another project I completed was a Senna Tote. It's quite a popular bag and for good reason. Pockets on the front and back exterior as well as a big divided pocket on the inside. I love it! Till next time-Blessings, Gina