Monday, October 25, 2010

oooh i love early birfffday treats!

what's better than a day off? how about a day off where the mc61 comes back from the 206 zone and brings me a few early birthday treats. and they're from one of my favorite places, milagros. i mean that's a pretty darn gouda day off!


 look at how flippin' cute these guys are ganging up on the lucha libre!
and another 'shadow' box.. all flowery, so pretty... i quickly found a spot on the wall!





... a few weeks ago i was stuck sitting on a train at the station in the 206 zone, blowing through every magazine i brought with me. i spied a left over issue of coastal living. albeit not a magazine i would purchase, when free why not flip through. i found a few interesting recipes like lobster mac n' cheese and crab pot pie. 
crab pot pie in tiny individual le creuset pots. OMG! 
funny that the unicornist would tell me see spied some little gems that i might want. they are perfect! i think the white ones would be great for some mac n cheese with or without lobster, or a little au gratin. now, onto the little orange covered pots. even though they aren't le creuset they certainly look like it!
i have been thinking about this recipe a lot and i gotta make it soon!!
crab pot pie:
2 tblsps plus 1/2 cup unsalted butter. 
3 cups chopped leeks
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
1/4 cup all-purp flour
2 cups peeled, diced russet potatoes
1 cup frozen peas
1 lb crabmeat
1 pkg pie crusts
1 large egg, beaten
2 (8 oz) bottles clam juice
2 tsp lemon zest
1 1/2 tsp seafood seasoning
salt and ground red pepper 
30 min prep and cook 1 hour. basically melt the butter add leeks, celery, carrots cooking for 5 min. stir in the flour (1 min). add potatoes then add the juice, zest, seasoning, salt n' red pepper reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 min. potatoes tender. 
next melt rest of butter until golden brown throw in peas and crabmeat into first mixture. then you plop a bunch in each individual pot put top fitting pie crust. 
bake 375 for 25 - 30 min.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

in other news...

i got three new spools o' red thread for my upcoming bday. it's actually what i wanted. now my hanging thread holder is looking full!













i've also been making more yummy food treats. and i really think i like making food that looks like my tablecloth?!
sweet potato and yam tian. so simple and delish! i added garlic, onion, sage and rosemary. (pic is before going into oven)

AND more quiches.. with BACON!! how can you go wrong with bacon?! 
you just can't. period.







knit this!

 yup did a ton of knitting starting last sunday, continuing through this week...since i'm technically still a beginning knitter, i broke out my lil' kids knitting book.  so my first hand warmer has been started. got a left hook! the right double punch will be done today. ur, i hope today?! that's gonna make the 3rd thing i've ever made. 


picked up malabrigo rich chocolate #161 to mix with the lovely multi-fall colored yarn.. think a quick scarf will do.


 i got the blues, the reds and the pinks.. well, mr. giles, i can't say that love stinks.. look at these pretty blues. again some malabrido polar morn in deed, this pic doesn't do the color justice.  the other yarns, you guessed it, again malabrido aquarella. wow, what's in a name, right?  
years ago the kbomb gave me a scarf in the brown version of aquarella, let's call it cocarella. it wasn't knitted but rather knotted. imagine a macrame plant hanger... however, it's even more basic than that.  recently when i've worn it people have been drawn to it, giving me compliments. apparently, it is all about the yarn!  hence, my decision to get more in blue. i wasn't sure what i wanted to do with these. i figured a scarf. (well, you know i am still a beginner.) however, the instructor at the knitting class mc61 and i are taking said i should knit a hat in the round before jumping into the arm warmer pattern i brought to class.
it was a good call on her part. already i feel like i've learned a few things. for instance, i've never used a marker before. not that it's hard in any way.  and i didn't realize that once you get going you just knit around and around, viola you've got a stockinette pattern. crazy. not to mention, knitting in the round goes fast!  this past spring a friend was teaching me how to knit with 4 needles, talk about confusing to learn. you really have to practice that, get yourself used to working with that many needles. i was a slacker and didn't keep up practicing.
in addition to the little things i'm making, i'm orchestrating a project that will involve some of my favorite ex-seattle crafters. i say "ex" because this spans hood river, mt shasta and san francisco. i think everyone's excited. so because of this project i was getting curious about different patterns.   
these are the two books i recently picked. they are going to provide great inspiration. very excited!!! keep ya posted.

city sites

once again as late post... last saturday the mc61 decided we should take a bike ride around the city to see if we can catch some of this art project... http://acuportland.org/home.html
we were able to spy the needle in ladds along with some other neighborhood treats! after cruisin' around ladds we headed up to mt tabor. mc61 had forgotten the needle there had long been taken down.. personally i think he just wanted me to ride up there! i would have taken a few shots to prove that i did in face ride up but i was too out of breath to bother...sheez!



 i like the design of these concrete blocks. wondering if that would make an interesting pattern in part of quilt?!?!
would the black parts, the window part, look okay in polka dotted fabrics?  i might have to make a little mock-up....

Sunday, October 17, 2010

i can can can. can you do the can can?

last week a fabulous saturday was spent with the unicornist canning. oh and of course, we did have some help from the mc61 and the c39..
the unicornist has this process down and makes it all so easy. this was the first time i've ever canned anything!


      



























continuing to move forward with being productive.. this week for various reasons i get to go in later to work. using my time wisely, today i made two quiches.  one broccoli with onion and yummy cheese. the other an assortment of tomatoes from the unicornist's garden. i've only sampled the broconion one.. naturally, it passed the taste taste.
it's hard to be productive when you come home and there's a barbie going on on the shared front lawn. i mean does one just pop outside and attend. or does one get an invite? personally, these days i'd like the invite. that way i can be sure that i'm welcome. i know that seems silly, like i'm too old for that however, pdx has brought that back up. it's been tough sometimes figuring out where i fit in. lots of false starts.. but that's another story. 


this post has been sitting in my draft section for a week. why? i guess because i never finished my last thought. was i done? could i expand? screw it just hit publish and get some new posts going. 

Friday, October 8, 2010

who needs a snuggie when you can have a quilt?!?!

continuing on with my quest to make a quilt, last week the mc61 and i stopped by a little fabric store while riding around pdx on a sunny day. 


personally i think what designs you want on your fabric is a tough one. i mean there were so many options. where does one even start? 
since this is my first attempt i am going to bite off a little piece so to speak. instead of cutting a piece off a bolt, i would create my own little "fat squares", or "fat eighth" or "layer cakes" or whatever you wanna call it...
fat quarter: 18" x 22" piece of fabric. typically these are a common requirement for quilt patterns. (?? interesting?!) fat eighth: 9" x 22" piece of fabric. again displayed in quilt shops... layer cakes: (40) 10" x 10" fabric squares in a variety of coordinating colors and patterns from the same fabric line.  

here is a sample of what i picked up. there are nine. and my pieces are much bigger than 9", 10" or 18" ... obviously i was more interested in what the fabric design was...ahh already off the beaten path!

since i like the polka dots, i decided to pull a few "sample swatches".      now how to arrange??










 should i keep matching polka dots together? orange and greens?


 or should i mix the two mirroring fabrics together (blue w/brown dots and brown w/blue dots) and add two fabrics that look similar?
  or similar fabrics (both have orange dots, almost same size too!) with a strong color (orange!) 

either way, i think moving the fabrics around and taking pictures of the options will be helpful with the next step. designing the quilt and blocks... this is exciting. i feel like i'm getting something done, ha! i guess all those blogs that i've been looking at for different designs has paid off! 
in keeping with doing this in baby steps, my next task is to get reacquainted with my sewing machine. dim the lights, get that bottle of wine out and put the do not disturb sign on the door. oh kidding, but it will be one of those days where i better have an abundance of patience hanging around. 
i love this AND i realize this link is not a blog but rather goes into flickr.. whateves, it's still inspiring. (from plald and polka dots photostream) 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jadejutara/5001540224/in/pool-1249052@N24/#/


this blog i do love visiting.. http://alamodefabric.blogspot.com/2010/10/holiday-homes.html