Tomato's in my sleep!!!

This is what l have been doing this week!! Our vege garden is in full swing,

and it's almost a full time job keeping up with the tomato's.

8 trays went through the oven, with some onion and garlic and herbs,

 and l ended up with this bowl full of yummy roasted tomato's,

that will become soup and sauce for pasta this weekend.

 Then more tomato's and red peppers, a few spices and some other stuff,

 became these glistening jars of my favorite tomato chutney.

 We had a birth in the family yesterday. This as yet unnamed girl chose a

chilly day in autumn to make an appearance.

 She's pretty cute!! Now she needs a name worthy of a princess.

 My bags are packed and l am heading out the door soon, on a 4 day sewing retreat at Sorrento. Loads of projects, some started, some not, fill these bags. And as we are sewing red and white quilts this weekend, l thought l would bring a few of my antique quilts as inspiration and to sleep under.

Can anyone see if l forgot anything???

l will be back next week with some pics of what we got up to!!

Thanks for visiting.

Linda.



Red and White.

l am sure you have all seen the above advertisement for the Red and White Quilt Exhibit that will be on in New York in March. l first saw the flyer at the airport last October when l was waiting to catch a flight to L.A then on to DFW. As soon as l saw it, l knew l had to find a way to see this exhibit. Our excitement became contagious, and there are now 5 of my Sorrento Sewing Girls making the trip. So 3 weeks from today, l will fly out to New York with my daughter. l will meet a Quilty Girlfriend at JFK who is flying in from Norway to join us and we will head off on a 2 week long quilting adventure.

Our first week will be spent traipsing around Pennsylvania, then we will head into NYC for our last week.

And so with our red and white adventures ahead of us, my stashbuster group ( 3 of us are going to the exhibit) have decided to make this the year of the red and white quilt, hence my current sewing fascination. These blocks above have been turned into the quilt below.

l dropped it off to my machine quilter yesterday,

 and she (is one of my Sorrento Sewing girls)

will bring it down to Sorrento next weekend when we  have our next retreat.

Then of course you have seen these blocks,

which we will do a swap of over the next few months.

And yesterday l played with this block below. Its next on the list of quilts our

 stashbuster group will make.Of course, all this sewing in red and white

has made me realise that my red stash is NOT what it should be,

 so guess what my shopping focus will be while in PA ?

Well,  RED and WHITES, of course. l love having a color focus when shopping for fabrics.

 Do you?

If you are going to be in NYC for the exhibit, l would love to hear from you.  l know there are a few of you in blogland going, how great to be able to meet and share our adventures. l will be there from Friday the 25th march till we fly home on Friday the 1st April.

Thanks for visiting.

Linda.

Plum Chutney and a quilt or 2!!

My friend Lizzie came for a visit on Tuesday. The last of her children has started school this year, and we are planning to spend every 2nd Tuesday doing fun things together!!

This week we decided to make plum chutney, thought we would much rather have been playing on our sewing machines. But that plum glut was not prepared to wait.

So we set to with lots of chopping.

 Mixed up some spices and vinegar!!

 Then chopped some more.

 We discovered that we had chopped so much, it wouldn't all fit in 1 pot.

 Can you smell the wonderful aroma filling the house?

 Several cups of tea, plenty of chatting, and loads of stirring,

we had 23 jars of my favorite plum chutney on the bench.

Can l wait the 2 months for this to mature before l open a jar???

And of course, you all need to see these quilts. Jill was given this beauty by her ( other ) sewing group for a very special birthday. She had just picked it up from the machine quilter. l am going sewing at her place tomorrow, and l am sure the binding will be on. Lucky girl!!!!

This is the quilt our Sorrento Sewing group gave Jill for her birthday,

complete with hand quilting.

 She looks pretty happy, don't you think!!

( Edit: The name of this pattern is Georgetown Circles. )

Thanks for visiting.

Linda.

Edit: Here is the recipe as requested by Regina. Enjoy!!!
( just a note::: l made 6 times the recipe, which is why l had trouble fitting it into my big pan. )

PLUM CHUTNEY


1 tbl salt

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground allspice (pimento)

2 red chillies

3 cups white wine vinegar

1 kg (2lb) plums, stoned

2 cups skinned and sliced apples

2 cups sliced onions

2/3rd cup sultanas

1 cup shredded carrot

2 cups sugar



Put the salt, spices and vinegar in a saucepan and bring slowly to the boil. Add remaining ingredients and stir until mixture comes to the boil. Simmer until it thickens. Spoon into sterilised jars, seal and label. Store for 2 months before opening.

Top 50 Quilting Blogs

l  received an email last week telling me l had made it on to the list of top 50 Quilting blogs, as chosen by The Guide to Art School website. To say that l am honoured to be among such wonderful quilting blogs is an understatement. Most of these blogs are on my list that l read, and are incredibly inspiring. Do take a look at the list. There just might be a gem waiting to be discovered. Just click on the side button.

Thanks for visiting.
Linda.

Guide to Art Schools

This is the story of The Three Bears.

Bev came for sewing on Monday.

 Down the mountain she drove, and up the road to my house.

Over a cuppa we discussed which block we are going to

 be making as a swap with our Stashbuster group this year,

and so decided to do a trial run on size.

First came Papa Bear, but he was too big!!

Then came baby bear, but he was too small!!

Finally we made Mama Bear, and she was just right!!

Here they are all playing together.

And in a row.



What a lovely family they make.

(Can anyone tell me what the correct name for this block is? )

Thanks for visiting.

Linda.

l'm back!!!

Having just spent 4 weeks at my beach house, one would expect to come home relaxed, rejuvenated and ready to go!! Well, l am pleased to say l am.

While the first 2 weeks were busy with family, and many friends visiting, the second week l managed to read 3 books while watching the flooding dramas engulfing our northern neighbours.

 l took a pasta cooking class, making it from scratch. And took a bag of goodies home,

 and shared a wonderful meal with my DH.

 Yumm!!!

 Then there was the family pizza night, when we made 20 pizza's ( also from scratch )

to feed a hungry family of 20 adults.

 Double yumm!!

The 4th week, 4 girlfriends joined me and we had some much needed sewing therapy.
Cooking plays a large part of our life at the beach, and when the girls visited,
 it was no different. Some wonderful meals were shared, a few glasses of wine drunk,
many wonderful stories told and shared, and new memories made.

 Lots of these were sewn.

 

l am so looking forward to this new year, and even with January already done and dusted,

 there are many adventures ahead.

l had 2 quilts published this month. The first one, Georgie's Birthday Quilt,

 was in Australian Patchwork and Quilting.

Then this one came out this week. Its in Australian Country Craft. l even made the cover!!

My thoughts today are with our northern neighbours again, as they recover from what must
 have been an incredibly frightening night, as Cyclone Yasi crossed land. l pray they are all safe!!

Thanks for visiting.
Linda.

Merry Christmas

Wishing you all a very merry christmas and a safe and happy new year.

l am taking a blogging break and will be back in the new year, refreshed and reinvigorated.

Thanks for your friendship this year. And thanks for visiting.

Linda.