Redbud Winter

I have been absent from blog land for sometime now. I took advantage of the lovely weather and have been out gardening and weedin and weedin some more! And now today it is cold........brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. The old folks around here call it "Red bud Winter". I guess it measns having winter like temps when the red buds are blooming. Seems May is a busy month for me; I have mother's day, mom's birthday, my sisters birthday and my nephew's graduation. A lot of events to plan for. I also have a show coming up the first of June and as of right now I have made one doll for it. Yes, I repeat ONE DOLL! Lord help me; surely I will find time to make new things. I will be posting a new tutorial tomorrow. Off to protect all my tender vegetation..........we are under a frost watch.

Spring

It never ceases to amaze me at how lovely everything is in the spring. What magnificent colors appear during the earth's rebirth after a long winter. The grass is tender and vibrant green, the trees are a multitude of colors. From pear and peach blossoms to dogwoods and red buds. They are all a sight to see. And there are the little creatures that are born in the spring. I new bird family moves into my birdhouse every year and I love watching the mommy bird bringing worms to her chicks. But what amazes me more is the preparation before the chicks hatch. How the little birdie collects bits and pieces to make her nest. God's little creatures are all so amazing! I snapped this photo of my sister's new little ducks; aren't they the cutest?

Prim Crafting Tips

Wow! What happened to spring? It has been in the upper 80's all week here. Today it was a lot cooler with rain. All week I have kinda put my work aside and did things around the house. Lots of laundry and lots of weedin. I bought two hanging baskets to spruce up the porch and hung my flag back up. I am running out of things to do tutorials on but thought I would share some tips with you guys for primitive crafting.

1. I save all my fabric scraps; I use them later to stuff pincushions and dolls. It gives them a wonderful old feel.

2. To make new fabric look worn stain it and then sand it. To make moth holes nip the fabric with scissors and then sand the hole.

3. To make a new bear look old run over his fur with a disposable razor and then dust with cinnamon.

4. To dry paper you have stained in seconds place in the microwave. Watch carefully as it will catch fire!

5. Recycle empty glass bottles and cans to grunge. Cooking oil placed on the labels and allowed to sit makes them easily removed.

6.Fabric stains better and more evenly is laundered first.

7. Fabric stained and baked in a 200 degree oven is naturally stiffened.

Hope you find these tips useful :) Hope you have a blessed Sunday.

Instructions On How To Print on Fabric

It's a cold rainy day here in Kentucky. It went from being in the 80's to the 40's. Strange weather; I don't know whether to wear short sleeves or a sweatshirt on most days. I have included some pics of the workshop; I added a bed and did some rearranging. I think the bed made it so cozy out there. I wanted to share instructions with you guys on how to print directly on fabric. This is useful for photo quilts and other projects.

You will need:

Computer paper

Stained Muslin

Freezer Paper

Computer and Printer

Begin by taking a piece of computer paper and laying it on the dull side of your freezer paper. Trace around the computer paper. Cut out the freezer paper on the traced line. Now iron the piece of freezer paper onto your stained muslin. Iron the paper waxy side down. Cut out again making sure that there are no loose threads or ravels. Place your merged fabric/paper piece in your printer and print out the image you'd like. It's that easy!

New Offerings

Thank you

Thank you all for your kind comments. The only comfort I have is that he enjoyed his short time here on earth. He was my companion out in the workshop as Daisy and Odee opted to stay in the house where it was warm with their dad. But buddy ran to the workshop every chance he got and went straight for the couch. I have heard that their dog is a notorious "cat killer" and that disturbs me that they let him run lose to do as he pleases. But never less hopefully tomorrow will be a brighter day. Again thank you all for your kind words. Blessings,
Jill

A Sad Day

Today has been one of those days where everything goes wrong and nothing goes right. I was awakened at 4 am this morning with dogs barking outside; I heard my cat making noises as well. I went outside to see that the neighbors dogs had mauled my cat to death. It angers me so that people will not keep their animals on there own property. Buddy will be sadly missed especially by Odee who loved to lay on the porch in the sun with him.

More Auction Goodies

I purchased lots more auction goodies! I am getting addicted to going to the auction. I won the bid on a huge box of these old feed sacks; I am going to keep some and sell some. Some of them have names stenciled on them where soldiers carried them for clothing bags. They were certainly a great find!

ClothesPin Doll Tutorial

I hope you have all had a wonderful day! It has been 70 degrees here today and we sure took advantage of it. We grilled out at Mom and Dad's and then I came home and did some chores outside. I hope you guys enjoy this tutorial on how to make clothespin dolls.

Supplies:

Old wood Clothespin

stained muslin

other fabric for apron and bonnet

twine

Begin by tearing your muslin into a 6 x 4 inch piece; fold it in half and sew up the short side. Turn inside out and sew a gathering stitch on the long edge. Place around the clothespin at the fat end and pull tight and tie off. Rip a piece about 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 for your apron and tie around the waist. Tear a small rectangle for the bonnet and tie a string around it. Enjoy!

Jill

Loaded Potato Soup and Amish Coffee Cake

It's super wet and soggy out today and I was in the mood for some warm comforting potato soup. I changed up the usual plain potato soup I make and I was pleased with the finished soup. It reminds me of a baked potato flavor. I am doing the last of my spring cleaning today and had this soup simmering along while cleaning. It makes a large amount; since the hubs hates any kind of soup I canned a quart jar full. I have also included instructions on how to can soup without a pressure canner.

Loaded Potato Soup

6-7 med. Idaho potatoes peeled and cubed

4 slices of thick sliced bacon

1 can of cream of chicken soup

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Begin by cutting your bacon into tiny pieces using kitchen shears; fry in a 4 quart dutch oven or cooker. When bacon is done add water to fill your cooker halfway full. Add your cubed potatoes and salt and pepper;cook until tender. When tender use a potato masher or back of spoon to mash some of the potatoes. This will help to thicken your soup. Add your can of cream of chicken and stir until blended. Allow to simmer until desired thickness. Taste and re season if needed. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream, croutons and cheese.

To can soup: When your soup is boiling hot carefully spoon soup into jar; leave a 1 inch head space. Place your lid on and screw the ring tight. Using a dishcloth turn your jar of soup upside down; leave sitting on your counter for 5 min. Turn it back to right side up; shorty after you should hear a pop meaning the jar is sealed. If you do not hear a pop within a hour place jar in your frig and enjoy for up to a week.

Amish Coffee Cake

1/3 c. shortening

3/4 c. sugar

1 egg

2 t. vanilla

2 c. self rising flour

1 T. vinegar (fill with milk to make 1 c. of liquid)

brown sugar and cinnamon

1/2 c. melted butter

Beat shortening and sugar; add egg and vanilla. Add flour alternately with liquid. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon and 1/2 c. melted margarine. Bake in a 13 x 9 pan at 400 degrees for 20 min.

The greatest of all faults is to imagine you have none!

Road Trip

My sister's and I went on a road trip today to pick up my nephew from Spring Break. On the way we stopped at Yoder's; an Amish supermarket. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. They had any spice or flour you could think of. As well as handmade pasta, candies and meats cheeses and butter. I purchased LOTS! As well as 2 Amish cookbooks. So you will most likely be seeing some recipes posted this week from the cookbooks. We also passed by an old covered bridge and I snapped a photo of it for you guys to see; there aren't many of these left. Well it's been a long day and I'm off to bed. Blessings to you all,

Jill

Antique Auction

My MIL and myself decided to go to the local antique auction last night and boy are we ever glad we did! I walked into the auction house and the first thing I spotted were these two old hand quilted quilts. I was determined to get them. Myself and another lady had a bidding war for them but I won them both and was so HAPPPY. I put them on top of my shelf daddy made me. They also had lots of old crocks which I will be adding tops to and selling. I purchased some very old skeleton keys too. We had so much fun; If you've never been to a live auction you must go sometime because it's a blast. Lol, but I get carried away and don't realize how much I am bidding. Well guess I better get back to spring cleaning! Blessings,

Jill

Spring To Do List

The weather here today is warm and blustery. There is still a chill in the air but it feels wonderful out. I made these new seed packets last night and I was pleased with how they turned out. I have LOTS of spring projects that need done and I must do them now because we have a show coming up in June and at the end of May I have a Country Sampler deadline. Wow it's hard to believe pretty soon us designers will have to be thinking Fall. Lol, I am always a little behind. Here is my spring to do list:
1. Scrub down walls and ceilings
2. Clean under and behind beds and couch
3. Clean windows
4. Make new curtains for the bedroom
5. Put lattice up around bottom of workshop
6. Paint workshop door trim
7. Plant shrubs beside workshop steps
8. Go through fabric stash
And So on.............Wow I didn't realize I had that much to do. I am torn between fabric for the bedroom curtains. I am notorious for redoing things over and over until I am fully satisfied. I painted my kitchen cabinets three different colors until I was satisfied. We will be going tomorrow or Wednesday to get our taxes done. I will be saying a prayer that we don't have to pay in this year. I know it's sure hard times for everyone right now. Wishing you all a lovely day! Also the new issue of Ranting Raven has released. http://www.rantingraven.com/