My Fabric Love/Addiction History

I love this cartoon from The Big Book of Bobbins by Julie Icenogle!
My love of fabric began in junior high school, when Mom let me choose patterns and cloth for my clothes at Ellard's, the local "dry goods" store in our tiny town. Mom was an excellent seamstress and made most of my dresses. I think I learned the rhythm of sewing by watching her, first at her pedal sewing machine, and then at her fancy new cabinet Singer.

When I was a freshman in high school, our home economics teacher introduced us to sewing. Our big project was to make a dress. After we assembled our dresses during class, we took them home to measure for the hem, then had to hem them by hand. I still remember neatly spacing the slip stitch we were required to use. My stitching was so good that my teacher did not believe I had hemmed the dress myself and thought my Mom had done it. Mom got very upset when I told her about this and made a trip to the school to set that teacher straight!

Before I learned to sew, Mom made two particularly memorable Palm Sunday and Easter dresses for me from the same pattern. One was a full skirt and jacket in lilac, and the other was a slim skirt and jacket in turquoise. Both had bolero jackets over a sleeveless dress. Mom and I felt very chic saying the word "bolero". She helped me choose the fabric for each dress. At age 13, I felt very grownup wearing these to church, with my first high heels. The pattern pictured above (which can be found here) is very similar to the pattern Mom used, except the dress was sleeveless.

After I got married, I began to buy fabric to sew for our home and family. I loved sewing clothing (I even made my husband a plaid suit!) and house decor, Halloween costumes, etc. A lot of my fabric was purchased at Hancock's, but there were a few nice local stores I loved to frequent. If a particular fabric caught my eye, I splurged and bought a few yards, even if I only had vague plans for it. Some of the fabric got put to good use, some of it just got admired.

During my husband's career, we followed his jobs in Oklahoma and Texas, and the moving process helped keep my yardage in check. When I packed, if I hadn't used it in 5 years, I gave it to Goodwill. Now I wish I still had some of those beautiful fabrics I gave away (I can still remember many of them!)

My first quilt stash and sewing room in 2012

My current fabric stash on hubby-built shelves

After I started quilting in 2010, my fabric purchases became quilting cottons instead of clothing and decor fabrics. I had no clue how to build up a good stash with neutrals, small prints, solids, and blenders. Instead I bought what appealed to me, purchasing many charm packs and bundles. Now that I have a few quilts under my belt, I buy yardage; but I'm still a sucker for a pretty bundle (see the two new Christmas bundles on the top shelf!)

So there you have a little history of my fabric love, but I did not include my love affair with yarn. That I will save for another post!

Tuesday Archives - Key Lime Butterfly

Val at Val's Quilting Studio has a weekly linky party called Tuesday Archives, a linky party featuring your old, archived quilting or sewing posts. The lovely Bernie at Needle and Foot mentioned it to me in one of her comments, and I think it is such a great idea! Val chooses a different theme each week, and today's theme is Butterflies.

I believe that most of the folks that participate simply link to their old post, but since my archived post is on an old blog, I decided to just repeat a portion of it here on this blog. You can read the post in its entirety here on The Katy Rose.

I think it's good to look back on old posts, especially when I see something I used to do that I should revive. Because I was new to quilting I added "Things I've Learned" to the posts about my finishes, and it was very helpful in my learning process.

Side note #1: I've had other blogs prior to this one! My former blogs are For Goodness Sake, a catering blog started in Oklahoma, Oklahoma Peach Fuzz which transitioned into The Katy Rose when we moved from Oklahoma to Katy, TX, and my present blog, started when we moved north of Katy.
Side note #2: The quilt in this post is the only quilt I've sold!
Side note #3: The paper-piecing class I mention in my old post? Sadly I un-enrolled and never took it!

Enjoy!

Key Lime Butterfly Complete - Things I've Learned

June 17, 2013

The vintage Schnibbles from my quilt-along is finished. I added the border of the white fabric with script, and the black and white hexagon patterned binding made the other fabrics pop.

The back is pieced with vertical panels of leftover fabric along with a coordinating swirl fabric.

The final size is 30-1/2 by 30-1/2 inches.

I finally worked up the courage to free motion quilt, and after all was said and done, I am pleased with the way it turned out. I cut a template for a butterfly design, marked it on each block with a Frixion erasable pen, and used my darning foot to stitch. There was a bit of pesky "eye-lashing", but only on the back. I did straight line quilting on the lime green bordering the blocks. I added a butterfly "body" with one of the embroidery stitches on my Janome.

Things I've Learned:

I learned that joining a quilt-along gives me the discipline to complete a pattern from start to finish with a deadline. No one pressures me but myself. On the day of the "parade", it is not only fun to see the variations but also to "meet" other bloggers and read their ideas and tips. I almost didn't do this month's Schnibble, and I'm so glad I decided to do it.

I learned that I can overcome any fear in quilting. Free motion quilting should have been fun for me, and up until this project, it wasn't. I finally began to get into a rhythm and feel the instant gratification and pleasure that comes from quilting a quilt. This feeling of "I can do it!" prompted me to enroll in a paper piecing class at my LQS.

I learned that even though I try not to be too hard on myself, perfect points are still very important to me. I found this tutorial about a positioning pin on Connecting Threads, and it worked!

Check out other interesting archived posts at Val's by clicking on the link below!

Helen's Danish Kringle

This post is a repeat of one I made on an old blog in 2008. I am re-posting it here because I love the story as well as the Kringle. The 7 year old photo is not the best, but if you try this I promise you will love not only the aroma white it is baking but also the tender goodness of this holiday treat.

I grew up in a small town in northeastern Oklahoma, and during the Christmas season neighbors that lived on our country road brought the best Christmas gifts to us. No one called before they came (and no one cared back in those days!), and there was much fuss and laughter when folks arrived (always at the back door) with their delicious pound cakes, old-fashioned fruitcake cookies, and divinity and fudge delivered on foil-lined box lids or doily-covered paper plates.

The back yard of the farm where I grew up

My home economics teacher Helen was one of our neighbors, and every year we looked forward to her unique Christmas offering - a slightly sweet yeast dough with a brown sugar and nut filling that she called Danish Kringle (a very exotic sounding name to us!). Helen's visit was the most anticipated of the year.

When Helen came, although we enjoyed her company we had to hide our impatience for her to leave, politely making small talk while trying not to drool from the enticing yeasty aroma emanating from her Kringle. Her car would barely be out of the driveway before we started cutting into the melt-in-your-mouth tenderness of the still-warm pastry.

After I got married, I tried in vain to duplicate her recipe. Finally I wrote her asking (begging) for the recipe, and she graciously sent it to me. From that handwritten recipe, I have recreated this warm culinary Christmas memory every year. Here is her recipe as she wrote it, with my notes in italics.

Helen's Danish Kringle
2 cups sifted flour
1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup soft shortening (part butter or margarine) (soft shortening is a mix of shortening and butter)
1/2 cup milk, scalded
1 egg, separated
1/4 cup warm water (110-115 F)
1 pkg active dry yeast

Measure flour, sugar, salt and shortening/butter into bowl; blend well (I use a pastry cutter to blend). Cool milk slightly, then stir in egg yolk. Pour into bowl with first ingredients. Add yeast to warm water and let stand a few minutes. Add to all other ingredients, mixing thoroughly. Scrape down dough from sides of bowl (it will be very soft). Cover tightly and chill 2 to not more than 48 hours in refrigerator.

Prepare fillings before shaping Kringles. Divide dough into two parts. Take out one and return other half to refrigerator. Beat egg white. On a floured surface, roll dough into a 6 inch X 18 inch rectangle. Spread 3" center stripe with half of beaten egg white, then carefully spread with half of filling. Fold over one side of dough and then the other with 1-1/2 inch lap to cover filling. Pinch dough to close the fold.

Pick up Kringle carefully (it is very tender) and arrange, seam-side down, on baking sheet (I use parchment paper on the baking sheets) in oval or horseshoe shape, pinching ends for the latter. Shape second Kringle as first. Cover and let rise in warm place 30-45 min, or until dent remains when finger is pressed gently on side of dough and dough is no longer cold. (Dough will not double.)

Bake in moderately hot oven (400 F) for 20-30 min or until golden brown. (There may be some seepage of the filling - when it comes out of the oven just scrape it back under the dough.)

Spread with powdered sugar icing while hot. (I blend powdered sugar with a tiny pinch of salt and thin it to pouring consistency with milk and vanilla.) Cut in wedges to serve. Makes about 2 dozen servings or 2 Kringles.

Fillings:
Pecan
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 cup finely chopped or ground nuts
Cream butter and sugar until fluffy, then sprinkle with nuts.

Apple Pecan (I have never tried this one)
1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 cup finely chopped apples
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
Sprinkle sugar, then apples and pecans

Shelli's Quilt - Finished

My nephew is only 8 years younger than I am. He is my oldest brother's son and has always been so special to me - more like a younger brother than a nephew. His wife Shelli is a delight. She is quiet, funny, kind, and has been a steady rock of sanity in our crazy family. She and my nephew live near the small town in Oklahoma where my parents are buried, and every year Shelli elaborately decorates their graves for me on Memorial Day. This quilt is my small thank you to her for her devotion to a loving tradition.

I like the classic beauty of simple blocks and used a variety of fabrics in shades of aqua, red, white/off-white, and gray - Moda's Flats, Baby Jane, a Yuwa kitchen print, Bonnie and Camille Ruby, and a gray gingham by Studio E.

On the back are Modern Roses by Stephanie Ryan (one of my favorite fabrics ever) and the gray gingham, along with white. I used Jeni Baker's Nordika for the binding.

I love Modern Roses so much - I even think the selvedge is pretty, so I kept it on the quilt

On the back is "The Road to Oklahoma Meets Lone Star", blogged about here

I quilted horizontal wavy lines and added a label.

I mailed the quilt to Shelli last week with a letter (that will make my tender-hearted nephew cry). Hopefully she will like it!

UPDATE: 7/10/15 - Shelli did love it! She said it was beautiful and that she put it on her Grandpa's rocking chair to display it.

2014 - A Few Non-Quilting Highlights

In October, Randy and I attended a charity function and decided to really
go all out with a long dress and a tux. It was fun to play dress-up.

Our beautiful baby girl married her wonderful guy in January. In the second photo,
Randy and I try valiantly not to cry as they dance their first dance.

Early summer we enjoyed the fruits of a fairly successful vegetable and herb garden.

We vacationed with our son, daughter-in-law, three grandchildren ages 15, 13, and 11, and our daughter and son-in-law at a really neat vacation rental house in Bulverde, TX and had our picture made at a nearby Mexican restaurant.

I am a trained storm spotter and self-declared weather nerd, so during spring and summer I can't wait to see storm clouds rolling across the horizon.

In October and November we traveled to see our daughter near Dallas and Randy's family near Tulsa, Oklahoma. We stayed in hotels instead of with our families which surprisingly made our visits more fun!

Top photo: Dallas skyline - we used to live near Dallas, and this sight is always a thrill for us. In the next photos are quick car shots of my beloved Oklahoma - beautiful skies, rolling hills, gorgeous fall trees.

December has been very happy. Randy retired,
so we bought a red Ford F150 to celebrate!

Christmas was so much fun. Even Buddy and Katy celebrated. We went to our son's house early Christmas morning, then came home to our cozy house.
It was a great year! I am looking forward to 2015 and will have my resolutions in hand by tomorrow.

snickerdoodles, cakes, and a creche cloth

Creche Cloth

My husband is the Business Director of a church in The Woodlands, and he asked me if I would make a tablecloth for the nativity figures that grace the narthex during Advent. After measuring the table, I went to JoAnn Fabric and chose a creamy gold brocade with tiny crosses.

Brocade fabric

I mis-calculated the width of the fabric and had to put in some tucks to make it fit the table, but several commented they liked the added interest. I did purchase additional fabric and intend to make the cloth a true round tablecloth for next Advent season.

Engagement Party Entwined Hearts Cakes

The engagement of my daughter and her fiance was celebrated at the home of my son and his wife in December. I made them a cake of entwined hearts with the logos of their respective universities. For Jenni's Oklahoma University cake I baked this 1-2-3-4 cake, and for Chris's Texas Tech cake I made Ina Garten's Beatty's Chocolate Cake. I'm really not bragging, but both cakes were delicious. The 1-2-3-4 cake was sturdy but tender and flavorful - everything you would want in a yellow cake. The chocolate cake was moist and chocolatey and addictive. Both were frosted with buttercream made with butter, a bit of cream cheese, powdered sugar, and cream.

Snickerdoodles and Nestle Tollhouse Cookies

Yesterday we went to my son's house for a New Year's Day feast of sliders, homemade guacamole, caramelized red bell peppers and onions, and jalapeno slices that my son sautes in coconut oil until they are crispy. They purchased To-Go salsa, queso, and chips from Chili's. Everything was so, so good! I made cookies - chocolate chip and snickerdoodles. On a whim I followed the old tried and true standard Nestle's Tollhouse Cookies recipe on the back of the chocolate chips package, and after all the chocolate chip cookie recipes I've tried the last few years, my family declared these the best! I always cut back on the salt, because I use salted butter, and I use Mexican vanilla which imparts a delicate whisper of cinnamon. I really don't know why I ever tried any other recipe.

The snickerdoodles were a hit, and the recipe is adapted from the recipe on Joy of Baking website.

Snickerdoodles
Makes 4-6 dozen

2-3/4 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup salted butter, room temperature
1-1/2 cups white sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Sugar mixture:
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

In large bowl whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside. Combine sugar and cinnamon, set aside.

In another bowl using electric or hand mixer, beat butter and sugar until smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes; add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until mixture is fluffy. Scrape down sides of bowl and beat in vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture and mix on low until dough is smooth. Cover and refrigerate until firm enough to roll into balls, about one hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare baking sheets with parchment paper. Shape dough into 1-inch round balls, roll in sugar mixture, and place on sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart. Use bottom of glass, gently flatten each cookie to about 1/2 inch thick.

Bake cookies 8 - 10 minutes, or until light golden brown around edges. Let cookies sit on pan for 5 minutes, then place on wire rack to cool.

Goodbye Oklahoma, Hello Texas!

Big changes here! From January to March 23 we accepted a job offer, sold our house in a week, house-hunted and found "the perfect house", and moved. Although I still have a love affair with Oklahoma, I will discontinue posting on Oklahoma Peach Fuzz and will be blogging from Texas via the katy rose. Feel free to pop over and see "The Happs"!