Saving Adeline's Stitchery...

Last August I was fortunate to attend a two day community flea market with my daughter-in-love.  Every home and the community all set out treasures and sell them very reasonably.  In fact on Sunday noon everything is half-price or less.  So I purchased this wonderful stitchery and removed it from a ratty frame.  I just knew I was saving this from the trash bin.  I adore it for the lovely hand stitches and the content represents everything I love!

Because wall space is always in short supply, I decided it should become a pillow for my sewing room.  My friend Martha gave me some perfect linen in a divine taupe color.  Thank you Martha.  I decided to band the stitchery to enlarge it and to feature the stitchery.  The pillow cover is now 18" x 20".  I will keep it flat and unstuffed for now.  We are still living in limbo...

This is the back of the pillow cover.  I decided to make it envelope style. I also decided to use the lovely softly fringed selvedges as they are and not turn them in and sew them inside.  I love the look.

When I removed the stitchery from the frame, this little brown paper signature was on the back. That is how I know Adeline did the stitchery.  It makes me so happy to imagine Adeline sitting and stitching this piece.

Sew...it is with great happiness that I have Adeline's Stitchery as a lovely pillow for my sewing room chair.  Thank you Adeline for your amazing homage to all things I love.
We are having rain and it is colder so now the ski resorts will be getting the snow they need so much.
What projects are you working on in our shorter daylight hours of Winter...Or Summer for my far-a-way visitors and friends?  JOYful Creative Bliss...

Apple Cider Salted Caramels...

These are NOT caramels!   I overcooked my mixture by just a smidge and ended up with Apple Cider Salted Hard Candy. It is still delicious!  At Thanksgiving my Daughter-in-Love made the most delicious Apple Cider Salted Caramels. Soft and chewy and so delicious. 
So...I wanted to make them.

She gave me the link to Smitten Kitchen and the recipe. Click here for your recipe.  I gathered my ingredients and got to cooking.  All was going well until...I almost reduced all of the apple cider.  It looked like I had foam only but I continued.  These are very easy to make...if you pay attention.

I poured my cooked batch into my prepared pan.  It looked amazing.  I let it sit to cool off.  And this is when I discovered I must have overcooked it by just a smidge. My caramels are not soft and cannot be cut with an oiled knife!  Ruined!  I was very sad.  Mr. C to my rescue. He suggested I break it up with a hammer.

I took my hard rock slab and a clean kitchen towel to his workshop.  Then I got his big heavy hammer and began to break pieces.  No need to wrap these delicious jewels in parchment paper.  They are in a container and ready for my pleasure.  These pieces merely melt in my mouth!  I am not going to waste them...since I love sugar and all candy.  Yes, I will try to make the real caramels in the future. For now I am enjoying the yummy flavor of my Apple Cider Salted Hard Candy.
We have been having some rain.  So refreshing and the hills are the most divine green colors.  My prayers continue for everyone across our Nation who are experiencing radical weather.  It is unbelievable that Highway 101 remains closed in the Santa Barbara/Montecito area of California.
January days are going by so quickly I just cannot keep up.  So I shall remain Mindful of each and every hour...even if I have no idea what day it is.
Creative Bliss and Valentine HeArts to each of you my dears...<3

Powder Room Finish...

Before Christmas Mr. C decided to shred our Powder Room. We both agreed it needed updating.  That was only after we each confessed that neither of us really loved the old Victorian look with the dark navy blue wallpaper covered in little pink roses.  Taking that petrified wallpaper off with its vintage border was a lot of work! It only came off in tiny little bits.  It took 8 full days to remove.  Then Mr. C worked his handyman magic and resurfaced every wall. Primed walls and ceiling and then put on two coats of a lovely light shade of gray excellent quality paint.

Now the Powder Room looks brand new and fresh and bright.  No more 1980's bright brass fixtures.  No more dark dated wallpaper and border.  Simple clean lines and just a bit of sexy curves.

Job well done Mr. C!  I do hope there are no more major changes to be done.  It is exhausting and messy and expensive. 
My blog friend Donna of Brynwood Needleworks sent me a lovely little pin with my last order before the holidays. The pin says, "Choose JOY".  Here is what the card reads:
Choose to live each day with joy in your heart.  You have the power to determine your journey.
Achieve your destination through inner strength.  Reach out - let your life be an adventure.
Look for the unseen, listen to the silence.  Open your mind and heart to opportunities.
Believe in yourself and your dreams.  Choose Joy for the Journey!
This speaks to my being Mindful as I travel through each day of 2018.  Thank you Donna Dear.  I hope each of you choose JOY as you travel your Journey.  JOYful January to each of you...<3

Fresh New Year 2018...

I always enjoy a Fresh New Year with its promises of greatness.  I do not make Resolutions however I have selected a word each year.  I wasn't going to this year however it selected me.  MINDFUL
I shall be Mindful of each and every day as I am determined to make the best of every moment.
In the first few days I was able to accomplish this UFO.  I joined in Pam Kellogg's CQ ATC swap.  You can check out her blog here...Kitty and Me Designs.  This is the second Crazy Quilted Artist Trading Card (ATC) I am submitting. 

I am fairly new to Crazy Quilting and I learn with each project I create.  This ATC looks a little wonky but it is merely my finishing zig zag stitching. This is 2.5" x 3.5" which is the required size.  I am calling this one "Birds and Flowers".  I really like the greens and pinks together.
I came across this Lean Cuisine quote from a few years ago and would like to share it with you.
"The road to success is not straight.  There is a curve called Failure, a loop called Confusion, speed bumps called Friends, and caution lights called Enemies.  You will have flat tires called Jobs, but if you have a spare called Determination, an engine called Perseverance, a driver called Will Power, you will make it to a place called Success."
May each of you have a Blessed 2018 with lots of Peace, Joy, Health and Creative Bliss...<3