House Quilt, Slipcovers, Cucumber Pot

I had to interrupt the slipcovers for a few days because this House Quilt had a deadline.

I find house blocks to be challenging but fun.  The background sky & stars were quilted with stars and wind, and the trees have a tree design stitched over them.

This little row of geese got feathers.

The skinny borders were stitched with 'L's and 'E's, the wide piano key border was diamond x-hatched.

Tractors in the bottom green blocks.

Here's the 6-cushion couch, all slipcovered.

This is the 3-cushion couch.

If you are looking for some beautiful hand crafted furniture/woodwork, this couple owns Shaker Roads.  Check out the web site.

The cucumber pot I planted up is doing really well.  There are also 2 cayenne pepper plants in here, and 2 oregano plants.  

When Sadie figures out those are CUCUMBERS I may never get any.  That's one of her favorite food groups.  Hopefully she doesn't eat one of the cayenne peppers by mistake.  :-)

Breaking Bread and Flying Herons

I was surfing Pinterest one night and got fixated on Pita Bread.

I used THIS recipe.  It looks like my 'rounds' need a little more rounding.

Ooh, weird looking pitas.  Tasty, though.  The recipe makes 8 pitas, so the remaining dough is in the fridge (it'll keep for a week).  I found the PERFECT size of Tupperware, but now 2 days later, the dough is going to bust out of it's confines.  Apparently, it keeps rising even though it's refrigerated.  When I bake the other 4 I'm going to try the oven at 500 instead of 450 and see if they puff a little more consistently.  More thin-ness and more heat seem to be the tricks.  Fast - only 3 minutes in the oven!!

DH has been in the garage, all artsy-fartsy-like.

I find metalwork incredibly hard to photograph.  This guy will be gorgeous when it's finally installed hanging over the edge of a pond.  He's a big bastard - the wing span is over 5 feet.

The slipcovers went on hold for a few days while I got this quilted.  I'll show you the quilting next week, after the customer has seen it.

Coming up this week, I have the Scrappy Club all day Monday, then the other guild has the year-end pot luck Monday night.  note to self:  decide what to bring!!!!  I must call the doc's office and arrange for my semi-annual Prolia shot (osteoporosis.  sigh.)  Hairdresser on Wednesday so I stop looking like a Wookie.  And finish the slipcovers.

Clear the Decks

Mmm... pretty sampler!

Feathers in conjunction with straight lines and diamonds.

Feathered wreath inside the sampler blocks.

This is about 14 miles of welt cording.  OK, I'm lying.  It's only 3000".  Two hundred and fifty feet.

I have cleared the deck of quilting jobs over the next 2 weeks so I can make two slipcovers for a couple of 3-seater sofas.  One has 3 seat cushions, and the other has 3 seat cushions AND 3 back cushions.  One cushion down, 8 to go...

At the May guild meeting in Binbrook I scored a dozen Dresden Plates.  Sweet!  A former member had sent in several piles of 12.  I would gladly have taken another dozen, but I had to be NICE and SHARE.  Pfftt.

Out in the garden I'm starting to harvest lettuce.  And chives, of course.  We had a couple feeds of asparagus and now I'm leaving it to go to foliage for the rest of the season. The past several years the cucumbers have been the sh*ts terrible.  Some fungus has apparently moved into the garden soil and makes the vines wither up and die, so I'm trying a new plan this year.  I have moved a very LARGE pot on to the patio and I've put the cukes in there, along with a couple of cayenne pepper plants.  We'll see how that works out.  I also put a 14" pot for an assortment of lettuce, cilantro, chives, dill, and garlic near the back door.  It makes it much handier when I'm at the stove and just need a wee bit of whatever.

A large Rubbermaid tote full of raspberry canes was donated to me, so DH planted those yesterday.  Yum - I can't wait to start harvesting those babies!  If I don't eat them all fresh off the vine I may have to try the Chocolate/Raspberry Jam from Judy Laquidera's blog.  LINK

Last weekend I got the outside doors painted.  Today, if it doesn't rain, I'll be tackling the trim.  I had to visit the paint store for another liter of primer because the old can had turned a weird pale green colour.  And, I will finish two more cushion covers.  I am working the weekend because the Beach Girls are coming to visit for a few days.  As a rule, our get-togethers involve lots of talking and giggling and often includes a bit of falling-asleep-on-the-couch.  We will be heading to St. Catharines for QUILT CANADA.  If the gods are smiling, Diane will be taking home another big fat ribbon to hang on her wall.  We'll see...