Scrappy Split 9-Patch Quilt & Entertainment

As you know, I love scrappy quilts.  I could seriously keep this one.  It might be my favorite out of everything I've quilted this month.

Did you know I also love yellow?  If you've been to my house you'd have noticed that my living room is yellow.

In keeping with the sunny theme, I quilted this with butterflies, using thread in a mustard colour.

Several people have asked how the quilt sale went last week.  Well, it went.  I sold some quilts and DH sold one of his cute little Christmas trees.  I came out ahead, but not enough to make it worthwhile.  It was too much money, too much effort, and too stressful.  It's now on my list of "don't do again".  I am glad I made the attempt though, otherwise I would always wonder if I should have.

ENTERTAINMENT
Movies:  If you haven't seen The Martian yet with Matt Damon, you really should.  It's a great movie.
Books:  The Girl Who Saved The King Of Sweden.  A crazy, preposterous caper.  Very (!) entertaining.

What Do 50 Quilts Look Like?

But don't take my word for it.  C'mon out and see for yourself!
Today - Caledonia Kinsmen Hall, 151 Caithness St. E., Caledonia, 10 am - 6 pm.
And yes, I take credit cards.  :-)

Shakin' the Dust Off For the Sale (and the stash report and the UFO report)

This is how I spent my day.  So far I've let Mother Nature 'dust' over 30 quilts.  There are at least another 10 to go, but I hit my daily limit of trips up and down the stairs.  It's not like I pretend to be even quasi-fit.

Yes, I have too many quilts and I'm having a sale.  If you happen to be in town for the Christmas House Tour which is run by Grace United Church, I will be across the street in the Kinsmen Hall.  Stop in for cookies!  Bring your credit card!

You will find quilts and pillowcases, made by moi.  Shaker Roads is bringing blanket boxes, cutting boards, step stools, and foot stools.  Vignettes Decorum will be bringing some of her refurbished furniture.  DH will be selling steel quilt racks, steel Christmas Trees, and perhaps one or two pieces of garden art.  Even if you don't find anything you simply must take home with you, you can at least have some refreshments and a free quilt show.

STASH REPORT
I was updating my stash report today, and discovered that I have not even looked at it since August.  What the hell????  Note to self:  smarten up!
Used since last report:    27 m (this is ALL pillowcases)
Used YTD:                     85 m
Added since last report:   6 m
Added YTD:             41.25 m
NET YTD:             (-43.75 m)  Hah!  Such a good girl!

UFO CHALLENGE
If you've been following along, you would have seen the ONE ROW I added to the Double Wedding Ring quilt at the Tobermory retreat in October.  So, I met that quilt challenge for the September/October period.  Now, for November/December I need to complete one block on the Piece 'O Cake applique quilt.  Lord willing and the creek don't rise, I will get a block marked and pieces cut before Friday.  Then as I'm sitting in the Kinsmen Hall this weekend I'll have something to work on.  What's that saying.... "idle hands are the devil's workshop".

A Christmas Story (the movie) and Annoying (!) People

Apparently, this is a movie that I have somehow never seen.
S.I.D. the borders, sashing, blocks.

My customer watched it so many times with her sister that she cannot STAND the movie.
X-hatch the upper and lower green leg lamp fabric.

But her sister LOVES the movie.
Christmas ornaments down the red sashing.  Outline and fill the leg-lamp panel, add lines to the lampshade, and curve-x-hatch the fishnet stockings.  Stitch along all those crazy circles in the background.

So this year, the sister will have a quilt to snuggle under while she watches the movie.
Outline quilt the words.  Background quilted with eyeball-ey style filler.  Stitch along the plaids in the narrow yellow border.

That is true, sisterly love.
Outline the pictures, straight lines in the 'word' blocks.  More eyeball-ey fill in the green background.

This should be a big hit on Christmas morning.
A special order border - lampshades - for the upper and lower red border.

I can hear you asking (or is it the voices in my head?) "What has her all riled up this week???"  Well.  We bought a new tv yesterday, to replace our 20-year-old Panasonic 32" GAOO.  That tv still worked great, but DH wanted some new technology.  As most men do.  There was no point trying to sell the old tv, but I am always keen to put stuff out at the road for free.  Since that tv is so friggin' heavy, DH and 1-800-LUKE got it onto a pallet, and DH got the tractor with forks (like forklift things) and forked that baby out to the road.  I added the sign "works fine" and took the clicker out.  Why do I always get the hard jobs???  So, not an hour later there is an old guy and his girl who stop and load this tv into their car.  Only they can't really lift it.  So they drop it.  And smash it to smithereens.  And leave that unholy mess in our  driveway.  Really?  Must people be such assholes?
Sigh.  The new tv is great, though.  And spending several hours with the best. nephew. ever. was a bonus.

the Double Wedding Ring (which is also the UFO Challenge for Sept/Oct) and a Recipe

DH said to me last night "you're going to start getting complaints about your blog"  Yes.  I know.  I've just been busy this week.
This is the starting point of the DWR for October 2015.  One row is completely sewn, and the second is mostly complete. If you recall, last year the puppy Anni was taking off with some of my bits.  Little bugger.  She was much better this year.  When she tried it the first time I scolded her and she dropped it right away.  Hah.  Obviously I am FIERCE.

This is the ENDING point for October 2015.  Sewing that second row and laying out row three took me a whole day.  Whose brilliant idea was it to make a double wedding ring?

When I got home from Tobermory I needed to dry out had some leftover cream cheese and half a pound of bacon that I wanted to use. I also had some puff pastry in the freezer that was at least a year past it's best before date.  Not poisonous, but a little dried out.  Nothing that I wouldn't feed to DH.  pfftt - I'm such a bad wife.  There was a recipe for a Leek Galette on the internet, but it needed a few modifications to include my leftover ingredients.  It made for an EXCELLENT supper.  If you add a salad it would rate higher on the "healthy" scale.

This was a 'mission' for me because I have two long rows of leeks out in the garden, that I am DETERMINED to cook with.  Two years ago I spent a whole day digging the leeks, cleaning them, chopping them, and then freezing them.  I think they are all still in the freezer.  Grrrr.  This year I decided I'm not doing that - I'm just going to EAT the damn things.  so...

Here is my version of the recipe:
LEEK GALETTE

Ingredients

• 1 puff pastry sheet, thawed.  **Get the good kind, made with BUTTER, not shortening. That shit will kill you.  Honestly, you are totally worth the $4.00.
• 3 chopped leeks, the white & light green parts - I think I had about 2 cups worth. 
• 1/2 tsp sugar and a dash or two of salt
• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped, or more depending on how much you like garlic, 
• half a pound of bacon, chopped into 1/2" pieces.
• 1 chicken breast, chopped into 1/2" pieces.
• half a block of cream cheese (4 oz./125 g.).
• 1 c. vegetable broth
• 1 egg blended with 1 T. water

Directions: 

•  Preheat the oven to 400.
• Roll out the puff pastry until it is 11 or 12 inches.  Try to make it into a round-ish shape. Leave it on the parchment paper and put the whole thing on a cookie sheet.  Keep it in the fridge until the filling is ready.
• In a large frying pan fry the bacon until crisp.  Remove to paper towels, reserve 2 T. bacon grease.
• Cook the chicken in the same pan until no longer pink. Add the chicken to the bacon pile.
• Add the 2 T. bacon grease to the pan, add the chopped leeks and garlic and sugar and salt.  Cook on medium/low for 15 minutes until beautifully fragrant and greeny-golden brown.
• Add the vegetable broth and deglaze the pan, mixing until all the crispy mess stuck to the pan is incorporated in the broth.
• Add the cream cheese, the bacon, and the chicken and cook gently until blended.
• Mound this filling in the center of the puff pastry, leaving 2" of pastry around the edge.  Fold that pastry up and over the filling to contain it, sort of like a pizza crust.
• Brush the visible pastry with the egg wash.
• Bake at 400 for 25 minutes.  Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes (just enough time to pour a glass of wine and set the table).  Yum.  Enjoy.