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Friday, October 23, 2009

Ozark Christmas Stockings

I know it is still early BUT in true anti procrastination spirit of the Holidays, I am posting my stocking selection now rather than the week before Christmas.
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I have a collection of Old Quilt Stockings that I have made. These are made from an old quilt top I rescued from an antique mall here. Sadly the shop is no longer there.
The quilt top was hand made by someone with less than perfect quilting skills however, it was packed with charm and I was delighted with the effort and hard work that had been put into each stitch. The poor top had also suffered some damage so I rescued the top and turned it into a set of Christmas stockings. There were 14 in all but there are only 10 left in the shop.
I also have some stockings made with some rescued and re purposed hand made lace.
Go check it out at

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Suzanne's Stuffed Peppers

Suzanne's Stuffed Peppers

This is one of my favorite, vintage recipes. I owe it all to one of my dearest friends, Suzanne. When I was a teen I used to babysit on a regular basis for several families I knew. Suzanne's was one of them. I got to watch her two boys. Suzanne is a great mom and a great teacher. She almost always had dinner in the fridge and I would just fix it up for the kids while she was at work or night school. The foods she had were always wonderful and the introduced me to new flavors that have become some of my favorites. This recipe was one of them. I had never cared much for cooked peppers (what kid does) but I would try anything once and I wasn't going to set a bad example for her kids so I tried it, loved it, and have craved it ever since.

So here is the lovely recipe she shared with me.

Stuffed Peppers

1 lb. ground beef
1 egg
3/4 cup of crushed crackers
1/2 can tomato sauce
garlic to taste
onion fresh or dried to taste
salt & pepper
red pepper if you like bite

Mix together by hand, don't over work.
Stuff bell peppers,
add Ketchup on top, and
bake for about 1 hr. 350. enjoy!
I added little strips of bacon to the top because there was some in the fridge.

It was as good as I remembered and my kids gobbled it up.
THANK YOU Suzanne for sharing the recipe. Sometimes you need comfort food and this is it for me.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Blogger's Quit Festival - Fall 2009

I know I am getting in on the last day of this BUT I just found out about it this afternoon. So here I am entering and am so thrilled that something like this is going on. Park City Girl hostessing her second Blogger Quilt Festival and there are, currently, over six hundred folks participating. How it works is quilters all over the world post a blog post about a quilt or maybe two that they have. It can be a quilt you made or were given or even picked up somewhere. BUT you have to tell the story. So here is MY quilt and MY story and I have to tell you, I love it!


This is my wedding quilt.

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It was made for me by my mother, and was quilted by my best friend Vea.
The quilt it self is full of stories.
The center panel is a representation of my family.
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The seven stars in the sky are me a and my six sisters. It represents the constellation Pleiades or the Seven Sisters. We are seven sisters and if you will notice in the constellation, there are six of them bunched together and one a little way off but still part of the group. Well my six older sisters are much closer in age than I am but we are all still together.
The swans represent my six brothers. They also represent the six brothers from the fairy tale, The Six Swans. In the story six sons of a king are turned into swans by their evil step mother. They only way to break the spell is for their sister to to make them each a shirt from asters. You will have to go read the story to find out how it all works out. ☺ It was one of my favorite stories my mother told me when I was little. I loved the little sister and wanted to be as loving and giving as she was. (You will have to ask my brothers if I even remotely measure up.) I never made them shirts but I do remember making pants for one of them. I did make them all cookies though. The six swans with their heads held high represent my brothers and the six with their head bent are my brothers-in-law. Clever isn't it?
The row of girls around the outside edge represents the song "I dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls".
This song had special meaning for me. It was my favorite song growing up in the late 80's and early 90's, It was one of my mother's favorite songs in the 40's, and it was one of my grandmother's favorites in the 1910's. It is now my own daughters' favorite song today.
It is a pretty special song for me.
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I dreamt I dwelt in marble halls
With vassals and serfs at my side,
And of all who assembled within those walls
That I was the hope and the pride.
I had riches all too great to count
And a high ancestral name.
But I also dreamt which pleased me most
That you loved me still the same,
That you loved me
You loved me still the same,
That you loved me
You loved me still the same.
I dreamt that suitors sought my hand,
That knights upon bended knee
And with vows no maidens heart could withstand,
They pledged their faith to me.
And I dreamt that one of that noble host
Came forth my hand to claim.
But I also dreamt which charmed me most
That you loved me still the same
That you loved me
You loved me still the same,
That you loved me
You loved me still the same.
The square blocks around the girls are actually a block called marble floor. I thought that was pretty cool. My mom made sure that each princess had her own spot on the dance floor.
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I love the detail that the quilting added to the princesses. They are now Fairy Princesses.
Oh and for you Quilters out there these ladies are NOT paper pieced. She pieced every single girl. My mom really hates paper piecing.
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In some of the "marble halls" she quilted castles. I love it!
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The back of the quilt is even significant because I love hand dyed fabrics and have been dying them myself since I was in high school some 20 years ago.
So there you go. That is my quilt and my story. I hope if you have a quilt and a story you will share it too.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Happy Blogiversary Giveaway!

Holy Cow. I have been blogging for three years this month. I can't believe it. Time flies and I have had a lot of fun. I went back today to look at my first post and it was about some lovely Halloween Costumes I made for my girls with some help from my lovely friend Michelle.

Happy Halloween 2006

Well to celebrate my anniversary I would like to give away a child's corset set.
That would be :
1 child size corset
1 child size skirt
1 child size blouse
(I will have a picture up here ASAP of the outfit)




Here is how you win......
  • Leave a comment here telling me what you have enjoyed about my blog in the past three years (even in you just found me today) -1 entry
  • Post about my giveaway on your blog, face book, or twitter page and invite your friends to come see my lovely blog and giveaway - 3 more entries (but you have to come back here and let me know so I can give you credit
  • Go and buy something from My Byrd Nest or Sexy Apron Day -Get 10 extra entries

The Giveaway ends at midnight Central time on October 25th. The winner will be announced on Monday morning October 26th, 2009.

This is my chance to say a big Thank You! to my wonderful blogging friends that have entered my life through my blog. Some of you have become very dear friends!

THANK YOU!

By The Way -- If you are thinking .... How do I get such a lovey costume for myself???

Answer....

Go to Michelle's site and check out what she makes. She has an Etsy, Artfire, and Ebay shop.

Wednesday, October 07, 2009

I'm a Loozer!

If you were my swap partner and you got this apron.....

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...... would you truthfully say that it was better off LATE than never??

Yes I am a late swapper. I will not tell you which swap it is for because my partner would know and because then you would know how big a LOOZER I am. Life jumped up and BIT me this summer and fall and things are not happening as I had hoped.

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The apron was very fun to make and I think should be sized up so some of us chubby chickas can wear it too. What do you think?? yes that means I am asking for comments.....

Soap Giveaway!

FUROSHIKI Giveaway 1
The wonderful Mindy at Apron Girls is hosting a giveaway for my soap!!! It is a furoshiki 4-pack of my soaps (your choice). So hop, skip or jump on over to Apron Girls and Check it out!!

Friday, October 02, 2009

Passionately Pink Apron Swap is Here!

Shawnee and I are once again sponsoring an apron swap. This month is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and to celebrate and promote this great cause we are hosting a
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Everyone knows someone that has been affected by breast cancer - a friend, co-worker, neighbor, sister, mother or even more personal. The Purpose for this swap is to raise awareness and help support the cause of breast cancer research. For more information and to join in this wonderful swap, please go to our swap blog for details.

Thursday, October 01, 2009

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