Week 44 Check In: Beginning Petite Antique Lace Blocks & Off the Shelf Cooking

How is fall shaping up in your neck of the woods?
We're finally getting LOTS of rain which means
LOTS of quilting but very little golf. 


The above pic was from our Sunday round that we managed
to squeeze in between downpours.  It has been a long time
since the ponds on the courses have had this much water!
Finally!

Well I have lots to cover today so grab your hot beverage
of choice and let's get started with my previous goals...

Week 41 Priority
Scrappy Garlic Knot
Renamed "Tumbling Leaves"


It's an absolutely awful pic but that's all I have right now.
It's even completely finished but I haven't had a chance
to get some final pics so that's on next week's goals.

2)  Petite Antique Lace 


If you recall, I pieced and trimmed up 950 HST's so they've
been all ready to go for a few weeks.  With Tumbling Leaves
a finish, I was able to get a start on my next project.
Let me tell you, it's a lot of fun but it takes some focus
to make sure everybody winds up in the right spot!
With four blocks under my belt, I'd like to say that I'm done
ripping....but with 88 pieces all different directions?
To quote Max (Billy Crystal) in The Princess Bride,
it would take a miracle!
I have 26 more blocks to go but hey, a quilter can hope!

I have so many plans for the week ahead but quilting is
the main focus around here so I'll start off with that but
keep reading for some pre-holiday planning
ideas and some cooking inspiration!

Week 44 Priority Goal

Petite Antique Lace:  Finish all 30 blocks

2) Off the Shelf: a new feature

Wendy (Pieceful Thoughts) and I have been lamenting that
our cookbooks are being ignored.  I usually find myself surfing
Pinterest when I need a recipe quickly--usually because I'm
dashing into the store for whatever we're craving for dinner.
Meanwhile my cookbooks, bursting with sticky notes marking
all kinds of yumminess, sit on a shelf gathering dust.
So Wendy and I have to decided to pick one recipe from
a cookbook every week to try and then share our results.
Easy enough, don't you think?


In typical me-fashion, I grabbed up some of my faves to flip
through while watching football.  See any you might have?
These should tide me over through the holidays easily.
Heck, maybe even through 2025!

This week I'm going with Purely Pumpkin, a lovely little
book that I picked up in the Sleepy Hollow (NY) gift shop.
(How could any pumpkin-grower and -lover resist?!?)
I've chosen several but my goal is only to make one:
 
* Pumpkin Gnocchi *
* Gingerbread Pumpkin Cheesecake w/Pecan Oat Crust *
* Cranberry Pumpkin Clafoutis w/Oat Flour *

If I can work more than one in, you can go ahead and call
me an overachiever--I'm okay with that.  Also, I fully intend
on sticking to main dishes but you can see I've already
been side-tracked by desserts--yikes!  Tune in next week
to see which one(s) I decided to try out!  And don't forget to
hop over to Pieceful Thoughts to see what Wendy has
cooked up, too!

3) Start on Holiday Prep
 

Now, whether I want them to be or not, my thoughts are really
turning toward the coming holidays and the things I can do to
make everything flow more smoothly.  Because they're also
 to-do's, I thought I'd share my pre-holiday prep list:

* Clean out pantry and fridge:
Note anything running low on and note for #2 below.

* Menu plan and grocery shop/stock up on non-perishable
items:  ie, brown sugar, flour, bread flour, broths and so on.
Also any cleaners.

Get carpets cleaned:  I usually do this myself but this year,
I'm hiring professionals.  We have mostly wood floors so
it shouldn't be too much of a disruption.
This is scheduled along with a whole house duct cleaning.

* Clean/tidy guest room(s)
One is already done--hubs and I cleaned the entire basement

There is more; this is just a kick-off.  Maybe these will get you
motivated for an early start?  Kick-off some of your own ideas?
I'm certainly not bringing out holiday decor yet; I just want
to get these out of the way so that when it's time,
I'll be left with nothing but the fun.

Happy quilting!


Linking up to:
Monday Musings by Songbird Designs
Tuesday To Do by Quilt Schmilt
Sew & Tell by Melva Loves Scraps

Comments

Kate said…
Tumbling Leaves turned out beautifully. You've gotten a good start on Antique Lace. Those blocks do look challenging. No cookbook challenge here, though with as many as we have, we should do more making and less just looking. We have started discussing Thanksgiving dinner menu. The daughter hates turkey, the husband hates ham, so it's always a challenge to come up with our main course for the holiday. Enjoy your kitchen and sewing room time.