A Summer nap and Catch for the Day, whacked out pillow

This is one of the very first pillows I ever whacked out, and what do I mean by whacked out?
Well its a form of cutting out fabric to design a scene, such as this one, I cut out each piece of fabric and placed it onto the cut out size of muslin then sometimes I will use a stick glue; just a dab and some eembroidery thread that is not knotted and sew a few stitches through to hold the cut out pieces of fabric in place.

Then I will sew the fabric into place by using a selected stitch on my sewing machine; in this case I used the blanket stitch. I often just cut out my pieces free hand because you can get some interesting cut out pieces of fabric.

After I have sewn the the front of the pillow then I look for fabric for backing and fill the pillow with fiber fill, sometimes before I back I will add buttons or other items and sew them on by hand to just give the pillow, a creative look as I put it.

In the case of this pillow its all about a little boy who seeks adventure so leaves his town to the near by lake to catch that glorious catch of the day, but falls asleep due to the wonderful, peaceful summer day.

I will be adding the pillow to my art fire store in a few days so be sure to look for it there to purchase.

A Recipe from 1927, Peanut Butter Bread

This is from one of my favorite cook books called Forgotten Recipes by Jane Rodack.
I just love these recipes and tips they are easy to do and taste great.
This recipe is from 1927, and is so great alone or with some honey spread on it.
What you will need:
2 cups of flour
4 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 sugar
1/2 peanut butter ( in my case I used crunchy peanut butter; it was good)
1 1/2 cups of milk
Mix the first four items, then add the peanut butter. Make sure this gets mixed well, now add your milk and beat again, and pour into well greased large bread pan or 2 small bread pans because this can make one large loaf or 2 small loafs. Bake at 350 for an hour or until tooth pick comes out clean.

An old time hint: did you know you can make color frosting from jelly beans? Its true just dissolve them in a bit of warm water.

Brown Sugar Brownies

These are just yum when served warm; I love to make these anytime and the recipe is not that hard to do for a sweet homemade treat.
What you will need:
2 eggs
2 cups of brown sugar
1tsp. of baking powder
1 1/2 cups of flour
1/2 cup of melted butter
Mix all the ingredients and spread into well greased 8x8 baking dish. Bake at 350 until done, by sticking tooth pick in and it comes out clean.
These will go fast!

Working on new Halloween Quilt, a painted wall hanging quilt

This is the Halloween quilt I am working on; is painting with acrylics onto muslin with Halloween cotton fabrics around it.
This is a picture of how it is going so far, the picture is of a Kitty looking back into the window of his home with a creepy pal spider.
I am using a wash of colors for the back round so that you get the idea its dust and I have cut out my blocks that will go around the picture of the cat.
I will seal the acrylic paints but it probably still will not work to wash this quilt in a washing machine.





These are photos of close ups of the cat and the spider so far, I have really enjoyed working with the acrylic paints on the muslin.

Crafting Frenzy Wendnesday

I just finished another set of crochet baskets; the black one is a mini and the larger one is small but larger that the mini basket. I used my 10 1/2 hook to make both these baskets, and no pattern just idea out of my head. I did a triple stitch and a double with a single to give each basket some height.


Then I decided to make another jewelry box; this one will also look aged I am now in the process of decoupaging it right now and will use some acrylic paint to stain and and a touch of walnut stain.
Would you also believe I am also working on another crochet/braided rag rug this time I am using a 6/6 hook and it will be a large rug; plus I am working on a Halloween quilt, that will be a walling hanging quilt but I want to save those for next week and it is a bit different quilt to stayed tuned for those upcoming projects.

Engilsh Muffin French Toast

A good way to make a change in french toast, this is really very simple just purchase English muffins do this type of french toast. Next mix 2 cups of milk, 2 eggs, 1/2 table spoon of sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of vanilla.
Beat with a fork or a very low speed with a mixer, dip the English muffin into the batter and add to a well or sprayed frying pan, cook on Med-high heat, careful not to burn them flip after a few seconds so that the tops look golden brown and golden brown on bottoms.
Serve with warmed maple syrup or fresh fruit, and you can make these really low fat by omitting the sugar and using an egg substitute and just warming up some fresh fruit in a sauce pan, such as strawberries.

A Chalkboard Acrylic painting to Celebrate Summer

These small wall hanging painted chalk boards are my very own creation; I came up with the idea of painting chalk boards.
I like using acrylic paints and using the whole chalkboard to create the scene and then I seal these chalkboards with a good sealer, sometimes a flat or glossy sealer.
This one is a small wall hanging of a happy little frog singing about the summer days that lay ahead.
What I do is take a piece of transfer paper and transfer the drawing onto the chalkboard by rubbing it onto the chalkboard, and just painting with the acrylics. I will be adding this little wall hanging to my artfire store at http://49stocker.artfire.com There you can purchase this item.