turkey feathers

Hungry for Chocolate

I love these Jas.Townsend & Son videos.  Ivy and her Dad, John, make a pretty good baking team, don't they?  Just adorable.  I recently discovered that, authentic period costume patterns are now available on their website; I was perusing them here. 

We too have been in the kitchen a lot these past few days, making soup, and bread, cookies and scones.  The modern way, but just as fun.  I think the "kitchen hearth" is the best place to gather together, and lately, to huddle for warmth.  Especially now, as it's been so very cold here, barely 24 degrees this morning.  Br-r-r-r.  That traditional fire and coal oven (used in the video) looks absolutely wonderful.  If I could figure out how to knock out a wall and install one, I certainly would. 

Thanksgiving is coming up!

But, before we bake that pumpkin pie, we need to bake a birthday cake first. And since chocolate seems to be the order of the day, chocolate it must be.

Holiday Scoop

SHOP ANNOUNCEMENT:: 

It's that time again--and the Holiday Season is right around the corner.    

I want to remind everyone that our web shops will be closed December 15th thru January 2th, 2014. 

Please place your orders early to avoid disappointments and delays; we do our speedy best--but it's a busy-busy time for the postal service and packages may be slow to arrive. 

*Any special or custom orders should be placed as soon as possible.* 

Our Web Shops:

• PatternBee Vintage Embroidery--Find hundreds of patterns from the past. I've been SO busy working on these--the newest additions can be found here.

• Vintage Stitch Shop--Older and collectible sewing patterns, quilting and craft books, fabric, oil cloth, and more. 

• Winky Handmade--Lovely little things to make your life sweet!  We have added new adorable offerings for your perusal and consideration--take a peek.

I also want to say "thank you" to all of our wonderful customers and stitching friends near and far that have supported us this year.  It wouldn't have been nearly as much fun without your kind words and enthusiasm, your stories and rememberances.  You are all near and dear to our hearts.

Nature's Palette

The colors are really popping around here.  It's all so pretty and awe inspiring.  Sometimes it's hard to get anything done.  I just want to stand here and stare. The Japanese Maple turns the most gorgeous color of red in the fall.  It catches my eye and takes my breath away each time I pass by the window.  This picture was taken last week, before a storm stripped most of the leaves away.  Bah.

Also, I have to show you what the Harlequin Glory Bower is up to just now.  You know, the "peanut butter" tree I am so fond of?  Well.  In the fall, the leaves don't do much of a color change, but the flowers.  Oh my.  

They are show stoppers.  Just spectacular little gems. 

Can you believe this color?  The berries form after the white flowers fall away.  They look like small cerulean-blue pearls.  It's an amazing transformation. 

Even the garden spiders want to get in on the act.  It's all so pretty.

Sigh.

OK, time to pull myself away from the window and the great outdoors and get back to the project at hand...because we now have two new girls fresh outta the embroidery hoop: 

It seems the girls are out numbering the boys.  But not for long!

More Tomato Talk

I can't believe we are still harvesting tomatoes.  Everything else in the garden is pretty much done except for a few beets, and a bit of celery and parsley.  But the tomatoes are going strong.  It will be fun to see how long we can keep them going inside the greenhouse.

After canning many jars of chopped tomatoes, I have been making "sun-dried" tomatoes in my trusty tried-and-true Ronco dehyrator.  I've had this unit since the Mister and I were married over thirty years ago.  It's awesome for drying and preserving all kinds of things.  Dried tomatoes can be kept in jars for up to a year before they begin to lose nutrients and flavor, but they rarely last that long in our house.  We've already been using these in our pasta dishes.  If you want to learn more about drying tomatoes, this site has lots of good information.   

Crockpot marinara sauce was also in the works, with thyme and rosemary picked fresh from the herb garden outside my kitchen door.  So good.    

There's nothing quite like homemade sauce (or soup) simmering in the kettle to turn a cold, gray day cozy.  My modern-day "kettle" is a crockpot.  It does all the work.  I just toss ingredients in and by days end, we have a nice nourshing meal and usually leftovers to reheat for a hot lunch the next day. 

Of course, cold lunch is good too.

Hot and cold--even better!  (Homemade creamy mushroom soup...yum.)

I'll be back soon with an update on the stitching side of things and will show a little more progress I'm making on the Scottie quilt. Me-oh-My, is it really November already?