My First "Quilt Show"

We went to the Montana State Fair in Great Falls, MT for the day... there was so much to see, including the Quilt competition!

So much for inspiration! And the details... whew!

New Fabric, New Project

Oh the pretty colors! This is more what I had wanted to start learning with (rather than the blue and yellow), but I don't know if I would have had the guts to cut into such pretty fabrics!

Fat Quarters to 2 1/2 inch strips...

To 2 1/2 inch squares...

To 9 patches...

I'm not sure if I'll set them on point or just sash them in the white... the "on point" thing sounds intimidating at this point, but I KNOW it would be oh so beautiful.

We'll see what this quilt makes of itself...

And of course... my ipod and my sewing machine. I listen to quilt podcasts while I sew. It's quite motivating and inspirational to hear what other people are creating!

Quilt top complete

My first one is actually finished, borders and all. It's really exciting to see it nearing completion. I very much enjoy embroidery and have helped my grandma do some hand quilting before, so I look forward to the process!I wasn't sure about the outside diamond border, but I find I really like it now that it's finished.

It's sort of wrinkled at the moment - we don't have a big enough space to be able to fully lay it out. I'm going to have to take it home to Oregon at the end of this next month and borrow a big nice living room to pin the backing and batting on. Can't wait! It's going to be so nice when it's finished.

And I have to confess that I've already gotten material for a 2nd and 3rd project. But I'll keep that a suprise for now! Yay for new adventures!

It's coming together, and it's getting exciting!

These are the patterns that are making the audition for the quilting... I'm going to hand-quilt this... my first quilt... because I don't want to ruin it by "practicing" machine quilting. I've done hand stitching before, and this is what my grandmother does, so I know it will look nice. It will take longer for sure, but I won't have to worry about putting a hole in my quilt and wasting all the effort up to this point! I expecially like the daisy... will likely use that somehow. *smile*

All sewed together... with blue borders...

The corners on the triangles were such a challenge. They are by no means perfect, but it was my first try, so I'm not too down about it. I DO love the overall effect of the diamond patterns.

So excited to get this finished and be able to snuggle under it!!

Enjoying Summer!

Strawberry Rhubarb Dessert Bars:

Filling ingredients:

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen unsweetened rhubarb, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 1/2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Crust ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups uncooked quick-cooking oats
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Drizzle ingredients:

3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Directions:

Combine rhubarb, strawberries, and lemon juice in 2-quart saucepan. Cover; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fruit is tender (8-12 minutes).

Combine 1/2 cup sugar and cornstarch in small bowl. Stir into fruit mixture. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil (about 1 minute). Continue boiling until thickened (1 minute). Remove from heat. Set aside.

Heat oven to 350*F. Combine all crust ingredients in large bowl. Beat at low spead, scraping bowl often, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 1/2 cup of crumb mixture. Press remaining crumb mixture onto bottom of greased 13x9-inch baking pan. Spread filling over crust. Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely.

Combine all drizzle ingredients in small bowl. Drizzle over cooled bars. Cut into bars.

YUM!!

The flowers on the deck are enjoying the heat that is finally here!!

Even though I haven't gotten much done with crafting lately, it's still fun to experiment with cooking and gardening. (I wish I had a real garden!!)

I LOVE this geranium!

Another little project

Last night we went on a drive in the country. It was so wonderful to get out in the fresh air! We saw a few deer, the lupine and wild rose are blooming right now, several famers have fresh grass cut and drying, and I just can't live a single summer without getting out somewhere where I can hear the crickets sing in the evening. LOVE IT! I brought some of the lupine home...

So pretty!

The little project that I worked on a couple days ago was this calendar holder. It was a gift but still needed some work. I stained it with a natural color stain, and then put a clear glossy finish on it. First time staining wood for me! Not hard, but something new.

I've wanted one for awhile, and I like how it turned out. The wood is a bit crooked on one side, so it doesn't hang exactly perfect against the wall, but that gives it some charm. *smile*

We love our jam!

We have some wonderful friends who have a beautiful garden, and they sent us home with some rhubarb this week. Curt LOVES rhubarb. We had more than we could use, so decided to make some jam for later use.... stretch out a rare treat! :-) I'd never made it before, but found a recipe that uses rhubarb, sugar, and strawberry jello to hold it together. It's not bad - but you have to like sweet! Yum! (We also made freezer raspberry jam recently)