The two things that say “May” to me are peonies and Memorial Day. This May I’ve enjoyed weeks of fragrant & beautiful peony blooms in my garden, drooled over incredible peony bouquets in a Seattle farmers market, taken a road trip to peony producing Red Twig Farms in central Ohio, and thought a lot about my Dad.
Needlepoint Thread Stash: Reduce, Recycle, Reuse!
Needlepoint thread hoarder, you say? Nope. It’s all a work in progress. Right now, I have plenty of room for the remnants/beginnings of creative projects. The problem is future storage.
Flo and Edna. Bertha and Eulalie. My Sunbonnet Ladies.
Names have really changed over the last century and a half! Flo and Edna. Bertha and Eulalie. They all sound like characters from a book, and they are part of a story for me. The story of the Sunbonnet Sue quilts in my family’s cupboards.
Our Freezer Goes NOLA
A sudden craving for a bowl of delicious NOLA style gumbo could be a problem here in the Midwest. Not so much if you’ve stocked the freezer. Short on time, but long on flavor, this gumbo tastes like a labor of love.
Phase 1 Demo? It’s History!
It’s pretty cool looking at the inside of the 1876 Fixer Upper knowing no one has seen it in its original form for +/-100 years. No more wallpaper, no bathrooms, no second generation flooring. Just wide open spaces waiting for a fresh coat of everything.
Soup. My Favorite Part of Winter.
As they say, soup soothes the soul. It also warms you up and fills you up. And what pairs beautifully with a bowl of nice warm homemade soup? Bread! Soup and bread – the comfort food tandem of the season. My choice for today – New England Clam Chowder and Corn bread.
Madison’s Ironwork – I need some of that!
Ornamental ironwork is a defining feature in the fabric of downtown Madison, Indiana. Thinking of how we might incorporate it at our 1876 fixer upper.
Nothin’ But New This Sunday
I’m taking the afternoon to try several new things. I’m playing with my new Christmas toys (spiralizer & sous-vide tool), and starting a DIY paint experiment (brick whitewash.)
A Hunk, a Hunk of Freezin’ Love
True confession. I have three freezers. One in the kitchen frig, an upright in the basement, and one in the garage “beer frig.” Clearly, more is better in my culinary mind. To go with that, I might as well admit that I also use (and update) a freezer inventory. And to be perfectly honest, I …
Let’s Put on a Show!
A quilt show, that is. And I’m knee deep in discovering how much is involved with doing just that. I’ve secured two venues and two show dates, photographed and measured 25 quilts (with a few more to go), and I made my way through the quilt identification process. It. Is. Happening. Happy New Year – …










