A Doggie Doodad

If you know me, you know I have a thing for dogs.  I really have a problem, I think.  If there's a stray, I'll take it in.  If we go to Walmart and they're having a doggy adoption day, watch out.  Several years ago, a neighbor had a dog who needed a good home.  Quickly.  If she didn't find a home by the end of the day, her husband was taking him to the pound.  And he was so cute!

I called my husband.  At this point in life we already had two dogs.  His exact words were, "We need another dog like we need a hole in our heads."  I agreed.  When he got home from work that evening, he was met at his car by...three dogs.  He fell in love with Patches (what a great name for a quilter's dog!) instantly, just like I had a few hours earlier.  Patches has been such a special dog, and we can't imagine life without him.  And now that I've gone on and on about Patches, I realize I'm not even posting a photo of him today.  I'll show you Patches tomorrow, I promise!  

We're now up to a grand total of four dogs, though for several years we had five.  In the photo above are Prince (the older of the dachshunds) and Oliver (the dachshund wannabe).  Oliver was a Walmart adoptee.

Anyway, the point of this long, drawn out story is really going to be a let down.  I drove to Atlanta today to take my parents to meet my brother.  He drove them the rest of the way to his home in Augusta.  While I was gone, hubby and daughter took two of the dogs for a walk.  To make a long story even longer, the leash broke, they had to throw it away, but first....

knowing me like they do, they took the broken leash apart to save the little clippy thing for me to sew on a quilt.  Aren't they sweet?

Fun contest

There's a fun contest here.  Check it out.

And here's a cool  site.

My Ugly Cake

I try to make this blog about quilting.  That's my purpose, anyway.  But there are a few days, here and there, (very rare), that I don't make it upstairs to my studio.  Today was one of those days, and that's just fine.  We all need a break now and then, don't we?

I did make a cake today, though.  Yes, it's very ugly.  I admit it.  But I can tell you it will be delicious!  That so true about many things.  You can't judge a book by its cover - you know the drill.  Beauty come from within.  Blah blah blah...  But it is really true.

The frosting on this cake has been made in my family since I was very young.  This became my wished for birthday cake every year.  So we had it every summer.  I'm not sure why we didn't have it more, but that's okay, because it became this special thing I looked forward to every July 11.  And now my kids ask for it for their birthdays, which is why I made it today.

Over the years, we've quit making the cake from scratch.  A chocolate cake is a chocolate cake, and it's the frosting that makes it so yummy.  So now I always make the cake with a mix.  The secret is to make two cake mixes.  Then pour the batter into 4 round pans and bake.  Stick one of  the baked layers in the freezer for later use, then split the other 3 layers in two, so you now have 6 layers.  Do this all once the layers have cooled completely.

Frosting:

5 tablespoons flour

1 cup milk

2 sticks butter (the REAL thing)

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix flour and milk in a saucepan.  Cook until thick, stirring constantly.  Cool well.  (I do this part when I bake the cake so everything can cool at the same time.)  Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla.  Add flour mixture.  Beat until spreading consistency.  Spread between layers and on top of cake.

So you're not really supposed to spread it down the sides, but I cheated a bit today since I only had one cake mix and my cake is only 4 split layers instead of six.  I spread the extra frosting down the sides.  This frosting is so yummy that sometimes I double the recipe so I can be very generous with it between the layers.

So I hope you enjoy my ugly cake.  I think I'll have a piece now.

Little Women 2

Here it is - the second in my new series, Little Women.  Click to see a close up - bottle cap face, pop tab hands, gorgeous screen printed fabric.  Love the fabric!

I spent the morning straightening my studio; luckily it didn't need much.  The bug man was coming, and I like to have all the nooks and crannies clear so he can spray everywhere.  He came; he sprayed.  Then I sewed.  Happy day.  Gotta run.  One of my own little women is due home from college any minute.

I'm Back on Track

Things are finally back to normal around here.  I finished my painted dress quilt today.  Click on the image in order to see the button hands and background stitching.  I put this in a little thrift store frame.  I love to buy frames at the thrift store (usually for a dollar or so) and spray paint them black.  Then I buy a ready made mat at a craft store (usually for a dollar or so) and mount little quilts like this.  No, I didn't have to buy these - I have a pile of frames and mats in my studio.  It make for a very inexpensive way to make a funky little art quilt seem more impressive.  

I'm working on another little dress quilt - it's made with some of the fabric I won from Pokey Bolton at Quilting Arts.  I'm really liking these little people.  I think this is the start of a new series for me - maybe I'll call it Little Women after one of my favorite books from childhood.  I'll try to finish the next one to show you tomorrow.  

Lots of love!

Just Me and the Doggies

Sorry I've been away from the blogging for a couple of days.  I have two very good excuses.

1.  I've spent way too much time on the house (painted a wall, rearranged furniture, scrubbed bathrooms, etc.).

2.  My internet connection has not been working and hubby (who knows just how to make it work) has been out of town.

But, miraculously, the internet started working again.  Hubby will be back from a 5 day business trip tomorrow.  Yay!  I don't cook for just myself, so I've lived on Lean Cuisines and scrambled eggs.  I just saw on the evening news that several Lean Cuisine chicken meals have been recalled because they might have plastic bits in them.  I ate one of the recalled dinners two nights ago.  Oh well.

So internet is working, hubby is coming home, and the house is VERY clean.  Now I can get back to quilting!

Happy 21st birthday, Emily!

Fabric Stamping

Okay, I know.  It's not the most beautiful fabric in the world, but I'll make it work.  This is what I get for not using PFD fabric.  The dye just doesn't take as well.  I still like it though, and I already have an idea of what to do with some of it...

As you may can tell, I got out some stamps (and a rubbing plate) and had a little fun with paint on some of it.  While I had the paints out, I had a sudden urge to paint a dress.  Weird, I know. I'm not sure where the inspiration came from, but it did.  So I did.  And here it is.  (Turn your head sideways.  I forgot to rotate it.)
I painted this with acrylics on a piece of my NEW black Kona cotton.  The blue dots are made with a drinking straw dipped in paint.  I think I'll add a face (maybe a yo-yo) and hands (maybe buttons).  This is little - the background fabric is 6 by 8 inches.