Flowers

I planted this rose bush in my front flower bed a few years ago, about two weeks before that big ice storm that we had here in Missouri that knocked all the power out for several weeks.
I planted a Japanese Maple at the same time. Well, I thought the ice storm had killed them, it did kill the Maple, but the rose bush came back. The name of the Rose bush is Ingrid Bergman, I cant remember the name of the company that produces them. I chose this one because Ingrid Bergman was always one of my favorites, and it is such a beautiful red. When I first planted it, I didn't know much about growing roses, I am learning as I go. This particular variety is pretty hardy, I haven't had much trouble.
This plant is called Salvia. I got three 6" pots of them last year along with three pots of Blue Fescue ornamental grass. I planted two Salvia and all the Blue fescue by my mail box and the other Salvia in my front flower bed. The Blue fescue didn't do good at all. I guess it was too hot for it in direct sun. It burned right up, but the Salvia did good last year in both locations. Last winter when it died back I cut it down pretty low to the ground and this spring it came in big and full. I get a lot of compliments on it.

I also have Day Lilies and Allison False Heather in my yard. The Heather is at its prettiest in the early spring and I didn't think to take a picture of it then. I will take a picture of the day lilies when they are in full bloom.

PIONEER WOMAN

My Husband and I went to Arkansas this past weekend to visit my Daughter and her family. While we were there she told me that her church was going to have a pioneer day on the last Sunday of the month and everybody in the choir was supposed to wear something old fashioned looking for the event.

She didn't have anything so we decided to make something. She had a costume pattern but it was in the wrong size, and kind of complicated to whip together in one weekend so we decided against that idea, however she did use the pattern for the sun bonnet. For the skirt and bonnet, she had a bolt of fabric that was purchased from a garage sale for a dollar. The fabric is 3/8 inch green and white gingham check.

We wanted to make as few seams as possible so the fabric could be reused later for something else, and the fabric was thin enough that she needed a long slip (which she didn't have) so we decided to make a lining using the same materiel. For the outer skirt she cut a length of fabric two times her hip measurement, and for the lining, her hip measurement plus 10 inches, for the elastic casing, her hip measurement plus 3 inches.

While she was doing the sewing on the skirt and bonnet, I altered a shirt. The shirt she had to use originally had long sleeves with cuffs, and a collar. I cut the sleeves off half way between the elbow and the cuff and I cut the collar off just below the neck band, and then rounded the front down a little bit more so the finished edge would be right above the first button and hole. I then crocheted around the edges of the neck and both sleeves first with white, then with green to match the colors of the skirt. The apron was one that I made for her vacuum cleaner doll that I had made several years ago. Over all, I think it looks like what pioneer women wore.

This is my sweet little angel Emily. She just had to try the bonnet on and show Grandma. The funny thing about it is that the bonnet is not too big for her. For a tiny little girl, she has a big head. I think she is adorable.

YUMMMMM CHEESECAKE

My husband and I both love cheesecake. It used to be that every time we went out to eat we would order cheesecake for desert. When we stopped going out to eat I would buy cheesecake from the bakery. Sometimes they were good and sometimes not so good.

I had never tried making one myself until a few years ago. I used the recipe that came on the flap of a package of Best Choice cream cheese called Old Fashion Cheesecake. I mixed the cheesecake with my Kitchen Aide stand mixer with the wire whip. The cheesecake came out so light and fluffy that it would melt in your mouth. I didn't use their topping though, I just topped it with a can of cherry pie filling.

Well, for this one I didn't have a can of pie filling, but I did have quart bags of blueberries in my freezer that I picked last year. I used 1 bag of blueberries, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1 tsp lemon juice. I cooked it in a saucepan on the stove over medium heat for about 15 minutes. And of course, let the cheesecake and the blueberries cool before topping the cake.

WARNING: Once you have had this cheesecake you will never want store bought cheesecake again.

Log Cabin Table Runner

This is a table runner that I made using upholstery sample scraps that were left over from making valences for the windows at my daughters house (She is doing the lodge look at her house).
I made 7 log cabin blocks and cut 3 of them in half diagonally. I used the one's that I cut in half to set the others on point. When it came time for finishing, I had to do the quilting on the machine since upholstery fabric is just too thick to quilt through by hand. It has one layer of batting, and is backed with a pant weight twill fabric. I think it turned out nice. I will use it for dinners when all the family gets together and there is a lot of food on the table. The thickness of the table runner will protect my table from any damage.

Re-Cycled Baby Clothes

Here is a couple of baby quilts that I made using old baby clothes, mostly t-shirts, onezy's, and PJ's, all were cotton single knit. For the Top quilt, I cut the cloths up into squares and sewed them together. For the bottom quilt I used all different sizes and pieced them together using as much of the fabric as possible. There is less waste this way, but it is more time consuming.

I used two layers of high loft batting on both of them. Then I tied them using pink, yellow, and blue pearl cotton. The knit on the top, and the extra layer of batting makes these quilts so soft you just want to sink into them. I did not use a stabilizer on the back of the knit, because I wanted it to have a plush soft feel. I backed the quilts with a woven fabric to give the quilts stability.

Re-Cycled Jeans Pillow

Another way to use old jeans is to make decorative throw pillows. You know what they say "jeans go with everything". Well I believe the same is true for these throw pillows made from recycled jeans. I cut 16 squares and layered them 4 deep with all right sides facing up, sew across in 1/2 inch increments on the diagonal, cut thru three layers in between seams and then run them thru the washer and dryer to make them poof up. Then sew the blocks together so that the sewn lines form a concentric design. I put a denim back on mine to make a pillow, but the same idea could be used to make a tote or beach bag.

Infant Shoes

I seem to have misplaced the pattern for these little shoes (I am not very organized, I'm creative) but I believe it was a Retro Simplicity pattern. Supposedly it was originally printed in the 50"s. They are made from craft felt. The pattern has a floral design layout on it, but I didn't use it. I just did free hand embroidery on the floral design, blanket stitch around the top and the tie is a piece of coordinating ribbon.

The socks are infant size 0-3 months that I purchased in a bag of 10. I single crocheted directly onto the top of the socks, then a row of half double crochet, then chain 2, attach bead by chaining through the bead, chain 2, skip 3 half double crochets and single crochet in the next half double crochet.

For this pair of socks, I didn't add the beads, and then I put 7 single crochets in each chain 5 loop. Any edging can be used though. Also, this pair of shoes I used silk ribbon instead of embroidery floss for the embroidery. They make a nice baby shower gift.