card friday

we interrupt your sewing time to bring you summer

I can't remember a summer where I have done this little quilting. Don't get me wrong, we've had a fantastic summer but I do miss my quilting time!

I have finishes two and three of the summer to show you.

First, another table runner.

It's similar to the only other finish I've had this summer(see here).

Last night I finished the most important finish of the summer; the quilt for my nephew.

I wasn't going to post any pics of it until my sister in law received it but I think she was getting ready to hurt me if I didn't show her ;)

The colours aren't totally accurate; it was dark when I took the picture. But aren't they cute? Pattern is Preppy the Whale. 

Now to get it quilted and off to my nephew. These whales are almost as cute as him ;)

wordless wednesday

quilt monday

This is the last of the three grad quilts I made this year and it just might be my favorite. I say that a lot don't I? lol

quilted with Flirtatious

Fabric is True Luck(love!!!!) by Stephanie Ryan. The pattern is Sweet Life by Camille Roskelley from Simply Retro.

The colours and prints in this line are so soft and feminine. This pattern is perfect for showcasing large prints like in this fabric line.

I did the binding in a soft lilac.

Beautiful.

I might have to make one just for me.

snack saturday

Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

For the Crust:
24 Oreo cookies­finely crushed ¼ cup unsalted butter­melted

 For Cheesecake Filling:
2 lbs. cream cheese­ room temperature 1⅓ cups powdered sugar 3 Tablespoon cocoa powder 4 eggs­ room temperature 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate­ chopped

For Chocolate Topping:
¾ cup heavy cream 6 oz. bittersweet chocolate­finely chopped 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar

Instructions
 To make the crust:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, grease a 9­inch springform pan and set aside. 2. Finely crush the cookies in a food processor, add melted butter and blend until it’s all moistened. 3. Press crumb mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan and bake for 8 minutes. Remove from the oven and set on a wire rack to cool while making the filling.

To make the filling:
1. Melt 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate and set aside to cool. 2. Mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth, mix in cocoa powder 3. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on low speed and do not overbeat it. 4. Add melted chocolate and mix on low speed to combine. 5. Pour the filling over the crust and smooth the top. 6. Bake the cheesecake until the center is set and the top looks dry (about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes). 7. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then run a thin knife around the sides of the pan and set the cake in the refrigerator (uncovered), for at least 8 hours, or better overnight.

To make the topping:
 1. In a medium saucepan stir together cream, chocolate and sugar on low heat until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth. 2. Cool and pour over the cheesecake. 3. When the topping is set and cooled again run a thin knife around the sides and remove the springform pan sides. 4. This cheesecake can be prepared up to 2­3 days in advance just store covered in the refrigerator. 5. Garnish with chocolate curls (optional).

card friday

back to work

We just spent a fantastic 2 weeks in California for Boy2's grad trip. We went with 3 other families; yup, we were one of those huge groups that clogged up all the ride lines lol.

It's back to work for now; here's a few client quilts that I finished up before we left.

Angela made this quilt for her mother.

quilted with Floral Meander

Love these blocks.

Deb is a friend from school. She started this embroidery 20 years ago when pregnant with her daughter. She figured it was time to finally get it finished.

quilted with a meander

Carole's lovely scrap quilt.

quilted with Flirtatious Leaves

I am loving this new pantograph.

Kelly made this gorgeous log cabin quilt.

quilted with Morning Glory

So striking.

Kathleen found these blocks at a local thrift store. Someone did not realize what they were throwing away!

quilted with Floral Meander

wordless wednesday

special delivery

Sunday morning I'm sitting in church when I get a text saying 'my water broke'. My brother and sister in law were expecting their first baby and he was on the way.

Turns out he really wanted to arrive and once they got to the hospital, it was all hands on deck. The next text we got was to announce his arrival.

So what did we do? Jump in our car for a dash across the Rocky Mountains to meet our nephew.

Not even 24hours old; here he is.

 So worth the 18hours of driving for a 2 hour visit!! 

And now that he is here, I should get moving on his quilt lol. I've been working on it and been posting pics to instagram but always in black and white. We knew they were having a boy but it was to be a secret. I knew the fabric colours would give it away. Or maybe not lol.

The fabrics are the lightest to darkest of a teal blue and an aqua green. I could not get the colours to pick up right in the picture sadly.

As for the quilt, well, that's still a surprise. The baby shower is next week; I better get sewing!

wordless wednesday

snack saturday

Peanut Butter Double Stuffed Chocolate Cupcakes 

For the Cupcakes:
• 2 cups cake flour, sifted
• ½ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup whole milk
• ½ cup packed dark brown sugar
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups butter, softened
• 1 ½ cups very well mashed, ripe bananas (~3 large bananas)
• ¾ cups mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
For the Buckeye Filling:
• ½ cup + 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter (I use Jiff)
• 2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Reese’s Peanut Butter Icing:
• 6 tablespoons butter, unsalted
• ½ cup evaporated milk
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 6 oz Reese’s Peanut Butter Chips
• 1 ½ cups sifted powdered sugar

Instructions

1. First make your Buckeye filling. It will freeze into balls while we make the cupcakes.
2. Beat together all ingredients in a bowl until combined and mixture is dry yet holds together. You might need to add additional powdered sugar. Roll into 1-inch balls, place on baking sheet and freeze until you are ready to use them.
3. Pre-heat oven to 350° F. Line 12 muffin tins with liners. I double up on my liners just to make sure the cupcakes stay moist.
4. Sift the first five ingredients together in a medium bowl and set aside. I measure my flour by spooning flour into my baking cup directly from the bag until it is slightly mounded. Level with a sharp knife. Do not tap cup or in any way compact your flour.
5. Cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy.
6. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until combined
7. Alternately add dry ingredients and the milk; beginning and ending with flour mixture. I did 2 additions of milk and 3 of the flour mixture. Mix only until just combined. Be careful not to over mix.
8. Fold in bananas and chips only until banana is distributed throughout batter.
9. Scoop enough batter into each tin to reach half way up the liner. Press a buckeye ball deep into each tin but not deep enough to reach the bottom. Cover the balls with the rest of the batter. They should be about ¾ full. Firmly tap your muffin tins on the counter to try and settle the batter into any air pockets. You can also use the finger method of pushing the batter into open spaces. The batter is thick so it will not just reposition itself as it cooks.
10. Bake at 350° F for ~20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with only some crumbs attached. Make sure that you didn’t just hit a chocolate chip because melted chocolate can make your muffins appear underdone. We don’t want that!
11. Allow to cool 5 minutes in the tins. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
12. When your cupcakes are almost cool, start making your icing.
For the Icing:
13. Combine butter, milk, peanut butter chips and salt in a heatproof bowl; cook over a pan of simmering water (bain marie) until butter is melted and mixture is hot to the touch. Stir frequently.
14. Cool. This step only takes about 15 minutes, especially if you stir it frequently. You want the peanut butter mixture to be very thick. So thick that it will not drop off your spatula.
15. Gradually add in powdered sugar and beat until thick enough to pipe. You will want it to hold stiff peaks.
16. Pipe onto cooled cupcakes