The ups and downs of crafting...

      How has your week been?   My ups and down varied this week.  

     I wanted a more specific type of wall hanging to carry me over from October to November.  I like the wall hangings for Halloween but didn't really want one up on my wall.  So I had an idea.  That can lead to trouble as well as aggravation.  What was my idea?

     I cut out a ton of pumpkins and pinned them onto my house wall hanging.  My energy gave out after that.  I hadn't realized how many pumpkins I would need!  I was talking to a friend about how my energy had drained me and my urge to work on it faded.  This was to be a temporary fix so I could take them off after Halloween.  If it worked out, I was thinking of doing something similar for other holidays...maybe.  What was the solution that my friend came up with?  In her words of wisdom she said..."Then don't stitch it.  It is not like you have a lot of people over and you only meant it to be temporarily anyway.  Just keep it like it is." Well, Duh!  I knew she was a friend for a reason.  LOL.

     

     That crisis temporarily solved, I set it aside.   Next I picked up my blackwork.  Then I put down my blackwork.  I lost 2 needles which fell on the floor and couldn't find them.  I couldn't figure out where was a good place to start the blackwork again so I put it back down.  I decided to take a nap hoping that would clear my head.  That worked so when I picked it back up, I realized my mistake and was able to go ahead and make progress.   I got over it and made it past the corner that gave me problems.  

     

     I'd like to say that things went smoothly after that but you know me.   Crafting is not a simple thing with me.  First stumbling block?  I couldn't find my needles.  I usually keep them on the table next to my computer.  I vaguely remember moving everything off of the table so that I could pin the pumpkins onto the wall hanging.  I didn't notice the missing needles right away though.  I had a giant magnet with my blackwork needles all threaded that I keep on the side of the computer table.  So I stitched until I ran out and that was when I discovered....no other needles were available.  That was after I dropped those two needles so I had to replace them.  That rectangle of fabric that I keep on the table next to me was so handy.  I could keep around 10 needles on it and I had them separated in sections.   One section had my blackwork needles, one section my redwork needles, one section needles with my DMC floss on it for my quilting block, etc. 

     Where was it?  I have now have no idea where it is.  THAT made me scramble for some more needles so I could keep stitching.  Thinking I had that problem temporarily solved, I picked up my crewel work.  Wait...where's my needles for that and why isn't that green cooperating?  Time to change up some colors.  Two greens are too close together but I'm keeping them anyway.  I am NOT unstitching it again since I unstitched it four times before I was satisfied.  

   So today is a what is scheduled today for the roller coaster crafting ride?  Will it be a high or a low?  Neither will totally stop me but they can delay me a bit.  :)

    

     How is your day going?

What is on your menu?

 I have gained so much this month (September) and I have to get back on track.  I now have to lose around 40 pounds.  Yeah, not an easy thing to do but to be honest?  I'm not too worried or concerned.  My menu items will be heavy on the starches until probably after the new year.  I'll adjust.

Anyway, I did get a cute gadget that I am in love with.  It is a n electric mason jar vacuum sealer.  I can't wait to get some mason jars so I can seal up some of the stuff in the pantry.  Things like oats, rice, different noodles, etc.  I also plan on getting some smaller jars and put some of my spices in them.  Things that I could buy in bulk and use table top size containers for the every day use and the rest in a mason jar.  I will just need to make sure that I get jars which have regular size tops.  I will eventually wide mouth lids.  I have regular mouth lids already so I will start with them.

Another thing that I did since my last post was to follow the directions on a FB video on how to store your plastic bag .  You take an empty Kleenex box and fold your plastic bags in push them into the box.

It works out pretty good.  The trick is that when  you fold it, you run it through the handles.  So when you pull one out, it pulls the next one (the handles) up so it will be handy and ready for you.  Pretty smart, right?

I'm not sure on what I'll eat this coming week.  I have some single food  servings of a variety of food in the freezer so might use them.  It is portion control and makes more room in the freezer for other things.  I have another week to go before I go to Pantry and see what I'll get.  That will probably determine what my menu will be.

I'll let you know.

Now for some recipes.  I hope you will enjoy them.

Have a great day everybody!  What's on your menu?

What on the menu?

 You tell me and we'll both know.

It is more of a matter of what is on hand.  I've found myself in a slump on cooking.  Not that I'm starving or anything but I'm not craving anything in particular.  My lunches are mostly salads and whatever I have on hand to toss into them.  I'm still making the Ranch Dressing.  And that is about all.  I'm sure that my brain will get back to planning but right now I have other things on my mind so food is so not a priority.

I will share some recipes soon though.  It is, after all, getting into holiday cooking and and I have to figure out my menu before Dan gets over here.  LOL.  

Sorry for the short post, but I wanted you to know that I haven't forgotten those who look for recipes etc.  I'll get back to my schedules...I promise.  

Until then, be safe and enjoy life!

My Report of going to the Gleann Abhainn Kingdom Arts and Sciences Faire 2023 - Part 2

      Now that I have recovered a bit from the Faire, here is the rest of the pictures.  There isn't much to say about them since I don't know most the people's name etc.  While there I was inspired by what I saw and now have a couple of more projects in mind.

     With that in mind...Here is some more eye candy.

These next two pictures gave me an idea.  I am having trouble with my Tabard and was wondering how to take care of it.  I think I might try to add something/trim on each side to tie it up.  I also need to try and widen my neck hole.  Sigh.  So much to do.  LOL.

This is part of Merchants row.  They were also holding demonstrations on how to make various things for those who were intereted.

This is Savannah (Zanna).  I'm not sure what her SCA name is but she is into crafts and even before moving to Arkansas, I would send her some things in the mail to help her with getting back into crocheting.  She now helps out part time in a local business who has a lot of yarn.  She does some of the samples and tries out their yarn.  I think that is what she said.  It is nice to put a face to somebody who I've been in contact with for over 3 years.

This is a friend of Dan's.  Dan hadn't attended many Faire's and from everybody's reaction, they missed him.  I think he was a little surprised but pleased.

A little bit of a close up of the Royals throne.

When they came in, the processional went through the arches formed by the guard and their swords (swords - SCA style anyway).

This was one of the gentlemen who was elevated in status.  It was a big thing.  Somebody from all the other orders had to say something on his behalf to the Royals.  Each time somebody talked on his behalf and the King accepted their recommendation he was given another piece of gear. 

This is the picture of what his outfit now looks like.  :)  I am sure that I'm not getting all the words right but you'll get the idea.  

Zanna, getting recognized.  I was still in shock from my trip up to the King and Queen so I didn't hear what for.  I'll have to ask her or somebody else.

NOW....I had another inspiration from visiting.  I'm not sure what inspired me with this, but I have decided to make a Hnefatafl (Viking chess game) game board.

From Wikki: Hnefatafl, also known as The Viking Game, The King's Table or simply Tafl, is one of those two-player games where the opposing sides are not equal in number. The defending side comprises twelve soldiers and a king, who start the game in a cross formation in the center of the board. Their objective is for the king to escape by reaching any of the four corner squares. The attackers comprise 24 soldiers positioned in four groups of 6 around the perimeter of the board. All pieces move like the Rook in chess and pieces are taken by "sandwiching" i.e. moving your piece so that an opponent's piece is trapped horizontally or vertically between two of yours.

Here are some pictures of the board.  I like this design best.

Here is another view of it with the pieces on it.

This one is a variation of the board.  I have to do more research to see what I'll pick to copy from.  

     That is it.  I got caught up with everything and didn't notice my battery draining down so had to stop there.  LOL.  That's ok.  I hope this gave you an idea on what a small event would be like.

     I hope you enjoyed it.  Now, in order to get used to typing my name as now I have to on my Exchequer Reports, etc.

Have a blessed day.

Gudrun of Bromeland, O.O. C.

Mundanely known as Bonni Feltz

   PS and FYI:  Gudrun = my SCA name

           of Bromeland = where she is from.... and Bromeland is my maiden name.  Ancestors came from Norway.  Near Sand, Norway.

            O.O.C. = Order of the Onyx Chalice

My Report of going to the Gleann Abhainn Kingdom Arts and Sciences Faire 2023 - Part 1

 

     As usual, when I go to an event or exciting place, I take a lot of pictures.  This was no exception so I will share them with you in more than one post.  

     Our plans changed at the last minute but I adjusted to it.  It was supposed to be a little bit cool but then the weather said it would be in the mid to upper 80s so Dan decided we wouldn't go to Feat.  That wasn't too bad but that also meant I didn't eat anything until I got back home.  He didn't either so it was fair game and I had a post roast that quickly heated up in the microwave.  But that is the end of the story and not the begin so let me try and not get too distracted. 

     The weather was nice and after some rearranging, I wore my tabard which had the Raven on it and took my fancier dress for court.  Long story short...I didn't wear my fancier dress since it was hot and a velveteen long sleeve dress did not bode well for keeping one's cool.  More on that later.

     So Dan came over and loaded up the car.  I had plenty of bottles of water to drink in the cooler.  Dan had plenty of canned coffee and brought the igloo ice packs he had put in the freezer from the night before.  No rain in sight but plenty of scenery.  I discovered that my phone wasn't charging in his vehicle so I had to ration out my pictures....oh the HORROR of that!  It did work out in the end though.   This picture shows what I got to look at on the drive there.  It took us a little over an hour from my place to get to the site.  It is located near Memphis (the largest city near it) Tennessee.  This event was the Kingdoms Arts and Sciences (A&D) Faire.

     After parking the car and digging out everything we were going to take with us, pulling a wagon filled with necessities like our folding chairs and refreshments, we started the long walked to troll.  That is what they call the booth or tables where you pay your fees and get a flyer on what times things are being held etc.  That is also where you get your program of events.  This picture was taken because I thought it was a great way to show off their groups arms, etc.  It is the back of a small clipboard which was used to explain the rules and you had to sign that you understood etc.  

     Dan, of course, filled out the form for me since I conveniently left my glasses in the car.  So he went back to get them but AFTER filling out the form.  As you can see from this picture, he suffered through standing still long enough for me to get a picture of him in his garb.  Doesn't he look like he is up to something?  He was.

     Unbeknownst to me, he and Shalom had put in a petition to the King and Queen for me to be granted an award.  That award was was to be admitted into the Order of the Onyx Chalice.  They said, in their petition (this is what Dan said anyway) that I had been supporting their group even before I retired and that they considered me one of the founding members since I had supported them and even donated half of the money they needed in order to form the Shire of Ravenshold.  I had totally forgotten that.  Then they said that when their Reeve (the individual in the group who is in charge of the money) suddenly quit and left they didn't have anybody to take over that position so I volunteered.  That impressed them I guess since it isn't a position most people would volunteer for.  Who knew!  So my name was called to come up in front of their majesties.  

    Isn't that what everybody wants?  After being in the same outfit and sweating for 7 hours, you get called up in front of the King and Queen.  At least my tabard that I was wearing looked semi ok from the front and they didn't see how wrinkly it was from sitting down all day.  The next two pictures are of my scroll that I was given and my device.  The linen piece of fabric goes on my belt to show people that I am a member of the Order of the Onyx Chalice.  

     This also bestows upon me the title of Lady.  I think my title should be lady with the wayward hair.  Sigh.   Still it is my first circlet, put on by the King himself.  The Queen leaned in before I left the area in front of them and patted my hand and said I was brave to have taken on the reasonability of Reeve, or Exchequer as they also call the position, when being new to the SCA.  I didn't dare tell her that if I had known ALL of what it would entail, I might not have done it.  Some things are better left unsaid, right?

     When you get called up, you are escorted up to in front of the King, Queen, Prince and Princess.  Then you are to kneel on the cushions in front of them.  

     I didn't have to because they knew it was hard for me to get up and down.  I was about to try and kneel when the King stood up and took my hand and said I didn't have to kneel.  Then he and the Queen stood in front of me and announced my award and handed me the paperwork and the circlet was put on me etc.  They were VERY nice and jovial throughout the entire thing.  Then I turned around.  Dan had been behind me throughout this (although I wasn't aware of it) and there ready to escort me back to my seat.  He looked very proud and smug all at the same time.  Once I got back to my chair he patted my hand (which I won't think it was condescending at all) and said he knew I would get even with him for not telling me ahead of time.  He was also safe in the knowledge that Shalom couldn't make it so I get to give Shalom a bit of a hard time afterwards.  Don't get me wrong.  They both are great friends and as you know, great friends are also fun to tease and give a hard time.  They can handle it.

     Enough of seeing pictures of me and my award.  Let's get on with some of the pictures from the A&S competition.  When you submit something to the competition, you need to also submit detailed documentation about it.  That includes historical documentation also to show that it was done in that period of time.

      I didn't think I would see a submission of plants but there is a Herbal Guild which was well represented.

    

     

     Of course the outfits were also predominantly represented.

          That's it for this post.  I hope you enjoyed the pictures.  I'll have more in the next post. 

Twas the night before the fair...

 That would be the SCA  Arts and Sciences event that is tomorrow.  To take my mind off of it I seemed to have gotten a burst of energy.  For instance, I finished my block for the exchange.

I also managed to finish up this weeks Blackwork stitch.

Here is more of a close up  of the latest blocks.  Now I have to work on some of the border.  I can work on the upper border but won't carry it down on the right hand side until I start to work on the blocks on the bottom.  

Since I am going to a SCA Arts and Sciences fair tomorrow, I wanted to make sure that I got these posted while I could.  If I find anything interesting, I'll try to take pictures and post them next week.  I have a couple of things I wouldn't mind getting but I am low on money since it is so late into the month.  Still I will price some of the braids and ribbon perhaps.  You never know what will be there.  I'll report back probably Sunday or Monday.  

In the meantime...

Have a wonderful weekend.

Crafting bug has hit again...

      I finally found my crafting bug again.  I think he hid under the couch knowing that he would be safe.  So what does that mean?  A lot and at the same time not much.  It means that I actually feel like working on things.  It also means that I get frustrated when things don't go right for me.  LOL.  

     So I have been working on my new block for the exchange. This is the pattern that I chose.  

     I have two leaves left to stitch down and then I'll probably switch to the browns.  I like to work on one color at a time so that I can thread 6 or so needles and have them all ready for me to use.  You'd all laugh at me if you saw my needles.  I have about 10 empty needles on  a pin cushion sitting on the arm of a chair next to my computer table.  Then I have two magnets with threaded needles on the side of the table.  It is a metal table so the magnets stick to it.  One magnet has my black DMC on it for my blackwork and the other one has red and white DMC threaded needles for a Christmas project.  THEN on my table runner which is on my table that  my printer  and computer is sitting on, I have six needles threaded in whatever color I am working on for the block shown above.  Also on my computer table is a mug rug that I have a couple of scissors, some misc. empty needles, and some floss that I will be using soon.  LOL.  As they say, everything is nearby.  Did I mention that when I get tired of working on one project, I put it on top of my hope chest which is on the right side of me.  This way, when I am in the zone, I don't have to move often.

     I found out yesterday that my friend Dan is going to kidnap me and take me to a SCA event which is being held around Memphis, TN.  I can't be too mad at him for not giving me much notice since he is treating me to it.  It is an Arts and Sciences themed event.  There will be an artisans row, merchants, food concessions, fighting demonstrations, games and entertainment.  The downside is that I have nothing to wear.  Well, to be honest, I do have things to wear but they don't fit me very well.  Ummm.  Could it be the fact that I've gained 30 pounds?  Nawwww.  It has to be something else, right?  I have something I could wear if we go to the more formal feast.  It is not the best but I can be satisfied with it.  The every day walking around garb is something I'm not happy with but Dan gave me ideas on how I can change it or fix it so I'll like it better.  That doesn't help me this weekend but I also know once I'm there, I will be too busy looking around at things and won't pay TOO much attention to my attire.  I'll try to take pictures.  

     Now that being said, one of the possible outfits that I *can* fit into needs something done to it.  It is a plaid (not something I normally like to wear) and thin.  There are buttons at the top but then the style or period that the outfit was styled in has open sleeves.  That bugs me so I was looking for some buttons that I could put on each sleeve to help close it up somewhat.  That means......DIGGING OUT THE BUTTON BOX!!!!

     For those of you who haven't seen my button box before, this is it.  If  you look carefully, you'll see around some of the buttons there are some scribbles around the buttons.  They were put on the box by my Niece in Law and her children.  My Niece in Law, Jessica, had taken all my buttons and box home with her to get it organized a bit.  Before she had a chance, her young children (who are now out of school and some are even married), got hold of the box and a pen and had fun decorating it THEIR way.  To cover it up, Jessica glued a lot of the buttons on it.  She apologized but I couldn't be mad at her.  It was too cute and such a clever solution.  Anyway, I wanted to look for buttons for the sleeves.  I found 3 but would have wanted 4 buttons to add to the garment.  THAT led to me emptying everything out and sorting out the buttons.  

     Now that the buttons are more organized, I am happier but still didn't find my 4th button.  I'll make it work somehow.  I could maybe use some of those wooden buttons.  If nothing else I won't wear that dress.  

     A friend asked me what I do with all those buttons.  Good question.  In the upper right corner, you might spot some white snowflake buttons.  Those I used to decorate Nora, my polar bear wall hanging.  Those buttons that are still in the packaging are Tilda Buttons.  When I was in a monthly program that featured Tilda patterns, quite often there was a packet of buttons that matched the project of the month in them.  They are adorable!  Other buttons just came from past and possible future projects.  One of my very first quilting projects was with a pre printed Raggedy Ann and Andy panel.  They were in the middle of the print and it showed a TON of buttons all around them.  I sewed real buttons over the printed buttons.  It took forever but it was fun  to do.  I saved me from figuring out quilting at the time and it was loved.  What more can one ask?

     Remember that table runner I was working on?  It is now all put together and just waiting for me to put on the binding.  I hope to have it all finished by the end of the month.  It is not the best work I've done but since it will be mostly covered up by dishes etc.  I will use it when I have company over and put it on my ironing board which is where I line up my food for a buffet style service.  I make do with what I have.  :)

     This shows all the proposed projects that I was working on.  I am happy to say that some of those have been finished and the rest are ongoing. 

     Well Hermione (with her new hairdo)

is staring at me.  Have you ever tried to stare down an owl?  Good luck with that.  I'd better sign off and get back to stitching.  I hope everybody has a great day.

Wow...so many recipes

      I have been so busy.  My friend Ann has been sending me recipes and has been keeping me so busy I haven't tried any of them out yet.  I'm not complaining though because a lot of them sound really good!

     Here are some that caught my attention:

     I have been gaining weight for the last three weeks but eventually I'll get back on track.  Every time I see a great recipe I want to make it.  LOL.  Not good if you are trying to lose weight.  I now need to lose around 35 pounds.  I'll do it eventually but I'm not in that much of a hurry except for the fact that my SCA clothes aren't fitting me well.  That's for my next post though.  This post is for cooking.

     I did make some new recipes and my taste tester, Dan, liked them both.  One was for a wonton dipping sauce.  He used up the first batch on wontons.  So he is now on a new batch.  Being for wontons, it has a lot of soy sauce in it so I decided to make another sauce I thought he'd like.  I made a honey dill dipping sauce.  He told me he had bought some egg rolls when he went to the store.  He came away with more wontons, pot stickers, AND egg rolls.  He tried the honey dill sauce and loved it.  Here are the recipes I found:

Wonton Dipping Sauce

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tbsp rice vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar instead since it was the number 1 substitute listed for rice vinegar.  White vinegar was the number 2 substitute)

1 teaspoon chili garlic paste or hot mustard.  (I just used regular minced garlic)

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1-2 teaspoons honey

1 scallion, sliced or sliced green onion

1 teaspoon sesame seeds (I left them out since I didn't have any)

- Combine in a bowl and whisk until well blended.

Honey Dill Sauce

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup honey

2 tsp dried dill week (dried dill works better than fresh in this recipe)

1/4 tsp lemon juice (optional)

Instructions:

Measure all ingredients into a medium-sized bowl and stir, scraping down sides, until it is an even color.  (The color will have a green tint to it because of the dill)

Serve immediately or, for best results, cover and put into the fridge for 2 hours to allow flavors to meld.  Store covered in the fridge for up to one week.

I'm asking Dan to heat up the sauce for just a little bit before he uses it since it will be coming out of the fridge and it is honey.  I think a small amount of time in the microwave or on the stove would work best so that you can stir up the sauce and the honey would be more fluid(?)  He hasn't tried it yet but I'll let you know how it goes.  

     Another recipe that I tried was Moroccan Couscous (serves 2).  I have to say that I had mixed feelings on this one.  It didn't have any flavor so I ended up adding salsa to it and a little bit more spices.  So if you make this add some spices.  I'm still not sure why it is called Moroccan.  Let me know if you make it.

Moroccan Couscous for 2

1 tbsp chopped onion

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup dry couscous

3/4 teaspoon olive oil

- Add oil to a pan and heat it over medium heat.  When oil is hot, add onion and cook until soft.  Turn off heat.

- Pour water into a saucepan and place the saucepan over high heat.  When it starts boiling, turn off heat.

- Add onion and couscous and stir.  Cover saucepan and let it rest for 5 minutes.

- Take a fork and fluff couscous and serve.

   

     Another recipe that I tried was Meatloaf in a mug - serves 2.

Meatloaf in a Mug - serves 2

4 Tablespoons 1% low fat milk

4 Tablespoons quick cooking oats

1/2 pound lean ground beef - broken up/crumbles

4 teaspoons low sodium ketchup

2 teaspoon onion powder

- grease 2 microwave safe mugs (12 oz each) with some cooking spray

- place:  oats, ketchup, onion powder, and milk in a bowl and mix well.

- add beef and stir until well combined

- divide mixture into mugs

- place in microwave and cook on high for 3 minutes or until the meat is not pink any more.

- cool for a few minutes and serve.

    I used ground turkey which made it a bit "loose" so I added in a bit more oatmeal.  I will make it next time with beef which I think it will work better.

   That's it for now. I hope everybody has a great day.