Christmas Dilemma!

Hello, hello! How are all of my lovely blogging buddies? I hope you're keeping well. I confess to being a bit weary & frazzled at the moment ... The Christmas Crazies have well & truly hit the Meares' Madhouse & GB & I are both experiencing a Christmas dilemma. On the one hand, we both seem to have heaps of things that need to be done before Christmas so we need more time ... On the other hand ... BOY! Are we looking forward to a week's break! So Christmas can't get here soon enough! 😂 Both of us are super busy with our grown up jobs, but there have also been a few celebrations happening ... Including a Christmas gathering of some of our Friday Nutters ... er ... Friday NIGHTERS 😁 ... stitching group.

The lovely Julie hosted our party ... & we JUST fitted into her dining room ...

There were a few of us who couldn't make it & a couple who exited before photo time, but it was wonderful to hang out with these loonies who are such an important part of my Tribe. And it wouldn't quite be Christmas without a Secret Santa swap ... I received a pin cushion & one of Natalie Bird's fun Christmas panels. The gift I gave (finished five minutes before I walked out the door! 😝) was ...

... A black & cream version of my "Girls Stuff" mug bag. This is such a quick, fun pattern to make ... I've lost count of how many different colour combos I've made it up in & it's such a handy size. You could pop your sewing bits in it or as I did ...

... Pop in a pretty mug & some tea & coffee serves for a fun giftie. I have a Tilda version for myself that I take to stitching retreats. 😁 While we were visiting Julie, she showed off her finished version of another of my patterns, "Holly Bear" ...

Isn't she sweet?! & the bear is pretty cute too! Tee! Hee! Hee! Both the "Girl Stuff" & "Holly Bear" patterns are available from The Quilters Angel online store HERE ... Just use the handy search tool. 😉

And speaking of finished projects ... I've finally managed to finish the blog hopping & done the random draw for OPAM for November. There were ...

148 FINISHES!

WOW! Well done everyone! And as I hopped around blogs, I also saw progress shots for lots more long-term projects, so well done to those clever clogs, too. 😁 And the November draw winner is ...

CHERYLL!!

Congrats Cheryll! Drop me an email & I'll send a PDF pattern prize to you.

PHEW! I think that's me all caught up ... For now! 😝 Which is just as well, since there's a carols service & another Christmas party still coming up before the week ends. 😜 Maybe I'll just sleep from Christmas Day through to New Year. Tee! Hee! Hee! Whatever you're up to, stay safe & don't let the Christmas crazies run you down. 😉 Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS

Too Hard Tuesday!

Yep ... Tuesday has been a struggle ... Though to be fair, it's not really Tuesday's fault. 😜 It's kind of a cumulative effect of 2020 - the year that keeps saying, "hold my beer & watch this!", multiple staff changes & resident grumbling at work, the Christmas-crazies part of the year & two nights of sleep deprivation. Which all adds up to one mush-brained zombie. 😜

The lack of adequate sleep has probably been the proverbial straw ... Sunday night was incredibly icky-sticky-humid which saw even this hot-weather chook toss & turn, then last night we had a mini tornado smash through our little spot on the map. Lots of trees knocked down or dropped big limbs, two local roads blocked by fallen trees & loss of electricity due to one of the tree falls. We're fortunate to have a gas cooktop, so could cook dinner & boil water for cuppas, we had containers of drinking water on hand because we had to buy our second load of water for the season, lots of candlelight due to my addiction to scented candles ... BUT! ... When we don't have power, we don't have water because we rely on an electric pump. Can I tell you, even in hot weather a cold splash bath is NOT fun! 😳 And we definitely missed our fans trying to sleep in the heat. Power was finally restored 11 hours later, so all is back to what passes for normal now, but I'm mushy-brained from lack of sleep ... Not that anyone today has been able to tell the difference to my usual mudding! 😝

Adding insult to injury, although we copped the horrible mini tornado winds, thunder, lightning & power loss ... We only got two millimetres of rain. SIGH! More rain dances needed. 😜 Since sewing with mush-brain didn't seem like a wise life choice, here's a pic of my HUGE tomato harvest ...

Tee! Hee! Hee! Actually, considering the rough life my poor tomatoes have had, this is a pretty good haul. 😝 Perfect to add to tonight's dinner anyways. 😉

And for those of you without mush-brain who HAVE been sewing & creating ... It's time to update your OPAM tallies. Due to all of the above I'm running a bit behind with the blog hopping, so you've got a couple of extra days to email me with your November finishes.

And since GB has just arrived home, I'm off to cook Greek Lamb meatballs & warm salad with tzatziki for dinner then off to the land of nod to catch up on some of my lost sleep. Til next time ...

BEAR HUGZZZZZZZZZ!

CHEERS!

KRIS

Bonus Home Day - YAY!

Some of you who have been visiting my blog for a while know that, apart from my pattern design business, I have a day job four half days a week. I call it my "grown up" job because I have to be on someone else's timetable & it involves a certain amount of responsibility. I like my grown up job ... Most days. 😜 But there is nothing quite as enjoyable as a day at home on a usually-scheduled work day, when you have the freedom to set your own schedule. That's me today. 😁

I've had a bit of a sleep in, did a bit of tidying/cleaning, had a cuppa with a lovely friend & her gorgeous granddaughter & I'm now feeling like I have the energy & concentration (that's the bit that goes missing when I'm tired or stressed! 😜) to tackle some Christmas sewing. But first, I think I need to fuel up with something yummy for lunch ... & I thought I'd share my new fave lunch recipe with you. 😁 I struggle to find a good balance between yummy & healthy for lunch options ... It's often mid afternoon by the time I have a chance to eat, so I'm VERY hungry & want something quick to prepare. Why is it that so many 'quick' food options aren't as healthy for us?! 😜 I'm also a savoury-craving gal, as opposed to sweets. So on the weekend I experimented a bit with some flavours & healthy ingredients & came up with a delicious & pretty healthy savoury muffin recipe ...

MMMMMMMMM! Cheese & Chorizo Savoury Muffins. 😍 They're made with wholemeal flour (which you could switch for GF flour), almond milk & olive oil with flavoursome chorizo, chutney, tasty cheese, halloumi cheese, onion, mushrooms & herbs to make your tastebuds dance. 😉 I'm a bit naughty & serve mine with a favourite chutney & dollop of sour cream, but they'd be great with a ewe-gurt or labneh. They're DEEEEEEE-LICIOUS straight out of the oven, but almost as good reheated in the microwave for 40 seconds or so. They keep in an airtight container for at least three days ... They may last another day or two, but we'd eaten them all by then. 😝 They would also freeze well, I think, if you wanted to make a batch on the weekend to take a couple out each day for the next week's lunches. 

Enough teasing ... Here's the recipe ... ENJOY! 😁

Cheese & Chorizo Muffins

* 1 1/2 cups whole meal flour

* Salt, pepper, herbs (I used a dried Italian herb mix because I was too lazy ... Er ... Hungry 😜 to pick fresh herbs)

* 1 cup grated tasty cheese

* 4-6 diced mushrooms (depending on size)

* 1 small diced onion

* Chorizo, diced

* 180g Halloumi cheese, cut into 1/4" cubes

* Grated medium zucchini

* 3/4 cup almond milk

* 1 egg

* 1/4 cup chutney

* 1/4 olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

2. Place diced chorizo, mushrooms & onion in small pan & sauté until onions are translucent. Cool a little.

3. In large bowl combine flour, salt, pepper, herbs, grated cheese, diced halloumi, grated zucchini & mix through. Add chorizo, mushrooms & onions & combine.

4. In separate jug/bowl combine almond milk, egg & chutney & whisk together before adding to flour mixture along with olive oil & mix until just combined.

5. Line 10x3/4 cup ramekins with baking paper & divide muffin mixture between them.

6. Place ramekins on baking tray to make handling easier & cook for 15-20 minutes until firm to touch or a toothpick stuck into muffins comes out clean.

7. Cool for 10 minutes & serve with chutney & sour cream.

Let me know how you like my muffins if you make them. Bon appetite! 😉

And on that note ... I'm off to warm up a couple of muffins for my lazy-day lunch before getting stuck into some sewing thus afternoon. Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS

Catching Up ... AGAIN!!

Hello to all my lovely cyber buddies! I hope this hot, dry Monday (well ... It is in our corner of SE QLD. 😜) finds you well. I'm popping in to play catchup ... AGAIN! Catchup seems to be my default setting at the moment. 😜 The year has not only been odd, topsy-turvy, unsettled & muddly, it's flown by so jolly quickly that I think I'm just hanging on by my fingertips! 😳 Still ... The main reason I'm playing catchup this time is for a fun reason ... I spent a couple of days at the bottom of the 'hill' helping my Bestest-Buddy-Since-We-Were-Nine Lynette celebrate her half century. If you say it like that, it sounds like we're cricket lovers rather than middle-aged mischief-makers! Tee! Hee! Hee!

Lynette gathered a few of her tribe together to enjoy a birthday high tea at Dinmore Cottage ... & what a great time we had! I love that, as well as being best buds, Lynette & I kind of slide right in amongst each others' friends & never have a problem finding something & someone to chat about & to ... If you follow me! 😜 so ... Here's the group of us ...

Look at us all gussied up playing ladies! 😄 Well ... some of us had to pretend harder than others that we're ladies! Tee! Hee! Hee!

Here's the birthday girl ready to enjoy delicious treats ... & they certainly were DEEEEEE-LICEOUS! I confess, we all waddled away from the table. 😝

And yet somehow we all found room for birthday cake. 😜

Uh! Oh! They let her have a sharp implement! 😂 It was fantastic to help Lynette celebrate her special birthday, but even more special to realise we've helped each other celebrate 41 birthdays during our friendship. We've gone quite different directions in life, but whenever we get together time, distance & differences disappear. I feel pretty blessed to have someone in my life that knows all about me ... & sticks around anyway! 😜 She may not be my sister by blood, but she's definitely my sister by heart. ♥️ Our goal is to cause mischief together in the nursing home when we celebrate our centenarians. Half way there! 😂

And in other news ... All of that sugar must have sent my sewing mojo into a hyperactive spin, cos I actually managed a finish yesterday ... YAY! Remember a while back I showed you this pic ...

And I told you I was planning to make a new sample of this pattern ...

...my "Vintage Diva Backpack"? Well ...

Here is the new version ... It just needs drawstrings, which I forgot to get from the Marvellous Marion & Stupendous Steph when I picked up my supplies. Not a great pic as it was taken at night, but it gives you a good idea of the finished look. It just shows how a change of fabrics can completely change the look of a project to help you individualise it. On this new version, the stitchery has been swapped to a focus panel ... A great way to showcase your fave larger print fabric. Patterns & kits for this fun, handy & quick-to-make project can be found on the Quilters Angel online store site HERE  Don't forget ... If you're a Toowoomba/Highfields local, or passing through, you can save on postage & coordinate an order pickup with the lovely Angels. Just ring or drop them an email to coordinate.

And now ... I think I hear the kettle playing my song. 😜 Whatever you're up to this week, stay safe, keep stitching & keep smiling! 😁 Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS 

Catching Up!

You know ... I think I spend most of my life 'catching up'. I'm not sure I ever actually manage it & I often feel like the hamster in a clip I've seen who is running his little legs off, stops for a second to catch his breath & finds himself spun round & round before being flung out of the wheel. 😜 But ... Here I am, trying to catch up again. 😝 How have you all been? Well, I hope & staying positive in this topsy-turvy year. 

I'd love to show you all some sewing pics ... But I've been a bit of a slacker, with only a bit of machine sewing happening towards making a new sample for a pattern. But ... I CAN share a photo of a new pattern that I finished in September, but didn't have a chance to share ...

Ta da! This pattern is called "Champage Is Always A Good Idea" & includes instructions for two projects: a round-based drawstring wine bottle bag featuring the Champage stitchery, & a simple glass protector pouch with Suffolk puff flowers. Pop a bottle of bubbles & a pretty glass in the bags & you have a lovely giftie for a friend. Or ... Pack that glass & bubbly into a picnic basket with some yummy treats & enjoy a relaxing picnic. The pattern is available on The Quilters Angel online store HERE. Looking for Christmas giftie or Secret Santa ideas? Here you go. 😁 The Marvellous Marion & Stupendous Steph can also do up a kit for you to make your version of this fun set, or to gift to a friend. 😁

And speaking of picnics ... I toodled down our 'hill' last week for a play date with my Bestest-Buddy-Since-We-Were-Nine Lynette & while we didn't pack bubbles (both driving & being responsible grown ups! 😜) we did enjoy a picnic ...

YUMMO! Lots of tasty treats (that's kombucha in the glass, by the way, which technically does have bubbles. 😜) & ...

... Lovely surroundings. We were at the Roma Street gardens in Brisbane, a peaceful oasis amidst the busy city.

Here we are! Do you know how challenging it is to get a selfie when one of you is height-challenged?! Tee! Hee! Hee! Such a relaxing day of catching up with my bestie. 😊

For those of you who HAVE been sewing rather than picnicing ... I've finally finished the OPAM blog-hopping to update the spreadsheet for October. There are so many gorgeous projects being finished amongst you all! Well done to those with finishes this month & kudos to those of you stitching along on longer term projects, too. As I hopped around I saw progress shots of knitting, crochet, weaving, cross stitch, embroidery, paper piecing & more. What a lot of clever clogs you are! 😉 Our tally for October was ...

72 FINISHES!

And the winner of the random draw prize of a PDF pattern is ...

SUSAN W

Congrats, Susan! Drop me an email so I can send your prize.

And that's about it from me for now. I think it's time for a quick cup of tea before tackling dinner . Whatever you have planned for the weekend, stay safe, stay well, keep stitching & keep smiling! 😊 Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS