Tea Towel Tour 4 - International

The 4th round of the Tea Towel Tour is beginning today. This time we are including 15 international residents and 15 domestic. Go sign-up right now you know you want to!!

Long time...

Wow where has the summer gone? The last few weeks have been very productive since I have been home from work recovering from a minor surgery and loving every minute of it. Come on all day to craft and not have to go to work and wishing I was home crafting.

I kind of wish now I finished my degree to be a teacher then I could be home all summer with T and craft all summer long. I guess it is never to late just have to decide if I want to go back to school. I did not enjoy it the first time but then again being a payroll clerk is very boring the same thing every week. Ok Ok enough of the boring stuff I know why you all come here to see what I have been working on. That is why I visit most of your blogs.

I did finish those embroidery buttons for Average Jane from the giveaway last month. Then I went on an embroidery button kick and made some mushrooms and some turtles. Embroidery buttons are so fun to make because they are fast and cute. I use the buttons kits you can buy at almost any craft store.

After the button frenzy I knit a beanie for my nephew. This was my first hat and color changes. I feel like I am actually getting the hang of this knitting thing. I have been enjoying it so much lately that I have been neglecting my other crafts.

I sometimes wish I could devote all my time to one craft but I tend to be obsessed then get burnt out and move on to the next one then get burnt out on that one and move on, then the cycle starts all over. I enjoy it all just wish I could devote all my time to one to get better at it.

I did get have a few questions on the pincushions and thought I would answer then here.
Are they are not heavy?
-No they are just filled with poly fiber fill.
Are those fabric covered buttons?
-Nope, I used regular buttons that I bought at Wal-Mart
Could you strap them to your wrist?
-Yes, I might steal that idea.
I hope these answer your questions if you need more clarification let me know.

What kind of projects have you all been doing this summer?
~Bekah

The winner is....

Average Jane Crafter congratulations. Please contact me with your address so I can send your package at the end of the week.

Because I can not post without a picture above is what I was doing this weekend. I was on a bit of a pincushion kick.
~Bekah

Who Are These Kids?

This is T and I, today is our 10th wedding anniversary. I can not even begin to describe how it feels to me married for 10 years a whole decade. We had only know each other less than six months and were actually engaged longer than we were dating. It all happened so fast and so has the last 10 years. He is the love of my life and my best friend. I love you T! (I know you read my blog)

So in honor of of this day I will be doing a giveaway. I will be giving away some of my vintage patterns and some embroidered button (I have not taken pictures of them yet) The only thing you have to do to enter is tell me your most romantic story. It does not even have to be your own. You have until the 5pm on July 5th to enter.
~B

Homemade Ice Cream

As a kid the start of Summer always started fresh cherries and homemade ice cream. When I grew up and moved away from home the first thing I had to buy was an ice cream maker. Every year my brother and I come up with new flavors and have a great time comparing notes on new ice cream flavors. Some years we even come up with the same ideas since we are a bit alike.

I do not think I could imagine a summer without the sound of a whirring ice cream maker on the porch and the slight taste of salt on the first scoop of ice cream and scraping the ice hard ice cream stuck on the bottom of the bucket. OOOhhh that sure brings me back. Seeing my mom mixing the sugar and eggs until they were frothy and then adding the milk and half & half. Dad would then put the ice cream mixture in the mixer and start the motor and 45 min to an hour later we were in ice cream heaven on a hot summer night.

Soon after I got married I found out that not every family makes ice cream all summer long. What, how could that be possible? So since then it has been my main job to make ice cream for his family every summer. One summer (2 years ago) I made 10 batches for T's family reunion and boy was I ever tired since I also made all the baked goods for breakfast and snacks, and decorated the sheet cake. That was my burn out summer and I have only made a few batches each summer but this year I think will be the year of wonderful ice cream. Wonder why? I will tell you why.

Friday at work we were closing early and I hear the door open and I was no I want to close early you can come back later and I turn around and there is my Father-in-Law and said he said hey do you still want that ice cream maker. I said you are not teasing me right? He said no you can have it if you want and I said yes of course would there be any other answer. T's parents have a Simac Ice Cream Maker. It is a self-contained maker, they bought it 20 years ago and have maybe used it 5 times. I have drooled over it for well almost the whole time we have been married so about 10 years. They have always been a bit out of my price range that I am willing to spend on a ice cream maker. After all the excitement, I quickly left and went out to thier house my FIL loaded up the machine I chatted for half and hour and then went to the store to buy all the ingredients. I have since made 3 batches of ice cream. Vanilla, Raspberry and Strawberry which I had one scoop of each and boxed up and took it over to my in-laws tonight for a thank you. So this summer will be my ice cream summer. I have wanted to experiment with new flavors and this is the perfect way. So be ready for my successes and all my flops.

~B

P.S. It makes wonderful frozen daiquiri. (drinking as I type)