Happy Mother's Day! And More Macarons

Yesterday I visited Laduree on Madison Ave (& 71st) before going to my Empire Guild meeting in NYC. It was fairly busy, being the day before Mother's Day, but it was actually fun standing in line as everyone chose their flavors. And what a beautiful store this is.  I was a little disappointed that there were no tables where you could enjoy some tea and macarons but I brought mine to Rockefeller Center and sat outside near the skating rink. 

As you know, I'm learning how to make French macarons. It was good to experience the "ultimate" macaron so I know what I'm aiming for. They have one called Rose. It actually tastes just like a tea rose smells. It was more amazing than delicious. But amazing is good too. One is called Lily of the Valley. I've never seen that offered as a flavor. Same with Lime Basil.

It seems that all the flavor is in the filling. The shells are colored and they have a wonderful light and chewy texture, but they don't contribute to the individual flavors. The Vanilla is light and heavenly. And the Lemon (Citron) is awesome too. They have 30 flavors, but at any one time there are about 12 available. That keeps customers coming back to see what's new.

 

There's a Laduree in Dublin, Ireland too. I plan to visit in June. 

Here's my latest batch: Hazelnut (Nutella filling). The batter was a beautiful bright pink at first, but it turned very pale with baking. Maybe I need a different kind of food coloring.

I hope you have a very sweet Mother's Day.

Improvisational Quilts

1. Any exhibit of improv quilts has to start with a Gees Bend quilt. This one is from the Mattress Factory.

2. Bold quilt from the TINWOOD Media site.

3. Gee's Bend quilt from a postcard image on Zazzle.

4. "Hands" by Sarah Taylor from PC World.

5. Soft colors  from Stitch DC Blog.

6. Another Gee's Bend quilt; this image is from Design Squish.

Which one do you like best? I think my favorite is #6. I like the wandering triangles and the busy 1960's style prints.

Happy quilting!

Rug-Hooking Frames by The Needleworks

My friend Jan and her husband Darry make and sell beautiful rug hooking frames. Jan brought one to my house recently to show me. Excellent quality and nice features. Take a look at their website: The Needleworks Shop. 

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The photo above is the "Gypsy Rose Wool Hooked Rug" by Rosenberry Rooms. I like this design: a combination of log cabin and applique. Haha. Very charming. 

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Nifty Quilts made a beautiful quilt inspired by this hooked rug. See it here. 

Homemade French Macarons!

These are my first macarons! The first two tries didn't result in anything you could put on a plate. Haha. These are actually pretty tasty too. They're made with confectioner's sugar, blanched almond flour (sifted), egg whites at room temp., granulated sugar, a pinch of salt, a pinch of cream of tartar, and a squirt of green food coloring. The filling is vanilla buttercream frosting. Baked at 300 degrees (convection) for 11 minutes on a silicone baking mat. I learned a lot from the baking blogs and YouTube videos. But some things I had to discover for myself. For example, if you get even a smidgen of egg yoke in the bowl, it won't get frothy. Toss it out and start over. But this is fun and I'll do it again. 

Join My Classes at the New England Air Museum Quilt Show!

The New England Air Museum Quilt Show will be September 16-22 in Windsor Locks, CT! In addition to the show, there will be 10 classes to choose from and 4 are taught by me! Sign up, we'll have a blast! Here they are:

1. Fantastic Fan Blocks (click title link for details)
(No paper or foundations. This is easy. And I'll show you how to make fans in other shapes too, not just squares.)

2. Raw-Edge Tile: For Fussy-Cutters & Fabric Lovers (click title link for details)

(Great for all skill levels. Bring bits of your most interesting fabrics. We'll trade some too.)

3. Little Red Zinger Selvage Quilt (click title link for details)

(Make a souvenir of your stash, quick and easy. Lots of fun.)

4. Trip Around New England: A Stash-Busting Scrap Quilt (click title link for details) 

(You'll love how easily this goes together. It's a real stash-buster! Hint: You won't be cutting lots of little squares to make this!)

Click here to see all the classes. Call your friends and make plans now. This will be such fun! 

Macarons Quilt is Coming Along

I'm liking this quilt. All the vertical rows are sewn. My DH took a look and said, "Shouldn't you organize them more? Or else make them completely random?" Haha. Maybe I'll try those ideas sometime, but I like this bakery display inspired arrangement. 

 I tried making real macarons for the second time yesterday. They are elusive little treats; the batch had to be thrown away. They were mushy and sticky on the inside. The batter was too wet. I think the problem was that I measured the confectioner's sugar and almond flour first, then sifted it. The particles that didn't go through the sifter were thrown away, but it amounted to about 1/8 cup. I should have sifted first, then measured. Here's a very good video about making macarons.

Design Wall Update - Macarons!

I recently discovered French macarons. The ones I tried at La Maison de Macaron in NYC were wonderful, and I love the beautiful display cases with these colorful little cookies all lined up. 

This quilt was inspired by displays of macarons. Take a look below and see what I mean.

There will be a pattern for this quilt. Stay tuned.

 I wish I could give you all a macaron. Have you tried them?

Creative Friday

Tang Yau Hoong is a self-taught illustrator from Malaysia. To see many more illustrations by this artist, visit this page.

Have a creative weekend!

Bluebirds Quilt Pattern

This simple one-patch quilt has a charming grid of 25 "bluebirds" in the middle. The light prints give it a fresh,  modern look. Early one morning the sun was shining a bright spot in the middle of this quilt. Isn't it pretty? 

See the pattern for Bluebirds. View all my patterns here. 

Please spread this around for me: FB, Pinterest, etc. Thanks!

Here's the whole quilt. It measures 61" wide x 77" long, but it's easy to make it any size you like.

Etsy now provides immediate downloads. 7 Pages. Turn your scraps into beautiful quilts.

New Pattern: Little Flags

This new quilt looks like little flags fluttering in every direction. A light and airy modern quilt with a traditional saw tooth motif. I love how Maika Christensen machine quilted this for me! 

Take a look at the pattern.

The photo was taken at Laurel Ridge Farm in Litchfield, a few miles from my house. There must be a million daffodils in bloom there now. The owners invite the public to visit during daffodil season. We go there often.

It's My Birthday! The Big 6-Oh!

 Landmark birthdays don't usually phase me, but I've seen this birthday coming for about a year now. My quilting buddy Helen says I'm just now hitting my stride. Okay, I'll go with that. Thanks, Helen!

Isn't this sewing machine amazing? It was made by my niece Amelia who lives in Vermont. She's 15 and very talented and creative. When she asked what kind of a cake I wanted, I said something pink and crazy. This really surprised my socks off! The "fabric" is fruit roll-ups. The thread is an Oreo cookie with extra layers of filling. (Without my glasses, it really looks like thread!) And look at the stitch length dial! Hehe, a cracker with dabs of chocolate. And there's a big cookie on the right (around the corner; you can't see it) for lifting the needle. The presser foot and needle is made from two packages of Pez candy. The part of the cake above the needle (the arm?) was made from Rice Krispie treats. The cake is vanilla and the frosting is vanilla cream. It was yummy too. We had so much fun. I sent a photo via phone to my quilter sister in MI. Right away she wanted to see a photo of the back too. Haha. Thanks, Amelia! XOXO

Sneak Peek at Sea Breeze Quilt

My new quilt "Sea Breeze" was expertly machine quilted by Maika Christensen in Utah. 

I think she did a fabulous job! Thank you for making my quilt so beautiful, Maika! For her email address, see Comment #1.

Today I'll bind and photograph the quilt, and then show you the whole thing tomorrow. There will be a pattern too. Happy quilting!

Springtime in Rhode Island

Yesterday my DH, DS and I went to Newport, Rhode Island to enjoy springtime. It was beautiful but cold and windy by the ocean. These photos were taken at Blithewold Mansion, Gardens and Arboretum. 

Then we had a delicious seafood dinner at the Mooring in Newport (photo below is from their website). I had the swordfish which was wonderful. We arrived early for dinner and it was nice and quiet. By the time we left it had filled up and was pretty noisy, so I recommend off-hours if you like quiet. 

Just one more photo: Marble House, below. Isn't it a classic? I think this should be the location for our Selvage Blog Summer Retreat. :)

Aleesa Kobi's New Selvage Quilt

Aleesa Kobi's beautiful new selvage quilt is called "On Edge." It measures 62" x 83." It was something of a family project as her mother-in-law contributed her selvages and her husband Jeff Rehwaldt of Deerwood Quilting in Kasson, MN machine quilted it! You don't hear that every day! Jeff used the Wind Swirls pattern by Dave Kapka. The quilting thread is So Fine Pearl.

For foundations, Aleesa used recycled dryer papers. What a good idea.

Nice work, Leesa!

Susan's Finished Top!

Susan finished her quilt top yesterday and here it is. She and her quilting buddies took this photo. They all loved the quilt, of course. Yayy, Susan! Nice work!

Can you guess how many scrappy rectangles there are in this quilt? 442! It sounds like a lot, but when I made mine, it didn't even take a noticeable bite out of my stash. 

Susan's Sunshine Quilt!

Susan Lewis in Jerusalem is making the Sunshine Quilt! Isn't this fabulous? I love how the center is so warm and sunny, and the borders are cool. She said the quilt is fun to make. I think so too. Nice job, Susan!

Selvage Tote Pattern Available

The pattern for this charming selvage tote is available from Karen Neary here. Nice work by Edda.

It measures 14" x 14" x 5."

Etsy Enables Immediate Delivery of PDFs!

Starting today, when someone buys a PDF pattern on Etsy they receive it immediately!

That's good news for quilters in far-away time zones who don't have to wait for me to wake up. 

When we're ready to sew, we don't want to wait around, right?

Here's my newest pattern: The Stacks, a modern scrap quilt. Isn't it pretty? This is fun to make too.

Photo - First Prize!

My photo "Teatime" won first prize Tuesday evening in Southbury, CT! The competition is stiff (especially with my Mom also being a camera club member!), so I was delighted. Haha.

Jewelry With Water

The beads on this necklace have water in them! This is the creation of Vivi in Charlotte, NC. She also has  earrings. See more of her work at Sun n Moon Cafe.

Blue Selvage Organizer

 A first selvage project from Sand and Sunshine in Florida: a "sewing machine organizer and serger thread collection bag."   The blue selvages were a gift from her friend. It took only one day to make this. What a nice neat job too! Now she can find her scissors and tape measure. Thanks for the inspiration!