A Little Bit of this A Little Bit of That

I have been busy doing a little bit of gardening and a little bit of sewing and even a little bit of cooking! I am having fun with all of it. To the left is a color bowl I made for work. I used a rosemary arch to create a focal point then put down some sand and set in some small flat rocks to create a path. I lined it with some scotch moss and alyssum at the back of the arch to give a little showing of flowers. It looks like it could be a little fairy garden with the addition of some miniature items like a bird bath and maybe a bench to give it added charm. (Thanks for the ideas Maria!)

To the right is a hanging basket I planted for a customer. I did 2 of them and they are really huge. There are 3 cyclamens in the center and I think they measure about 16" across. They go with 4 planter boxes that have similar plants in them with small boxwoods in the center. They will be delivered Saturday so I hope Winnifred will enjoy them and that they will add the color she was looking for to her atrium.

I have been making some hot pads that I think I have already blogged about here, but I keep adding to the collection. I am still adjusting the pattern and thinking that they should be thicker. I have used the fish one and it works fine...as in I don't feel any heat coming through, but I still think another layer of thermal batting would give it more the weight that I am looking for. Sewing has been a lesson in patience and many other things for me lately...I guess I could say the same about gardening or just life in general. The important thing is that I am enjoying the learning process and try to look at failures not so much as 'failures' but, lessons learned on the road to perfection! I may never reach perfection, but I will enjoy trying. I had a lot of fun putting colors together for these potholders and playing with the binding. The whole process is giving me the urge to try another quilting project.

I also tweaked my cranberry relish recipe a few times this season. The latest version I created today and boy was it fun. I added an apple and some dried apricots, then when I was grating the orange peel I spied some limequats just laying around and that was just the inspiration I needed. I sliced them really thinly which is tricky in itself. There were little seeds in them that were easy to remove from the thin slices. The limequats mixed with the tart cranberries and other fruits were perfect! I have been craving cranberries the last few weeks for some reason so playing with this recipe has been really enjoyable (and tasty too!)