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| Gata (Armenian Pastries) |
Neighbor S called me, this morning, and said her husband had bought some pastries from a bakery and would I like to have some. I said, "Yes, please" and she brought over the entire box! Oh, my! I froze half of them to share with my daughter, when she comes down, next (mid-June, if all goes well). Then, I enjoyed a couple of them for my brunch! They were so good!
Today was a cooler day than yesterday, with a high of 87F. Yet another barefoot, sockless day for me! LOL.
Neighbor T called for our weekly Sunday chat and later, friend R called, too. My daughter called to say she was going to the fabric store to buy some yarn and asked if I wanted anything; I asked her to buy me some basic sewing thread, two reels of white and a reel of black, which she will bring down when she next visits.
In the afternoon, I set up my sewing machine on the dining table and treated myself to an afternoon of rather mindless sewing, piecing together small bits of scrap fabric to make blocks of "crumb" pieced patches. I've more or less finished all the smaller (less than 4-inches square) pieces of fabric that I had. What I am now left with are two baskets full of bigger pieces of scrap fabric! I don't want to use the bigger pieces of fabric for a crumb quilt; I'd rather use them for a different quilt top with larger patches, I think. Trimming the bigger pieces of fabric will result in more small scraps to be turned into crumb-pieced blocks!
In the evening, I watched news and, later, tried to catch a glimpse of the lunar eclipse. Unfortunately, a neighbor's overgrown pine tree blocked my view of the moon while the eclipse took place. By the time the moon rose above the pine tree, it was no longer eclipsed! Oh, well.
In the night, I video chatted with my daughter, as usual. She did her meal prep and cooking today:
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| Daughter's Meal Prep: a sweet potato and kale dish and a soup |
She had bought a 1 lb. bunch of kale and a type of Japanese sweet potatoes (she told me the name, but, I forgot what it was called); so both dishes have kale in them.
Today, I am grateful for:
- Neighbor S bringing me treats!
- Another warm day
- Phone calls and chats with neighbors, friends, and my daughter
- My fabric stash!
- A working sewing machine
Today's joyful activity was playing with fabric!
- Spot water the back garden (fruit trees and newly planted seedlings)
I hadn't heard the term crumb quilt before, so I looked it up. It's just as I imagined-sort of a crazy quilt with very little pieces. I like the looks of the pictures I saw and looking forward to seeing yours.
ReplyDeleteYes, crumb quilts are crazy quilts made with all the "crumbs" of fabric. There are some amazing crumb quilts, out there! A lot depends on the fabric one has and how creative one can get with the placement of the blocks.
DeleteWasn't it nice to be able to set up your sewing machine in the dining room & wander in your creativity. Those pastry do look so yummy. We saw the very full moon as it rose, but then the cloud covered blocked any chance of witnessing the eclipse. How lovely to be planning a next visit with your daughter.
ReplyDeleteIt was lovely to be able to set up the sewing machine, again! I was really in the mood for some recreational sewing! :)
DeleteThis next planned visit will be a much shorter one, but, she will be taking vacation time off, so, we'll try to do some fun stuff. :)
Was it Murasaki sweet potato? Your daughter's dishes look as delicious as always. As do the gata you were gifted by S.
ReplyDeleteI've been photographing items for sale this morning but I haven't finished editing the photos so won't be placing the adverts or contacting the Bristol company until later in the week now. When I've finished visiting all the blogs I read every day I want to do a long piano practice session and then settle down for an evening of reading.
Yes, that's what they are - Murasaki sweet potatoes (apparently, murasaki is Japanese for sweet potato, according to my daughter and she should know, since she minored in Japanese!)
DeleteYou've been busy! Enjoy your piano practicing and reading. :)
Well I never knew that. Murasaki means purple. I know several other terms for sweet potato but not simply "murasaki" on its own. Wow, crumb quilts look amazingly intricate. I'd imagine very therapeutic if you were good at that sort of thing. I for one would get in a proper mess if I tried! Shall we be seeing the fruits of your labours? Fancy getting a whole box of pastries. Sort of thing my sister would do!
DeleteElla
Oh, maybe I misunderstood my daughter! Since you've actually lived in Japan, Lady Ella, I'll go with your explanation. :) Crumb quilts are easy - you just sew pieces of scraps together until you have a big enough piece, then, trim to size and use them as your quilt blocks. Yes, I'll share photos when I have something to show. :) I didn't expect a whole box of pastries! I was delighted to receive them, though! :D
DeleteNot at all. It's quite possible that they call sweet potatoes murasakis, I just haven't heard it. (If I try it out one day and get laughed at, you know who I'll blame 😜!) In my region they were usually known as satsumaimo but I'm sure there are different types as well as different vernaculars. I'm looking forward to seeing the crumb quilt. The only way I would get one would be by eating cake in bed!
DeleteIt was my mistake, Lady Ella! I double checked my daughter's text and she very clearly wrote: "Murasaki sweet potatoes (murasaki is Japanese for purple)"! Somehow, I got that all mixed up! Thank you for pointing it out! I should learn to read properly! :D
DeleteThose pastries look delicious. Not long to wait to have your daughter visit you, nice that you are saving some pastries for her return. What a shame you couldn't see the lunar eclipse. I can't say I understand anything about sewing patches but rather intriguing.
ReplyDeleteThe pastries were definitely delicious! My daughter likes them as much as I do, so, she'll enjoy them when she comes down for her visit. No, not long to wait! :)
DeleteI would have liked to have watched the eclipse; they showed it on TV, during the news, but, it wasn't quite the same. Oh, well, maybe next time!
I enjoy patchwork piecing; I will share some photos, later. :)
I also had to look up crumb quilt. I'm not sure I would have the patience but I look forward to seeing your results one day! I did start cutting a few hexagons out of scrap fabric with the intention of joining them one day by hand.
ReplyDeleteSmart move to get your daughter to pick up the thread. It should be the easiest thing to buy but I often find it necessary to go out of town to get what I want.
I wanted to watch the lunar eclipse, too, and like you, all I could see was a glimpse of moon through the trees.
Our heat wave has broken but it is still mild and we have had more rain, and everything is a brilliant fresh green!
Crumb quilts are a good way to use up all those tiny scraps and I like it because there is no worry about accuracy in piecing, etc. I have a hexagon quilt I've been sewing, on and off, for years, now! English paper piecing - it's the first kind of patchwork I taught myself to sew, following instructions in a magazine!
DeleteIt was convenient to ask my daughter to pick up the thread for me, since she was already at the store. The fabric store will ship free of charge if you buy for $36 or more, but, there wasn't anything else that I really needed. Now, if I had been shopping at the store in person, no doubt I'd have found plenty of things I "needed"! :D
I'm sorry you couldn't watch the eclipse, either, Bushlady.
Glad your weather is milder and you've had rain; I'm sure the garden and plants are loving it!
How fun to play around on the sewing machine and get all those little bits into a bigger project. I should do the same with lots of scraps of paper in my studio. I've never had gata, but I am pretty sure I'd love it - it looks to be sweet and flaky (just like me).
ReplyDeleteI quite enjoyed playing with my fabric stash! :D Ha, ha, yes, the gata was sweet and flaky, and you said it, not me! :D
DeleteOh my, those pastries look delicious! Nice of you to freeze some to share. I am not sure I would not just eat them and go buy doughnuts at a later date, for my guests
ReplyDeleteThey were delicious, Anne. I was tempted to eat them all, myself, but, my daughter will enjoy them more than she would enjoy doughnuts! :D I might treat myself to a doughnut, though! :D
DeleteThe gata look delish! How nice to be able to set up your machine and be creative with your bits of fabric, do you do embroidery on top of the pieces, like I have seen some crazy quilts do? Your daughters meals look so yummy, I have heaps of kale growing in by veg patch.
ReplyDeleteThey were delicious! I have been looking forward to setting up the machine and sewing. But, today, I found out that I can't sit too long at it as my back started to bother me! I did a crazy pieced cushion cover with embroidery on top of the pieces, but, I will not be embroidering the crumbs that I am sewing, now. I haven't tried growing kale - maybe I'll try, next year!
DeleteYummy food pictures. I love pastries - they are such a weakness for me and those look delicious. Your daughter's food looks so good! I like when she shares her pictures with us :)
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to seeing what you are sewing.
I did get a few sections of my quilt repair project pinned and think I will repair it on the machine instead of by hand. Since there is no batting, it should be easy. I think the pattern is called wedding ring? Not sure.
The pastries were delicious! I, too, love pastries! I told my daughter that you like to see what she cooked. The non-soup dish has a Korean name and uses Korean spices and condiments. She told me what the name was, but, I didn't write it down.
DeleteRepairing your quilt in the sewing machine will get it done faster. Is it a double wedding ring quilt with interlocking circles?
Yes- they interlock and lap over each other.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds lovely; I'd love to see a picture of it. I used to want to make a Double Wedding Ring quilt for a long time, but, eventually gave up on the idea. A lot of rather precise piecing is needed!
DeleteThose pastries look amazing! I love the idea of a crumb quilt.
ReplyDeleteThe pastries were delicious and a crumb quilt might be a good project to do with Bear!
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