It’s snowing here, again. March was In Like a Lion and Out Like a Lion. So, I’ve been making lots of soup and other yummy cozy food. (Cozy is a word Iz has been using a lot too.)
I really do love soups, and I have a hard time cooking them so they are flavorful and full. But I think I did ok this time. This is a vegan pea soup with pita bread toast.
Here’s my recipe, without many measurements, because I usually use what I have.
1 bag of green split peas, soaked over night, then boiled for 1 hour before making the soup
1-2 onions, chopped
5-10 cloves of garlic (depending on your taste), chopped
handful of carrots, chopped
a few stalks of celery, chopped
about a cup of barley
2-4 tablespoons of curry powder
2-4 teaspoons of cumin
6 cups of veggie broth (more or less depending on how thick or runny you like your soup)
a few tablespoons of olive oil
Warm up the olive oil in a sauté pan (or the bottom of your soup pot so you don’t have to do more dishes), sauté onions until clear, then add garlic. Sauté for a few minutes add curry and cumin. Wait one minute, then add carrots and celery. Sauté until they are tender. I throw the barley in for just a minute and mix it all together. Then add the broth and the peas. Boil for 45 minutes to 1 hour, checking the peas for tenderness. At the end, I blend with my little hand held blender, not all the way, I like it a little chunky, not a full pureé.
Serve with Pita Toast:
Left-over Pita in the Fridge
olive oil or butter(yum!)
Italian seasoning
rosemary
roasted minced garlic
parmesan cheese
or anything yummy in your pantry
Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Cut pita into strips or triangles. Lay single layers flat on a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan (I throw them on and mix them together, they are not perfectly placed on the pan). Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle on spices and throw in the oven (careful not to spill pita). Let them cook for about 10 minutes, but keep a close eye, they turn quickly. We like them crunchy, right before they burn.
*A note about the soup: It was SO MUCH BETTER THE NEXT DAY! Much more flavor than immediately after coming out of the pot. The next time I make this, it will be at least a day ahead (if I can get my act together!).
Remind me to tell you about the black bean soup I made the next night – YUM! and served with . They were delish!
**Since I’ve emailed so many people with details on which machine to buy and what to look for, I thought I’d share my advice. Have anything to add – please let me know. I’d love to hear too how you decided on the machine you have. I hope this helps. LuckyStitches!!xxoo**
Let me also start by saying that if you are purchasing a machine for a young sewer, do not go to the store and buy the cheapest machine you can find, or the cutest one (I know, it was hard for me to not buy too – jeez).
Buy the kids (or yourself) a regular sewing machine. Chances are the cheapest or cutest machines don’t work, or don’t work well. The last thing you want to do is discourage anyone from sewing. Ever. A machine that constantly becomes unthreaded, or won’t sew through 2 layers of fabric just is not worth it. You will have wasted your small spending and either discouraged the heck out of a new stitcher or just wasted your money on nothing and have to buy a more expensive machine to get the job done.
Ok, off the soap box (for a minute at least – what can I say, I feel strongly about this).
First, who will be sewing? Is this a family machine? What projects do you hope to work on? What do you dream of making? Make sure your machine can live up to that dream. There are lots of things to think about, do you just want to make quilts? Want to make bags? Clothes? Curtains? Look for a machine that can sew through all sorts of thicknesses. Make sure the machine will sew through denim, canvas and leather (with the right needle and thread of course).
The basics you should look for in a machine:
Stitches – Straight and ZigZag
Adjustable Stitch Length and Stitch Width
Automatic Button Hole Option
Drop-In Bobbin Assembly
Metal Parts
Accessories
What does it all mean?
Stitches: You really, really, really don’t need the 5000 fancy stitches. really. In all reality, you just won’t use them. I know they are so tasty. And – well – think of the possibilities! but truth be told, if you are just starting out, you have miles to go before you need to embroider the entire dictionary with pictures on a pair of jeans. I know, crushing your dreams…I’m such a meanie.You really need a machine that does a STRAIGHT stitch and a ZIG ZAG stitch. Seriously. (and – you could really get away with just a straight stitch – imagine – years ago, that’s all they sewed with and stitchers were able to sew everything under the sun!) But if you got a machine with around 10-50 stitches, you’d still be golden.
What makes it all versatile is the ability to adjust STITCH LENGTH
and STITCH WIDTH.
Check before you buy. If you can’t adjust both of these important stitch charactertics, move on the the next machine. Being able to adjust the length and width of a stitch gives you a gaggle of options. If you can’t adjust one or both, your sewing will be greatly limited.
Automatic Button Hole Option:
While you can make button holes without it, they are less discouraging with the automatic stitch selector and the special foot (if it’s an option), plus they are a piece of cake – and who doesn’t like cake? On older machines, they are a whole separate accessory, if you buy an older machine, make sure this comes with it or you can find a used one to buy.
Drop In Bobbin Assembly:
There are two ways that a bobbin assembly is made. The drop in, where the bobbin is perpendicular to the needle or the vertical assembly, where it is parallel with the needle. I’ve sewn on both, and I have to tell you that the better machines are made with the Drop-In Assembly. The Vertical Assembly moves around too much and causes jams, screwy tension, unthreading and horrible headaches and might cause your kids to learn swear words (jsut kidding, but I’ve been known to use a few when sewing with these ugh). I’ve talked to machine manufacturers about the issue, and they swear up and down that there is nothing wrong with this, but of the kids who have machines like this, they pick it up right away (I love the young minds). And check out this cool post about!
Metal Parts:
There are machines out there with plastic parts. Don’t ever buy one. Ever. In fact if you can find a machine that’s all metal, including the shell, buy it. Currently, machines are made with a plastic shell. Not so great. But most importantly, the gears and shafts and parts inside need to be metal. They will last. Plastic won’t.
Accessories:
Depending on what you want to make, you need certain accessories to make it happen. Some are standard, others are not. Your machine should come with a selection of feet, the bare minimum being a standard foot and a zipper foot. There are so many accessories out there. If you are going to quilt, perhaps a walking foot and a free motion foot. If you are sewing canvas and denim a walking foot. Planning on sewing a ton of buttons, then you’ll need a button foot too! Google your machine or check the manual to see what accessories come with it as well as what you can order for it. Make sure it meets your sewing dream requirements.
Do Your Research
Google machines, read other sewers reviews, ask around. Check this site – has GREAT information on sewing machines : It’s important to make an educated purchase. Not sure about a machine that you are researching? Ask questions, call dealers find out more. The more you know about what you are going to buy, the better.
Have you found a machine? Then you need to…
Try Before You Buy
Sit down and try it out. Have a friend that has a sewing machine? Have a dealer near by? Your Auntie Jane might love her machine, but is it the right one for you? You won’t know until you sit down and try it. Borrow a friends or visit a local dealer and try the machines, try them all. It will give you a feel for what your options are.
Try the different stitches, ask for a demonstration, spend about 30 minutes and use up all the scraps, get a feel for what the machine can do and what you want it to do. (You don’t need to know how to sew, the dealer or person who owns the machine can help you, just ask them, it’s ok!) Just ask yourself, “Self, is this comfortable? Do I like how this sews? Is the machine smooth”. Is the machine heavy? or Light? Does it vibrate across the table when you press all the way on the foot pedal? Will you be taking the machine to classes and sewing circles or sewing at home? It’s really important to ask yourself all these questions Don’t be afraid, just try the machines ask people questions, you will know which one is right for you.
Where do you buy a machine?
Well, lots of places sell them. I prefer many of the older models (from the 60s and 70s), they are metal and can pretty much sew through anything (with the right needle and thread), plus if you find one that has all the accessories and has been well taken care of, you’ll probably have it for the rest of your life! Check your local sewing machine dealer. Or your local . The paper might have them too. You can even check your local . Tag sales and thrift stores are great places too! You could find fantastic machines for $20,$30 $50!!! Big Box stores like Wal*Mart and Target are not the places to get sewing machines. These stores noodle their vendors into submission to create sub standard machines, making us – the consumers think that we are getting a quality deal, when in fact, we would be buying junk. Buy from a local sewing machine dealer or fabric shop, You’ll get a much higher quality machine. It’s really worth your time to shop around. Do your research, ask questions of everybody and make an educated purchase. If you buy a used machine, sit down and make sure it sews before you hand over the cash. You will be sewing in no time.
I’ve always been fascinated with quilts. Not only do I love the patterns, textures, pieces, colors but I love that they are meant to be cozy and keep you warm and even tell a story. I’m fascinated by the master quilters who can slice and dice fabric and stitch it into amazing shapes with color placement that makes me swoon, literally.
I think you know that at I offer classes to HomeSchoolers. Well, I’ve declared April to be Quilt month, and we are going to be making quilts! Let me tell you that I am no master quilter, by any means. I can’t stand cutting (but my rotary blade has certainly helped with that). I have made a quilt before, and I loved it! I still love it. Iz loves it too. They make for wonderful keepsakes. They also tell stories. I’ll be sharing resources with the kids so they can understand the history, passion and art in quilts too.
For this class, however, we won’t be going to the fabric store to make our quilt tops, we are going to be looking in the closet. Using clothes, linens, towels, blankets, anything made of fabric or fabric scraps. We’ll be making the ultimate in scrap quilts, turning something that doesn’t’ seem to have a use anymore (pants that don’t fit) into something eternally useful (a quilt!). For years I’ve used old sheets, blankets, towels and clothes and made them into something new, preventing the “old” item from going to waste or ending up in a landfill (did you know that the dyes used in coloring fabric are mostly toxic? You can read more or ). Hopefully, by making these quilts, we can also raise awareness of our use of textiles, how they are made, thrown away or even better – re-used.
Here’s our tentative schedule if you want to participate or follow along:
Week 1 – Cutting. We’ll be cutting our found items into 3″ strips. We’re going to be holding on to all our scraps and perhaps use them along the way or figure out something new to do with them.
Week 2 and 3 – Sewing. We’ll be sewing our strips together. End to end then strip to strip. We’re just going to keep sewing until we have enough for a quilt that’s about 50×50 ish.
Week 4 – Quilting. We’ll be safety pin basting our quilts together, using batting if necessary and attaching a back. Then we’ll quilt it all together either machine quilting or tying.
Week 5 – Binding. Maybe using scraps or linings or something left over, we’ll stitch together strips for a binding and sew it on.
I’ll be posting inspiration, photos and stories along the way.
**Remember, I can sew, but I’m not a super duper quilter. I’ll be showing the kids some super basic techniques. Hopefully, this will give them the foundation they need to go and either take another quilt class or start on another quilt or even make their own pattern. Whatever the outcome, they will have made something that is eco conscious as well as get more practice sewing, and have it for the rest of their lives (as long as mom doesn’t clean up their rooms and throw everything out that’s on the floor…not that these will end up in a pile somewhere…).
I hope you’ll follow along. Even better if there are kids in your life who can follow along too! And if you do decide to participate, please let me know.
I’ve been thinking a lot about the ocean lately. Maybe it’s all the salt water I’ve been making. But seriously, I’ve always loved the ocean, the water, the ocean life, the warm sand between my toes. (In case you were wondering, it’s snowing now. It snowed last night. Perhaps this is my Ode To A Warm Beach?)
I’m so in love with his illustrations. The patterns from nature leave me speechless.
Urchin Bowl – be sure to check out her tiles. Amazing.
Hand Felted Sea Creatures from in her .
in . (say that one 5 times fast…)
likes too.
I just added to Netflix. I have wonderful memories of watching him under water. I remember thinking that I would have a career around oceans.
from would be a great little hat or spring coat or summer pants for Iz.
About 4 or 5 years ago I had my done. It was a fantastic experience. I remember quite a bit, but what I remember most is what Andrea said at one point. “The next 9 years of your life will be most creative.” I probably say that to myself every day, a few times a day. It makes me tingle a bit. And of course, it is most meaningful, since then, I’ve created another life, I’ve created a business, friendships, projects, gardens and so much more.
I find myself inspired all the time. So many ideas running through my head, projects, colors, fabrics, classes, blog posts, books, music, movies. Sometimes, I can’t even write them down fast enough, but I try to do at least that. Whenever it hits, I write it down. Somewhere. I have sketchbooks and notebooks galore, and I always refer back to them, write on old pages, tear them out to put on the board.
This morning, I couldn’t stop to clear the breakfast table before I got a pile of things and spread them out. A few W magazines from my visit to the library yesterday. Some Iz art. Some big buttons (I’m making a coat…), clay prints we did the other day, (I like the Morning Americano), a star “sno globe” from my and of course my .
I am a huge Franklin fan after being Franklin-ized at a corporate job almost 10 years ago. I love that everything has a place, that I make a record and I can plan, plan and plan. I have tabs for , for this blog, for other big projects too soon to mention. It’s something that helps clear my mind and get things started and accomplished. I end my few minutes in my Franklin every morning with jotting down “dishes” and “laundry”, along with a blog idea or two.
I know, I don’t ski, but I am still in love with the sport. There is still skiing up here, so I’m not crazy for offering this now. It’s such a striking sweater. So simple and graphic, yet completely sophisticated. It’s in excellent condition and would look ravishing on anyone. In my .
I’ve been typing this post over and over to explain the rush I get looking through our wedding photos. I can’t possibly show you enough pictures or tell you enough stories so you’d understand, but hopefully you will. Those of you who were there will remember what a fun time. There are so many pictures, they all make me smile and laugh and get teary. I can’t believe it was only 8 years ago. So much has happened, yet it feels like yesterday. Good times with great friends and family. Every time I flip through our wedding album, I want to get married again. I cried when the day was over, who would want this to end? It really hasn’t. Married life (certainly has it’s ups and downs), but I love love love my family. I am so grateful for my relationship. And it’s really been more like 18 years. But who’s counting. We are just getting started. xxooZ
Can’t you see a little boy, wearing this over a white shirt and navy shorts, running around during an egg hunt scooping up the eggs before other kids can put their hands on them? Maybe it was a favorite aunt who crocheted this vest for a special occasion. I love the change in spacing in the stripes, and I really, really love the tiny bands. Its the same stitch, but on a smaller hook. Just in time for spring, in my
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