Crocheted Basket

A couple of weeks ago I started crocheting another lace cloth.  I accidentally forgot to increase the number of stitches after a few rounds and I ended up making a basket.  Here are a few pictures of the different places I could use it.

For Flowers

For Dish Clothes

A sewing basket

A cosmetic basket

I like the flower one best I think.

The Root Cellar: Spring Wreath

The Root Cellar: Spring Wreath

Spring Wreath

Even though it doesn't feel like spring, I take great comfort in knowing that in a month or so the temperatures will hopefully stay above zero and the snow will be gone (That's not guaranteed though).  I am also glad that I can begin the spring crafts.  Today I started with a wreath.

I didn't have a wreath to start with so I made that too.  Wire from a two twigs of flowers, joined with wire.

Covered in Quilt Batting

Then with lace.

 Then I added the white and purple twigs with hot glue.   I then used Mod Podge to add some fabric to wooden hearts.  Added a bow too.  It looks great!

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

We have sweet potato at least a couple of times a week.  One of our favourite ways is to bake them as Fries.
They are simple.

First cut the potato the same way you would for regular fries.  Toss in a bowl with about a tbsp of oil.  Spread on a cookie sheet.  I have started using a silicone sheet on my regular cookie sheet.  Works well and easy to clean up.  Otherwise, I recommend parchment paper.

I usually season with garlic powder and a sundried tomato and garlic seasoning (No salt).

Bake until crisp on 350 for about 25 minutes.  To brown both sides, you may want to turn them and place them in for another 10 minutes.  (Note:  Oven temperatures vary, so keep and eye).

Stuffed Mushrooms

I love stuffed mushrooms!  I thought I would try a new recipe this evening based once again on the ingredients that I already have.

I used large white mushrooms, onions, sodium reduced turkey bacon, garlic, and cream cheese.

They were yummy!!  Especially with chicken and sweet potato fries (I'll also post these).  The chicken was from Costco.

I started by taking the stems from the mushroom and chopping them with onion,one slice of cooked turkey bacon, and a couple of shakes of garlic powder.  I cooked these with a small amount of oil for about 10 minutes on a low heat setting.  When it was done, I let it cool a little and added about 2 tbsp of cream cheese-- low fat of course.

I then put them in the oven on 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.  Done.

Southern Bars-- Makeover

Today, I crave chocolate.  Therefore, when I started thinking about what I would prepare for desert, I though about the Souther Bar recipe that I got from Eileen Chant when I lived in LaPoile, NL many years ago.  It was in 1989 when I took my first teaching position.

However, when I looked at the recipe and my grocery cupboard, I realized that I did not have the ingredients that I needed.  Okay that was fine-- substitute.  

I will however provide both recipes.  

Original Recipe:

Place the following items in a square pan in layers.

1/4 cup melted butter.

 1 cup Graham wafer crumbs.   (mix together in pan and press for crust)

1 cup coconut

1 cup nuts

1 cup chocolate chips.  

Pour a can of sweetened condensed milk on top.  Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees F.

All I had was butter, coconut and condensed milk.

Here's my makeover:

1/4 cup melted butter

1/3 cup crushed almonds

1 cup flour

Combine these ingredients and press in square baking pan for crust.

Add

1 cup coconut

1 cup chocolate bar crushed ( I used aero and dark chocolate combined.  Dark chocolate is good for you right?:)

1 cup crushed almonds

Top with sweet milk

Bake for 20-25 minutes on 350 degrees.

Then wait to cool, if you can.  The chocolate will harden again.  The sweet milk had sunk through the coconut and they will be chewy.  My only concern with these was the crust difference.  
The verdict is they are delicious!!!  Yummy

Chair Mat

I enjoyed crocheting with lace last week, so I decided to use  a similar project to make a chair mat.  The chair is about 50 years old and it was made by my Great Grandfather Rogers.  The spindles were actually carved using a pocket knife.  It is meant to be a child's chair to transition between an high chair and a regular chair.  Anyway, I was only a baby when he died and he said the chair was mine.  I have kept it all these years and now decided to spruce it up and do a mat.

The pattern I used was for a round doily.  I use the same type of hook as you would use to do a rag rug-- very large, but I don't know the size.  The material I use is below in the second photo. It started with a chain of 5.  Then join with a slip stitch to make a loop.  I then made one chain and in the loop I did 8 single crochets.  Joined with a slip stitch to the chain.  Following this each row followed a pattern.

Chain 1.  2 Single crochet in first of the single crochet of the first row.  *Then 1 single crochet in next single crochet. 2 single crochet in next.**  Repeat from * to **.  Join with a slip stitch in the first chain.

Chain 1.  2 Single crochet in first of the single crochet of the previous row. * Then 1 single crochet in next  2 single crochet. 2 single crochet in the next**  Join with slip stitch.

Chain 1.  2 Single crochet in first of the single crochet of the previous row. * Then 1 single crochet in next 3 single crochet. 2 single crochet in the next**  Join with slip stitch.

Continue enlarging in this manner until it is the desired size.  (That is the next row will have 1 single crochet in the next 4... )

Here are some pictures.

This is the material that I use to crochet.

Crocheted Lace

While visiting my parents a couple of weeks ago, I noticed that my mother was crocheting a rag rug.  She was using strips that she was cutting from fabric and  sewing them together.  I plan to do one of these.  However, for practice and because I had lace that I didn't have other plans for, I decided to try one out of lace.   I am pleased with it since it was my first time attempting anything like this.

To crochet this, I Googled a pattern for a rag rug.  There are lots on-line.  The one I used suggested that I begin with 22 chain.  I knew that I wouldn't have enough lace to make anything too big, so I started with 7.

I used cotton lace.  

 And a very large crochet hook.

A close up look of what it looked like.

 I liked it under my flower pot wagon.

 I also tried it on a table that my dad made for me.  I still have not painted it yet.  That's another decision I will have to make-- what color?

Curtain Makeover-- Get rid of the tabs

Before Christmas, I did another curtain makeover for Blake's bedroom.  The curtain toppers had tabs and they just didn't look right.   I used a pattern made by Simplicity #9846.  I have used it before and I am yet to be disappointed in the results.   Some of these pictures were taken at night, so it's difficult to get a really good picture.

This was the curtain that I started with:  Two tabbed toppers and some brown material.  I needed to add a strip of brown to the bottom to make them longer and to add a rod pocket on the top instead of the tabs.

I sewed the two curtains together as can be seen below.  Then I sewed the strip on the bottom and added a brown lining as well.  I made the folds as per the pattern and then sewed the rod pocket to the top.