Sister's Choice Quilts

Iron Update

I have an iron update for you. My husband somehow became aware of my iron issues and went ahead and ordered a new iron for me!  I asked him why he didn't save it and give it to me for Christmas, and he said years ago I told him that if he ever gave me a household appliance as a holiday gift I would divorce him. Ahem. I have no recollection of that conversation, but anyway, it seems I have a new iron and a nice one at that. I told him I did not need an expensive iron, but he bought a very nice quality Rowenta. I believe it is around $160.

So let's compare them. I was quite vocal on how having a good quality iron didn't matter, the cheaper ones were just fine. I may have to reassess that judgment. First of all, let's compare the steam feature, shall we?

Here is my old deceased T-Fal. Steam vents, sure. But hang on to your hat. Below is a photo of the Rowenta:

Yowza. That is a lot of steam vents.  And let me tell you, they work. I was ironing a tiny unit for a block and when I hit the steam button, it literally blew the little piece right off my ironing table. Ok. That works. An especially nice feature is the larger vents right at the tip of the iron.

This pricier, higher-quality iron is definitely a higher functioning, improved version of the ordinary iron I had been using. The question is, is the higher quality worth the price if it will last only as long as the cheaper one? I am going to have to think about that. So far, I love it. It is hotter than my old T-Fal too.

Here is a picture of the box so you can see more details of the exact model I got.

My husband says if you have a better tool to do the job, you will be more efficient and therefore it is worth the extra cost. I think I am leaning in that direction.

There were only five of us for Thanksgiving dinner. Our daughter Sara and her husband Jeff, and our granddaughter Eva. It was a lovely meal. My son-in-law is a professionally trained chef, specializing in grilling, smoking, and barbecue. He provided the turkey, which was amazing. We had a lovely FaceTIme conversation with our son Ahren in Ireland, who is so excited to be coming home for Christmas this year. He is a bit nervous about COVID and the new variants.  Hope nothing happens to put the kibosh on his visit.

Hope you all had a terrific holiday if you celebrate Thanksgiving!

 

 

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecans

Several of you asked for the recipe I will use for my sweet potato casserole on Thanksgiving. Technically it is a yam casserole because I went out and got Garnet Yams, as so many of you suggested. The recipe that is most similar to the old one I lost is by Sara Welch at Dinner at the Zoo.  The secret ingredients are brown sugar and maple syrup. Here it is:

Ingredients for casserole

• 2 lbs sweet potatoes  I used Garnet Yams
  
• 3 tablespoons butter melted
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ingredients for pecan topping

• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 5 tablespoons melted butter
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a sheet pan with foil and coat with cooking spray. Prick the sweet potatoes with a fork and place them on the pan in a single layer.
• Bake the potatoes until tender, 45 minutes to an hour.
• When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them open, scoop out the insides and place the sweet potatoes in a large bowl.
• Add the 3 tablespoons of melted butter, milk, brown sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, egg and vanilla to the bowl.
• Use a potato masher or hand mixer to mash or beat the sweet potatoes until mostly smooth.
• Coat a 9 inch square pan or 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray.
• Spread the sweet potato mixture in an even layer in the pan.
• In another bowl, mix together the brown sugar, flour, melted butter and pecans until large crumbs form. Sprinkle the crumb topping over the sweet potatoes.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until topping is lightly browned.
• Let sit for 10 minutes, then serve.
  

Note:  When I used to make this casserole, I would bake the yams and assemble the casserole, minus the topping, the day before Thanksgiving. I would cover and refrigerate it until the next day. Before baking, I would remove it from the fridge for an hour or two, then uncover it, and top it with the pecan streusel. Bake as directed.

 

 

 

 

 

Countdown to Thanksgiving and a Question

More fall color. These trees are in my father's backyard. Three large Japanese maples. He lives in a modern-style house with plate glass floor-to-ceiling windows along the backside of his home. He sits in his chair in the living room and enjoys watching the nature show in his garden.

Well, this is going to be a busy week for most of us, I'll bet. It may be Monday, but a short week that involves a lot of pie and ends with shopping can't be all bad. I know what I'm cooking, who will be at the table, and what I will wear, but there is a lot to do to make it happen.

I need your help. My husband asked me to make a sweet potato casserole I used to make. You roast sweet potatoes, mash them with butter and brown sugar and top them with a pecan streusel. You can assemble it the day before (except for the topping) and bake it on Thanksgiving. It was bright orange and tasted delicious. Better than the version using canned ones with marshmallows on top 

So, here's the thing. I went to the store, and bought "sweet potatoes". They look like the third potato in the photo above. The palest one. Now, I recall my casserole being quite orange. Was I using yams? It has been years and my memory is fuzzy. Did I maybe use yams in the past? This casserole is going to be pretty insipid looking if it is beige. Should I go back and pick up the Garnet Yams I saw piles of at the store? Is that what people use?

Your advice will be much appreciated!

Quilt As You Go Table Runners

The other day I came across a YouTube tutorial from Shabby Fabrics on making a holiday table runner with a pre-printed quilt-as-you-go table runner batting. They had a June Tailor kit they were promoting, but the pre-printed batting is available without their choice of fabric for a much less expensive price ($16). You could totally use your stash and save yourself $50 for the kit.

It made me think how lovely it would be to make holiday table runners using this method. They are fast to make and people would love to receive them. 

I started rummaging through my patterns and found a lot of old ones that had a similar look. Obviously, they are not the quilt-as-you-go method, but still would be very quick to construct out of holiday fabrics for a great seasonal gift.

Alas, time is a major obstacle for me this year, and I doubt I will have time to make any holiday gifts. I need at least six more hours in each day. Sigh.

However, these quick and easy table runners are a great option for those of you with a decent stash and some time on your hands.

Tell us, do you make runners for people as a holiday gift? What other ideas do you have for quick, fun, holiday presents that people love to receive? Bowl cozies, zippered bags, table toppers....

David's Tea Advent Calendar

This is my advent calendar for the season. Eva and I love having an advent calendar to share and this is what we chose. I think I mentioned it before. It is kind of pricey, but I think we will enjoy it. Also, it looks nice out on the counter. It is from David's Tea, a Canadian company. 24 Days of Tea.

It's so darn cute. Each day we open the appropriate box and find a tiny canister of tea that serves two people. There are all sorts of fun holiday flavors with fun names like "Sleigh Ride", "Let It Snow", "Zest Wishes", "Candy Cane Crush", "Jingle Bell Chai" and so on.

What was super fun is that I was able to get a tea mug for Eva to use. It changes color when it is filled with hot tea!

Here it is empty.

Once filled with hot water, a design appears from the bottom up.

Here is the front.

And the back. She's going to love it! I tried to get her to try it out, but she refuses to use it before December 1.

Do you do an advent calendar with your kids or grandchildren?

That was quite a conversation we had about irons in yesterday's post! If you haven't done so, do go read all the comments. Thanks to so many of you for weighing in.

RIP T-Fal Iron

And another one bit the dust...

I have a checkered history with irons. Ozzie used to pull them off the ironing table and chew the cords through. He did that to two or three irons.

Besides that particular canine hazard to any irons under my roof, I seem to kill them off fairly quickly myself. After having several pricey Rowenta irons kick the bucket within a year's time, I really started to question the wisdom of spending much on an iron for sewing.

When I sew, I leave them on, sometimes all day if I am in my sewing room working on a project. That probably takes a toll. I have had very expensive irons, and quite moderately priced irons. I remember purchasing several cheap Shark steam irons at Costco back in the days when Ozzie regularly executed them.

The T-Fal iron in the photo at the top of this post has lasted me longer than most. I think I have had it over two years, maybe three. That is a record of longevity for an iron under my care. However, it started spitting yucky rusty water, naturally when I was ironing something white. Plus, it mostly won't turn on and heat up anymore, so I guess it's done. I haven't had much occasion to sew lately, so it hasn't been that inconvenient. 

What kind of iron do you recommend? Do you keep your irons for decades, or do they die on you quickly like mine do?  Do you spend much on an iron? I'd love to read your comments on the subject!

 

Thank You For Your Service

Here's my dad, about 75 years ago in his army uniform. He enlisted when he got out of high school and was shipped over to Europe with a few thousand other teenagers. He does not talk about his time in the army, except to say how exciting the transport ship was. All those boys had to sleep in shifts there were so many of them.

Today we honor all those who served. Our debt to them is great.

New Arrangement and Perfect Machine Binding

I took apart a couple of old fall arrangements and created a new one. I didn't have to spend a dime. I quite like how it looks with my new table topper.

That bird is so well camouflaged. Can you even see him? I am enjoying the colors in the little table topper. You wouldn't think aqua would work in a fall color scheme, but it works well.

I attached the binding on by machine and could not be happier with how it turned out! This technique is perfect to use with smaller projects where you never even see the underside of the piece.

Honestly, with thread that matches perfectly, you cannot even see those stitches. If you haven't tried machine binding, I urge you to give it a try. What a time saver. Check out Vanessa's tutorial.

The Magic Tree

In front of my father's house, there is a magic tree. It is some kind of Japanese maple that turns a beautiful reddish-orange in the fall. Violets grow underneath it, which flower in spring. There is something fairy-tale-ish about this tree. You may think it is an ordinary tree at first glance, but look a little deeper.

This is the backside of the tree.

Shouldn't there be a goose laying a golden egg, or a tiny princess chatting with a frog under those branches? Or at the very least, a tricky gnome? I think this tree looks like it belongs in a magic forest.

My husband and I decorated our living room mantle on Thursday. It looks very fallish, but I am not sure it rivals the tree in my father's front yard.

Not To Worry

Another table topper back from my quilter. I used Sandy Gervais fabrics for this one. I loved it when she designed for Moda. Her colors are so rich and saturated. I know she is still designing, but I am not sure for whom. Does anyone know? I miss her collections. I don't think I used an actual pattern for this quilt. I believe I used triangle papers. Each block is made up of two large half-square triangles in a color family, and two units made up of four smaller half-square triangles in the same color family.

I saw my doctor yesterday about my black-out issue on Monday while eating a sandwich. Some food I was eating got stuck partway down my esophagus and when I stood up to go get some water I keeled over in a faint. He explained to me that the esophagus is a very sensitive area controlled in part by the autonomic nervous system. If something is going wrong there (like food being stuck), blood will leave your brain and go to the affected area. When blood suddenly leaves your brain, you black out. That is exactly what happened. He is positive my fainting was directly related to that specific incident and not anything more dire. Of course, if it ever happens again I am going to be having a boatload of tests. 

Hope you all have a terrific weekend. October has definitely left the party and we are suddenly in gloomy grey November. I am really in the mood to sew, but I am at my father's so that will not be in the cards. Maybe this coming week if I have time I will cut out a few easy things I could stitch on my Featherweight at his house.