Our Mystery class was sew much fun!
We laughed a lot and ate a ton!
And lest you want to be outdone,
You'll have to come to the next one!

March 9, 2010

Hi Friends!!

Geezie-Pete! What a fun day we had at our Mystery on Sunday! We had a full house of anxious sleuths eager to get to the business of following the clues to their beautiful solution! And...we had wenches! Boyo-boy! We had fabulous wenches!! The wench-brigade could un-sew a seam before the sleuth even realized she was headed down the worng path! There's no emotional involvement for the wench who is ripping, and there is no emotional ripping on the part of the sleuths! It's all good! Wenches pressed the seams, adjusted machines, delivered the food, cleaned up the mess....and the sleuths just had a ball and made their quilts...despite themselves! Gotta love it!
We had two surprise-guests join us for the fun on Sunday. Baby Charlotte, my granddaughter who just turned 7 mos. old, was there for an hour or sew and charmed the crowd. And then Kay Appel, our employee/friend stopped in to visit for the day, and we presented her with a beautiful quilt stitched with love by the staff. You can see pictures of Kay and her quilt on my facebook page. In the meantime, we'll get some pictures on our website this week, too.
I'm thinking we should be naming our Mystery events EPCOT classes ~ Every Person Comes Out Tired!! [But happy!!] As soon as our staff, the wenches, an ME catch our breath, we'll think about scheduling another of these super days-of-fun! If you don't want to wait until I can put another together here at the shop, consider signing up for my Mystery Class late this month at the Original Sewing & Quilt Show in Cleveland at the I-X Center. Visit www.sewingexpo.com for more details and for registration information.
On a more personal note ~ by now I'm sure most of you know our employee and dear, dear friend, Susie, (our Ambassador-of-Love) who was diagnosed with AML Leukemia several years ago. Her prognosis was grim, to say the least, and she was gravely ill for a very long time. Susie was (among other things!) the inspiration behind my FREE hospital gown pattern (download at www.lazygirldesigns.com/hospitalgown.php ). She had her 5 Year Check-Up yesterday with her awestruck oncologist who pronounced her "Cured!!". Her journey has been nothing short of a miracle, and her doctor confirmed as much every time he saw her. She has been medically released from her oncology doc! If you're lucky enough to know folks who've survived illnesses or accidents, despite odds to the contrary, you learn very quickly to appreciate every moment of your life. Live with gratitude and live fully. Don't put off 'till tomorrow what should be celebrated today! We love you, Suz...and we love what you've taught us!! You ROCK!!
Meanwhile...back at the shop....Linda has organized a wonderful Machine Embroidery Block-A-Month program set to begin in April. The project is Garden Club from Smith Street Designs. To see this beautiful quilt, stop in our shop or visit www.smithstreetdesigns.com. For anyone who signs up before the project launches, here are the details: The pattern is $36.00 and must be purchased the first month. The project will last for 10 months and each kit is $20 (+ tax and shipping if appropriate). Thread and stabilizer is not included. Finishing kit for quilt measuring 67"x 85" is $39. Finishing kit for quilt measuring 87"x 105" (our sample) is $89 and will involve 36 more embroidered blocks. If you decide to join this fun program after it launches, there may be a difference in kit prices. We will NOT kit individual blocks. Feel free to contact us with any questions, or to register for the program.
Our MARCH SPECIAL IS ~ EMPTY-A-BOLT - 20% OFF! And to give a hand to those thinking about that great B.O.M. project, this week's Hot Stuff is ~ All Embroidery Thread and Packaged Stabilizers - 30% Off!
On Wednesday, March 17, I'll be teaching the Oh, Buckeye! quilt class all day. [And...I'm bringing lunch!]. There is NO CHARGE for this class if you purchase the kit. If you want to join us for the day to finish a project you started here and need help (or a fun gang of girlfriends! -and lunch!), -or- if you want to take a class from me that we just never seem to get around to, "Come on down!" There will be a $40 class fee if you are beginning a new quilt project that day (ex: French Braid, One Block Wonder, Lemoyne Star, etc). There is NO CHARGE if you are finishing something from a previous class, or you purchase one of our In Stock pre-cut kits (any kit). Sew, Faith and Begorah.....put on your green and come hang w/ me on St. Paddy's day!
Here are a couple of the recipes from our Mystery Class, plus another just because I feel like Spring may be here one-of-these-days, after all!
RITA'S FRESH ASPARAGUS RISOTTO (I can crawl into a bowl of this and eat my way out!)
3 C. water
2 C chicken broth
2T butter
1lb fresh asparagus trimmed and cut into 1" pieces
1 onion, chopped
1/2 bag shredded carrots
1 C. Arborio rice
1/3 C. white wine
1/2 C. sour cream
1/4 C. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 C toasted pecans
Heat water + broth to simmer. Reduce heat to low. Melt butter in large skillet and saute asparagus, onion and carrots until onions are tender. Add rice and stir. Add wine and stir. Keep heat at a high simmer. Stir in 1 cup (approx) of water/broth and cook/stir until absorbed. Continue to add water/broth about 1 cup at a time, stirring until absorbed. When tender and creamy stir in sour cream and cheese. Top with pecans before serving. OMGosh. Yummmmm. I know it seems like a lot of liquid for a small amount of rice....but it works! It appears to take a lot of attention, but I start it, then continue to work it as I finish making fish or chicken or whatever, and a big salad. It all comes together at the same time.
.....and from the Mystery...
BEST EVER WALDORF SALAD
5-6 large, crisp apples, cored and chopped
1 lemon (juiced)
1 cup walnuts
1/2 cup cranberry raisins
2-4 ribs celery, sliced thin
Toss all together and squeeze juice of lemon over to coat.
Dressing:
1 cup MIracle Whip or Mayonnaise
8oz Cool Whip
3T orange juice concentrate
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
Mix dressing ingredients together and fold into apple mixture. Chill until serving.
LIVELY GRAPE SALAD
2# each red and green grapes (I sliced grapes in half)
1 cup pecan pieces
dress with:
8oz softened cream cheese
8oz sour cream
1 tsp cinnamon
1 T vanilla
Beat together and fold into grapes. Chill until serving
SUSIE'S HOT RASPBERRY CHEESE BALL (Holey Mackeral this was GOOD!!!!)
2 8oz pks cream cheese, softened
1/3 C Rothschild Hot Pepper Raspberry (or Peach) preserves
2 green onions, chopped fine
1T chopped jalepeno
shredded Montery Jack cheese for garnish
toasted sliced almonds
Cream together all but Jack cheese and almonds. Form into ball and roll in Jack. Chill until ready to use. Top with almonds.

Here are a few quotes to ponder during this Hope-of-Spring week:
"To succeed in life, you need three things: a wishbone, a backbone and a funnybone." ~Reba McEntire
"You don't want to get to the end of life's journey and discover you never left the interstate." ~Robert Brault
"When we are alone on a starlit night, when by chance we see the migrating birds in autumn descending on a grove of junipers to rest and eat; when we see children in a moment when they are really children, when we know love in our own hearts; or when, like the Japanese poet, Basho, we hear an old frog land in a quiet pond with a solitary splash - at such times the awakening, the turning inside out of all values, the "newness," the emptiness and the purity of vision that make themselves evident, all these provide a glimpse of the cosmic dance." ~Thomas Merton
"The meaning of life is not an unquestionable answer; it is an unanswerable question." ~The Quote Garden