To All the Cats I've Loved Before

There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. 
Proverbs 18:24b NKJV

Let me tell you a bit about Mystery. I was still married at the time (2003) and living in a tiny community that seemed to be the recipient of unwanted cats from the nearest town. I was still letting my cats go outside at the time and kept a bowl of dry food on the deck. As a result, a lot of these "drop-offs", strays, ferals ended up at my house. And since I can't turn a cat away cold and hungry, I ended up either adopting them, finding them a home or taking them to the Humane Society in Edmonton. But this is just background to let you know that I'm not totally sure which cats we had at the time Mystery joined us. I know for sure that we had Midget, Tiger and Tinker. 
A friend was visiting her daughter and grandson in another community. While there, she found a small, fluffy white kitten, with one gold eye and one blue eye, wandering on a busy road. She rescued him off the road and let him loose, assuming he would find his way safely home. But the next day, finding the little guy back on the same busy road, she decided that whoever owned him was not responsible enough to deserve him and kept him. Her grandson named him Mystery, since it was a mystery where he came from or to whom he belonged. At that time, however, she thought he was a she, and feeling that she couldn't afford the spaying, which is more expensive than neutering a male, she decided to gift the kitten to my husband once she got back home. I guess she figured that since Midget belonged to my daughter, and Tiger and Tinker to me, he needed a cat as well. But make no mistake - any cats that joined our household were "mine" anyway. Later on, we realized that underneath that "fluff" was male anatomy. Our friend said that if she realized he had been male, she would have kept him. But he was destined to be mine. 

He grew into a big boy, and I sometimes referred to him as my gentle giant. He had such a docile, friendly, loving personality. He was not aggressive at all and thought everyone should treat him with the same gentleness, innocence and curiosity that he treated them. With all of the many cats I had coming and going over the years, he was the one cat I could count on to treat them all kindly (except there was that one female cat that no one liked - she had to go to the Humane Society). 
Well, seasons come and seasons go, and unfortunately, sometimes so do marriages. When I left (2006), I took 6 cats with me, and the house I was renting in the country (where else was I going to find a house that would allow my 6 cats?) already had a cat living there. So, I ended up with 7 cats, including Mystery. The house also came with its share of mice, so having 7 cats came in handy. 
A couple of memories from my time in that house: 
Mystery knew my vehicle and if he happened to be outside, he would run in front of it while I was pulling into the driveway and then wait for me. Fortunately, I knew to expect him, so was careful with my driving. 
One summer night, sleeping with the windows open, I heard a pack of coyotes yipping right outside one of the windows. My brave Mystery, sharing the bed with me, growled in response. 
A few more household moves before I was finally in a position to buy my own house. By this time (2009), only Midget, Tinker and Mystery shared my life. 
Just a word about Tinker: she never liked any cat but Midget, even though Tiger had been her littermate and was an amazingly wonderful cat. And even though Mystery was the most good-natured cat you could ever ask for, she didn't like him either. So when we said goodbye to Midget in 2011, she was left without her buddy. Mystery would have stepped in, and sometimes tried to play with her, but she ended up acting like he was trying to kill her and would run under my chair to escape him. Both of them were "quilt inspectors".

We said goodbye to Tinker in 2020. 

Very rare to have both Tinker and Mystery in the same picture

And that left just Mystery and me. He became more demanding of my time and attention after Tinker was gone. Even though they never really had a bond, I think he still missed her. 
Mystery was an awesome quilting cat. I put a chair beside my cutting table, so that he could jump up on the table and had a blanket for him on the corner of the table. 

Although her preferred to be right in the centre of whatever I was doing, whether it was cutting, binding, 

planning layouts, 

measuring for batting, 

quilting,

or just the quilt approval process, 

he liked being with me, wherever I was in the house. 
He always greeted me at the door when I got home. And then that stopped. I didn't realize it at the time, but that's probably when his hearing went, and he could no longer hear my arrival. 
And then I stopped working because of my mental health. And he became my therapy cat, my contant companion, my best friend. He had developed severe arthritis and it was no longer easy for him to come and find me in the house. Nor could he detect where I was in the house with his no longer acute hearing. So he would sit in the entryway between the living room and the hallway to the bedrooms and bathroom, and yell. And I would come and sit on the living room sofa with him - he had long since stolen my place on the sofa and I only sat there when he wanted snuggle time. I would sit sideways with my legs stretched out on the sofa, so he had plenty of "lap" to snuggle on.

I would usually cover my lap with a quilt so that his legs wouldn't get trapped between mine. Sometimes he only wanted my lap for a couple of minutes, sometimes half an hour or more. But I would stay there, watching TV, playing on my phone or reading a book if I had one handy. And petting him.

And sometimes he would bite me. My gentle, docile cat had taken to biting me. Usually, it was just nibbling on my fingers, but sometimes he'd bite my arm, and sometimes it would hurt. I never did figure out why he started doing that. Maybe it was a response to his own pain. But I didn't mind his nibbling my fingers, as long as he didn't chomp too hard. 
Mystery always hated being in his cat carrier, and I was hoping that he would just die peacefully in his sleep, so the final act of his life wouldn't be one he hated. But eventually, I knew that his health conditions had deteriorated to the point where I knew I couldn't let him suffer any longer. His final trip in the truck, I just allowed him to sit on the seat beside me, with one of my smallest quilts that we had often shared. He still didn't enjoy the trip, but he tolerated it much better not being in the carrier.
And, at 21 years of age, on November 18, 2024, Mystery was gone. I had to say goodbye to my best friend. We had spent so much time together over the last few years that we were very closely bonded, and my heart is broken. I still have a hard time sitting on his corner of the sofa. If I want to vacuum, I think twice because he hated the vacuum cleaner. I still sometimes think I see him out of the corner of my eye. I miss him so incredibly much
And so one day, when I was so beside myself with grief, I decided I had to do something. So I set aside all other projects, pulled out my stash of cat fabrics and made this quilt top. And it was healing. It took me a little longer to get around to quilting it. But I had the perfect backing fabric. 

I added this label. 

I chose the Copy Cat pantograph for the quilting design,

and a fun variegated thread for the quilting, to represent all of the joy that my cats have brought me over the years. 

I decided that I didn't want this quilt folded up and hanging on a quilt rack or ladder. I wanted to be able to see the whole thing whenever I wanted. So I added a hanging sleeve and it's now hanging on the wall in my quilt studio. 
A few statistics from my life with Mystery: 

I had him for longer than any other cat (Celina, my first cat, and Tinker were both 18).
My time with Mystery (21 years) lasted longer than my marriage (20 years).
This is the first time I've been catless in 30 years.
This is the first time I've lived totally alone (no other living beings, whether human, feline, canine, rodent, rabbit or bird) in 38 years (before I was married). 
But I'm never totally alone, because Jesus promised, "I will never leave you, nor forsake you." Hebrews 13:5b NKJV. And He is with me to comfort me in my grief. 

And He will be with you, if you just ask.

 

 

Christmas Sweaters

"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV 

I had picked up the snowman/nature stripe fabric in this quilt at my local quilt shop, together with the pine fabric that coordinated with the pine in the snowman fabric. At home, I pulled out what remained of the white on red Christmas tree fabric that had been used in the Ribbons and Stars Christmas quilt, as a third coordinate for a 3-yard quilt. I was determined to make my niece a snuggle quilt, with fleece/minky backing, for her birthday in October so that she could enjoy it throughout the Christmas season, rather than waiting until Christmas to receive it. 
Having two directional prints, I felt I needed a pattern that had 2 focus fabrics, with large enough pieces to display the features of each. So I decided on Delight, from the book, The Magic of 3-Yard Quilts. I failed to really take into consideration, however, that the size of the squares did not really line up with the size of the stripes in the snowman fabric, with the result that many snowmen ended up decapitated. Nor did I account for the fact that the snowman fabric is used in the border, so there are both snowmen and deer/moose lying on their sides in the top and bottom borders. I managed to avoid that issue with the red Christmas tree fabric, however, due to the fact that I was cutting from remnants of a previous project, and managed to have pieces that were going in the correct direction for all 4 borders. 
But the direction of the border fabric wasn't the worst problem. The fact was that my fabric choices really didn't work well with this pattern. When I put the first couple of blocks together, I was so disappointed. I didn't like how it had turned out at all. The lightest fabric was supposed to be where I put the darkest fabric - the green on black pine - and it would have created sort of a shadow effect. But my lightest fabric - the snowman stripe, wouldn't have worked in that position. The shadow effect was totally lost, and I was left with an ugly mishmash of fabric pieces that didn't really pull together at all. And I had already cut the fabric for this quilt. I had a decision to make: try to see if I could make the cut pieces work in a different pattern (not likely), buy new fabric and start all over again (time and money), or just continue with this one and hope that it turned out better than I thought. 
I opted for the third option. And it grew on me. I ended up actually liking the quilt. With both the snowman and the Christmas tree fabric in rows, they reminded me of Christmas sweaters - and not ugly Christmas sweaters - I have some very nice Christmas sweaters - hence the name.

I quilted it with the Snow Winds pantograph.

Granted, if I had to do it over again, I likely would have used a different pattern. Or different fabric, or both. But I still like it, and Julie was very happy with it. She started snuggling with it right away. 
Life can often be like that quilt - not turning out the way we had hoped or planned, leaving us frustrated, disappointed and not knowing what to do about it. But we have a God who cares about us and has a plan for our lives, as the verse at the beginning of this post says. We may not always understand the direction He is leading in, and things don't always appear to be going the way we had hoped. But He is still in control, and while we may not understand the trials and disappointments we experience in this life, He has promised, 
"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28 NKJV
One of my favourite authors, Ellen G. White, has this to say in her book, The Ministry of Healing:

"In the future life the mysteries that here have annoyed and disappointed us will be made plain. We shall see that our seemingly unanswered prayers and disappointed hopes have been among our greatest blessings." (page 474)

So stay faithful to the God who has a plan for your life and will work things out for the best, even though appearances may be to the contrary. Look up and look forward to that time when all will be explained. 

Variegated Moss Stitch Throw - Tortoise Project Update

This throw was the first project I added to my Tortoise Project list. And now it's finished. 

Because I think that this throw is actually prettier than this picture shows, I took a close up as well. 

Just a quick review, I chose to use the wave variation of the pattern, which you can find here. As far as I can tell, I started this afghan in the summer of 2021. I used 13 different variegated yarns. My goal had been to crochet 15 repeats of the 13 rows to make a throw approximately 60 inches square. But I started to run out of yarn. And some of the yarns were no longer available. I did purchase one similar yarn to replace one that ran out, but buying a whole skein of yarn for one or two rows seemed like rather a waste of money. And storage space, because I would then have to store the leftovers somewhere. So, I started replacing some yarns with similar yarns that were already being used in the throw. And I even finished one row with a solid yarn when I only had a few inches of row to complete when the yarn ran out. And I stopped at 14 repeats, because the throw was already about 60" square, and I was just going to keep running out of yarn if I continued. 
The moss stitch is quite dense, so the throw is quite heavy. I could probably use it as a weighted blanket. 😄 It actually weighs around 4 pounds. 
Tortoise Project #2 is the Shannon Afghan. 

I haven't worked on it at all since the last update, so I'm stagnant at 24 squares completed. That's still quite an accomplishment because I started the year with only 6 squares completed. And this is a complicated pattern. 
Tortoise Project #3 was The Poet Shawl, which is completed. 

I'll be honest and say that, if I had to do it over again, I would not have used black and cream as the main colours. The black edging looks rather sloppy against the cream pockets. But it's done. 
Tortoise Project #4 was the latch hook project, also finished. 

I still have to decide where to hang it. 
So, that's 3 of my original 4 projects that are completed. And I have made significant progress on the remaining project. 
My goal was to work on no more than 4 projects at a time (not including quilting), so I added another project as I completed one.
Tortoise Project #5 is the needlepoint wallhanging. 

No progress there to report. I haven't touched this project in months. 
Tortoise Project #6 is the quilt block with no name, Brackman 3806.5.

I started this block in 2021. I had been doing a quilt along meant to teach people how to use the software, BlockBase+, but it only had 8 blocks. So I decided to add more blocks, choosing to use some of the most complicated blocks I could find in Brackman's Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns (also in Blockbase+). But the encyclopedia has over 1,000 blocks in it. So to help find them, I asked in a quilt group on Facebook for recommendations on the most challenging 12" quilt blocks from this book/software. And I only got one recommendation: 3806.5. Yup, definitely challenging. Those smaller star sections are less than 2" square. And I had to figure out how to actually make the block. The inidividual pieces are much too small to fit under a sewing machine foot without disappearing. Foundation paper piecing wouldn't work. Straight hand stitching was not my forte, and I couldn't see being able to keep the seams together with my awkward hand sewing. I finally settled on English paper piecing, and I completed 2 of these smaller stars back in 2021. Then didn't touch this project again until this year. 
While my tortoise projects started out being yarn projects, I decided to include this quilt block because it is handwork. 
Honestly, I hadn't been working on any of my tortoise projects in months, but just recently figured I'd better get back to them. As you can see, I've made some serious progress on the quilt block, and, of course, finished the moss stitch afghan. I just have to find the motivation to work on the needlepoint and the shannon afghan as well. 
Now that the moss stitch afghan is finished, it was time to add another project to the queue. I'm trying to stick with UFOs, projects that I've actually started and not ones that I have the materials for, but haven't started. Unless a project becomes a priority, in which case, it may jump the queue. 
Tortoise Project #7 is A Blanket of Roses Afghan. 

I started this project back in 2015, and decided to call it Crystal Roses. I have four octagons out of 24 completed, and one square out of 15. I've got a long ways to go. I started an octagon last evening. For most of my projects, I have tried to set a goal for how much to complete in one sitting. But because these are done in the round, I'm not sure where to set the goal. Perhaps all of the coloured flower and leaves in the centre, then the white section and then the coloured border as 3 separate goals. 
And speaking of goals, here's a great Bible verse worth sharing: 

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13,14 NKJV 

Now I have to figure out what to do with this. 

I think I originally drilled the holes in it when making my temperature change afghan (which I still want to add corners to). And then used it for Sophie's Universe, and finally for the Moss Stitch afghan. But I don't have any multi-yarn projects in my current or future queue. It might just have to hold a quilting project...

Through My Window

 

On one of my quilt shop hops this year, I visited LA Sewing Centre, where I spied the pattern for the Through My Window wallhanging. I decided this wallhanging would make a perfect gift for my oldest sister, who had recently experienced a cardiac event and was slowly recovering from coronary artery bypass surgery. I felt that it would have more lasting value than a bunch of flowers. But I had to find a good fabric panet that would work with the pattern. Searching the store for an appropriate panel, I finally found this one, and it was the last one of its kind. And I knew my sister would love it. She has since searched for - and found - the perfect rod from which to hang her wallhanging.
The pattern is from Patchwork Studios, but unfortunately it appears to be no longer available as I couldn't find it on the website. The designer does, however, offer a workshop in Too Easy Stained Glass, the technique used in this wallhanging, and has also co-authored a book on the technique, Simple Stained Glass Quilts, which also appears to be out of print as the link on the workshop page goes to an error page. 
So, I'm very thankful I found this pattern. Especially since I decided to make another one for my middle sister for her 70th birthday. 

I asked her what her favourite season is, and she said "Fall". I was able to find a 4-patch fall-themed panel in Marshall Fabrics. The individual panels were just about the right size for this pattern. And I have 3 more to work with for future projects. 
This one is a lot brighter than the first wallhanging, so I'm hoping that my middle sister likes it. Not everyone likes vibrant colours like I do. 
While I think this pattern is pretty amazing, there is one drawback. The technique is basically tracing the design onto a big rectangle of paper-backed fusible webbing (Heat'N'Bond, Steam-A-Seam), applying it to black fabric and then cutting it out. So, all of those empty spaces between the black lines in the wallhanging are big pieces of black fabric backed with fusible web. Pretty much wasted. I haven't thrown them away yet because I hate wasting fabric, but I haven't figured out what to do with them. It's not like they can go in the scrap bin because of the fusible web. And it's not like black is the most useful colour for appliqué. But at least solid fabric is generally cheaper than print... 
It still makes a very lovely gift, and an awesome way to use a fabric panel. 
Tortoise projects update: 

I finally finished applying the binding tape and added a hanging sleeve on this rug-hooking project. I still haven't decided where or how to hang it. Unfortunately, the old style sashing rods are no longer available at Walmart, so I may just have to go with a dowel and hooks. 
I have completed 24 of 48 squares for the Shannon afghan. 
Absolutely no progress on the needlepoint (remind me again why I thought I needed to try needlepoint), other than that I was able to locate the original project for which I purchased the frame that came with the unfinished needlepoint on it... Although as I'm writing this, I again don't recall where it is. 

This is the current status of the English paper-pieced quilt block. 
I have completed 13 repeats of the 13 yarns being used in the Variegated Moss Stitch throw, but I had to buy some substitute yarn (Red Heart Comfort pink/gray print) for one of the yarns already (Craft Smart Value Arizona). Since I can't find exact matches for most of the yarns that are running out, and I didn't want to buy a bunch of skeins for just a couple of rows each, I decided to improvise. I used/will use another yarn already being used in the afghan for a couple more yarns that have run out or are about to run out (anonymous purple and green ombre for the Craft Smart Value Purple Flowers, and Red Heart Super Saver Mistletoe Ombre for Craft Smart Value Rainbow). They are definitely not perfect substitutes, but in this particular project, it's unlikely to be really noticeable. And I was able to find another skein in my yarn stash for a 4th yarn that ran out (Red Heart Super Saver Grape Fizz). I was originally planning on doing 15 repeats of the 13 yarns, debated on stopping at 13, but decided to continue to finish 14. If I go beyond that, I will run out of too many more yarns. Hopefully, I have enough left for that. 

Damian's Dino Backpack

 

I've been the rounds with Craftsy. I started with them back when they were Craftsy the first time. Then went through their Bluprint period and am currently a premium member of Craftsy. During one of their sales, I purchased the DVD for The Essential Backpack by Annie Unrein. And I planned to make it - eventually. Well, that time finally arrived when I decided to make one for my grandson for his birthday. I already had the dinosaur fabric - different from the fabric I used for his laptop carrier bag. So, it would coordinate, but wouldn't be identical, though I used the same contrast fabric. 
When I quilted the fabric for the laptop bag, I realized a few things. The first was that it wasn't necessarily necessary to quilt all of the fabric. I ended up with so much leftover quilted fabric that I was able to make Damian this bag for his headset,

and I still have quite a bit left. I think Annie has some ideas for smaller projects you can use the leftovers in. I will have to look those up when I have time for another unplanned project, in between other projects. 
The second thing was that I think the quilting should be a little denser and the third is that it really is a waste of time to use a pantograph for the quilting. I used Dave's Dinosaurs to quilt the laptop bag, but it was a wasted effort. The pieces cut are so small and layered on top of each other, that it's not really evident that I quilted it with dinosaurs. So, I tackled both of these things (denser quilting and not wasting my time doing a pantograph) by doing a basic free motion meander - something I don't normally do, since I consider myself the pantograph queen. And I only quilted the fabric I needed so I have much less quilted leftovers. 
Annie's instructions are very straightforward and detailed, plus I had the advantage of owning the DVD and/or watching it on Craftsy. 

Front pocket flap with sewn-in magnet

There is lots of work involved in making a bag, a lot more detail than just my basic tote bags. And I learned new things, like how to sew in magnets for closures. 

Backpack front and back

The Brain Docs say that in order to stay cognitively sharp, we should constantly seek to learn something new and challenge our brains daily with complex tasks. I think this type of bag making can fulfill both tasks. 😀

Inside of front and back, showing inside pockets

I had to review how to make my own zippers from zippers by the yard. 

Card pockets inside the front pocket

I can't say that bagmaking is my favourite activity. It's pretty labour-intensive and can be pretty challenging, especially stitching the multiple, multiple layers together. But the sense of satisfaction when you have created a relatively professional-looking bag, makes the labour worthwhile.
This is not a full-sized backpack, but, as my daughter pointed out, my grandson can carry his library books in it. And it appears to have been a hit since he left my hourse wearing it on his back.
I have plans to make one for my daughter and one for myself. Especially since this backpack would also make a good purse substitute. 

A Couple of Quilted Gifts

 Almost any occasion is a good excuse to make a quilted gift. 

The daugher of one of my former colleagues from my working life gifted her with her first grandchild. And I decided to mark the occasion with the gift of a quilt. Using my Quick and Easy Baby Quilt method using layer cake squares, I created this quilt. 
Initially, I wasn't sure if I really liked it. The print fabric is so pale that it nearly fades into the background. But once I started putting it together, I felt that it was very delicate and feminine - perfect for a little princess. Crowns are featured in the fabric, and since Grandma is of French descent, I named the quilt "La Petite Princesse" and quilted it with crowns, 

the Crowns-n-Diamonds pantograph. It was a rather challenging design because of all the points and angles, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. 
Next, I had a wedding reception to attend. The wedding itself was a destination wedding in the mountains, with just immediate family. Unfortunately, my anxiety and my GI system got the better of me and I was unable to attend. But I did send a gift. I had recently picked up the Triangle Frenzy Runner pattern and some fabric that would work well with it, so I decided that would make a great wedding gift. 

In addition to regular batting, I added a layer of metallic insulating batting (like Insul-Bright, but the brand my LQS sells), so that the couple can safely put hot dishes on it. The colours are neutral enough that I'm hoping will suit their decor. I don't generally like large quilting designs on smaller projects, so I used Christy's Whisper, a 6.5" design. I think maybe I should get a few more small designs for projects like this.

Wrapped with a dishtowel and a crocheted dishcloth for a bow, I'm having fun with more environmentally-friendly giftwrap options. 

Run the Race

The runner in my family (one of my great nephews) was graduating from high school this year. So I figured I should get his quilt made. I had already found the pattern (Shoephoria) and saved it to Pinterest, but unfortunately, when it came time to purchase it, neither the designer's Etsy store nor her website were available. (I have since learned that she has passed away)> I was hoping to purchase a PDF download as it makes no sense to pay exorbitant shipping from the US. But I was having a difficult time even finding a paper copy. I managed to find one Canadian vendor, but it was sold out. I found one US vendor (since sold out), but as I mentioned, I was trying to avoid the often expensive US shipping. So, when I did a Bing search, I started clicking on each image that popped up to see where it originated. Finally, I was able to find it at one Canadian shop and, as it turns out, it was right here in Alberta: Jelly Roll Shop! I actually called them to confirm that they did have it in stock, so it was set aside for me. I placed the order, topping up with a few items to make the shipping worthwhile. 😁
The outside of the pattern announces "Fat Quarter Friendly". Hmm, fat quarters are my least favourite pre-cut, and my experience with "fat quarter friendly" patterns is not positive. They either have you trying to squeeze so many pieces out of one fat quarter, that it's not even do-able if your fat quarter is even slightly wonky (My Beloved's Vineyard), or they use so little of the fat quarter that you're then left with multiple pieces that are even more useless than a fat quarter is (Unbroken). As it turns out, this pattern fell into the latter category. The pattern requirements state 15 fat quarters for the shoes. Since I was only planning on doing 12 blocks, I would therefore require only 12 fat quarters, though I bought more because I didn't record how many I needed when I went to the fabric store (I wasn't specifically going for this pattern and just happened to spy the fat quarters on my way to the cutting table). 
Assuming, wrongly as it turns out, that each block would use up most of one fat quarter, I was very disappointed to discover that there was no layout diagram to show how to cut the pieces from the fat quarter to make the best use of the fabric. So, I pulled out my graph paper and created my own layout, only to discover that it took up less than half of the fat quarter.

Then I re-designed it to get two shoes out of one fat quarter. That still didn't take up the whole fat quarter and I made one more design to include the pieces for 3 shoes in one fat quarter.

And quess what? I did manage to make 3 blocks from one fat quater

and still had all of this fabric left over.

I didn't quite have enough to make one more block. Granted, this was a metric fat quarter, but that's only slightly bigger than an imperial (or US) fat quarter (not all Canadian shops cut metric fat quarters, many use the US ones). And my layout plan was based on a US fat quarter since I hadn't measured mine yet to see which it was. 
So, I really only needed 4 fat quarters for the 12 blocks I planned to make. Or 5 if I was going to make all 15 blocks, not 15 fat quarters. And if I really wanted each shoe to be different, I could have just used fabrics from my scrap stash. The shoe part of each block requires a small enough amount of fabric that I could have easily found 12 scraps big enough. But the pattern doesn't suggest that option. Instead it wants me to waste money on fat quarters that I would only use a fraction of. Grr.
Another major annoyance with this pattern is the fact that cutting dimensions are given for only one block. To a certain extent, I get it for the shoe pieces cut from the fat quarter if you were actually only going to make one per fat quarter (even though no design layout was given as mentioned above), but the white, grey and background fabric are used in all of the blocks. Yet there are no cutting directions for how to cut the recommended yardage to make the best use of the fabric, not to mention my time. It only gives the dimensions for the individual pieces for one block. It's a good thing that I'm good at math. 

I did all of the calculations (half of the second sheet of paper is also covered with notes on the back, and I hadn't even done the calculations for the sashing yet). 
By this time, I had lost any enthisiasm I had for this project. I resent paying for a pattern that I believe is incomplete. Surely, if the designer actually tested her own pattern, she would have known how to cut up the yardage. Otherwise, how would she know how much yardage to put in the fabric requirements? I feel that it was disrespectful to us quilters to sell a pattern that requires so many calculations on the part of the purchaser. I have designed some of my own quilts and I expect to have to do these calculations for my own designs or when I occasionally rework a design if I think I can make a more efficient use of the fabric, but not have to do it for a pattern that I've purchased. And I know quilters who would really struggle with this, and some who would likely not even be able to complete the quilt.
I had admired one or two of this designer's other patterns, but I'm certainly thankful that I didn't purchase them, if this one is an example of what her patterns are like. 
One other, and much more minor, annoyance with this pattern is that I believe that the piece of fabric used for the logo is much too large. If I had to do it over again (and I have no intention of repeating this pattern), I would make the logo a fraction of the size - likely 2" instead of 4". But I had already done more than enough calculations for this quilt. 
The final - and petty - complaint about this pattern is the name. Shoephoria? Maybe it's because I really don't know how runners feel about their shoes (and high tops is not what they run in anyway. My great nephew has shown me one of the light-weight, streamlined running shoes he wears - definitely not these big, clunky things. Although he does wear these ones to play basketball, his second favourite sport). But to me, a pattern named Shoephoria should be a bunch of fancy high-heeled women's shoes... But that's just my bias. 
This wasn't my favourite quilt to make, but I persisted for my great nephew's sake. It's very fiddly piecing. But I'm pleased with the final result. And so is my great nephew. 
I had already ordered the Marathon - Running Shoes pantograph that I used for the quilting. 

I used red, white and blue variegated Aurilux thread, and I enjoyed the quilting part. And it's all ready for gifting. Just in time, as he graduated June 23, and his grad party is this Sunday. 
I chose red, blue and black as those are the colours my great nephew wanted, and named it Run the Race, a more fitting name, in my opinion, than Shoephoria. And it brings to mind the Bible text that was chosen for him for his graduation: 

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 1 Corinthians 9:24-25 NKJV

May we all strive for that imperishable crown of eternal life.  

 

Canada Day Food

 The tiny, little community where my daughter and grandson live with my ex-husband (in the house we shared, when we were still together) has a Canada Day parade. A small parade because it's a small community, so small that they go around the hamlet twice in one direction and then back again in the other direction... This year it was the smallest that I have ever seen it: about 5 vehicles (some of which I wondered why they were in the parade). one John Deere tractor and a horse drawn cart. No Mounties, no riders on horseback, no emergency vehicles. Maybe it's because the original organizers have died or moved away...
So, I generally spend the day with my family and take in the parade. This year, I decided to supply all of the food, as well as the disposable plates, cups and cutlery (yes, I still have a bunch of that stuff that I'm using up, but will move to compostables in the future for the rare occasions when I do use disposables). Here's what was on offer:
For lunch, I decided on salads: a bean salad, a potato salad and a tossed salad. I chose Texas Caviar from Forks Over Knives - The Cookbook for the bean salad.

Sorry, I couldn't find the recipe on the website, but there are plenty of recipes online, which are very similar, if you wish to try it. It's also known as Cowboy Caviar. First challenge was cooking the black-eyed peas. I soaked them and then decided to cook them on the stovetop. I googled to see how long it would take and found 45 minutes to 1 hour. I like my legumes soft - they're more digestible that way - so I went with the 1 hour. They were still a little on the firm side, but I figured they would work. I set aside the amount required in the recipe and a day or two later ate some of the leftovers with my dinner. Did they harden up in the meantime? So, before making up the recipe, I cooked them for a further 1/2 hour and they were better. Unfortunately, the recipe called for cilantro. I have been known to substitute parsley in the past, but I'm not even that big a fan of parsley (though it's infinitely preferable to cilantro). So I opted for dill this time. But the flavour just wasn't quite right, although I don't think it was the dill. Maybe it was too much cumin. Or the combination with balsamic vinegar. Somethinig just wasn't working. Plus I think I oversalted the recipe. It was one of those recipes that has that annoying phrase "salt to taste" in the ingredients. I don't generally keep tasting a recipe to make sure I get the salt right. Why don't these recipe authors just put "1 tsp. salt (or whatever would be an appropriate amount), or to taste"? That would at least give me a starting point. <sigh> I also didn't add in the jalepeno. I wasn't sure how much "heat" my grandson would like and I don't like too much of it myself. So, I put the chopped jalapeno in a separate container, so people could "jalapeno to taste". As it turned out, my daughter and grandson added jalapeno while my ex and I did not. But I don't think I'll be repeating this recipe. When my cousin made Cowboy Caviar for a family reunion, I quite liked it, but this recipe? There's something just not quite right about it.

Also from Forks Over Knives - The Cookbook is this amazing potato salad. Actually, it's White Bean, Potato and Asparagus Salad. And it's delicious. It also called for "salt to taste" but I guess I got it right with this one. While you can't find the recipe on the Forks Over Knives website, you can find it here. This one gave me the opportunity to use the chives from my yard while they are actually in season. Honestly, one of the best potato salads I have ever eaten.
For the tossed salad, I didn't use a recipe: Romaine lettuce, a bunch of those mixed variety small tomatoes, English cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, black olives and packaged salad toppings (seeds, dried fruit and some funky dried noodle thing), topped with Ranch dressing, for which you can find the recipe in the 7 Secrets Cookbook. That's the best vegan ranch dressing I've tried so far, better than any store bought version. 

For dessert, what could be more fitting for Canada's birthday than ice cream and cake? The recipe for the strawberry ice cream is in the little cookbook that accompanied my Ninja Creami. It said to make it dairy free, substitute coconut cream for the heavy cream. And I happened to have some coconut cream in my cupboard, so that's what I did. Big mistake! The flavour of the coconut is so overpowering that there is barely any strawberry taste. I don't plan on doing that again unless I actually want coconut flavoured ice cream. I will make my own vegan "heavy cream" with cashews, which are much more neutral in flavour. 

This is Dreena Burton's Vegan Vanilla Sweet Potato Cake. To get started, I first had to bake this monster white sweet potato, 

which gave me enough cooked sweet potato for the cake, and the frosting, with a little bit left over. I like a lot of Dreena's recipes, but as I've mentioned before, I find she sometimes uses expensive and hard to find ingredients. I don't believe that you should have to use these in order to follow a whole food, plant-based/vegan diet. As a matter of fact, having these in the list of ingredients could actually be a deterrent to people wanting to follow a healthier lifestyle. Yes, cake is not a necessity of life, but it is nice to have some healthy dessert options. Furthermore, I also find that Dreena's recipes use coconut products a little too freely in my opinion. Most of the fat in coconut is saturated fat. So, while I'm not necessarily opposed to consuming coconut, I believe we need to be judicious in the amount we consume. (For more info, see this video). The frosting recipe accompanying this cake calls for coconut butter, which not only is hard to find and expensive but, as mentioned, high in saturated fat. It does offer the option of using raw cashew butter instead, but that too is expensive and hard to find. For flavouring, the frosting recipe calls for pure vanilla bean powder, which again is expensive and hard to find. Yes, it is listed as optional, but then you are left with a frosting that either tastes like coconut (as mentioned, a very strong flavour) or raw cashew butter (which in my opinion has a rather funky flavour), with sweet potato overtones. Initially, I opted for the cashew butter option, and since it was so expensive, I attempted to make my own. After running my food processor over and over again for so long that I was becoming worried about burning it out, I finally added some oil, and still ended up with something just slightly beyond the consistency of pastry dough. I also had some homemade coconut butter left over from when I made Dreena's Nanaimo Bars, which I had kept in the fridge. It looked something like paraffin wax, but was harder and more crumbly. Weird stuff! So I used a combination of the two: leftover coconut butter and my newly made cashew butter. And I added vanilla extract. Not bad, but as I texted to one of my sisters, Angela Liddon's frosting (chocolate frosting made with avocados, found in the Oh She Glows cookbook) beats Dreena Burton's. I suppose it might be difficult to make a vanilla frosting using avocados - that might make for a rather weird coloured frosting... 
About the actual cake itself, I'm not sure why the recipe calls for two 9" cake pans, when it's barely enough for 8" pans. I found this when I doubled her chocolate cake recipe to make 2 layers. So, this time, I decided to just use 8" pans. I also found that it didn't rise very well. When I used the chocolate cake recipe, I found the same thing and thought that maybe my baking powder was outdated. But when I used the same baking powder in a different recipe, I had no issues. I'm not sure what's going on with that. I might try the whole wheat pastry flour next time instead. And the frosting will probably be made with almond butter: cheaper than cashew butter or coconut butter and more readily available. I may make a lot of things from scratch, but nut butters in a food processor is not one I will be in a hurry to repeat. 

For supper, it was burgers and fries - homemade oven fries, that is, made with mini potatoes. I doubled the recipe for Sourdough Hamburger Buns, using mostly white whole wheat flour, but didn't have enough and didn't want to take the time to get out the grain grinder and grind some more, so about these are about 1/3 white bread flour. I did use the yeast called for in the recipe and they rose beautifully, though I should have flattened them a little as the recipe said, because they did end up being a rather big bite once stuffed with burgers and toppings. They also are big enough to accomodate a large burger. 

The burger recipe I used was another one of Dreena's recipes: Bistro Burgers. While some of the ingredients may sound obscure (miso, tahini, nutritional yeast, sun-dried tomatoes), all of them can be found at the local grocery store in my small town. I opted to bake rather than fry the burgers and they smelled amazing while baking. And they taste great too. The website says that these are "a cinch to make". I wouldn't quite say that. I did have to assemble quite a list of ingredients and have a large and powerful enough food processor to handle processing them.
Topping options included sliced tomatoes, Romaine lettuce, red onion, dill pickles, vegan mayonnaise, ketchup and corn relish. 
Dessert was simply watermelon. 
A few new recipes tried, some that are definite keepers and some that may require a little tweaking.