Peaceful Sunday afternoon

For me pottering away in the kitchen on my own cooking tonight's tea.  

I always find it soothing working away on my own like this.  Yes it can be hard work and yes sometimes I am not in the mood to cook and do not enjoy it as much.  Today however I have enjoyed the peace and quiet and my own space, with my own thoughts and just pottering.  It was not what I had planned but I am a little weary so just going with the flow. I had planned on getting stuck in cleaning in the kitchen.  Deferred today will probably get to tomorrow.

Due to re-organisation of the menu yet again, have cooked the Cottage pie tonight - a two meal one part each.  Have also made a rice pudding which is going to be served with the homemade Victoria Plums that I preserved in syrup. This one has a small tin of evaporated milk in it which is one of my ways of cooking rice pudding. The Victoria plums looked jewel like in the jars.  

A simple tea, a filling and tasty one though which is much needed on this winter night.  And the best bit, means I just have to warm things up tomorrow as tomorrow night's tea is ready too.  Very useful for a Monday night (which predominantly is my laundry day), but otherwise when I have projects that are tight on time and  tea is already there for the warming. Means I can spend more time on the project in hand.

I was well pleased with how tea turned out.  The Plums were made using a low sugar syrup and they were lovely, sweet but not over-sweet and the syrup mixed in well into the rice as well.  Shall definitely use this recipe again.

Tonight, I am going to cut some templates for my Hexie hand pieced quilt which is an ongoing long-term project.  I need to cut out paper liner templates (the quilt I am working on is English hand pieced one).  I am also cutting a separate template for the fabric as well to make my life easier with the planning and cutting. The cutting bit I am not very good at especially with a rotary cutter but these are being cut with shears.   Hopefully I can keep the momentum going by having some of each on the go in the background, and hand-piecing them as well.  If I have everything prepped up the easy part is the stitching which can be fitted into small segments of time.  This long-term project has been on the go for quite some time.  I have not really done a lot in the bigger scheme of things, even more of a reason to get this kick-started as this quilt is for my big Super King bed and I have never made a quilt before.  

I also have a Williamsburg Reproduction Sampler kit to finish at some point as well.  This project has been on the go for some 43+ years. I know where the project is at is strung on a frame. I just need to locate the threads which is really going to be like looking for a "needle in a haystack".  This particular Sampler was bought to make and to go into my bedroom (eventually) when I was married and I was doing up the house.  Had done the house up for the best part, and then things went awry. I had worked quite a bit of it however there is still quite a lot to go.  This was a pre-stamped cross stitch worked on linen (before the days if Aida).  So I would like to get this done at some point so that I can enjoy it.  Saying that I do have a Vintage French worked Sampler worked on a Pink Linen that I picked up from an auction.  I do have some other Samplers, some which I had started (in the UFO pile) and some completed.  Will show those when I find them.

These are two projects that I want to achieve and get out of the way with.  If one of them is on the go that is at least something. Better than nothing which is what the situation is at present. If we manage to get away to the van it is a project that I can take with me and work in the car or on little trips out.

Then can feed in the other UFO projects as I can and as I am up to them and hopefully will get quite a few projects cleared this year. Fingers crossed.

Only a small start, but at least I am trying to be proactive.

Back to the plan tomorrow.  

Catch you soon.

Pattypan

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