Off the "To Do" list

 When I saw this on Pinterest, I immediately put it on my to-do list. I have several pin cushions but I always stack a pile of pins right next to my sewing machine, that I would invariably accidentally elbow,  then end up chasing pins off the floor. This past weekend, the chasing was only partly successfully and I stepped on one of the stray pins, while barefoot. OUCH. 

This only took 30 minutes, a small piece of fabric, matching ribbon and a bit of velcro. I can take it off easily when it's in the way, like when I have to maneuver a quilt and it's right there to catch pins while I'm sewing other things.

I'm kicking myself for not making it earlier. My advice : Make one. It's time wisely invested!

Update : 

I received a question about how I used the velcro. The answer is right here

A piece on each end of the ribbon, it attaches in the back of the machine

Tip : a pedal that stays put

If you have a sewing machine chances are you have one of these : 

Yes a foot pedal.  And if you are like me, you have hardwood flooring, or some other smooth hard surface in your studio. Great for cleaning all the fuzz bunnies, scraps and other bits of whatnot from sewing/ crafting. Unfortunately that also make for an elusive foot pedal. Here is a trick I learned from a long time sewer/quilter: 

This is a rug anti skid mat. 

Cut a piece to fit your foot pedal with a little wiggle room

Voila: a pedal that stays put.

A summer treat : Peach upside down cake

I love sewing, painting and crafting. I love creating. And I love good foods. So of course I looove baking. So I figured for a change I would share a great summer recipe. We love going to a local farm on Sundays  where you can pick fresh fruit and veggies yourself. If you are in Maryland, check it out, it's called Larriland Farm. It's open from May to October and it's a great family outing. Last time we picked peaches. A LOT of peaches. 28 pounds of peaches.

I looked and looked for recipes with peaches and couldn't find something I really liked so I did some experimental baking. The first 2 didn't come out too great but now I have this down pat. And it's so easy!!

You will need:
- 2 pounds of fresh ripe peaches
- 3/4 cup flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon of baking powder
- 1 dash of vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons of milk (I used 2%)
- a microwaveable bowl
- a 9" round baking pan - (I'm partial to my pink silicone Calphalon pan. They support the research for breast cancer cure)

Pre-heat your oven to 430F
In the microwaveable bowl, put the butter, then put it in the microwave just long enough so the butter is VERY soft but not melted

Add your dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder) and mix
It should look like this

Add the eggs and stirr

Add the milk and vanilla
The batter should be about the consistency of soft serve ice cream. Don't worry about lumps.

While the batter is resting, peal and slice your peaches. Our peaches were pretty small so I did halves.
Important tip:
If the peaches are VERY juicy, add a tablespoon of cornstarch and mix with the fruit before putting them in the pan.
If the peaches are VERY firm, microwave them at high setting for about 6 minutes with 3 extra tablespoons of sugar.

Put the peaches at the bottom of the pan and pour the batter over. Tap the pan to even the batter and make it fill all the gaps between the fruit bits.

One trick with silicone pans: I put it on a tart pan so it's easer to maneuver

Time for baking:
In my convection oven it takes exactly 30 minutes. In a conventional oven you can add at least 5 minutes.

Isn't this pretty ??

And now comes the HARD part of all this.
YOU MUST WAIT. Yes with that yummy smell in you kitchen (and the whole house) you have to wait until the cake is almost completely cooled down (1 hour) to turn it over on a serving plate.

When the cake cools down it "shrinks" a little. If you do not wait you will have a sticky mess glued to your pan and the cake will be good but ugly.

If you wait it will looks like this:

Even yummier with some blueberries but I ran out. You can serve it like this or with vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy !!

A sewing tip

Has this ever happened to you

When you have little people around the house, or when you are a klutz (I qualify for both) this is what can happen to your box of pins. Yep... twice last weekend.

Here is a $2 solution to the problem:

Metal box - $1

Craft magnets - $1 (well $2 for a 6-pack)

Peace of mind

Priceless

Progress report

Today, I took a quick side trip to JoAnn's to grab some odds and ends : velcro, elastic band, snaps. And like that I stubbled on this little jewel:

It's a chalk marker that WORKS. 

Why I know this? Well, I recall my grand-mother using one when I was little(Not quite like that one, she had a dressmaker tracer, but same principle: her only had the wheel, this one drops a thin line of chalk). After testing various tracing methods like dress maker pencils, crayons, soap (yes soap), I have to say this is the bomb!

It's just the thing I needed to get over my quilter's block. 

Looks what I was able to free-hand trace on my quilt project : 

It's my on-call week at work so I'm stuck with little projects I can drop in a heartbeat. Quilting will have to wait next week. But I'm getting excited about it!