Pink on Saturday

We shall finish celebrating Valentine's Day this weekend. It has always been one of my favorites. Its appeal runs the gamut from romance to sentimental to the food. And, of course, who can forget the chocolate and the flowers?

I remember Valentine parties in school. The crepe paper covered box served as a "post office" and the Valentine I got from a secret admirer. Was it Bill D.? I certainly had hoped so but probably not.... Oh, well. I had a wonderful Valentine until he passed and now I have another one so life has turned out well all things considered.

I feel so blessed at times. This past week has been one of those weeks. My embroidery machine has stitched away and my needles have been clicking.

These towels are the never touch towels.....

My felted purse has been blinged up and it part of my centerpiece on the coffee table.

The purse is now sitting on a shawl I am knitting. I must have had hearts on the brain as I got ready to go to knitting and stuffed the shawl in my knitting bag!

A few more pictures of roses...

A lovely lunch and

a Valentine's Day tradition.

I am joining Beverly at How Sweet the Sound for Pink Saturday. Stop in and say hi!

For a change from chili......

Every once in a while we try something new. I treated myself to some new dishes and Jack tried a new recipe. I don't have the exact one because we sort of combined a couple. Pozole Rojo can be found here and here and here. The last one is the recipe we used. It was quite complicated but that may have been in the way it was written and our expectation of what it would be when we were done. The finished product was a rich and hearty stew/soup which we garnished with lettuce, radishes, avocado, lime, and fresh cilantro. We used chicken instead of pork. As with many recipes like this, it was even better the next day.

And so Jack started.

We found the guajillo chile peppers on Amazon. We have a lifetime supply of them! If you are on our Christmas list, think Mexican peppers!

The aroma of the peppers in a hot pan was mouth-watering. The poblanos were charred on the grill.

And the blending began. The soup is made in one step and the posole another.

We found hominy at the grocery store. Canned tomatoes were used as beef steak tomatoes are not around this time of the year.

That's all that was left in my bowl. The table looked nice too.

Definitely will make this again.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Decorating for the day....

I have neglected my blog. I have not been idle but the impossible internet this summer took the wind right out my sails. I could post my pictures and thoughts on FB in an instant and I could stay in touch with friends. But - I missed the exercise of blogging.

Holidays seem to have defined the years of my life. Anticipation and celebration of the days created the traditions I so fondly remember. From pageants in Sunday School to Choral revues, from birthdays to Christmas and from Valentine's Day to Easter - they all became steps of my life over the years. They still are. Jack and I treasure these days together.

So, I shall start decorating with hearts tomorrow. I will embroider hearts on the machine and perhaps make a paper garland. I will create as the spirit moves me!

And we will make chili for the Super Bowl. It will be a good weekend! I hope yours is good as well.

Definition of my space....

I call this space/room my studio and, in a sense, it is. However, it serves many purposes. As I took photos for this post I realized that it a gallery of memories as well. My collections are very visible and my creations are around the room along with the tools to create.

My mother's sewing box holds her tools. She kept a mending kit in the White Rose tin. I treasure it. The blue box holds her dressmakers' pins and the blue darning egg somehow survived her moves and mine tucked in a box of "stuff".

My oldest son is a fan of Etsy. I display his gifts on my desk.

I think my mother would have loved Etsy. This little collage of watch faces was one of her favorites.

I am finally getting my calendars finished. For January I chose a picture of one of my quilts with an owl pillow made by Sunday White. She has an Etsy shop and you can visit her here. I think we have at least 4 of her pillows!

I try to keep the desk organized!

Another Featherweight followed me home in Florida and with the help of a good friend, I am slowly gathering some extras for her.

On the wall behind my chair are some of my quilts.

My pottery ( McCoy, Weller, and Roseville ) fills the shelves.

So now that I have created some order in this room, it is time to create. Valentine hearts will be next.

The thread is ready and the designs are on the machine.

Now I shall go and finish those socks!

Have a wonderful week!

Come on in......

This post should probably be called "careful where you step." I am finally ready to work in my studio. I cannot work in a mess although without a doubt I create one when I work. However, I must have basic order to return to and I am almost there.

I live in a townhome and was fortunate to be able to turn a large bedroom into a studio. Rarely do we have overnight guests so a Murphy bed is perfect and provides much needed storage for my collection of vintage pottery.

Just outside the door is this painting and a bowl of silk poppies. The soft coral/peach color is a favorite and I have used it in various shades throughout my home.

I have had this pillow door hanger for many years and I think it is nice on the studio door.

I can sit in my chair and look about the room. A project here and a project there.

Years ago I made bears. Two of them sit opposite in a little antique rocker. The keep me inspired. So, for the next few posts i will share some more of the studio and my projects.

Today I am joining Beverly at How Sweet the Sound for another Pink Saturday! Please visit and see all the wonderful pink posts.