Shall We Say "Boring"?

Sleeping is no mean art: for its sake one must stay awake all day.

 ~Friedrich Nietzsche

Have you ever had one of those days when you feel like if you could just put your head down for 5 minutes, catch a little cat nap, then everything would be better?  That's the kind of day I had yesterday.  I felt tired from the time I got up and it continued right on through the entire day.  My body didn't feel tired so much as did my brain and eyes.  Something tells me I didn't get a good nights sleep.  But I know if I had tried to take a quick little snooze that I would have ended up taking a loooooong nap.  And then I wouldn't sleep good at bedtime.  So I just kept chugging along.  Surprisingly I only had to rip out two seams on the table mat I was sewing.  No cutting errors occurred and I didn't have any trouble reading patterns.  So the brain was still working, it was just fuzzy.  Made me feel like I was sort of moving in slow motion all day.  I think it has something to do with the much warmer temps that decided to arrive in earnest yesterday.  Hopefully today will be better.  I can let you know be 7:30 this morning - lol!

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PHOTO FACT OF THE DAY

Candied Orange Peel

Today is National Candied Orange Peel Day!  Yes, really!!  Have you ever peeled yourself an orange, looked down at the pile of peels and thought, 'Gee, what a waste'? No? Well some people look at it that way and they've found the perfect solution for those bitter rinds. Candied orange peels are made by placing peels in heated sugar syrup. Over days or even months, the peels become preserved and then you have a whole new snack to try.  Here's a recipe you might want to try from Bon Appetit:

Simple Candied Orange Peel
makes about 2 cups

By Damon Lee Fowler 

Ingredients

•2 large oranges, 1/4 inch of top and bottom cut off

•4 cups sugar, divided

•3 cups water

Preparation

•Cut peel on each orange into 4 vertical segments. Remove each segment (including white pith) in 1 piece. Cut into 1/4-inch-wide strips. Cook in large pot of boiling water 15 minutes; drain, rinse, and drain again.

•Bring 3 cups sugar and 3 cups water to boil in medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add peel. Return to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until peel is very soft, about 45 minutes. Drain.

•Toss peel and 1 cup sugar on rimmed baking sheet, separating strips. Lift peel from sugar; transfer to sheet of foil. Let stand until coating is dry, 1 to 2 days. DO AHEAD Wrap and freeze up to 2 months.

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7 HEXAGONS = 1 FLOWER

Today is One Flower Wednesday.  This is actually a flower I started last week.....

I'm not much for cherries or anything with cherries on it but I thought these two little cherries looked cute for a flower center.  I just realized when looking through photos to upload that I used the same petal fabric just a couple weeks ago.  Time to put the red fabric in another bin so I won't be tempted to use it for awhile. 

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BEE BLOCK

Yesterday I also made a block for one of our Let's Bee Together hostesses, Kate. 

Kate was actually the hostess for April but life got in the way and she was a little late sending out her fabric to her Bee members.  Kate requested a block made with pinwheel(s).  I really like the crisp, clean look of this block.  I'm going to remember this one for future use.  This will go out in the mail to Kate tomorrow.

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FOR INQUIRING MINDS

Remember the little blue and white block that Lynette sent me that I shared yesterday?  Well, I had several of you ask the same thing I did "What was the name of that block"......

Lynnette was kind enough to share the following information with me.....

"It is A Dandy and the link is:  http://www.quilt.com/BlockOfTheMonth/1997/ADandy.html.  The site is good because it gives several different sizes of the same block."

Thanks, Lynette, for sharing that information and for providing a link so that we can all use the pattern :)

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TODAY'S GOAL

Today I will finish the table mat for my mom's Mother's Day gift.  I hope to also start, or at least prepare, the May Birdie BOM.

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GIVEAWAYS

It's Sew Kiki is having a sponsored giveaway.  You could win a flannel layer cake from Connecting Threads.  This giveaway ends Monday, May 9, at 8:00 am.

Sew 4 Home is having a huge giveaway.  You could win 28 one-yard cuts of Silent Cinema, 2 Heather Bailey patterns, 1 Emma Day Bag pattern, 2 adorable 4¼" x 6" sewing cards by Valori Wells, 2 Free Spirit fabric swatch cards, and 3 Westminster Fibers Design jelly rolls.  This giveaway ends Friday, May 27, at midnight PT.

Boutique Uniquely is celebrating moving into her new home with a giveaway.  Victoria is giving away two 1/2 yard cuts of DS Quilt Line in polka dot.  This giveaway ends Sunday, May 8, at 9:00 pm PST.

Freckled Whimsy is having a giveaway.  She is giving away a copy of Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks, Volume #3.  KarrieLyn will draw a winner on Friday, May 6, at 8:00 pm CST.

P.S. I Quilt is having a sponsored giveaway.  You could win a set of Cutting Edge Rulers from Dewberry Lane.  The winner will be drawn Friday, May 6.

Quilt Happy, Quilt Often is having a giveaway.  You could win a copy of Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks, Volume 3.  Not sure when this one ends.

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FINAL THOUGHT

Final thoughts.  A place where I'm supposed to wrap up my posting for the day.  Where sometimes I give amusing anecdotes and leave you with something to think about.  So let's see - final (ˈfaɪn ə l) — adj 1. of or occurring at the end; concluding; ultimate; last.  Thought –noun  - the act or process of thinking; mental activity: Thought as well as action wearies us.   Can you tell I'm gasping at straws?  My word or final thought for you today?  Smile!  Let people know you are happy.  Smile!  Because it produces less wrinkles than frowning.  Smile!  It can become contagious - you just might start a something that will make at least one person happy today.  Smile!  Because you can!!

A smile is a curve that sets everything straight.

~Phyllis Diller