the advent calendar blog hops here

I won’t mention the fact that I’ve been neglecting my posting here (again!) – but I am truly sorry. I thought I would find a bit more catching up time during the holidays but no luck so far.

on the other hand, I happily entered Jo‘s Advent Calendar Blog Hop and I’m even more happy it is this occasion that pulls me by the hair and brings me back to what I should have done at least once a week for the past months.

if you don’t know about this event, just follow this link and you’ll understand what I’m talking about. thank you Jo for taking the time to organize this every year!! 🙂 ❤

Jo‘s instructions were to post “a stitched picture on a festive theme” ..well, I’ve been collecting (that’s it, I haven’t been delaying posting, I’ve been COLLECTING pictures f0r you!! 😀 ) plenty, and on multiple festivities too! WOW!! it sounds like I planned this, right?! 😉

so here we go, enjoy!

I finally finished-finished that Halloween piece, Look what’s brewing in my kitchen.
I used Nina’s Halloween lace (it’s the same on both sides, it just changes tone from grey to pumpkin orange, perfect!).

perfect place for those Just Nan Halloween pins I got in the past few years, YAY!

I used a striped cotton fabric for both sides as it reminded me of the striped stockings I stitched for the witch.

I meant to add a spider button in this corner, but while rummaging through my button box, I found these adorable pumpkins.. they are made with polymer clay by Sabine Rossi aka Oeil2cha. they have a whole right in the middle so you can attach them by marking thread slices on a few sides. I used a matching thread and I’m excessively pleased with the result. 😉

a few work in progress pictures, cause I can’t blab enough about this finish – bear with me.

– – –

and now to a more fashionably timed finish, a LOONG waited one too. this is Christmas Sampler by Lizzie Kate stitched with called for WDW and GAST on 28ct. raw linen.

heaven knows how long ago I started this finishing. well, at that time thought I’d sew the two pieces together with WHITE thread and a machine stitch that couldn’t possibly show up more. I’m lost for words about myself, but I tried to cover these idiotic choices with a blanket stitch and Colbert wool thread.

all in all I’m very pleased with the final outcome, especially considering the mess I made with the sewing machine years ago. I was going to undo everything at one point and find another way to get a pin point finish – but then I thought better of it.. I think I’ll like this piece among the others, as a reminder of my learning journey through the world of needlework. 😀

and now off to the reason why I’m posting on this particular day of the Advent Calendar: today is the first anniversary of BaBa with us! my sister and I brought him home with us exactly a year ago this evening. what a wonderful time we had together, sweetheart! ❤❤❤

15 december 2012, 3 months old

15 december 2013, 1 year and 3 months old

– – –

the other assignment Jo gave was to post something about Christmas Food.. oh dear, what we eat for Christmas is pretty much the same every year: too much of everything! 😀

there is one recipe I’d like to share with you though, it’s my favourite base for a lot of cakes like tarts, biscuits, Lord of the Rings themed cakes (!!), and it’s really easy to do. the less you work it, the better it will turn. it’s shortcrust pastry. I make mine very strong and thick so that I use it to build things, like Santa’s Home ❤🎄

it’s decorated with sugar and dark chocolate, the “glue” I used to make all pieces fit together. it survived untouched in our fridge for an entire day, nobody dared to eat it cause “it looked too good” ..bah! 😀 what really made me happy was the proud look on my mom’s face when she told me I accomplished what she always wanted to but never achieved: a perfect Santa’s House. (so all the backaches I got from laying on it for hours to decorate it were well worth it!)

shortcrust pastry

ingredients:

• flour, 500gr.
• icing sugar, 200gr.
• egg yolks, 4
• butter, 250gr.
• vanilla extract, just the tip of a tablespoon

mix the flour with a pinch of salt and butter taken straight from the fridge (still cold). mix well until the result looks sand-like. add the vanilla extract and the yolks, quickly mix them all together until you get a pretty elastic but solid dough.

roll up closed in cooking plastic wrap, put to rest into the fridge for at least half an hour and that’s it! 🙂 now you can take it out and use it for a jam tart, biscuits, cream tart with fresh fruits on it, Nutella tart, .. 😋😋😋😋

it lasts uncooked in the fridge for a few days, or you can store it in the freezer. the cooking time is usually about 15-20 minutes at 180°C but it always depends on your kind of oven, so just check on the crust and don’t let it get too sunburnt. 😀

– – –

I wish you all a wonderful time with your family and friends,

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

I promise I won’t wait for another of Jo’s Blog Hops before posting again! 😀

hugs and happy xxx,

chiara