Originally published at caitlin childs (dot) com. You can comment here or there.

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Originally published at caitlin childs (dot) com. You can comment here or there.

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Originally published at caitlin childs (dot) com. You can comment here or there.

For this project I cut my front and backing fabric to 12.5"x16.5" rectangles.

To add a bit of volume and weight to the placemats I used this fantastic Warm & Natural cotton batting. I cut the batting a 1/4" smaller around than the top and backing fabric for a 16"x12" rectangle.

After cutting, lay the three layers out and iron flat.

I used a free form amoeba like pattern when quilting the layers together. It's important to make sure that the layers stay flat together while quilting, to make sure that the placemat will lay flat after quilting.

Once the layers are quilted together iron the placemat flat again.

After having been quilted and ironed flat, your placemats are ready for binding.

I used a pre-folded double fold bias tape to create the bound edge on these placemats. There are several ways to attache the binding, I pinned mine in place and sewed straight down, making sure that the thread was correctly sewing on both the front and back of the placemat.

I created a (admittedly inexact) mitered corner by folding the bias tape in on itself. One hint for the process is to fold it in place and then continue sewing straight to the corner. When you get there, leave the needle down in the fabric, raise your presser foot, and rotate the placemat 90º then lower the presser foot and continue sewing.

Placemats make great presents for birthdays, christmas, and especially housewarmings. Enjoy!

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Originally published at caitlin childs (dot) com. You can comment here or there.

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Originally published at caitlin childs (dot) com. You can comment here or there.

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Originally published at caitlin childs (dot) com. You can comment here or there.

Most zucchini bread recipes are heavy on the sugar and oil, and taste a lot more like zucchini cake than bread. This recipe comes from the King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking cookbook and is much more like a traditional bread recipe. The flavor is complex and delicious and the consistency is dense and bready. Perfect for eating plain or spreading with your favorite butter, jam, or cream cheese.

Zucchinibread

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup unbleached white flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 large eggs

3/4 cup milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1-1/2 cups grated zucchini

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1 tablespoon lemon zest

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 9"x5" loaf pan. In a medium bowl mix together dry ingredients: flours, sugar, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg. In a larger bowl or mixing bowl whisk the eggs milk and oil together. Stir in the dry ingredients until uniformly mixed then add the zucchini, walnuts, and lemon zest.

Bake for one hour, check the center with a toothpick, if it comes out clean
your bread is done, if not bake for a few more minutes and re-test. Let bread cool in pan for 15 minutes then run a knife around the edges and remove from pan to cool on a wire rack.

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I attended the Bay Area Maker Faire in San Mateo this weekend.  Awesomeness abounded and I can say with absolute certainty that it was the most fun I've ever had at an event held on fair grounds.  My friends and I arrived promptly at 10am on Sunday and stayed until the end and I was 100% entertained the entire time.  I got to meet some rad crafters and see a whole bunch of neat hand built contraptions. We finished off the evening with a very tasty dinner at Ti Couz in San Francisco, home of the best crepes in SF and the most wonderful chocolate mousse I have ever put in my mouth. My photoset from the Maker Faire is up on flickr:

beware!

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living flower basket

moss

flowers

Step one: procure ingredients.  If buying from a good nursery, ask for advice on what flowers to purchase for your particular hanging location, if your basket will be hanging in full sun you'll need different flowers than if your basket will be hanging in a nice shady spot.



The process: begin by soaking your moss in a bucket of water.  Once thoroughly softened shape moss one handful at a time into hamburger sized patties.  Begin lining your wire basket with these patties, making sure not to leave any holes.  (You should think of the moss as a living pot for your flowers!)  Once you have lined your basket about 1/3 of the way up stop.  Your lining should resemble a birds nest at this point.  You will want to fill this "nest" with potting soil.  Next, gently feed one of your flowers through to the outside of the basket making sure that the roots are in contact with the soil.  Note: I used three flowers spaced evenly apart at this level.

Continue lining your basket with moss patties and cover the first layer of flower roots with more soil.  At about 2/3 the way up your basket repeat the previous steps adding more flowers to the basket.

step 7

step 8

You will want to continue lining the basket with moss above the top rim of the basket.  Continue filling the interior with potting soil and then plant the top of the basket vertically with more flowers.  Creeping flowers and vines can be especially nice for this top location.



Your last step is to securely fasten hanging wires to the basket.  After that you'll want to water it slowly and hang it somewhere you will be able to enjoy it.  In hotter months these baskets may require a lot of watering, if you water your baskets slowly, rather than quickly, the moss will be able to better absorb and retain the moisture so don't forget to be patient!

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This is a recipe from my childhood.  My step-granfather, who died when I was young, was a great cook.  This is one of his recipes and I remember my mom making these when I was a kid.  They're unique because this recipe doesn't just use orange extract or orange juice, it uses an entire orange all chopped up inside the muffins! Yum!

orange muffins

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
3 1/3 cup flour
1 3/4 cup sugar
3 tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 orange, finely chopped, NOT peeled
1 1/2 cup milk
orange glaze

Beat the eggs for 5 minutes. Slowly beat in oil. Continue to beat 1 minute. Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture, chopped orange, and milk to egg mixture. Mix until blended, then beat 2 to 3 minutes. Spoon batter into paper-lined muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake at 350ºF 20-25 minutes or until muffins spring back when lightly touched. Remove from pans and cool on wire racks. Brush with orange glaze while still warm.

Glaze:
4 tbsp powdered sugar
4 tsp milk
1/2 tsp grated orange peel
a couple teaspoons orange juice

Combine sugar, milk and peel until smooth. Brush over muffins while still warm.

A note on chopping the orange: you'll need to chop the orange with it's peel on. This is a messy endeavor but you'll want to chop it into smallish chunks and try not to loose too much of the juice in the process. Just add it all in to the batter!

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My holiday season baking hasn't really begun yet, but last night I got a craving for something swwet and spicy.  Gingerbread is the perfect cake for the holidays, sweet, moist, fragrant and easy to make.  Gingerbread is excellent served warm with vanilla ice cream or freshly whipped cream, butterscotch sauce would also probably taste great.

Gingerbread

Pre-heat over to 325ºF. Grease and flour a 9x9 inch cake pan.  Beat all ingredients in mixer until smooth and creamy. Pour into pan.  Bake at 325º for 50-55 minutes until top is light and springy and a toothpick comes out clean.

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