LizzyHouse

So much to say, and No time to say it!

hello everyone. I have so many things I want to say, and show you. Lots of cool Lizzy Dish things. LOTS of cool new fabric surprises... If you have emailed me, and I haven't gotten back to you, forgive me... things are a little crazy right now, AND I am getting ready to take some stuff to New York next week. So i'm just under a crunch to get things done. A little high strung at the moment.

But

I have these little lights gleaming at the end of this winter tunnel. In mid May I get to go to Market in PA and see all of my favorite quilty/fabric peeps. It is amazing how much these people come to mean to you even though you only see them twice a year. Then, in the beginning of June I get to go teach for 4 wonderful days at the beautiful Squam Art Workshops. They both seem kind of far away, but then you think about it, and nope. I am still wondering how it is 2009, let alone nearly March.

Also, word is my classes are filling up. That makes me so happy. Thanks to everyone who has signed up. I can't wait to meet each of you. For more Squam details check out this sweet action interview.

I'm looking for a picture now to put up so you have something to look at...

ok. here it is...

I'm off to find something to eat so I can keep it together.

new listing

I made a little book, and have posted it in my little shop!

the book has been purchased, but I made a mistake! The stamp was not Romanian, it is Bulgarian. Sorry peeps. Thanks Ana!

playing with knives.

I have been peeping at Lizzy Dish sales... is that weird? Anyway I noticed that peeps seem to be avoiding the Knives. And I want to say to you, Fear Not! Avoid no more! The picture that appears in most shops isn't very telling of the versatility of this neat-o fabric.

So I was with Carla after one of our Thursday Art Nights, and she had just made this brilliant pillow using the knives in all three color ways, as we had decided to only do projects using the knives as almost a challenge. Anyway, she was finishing her pillow so she pulled out some buttons, the covering kind, and we started to play around with some scraps... turned out that the small diamond fit perfectly in the center of the button. TURNED out it looked like a cat eye, or on its side, a frog eye. I designed the fabric and I didn't even see that! I said jokingly, "hey, that looks like an eye... HEY THAT LOOKS LIKE AN EYE!" We covered all the buttons she had, and I got started with my new family of cats.

So, not only does the fabric act as perfect eyes for feline or amphibian (think Kermit eyes), it acts as a good cat stripe. Like a tabby or a Mau, and for you cat lovers you can change the directions of the stripe to be more realistic to a cat, and further crack yourself up.

this is the kitchennaire* family. Well fed of course.

I will post more knife fabric projects over the next week or so!

Will you give me a shout (leave a comment) if you have had a Lizzy Dish sighting at a local shop? Just let me know your sweet name and where you are!

I am loving life! Are you all loving it?

Quilt Top

So I haven't quilted it yet... I was waiting on some thread that I now have so, Onward!

snipping threads...

SHOP SALE

I'm trying to make way for some new work so I am having a bit of a sale. Both the Whale Print: Call me Ishmael, and the 2nd Cathedral Print are on Sale. Quite the discount too. Plus, I know how lovely they would be in your home.

help me, help you.

valday treats

some Valentine treats never hurt anyone.

Ben helped me make the pistachio truffles, then I made white chocolate fudge with cranberry, orange, and almonds... kind of Christmasy in flavors... and heart shaped shortbread. Which was not Christmasy because it was in the shape of a heart.

If you were here I would share with you. But I will share the recipe instead

Pistachio Truffles:

12oz. Semi Sweet Chocolate, chopped or broken
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 Tablespoon butter
3/4 cup finely chopped pistachios (roasted and salted are best)

In a biggish bowl place all your chocolate, set aside.
Over medium high heat bring the cream to a boil.
As soon as it starts to boil, remove from heat and pour over chocolate.
Now stir it up. Stir it until it is smooth and no bits of chocolate remain unmelted.
Toss in butter. Stir that too, until everything is smooth.

You have yourself a ganache. Now if you have a lot of time you can put it in the fridge and wait for it to solidify. If you have only a bit of time, you can stick it in the freezer. It should take about half an hour...

When it has gotten pretty firm, this is the part where you need a melon baller or a teaspoon or if you are extreme a tablespoon. I always keep a glass of warm water around to dip whatever utensil it is I am using into. Scoop out a little ball, and throw it onto the chopped nuts. Which should be on a plate. Roll it around, and then stick it in the little dream cup of your choosing.

You can eat these right away or refrigerate them for about a week. They also freeze pretty well. But they are best for sharing. The combination of the dark chocolate with the sweet and salty of the pistachios makes a killer truffle. But not killer in a literal way.

valentines

I don't know if I have ever actually had a Valentine, but it has never really mattered to me. I'm just one of those peeps who loves, Love. Always have. And the way I see it is that Valentines is kind of like another Thanksgiving. It's an oppurtunity to show thanks for the peeps and the things that we love.

so here are the people that I love that have been so constant over the past few years here in Rexington. Happy Valentines.

for all of you impatient peeps.

I said I would give you a sneak-peek.

I never said what kind of sneak-peek...

you have to know by now that I crack myself up.

Also, check out the top right side panel for everything LizzyDish including an updated list of where to buy, and slideshows of all of the color ways!

would you believe it?

would you believe that I put together a quilt in 15hrs? Or less... i'm  just figuring here. But probably, I know some of you are out of control fast... my Mom can get a quilt done start to finish in 4 days, which of course is mind blowing/ danerously explosive... how fast is fast Peeps?

My sweet Mom got me a sweet action sewing machine from a garage sale, and it turns out it's one of the best machines Singer ever made AND it's in tip-top shape now.... well as part of my personal mission to be better at what I believe in, I needed to make a quilt. I started this project (by purchasing the fabric) back in July. I keep trying to make a LizzyDish quilt but this quilt was plaguing me. SO, since I believe in quilting, and I have a new sweet action machine, and a plague of fabric I made a quilt almost as fast as I could. I started, and I just didn't stop. 200 degrees that's why they call me Mr. Fahrenheit, i'm traveling at the speed of light...

There was even a party in my living room tonight where I was sewing, and it didn't throw me for a second. There were several guys I didn't know trying to make conversation with me, asking if I bought this in a kit, asking if I was in a sewing class or if I was a home-ec major, asking if they could sew a block...

my responses:

I'm graduated
I have a BFA in Printmaking
I did not buy this in a kit
my Mom is professional quilter
I am a fabric designer
I am busy on Thursday
would you excuse me, I need to iron this.

What was I supposed to do? I was on a mission.

I'll quilt it sometime this week. It's a nice quilt. I used the foreign currency pattern.

But the thing is, the only way I could get my own quilt with my own fabric underway was if this one was out of the way.

Mission accomplished.

All of my quilty moms out there would be so proud of me, and my corners... yeah I used pins and everything, and they all match up.

have a great week everyone!

oh and go get some Lizzy Dish!

More like Italian Dream Cake

So, I'm a little obsessed with making cakes, but my friends are the recipients of the obsession...no one seems to be complaining. Carla's birthday was on Tuesday! So, as soon as I got back from Florida/Texas I got to work. I knew that I wanted to make an Italian Cream cake for two reasons: 1. It was she and Bob's wedding cake and 2. No one in Idaho makes Italian Cream cake... I guess it's kind of a Southern cake...

I made a couple of changes to the cake, but the most delicious addition was putting my favorite apricot preserves in between the layers. It's an English brand called TipTree. They don't use any corn syrup or anything. There are two ingredients: apricots, sugar. The way it should be. But the combination of the cake flavors, the pecans, the coconut, the buttermilk, and then the tangy sweetness of the apricot plus the tartness of the cream cheese frosting made for something really so nice.

Also, this cake calls for a combination of butter (some recipes call for margarine, I still used butter) and shortening, and I just want to say how grateful I am that brands like Spectrum exist, and make non hydrogenated products. They are heart healthy and not creepilly processed to the point that your body can't recognize or figure out what to do with it.

I bejeweled the side of the cake with chopped pecans, and then glued on whole ones every once and a while to create a pattern (I can't help myself).

If you are wondering about the nice and tall candles I use, they are by a brand called TAG, and I found them in a bakery in San Francisco, but for you and you alone I found some online, so you can adorn your next cake with them. They come in six different colors.

The cake was a big hit. We had a fun night too. Per usual one of my impromptu parties with a cake and a game of Art Auction. I don't ever seem to get bored! But I would like to say how grateful I am for Carla. She has been a wonderful mentor and one of my dearest friends over these past years. I don't know what I would have done without her, and her sweet family whilst here in Rexburg. She is the kind of person that improves the quality of your life just by knowing her. I would make her a cake any day. Happy Birthday.

Some sweet action projects with Lizzy Dish coming very very soon. Also, for you peeps who can't take surprises or waiting for that matter, a sneak peek VERY soon.

have a great weekend!