Songs, skirts and scones

Yippie: my final Kona Solid fabrics for Kathrijn’s part of the Eliasberg bairn triptych quilt have arrived! Only two weeks after ordering, which is a record from Hancock’s of Paducah. I was so happy when I opened the package, as the two colours that I ordered were just right: bright green for the back and ocean blue for the sashing and borders. I couldn’t wait to get everone in bed and the house tidy, so I could begin with putting the quilt together. Ah, the poor dears.

When I finally got round to it, I realised that the measurements in the Last Minute Patchwork and Quilt Gifts Book are in inches and I am an imperial girl. It took several ‘measure twice, cut once’ moments (i.e. measure four times, cut once), but then I finally had cut the border and sashes for the front (I hoped). Although it was really time to go to bed at that stage, I couldn’t resist pinning at least one, or two, or three stacked coin columns, until I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore. The next day some time is spent watching football (WHAT?!) and pinning the other columns. After sewing column to column, bigger pieces to bigger pieces, I was able to cut away the extra centimeters of fabric before sewing the columns to the borders.

Pressing the fabric nearly ended in disaster, as the only suitable surface for pressing without folding the fabric was the floor. ‘Our’ (i.e. the landlord’s)  carpet is definitely not 100% natural: after pressing a corner of the quilt, some of it stuck to the carpet and left sticky residue in one of the corners… Some of it come of straight away, some with my nail and some is still on. I hope it will come of after the first wash.

Below the top basking in the sunshine of 20th June 2010, held down from the wind by the future owner.

… strawberry, rhubarb, strawberry and rhubarb, rhubarb and strawberry!

Last Thursday was one of those days when I thought: ‘why did I think it was a good idea to work full time over four days?’ By the time I dragged myself home again I had had quite enough. So to my great and pleasant surprise I found an old friend in the kitchen who was on a trip from Canada. Paul did mention to me briefly that pipes maker Joe Kennedy was in the country again and that he wanted to visit, but it had completely slipped my mind. Of course there was lots of talk, food and beer (for the men) and a casual mention of home made baking. Joe mentioned his mum’s rhubarb and strawberry pie and how he hadn’t had a cake like that in a long time. Ha, that was my cue for to do some particular shopping.

So, on Friday, while everybody was at school and visiting other friends, Tjabering and I set to making squashy rhubarb cake, but now with strawberries added. Tjabering was insistent on helping me at every step of the way, and without sisterly distractions that worked surprisingly well. After greasing, mixing, adding, tasting, it was time to put the cake in the oven and patiently wait and wait. Then, after taking the cake out, we had to wait again for it to cool down  and then again for everybody to come home. After a light dusting of icing sugar, we set down for a nice cuppa and cake… A good day, not the least thanks to my little helper!

After tonight’s Armagh Pipers Club class, I spotted the new cd Roisín White had left with Eithne to sell at the club: With thanks/Le Buíochas. Quickly bought and taken home, I have been listening to it for a few hours now. With a big smile on my face. Roisín’s singing is as direct and clear as ever, but the edges seem to have gotten a lovely soft finish.

The songs selection are a mixture of great songs, most of which bring back good memories of late night singing sessions, treasured cds and session recordings played back at the flat in Amsterdam. I especially love Roisín’s rendition of Mountain Streams, one of my favorite songs to hear.

If you have a chance, buy the cd and enjoy some exquisite traditional singing!

These are the songs featured on the cd:

1. The Bleacher (3.18)
2. Bold Jack Donohue (3.07)
3. Úrchnoc Chéin Mhic Cáinte (2.48)
4. Erin’s Flowery Plains (2.41)
5. McGuinness (3.01)
6. Dobbin’s Flowery Vale (3.56)
7. Pat O’Donnell (4.12)
8. Tandragee (2.25)
9. Erin the Green (3.52)
10. An Bonnán Buí – The Yellow Bittern (2.25)
11. Johnnie and Molly (3.06)
12. Mountain Streams (4.21)
13. Lass among the Heather (1.50)
14. The Lakes of Pontchartrain (2.35)
15. Cloughwater (2.39)

(While looking for the cover picture online, i spotted a new cd by Rosie Stewart as well: On the Leitrim Mountainside. Where is my credit card????)

After I came across Amanda Soule’s blog SouleMama, I spent a few days reading the archives from early morning to late evening, not really knowing where to start with making ’stuff’. But, when the end of September came round and Hendrikje’s 6th was waiting around the corner, I knew I HAD to make her a birthday crown. A felt crown, especially for the birthday girl or boy, only to wear on that special day. Hendrikje got a pink and orange one with flower buttons, Tjabering got his in December: blue and green, and Kathrijn got hers last week. After I couldn’t find hers…

I was under the impression I had already made three, one for each. But, on the birthday eve I couldn’t find Kathrijn’s, and strangely enough, I couldn’t remember what it looked like! So, after a birthday without a crown, but before the princess party kicked of, a trip to the craft shop resulted in shocking (or should I say neon) pink felt for the front of the crown and a roll of elastic band. Elastic is sooo much cheaper when you buy a roll, rather than little bits of what you need! Probably 5 times cheaper, if not more!!

I still had some nice felt in my felt box for the decorations and the crown was sewn together while I was watching the Marriage of Figaro on iPlayer. (I love iPlayer!!! You can find whatever you fancy, even from channels you can’t get, or necessarily want at home. We only have BBC 1 and 2, ITV and Channel 4, which is plentyplentyplenty.) Unfortunately I had forgotten to get some fancy buttons, so I had to make do with some plain Jane ones. Kathrijn  even remembered: ‘I want some flower ones as well’! Oops, another trip to the craft shop!

Kathrijn’s crown.

Tjabering’s crown (also in need for some fancy, butch buttons!).

Hendrikje’s crown.

Am I crazy, or what? As if a regular birthday party does not involve enough preparations, I decided to sew (again) the party bags myself. I like to think the children (and their parents) would prefer something to keep and remember the party by, rather than plastic toys that break within 15 minutes and 1 pound of sugar in various diguises! So, textile party bags it is, filled with a marble bag with some lovely different shaped marbles from the museum, a chocolate bar, a small bag with sweets and a finger puppet. Last October I made plain bags from creme curtain lining and let the children at them with fabric felt tip pens. This year I have used (again!) fabrics from my mums stack. Lovely dark pinkish fabric with a classic print. Rather than making a single layer bag with folded seams, I made an outer and an inner bag, which relatively is a lot quicker to make and tidies away all the seams in one go!

After the bags I set myself to a second set of bunting. Pink of course, by special request. Again dutch fabrics and some left over Amy Butler did the trick. On Saturday I was so pleased with the results hanging between the parasol, fence and birch tree! It looks super festive and doesn’t tear in the wind as our Dutch paper streamers would.

Paul made these photographs, which shows them of a lot better than my own pitiful attempts! When the princesses were collected again after the party, the mothers complemented me on my sewing, burst burst burst! One even asked if I was a seamstress! If only, if only. I am going to try my hand at my own clothes. Soon. For now these little projects keep me happy!

On the first of June 2005 about an hour after waking up, a cheerful lady brought me a tray of breakfast in the hospital room were I had spend the night, awaiting my elective section. As I had so hoped to have had my baby that day, I was so disappointed when she answered my question ‘I thought I wasn’t allowed breakfast if I’m to have a section today?’ with ‘Section, what section, as far as I know you are not booked in for a section!’ After a long (and hungry!) wait the consultant came to see us and made it very clear: the notes on the file said both ‘trial of labour’ or ‘elective section’, but you can’t have both, so we had to choose there and then. As obviously we had prepared ourselves for the section anyway, the choice wasn’t that difficult. About 5 hours later our Kathrijn was born, a big lump of a baby. That big lump of a baby is now a beautiful 5 year old girl, sweet, quiet, but very social. I can’t believe she is now also no longer a little girl…

For her birthday treat at school the birthday girl had very clear ideas: chocolate cake with smarties! Never scared of a challenge I opted to try out a new recipe: Rachel Allen’s chocolate cake from Bake. Not that dissimilar to any other but still worth a try.

The recipe calls for two cakes from sandwich tins sandwiched together with icing. But, as the cake is going to be handed out to 24 children and 2 teachers, I opt for filling one tray, using the icing as a topping. My cakebaking wouldn’t be complete without curdled mixture, so yes, this time around it curdled again. IT DRIVES ME INSANE!!! No matter what I do: cream long or short, use warmer ingredients, add egg by teaspoon full or ladle-full, mix long or short, it always curdles. Now, it shouldn’t really matter to me, because the cake tastes nothing less, it just feel like a ton of bricks!

So, after some meditative breathing I called the girls to decorate the cake. I wouldn’t say that there ended up more decoration in tummies than on the cake, but there was surely a great attraction towards the icing and the smarties. The chocolate icing recipe that Rachel Allen gives is just the best! It gives you a nice chocolaty, but not too dark a flavour, and light texture. All with just butter, vanilla extract and a tablespoon of cream mixed until soft and then add icing sugar and cocoapowder until smooth smooth smooth…

The cake was definitely the start attraction when Kathrijn came to school and they all wanted to pick the smarties before school had even started!

For Kathrijn’s birthday party on Saturday, I made the same cake, but this time in the start tin, and doesn’t it look pretty? I made it the day before (curdle curdle) and didn’t put the icing and smarties on until on the morning of the party, because the weather was quite warm. The shouts weren’t from the air: ‘chocolate cake!’, ‘it is the same as in school! ‘ It was really nice: heavy, but full of sweet chocolate flavour, just right for 5 year olds (and adults)!

Oh, and it does taste nice with some vanilla ice cream as well, after the children have gone to bed !

Last Saturday necessity was again the  mother of ‘invention’: I wanted to go to IKEA, Paul really needed a day (or even half a day) on his own to work on a media presentation with the deadline on Monday and the children deserved a wee trip. Thus at half eight everyone, except Paul, sat strapped in the car and we headed of to Belfast to visit our ‘take-away-Swede’. I let out a sigh when just before Portadown Hendrikje started asking: are we there yet?…

Luckily, after some explaining, they seemed to grasp it would be a longish drive, but that at the end there would a reward: IKEA’s småland will take all little children over 3 years old from weary parents . After leaving two bouncy girls in the care of småland, Tjabering (who was not one bit happy he wasn’t allowed to go) and myself went of on a 45-minutes shopping spree. After 45 minutes your småland pager will go off and will near enough not stop beeping until you are back to collect your children!

Anyhow, with a small list of have-to-get items, I ended up with only half of it: two items were discontinued since we bought last time. I did get some nice postcards for my postcrossing AND (yes we are finally getting to some relevance here) a lovely star shaped cake tin! I had seen it several times before, as did I see all the other lovely tins they sell, but only this time I thought, what the heck, let’s just buy it from the money I can’t spend on the things we need!

On our way back home we passed one of those road side stalls selling potatoes, strawberries and the like. In a split second I had to decide, will I or will I not? Of course there was no not stopping after I had mentioned ‘oh strawberries’. Although they were expensive, I took some home and enjoyed the fruitful (haha) results of our trip.

At home the hunt for a suitable strawberry cake recipe proved ridiculously difficult! The mind was set on a cake with the strawberries in it, not on it, and without creme. Eventually I had to resort to the successful squashy rhubarb recipe and simply replaced the rhubarb with strawberries. All the children were around to lend a hand: Hendrikje and Kathrijn cleaned, crowned and cut the strawberries. Hendrikje spread them over the dough while Kathrijn (and the weekend’s laundry, ahum) patiently waited.

Tjabering was on hand to spread the crumble on top of the strawberries.

The smell of this cake was divine!! You can imagine the disappointment when, after some cooling down, the cake proved too squashy to come out of the tin in one piece…

It did make serving it all the easier (and quicker): after one tea break the cake was clean gone!

Needless to say, when I asked Kathrijn what cake she would want to eat for her birthday when she got home from school, it was this one! Not one for squashing the cake in both goes, I made the birthday cake in a regular tin and this came out fine and just as delicious!

It was well worth coming home early from work that day to eat birthday cake together!