What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

 It's time to make Christmas happen here in the Sticks

Welcome to 

Creatin' in the Sticks!

I'm excited to kick off the

Virtual Cookie Exchange and Blog Hop

where bloggers are sharing Christmas cookies recipes, traditions, 

and/or 

sewing projects.

Thank you, Carol, for including me!

Merry Christmas!

It's been a crazy year and I think we are all ready to start a new one.

Then Christmas comes along and things seem a little happier ...

And every year I jump to participate!

Look who is joining the blog hop this year:

December 1

Creatin' in the Sticks - ME!

Doreen – Just Let Me Quilt Guest

Bumbleberry Stitches

Home Sewn By Us

Quilt Schmilt

Food for Thought

Life in the Scrapatch

Ms P Designs USA

Just Sew Quilter

Cathie's Craftworks

Cynthia's Creating Ark

 December 2

MooseStashQuilting

Karen's Korner

Sew ...

 Well, all I can say is Halluleuyah!!!  The red and white blocks are DONE! But not without a couple of glitches. 

Here they are—the four blocks of Block Five. And yes - that one block doesn't have the best contrast - I'm over it. I had done very well with the cutting, except that I had forgotten to cut the white for one of the blocks. Hmm - I could wait until I got home; I could have gone to the quilt store today or borrowed from a friend. Ronda happened to have some white, so I got white from ...

So far, so good!  I headed out Thursday, along with some of the other Essential staff wives, for a retreat/conference in Dallas, Georgia; Cultivate 2020.

It was a LOT of fun!  I love road trips in and of themselves, but this retreat was really intended to pamper and encourage the participants and a great job was done of it!

I mean, wow!  Our lunch Friday was served in high—tea time—style! Each of us got our own tiered tray, that then went home with us. We went home with a ton of swag, including the gorgeous (and yummy ...

When the going gets tough, the tough turn to chocolate, isn’t that right?  I’ve been working on this recipe for some weeks now, and just had to make it several times to be sure.  No, really, I had to.  Testing combinations of shortening and butter, different types of chips took several batches.  Plus, I wanted to make a recipe that didn’t make a lot of cookies.  With just two of us at home, and no one to give them to, I don’t need dozens sitting around, although I did find that these freeze well.

So the ...

I've got a new spot for quilt beauty shots, the porch; it's perfect, I can set up the stand without dealing with wind, weather and other outdoor hazards. If you've ever tried to set up a quilt for outside photography you know that even the slightest breeze will turn your quilt into a giant sail!The location is perfect but the time of day wasn't-- I'll need to be careful in the future to make sure

I've got a new spot for quilt beauty shots, the porch; it's perfect, I can set up the stand without dealing with wind, weather and other outdoor hazards. If you've ever tried to set up a quilt for outside photography you know that even the slightest breeze will turn your quilt into a giant sail!The location is perfect but the time of day wasn't-- I'll need to be careful in the future to make sure

Being that it was Earth Day

Being that it was Earth Day

In keeping with last year’s monthly review of Christmas teas on the 25th of the month, I would like to present Christmas in Paris by Stash Tea Co. This herbal tea contains cocoa shells, peppermint, lavender, natural chocolate flavour, and vanilla extract. While I don’t like the taste of mint, the promise of chocolate was enough to tempt me into trying this blend. I was very thankful that it only contains trace amounts of caffeine since I ended up drinking it at almost 8:00 p.m.

The teabags are individually wrapped, a plus in my opinion as ...

An e-mail from the English Tea Store yesterday reminded me of their Swiss Hot Chocolate Flavoured Tea. Being a chocoholic from childhood, this tea caught my eye last year around Christmas time. When I say “last year” I’m really referring to the end of 2018. Not only do I love chocolate, but I also love hot chocolate. By the way, I make mine with half-and-half. It’s delicious!

The English Tea Store has managed to combine two loves into one drink. How awesome is that?! This blend comes in a loose leaf format, so you can adjust the strength ...

Tonight was my friend Linda's 41st annual cookie party. She's been hosting them every year since I was one. My mom has attended since the beginning. As a teen I remember waiting up for her to get home from the party to see (and taste!) what cookies everyone else made. I've been attending the party since college. It's a holiday tradition that I really enjoy.

The party consists of mostly the same familiar faces from year to year. We describe our cookie to the group, do a little craft project, play a gift exchange game with ...

Hi, I'm Gene the Gingerbread Man, I wanted to give you a quick glimpse into where Mrs. Goodneedle has been and what she's been doing for the past week. She and Mr. Goodneedle stay busy! With a porch ceiling to work on and shopping and baking to be done, all in preparation for an Open House on Saturday evening. With all of that baking going on the kitchen looked like a bomb had gone

Hi, I'm Gene the Gingerbread Man, I wanted to give you a quick glimpse into where Mrs. Goodneedle has been and what she's been doing for the past week. She and Mr. Goodneedle stay busy! With a porch ceiling to work on and shopping and baking to be done, all in preparation for an Open House on Saturday evening. With all of that baking going on the kitchen looked like a bomb had gone

Biscotti makes a fabulous gift, especially when added to baskets with mugs or cute plates.  This recipe will make enough for the Christmas cookie exchange and be the hit of the party.  Giving biscotti on a vintage platter or thrifted holiday plate is fun too. It is really easy to make, and just takes a bit of time.

As usual, collect all your ingredients in a mis-en-place.

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside. Mix first four ingredients in a bowl and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and ...