Saturday, January 28, 2012

Tulip Farm Block


The last couple of months were super busy with the holidays and wedding preparations, but finally took a little time out to stitch this block from Blackbird Designs' Tulip Farm quilt.  I really feel a little more balanced now - stitching does work wonders for the soul.


Also finished the chicken block from the Garden Club quilt.  I'm pleased with how the little feathers turned out - tried a new technique I read about where you clip in between a small area just ahead of stitching to deter fraying, and it worked well!


Found these darling railroad dishes in an antique store, and my husband bought them for me for Christmas.  I have long been fascinated with the romantic idea of train travel before airplanes were around, and railroad china has further piqued my interest, and its hard to find.

The wedding is now three months away, so every weekend we get a little more done.  The wedding dress is ordered, the rose garden where the ceremony will be held is reserved, we went to preview wedding cake ideas last weekend, and today we went to a wine store to learn more about champagne.  The goal is to enjoy the experience a little at a time, and not overdo.  We were planning to make the buffet food for the reception ourselves, but friends are trying to talk us out of it or at least having part of it catered.  Would love to hear your experiences and recommendations on wedding plans, as we still think its possible to make most of the food ourselves.

10 comments:

Dorothy said...

You will also want to enjoy the wedding day and concentrate on the wedding and friends and chatter and not if the food is right. Let someone else have that job and relax and enjoy the Day. It only comes once.

libbyquilter said...

it's good to see you back~!
love your chicken block.

:-)
libbyQ

Karen said...

I don't have the Tulip Farm patterns. It is a set that I have thought about purchasing but did nothing towards doing it. Your block is well done as usual.
The chicken is cute as can be. I used to collect chicken items and still have a love for funky style chicken quilt blocks.

Lori said...

Lovely blocks Dixie!
I like the idea of doing a little at a time and enjoying it.

Doing the food yourself is too much work for wedding day!! It may cost more $$ but it will be well worth it. My sister did quite a bit of hers, but we (the family) actually did most of it the day of the wedding!!

Mary said...

Welcome back! I have the Tulip Farm books, too, but haven't done anything from them yet. I keep looking at them, though. I love what you've made!!!

Two daughters have been married in the last five years and we tossed around a lot of ideas. Catered food depends on where and what type the reception will be and the budget. There are some places you have no choice. When I got married, my parents had a really large home and garden and we had the reception there. We made the food but hired someone to serve and that worked really well for us. Some places we looked at for the daughters were more formal and had their own food service, others we'd have had to bring it in. Just don't plan to make anything the day of the wedding. Will it be a buffet, passed appetizers, or a sit down meal? We kind of need more information to actually help. For a buffet or passed trays, anything you can make and freeze, then have someone heat up, and cold food work well. Also, we have restaurant supply stores here that stock frozen appetizers - just heat and serve - and you get more variety with a lot less work that way. Again, it depends on the place and the budget. But if you make it, hire someone to serve and have a good time at the party. Having fun is really, really important. I could ramble on and on but I'll stop here!

Dawn said...

Great blocks - and I LOVE the dishes. I have transferware dishes in four colors and love to mix them in settings. Interesting RR connection.
Sorry - can't comment on the wedding- ours was simple and my kids aren't there yet. Best wishes, and it sounds like a good plan keeping even the planning spaced out and well paced.

Maureen said...

China is a weakness for me. How do you know it is train china?
Love your applique blocks. The tulip is lovely and the chicken so fun!
I had a simple wedding - the reception was at our house. I think my mom did most of the cooking and hired someone to help during the reception. He keep the food coming, cleaned up, maybe some serving. She said he was invaluable. We had maybe 60 people attending. Good luck! It sounds like you all are having fun with it. Wonderful!

Janet said...

What great dishes. They used to travel in style! I hope all the wedding plans go well. Your applique is lovely as always :0)

Barb said...

I love your railroad dishes! what a great gift.
As far as wedding food, I guess it would depend on how many you are serving and how much you could ahead of time. It's a big undertaking and it would be a shame to miss the big day due to food prep/service.

Libby said...

Oh Garden Club . . . I want to get going on that again *s*

On the wedding, enjoying the process of planning is a great plan. But don't leave yourself time to enjoy the event, too. If you are offered help - take it!