Still here, for a little while longer at least

I honestly do have a valid reason for the last month's silence -- my parents were here, my husband was seriously sick, and we're now preparing to move next month. We managed to survive the first two admirably, but the last one may give me an ulcer. I mean really, who in their right mind moves just before Christmas?! After almost four years of living in Germany, we're heading back to England. I love living here -- great house, neighbours, school, etc -- so I'm just a bit reluctant to move. My other half is trying to shake me out of my pessimistic mood and I'm sure he's right that we'll find a place that we love just as much as here (just don't tell him that).

So needless to say, most of my Christmas projects are now cancelled and I'm just working on a few unfinished pieces. I did manage the following:

• Halloween: Got my lanterns and my daughter's trick or treat bag done just in time. Both are Martha Stewart projects. I love, love, love the felt bag -- it was easy and quick and guess what I'm making an Easter tote out of.

• In the Kitchen: Next time a friend says, "I don't have time to do anything with these; would you like them?" Don't believe her. My neighbour handed me a bag of quinces. Not knowing anything about them, I accepted. I'm starting to suspect that she doesn't like me anymore. After a few days of cuts, bruises, burns, and a house stinking of quince and burnt sugar, I produced something akin to quince cheese and quince jam. Never again.

• Christmas projects: Got my Christmas cake and mincemeat done last week. Don't think I'll have time to much more, but maybe after the move I'll have time for gingerbread men or a last-minute Christmas pudding. Am doing a vintage Christmas pattern stitch along, but am v. frustrated with it at the moment. Made an elementary mistake in choosing a red and white Santa to go on a white towel. Santa's face completely disappears! Ugh. May have to rip out his head and start again. On a more positive note, a friend came over the other day and taught me how to make German stars! Guess what I'm decorating the tree and my presents with this year. I couldn't resist making a few of these mittens too. Not sure if they're going on the tree or if I'm going to tie them around presents. If I can get enough done by Dec. 1st, I'll put numbers on them and use them for an Advent calender.

There are a few more projects I hope to squeeze in before the move. I'll try to post them if I do. If not, you may not hear from me until January. Wish us luck!

The living dead and a few Halloween projects

Dripping, drooling, moaning evil zombies have nothing on us this week. My husband and I are just getting over the flu and between the two of us coughing and wheezing, I don't know how we sleep. I normally make this chicken noodle soup with ginger (sunshine in a bowl), but today I'm going to make this chicken curry soup with coconut and lime as it is easy and flavourful. Hopefully normal breathing with resume tomorrow.

The flu may have slowed me down, but I've managed to have a bit of a clear out. Summer clothes are packed away, wardrobes have had a once over and now I've just finished off a few projects that have been lingering around. Remember this one?

Yes, I've finally found a decent frame for my "39 Squares" project. I mounted the fabric onto a canvas and then hung the canvas in a great shadow box from IKEA. I should have bought a bunch of these while I was there!

I also finished this off for my husband's birthday:

This was my husband's favourite t-shirt. He bought it while we were dating and last year I finally forced him to retire it. Rather than tossing it into the rag pile, I turned it into this banner for his office using directions for a placemat.

Then I came across this left unfinished from last year and went right into Halloween mode.

Not entirely sure what I'm going to do with it now, but it may end up on a felt trick or treat bag next week.

Now in the full Halloween spirit, I did this:

I've always wanted to try my hand at decoupage, so here's my first effort. This candy tin is decorated with images from The Graphics Fairy. I pestered my other half to punch two holes, strung it with a black velvet ribbon and stitched up the orange flower ribbon. Not too bad for a first effort, if I do say so myself. What am I going to do with it? Fill it with my favourite Halloween treats and hang it near my sewing seat.

This sunny, dry morning I started these soon to be Halloween lanterns, found here at Martha Stewart.

I also have plans for these, but I'm not telling yet. Maybe they'll be done for my next posting!

Plum crazy!

The local plum season is here again! I love the German plums here – they’re about the size of goose eggs and are wonderfully sweet with just a hint of tart. They’re great for snacking, but they’re even better to cook with.

Now last year I went a bit crazy and ended up with three buckets full of plums. I made plum jam, spiced plum cheese (something akin to overcooked jelly) and plum and apple chutney. As you can imagine, we are still eating these preserves off. Therefore this year I will to be more controlled. At the moment, I only plan to make a few cakes.

As the neighbourhood children have stripped the wild plum trees of their fruit already, we headed off to the nearest pick-your-own orchard, Obsthof Schneekloth on Sunday. This is one of our favourite local haunts during the summer fruit season – we ramble around the orchards, stop in the café for a dreamy cake, then my daughter runs around the playground or the small animal petting area (guinea pigs, rabbits, and goats galore).

We gorged ourselves on these:

We hauled home just over a kilo of these:

Of which I made this, a plum, almond and ricotta cake:

Hmmmm, I don’t think I can just stop there. Maybe a bottle or two of plum cordial is in order. Or maybe a pan of plum leather. Or maybe a jar or two of pickled plums…..

In other news, I did finish my project for the DOW Wednesday Stitch Along. I chose Floresita’s “Bear in Mind” pattern. Sorry, couldn’t find a maker or pattern number. As I admitted, I did start this a bit early – I was too eager to wait. The phrase “a nice stitchy indulgence” got my brain going. I’ve been sitting on these fabrics for awhile waiting for a useful project, so what better use than a cover for my book of stitches? The poor book does get bashed about a bit in my embroidery bag, as I take my embroidery with me when I can.

The stitching turned out all right, although I learned that I need to practice my blanket and satin stitches. I had to redo the eye and spool a few times. As you can see, I gave up and used good old backstitch. I am practising satin stitch on my current project and am slowly improving.

In all, I enjoyed this stitch along and can’t wait for the next one!

My verdict on German foood

Can you name this veg?, originally uploaded by Tea Potty.

I love to cook and, having lived in Germany for the last three year, I am frequently asked what I think of German cuisine. Sad to say, I have added very few German recipes to my repertoire. This isn’t because I don’t like the food here, it’s just that I’ve experienced few traditional German meals that I’ve wanted to recreate and many of those were either beyond my cooking ability or ability to translate. The German influence shows up in other aspects of my cooking.

To put it simplistically, German families have a different approach to eating from our experience. Breakfast is a continental affair – cold cuts, cheeses and fresh rolls are a must. Lunch, the largest meal of the day, is served hot and those that can go home for a meal with the whole family. (Note of interest: German schools, except kindergartens, do not serve lunch.) Dinner is small, similar to our lunch, and features more cold cuts and cheeses. Between meals, Germans snack often – second breakfasts, cafes with strong coffee and gorgeous bakery, and eis cafes (Italian-influenced ice cream parlours) provide irresistible temptation. Failing that, sweets are always on hand. My mother was astonished that our grocery store’s sweets section was larger than the canned fruit and vegetable section. This speaks volumes about the national diet – high in fat, sugar, salt and beer. I think what saves them is self-control and that Germans are much more into exercise than either Britons or Americans.

As with any cuisine, when German food is good, it’s very, very good, but when it is bad, it is appalling. The worst offenders include:

• Currywurst: This favourite fast food will horrify any British curry lover. Take an indifferent sausage, fry it, drown it in sweet and mildly spiced ketchup, and sprinkle any old curry spice, neat, over the top.
• Mett: My neighbour and her family rave about this one and were the first to introduce me to it. It’s an open sandwich comprised of raw pork mince on a buttered roll, topped with raw onion. Enough said.
• Minor offenders (I just don’t like these because of personal preferences): Pickled red cabbage – this sweet and sour dish appears as the vegetable side of most restaurant main courses. Matjes – pickled herring in a cream sauce. Thinking about it, the Dutch may be to blame for this one.

That’s enough of the negatives. Since moving to Germany I have changed my shopping and meal-planning habits for the better. I now shop seasonally and locally as I depend on our bi-weekly market for fresh produce. The markets here are fantastic – friendly and helpful, they provide not only great local and seasonal products, but also an excuse to meet friends for “café and kuchen” (coffee and cake) in the town centre.

For me, the best of German food must include:

• Bakery: The bread here was an epiphany for me. It is fresh, wholesome, and comes in a huge variety. I know hope to avoid buying a loaf of pre-packaged, gluey, sliced white bread ever again, so much so that I am learning to make my own bread. Beyond bread, the bakery, cakes and tortes are to drool over.
• Eis Cafes: mmmmm, lovely Italian gelato!
• Hearty Soups: one of these split pea, lentil or potato soups will keep you warm through a cold, dreary day. I am currently perfecting my own version of lentil soup with sausages.
• Christmas Cookies: the reputation is well deserved. Store bought is OK, but for the real deal, find a generous soul who’ll let you sample her stash. A neighbour took pity on me last Christmas and gave me a crash course in cooking making. When the season nears, I’ll clean up my notes and share them.

Really, in all, it’s a miracle that I haven’t put loads of weight on while living here.

My final advice to those planning a visit here – do your research beforehand to locate a good traditional German restaurant before travelling as they are worth seeking out. If you can’t find one, save your money and buy your staples from bakeries, butchers and markets. Splash out on cafes instead. You are more likely to stumble accidentally upon a good café than a good restaurant.

What do I miss from Britain? Good quality cheese, sausages, brown sugar, mayonnaise, affordable lamb meat, fish ‘n chips, curries, gastro pubs, cider. What do I miss from America? Good bagels, peanut butter cups, and my favourite restaurants.

Thank goodness for pack rats!

I haven't really mentioned much about my trip to America over the summer. It was stressful, maddening, lovely and rewarding all at once as usual. Unfortunately, the airlines are making my trips harder and harder with these luggage restrictions! Do you know how heavy a jar candle is?! Not only do I do most of my clothes shopping there, but I also come back with my most important craft supplies.

Coming from a long line of pack rats, I am lucky enough to source many of my vintage materials right from my mother's basement. This basement treasure trove is my unending source of inspiration -- I never know what I'll find when I start digging. The collection is just as funny, touching and beautiful as the three generations behind it. 

These two images are a sampling of my latest haul back from America. This time I came back with lots of lace, trim and buttons. I did manage to pry one feed sack from my mother's clutches. I only got away with as much as I did because I promised that everything would be put to good use. That is easier said than done. Some of these items belonged to my grandmother and great grandmother and it is a bit daunting to start cutting them up into pieces. I think I'll need a hit of sweet sherry in honour of my ancestresses before I hack into the above lace tablecloth!

The Summer is winding down...

Clay Pipe Museum 3, originally uploaded by Tea Potty.

Whew! What a summer. The weather may not have been great -- either cool and wet or scorching hot -- but it has been jam packed. After three weeks in America, nearly a week in England, and another week of entertaining guests here, life is starting to resume regularly scheduled programming. My other half is back to work, my daughter is back in school, and I am finally able to sit down and write.

On Saturday, I realised that the blackberries have just come into season here when most of the neighbourhood children appeared with sticky, red stains all over themselves. I got up extra early yesterday fearing I missed out and armed myself with a bucket and step stool. After a few hours, several bramble scratches and a bad nettle rash, I returned home triumphant with my booty. Sadly the resulting jam only filled two jars. But two very lovely jars they are!

My main sewing project at the moment is a piece for the Flickr "New Embroidery with Vintage Patterns Group" vintage pattern stitch along. I had it in my head that the piece needed to be done by 1st September, so I'm nearly finished with it. Stupidly, I've just realised that the deadline is actually the end of September. I'm rather geeked about my project and can't wait to share it!

This project has inspired my next one -- a fabric book featuring vintage embroidery from different generations of my family. The last issue of Sew Somerset featured beautiful fabric books that I can't wait to try my hand at.

The top picture is from my trip to England. Broseley, in the middle of England, is home to a clay pipe museum. This factory was the last of its kind in England. As it was pretty much abandoned in 1960, it acted as a time capsule, preserving so much information about this industry. Today it is home to an interesting little museum that gives us a glimpse into early industrial life. On an interesting side note, my husband's great grandfather owned it!

Welcome to the New and improved Past Perfect Postcards

Coming soon. I was never terribly happy with the title Past Perfect Postcards -- too cumbersom and formal. Tea Potty Time fits me much better. I hope to have this place cleaned up and in order in no time!