It’s so close! Sweet Celebrations, Moda Bakeshop’s second book, is almost here. And I’m lucky enough to be a part of it! My quilt (that I can’t show you yet) is Christmas themed. And I like to think that it is Holiday Fun without being over the top. But you tell me when you see it. 😉 Since this is a bakeshop quilt, obviously it was made with precuts. And I loved using a few layer cakes of neutral Bella solids in combination with a mix of fat quarters from all kinds of designers. And yes, I did my own quilting on that thing…I think it was 14 bobbins I went through?!
Oda May, Moda’s hard hitting journalist, sent me a few questions to answer so you all can get to know me a bit better. If you are a regular reader, some of these may be old news to you. But if you are new (first of all, welcome!) you may be at least slightly amused by me.
OM: Do you prefer a corner piece or a center piece when eating cake? Or do you not like to discriminate?
Angela: It depends on how good the frosting is! If it is light and fluffy and made with almond flavoring then I will most definitely take a corner piece. Yum. Otherwise, I’m not too picky….well I am but I try not to be. 😉
OM: Tell us about your favorite apron.
Angela: Well….I wasn’t going to bring it up, but I am kind of partial to this certain Apron I made for a certain competition *cough…the Moda Bakeshop Sliced Competition*. It’s hanging in my kitchen now and I’ll be sure to wear it this holiday season for serving cocktails to my guests. I love how it’s dressy but still an apron. I just love aprons that look like clothing.
OM: How do you press your seams?
Angela: I was once a die hard press your seams to one side kind of gal. But now I’ve learned that sometimes it is better to press them to the side and sometimes it is better to press them open. Either way, I’m very thoughtful about them. When I have a lot of seams that meet at a point, I tend to press them open. When I have a lot of blocks to sew together, I press to one side but I am sure to alternate my seams so they butt up together and have less bulk.
OM: Do your pets/kids/spouse help or hinder your creative process?
Angela: Uhm…yes? Often! Both. I have a husband, a two year old and a cat and between the three, I’m lucky to get some time to sew. As you might expect both the cat and the two year old are drawn to anything fabric and sparkly. And my husband just wants my time (can’t blame him!). But in the end, they are the greatest inspiration. I doubt I would have made this backpack without the inspiration of an adorable toddler to wear it. (And I’m happy to say that she uses it all the time for preschool!)
OM: If you could have a quilt shop spree, which items would you snag off the shelf?
Angela: Is that a trick question? EVERYTHING!!
And in keeping with the Bakeshop and Celebration theme, here is a recipe (a food one!) that we make every year especially at Christmas. It’s the perfect, make ahead, bake and bring to a party kind of food. It truly is scrumptious.
I have 15 grandchildren scattered across the US and the oldest is now 28 yrs old. I make each of them a Christmas ornament and tag it with the year. They each now have a collection of my ornaments and their parents tell me they always have to put them on the tree themselves.This makes me feel closer to them over the holidays.
I enjoy seeing the tree and house become decorated with angels and nativity sets and remembrances of the real reason for the season – Jesus.
Going to my mom's for the holidays is the best. We are at the stage where we try to keep it as easy and relaxed as we can!
My fave tradition is going to Grandmas for Christmas. We go a few days early and spend the night. One day we bake cookies and the other we make ornaments or other xmas related crafts. The night before Christmas Eve we get to open one present and take lots of photos in our pj's. Christmas eve morning is our christmas day with grandma (we do christmas day at home). We have a huge breakfast with the whole family, eggs, sausage, bagles, lachs (spl?), cream cheese, coffee, and orange juoce. Every year. This year there will be 2 married grandkids joining the celebration. Myself (married Sept 18 2011) and my brother (This OCT 28th!!!). Supper exciting!
I love advent calendars and activities! The countdown and anticipation are funk, but I like the way family time can be created around the countdown.
Reading Christmas stories to the kids cuddled around the tree every night. Love it
My favorite Christmas tradition is when the kids and grandkids come over to open presents and we all have dinner together. Thanks for the wonderful recipe and the chance to win!
We would always go to one of the local church's Christmas programs. It just meant Christmas to me and the start of the season. Since we have moved, we'll have to find a new program to go see.
My first baby girl will be a toddler this Christmas. I am just excited about the "wake up and rip open gifts" tradition! Nothing beats Christmas through a child's eyes! I can't wait!
I love going to cut down out Christmas tree and then coming home to decorate! I look forward to it every year 🙂
Both my husband and I have very few relatives surviving with whom to spend the holidays with. We also have a number of friends who are either in the same situation, or aren't comfortable spending the holidays with their families for various reasons.
Our tradition has been to host holiday potlucks for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, so that no one has to be alone.
My favorite Christmas tradition growing up was opening our stockings on our parent's bed. My dad would get the coffee going, take a picture of the tree, and then retrieve the stockings while all 4 kids waited patiently on the bed. I'm not sure why it's so endearing to me but I look back and laugh at the thought of four young adults/teenagers piled on their parent's bed waiting to open their Christmas stockings from Santa. 🙂
A Christmas tradition is a huge messy exhausting cookie baking push on Christmas Eve Eve!
Homemade chicken noodle soup on Halloween; does that count? <3
My favorite Christmas tradition is folding German paper stars to hang on the tree every year.
Thanks for the chance to win. I can't wait to get a copy of the book!
My favourite holiday tradition is stuffing the stockings on Christmas Eve, and then opening them on Christmas morning!
My favorite Christmas tradition is making Wassail (hot spiced cider). It tastes good and smells great!
Thanks for the giveaway!
When the family gets together on Christmas Eve. you don't have to ask what time" Everyone knows that no one can touch anything, food, candy or presents until 6:00! That when everything happens! My Dad started this so long ago I can't even remember when it did start. 6:00…BE there!
hulseybg@gmail.com
My fave tradition is opening one present on Christmas eve.
My family plays a dirty Santa game that is full of gags, gifts, giggles, and love. This year I'm taking a quilt. I can't wait to see who takes it home..
I get to cook what ever they want. What's funny it is generally one of those easy comfort food from their childhood. Or I get treated and we all go out.
Thanksgiving weekend we hand the lights. Baking holiday breads and cookies!
My favorite tradition for Christmas is getting up an hour before everyone else. I make coffee cake and sticky buns the night before and put them in the oven to warm as I drink coffee and enjoy putting the house in readiness for the family wake up.
I hope to start a new family Tradition this year, with my little one being one year and a half old at Christmas, I hope we would open our presents and just stay together with my husband and my baby, enjoing we are a family!!!
Love to sit back with tea and cookies and watch my kids decorate our tree! Looks like a great book! Thanks for the chance to win!
Love the family dinner on the 24th and giving/receiveing the presents before that dinner. Terrific giveaway, thanks!
My favorite Christmas tradition is cozying up with my momma on the couch and watching Holiday Inn (the best movie EVER).
Christmas… which part of its traditions is my favourite??? Must be all the cooking done for Christmas Eve and then the dinner with the whole family round the table, and presents under the tree that are usually "distributed" by the youngest in the house after the dinner. I just love Christmas!!!
We would have a gag gift that we would pass around the family, disguising it each year and including a silly poem.
Way to go Angela! I think I've seen a sneak peek of your quilt for the book and it's fabulous. My fav tradition is making a gingerbread house with my kids. Now that my son is almost 16, it's mostly just my daughter and I keeping it up, but we always have so much fun together decorating the panels of the house on the kitchen counter together, then struggling to 'glue' it all together without the whole thing collapsing under the weight of all the candy we've stuck on!
My favorite tradition is Christmas breakfast! Chocolate waffles, whipping cream, strawberries and chocolate syrup! Yum 🙂
My favorite tradition is pajamas on Christmas Eve. My family always allowed my siblings and I to open one gift on Christmas Eve, new pajamas to wear to bed that night. Always special!!
My favorite tradition is Christmas morning when we all (still) shuffle down the stairs in our matching pajamas from youngest to oldest so that my Dad can video tape it. The procession now includes two husbands-but we do it anyway 🙂
My. Favorite tradition is Christmas eve …only family ..candles, music and yummy food.
We have Scandinavian Rice Pudding with a blanched almond hidden in it on Christmas Eve, whoever gets the almond gets to open a present!
Due to my mother in law's religion, we don't celebrate the holidays at all. I do love making gingerbread however and do it as often as I can during the winter season.
Maybe it is silly, but most of our traditions center around food! Some of the recipes come from family no longer with us, so we think of them when we make those special dishes. The only other "tradition" is getting everyone together – which gets harder as the kids get older. Thanks for the chance to win some goodies!
My favorite Christmas tradition is baking cookies with 3 of my retired school teacher friends. We do it every year. We alternate houses and it lasts all day, beginning with breakfast, a huge lunch and all day baking. So much fun!
My favorite tradition is one we don't do any more, but it was such fun spending an afternoon in the woods looking for the perfect Christmas tree!
My favourite Christmas tradition was reading 'The Night before Christmas' and 'The Grinch' to my kids on Christmas Eve. This year I plan to have a grinch quilt made.
Our favorite tradition is getting all the kids in the family together and decorating either cookies or gingerbread houses. We don't even worry about the mess(that's what central vac is for!). Such great pictures from year to year as they've grown :). Thanks for the giveaway!
One of my favorite Christmas traditions is watching White Christmas with my girls ( now grown) and my husband. We also love to eat all our favorite snack foods on Christmas Eve. Thanks for the chance to win.
My family has root beer floats and sugar cookies every year on Christmas Eve. It's a lot of fun!
My favorite holiday tradition is Advent. I enjoy making ornaments for Advent called Jesse Tree Ornaments. http://www.etsy.com/listing/109692943/jesse-tree-ornaments-set-of-27-with
Deborah
pinkscissorsdesign @gmail .com
We started a NEW tradition last year which is hosting a Christmas Eve party at our house! It's my favorite already! 🙂
~Robin
welchrobin@hotmail.com
I always got to open one gift on Christmas Eve and I carried that one on to my girls.
I always make a new Christmas tree ornament; usually, it is needlework. Blackbird Designs have a lot of darling mini Christmas stocking designs. Plus, I make a yearly Christmas scrapbook which also includes recipes and food photos.
Thanks for the giveaway!!! Also, have Merry Christmas!!
I have several things that I love about the holidays that have become a tradition. But one of them is that I make homemade caramels and peanut brittle for my husband. those are his favorites and the only time of year that he will eat anything sweet. Spending time with family and friends is pretty special also.
The tradition comes from my husband, his mother would make homemade rolls and chili on Christmas Eve. Because his parents have passed on we have keep that tradition going.
I love making snow angels in the first snow, and getting out for walks in the crisp air. Our Christmas celebration changes every year, so the only tradition is that every year we do something different ( last year we had steak for dinner…since I did the cooking, I picked what I wanted).