Mints, Cookbooks and Quilts, Oh My!

On Tuesday, July 8, we were invited to have dinner at Caroline and Ryan’s apartment and we decided it was a great time to tell them about three projects we were planning for their wedding in November…..cookbooks, mints, and wedding quilt, oh my!

Cookbook - When Dennis and I were married, a kind cousin of his mom’s took the time to gather some family recipes and type them up and put them into a notebook for me.  Shirley decided to do this for Ryan and Caroline and we needed to get their input and permission to produce the cookbook.  With computers, clipart, fast printing, new style of binding, the ability to burn CD’s and have the file for use on a tablet, this cookbook will be a wonder.    But it also meant producing a letter, addressing envelopes, return addresses and stamping the envelopes…..hmmm Shirley decided I should attack folding, stuffing and labeling as we drove to Monterey to see Drew.  AFTERALL -  she was DRIVING!   You can bet that we will make sure our Aunt Pat’s Velveeta Fudge recipe will be in the cookbook! 

Mints --- another Harrison tradition is making cream cheese mints for weddings and showers.  Shirley and I made prototype mints (various molds and colors and flavors) for Ryan and Caroline to sample .I even found the “bell” mold from my wedding but, alas, after 42 years it is better suited as a mold for cement instead of cream cheese.  Yuck! 

After meeting with Ryan and Caroline, a color and flavor was decided on for one of the pre-wedding events and Shirley, my good friend Joyce and I produced them on Wednesday, July 9. 

Quilt –

Shirley and I have a long Quaker heritage and I quilted with our Great Aunt Irene Neff Harrison when I was a child.  Shirley and I tied quilts with our mom during our teen years.  We have special memories of the quilt frame being put up in our middle bedroom in our family home.   A special wedding gift in a Quaker family is a quilt made lovingly by family and friends.  I decided to do this for Ryan and Caroline and Shirley jumped right on board to help me!  The cool decision we made was to ask as many of our friends and family to participate in the piecing as we possibly could.  I found a pattern reminiscent of Quaker patterns I remembered and the fun started.  The first part is to engage those family and friends we are seeing on Sisters on Wheels 2014 to sew strips together…..the quilt fabric is lovingly packed in the trunk of Shirley’s car as we travel.  I will bring the strips back to California, cut them into smaller squares and form the blocks to piece the top.  Strips will be sewn together at a tea, in sessions at Taber House and for those who live in Sacramento you may find me popping into your home with my sewing machine before this is completed!    One difference from early days is that we will have men and women and children sewing the strips.