Christmas Sewing, Making an Oval Christmas Tablecloth, a Special Gift!

My guess is the fabric may be from the early to mid 1900's.

When I went through the vast array of fabrics I have accumulated I found a large vintage piece of cloth that appears to be just designed for a Christmas tablecloth.  Today I measured and laundered it and presently it is adorning my dining room table to give me time to ponder the project.  My table with all of the leaves still in from Thanksgiving is larger than that of the intended recipient but not so much as to alter my process. Pondering is a very necessary component of the things I do in the sewing realm!

If I shorten to drop too much I will loose design.

This is intended to be made for my best friend as a Christmas gift and I don't want to make any unnecessary mistakes of have unforeseen delays. Thus tomorrow I will trek out for some new tailors chalk as mine seems to be hiding from me. Or, maybe I have just used it all?

Diane, my oldest dearest friend,  is an elegant mix of tradition and playfulness and this is reflected in her home.  She has long loved antiques but has broadened into an eclectic mix laced with brightness and fun.

The all over print makes a happy cheery Christmas pattern.

Yesterday she gave me the dimensions of her oval dinning room table, 42" x 82" with the 23" leaf installed.  Today I researched how to make an oval tablecloth and it appears you decide the drop (overhang) around the table and add that to the dimensions.  Next you use a large round object like a big dinner plate as a template and trim off the square corners using that object as a guide. Then you hem.

I am still pondering the drop.
More will follow as I collect my thoughts and get after this project!

2 more pounds are GONE! Talk about cheering me up!

Gosh it has been a hard few months.  And, You can see from my posting that we do quite often eat REAL food.  So I can tell you with great certainty I am thrilled to see I have lost 2 more pounds during very trying sad times.  But I attribute this to the "good" habits I have formed that save me in times when I veer off the track a bit.

One is to drink no calories.  I find this quite easy now although it was not in the beginning as I was raised on and love "sweet tea".  I do not use any artificial sweetener at all ever because I do not believe in artificial, or chemical stuff.  Seems like there is too often a back story to them somewhere down the road.

I really have greatly reduced my habit of consumption of white stuff.  But I do not totally deny myself.

I have made progress in consuming more fresh and raw fruits and vegetables as well as cooked.

We eat more varieties of protein weekly.  More fish especially.

I do eat everything I want on my "free" day but find it is less a big deal as time goes by.  Fewer cravings and so forth.

It is OK with me to do this, what may appear to others as too slow but really steady program.

Now total 47 ponds gone gone gone.

Ham and Potato Casserole is a great use for leftover ham, Gratin De Pommes De Terre St Jambon as adapted from Julia Child

Tender slices of cooked potatoes, ham, and a bit of cheese is a creamy sauce.

This is a recipe with NO flour"gluten" free which is not the case with many recipes for scalloped or Au gratin potatoes.  We are working on cutting back a bit on the "grain" in our diets and it seems logical to me when a recipe such as this one..... is so delicious.... to go for it instead!

Julia Child gives a recipe using sausages in her THE FRENCH CHEF COOKBOOK.  I have adapted this recipe using ham for our family.  We loved it and it is much lighter and more flavorful than using flour as a thickener. 

This casserole served four as a main dish fro supper.

Ingredients for Ham and Potato Casserole:

3 1/2 C. sliced previously boiled potatoes (about 1 pound)
1 C. diced onions, previously cooked in 1 T. butter
2 - 3 C. cooked ham cut into bite size pieces
lightly buttered baking dish with 2+" sides
3 eggs
1 1/2 C. light cream
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1 1/2 C. shredded cheese of your choice
1 + 1 T. butter separated

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Arrange the layers of potatoes, onions, and ham in baking dish ending with potatoes.  Blend together the beaten eggs, cream, salt, and pepper in a bowl pouring over the layers.  Sprinkle with the cheese and dot with the remaining tablespoon of butter.  Bake in the upper 1/3 of the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, until the top has nicely browned and is bubbling.  Yield 4 servings.

This was served as a main dish for supper with sliced fresh tomatoes and fruit salad.