Friday, May 18, 2012
Friday, May 11, 2012
Creative Friday - The Chinchilla Tunic
Hellooo! I don't suppose you remember by any chance, the sweater that I bought from the op-shop all this time ago?
Well wouldn't you know it, I got off my backside this last week and finished off a top for the youngest with the wool from it!
I used a pattern in a knitting booklet that was given to me by my mum (I think it was from Better Homes and Gardens), the pattern is called Chinchilla Tunic.
Mind-numbingly simple..a good one for the evenings, the only alteration I made was to include a few rows of garter stitch at the bottom of the sleeves and the hem to stop the cardigan from curling in. If I was going to be a very clever cookie, I suppose I could've knitted a few garter stitches either side of the front edgings too..but of course didn't think of that until it was all sewn up! Oops! It knitted up quickly too (once I actually became determined to finish it!), using 7mm needles.
I used the size 10 measurements, shortening it slightly to follow the size 8 length. This is the first article of clothing I've knitted from re-purposed wool! It was a great feeling seeing it turn into something completely different! And useful!
I used a pattern in a knitting booklet that was given to me by my mum (I think it was from Better Homes and Gardens), the pattern is called Chinchilla Tunic.
Mind-numbingly simple..a good one for the evenings, the only alteration I made was to include a few rows of garter stitch at the bottom of the sleeves and the hem to stop the cardigan from curling in. If I was going to be a very clever cookie, I suppose I could've knitted a few garter stitches either side of the front edgings too..but of course didn't think of that until it was all sewn up! Oops! It knitted up quickly too (once I actually became determined to finish it!), using 7mm needles.
I used the size 10 measurements, shortening it slightly to follow the size 8 length. This is the first article of clothing I've knitted from re-purposed wool! It was a great feeling seeing it turn into something completely different! And useful!
 |
| Crochet four leaf clover courtesy of 'The Hulk' |
Have you knitted a garment from re-purposed yarn? How did it make you feel?
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Out.
The day was mild. Warm even! No coat required. With a few hours to fill in before collecting the 10yo, who was out of town at a maths workshop, my mum (known here as 'Oma') and I went for a little drive to Ballan where we visited the nicest patchwork shop I've ever seen! Seriously, if you are passing through you simply must stop and visit, no question about it. I could've spent hours (and lots of $$) in there but I exercised restraint, as hard as this was. Oma purchased some fabrics for her next project - a patchwork runner.
Lunch was just two steps next door in a renovated cottage that warmed our toes even though they hardly needed it. Tasty open sandwiches, excellent tea, and a comfortable atmosphere..with gardens too!
A beautiful day out with a beautiful person. xx
Monday, May 7, 2012
Happenings..
Such a busy week! I've barely had time to stop and breathe! It's nice to catch up on a few things today though and share with you what I've been doing in those moments that had to be snatched otherwise they would be lost to the vortex of time over the past few days...
After a big day out to the city with my mum on the train, it was once again my turn for having Friday veggie group here. The group has grown and there were 13 of us (rather compactly) seated around our kitchen table.
Throw in a birthday too and it was a right cause for celebration! You can read more about the day here.
It seems pallet compost bays are everywhere at the moment and after grabbing a peak at Costa making some a week or two ago I was all geared up to have some of my very own! Pallets for the pricely sum of $1 each and some star picket stakes saw the job completed, thanks to those veggie grouping ladies!
And they're soooo big, too! Now the fun can start by filling them...
Elsewhere, I've been grabbing odd moments of time to create my own little 'dyer's corner' outside, under the verandah. Being outside, I feel much more comfortable about foraging for greenery and weeds and cooking up a big pot of them, witchy style, without fear of the family inhaling the fumes.
A quick scout around the garage revealed an unused microwave, our portable camp stove/oven and a vintage electric frying pan that belonged to my mum. A trestle table in position and voila! We are good to go. ;)
Until such time as a frame is made (preferably with wheels, ha!) for this little sink here, a couple of saw horses seems to do a fine job of holding it up..directly over a drain pipe which is even better!
After christening the new 'kitchen' (?) by dyeing some alpaca, I pulled out this drying rack that I had fashioned a couple of weeks ago using an old dog bed frame (again, from the tip), covered with a lightweight mesh. It's great for allowing fibre to dry as the air can circulate underneath and the frame can be moved around easily to where it is warmest..
I also came across an interesting link on plants to grow for dyeing purposes. It's a really comprehensive list!
After a big day out to the city with my mum on the train, it was once again my turn for having Friday veggie group here. The group has grown and there were 13 of us (rather compactly) seated around our kitchen table.
Throw in a birthday too and it was a right cause for celebration! You can read more about the day here.
It seems pallet compost bays are everywhere at the moment and after grabbing a peak at Costa making some a week or two ago I was all geared up to have some of my very own! Pallets for the pricely sum of $1 each and some star picket stakes saw the job completed, thanks to those veggie grouping ladies!
And they're soooo big, too! Now the fun can start by filling them...
Elsewhere, I've been grabbing odd moments of time to create my own little 'dyer's corner' outside, under the verandah. Being outside, I feel much more comfortable about foraging for greenery and weeds and cooking up a big pot of them, witchy style, without fear of the family inhaling the fumes.
A quick scout around the garage revealed an unused microwave, our portable camp stove/oven and a vintage electric frying pan that belonged to my mum. A trestle table in position and voila! We are good to go. ;)
I also remembered I had a tip scrounged sink lurking in my outside (junk) pile of goodness.
Until such time as a frame is made (preferably with wheels, ha!) for this little sink here, a couple of saw horses seems to do a fine job of holding it up..directly over a drain pipe which is even better!
After christening the new 'kitchen' (?) by dyeing some alpaca, I pulled out this drying rack that I had fashioned a couple of weeks ago using an old dog bed frame (again, from the tip), covered with a lightweight mesh. It's great for allowing fibre to dry as the air can circulate underneath and the frame can be moved around easily to where it is warmest..
I also came across an interesting link on plants to grow for dyeing purposes. It's a really comprehensive list!
What's been keeping you occupied during those odd moments of free time?
(Thanks for adding your links to the Slow Living Month 4 post. I am hoping to get around to visit your blogs very soon, to see what fun stuff you've been up to!)
(Thanks for adding your links to the Slow Living Month 4 post. I am hoping to get around to visit your blogs very soon, to see what fun stuff you've been up to!)
Friday, May 4, 2012
An easier quince paste
This post could quite rightly be a follow up to my original quince paste post.
I do believe I have found an easier way to make quince paste! Which is a good thing, considering how much time is invested in stirring a pot (cauldron?) of bubbling, lava mass.
This time around, after peeling and coring the quinces, the quarters were crammed into our slow cooker, covered with water and left to simmer overnight on low...
Quinces cooking away gently while sleeping? Fantastic!
The following day, they were whizzed in the food processor until they were as smooth as they were going to get..with the addition of a little of the cooking water to help thin them down.
After all the flesh and water had been whizzed, the puree was added to my largest, favourite pot and 3/4 of the puree weight was added in sugar (for this batch I had 3.6kg of puree and added 2.7kg of sugar..which only just squeezed into my pot - phew!)
This part still takes some time. The enormous mass was heated gently until boiling, removing any scum that rose to the surface and stirring from time to time. I allowed the puree (lava?) to bubble gently for 2 hours while I was busy pottering, doing other things in the kitchen..
...after which time it had thickened to my liking (mix hard to stir, starting to come away from the sides of the pot, glorious deep colour..fearful of burning the heaving mass!).
Soft, fresh quince paste for cheese and crackers. Or perhaps that should be..cheese and crackers for the sole purpose of carrying quince paste to waiting mouth?
I do believe I have found an easier way to make quince paste! Which is a good thing, considering how much time is invested in stirring a pot (cauldron?) of bubbling, lava mass.
 |
| Quinces from our neighbour's tree |
Quinces cooking away gently while sleeping? Fantastic!
The following day, they were whizzed in the food processor until they were as smooth as they were going to get..with the addition of a little of the cooking water to help thin them down.
After all the flesh and water had been whizzed, the puree was added to my largest, favourite pot and 3/4 of the puree weight was added in sugar (for this batch I had 3.6kg of puree and added 2.7kg of sugar..which only just squeezed into my pot - phew!)
This part still takes some time. The enormous mass was heated gently until boiling, removing any scum that rose to the surface and stirring from time to time. I allowed the puree (lava?) to bubble gently for 2 hours while I was busy pottering, doing other things in the kitchen..
...after which time it had thickened to my liking (mix hard to stir, starting to come away from the sides of the pot, glorious deep colour..fearful of burning the heaving mass!).
Pour as usual into parchment paper lined tins and leave to sit for a couple of days before cutting.
Soft, fresh quince paste for cheese and crackers. Or perhaps that should be..cheese and crackers for the sole purpose of carrying quince paste to waiting mouth?
Wrap individual squares in greaseproof paper and store in an airtight container for up to twelve months - but trust me, it will be ALL gone long before then. Because hubby quite likes a late night, quince paste indulgence. And so do I. ;)
I do believe I have become a slow cooking, food processing quince convert.
How about you? Do you make quince paste? Or jelly perhaps? How do you like to go about it?
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
A Dyer's Delight!
Just a quick post tonight but one I wanted to share.
Set up in the host's carport, there seemed to be portable camping stoves with enormous pots on them in every available space! Plus a large central table for 'painting' the dye onto skeins. A portable sink with hose and a microwave as an alternative heating source completed the set up...oops, add a tea/coffee/snack table just inside the back door to the list and then the set up was complete! And buckets, lots of buckets. Oh, and chairs too, although they didn't seem to be getting much sitting done on them...
I wish I had taken a photo of the peach leaf dyed wool..this was the most beautiful sage green (mordant was copper). The top right yarn in the pic below is 'watermelon' made from a derivative of madder.
What a fantastic day! I am off to go and play with some gum leaves...ahh, what fun!
Instead of our usual activities at spinning group this week, we instead met at a member's home for a dyeing day. Oh my goodness, it was amazing!! I am so inspired..there were so many techniques to try and colours coming out of the dye pots my head is (you guessed it) spinning.
Take a peek!
I have never seen so many skeins of handspun yarn in the one place at the one time!
Set up in the host's carport, there seemed to be portable camping stoves with enormous pots on them in every available space! Plus a large central table for 'painting' the dye onto skeins. A portable sink with hose and a microwave as an alternative heating source completed the set up...oops, add a tea/coffee/snack table just inside the back door to the list and then the set up was complete! And buckets, lots of buckets. Oh, and chairs too, although they didn't seem to be getting much sitting done on them...
Both synthetic and natural dyes were in use...
Below, a eucalyptus leaf dye bath!
....and here is the eucalyptus yarn after is had been simmering for quite some time:
What an amazing colour! From Nature!! Don't you just love her generosity?
There are the eucalyptus dyed skeins down in the bottom left corner. I have been seduced!
I wish I had taken a photo of the peach leaf dyed wool..this was the most beautiful sage green (mordant was copper). The top right yarn in the pic below is 'watermelon' made from a derivative of madder.
Unfortunately, I didn't dye anything myself as it was hubby's birthday and I had a million other thoughts on my mind (plus jobs to do!). However, I did take my wheel and got in a quick hour or so of spinning for the youngest's hat and mittens that she has requested.
What a fantastic day! I am off to go and play with some gum leaves...ahh, what fun!
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Slow Living 2012 - Month Four
Welcome to Month 4 of the 2012 Slow Living diary - a record to help me keep track of my personal achievements over the past month. For a detailed description of each category, click here.
April 2012
This month was a little slower paced than March. It it was nice to stop and enjoy some Autumn colour and soak up some quiet moments at home..
{Nourish} Make and bake as much as possible from scratch. Ditch overpackaged, overprocessed convenience foods and opt for 'real' food instead. Share favourite links/recipes/tips from the month here.
I've been using up every last scrap of leftovers from roast dinners - they make great pies, veggies and all. It's amazing what a food processor can disguise! A new kibbled grain bread recipe shared by a veggie group friend, getting back into soups - a vegetable soup that covers three sittings for a family is what I like! Plus eggs, eggs, eggs and we're pretty happy in the eating department!
{Prepare}Stockpile and preserve. Freeze extra meals or excess garden/market produce. Bottle/can, dehydrate or pickle foods to enjoy when they are not in season.
During April, I bottled apples, cooked up three kilos of quince paste and started freezing soup again.
{Reduce} Cut down on household waste by re-using, re-purposing and repairing. A ladder into a strawberry planter? A sheet into a dress? Share ideas and project links here, allowing others to be inspired.
I dyed my favourite although faded pair of jeans..and then used the remaining dye for some unravelled jumper wool. Scrounged materials were also used for some hoopy garden beds.
{Green} Start (or continue!) using homemade cleaners, body products and basic herbal remedies. The options are endless, the savings huge and the health benefits enormous.
We finished our first jar of calendula ointment - need to make another. Homemade dishwasher powder is going well and lavender oil was used for mozzie bites (and to calm some frayed nerves?).
{Grow} plant/harvest. What's growing this month? What's being eaten from the garden? Herbs in a pot, sprouts on a windowsill or and entire fruit/vegetable garden -opt for what fits space and time constraints.
April saw me jumping back into the excitement that can be a food garden. Potatoes were planted, as were broad beans, carrots (please come up, please do!) and brassicas. Harvesting - tomatoes, silverbeet, leeks, carrots, the first (and last!) of the corn, eggplants. Sowed: broccoli - sprouting, cauliflower - all year round, carrots (all seasons and chantennay), onions - red, white and brown, lettuce - iceberg.
{Create} To fill a need or feed the soul. Create for ourselves or for others. Create something as simple as a handmade gift tag or something as extravagant as a fine knit shawl. Share project details and any new skills learnt here.
It's all about the knitting here lately! Throw in a few felted eggs as well and we're in business. ;)
{Discover} Feed the mind by reading texts relevant to current interests. Trawl libraries, second hand shops or local book shops to find titles that fill the need. Share titles/authors of what is being read this month.
During an op shop jaunt I came across two fantastic books published in the 70's - one on photography the other on spinning. They're really great reads - very old school. (The Basic Book of Photography - Tom Grimm and the spinning book? Well, I'm too lazy to go and get it from the craft room..I'll update with title tomorrow!). *Edit - The Woolcraft Book - Spinning, Dyeing, Weeaving by Constance Jackson and Judith Plowman*
{Enhance} Community: Possibilities include supporting local growers & producers, help out at a local school/kindergarten, barter or foodswap, joining a playgroup or forming a walking or craft group.
Netball season is back in full swing again - scoring, orange cutting, sweet distribution and cheering. Multiply this by three daughters and I feel well and truly immersed in the community. Fridays are still veggie group in my world and I have started going to a local camera club with my brother twice a month.
{Enjoy} Life! Embrace moments with friends and family. Marking the seasons, celebrations and new arrivals are all cause for enjoyment. Share a moment to be remembered from the month here.
This month I crossed a significant emotional hurdle, spent time away over a weekend with family, enjoyed an Easter lunch, autumn colours and the return of warm fires.
As with previous months, you are more than welcome to join in with your own blog post in this format. Just leave your blog name and address in the box below any time during May and add a comment below so I can add you to my sidebar.
Be sure to check out what has been happening on other people's blogs too! Every month I see something new and interesting from these visits - thanks for making this so much fun!
April 2012
This month was a little slower paced than March. It it was nice to stop and enjoy some Autumn colour and soak up some quiet moments at home..
{Nourish} Make and bake as much as possible from scratch. Ditch overpackaged, overprocessed convenience foods and opt for 'real' food instead. Share favourite links/recipes/tips from the month here.
I've been using up every last scrap of leftovers from roast dinners - they make great pies, veggies and all. It's amazing what a food processor can disguise! A new kibbled grain bread recipe shared by a veggie group friend, getting back into soups - a vegetable soup that covers three sittings for a family is what I like! Plus eggs, eggs, eggs and we're pretty happy in the eating department!
{Prepare}Stockpile and preserve. Freeze extra meals or excess garden/market produce. Bottle/can, dehydrate or pickle foods to enjoy when they are not in season.
During April, I bottled apples, cooked up three kilos of quince paste and started freezing soup again.
{Reduce} Cut down on household waste by re-using, re-purposing and repairing. A ladder into a strawberry planter? A sheet into a dress? Share ideas and project links here, allowing others to be inspired.
I dyed my favourite although faded pair of jeans..and then used the remaining dye for some unravelled jumper wool. Scrounged materials were also used for some hoopy garden beds.
{Green} Start (or continue!) using homemade cleaners, body products and basic herbal remedies. The options are endless, the savings huge and the health benefits enormous.
We finished our first jar of calendula ointment - need to make another. Homemade dishwasher powder is going well and lavender oil was used for mozzie bites (and to calm some frayed nerves?).
{Grow} plant/harvest. What's growing this month? What's being eaten from the garden? Herbs in a pot, sprouts on a windowsill or and entire fruit/vegetable garden -opt for what fits space and time constraints.
April saw me jumping back into the excitement that can be a food garden. Potatoes were planted, as were broad beans, carrots (please come up, please do!) and brassicas. Harvesting - tomatoes, silverbeet, leeks, carrots, the first (and last!) of the corn, eggplants. Sowed: broccoli - sprouting, cauliflower - all year round, carrots (all seasons and chantennay), onions - red, white and brown, lettuce - iceberg.
{Create} To fill a need or feed the soul. Create for ourselves or for others. Create something as simple as a handmade gift tag or something as extravagant as a fine knit shawl. Share project details and any new skills learnt here.
It's all about the knitting here lately! Throw in a few felted eggs as well and we're in business. ;)
{Discover} Feed the mind by reading texts relevant to current interests. Trawl libraries, second hand shops or local book shops to find titles that fill the need. Share titles/authors of what is being read this month.
During an op shop jaunt I came across two fantastic books published in the 70's - one on photography the other on spinning. They're really great reads - very old school. (The Basic Book of Photography - Tom Grimm and the spinning book? Well, I'm too lazy to go and get it from the craft room..I'll update with title tomorrow!). *Edit - The Woolcraft Book - Spinning, Dyeing, Weeaving by Constance Jackson and Judith Plowman*
{Enhance} Community: Possibilities include supporting local growers & producers, help out at a local school/kindergarten, barter or foodswap, joining a playgroup or forming a walking or craft group.
Netball season is back in full swing again - scoring, orange cutting, sweet distribution and cheering. Multiply this by three daughters and I feel well and truly immersed in the community. Fridays are still veggie group in my world and I have started going to a local camera club with my brother twice a month.
{Enjoy} Life! Embrace moments with friends and family. Marking the seasons, celebrations and new arrivals are all cause for enjoyment. Share a moment to be remembered from the month here.
This month I crossed a significant emotional hurdle, spent time away over a weekend with family, enjoyed an Easter lunch, autumn colours and the return of warm fires.
As with previous months, you are more than welcome to join in with your own blog post in this format. Just leave your blog name and address in the box below any time during May and add a comment below so I can add you to my sidebar.
Be sure to check out what has been happening on other people's blogs too! Every month I see something new and interesting from these visits - thanks for making this so much fun!
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