Bloggers

So yesterday David happened to notice that there was a book signing in Denver that he had been interested in and since one of our reasons for moving closer to a city was to actually attend events like this we decided to go.

The signing was at the Tattered Cover Bookstore. I had heard about this bookstore from reading The Yarn Harlot's blog (that is where she had her book signing) and it sounded like a cool place, and it definitely was. We had a nice time and some good laughs.

Anyhow, the book being signed was Cake Wrecks:When Professional Cakes Go Hilariously Wrong. The book originated from the Cake Wrecks blog. If you haven't seen the blog before you should check it out, there are some pretty funny mistakes out there.

I got quite a bit of sock knitting done at the book signing last night, that was a nice change. I am closing in on the Barn Raising Quilt! I have two squares left to knit and I have 1/4 of the seaming done! It looks pretty cool if I do say so myself - and I realized from looking at back at my blog posts I started this in February! It is no wonder I am antsy to finish it up. Photos to come!

Frogging

I this summer I did some evaluating of projects which led to some ripping out.

First was the hat I had made for David our of my lovely hand dyed, hand spun merino. The photo on the left is of the yarn after frogging the hat, and the hat is pictured to the left.



He really liked the yarn and the look of the hat, but decided he would prefer something tighter knit and thicker. So my plan this winter is to make a double knit alpaca hat on smaller needles. I realized that hat was the only thing I had ever knit for him, and now it is frogged, ha.

My new plan for this yarn is to make the Felicity hat for myself. I hope I get to start on it soon, Wednesday's high was 45, but Monday's is 80 so we'll see.
Next we have my Razor Tank. It was frogged because each time I put it on this past summer I took it off right away. So no wearing means time to use the yarn for other things. I don't have anything specific in mind for this yarn. I have roughly 400 yards. At this point I'm leaning towards a scarf for my Etsy shop, but let me know if any of you have other bright ideas.

No worries, I haven't gone ripping out any of my sweaters just yet. Although, I haven't really been wearing my caplet or bolero. I think I might start wearing the caplet again with long sleeves. If I take apart the bolero I just don't know what I would do with that amount of hand spun cotton . But I'm open to discussing it. Thoughts?

Spinning Spinning

It has been awhile since I have shared the fruits of my spinning. I don't believe I have formally introduced you all to my new Lendrum wheel, but I still don't have pictures so instead you get to see the first fruits.

I purchased her in July when I got my current job. And I am so glad I did. I have very much enjoyed my two months spinning and look forward to many more skeins.

(click any of the photos to make huge)

The photo on the top left is of some hand dyed merino I purchased at Shuttles, Spindles, and Skeins when I bought my wheel. I have not yet decided what to do with this smooshy yarn, but I'm leaning towards a hat and mitten set for the shop.

These brown and natural skeins on the right were spindle spun and then wheel plied. This means that I made two single strands by spinning on my spindle and then spun them together on the wheel. The fiber is Colorado fiber from the Taos Wool Festival last October (oh my gosh, that was almost a year ago! - the fest not the spinning).

Next is a single skein of 100% silk that I spun on the wheel I borrowed for a year, and then plied it on my new wheel. I spun the silk before I dyed it which got a bit boring, but I LOVE the end results.

Lastly, my most recent finished spinning project is this amazing silk and merino mix. I cannot describe how snuggly it is. The color is a mysterious lavender, silver, and blue. Again, I am uncertain what these two skeins may become, but I'm thinking something for the Etsy.
Well, I hope you enjoyed catching up on what I have been spinning. Please leave a lil' comment with which skein is your favorite, I'm always curious to know what other folks like.

Oatmeal Bread

Home made bread. There just doesn't seem to be anything quite as good, and I just love the way the smell fills the house. I hadn't been able to make bread for the past two years. Well, I guess that isn't true. Let's say I hadn't succeeded in making bread in the past two years living at 7,500 feet - though others definitely do have success. So now that I am at just over a mile high, around 5,800 feet, success is mine once again. Below I listed the recipe I used, as well as the alterations I made. The only thing not noted is that my white flour is high gluten flour, but lowlanders don't need to worry about that, ha ha. I plan to try some more bread or rolls this weekend because I have just received a hand-me-down kitchen aid mixer - hurrah! Happy baking!

Oatmeal Bread from More with Less

Combine in a large bowl:
1c. quick oats (I pulsed reg. oats in the food processor)
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 T. salt (I used less)
2 T. butter

Pour over:
2 c. boiling water

Stir to combine

Dissolve:
1 pkg. dry yeast in
1/2 c. warm water
When batter is cooled to lukewarm, add yeast.

Stir in:
5 cups white flour (I used 4 c. white flour and 1 c. wheat germ)
When dough is stiff enough to handle, turn onto floured board and knead for 5-10 minutes. Place in greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled. Punch down and let rise again. Shape into 2 loaves and place in greased 9x5x3" pans. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes. Cool on rack, brushing loaves with butter for a soft crust.

Time to Spare

Here I am with 15 minutes of time to spare, access to the internet, but alas I do not have my flash drive with me (so no photos).

David and I have completed all of our travels for the month of September. It was lovely, but it will be nice to spend a little time being bored at home. We traveled to Missouri, Illinois, Washington DC, Virginia, and back again.

I have a blogging plan. At some point this weekend I will spend time at the library prepping posts with interesting photos and all. Then throughout the week I will actually post them. I know, I know... promises, promises you say, but this time I really mean it! I have the very best of intentions.

Tonight is the season premier of The Office - the only TV show I really pay attention to. A fellow knitter and I are getting together with our men folk to celebrate and watch (and eat cupcakes and popcorn).

All this to say you'll be hearing from soon. Now, time to go check out some furniture I found on Craigslist. Tah