Moving!

I've decided to move this blog to Wordpress. Blogger is fine, but Wordpress has better templates and more toys to play with. Come visit me!

Fun with circular needles

Did I say fun? I meant it in the most sarcastic way possible. If I ever consider buying a set of Boye circular needles again, I give you permission to flog me with a carrot. The join between the needle and the cable isn't smooth, and there's a bump where the needle widens, so it is a fight to get the yarn onto the needle. It makes for slow, frustrating knitting, and I'm not enjoying it. I think I'll put them on ebay or something, because they're brand new and I can't use them. Only issue is that the one set I've tried doesn't have the size marked on them, and I tossed the package like a moron.

Anyway, I've heard good things about Knit Picks circular needles. Specifically the Options series, which is interchangeable. But then, the Options are more costly than just buying fixed circulars, so I ordered the fixed circulars in size 6, 7 & 8, which are the most common sizes in worsted weight projects. Hopefully I like them as much as others do! Shipping is reasonable too. Bonus!

If these don't work out (which I really hope they do!) I may buy a set of Addi Turbo needles on ebay. They're pretty expensive though.

Slippers

Hubby has cold feet. So he asked me for some knitted slippers. I hunted high and low for free patterns, but couldn't find any that I liked, so I bought a pattern from Fiber Trends.

Anyway, I finished knitting them last night after a false start where I messed up and made them 9 rows too short on the soles (I misread the pattern) so I had to take them apart. Today I sewed the pieces together and felted them.

I've never felted before. It was fun. A bit scary, because if you screw up the felting, they are no good to you. And you can't take them apart again. I just about had a heart attack, because the washing machine had started the spin cycle and that can cause permanent creases, but no harm done (this time!).

Here they are, in all their fuzzy glory...



They have to dry still, and I doubt he'll be wearing them tonight considering how long it takes wool to dry. The wool is Lion Wool in "Ocean Blues".

As a new knitter, I am glad I used this pattern. It was well-written, and forced me to try some new techniques. I now know how to ssk, k2tog, m1, and pick up stitches, as well as how to felt.

Quilting update

I finished my daughter's quilt on Christmas day. I had finished the hand quilting the night before, but still had to tie off all the loose ends on the back. She's thrilled with it.



My son's quilt isn't finished yet. I do have the entire quilt top pieced though.



The only problem is that when I put the quilt on my daughter's bed, I noticed that it is too short on the sides. Why is it that I am not smart enough to measure and make sure that the pattern will make a large enough quilt? I'm planning on adding a row of blocks on either side to make it wide enough. Unfortunately, that means I have to run out and buy more batting, but at least I have enough fabric. It will be easier to do on my son's quilt since I haven't put the layers together yet. At least when I start the quilt for the master bedroom I won't have to worry about it since I'll know better than to trust the pattern to make a big enough quilt!

I'm going to make my daughter a bedskirt to match, and both kids are getting matching cushions. Someday. First I need to modify her quilt and finish the boychild's quilt!

Shortbread

More baking today! I made a double batch of shortbread.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 ½ cups flour
½ cup cornstarch
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup icing sugar

Directions:
Whisk the flour with the salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

In mixer bowl, cream butter until smooth, then add the sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Gently stir in the flour mixture until just mixed. Flatten the dough into a disk shape, wrap in plastic, and chill for at least an hour.

Preheat oven to 350F with the rack in the middle of the oven. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to ¼ inch thick. Cut into shapes with a lightly floured cookie cutter. Place cookies on baking sheet and chill for 15 minutes. This helps the cookies to maintain their shape when baked. Sprinkle with coloured sugar. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cookies are lightly brown.

Irish Cream Fudge

Another recipe whose origins I don't recall. It may have been from a friend, though it is likely that I found it online. I've never tried it before, but I'll be making a batch tonight.

Ingredients:
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup white chocolate chips
¼ cup butter
3 cups confectioner's sugar
1 cup Irish cream liqueur
1½ cups chopped nuts (optional)

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup white chocolate chips
4 tbsp Irish cream liqueur
2 tbsp butter

Directions:
Butter an 8x8" pan.

In the top half of a double boiler, melt the 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, 1 cup white chocolate chips and ¼ cup butter until soft enough to stir. Stir in the confectioner's sugar and Irish cream until mixture is smooth. Stir in nuts. Place mixture in the prepared pan and lay a sheet of plastic wrap over top; press and smooth top down.

In the top half of a double boiler, melt remaining chocolates until soft. Remove from heat and with a fork beat in the butter and Irish cream until smooth. Spread topping over cooled fudge with a knife. If a smooth top is important, place plastic wrap over the top. Refrigerate until firm, 1 to 2 hours at least. This fudge can be easily frozen.

Irish Cream

I love Bailey's Irish Cream. Okay, all Irish Cream. But I can't justify the cost of it, so when I stumbled across a recipe for homemade Irish Cream, I squealed like a schoolgirl. I don't remember where I got the recipe.

I made a double batch today. I want to drink some tonight, but it tastes funny the first day, so I'll wait until tomorrow night.

Ingredients:
1 cup light cream
1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 2/3 cups whiskey
1 teaspoon instant coffee crystals
2 tablespoons chocolate syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 drops almond extract

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a large bottle. Shake to blend and refrigerate 24 hours. Serve over ice, or use in recipes.

Holiday baking

I love this time of year. My waistline isn't too fond of it though! I went grocery shopping for the ingredients for my 2007 Holiday Bakeathon, and aside from a couple of things that are cheaper at Costco (butter & eggs, in particular) I'm all set.

I have been frustrated at how hard it is to find dragees in stores here. They really serve no purpose except to look pretty on your cookies, but holiday baking just isn't the same without them. So I bought them on ebay. 2 oz each of gold and silver. Enough for probably 2-3 years of holiday baking. Nobody in California sells them anymore, as I found out today, thanks to a fellow named Mark Pollock. Here's an article to read if you're interested.

At any rate, in spite of Mr. Pollock, I'm getting my dragees. And my cookies will be pretty and festive. I rather agree with this post on Slashfood, particularly the last paragraph.

On the menu this year...

• Shortbread
• Gingerbread men (yes men, not people! No politically correct gingerbread in my house)
• Star Anise Thins
• Irish Cream Fudge
• Brown Sugar Fudge
• Caramel Pecan Brownies
• English Toffee
• Coffee Sponge Toffee
• Nanaimo Bars
• Butter Tarts
• Maple Shortbread Squares
• Lemon Squares
• Butter Pecan Wafers

I think I will have to go on a serious diet in the new year. I'm sure I will gain weight since I cannot resist holiday baking. I don't seem to have any problem resisting temptation at any other time of year.

Adventures in quilting - part 10 (daughter's quilt)

I started the hand quilting last night, and will work on it again tonight. I was planning on knotting it, but I really didn't like how it looked, so after 45 minutes I decided to take the knots out and do a criss-cross pattern on the 9 patch blocks. I'll leave the striped blocks as is, I think. I'll post a pic tomorrow .