Everything is coming up couples

We aren't married yet, that won't happen until this summer. However, we were notarized today as domestic partners. This is so I can get on part of the boy's insurance. My school insurance doesn't have dental or vision, which I really need. So yeah, it's weird, cause it doesn't really mean anything. But still.

* * * * * * * * * *

On a crafty note, I think I may have figured out a way to handle my ADHD crafting. Couples. I have two knitting/craft projects that I am working on at one time. This way when I am tired of one, I can switch to the other and only the other. I am trying to do this to see if it works and increases productivity. My ADHD crafting is really a downer, cause I never feel like I am accomplishing much because it takes me so long to finish anything. All part of my reorganization of my life, we shall see if it works. :)

CQ Mag Online

CQ Mag Online Volume 8, Issue 4 is out. This is a crazy quilting online magazine. This is a new thing for me, but I have been adding blogs to read that do some really great crazy quilting. I want to try one of these embellished small crazy quilting projects.

I am not going to go through each project like I do in a normal review, but just going to highlight a few things that I find interesting:

Covered Round Tin - - I love the possibilities in this. As an avid container collector, I can easily see this used with other containers also. This would be a nice small project with not too much time commitment.

Easy Ways To Enlarge Your Crazy Quilts - - I like the possibilities of this, mostly because I am not an avid quilter, but do like to sew. The look of some of these blocks, where it is framing the crazy quilting like art, really jumps out at me and I love it.

Creating Painted and Dyed Back Grounds - - Love this article. I have so missed doing things like this since I took that fibers class at the college. She does a great job at explaining colors and how to work them together. So very much want to do something like this soon.

Any who, as a fiber pusher in general, I definitely suggest going and taking a peak. Especially if you have any interest in crazy quilting! They have numerous back issues that you can also look through.

Wild Things

I went to the movies yesterday night and saw the movie Where The Wild Things Are. Unfortunately, I don't think I could be more disappointed in the movie. I had heard good things about the movie(granted it was from some interesting people I work with). It was filmed very erratically, it reminded me of Blair Witch. Lots of jumbling, like filming a documentary. Lots of extreme highs in the movies followed by extreme anger or sadness. I understand it may have been that way intentionally, to be from the point of view of an emotional child. But it was unpleasant. I seriously considered leaving about half way through, but stayed. I would personally not recommend it. I am very glad I didn't pay much to see it. The boy got free tickets from his work and we had to pay $1.50 each to upgrade to see the movie because it was still considered a new movie. In all honesty, it wasn't worth the $3 dollars. Very disappointing.

There is not a Food Friday today, because this week has just been hectic with school. Next week I should have one, but it will not be consistent for the rest of the semester (mid-December). Classes are always busier in the second half of the semester. Plus, I am having to do a lot of stuff to prepare for student teaching next semester.

Pit Bull Awareness Day

This is a YouTube Video I got from RoseByAny@-;----'s blog. I love her blog and all her posts about her puppies. It is Pit Bull Awareness Day this Saturday.

One Word Wednesday

Sanity


Giving



Test


Homework


Relief

Food Friday

Fruit Roll-Ups! My mom and dad got me a dehydrator for my birthday. I use to own one, back in the day and it's nice to have one again. I just wish I had a bit more time to use it. Anyways, my first fruit-roll ups:

About five or six small pears. Peel and all because it adds fiber.


A small bag of frozen raspberries.


Blend together, these two things were definitely sweet enough on there own and did not need any added sweetener of any sort.


First rub fruit-roll up tray with a little oil to make sure it doesn't stick and spread fruit mixture over evenly.


I had to be a little careful, being jostled some in the mail, the tray had a chip. But I intend on getting myself some more trays so it's not a big deal. Plus, it's still usable.


Here it is all done, ignore my dirty stove. I had a bit too much mixture so it took longer to dry, but it was worth it. Very yummy.


I cut it into strips and rolled it up with saran wrap and stuck them in the fridge. They were gone in a couple days.


Only thing I would do differently with these specific fruits is use less raspberry. I wanted to taste more of the pear, but the raspberry pretty much obliterated it and still was a little powerful. I'd like to try some spicy pear roll-ups. I am thinking about blending in a little hot sauce of some sort. Any who, lots of ideas, hope to have the time to make some of them and share them.

Have a wonderful weekend!

One step forward and how many back?

There should be two socks in this picture. I have been slowly finishing up Rhoni's second sock for her Christmas socks. Tonight I was down to doing the toe decreases and then they would be done. Unfortunately, I realized I had too many stitches. Back before I had put the socks to the side for other projects I had done my heel gusset decreases wrong. Blah. So, the sock was ripped and I have restarted it.

Honestly, not that upset about it, because I always feel a little uncomfortable restarting a project that has set for so long. It's good to just start this sock over.

Elijah

Well, I started out last week so good and then disappeared. I got sick again, but today I feel somewhat better. When I lived in Washington State I use to have horrible allergy problems and almost never got sick, since I have lived in New York I have no allergy problems and get sick all the time . . . how does that make sense? Any who, I finished Elijah and he will be delivered tomorrow.


Yarn: Lion Brand Pound of Love
Color: 144 Lavender
Content: 100% acrylic
Care: machine wash and dry
Needles: US 3/ 3.25mm metal
Pattern: Elijah from Isolda.

Modifications: I couldn't do the ear in the small space require how she wanted them, so I just made one side of the ear and let the purl side show forward to be in inside of the ear. Then I did a single crochet around the ear.







I am obviously going to be a little bias and say that I think he turned out wonderfully. I hope she likes him.

Continuing lace adventures

I haven't had much time to lace knit between everything else, but I am making progress.

Here it is stretched out so you can see the beginning of the pattern.


Here it is in its relaxed state.





It's coming along nicely. I am still enjoying it. I won't commit to anything concrete, but lace knitting could become a constant in my knitting.

Deconstruction

So, in reference to the yarn I mentioned the other day. It is FibraNatura's Exquisite Bamboo. It is 77% Bamboo and 23% superwash merino. In the comments,


Kim said...

I would think that 77% bamboo is too much for a successful sock yarn. You could cut the proportions and spin a small amount of the bamboo with additional superwash.


I just passed this up, because my mind immediately went to thinking "I don't have fiber to spin, I already have spun yarn". Now, in my defense, I am use to buying yarn that if it is of multiple fibers, they are blended and then spun as yarn . . . no separation is possible. But as I walked to work in the rain today, the rain is a nice place to think, anyways, I realized that I didn't think this yarn was blended and maybe I could take her advice and split them up.

So, when I got home, I found that the bamboo and the merino are separate singles. Yippee! So, here is my work so far:






I have the skein on my spindle because I am going to deconstruct it. Here it is with the spin/plying to hold the singles together, undone. I am going to take this and separate approximately half to two-thirds of the bamboo out and re-ply it. The merino has two singles that are about as thick as 5 or so of the bamboo singles. There are 18 bamboo singles in the yarn, I am thinking of cutting it down to 5-7 singles of bamboo.

I will most likely end up using the rest of the bamboo singles in some future spinning venture. So thank you very much to Kim, as I think you helped me solve my problem . . . even if it took me a little while to get there! :)

I think these will end up making some perfect little socks for my niece, Justice.

A birth for a birth

Creating, crafting, art-making, cooking, etc. are all forms of birth in a way. Birth of a new project. Watching it grow, enjoying when it is fun and mumbling when it drives you crazy. So here is my birth for a birth. A friend who works at the school is having a baby in November. I wanted to make her something special, so here is my almost finished Elijah.







As you can see, we are still in the growing part. I have begun his ears, but they will be the only part different from the pattern. My chubby fingers just couldn't work the ears how she wanted them to be. The little girl it is for is having her room made up in purples and greens. So Elijah is purple and his eyes will be green. I hope this will be toy she drags around for many years.

Food Friday

This Food Friday is Roast.

First off, lets just say that I love my fryer/steamer extraordinaire. Granted it's not really extraordinary, but it is. I love how many different functions I have with one item. I also have never made a roast this way, it's usually in a crock pot, no browning, just cooking.


2lbs of Top Round Roast
1/4 cup Veggie Oil

Brown roast well in veggie oil.


After browned, add 1/2 tbsp garlic powder, 1/2 tbsp whole black peppercorn, and 1/2 tbsp lemon pepper. Add 2 cups of water (continue to add 2 cups of water approximately every 45 minutes, due to evaporation).


Yummy roast about 3 hours later.


Here are the leftover juices.


Mix 2 tbsp cornstarch with 1/2 cup water.


Add cornstarch mix to juices on warm (200 degrees), stir thoroughly and then continue to slowly add about 1.5 cups of water until consistency you want to achieve. Heat to boil.


I strained mine, due to the whole peppercorns.


Yummy gravy.




I also made some stuffing and veggies, but then forgot to take a picture of it all together. Love the way the roast turned out and will definitely be making another roast sometime this week, but with some different seasonings. This was my first time making home-made gravy that worked. I was so happy. Home-made gravy is so much better tasting.

Question

I purchased some yarn that is 77% bamboo and 23% superwash merino . . . I want to knit socks from this.

Would it work well?

Should I use a really tight gauge to counteract the yarn relaxing?

Has anyone ever used a bamboo or predominantly bamboo blend for socks?

I would really love some feedback.