Time Is Flyin'!

Whew!  Last week came and went without me realizing what day it was!  The week was odd to start with because my boyfriend and I took a day trip to Port Washington for his birthday, so I got home that night feeling like it was Sunday, and not Monday, then we had a jam-packed weekend of working at my church picnic, then going to my cousin's wedding, and mass choir on Sunday.  I did happen to get a bunch done last week, though!

I'm most excited about my BREAD!  I made REAL bread!  The kind that uses yeast and rises!  Here is a picture of my first loaf:

This is a recipe broken down into 1/3 to accommodate my pan size and how much wheat flour I thought I had (I really found another bag later on, after I had bought a new bag).  It's short because I didn't want to make a half a batch (which would be one loaf) because my pan was 8", and not 9", and I didn't want it to overflow.

I took pictures to document what was going on, and to also help me see how much the dough had risen.  Here's the first rise:

After this I shaped the dough and put it in the pan, then let it rise again.  Here's the second rise:

I was so amazed at how it rose!  The bread turned out to be delicious.  It's a honey-wheat bread, ad the moment I had a warm slice with butter I told my mom I was heading over and brought her the bread to taste, which was still warm!  She loved it, as well as her friend and my sister. 

I tried making another batch the next day since it was so good.  I made a full batch of two loaves; one for me and one for my boyfriend to take home.  They didn't work out as well as I'd hoped, although they were still good.

The main problem was that I was trying to get to my cousin's baseball game.  I started the bread too late (I've calculated that it's a 6 hour process total, including the rises, so there are times where I can run out).  I found ways to retard the rising of the bread by putting the dough in the fridge, but then it rained and the game was postponed, then postponed again, until finally I decided not to go.  Well, during that time I'd put the dough in the fridge, then took it out again, then put it back in, and so on.  It didn't rise happy.  It also wasn't as sweet as last time.

Today I'm going to make another full batch:  one loaf for now, and one for the freezer.  If I'm going to bake my own bread during the school year, I need to get into a routine that will make it possible with busy weekends and only evenings free.  Freezing one loaf will be part of that routine.  I'm going to work my schedule around my bread today, instead of working my bread around anything besides my chiro appointment (easily done - those don't take long!).  I'm also going to add a touch more honey since the big loaf wasn't as sweet as the little loaf.  We'll see if that works!

Last week I was getting bored with my two knitting projects:  the scarf and the baby blanket.  I think it's the fact that they're not a challenge for me.  They're great for knitting when talking, or knitting when I'm tired, or knitting in places like the car, but not so much when I'm idly watching my favorite British shows or sitting at home by myself for long periods of time.  I decided I needed more of a challenge, so I'm making something that I've wanted to for a while:  fingerless gloves!

Here's what I have so far:

Normally I like to do things like this on a magic loop, and two at a time.  I didn't want to have to figure out thumb gussets on two a time (I've only made one mitten before, and it came with a BIG gap in the thumb gusset!), and I kind of want the challenge to figure out how to make a pair of mitten or socks on dpns and have them come out the same size.  The one pair of socks I made on dpns came out nicely, but one was a half an inch longer than the other.  There are many factors that can go into this happening:  inaccurate measurements, tension while knitting, etc.  I'm going to try to keep my tension steady, but I'm also keeping track of rows.  Now, if my tension isn't steady, the number or rows won't matter so much, but it will at least give me a guide as to about how many rows I should have on my second fingerless glove.

The pattern is called "Reversible Rib Fingerless Glove" and can be found on Ravelry.com.  I'm using leftover sock yarn from a pair I made my mom a couple years ago.  It's Gems Merino Wool and the colorway is called Cardinal.  I really like working with this yarn!

Oh, I put a poll up about crafts on the right side of the page.  If you haven't answered it yet, please do!

Emily

Good Progress and a Birthday!

This past weekend I was helping out with my boyfriend's play.  It was great to watch the first night, and then I got roped into helping (I was glad to) for the next few nights.  It was a 2 1/2 hour play, so it gave me plenty of knitting time!  I decided to work on the baby blanket, because that yarn was light enough to see even in the dim light.  I got a whole ten rows done during one show!  I'm also starting to be able to see the pattern much better than I did before.  It's still somewhat masked by the texture of the yarn, but it is still visible.

I have approximately six inches done on the blanket, and I estimate that I am about one half of the way through one skein of yarn.  Maybe a bit more, since four skeins would equal four feet, and the blanket won't be THAT long! 

The scarf for my boyfriend's mom is something I'm being careful with.  Twice already it has started gathering in the wrong direction, so I make sure to watch and make sure that it's going the right way, and I make sure to count my stitches often, since I'm going from 48 to 24 to 48 again.  Taking this bit of time every few rows is definitely worth it!  I'd rather take a minute and count it to make sure I'm staying on track and fix a problem right there instead of finding it ten rows later!

The scarf is about 18 inches long now, and I'm through one skein and onto the second.  Remember, these are much smaller than the blanket skeins!  I have five skeins set aside for this scarf.  It's about a foot a skein, which turns out to be five feet long.  I'll have to start testing it after four to see how long I want to make it.

Pita Bread Update:

I told you that some of my pita breads puffed up and some didn't:  Here's the proof!

They are quite thick and a bit too chewy because of that.  Next time, definitely thinner and wider!  Still good to eat, though :)  My next project is to try baking an actual loaf of bread!  Or maybe a mini loaf.

Yesterday was my boyfriend's birthday and I gave him the apron that I made for him.  Here's a picture of him modeling it for me.

It's adjustable strap makes it easy to fit anyone, although it looks long here.  He is excited about the pockets I put in the front since he doesn't have any grill trays, either.  Time for him to start baking!  :)

Emily

It's a Pita!

Today I went to make lunch, and realized that the new pita's I bought about two weeks ago (I say new because they were unopened) were all moldy!  Very sad.  I've been meaning to try making pita bread for weeks, so I decided to roll up my sleeve and just do it!  I found a simple recipe at cooks.com called Homemade Pita Bread.  It only has four ingredients:  yeast, warm water, flour, and salt.

It was easy to put together.  I am learning to not be afraid of yeast.  I have not had luck with it in the past, but I would love to be able to make my own breads! 

I wasn't sure if I kneaded them enough, and I was worried because they didn't seem to be rising under the towel like I thought they would.  Here are four or my six pitas pre-baking.







I was so excited to find that they puffed up!  Here are my first two post-baking pitas.

I wanted to take a picture of a couple in the oven, but I have a feeling that they didn't puff up well because I opened the oven.  Here's a tip:  DON'T OPEN THE OVEN!!!  Of course, I was the one as a kid who kept cupcakes from baking up well because I was playing the piano too loudly...

Yes, those are on my baking sheet upside down, per a tip I found online.

And here are my pita breads!  I hope they taste good...they were so easy to make!

Enjoy!

Emily

On to New Projects!

I love casting on a new project!  Now that I am done with my wedding blanket, I can cast on new projects without guilt. 

I've started a Gathered Scarf, which is funny enough called "Gathered Scarf for your Mother-in-Law (or not)", since it's for my boyfriend's mother for Christmas.  It's a nice, easy, fun knit.  I got through one of five balls of yarn in just a weekend, although I then had to frog half of it out because it was bunching the wrong way.  Here is a picture of the front so far:

Here is a picture of the back.  Here you can see why I couldn't just leave it when the scarf started to bunch the wrong way.  It looks like you can just push the ruffles back, but you can't.  

I am using Knit Picks City Tweed DK in Plum Wine.  I have five skeins set aside, and measuring what I have done, that will be plenty.

I have also started another "Surrounded" blanket!  I'm glad that I still enjoy this pattern enough to make another blanket!  This time, though, it's a baby blanket.  I just found out that someone I know is about six weeks along, so I'm not going to say who it is, but I've started a blanket for the baby.  It will be about one-fourth of the size of the wedding blanket I made, and since I understand the pattern I will have less trouble knitting it.  I'm making it out of Bernat Baby Coordinates in Iced Mint.  I have three skeins, and will need a fourth, but I'm not afraid of not being able to get the yarn.  Here is a picture of my beginnings:

It begins with an i-cord cast-on, which looks difficult, but really isn't.  The only advice I can give when doing this pattern is to make sure not to make the i-cord too tight for the convenience of picking up the stitches for the first row.  It shouldn't be very loose, but I'm a tight knitter, so when someone tells me to make sure it's tight, it's TIGHT!  That made the first row very difficult to do.  Now that I'm past that obstacle, it's smooth sailing now!

Here is a close-up of the cast on edge:

I also made sure to use stitch markers to mark both when I cast on, and then later my stitches in the pattern, so it is set up as before.  This helped a lot when I was trying to count out over 100 i-cord rows and stitches.  


Happy Knitting!


Emily

Craftsy

I finally clicked on that ad on my banner, and have joined a site called Craftsy.  It looks like a fun way to share my projects!  You can go there and see my FINISHED (yes, I said FINISHED) blanket!!!

Or, you can also see it below:

 I'm taking it to my friends tonight, unless their baby comes.  The doctor said any day now!  I've also started another one right away.  No, I'm not silly.  This one is a baby blanket, and since I understand the blanket, I'm already started and not confused, like I was last time.  I'll put pictures up of those soon.

Happy Lettuce!!!

I'm glad to say that I have my happier lettuce!  We've been under a horrible heat wave here, and we're under a heat warning until Friday at 10:00 pm, but last night we had some rain, and my lettuce is much happier.  I never know how much water to give it, so I'm never sure if it's me or the weather that was making my lettuce sad.  I'm wondering if it's also the overcast sky that is helping.  Whatever the case may be, I hope it stays happy!  I find lettuce one of those foods that is difficult to buy for one person because if it's not eaten it goes bad, but I love my salads, so I find this to be a (hopefully) good solution to that problem. 

Emily

Already Behind...

I always have the best intentions when blogging, but I'm still learning to put it into my schedule so I update consistently.  I've done a lot in the past few weeks, and just haven't sat down to share it with you!  I'll organize this by craft:

Knitting:  I am almost done with the wedding blanket!!!  I am nearly done with this ball of yarn, and then I will be down to my last two balls!  They are smaller Knit Picks balls of yarn, and they only take me a day or two to knit up when I sit down and dedicate a few hours to knitting.  It's so relieving to see the end in sight!  Here's an updated picture: 

Sewing:  I am really loving my new hobby!  I've been sewing since those two first projects.  I'm about halfway done with my friends' baby blanket, which they should be receiving at about the same time as the blanket pictured above. 

I was given some money by my parents for my birthday, so I could get some sewing supplies.  I got a wonderful sewing basket and was glad to put away the large cookie tin I had been using for my supplies!

I also made this bag, and was going to give it to my friend, but I tore it out so many times and made so many mistakes I just couldn't give it to her.  I kept it for myself and made her a second one, which turned out to be about an inch shorter, but much nicer.  I found the tutorial here. 

Paper Crafting:  I got a new cricut cartridge the other day on a whim.  It's a cricut lite called "Love You a Latte."  I of course took the opportunity to make a few cute cards.  I like to make a bunch of cards when I'm in the mood to, then store them away.  That way, when I need a card, I have one on hand!  Also, I have a very difficult time making cards for certain people.  I get stressed over whether or not it's "just right" for that person.  

Gardening:  I write about gardening with a heavy heart.  The peonies shriveled after a weekend inside, and never perked back up.  I was going to be out of the apartment for most of the weekend, and it was going to be very hot, so my boyfriend suggested I put them inside.  Unfortunately, he didn't know that I leave the curtains mostly closed when I leave and it's that not in order to keep the temperature down.  Otherwise, he probably would've told me to make sure they still had light.  My lettuce was also moved inside.  It's survived, although it has been over-watered somewhat in the past few weeks, so the edges are browning.  I believe there is still hope, though.  My wonderful boyfriend bought me some more flowers for my birthday, so I could try again.  He even planted them for me!

 

Happy crafting!

Emily