Mid-December Already, Really??

WHOOOOSH -- anyone else feel like life is passing by much too quickly? Wasn't it just Thanksgiving?

There are finished sewing projects to show, but sadly not photographed yet. Probably due to the very cold weather we've been having -- need the extra light you get from photographing outdoors, but don't really want to be outdoors! Later then.

How about a recipe for a holiday treat instead? Here's an easy to make version of caramel popcorn that's a near relative of the commercially available Poppy***k. Hmmmm, spelling it out that way makes it look like a slightly naughty word, doesn't it? Anyway, here it is:

Baked Caramel Corn

• 1/2 cup popping corn
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking SODA
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup of roasted, non-salted nuts, if desired

Pop the corn, using your favorite method -- I use an air popper, and make it in two separate batches. Leave it plain -- no salt or butter. Place the popped corn in one or two large roasting, or cake pans. If you're adding nuts, just sprinkle them over the popcorn.

Melt the butter over medium heat in a heavy saucepan.

Into the melted butter, stir in the sugar, corn syrup and salt.

Bring the mixture to a full boil and while keeping it well stirred, cook for about 5 minutes. Take it off the heat, and stir in the baking SODA and the vanilla -- mix well.

Pour this mixture over the popped corn, and mix it up really well. Work quickly, as it thickens as it cools.

Place corn in a 250 degree oven and let bake for one hour -- stir it well about every 15 minutes or so. Remove from the oven and let cool.

ENJOY!

No recipe, but here's something else I was experimenting with -- homemade marshmallows.

















They weren't bad, although I think my marshmallow guru Brendan does them better. He generously shared his recipe, and some tips, so next time they're sure to be fabulous! The thought was to coat homemade marshmallows with caramel and then dip them in some bittersweet chocolate. I got as far as covering the marshmallows with caramel before deciding it wasn't going to work as well as I wanted. Had a bit of marshmallow meltage, but basically it was a sticky (but tasty!) mess. Ah well, and on to the next experiment!

Knock It Off!

So, I'm in a national clothing chain -- perhaps one named after the science of humankind -- and I see what I consider to be a cute, plaid skirt. Not being the target customer for this particular emporium, however, there are a few things about it that make it 'not quite' for my particular, oh, let's call it maturity.

All is not lost though for a woman with a sewing machine (or two), a yard of plaid, and New Look 6843. Trace off the front pattern piece -- draw a few curved tiers (don't forget to add those seam allowances!)breathe easily with a new, lower, thinner waistband, and voila:

Inspired by, but not a copy of, that cute, plaid skirt. Color me pleased.

Bobbing to the surface...

...after being slammed by a nasty virus. Whew -- glad to be feeling better.

So, how about a couple of finished projects? First up, Cerisara by Bonne Marie Burns, the design talent over at Chicknits . Yarn: Classic Elite Premiere from the stash -- gosh, I LOVE that color!







Interesting, all-in-one construction. You may need to pay attention in a couple of areas, but trust in the directions and you'll be just fine. I'm a big fan of Bonne Marie's work -- very wearable clothing with a current look.

It's always fun to try a new yarn, and next up is a cute little beret from the folks at Quince & Co. The yarn is sourced from fiber produced in the US -- also spun here. I used Osprey, which is their aran weight. It was delightful to work with, but did lose a little color with wet blocking. I look forward to trying one of their lighter weight yarns in another project. This beret only needed one skein, so it was ideal for testing a new (to me) yarn -- the pattern was simple, and easy to knit.

No additional work done on the vintage Elgin sewing machine, but I hope to have it ready for viewing soon. Who knows? Maybe I'll even get it to sew!

Like looking in a mirror...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!

Can this patient be saved?

So, I get a call from a friend -- this and that, and "Oh, by the way, I saw a treadle at a local junk store for $25" -- isn't it great to have such caring friends? I rushed over to check it out, and, well, what do you know? -- there were 2 treadles for $25! Not sure my friend even noticed the one in the back, but I sure did. And, despite the owners entreaty that I could have them both for $40, I came home with this:

I'm not sure why, but for some reason it really spoke to me. It's probably in the worst shape of any of the vintage machines I have, and I'm not sure that I'll ever be able to get it into working order, but I thought it was worth bringing home. The cabinet is in fairly rough shape too, but I like the Craftsman type styling of it. The machine head is raised from inside the cabinet by lifting the cabinet leaf -- there's a chain lift mechanism underneath (rusty as all get out). I do have the drawer knob that appears to be missing, and it has a few (rusty) rotary style attachments in one of the drawers. I managed to open the sliding plate, and there is an intact shuttle inside, and presumably a long bobbin, as there is a bunch of thread emerging from the shuttle. So, looks like my next project is all lined up!

And totally changing subjects -- how about a little old vs. new technology?




The new should be apparent -- the old is represented by the little sewn case. Yes, I am silly enough to spend a bundle on the Kindle, and too 'thrifty' to pay extra for a little case. So I took some scraps and cranked (literally) one out on my wee little Singer 99. Works just fine, used up some scraps, and you can't beat the price!

Sewing with silk

Last year's trip to China by Mr. Minglingyarn yielded some silk yardage as a souvenir for me (isn't he thoughtful?), and I finally got some of it sewn into a project. I think it works extremely well for a lightweight robe, yes?

This was my first time sewing with charmeuse, and while it was certainly slippery and ravelly, it wasn't as bad as I expected. And, oh my goodness -- this stuff feels absolutely amazing on! It's made me think that a blouse from charmeuse would be divine. I have a small amount left over (of this particular fabric), perhaps I can eke out a camisole and 'unmentionables' to have a travel sleep set. It would have made a fabulous lining for a jacket also. Ah silk, the Queen of fabric!

Before the first leaf falls...

...autumn knitting begins. First finished project of the new season -- Cross-over Rib Top by Sally Melville. Knit in Koigu PPPM and PM. Pattern available from www.Patternfish.com (I've linked before -- check previous post if you're interested in this pattern).

There was one small error in the pattern (a missing decrease), which hopefully has been corrected by now. I had emailed Sally about it, and apparently it was supposed to have been corrected some time ago, but had slipped through the editing cracks. Apparently Patternfish claims that they will notify purchasers of any patterns they sell about future errata -- this was not my experience, but perhaps others have been more fortunate.

And, as promised, a quick look at the latest vintage machine!




It's a Necchi BU Mira -- from around the middle 1950's -- straight stitch and zig zag, but none of the fancy stitches of the WonderWheel models. I'm toying with the idea of removing the motor and setting it into a treadle, but for now it's still tailed (electrical). There are some who dislike the green color, but luckily j'adore! At this point, there isn't that much room left for new acquisitions, so I'm thinking this is it as far as numbers go. (That hysterical laughter in the background - surely you can hear it? - is Mr. MinglingYarn. For some strange reason he isn't buying that last statement!)

Edited to add -- I received an email on 7 September from Julia Grunau at Patternfish apologizing for any inconvenience and explaining the (small) problem with the pattern. Thank you; I appreciate the communication. So that others will be aware of how the pattern updating works, I have copied a portion of her email below. I'll be returning to the site in future, and I hope others will check it out also. Karen

"Whenever an updated pattern is issued, the buyer will see a notice in their pattern stash saying that a new version is available, and the user just has to click to download it. We are very sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused, but as far as we know, all is now well."