Startitis

Hello on this blustery and pork sliders Sunday!!

Neuro and I are having a great time working on several projects in parallel!  I think we have a version of spring fever that has manifested as startitis - casting on a bunch of new projects and then flitting from one to the other.

The latest is the Joie Mittens from Brandi Cheyenne Harper's new book, Knitting for Radical Self-Care.  I haven't cast them on yet, but might have a yarn candidate:


This is a big ball of Margaana, a wool/silk blend dyed by Schaefer Yarns, probably one of the first indie dyers ever and I actually bought it at her studio probably 20-25 years ago.  This is a beautiful yarn but it never wants to be anything.  I'm hoping it will like being these mittens because there's enough for two pair! 

All the other projects are still in the works - nothing very exciting or finished just yet though.

I spent most of yesterday wrangling with Rogue Pinion (as if my failure to swatch and count wasn't enough - I screwed up the easy lace and had to fix a couple of sections a few rows down) while baking.  The first project was a batch of liver treats for Daisy, which is always a disgusting and messy project but so worth it for the outcome.  I put them all in the freezer and then thaw them small numbers.  She's still on a weight reduction program so at most she'll get two of these in a day (usually if something terrible is happening to her, such as toenail clipping or ear cleaning).  So at least it will last forever!

Then I made the Pineapple Sour Cream Crumb Cake recipe that was recently featured in the NYT.  It was a lot of work!  After hacking the pineapple apart I had to caramelize the pineapple, make the crumb topping, and then make the cake part.  The batter was super stiff and sticky, but I think that's because the layer of pineapple on top permeates moisture down into the cake (and out of the bottom of the springform pan - the oven is in a sad state today and is in need of caustic chemicals).  

I think it turned out fine but it didn't give me the "wow!" experience that I had hoped for after all that work.  But it does give me more confidence to try other new things!  Maybe next week....

Stay safe, warm, and healthy!

Comments

neuroknitter said…
I have so many of those gorgeous skeins that are reluctant to knit up and stay gorgeous. I can't wait to see how that yarn works out!
February 28, 2022 at 7:23 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Wedding Pillows

Image
I've been busy, but I don't have much to show for it - yet. You will be seeing a lot of finished lace in the coming days, so stay tuned! In the meantime, here are two pillows that I dyed and knit for friends who are getting married next week.
Read more

Poisons

Image
Macinnis, Peter (2004). Poisons: From Hemlock to Botox and the Killer Bean of Calabar. New York: Arcade Publishing. From the author’s web site : "As usual, I am interested in the people, their interactions and the social effects that poisons have had, as well as the science. There is an exquisite beauty in the way tetrodotoxin is made harmless to its hosts, the way a wasp moth vomits over its mate, or the way a mongoose withstands the venom of the cobra. To me, these are things worth exploring, so I do. " In his book, Macinnis endeavors to describe poisonous compounds and their science, relate which historical figures are implicated in the use of these poisons, and document how these poisons are referred to literature. He then attempts to weave all of these aspects together. Macinnis does indeed attempt to cover aspects of science, people, and all the history inbetween, but he does not seem quite able to cover everything in a consistent, coherent way. I think there is just to
Read more