Swimsuit Straps and Food

From 2011April

I have been trying out Water Aerobics lately. I've had problems with Sciatica in the past, and suddenly it's back, and nothing seems to help much. It was suggested that water exercise might be good, as well as a few other things, but so far I'm trying the water, and it seems to help. It keeps pressure off the nerve, but still allows one to exercise.

I hadn't bought a swimsuit for years, but purchased 2 at the FIDM Shop in LA's Fashion District. They're identical styles in similar prints from Esther Williams. They have loops to attach halter straps, but there were no straps. Perhaps this is why they were selling them for $5 each. I decided it would be more comfortable to have regular, over-the-shoulder straps. I used some Victoria's Secret Satin Lycra I had. I put the non-stretch going lengthwise, so the straps do not stretch much if at all. There's plenty of stretch in the suit, and I wanted support. I made wide turned tubes, and pinned them in place, then tried it on, and adjusted (shorter) and did 2 rows of 2x2 zigzag at each end.

From 2011April

I think it turned out very well, and it's very comfortable to wear, and I think it looks pretty good, too. The color match is better than what I thought I'd find in the inventory. Now to do the other suit.

From 2011April

I also baked some rolls using the FARR bread machine I have. (FARR is Frivolous Appliance Round-Robin, and the machine belongs to my brother. I'm just 'storing' it right now.) You make the dough in the machine, then roll and shape it, let it rest, and bake it. They turned out pretty nice, and it was kind of fun. I love bread.

From 2011April

You're All Invited To Lunch!

Seems I've had this internet sewing friend thing going for quite some time now, and it's something I wouldn't trade for almost anything. You guys are the best!

Just yesterday, DrSue, a SG and PR member of long-standing, invited us all to a potluck luncheon on Friday (Sept. 10th) in her orchard in North Tustin! I'm very excited, and if any of you can make it, just let me know, and I will have her send directions to you.

Kind of short notice, but sometimes that's how it works out. Do try and come if you're in the area, please.

On another note, Lisa and I are going to the LA Fashion District today to look at fabric, etc. That is our plan at this moment anyway. We are taking her Eames chair into LA for repairs, and wanted to try to do both things at once.


My poor kitty is staying home alone with only the loving care of my brother and Dad to make the time pass. The Peep is used to going out all night (fenced back yard that he can't get out of) and so it's been pretty boring for him to stay in all the time. They were wary of letting him out since he might decide he wasn't coming back in while they were there. He can get into the garage through a cat door, so he has shelter, but still... Last night he was insistent with my brother that he WAS going out, no matter how stupid Chris might be, since he was obviously so dumb he couldn't even tell what a cat wanted. I finally said he should let him out and my Dad could let him in this morning sometime. Well, he went out like a shot, and less than half an hour later, he wanted back in desperately. I'm not sure if he suddenly realized that getting back in might be about as hard as getting out was, and thought he'd better go while the going was good, or what. Who knows what a cat's plans are? He's had a little outing though, and is probably happier and more content. I'm missing him, and I am pretty sure he's missing me too!

Nothing Costs 4 Cents Anymore

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I thought you'd enjoy seeing this card, which was about half-full of snaps when I got it. It was part of my grandmother's sewing things. I've no idea when she might have bought it. Although I do remember Penney's having a sewing and fabric department, I don't think snaps were 4 cents then. Now they're apparently about $1.50 for 10 of this size. One thing about sewing notions like this, they don't get outdated or too old to use, so 'snap' them up if they are offered.

I got my brother's bread machine in our family's 'Frivolous Appliance Round-Robin', and I'm having fun with it. Like most people, their bread machine was used a lot when they got it, and then less, until it finally sat there, unloved. So, I said I'd take it for a while, and they could take an extra KitchenAid mixer I had on hand. Everyone's happy, and we are storing new things in our kitchens instead of the old, boring ones.

My favorite bread so far is called Franskbröd, (correction courtesy of Mia) supposedly the most popular bread in Scandinavia. It reminds me strongly of my Swedish grandmother's homemade bread that we could never duplicate. I've made it a couple of times now, and everyone agrees with me. This is NOT a photo of it however. This is an egg bread with poppyseed which is also very good.



I'm recovering from some minor surgery right now, although it's never minor when it's you, is it? Actually, it was my first surgery of any kind. It's been a week now, and I'm beginning to feel a bit like myself again, so I'm pleased about that.

Skew Sock & Broken Glass

The day started out strangely. I've become a real coffee person, especially mocha with frothed milk, etc., and I happen to have a coffee maker with a frothing wand. I never used it until recently, but it's great. I usually use a smallish straight-sided glass for the milk, which works well. This morning, I made my coffee, frothed the milk, and put the glass in the sink after I poured the milk out of it. Then I unthinkingly ran water in the glass. The bottom of the glass immediately popped off.



I had forgotten what my Grandmother told us years ago. She told us that when handwashing crystal, especially very thin, delicate glassware, never put the glass into the hot water bottom first. Always put the side in first, so that the glass has room to expand and not crack. I had just proven that it also is true for non-delicate glass. It probably just takes more applications of the hot/cold cycle to break it. So, be careful, and don't do what I did.

A couple weeks ago I talked about an unusual sock pattern I've been knitting, and Claire S.asked if it was Skew from Knitty, and yes it was. I have a photo of the first sock, and I'm actually pretty close to done with the second one.



I used a not-wonderful yarn since I didn't know how it was going to go, and I needed a striping sock yarn which I didn't have. It's Bernat's Satin Sport, which is acrylic. I'm not sure how it's going to hold up, but it's nice to knit and kind of pretty, and okay for a test. I've already bought a nice sock yarn to try another pair. That's the plan anyway.



Finally, I had a really nice lunch at the National Gallery that was kind of a crackery-type base with feta, grilled asparagus, artichoke heart, etc., on caesar salad. I thought I could do something similar, and settled on lahvosh as a good choice for the base. I found a recipe and made some. It turned out really good, but it seems like a lot of work for something that doesn't last long. I've been experimenting around, and I've found that a flour tortilla toasted in the toaster oven works just as well, maybe better, as it's not quite so brittle. Anyway, here's the result of my lahvosh baking.



And thank you all for the very kind hair comments!

Russian Crochet & Cake

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Deirdre was kind enough to send me some Russian crochet magazines that we had talked about on Stitcher's Guild, and I spent last night poring over them. I actually went and found some thread and hooks at about 2am before realizing that it was a little late at night to begin to polish my rusty crocheting skills. I am still thinking furiously about all the things shown in these issues. (Click on the photo link above, and on Original size below the photo on Pbase, and you can see much more detail.)

The collar on the top at the far right is so gorgeous, and I honestly can't tell if it's crochet or needle lace or a combination of the two. The instructions show the outlines drawn on a numbered grid, unlike anything else in these issues. Perhaps it's done that way just to make sure the free-form shape is correct for a collar. There is some amazing needle lace and hardanger besides crochet in these, and most of the instructions are just charts of the stitch motifs with no indication of the garment shaping, unless it's in the short written parts. A challenge, to be sure.

I also really like the lace bodice of the dress in the middle. There are a lot of things shown with motif groups placed here and there on garments. I especially seem drawn to the things where they have a mixture of techniques, styles, or scale. All in all, they're very interesting and thought provoking.

When I got to the instruction part in the first magazine I looked at, I immediately wished my grandmother could have seen these. She was a prolific crocheter who loved the fine-thread crochet with tiny needles. I'm lucky enough to have a tablecloth she made for my mother, and I remember when she sent it to the State Fair by mail, and received it back afterward along with the ribbons and rosettes she had won. It was judged to be just about perfect. None of us were surprised, as she didn't stand for anything less, and would redo something until it was just right. In my mind's eye I can see her looking at these patterns and working them out in her head while her hand would be going through the motions necessary, like a violinist or pianist fingering in the air while reading a score. She didn't teach me to crochet, my other grandmother did that, but Grandma Bergman left me her work ethic when it came to needlework, and I'm very glad.

I'll leave you with what I hope is a mouthwatering photo of a wonderful dessert. I have found my favorite chocolate cake. A Duncan Hines Butter Recipe Golden Cake mix with 3/4 cup Baking Cocoa and 4tsp. Splenda added. It's so dark and rich. This was just a stopgap because I didn't have a chocolate cake mix, but now I'm doing it on purpose. The real find is Raspberry Ice Cream with it. Just delicious!

A Spring Luncheon with a Basket Dessert

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I hosted one of my music clubs today, and I wanted a festive dessert. Since it's almost Easter, it had to be a basket. Everyone thought this was really darling, and it was quite easy to put together.

I used a slice of orange loaf cake (pound cake would work equally well) with whipped cream on the top, shaped into a nest. Cut a piece of curling ribbon 4"-5" long and tuck the ends into the whipped cream. Add a few eggs (jellybeans) to the nest, and you're done.

Here's what they got for lunch. Chicken salad with poppy seeds and grapes, carrot fingers, snack stick crackers, and mixed berries.



It was a nice menu to serve to a group since most everything could be done ahead. I did make up the desserts right before serving.

Happy Spring, everyone!

Cherry Pie

 

Late to the blog, but the pie itself was on time. I am not an eager baker, but I do enjoy it when I get it done. This was a Washington's Birthday Cherry Pie. I used a bag of frozen, tart cherries and a recipe from the Farm Journal Pie Cookbook. My aunt, who's a fantastic cook and baker thinks this is THE pie cookbook to have, and I happened to have a copy, so I treasure it, and use it. It's from 1965, when pies were generally homemade or you didn't have any. I see copies on eBay for a wide variety of prices.

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Still plugging along on the coat, but not much progress today. The sleeves are in, also the shoulder pads, hems pressed up and I've begun attaching the lining. I'm hoping for more time tomorrow, at least in the afternoon.

I got the latest Town and Country and Harper's Bazaar in the last couple days, so that's been fun. I haven't gotten through the Bazaar yet, but I thought T&C had really good Spring fashion coverage.

Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

Here's what I came up with when using the recipe proposed by kitnrose that's been discussed on Stitcher's Guild, and which was tweaked by an actual Pastry Chef, husband of Portia, a member of Stitcher's Guild. You can find the entire discussion at the link above, including the recipe.

I made a few changes from the original, including:

Took out 2/3 cup of flour.
12 oz. Semi-Sweet chips and no white chocolate chips
added 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
Sifted all dry ingredients before measuring, and spooned into measuring cups
added Zest of one orange (two would be better)
baked on parchment and did not flatten, as the batter was quite soft, and they flattened themselves effectively

They are quite delicate, almost like lace cookies, with crisp edges and a slightly tender middle. I also got over 6 dozen out of the recipe rather than the stated 5 dozen. The plate the cookies are shown on is a small one, no more than 6" across, so that gives you an idea of the size I'm getting.

There's not a lot of orange flavor, although there's a definite orange scent to them. I really think if you're dying for Orange/Chocolate flavor, you'd do well to use orange frosting on them.

I'm not usually a happy cookie baker, or an anything baker for that matter, but this recipe intrigued me, and I needed some cookies to take to a Fundraiser Boutique my music fraternity, Mu Phi Epsilon, is having tomorrow.

It's Nice To Be Back on Track

I finally got the lining cut for the embossed Marfy jacket, and hooray, I feel like I'm finally back on track. It's going in rather well too. I stopped tonight when I felt like I was getting tired, so at least there were no silly mistakes made. That's always a plus.

The Bendigo cardigan is getting closer to a finish as well. I'm halfway up the second sleeve. The weather has been great for knitting, as well as sewing, or anything that keeps one in the house.

It snowed last night and this morning, and we were snowed in. Our drive finally was cleared about 10pm tonight.

I also made my very first ever peach pie this evening. I'm usually an apple pie girl, but Pearle loves peach pie, so thought I'd try it. I got out the old Farm Journal Pie Book, and I have to say, I think peach pie might be my favorite now too. It's pretty wonderful! I got to use my new Microplane nutmeg grater too.

Tomorrow night is a Sewing Guild meeting, and the program is unique doll making. I've never made a doll, but it should be interesting.