Fleece on Earth

Lots of knitting

2008-12-15T01:56:02Z

Seed Stitch Hat
Originally uploaded by Audra BOwen's hat

Helen's chullo - front
Originally uploaded by Audra B

South Pacific Socks
Originally uploaded by Audra BKaren' sock

If a tree fell in Ohio

2008-09-20T18:41:43Z

We got hit by the hurricane - all the way in Cincinnati!

The upshot of this (it is fiber related, trust me) is that my mom "evacuated" us to her house about 30 miles away. She still had power, you see, and the kids did not have school.

She also has the dyeing stuff! So I finally got around to dyeing the yarn my friend asked me to dye for her from ArtFibers in San Francisco.

It didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped: neither of the skeins (alpaca and an angora/silk blend) took up the dye the way wool does. And although I didn't intend them to be similar/complementary, they sure turned out that way although I dyed each skein separately.

Pictures can be found here. You'll note quite a difference compared to my first dyeing attempts. I tried Jacquard Dyes this time; I think the ProChem One Shot are actually better dyes but they're also slightly more concentrated. The JD didn't leave a tinny taste in my mouth after dyeing, whereas the OneShot did. But it might be worth putting up with that for the intense colours. I'd like to buy more of this yarn and try it with the OneShots to see if the take up is better or the colour is more intense. Maybe when I win the lottery.

morrisab @ 2008-08-29T14:46:00

2008-08-29T18:47:39Z

Still haven't found my OVNF roving. But I did find a Schacht group on Ravelry that gave me some great ideas to try to tighten up the treadle issue on my Schacht. This weekend: MUST LOOK FOR ROVING.

The Bermuda Triangle

2008-08-28T17:55:21Z

Why is it that I own approximately $400 worth of top from Ohio Valley Natural Fiber and yet, now that my new(-to-me) Louet is here, I can't lay my hands on a single, solitary ounce of it?

The splurge

2008-08-01T14:05:59Z

Several years ago I traded my Schacht single treadle and my beloved Louet S-10 (my first wheel) for a Schacht double-treadle. The Louet was a delight to learn on and the only real reason I moved to a Schacht was because I was spinning finer and finer. But I've regretted selling the Louet, because for sheer mindless spinning joy, and especially for plying, it couldn't be beat. (I've never successfully attained a rhythm for Navajo plying on either Schacht, and on the Louet it was... simple.)

Mind you, it was not a bad trade, and I love the Schacht double treadle, but ever since the Louet left I have had a hole in my heart.

Since my husband bought me a new laptop for our anniversary and I don't have to worry about saving for one now, I went ahead and raided the laptop fund for a used Louet S-10 from the Netherlands on eBay.

It's been in customs since Jul 29. I am obsessively hitting refresh on the USPS page. I want it *so* badly.

Gmail seems to understand this: I got an ad for the following website today while I was clicking on the email with the tracking number. And I *want*! I love BF Leic! It's second only to Romney hogget in my sheer joy of spinning love! (Not counting silk caps, of course.)

http://sakinaneedles.com/

::clicks refresh again::

PS: I've also finished the Shepherds Socks socks for my friend in Minnesota. Will hopefully have pics soon.

Socks!

2008-07-24T23:25:45Z

It's a double banner day. Yesterday I got Cat Bordhi's sock book in the mail and today I found my old binder with the Piecework article with Anna Zilboorg's amazing Turkish socks. This pattern is not available anywhere on the net or in her books, which makes me sad.

I love Columbus

2008-07-23T16:35:49Z

My husband and son go to Origins every year and this year Helen and I went with them because they snagged a suite in the Hampton Inn right across from the convention center. What a great location - and what a great job Columbus has done revitalizing both downtown and the convention center area ("Short North"). We were literally across the street from the convention center, half a block from Barley's microbrew, half a block from North Market, and two blocks from a fabulous little Greek restaurant (the Happy Greek).

At any rate, on my way out of town I stopped at the erstwhile Wolfe Fiber Arts on 5th Avenue. It's now called Heavenly Creations Fiber Arts. The inventory was a little low but other than that, it was worth the stop. I got some more Kidprint mohair, a cute Fiber Trends pattern for a felted kitty for Helen, and, bonus, some awesome wool/hemp blend dyed by a woman in Athens, Ohio (Dzined). It's soft and pretty, and 400 yards of sport-weight yarn. I can't wait to see what project in Lavish Laces will work best with it. ;-)

Happiness is...

2005-03-28T02:12:12Z

...homemade tiramisu

I had to make tiramisu for about 15 people, so a measly 4 servings wouldn't work. After looking up several sources and digging in my own recipe books, I came up with a recipe that is mostly a combination of Buca di Beppo's recipe and a recipe found on (don't laugh) cookingforengineers.com.

MAKES: 12

INGREDIENTS:
12 oz espresso or double-strong coffee
1/2 cup sugar
4 lrg egg yolks
1 egg
1/2 cup Marsala
16 oz mascarpone cheese (2 containers)

2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla

40 ladyfingers (Trader Joe's work really well)

Stir 2 tbsp sugar into espresso and chill.

Easy zabaglione: Whisk egg yolks and egg until light and creamy. Pour in remaining sugar and whisk until well blended. Add Marsala. Microwave on high for 30 seconds, then whisk. Repeat 4-6 times, until thick and creamy.

Whip cream until soft peaks form. Beat in vanilla extract.

Beat mascarpone cheese until smooth and creamy. Pour zabaglione onto cheese and beat until smooth. Fold in whipped cream.

Dip ladyfingers in espresso mixture (one at a time) and place in pan. I used a 13x9 pan for this recipe. Spread half the cream mixture over ladyfingers. Cover with another layer of soaked ladyfingers. Spread with remaining cream mixture. Chill for at least four hours.

Note: when dipping ladyfingers, use a shallow bowl with some of the coffee mixture in it and place immediately in pan. They soak up the coffee quickly and start to crumble if you try to do four or five at a time.

Note 2: you can add liqueur to the coffee mixture. Suggestions: a shot of amaretto; a shot of Kahlua; a shot of chocolate cream liqueur... I'll confess I have even used Scotch when I didn't have anything else handy.

Before serving, sprinkle with cocoa powder. If you can find the amaretto-flavoured chocolate bars from Italy, they are even better to grate over the top.