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I made new new pajama pants. This pair fell apart, literally, they had a big tear in the bum. Kev wasn't complaining but it was a little draughty down there!
I cut up the old pair to use as a pattern, dug out some stash fabric (bought from Darn Cheap aaaaaaages ago, reused the elastic from the old pair and a piece of ribbon i'd saved from somewhere. My new favourite pj's!
Today has been a pottering kind of day. The first of my 3 days off starting with a sleep then coffee in bed followed by a day of hanging out with the family in my pajamas. Although i've spent the day in my pajamas it's been far from lazy, in fact i've been very productive...in the kitchen!
Last night i prepared enough no-knead dough for 2 loaves of bread.
After leaving it to prove in front of the fire i got to work making a berry oat bread with Esme. She weighed and mixed all the ingredients together and i put it in the oven, she's becoming quite the little chef!
Oh my this is a good recipe! I just had to go back for seconds, i'll definitely be making this again.
I didn't get a chance to use the quince and lemons earlier this week so today i cooked up some quince jam and lemon curd.
Then came dinner....I had some baby octopus in the freezer left over from the Sambal i made a few weeks ago. I did a quick search on-line and came up with this recipe, it was nice enough but won't be making it onto our favourites list.
Now i'm worn out! There are still lemons and quince to be used up, i'm thinking a lemon and poppy seed cake is on the cards for the lemons and maybe some kind of cake or tart with the quince. Any suggestions?
Time for some bowling on the Wii with Mia and maybe a spot of sewing.
Oh and i've been spending heaps of time trawling thorough this site, check it out.
Sunday morning i dragged my tired butt out of bed earlier than i'd have liked to and set off on my bike to Bri's house. I work with Bri and it's just my luck that she is a machine knitter and offered to give me a lesson.
She messaged me the night before to let me know we'd be working outside so i went prepared dressed in about 5 layers of clothing.
We started with tea (of course) and a look through some books and samples, then we got to work.
We discussed what i already know (little) and what i would like to learn (lots). My first task was a folded hem, with a picot hem!
Then Bri showed me how to swatch using my selected yarn and stitch.
I learned how to cast on with a waste rag with my main project (she even made me my own to take home).
There was more tea and flicking through old pattern books plus a few trips to the heater to warm my hands.
In four hours i learned heaps about the techniques of knitting on a machine. I learned new cast on and cast off methods, how to fix dropped stitches, how to make folded hems, swatches, use pattern cards, make eyelets (for the picot edge), pick up stitches and more. I also learned a lot about the machine itself, how it works and how it does what it does, Bri showed me the inside of the carriage and how it works.
I left full of inspiration, new ideas, knowledge, chilly hands and a wearable garment!
A simple wrap! I'm really pleased with it and hope to now learn more about shaping garments. I'm ready for my next lesson Bri!
I work four days a week (i recently dropped the 5th day to spend more time at home). On those four days Kev does the cooking, he's pretty good at it too, everything we eat is fresh and homemade and my dinner is waiting for me when i get home. I'm a lucky girl!
On my days off i like to cook (Kev's likes this too!) and i try to make something new and interesting or we have one of our favourite dishes. I was out most of the day yesterday having my first machine knitting lesson so last night we had a simple fish stir fry with rice, sometimes simple is best. Before bed Esme and I mixed together the ingredients for the 'No Knead Bread' recipe and left it overnight. Esme loves food and has told us she wants to have a restaurant in the village when she grows up, failing that she'd like to work as a check out chick at Coles ;)
This is my first time using this recipe and it's a good one! The waiting time is a pain which means i won't be able to make this on the days i work (proving overnight then two hours rising and forty minutes cooking in the morning) but i can see i'll be mixing the ingredients together the night before days off.
This loaf came out of the oven and was devoured within ten minutes along with eggs benedict. Next time i might need to make two! It was freezing in our house this morning when we got up so i left the dough to rise next to the fire. I think in warmer weather the loaf would be larger and lighter. I'll wrap the bowl in a blanket or towel overnight during colder weather to aid the proving.
Tonight we had homemade gyoza and edamame tossed in garlic and salt, Yum! This dish is always a favourite with the family. Other current favourites are fish & chips (always the girls choice when asked what they'd like for dinner), arancini, ricotta gnocchi and we've been enjoying quite a bit of Thai food recently too (thanks to Suzie's influence). What are your favourite homemade dishes and recipes? What do your kids like to eat? Mine will eat almost anything and will try everything we give them.
This week i'll be cooking up some quince given to me by a friend with a tree in her garden. I poached some a few weeks ago which we've been enjoying at breakfast time (see Jorth's recipe), this time i'm thinking quince jelly. I also have a bag full of lemons from our neighbours tree that need to be used up. Lemon curd may be on the cards as well as lemon cake maybe?
* God i'm so freakin' funny i crack myself up sometimes!...or maybe not?
I was quite smitten with my black Drape Drape dress so much that i bought a remnant on impulse last week to make another. Yes, i've broken my fabric diet but i've done well so far with the list and i'm still working on reducing (and adding) to it.
Details
Fabric: Viscose/elastane remnant from Tessuti Fabrics
Pattern: Dress 3 from Drape Drape 1-i've included the image of the pattern piece for those of you who asked last time.
Notes and alterations: Like last time i left out the zipper but i didn't bind the armholes, instead i double folded the edge and stitched in place, it seems to be holding well. I also lengthened the dress by a few more inches but i think i'll to shorten it to the same length as my black version. There was also a little concentration needed when cutting out to ensure the stripes matched.
Conclusion? I love it! It was quick to make (an hour and a half max), used minimal fabric and looks great.
