Author Archives: atangledyarn84

Pizza for Breakfast

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Caution….food porn ahead!! I had a particularly heinous and stressful day ahead of me while simultaneously having leftover homemade pizza dough in the fridge…

You guys, I made Parmesan garlic and egg breakfast pizzas. And ooooohh my did they taste amazing and everyone of the 600 calories!

I didn’t follow any recipe and just scrounged ingredient from my fridge. I made four mini pizza crusts and seasoned them with butter and garlic salt. I then slathered on some Parmesan garlic pasta sauce and topped that with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. And to top it all off I cracked a large egg on each pizza and put in a 400 degree oven. They took about 12-13 in to get the eggs cooked but yet still soft.

Two of the eggs slid because my pan was not level. So lessons for next time! I think I might make the crust have ridges or perhaps use my better stainless steel pizza pan to keep things tidy. Never mind how they look….they looked delicious and we devoured them! this one is for sure will do again!!

Happy baking!!

WIP Wednesday: Antagonist Socks

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Thanks to many (read: MANY) conference calls and video meetings I have made pretty good progress on my Antagonist Socks! The toe increases are done and the foot is one inch shy of starting the heel.

I’m really enjoying the yarn! There are flecks and pops of mossy green, burnt orange and a some other colors I can’t quite describe that keep me interested. The finished fabric is not merino soft but feels like imagined the BFL content would turn out. It is still soft but feels firm like it won’t pill or wear as easily.

I’m pretty sure I am going to do a toe up gusset heel by Wendy D Johnson for these socks. I have that almost memorized and it fits my foot quite nicely. My next hurdle will be to see if I can turn the heel while knitting out of video call frame….

Stay tuned and happy knitting!!

Easter Dyeing Project

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I just couldn’t quite bring myself to waste the leftover Easter egg dye. And we are all still “sheltering in place” here in the State of Kansas so why not try a new craft? I dashed down to my stash and pulled some muslin scraps and some white Cascade sock yarn and started soaking both in a vinegar and water bath.

Once they were soaked we lightly rinsed them and laid them out. Jellybean helped me add rubber bands to the fabric. And then we waited until PB went down for her nap because I know better than to mix messy stain inducing crafts with a 23rd month old!

Jellybean was in charge of the colors and the placement of the dye. We had discussions of the color wheel and complimentary and contrasting colors. We make sure to turn our work and get the dye every where. (Thank god for plastic wrap!)

I then took the helm for the yarn dyeing. I took the skein and lowered sections into each of the five colors. Jellybean got to be in charge of pushing the skeins down with spoons. We totally on a scientific basis decided to let them soak for 7 minutes. I did zero research before starting this project. We literally just winged it and did what felt appropriate.

After the timer went off we pulled it out onto a pan. Then carefully under Jellybean’s watch we used the remaining liquid to blend the color sections. It was harder than expected and we ended up using some paper towels in the middle to catch the dye liquid form ruining other sections as it ran. We weren’t 100% successful but close enough for these novices.

We definitely have some white sections left on the yarn as it was hard to get complete coverage using solo cups and just pouring liquid over the yarn. I heat set this yarn and fabric in the microwave for 3 min and left to dry.

They are both still hanging fully dry in my basement as life took over. I’ll try to see if Jellybean is interested in helping do a FO photo shoot this week. I mean….we’ve got nowhere to go!

Cast On: Fluffy Sockhead Slouch

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After last week’s less than spectacular execution of the Everyday Slouchy Beanie I decided to get right back on the horse. I had more than half the sock yarn plus the coordinating mini. but I have less than half of the suri alpaca laceweight. So I’m taking a gamble on another hat…

I used the coordinating (and darker) mini and cast on the brim. I upped my stitch count and left the needles the same so as to avoid my previous situation. I worked the brim for as long as I thought looked good and then added the main yarn for the body of hat. I think it’s almost fade mixed color block kind of strategy.

This is a very stretchy hat at this gauge and stitch count. So there’s no way this hat will be too small, in fact it might almost to big! D’oh!! But I have a coworker who might need a pandemic pick me up and she has glorious natural big hair that a large hat would be well suited for.

I am starting to play yarn chicken with the suri alpaca and I’m not sure I’ll be able to finish the hat. But I think I may use some of my other suri/silk yarn in my stash to continue the hat in a third fade color at the top. I might marinate on this one for a day or two.

Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Everyday (Not So) Slouchy Beanie

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I have another FO this week! My Everyday Slouchy Beanie is complete and I’m now re-naming it Everyday (not so) Slouchy Beanie because gauge matters, for real.

Pattern: Everyday Sloubhy Beanie by Dragon Hoard Designs

Yarn: Apothefaery Fabrications Middle of the Road Sock and Halo Brushed Suri Alpaca

Needles: US 1 and US 4

Mods: Because of my gauge issues, I didn’t knit the full slouch so I could save some yarn for a second hat.

This hat fits my kids SUPER well. I can get it on my head but it’s REALLY tight. I blindly followed the pattern and made the medium size without checking gauge. Silver lining, the hat is very very warm. I’m not sure I’m going to trust my children with a hat made with indie dyed yarn. But I’m not sure I’m going to wear this either. So I am going to let this FO marinate in my cedar chest for the summer to see how I feel about it later.

The yarn is delightful! You can see the halo of the suri alpaca and the colors are very rich. I might have been drowning my canceled fiber show blue by popping over to Apothefaery Fabrications to buy more of her Halo Brushed Suri in some neutral colors. I want to try some more projects with this yarn!

Happy Knitting!!

A Second F Bomb

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In an attempt deal with my current load of stress..I’m knitting more F Bombs! My second one is off the needles!

I really think my duplicate stitch needs work but is improving. This time I held the red yarn held double double to see if I can improve the coverage and making the F more pronounced. I think I like how the stitches stick out, but I think I can make the stitches more cohesive.

I’m giving myself a break considering I’ve been a supervisor for 60 days and a worldwide pandemic has hit in the meantime. I’m going to keep knitting through adversary and strife! I think I’m going to start a third F Bomb…..

Happy Knitting!!

Some Sweet Baking

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The baking desire has not abated in this house. I have been wistfully pawing through my bread book and daydreaming about recipes. This week adventure is about sweet rolls with cream cheese frosting!

I made the dough in my bread machine and added the filling.

The proofed quite nicely despite my inconsistent size of roll.

This baked perfectly to a lovely golden brown. This might be my greatest baking achievement ever. I mean I texted my mom these photos because I was so proud.

After adding some homemade cream cheese frosting these rolls lasted approximately three days. Jellybean and I enjoyed splitting one everyday for breakfast. We both agreed this recipe needs to happen again…and soon!

Baking and cooking has really been a great source of comfort and stress outlet for me. I just need to find a way to work off all these calories!

Happy Baking!!

Prism Progress

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Hallelujah…I have finally reached the recommended four inches of 2×2 ribbing for my Prism Break Hat!

I’m loosely following the Sockhead Slouch by Kelly McClure. This has been my go-to conference call and zoom meeting knitting. I find that I can keep easy knitting in my lap and knit while I listen and it’s impossible for anyone to tell.

I’m just now starting the plain stockinette part of the hat. So just a ton of round and round for miles. And I’m not mad about it. It’s the perfect easy knitting in a fun yarn to make this time and please a little easier to handle.

What is making your life happy?

Cast On: Antagonist Vanilla Socks

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I was feeling the pull of socks again after I finished my Dark Side Vanilla Socks. I pulled out some of the sock yarn I wound up during my winding frenzy and just cast on. This is the BFL/Nylon sock blend from Stranded Dyeworks and it felt like some basic toe socks were a great pattern match.

This is my own “vanilla” recipe of a 68 stitch toe up vanilla sock on US 1s. A whole lot of round and round in soothing stockinette. Working from home and having all my meetings being virtual….I have made great time on this sock! I’m planning on a toe up gusset heel from Wendy D Johnson’s pattern. I almost have that heel memorized and it fits my foot really well.

This yarn is making a really nice fabric. It’s not merino soft but its soft in a sturdy way. The BFL really makes this feel like a sock that should wear really well. I can’t wait to get these finished and into my drawer. I really want to see how these work out. I might need to add more BFL sock yarn to my stash!

Happy Knitting

FO Friday: Dark Side Vanilla Socks (Take Two)

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Just a little cheery rainbow to cap off the week. I finished my Dark Side Vanilla Socks (Take Two) and got them washed and ends woven in.

Pattern: 72 stitch vanilla sock made from machine cranked sock snake

Needles: US 0s

Yarn: Knit Picks Felice in Dark Side and Cascade Heritage Sock in Grey

My stripes are reversed and the toes are a little squared off. But the socks are soft and warm and the perfect rainbow to brighten up any shelter in place order.

The next question is…what should my next socks be??

Happy Knitting