Balanced But Lumpy

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My spinning that I am now calling my “Rustic 2-ply” is plied and coming off the bobbin this week.

As predicted, this is VERY thick and thin in spots. In fact there are some places where the roving is not spun at all. It can be very lumpy in many spots. But one silver lining, it was a very balanced skein after plying. There is almost no twisting back on itself. And it’s hanging straight down

This skein is off to is bath time so I can measure and count this skein. I think this will work out to be worsted on average across all the spots. And with 8 ounces of fiber used I am expecting a decent amount of yardage.

Happy Spinning!

Let’s Try Bagels

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My baking addiction continues unabated. My family asked for bagels and I had never made them before. So we tried a little experiment.

I used my bread machine to mix, knead and proof the dough. And then I took over and did the salt boil and custom toppings. We did cheese, everything and plain bagels.

I learned some lessons. They need to go right from boil to toppings to oven or they will shrink. Definitely more cheese next time. And the plain ones would benefit from some sea salt on top. But all in all, not a bad first try!

Happy Baking!!

FO Friday: Shiny Black 2-ply

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My Shiny Black Alpaca 2-ply is done and dry. It came out GORGEOUS!

I did get a little aggressive on some part of the plying and even after a bath, some sections are over plied/very energized. I can probably send it back through my wheel in the opposite direction and take some of the crazy out.

It did stay a sport skein. I got 12 wraps per inch (mostly). This 133 gram skein came out to 160 yards. Will make a lovely project. I am thinking of gifting this to a coworker who is retiring that is into fiber. She doesn’t retire until March so I have time to ponder.

Happy Spinning!!

Reigniting The Rainbow

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The knitting mojo is low right now as I’m kind of in between projects that aren’t my tiny socks and sweater. I finished my Bumbles Bounce socks and so I decided to pull out my Punch Bug Vanilla Socks.

A few work conference calls over the past few months only added up to two new color stripes. But with renewed vigor this week I made it to the cuff. I think two color stripes will give me a 1 inch cuff and I’ll be done. Then of course I need to start the second sock and put in the afterthought heel in sock number one.

Happy Knitting!!

Spinning Something New

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I am still feeling the urge to spin and my Shiny Alpaca was off the wheel. So I pulled out a spinning kit I got in a mystery bag a few Christmas’s ago. It was 8.5 ounces of pink merino and a handful of intact wool locks in bright pink and bright blue.

I was so engrossed in the spin that I didn’t even grab any photos before the singles were done. I split the braid into 4 ounce chunks. I spun the first half with working the locks in intermittently. I HATED it from the start. But I persevered and worked them all in the first 4 ounces.

I then HAPPILY spun the second 4 ounces as plain merino. Those were lovely to spin. I plan to ply the two together. My first bobbin is very inconsistent and thick/thin. So I am predicting an “art” yarn from this skein. It will be beautiful in its own way, lol.

Happy Spinning!!

Lemons Into Lemonade

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I’m not a super duper zero waste person, but I do like to find ways to reduce our footprint around our house. We recycle and use reusable goods where possible. But my kids drive me nuts with how much food we waste. And the leftovers that go bad in the fridge because I’m the only one that eats them and I can’t keep up. So I pooled my Grandma Christmas money with some savings and I got a countertop composter!

I did ZERO research. I just used a basic google search and found a machine I could afford with at least 4 stars on Amazon. And so far it works great! When we are home and cooking I can fill it once a day.

Depending on what goes in, the color is WILD. This was tomatoes, moldy cheesy pasta and coffee grounds. I just empty the bin into our backyard garden bin and start refilling this. It’s quiet and surprising smells good while its “cooking”. It does require filters and maintenance so I don’t know how long it will hold out. But it’s a nice new experiment for us and reducing our trash.

I Have A Baking Problem

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One of my Christmas presents was a replacement insert for my bread maker. I have really been leaning on that to mix and proof my dough for baked goods. I decided to give it a thorough testing.

The cinnamon rolls were FIRE and didn’t last. My sticky rolls need the caramel sauce to have cooked a little more. They were still yummy, just the last thing to disappear. And the dinner rolls turns into burger buns.

Life is crazy but baking has been bringing me peace. I just need to find more places to take my goods so I don’t eat them all!

FO Friday: Bumbles Bounce Vanilla Socks

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The heels are fully installed in my Bumbles Bounce Vanilla Socks. This means I have a newly minted finished pair of socks!

Pattern: My own toe up vanilla sock recipe over 68 stitches with an afterthought heel

Yarn: MustStash Yarn Must Match Sock in the Bumbles Bounce colorway

Needles: US 1s

I love MustStash as her skeins are dyed to a perfect match. So my socks are perfectly identical with no work on my part. The socks used up 57 grams of the skeins so roughly 262 yards. I have enough for possibly another set of shorties with contrasting everything. But I will probably use the leftovers in my scrap projects.

Now I think I need to get back to my Punch Bug Vanilla Socks before I get distracted by more pretty yarn!

Happy Knitting

Plying and Pale Ale

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The hubby was in charge of bedtime last night so I had some free and clear time. The singles from my sparkly alpaca FLEW onto my wheel this week. The fiber was very excellently carded and it felt easy to spin.

I poured myself a strawberry blonde ale from a local brewery and started plying. The two bobbins are fairly well matched and I only had a few yards to chain ply at the end of one bobbin.

The skein is resting on its bobbin and waiting for a bath this weekend. Pre washing the yarn looks to be around 11 or 12 wraps per inch. So light DK to sport weight probably? It might change a little after its swim and whack.

Happy Spinning!!

Ice Cream Into Bread

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I fell down the TikTok hole the other day and saw someone make “bread” from ice cream. I had to try, it just seemed dubious.

It’s just vanilla ice cream, flour, salt and baking powder. And it totally cooked into a bread-like shape. It did not raise very far but the sprinkles did stay on top.

Flavor wise, it was pretty much Meh. It was not as sweet as I would have liked. The texture is very dense. Jellybean LOVED it and ate two slices. I think if I were to try it again, I would add some sugar?

But it was a fun baking experiment. Happy Baking!!