Humble Homemaker

I have a question for all you granola munchers out there.

I used to make yogurt a lot, a tradition which fell by the wayside as soon as I realized that I was expecting my third child. I'm ready to pick it up again, happily, but I have a question about the process that the Internet seems at a loss to answer for me.

In every set of directions I find, they recommend heating the milk to 180 degrees and then cooling the milk to 110 degrees to add the starter. I understand why you would want the temp at a certain point for the starter, but why would one heat the milk to 180 to begin with? If I am using store bought milk I wouldn't need to pasteurize it, so what is the point? I don't get it.

If any of you know why I would need to do this, can you please enlighten me? I would love to know!

Hanging in There

It's been a while since I've posted, I know. We haven't been terribly busy, but at the same time we've been slogging through a lot of troubles. It's amazing how trials and tribulations can bog one down so that days pass by unmarked as one tries to simply get by.

Have no fear. Life may be tramping right over my head right now, but if I stay right in this moment, I find that it is exactly what I can handle.

And this moment brings knitted victory. Well, maybe not victory, but at least satisfaction. So I will dwell on that.


This is a baby/toddler vest (because Henry is now toddling). I used a free pattern from Crystal Palace. I like the style, though check my project notes on Ravelry if you are considering making it yourself. I used ONE SKEIN of Encore Colorspun yarn (just over $6--I am thrifty). I modified the ribbing around the arms to a rolled edge to make this work out. It fits him well. I'm not usually a fan of acrylic (it usually feels like plastic and I don't care for the static electricity it generates), but I really like Encore for kids' clothes. It washes up well and it seems to like the dryer, too. It feels soft and fluffy.

I used random brown buttons from my mom's button bin. They don't match, but it doesn't matter to me since this is a casual, every day vest. One could even say the buttons add a funky, eclectic feel to the vest, but I won't since I'm really not that hip. Neither is Henry. Adorable, but not hip.



I love those green eyes!

It Was Something You Said

I've always wanted to spin my own yarn. Some of my favorite things in Ravelry are knit from handspun yarn. I often see amazing projects made out of yarn that just can't be bought. I want to make yarn like that! I want my projects to be that cool. It's like I'm in eighth grade again, amazed at the girls who manage to look good in braces. How to they do that?

The process seemed riddled with daunting technical detail, but I was game to try. We have a smallish house, however, with five people vying for space and I was reluctant to bring more stuff under our roof. Later, I would tell myself, when the kids are bigger and I don't have to worry about Henry stuffing fiber into his mouth. Later, when the kids have flown the coop, I'll have more room, more time.

A couple of weeks ago, one of Peter's aunts said something that totally changed my mind. She is in her mid 60s (I think) and is an energetic, intelligent person. But she said something that really shook up how I was ordering my life. We were talking about her trouble remembering how to do new things on her computer. She said that for younger people, you learn things and then you just know it, but when you get older you have to work harder to remember what you learned. It made me realize that I shouldn't put off learning to spin until later but that I should be working now to build a store of information that I can use easily as I grow old. It's important to always be learning new things, of course, but it made me consider the things I want to work at and the things I want to come easily by that time.

I would rather be struggling to learn intricate lace knitting in my 60s and 70s that struggling to remember how to cast on. So, I'm going to set aside time this winter to become acquainted with drop spindles and roving. As I go on, I hope to learn about spinning wheels and that in a year or two I hope to be well versed enough to think about buying a whole wheel. Who knows for sure what will happen? But I'm planning to begin. And I'm glad to be planning a start. I just hope I don't have to move one of the kids out to make room for the fiber stash. There is no room for a fiber stash.

Winter is Not for Sissies

We've been enjoying cold winter temperatures here in the midwest. It's the kind of cold that freezes your eyelids in place when you go out to get the mail. Luckily, Henry has been totally warm. Whenever he leaves the house, he's wearing this soft, soft sweater.


You'll remember back in July when I was admitted to the hospital Allison from Pretending Sanity sent me a lovely care package of yarn and a pattern. It kept me busy during many long hours as I sat in bed, looking out the window at downtown St. Paul. I was so thankful for that act of kindness. It kept me positive, doing something with my hands as I hoped for a healthy baby to wear this little sweater.

Happy day, indeed!

Finally, A Finished Object

Here is the picture I promised of Thomas's new sweater.  It is, perhaps, a little big.

Thomas is delighted, however, and that makes me very happy.  The yarn is nubby and soft.  I'm very pleased.  He'll enjoy wearing it--when he's, say 12 or 13.

No one grows out of my handknits too fast around THIS house.

I started an account on Ravelry so now I'll have to figure out how to put this into the system.  I'm not incompetent, technologically speaking, but it takes a lot of concentration for me to learn something new.

Another Bout of Craftiness

This is Summer Dress 2.0. You'll remember the blue gingham dress we finished earlier and the mighty pile of thrift shop dress shirts from a previous post? I've finished the second of the Summer Dress series. Adorable front shot:
And if you ask her to show you her booty, this is what you get:
We had to take the pictures over her onsie, which wouldn't be the case if it were warmer than 12 degrees outside, but you get the idea. This dress is linen. We'll have to see what we think of this fiber's wearability as a play dress. I'm not sure I like the straps better than the ruffle sleeve I did on the last dress. I think that all things being equal I'd choose the ruffle sleeve for the marginally better sun protection the extra fabric would give. I'm the sort of person who thinks about these things.

In other news, Thomas has been having some fun playing with his "Fort" that P and I made.
I know that a lot of kids make forts from tables, chairs, and sofa cushions. However, we were getting pretty tired of having to go hunting for our kitchen chairs and replacing the cushions back on the sofa any time we wanted to sit down. We like that the are stable and that the kids can play without having to constantly stop to "fix" a falling wall, which happens quite frequently when you're including a two year old in the fun! P made the wood frame and I used an old sheet I'd inherited from my grandma to sew the "walls". The kids can make the walls (which are hinged) into any kind of shape and they like using our throw blankets as a roof. Today they put our throw pillows inside for sitting and brought in a few books to look at. Thomas used a couple of clips to attach the baby blanket door. It folds up pretty compactly when we're sick of looking at it. Thomas got his first sliver off of it a couple of days ago (about 1/3 to a 1/2 inch) and was very brave when I pulled it out. I'm hoping that the novelty of this will last until summer. Wish me luck.

In Praise of Garter Stitch

God, I love garter stitch.

There's nothing like a little garter-y goodness to just mellow a person out. Knit, knit, knit, Turn, knit, knit, knit. It's just so good and entirely satisfying.

This week I've felt like I've had a burr mill grinding in my head. There's no very good reason, I suppose, but sometimes things get stressful for me very quickly and I don't have the time I need to relax and let it go. These times are often referred to as "Dinner Prep" time or "No Nap for Thomas" time. I'll start the day just fine, but after a couple of hours of trying to get Thomas to be quiet for two minutes together I get stressed out and worn down.

This week I have discovered that nothing takes the edge off like a little garter stitch. And whiskey. Perhaps a lot of whiskey. Just kidding. Now quit looking at me like that. Stop.

My good friend is expecting a baby at any minute. While I've already finished the sweater and other Standard Baby Accessories, I've been giving a lot of attention to the modern Baby Bib in Mason-Dixon Knitting. It started as a way to kill time while eagerly awaiting the arrival of Baby Nuevo and has blossomed into a full fledged garter stitch obsession. Elizabeth Zimmermann was a smart woman. I love wool with an undying love, but there's a new flame in my heart that burns all the quicker for being made of cotton. Cotton garter stitch has seen me through this week of winter-blues like a hired professional. And cotton garter stitch makes a darn fine bib.

This weekend I hope to take a nap and contemplate how it is that I've never realized before how great garter stitch is. I wonder why it's been so much more comforting than knitting in the round. I am usually a big fan of knitting in the round and turn to it first for Knitting-type Comfort, but this Garter Stitch Fling has been something else altogether. After I've pondered these mysteries I plan on eating some fresh baked bread and drinking some water--you know, for a change.

Have a good weekend!

Will The Craftiness EVER Stop?

The craftiness will stop, eventually, but no time soon. I have a mountain of button-down shirts that need to be transformed from ordinariness into this:

I know that it wouldn't win any awards, but I'm pretty excited. I wish I'd taken a picture of the tablecloth-plaid shirt this dress had come from, but I didn't. I came out just even on fabric, too. I thought about adding a couple of pockets, but decided the pattern would look too busy, unless I did the pockets out of plain white, or something like that. I'm also planning on taking in the bodice a bit, too.

I found the pattern here. What great instructions! I wish I had made the straps a big longer, but they'll do, I think.

I went to the thrift store in town and picked up six dress shirts for $10. If all the dresses work out, I'll have Anna's wardrobe complete for the summer, I should think. They take a fair bit of work, but I've got one down, five more to go. You know I'll show the results.

Before I leave for the evening, here is some brotherly goodness. I've been focusing a lot on Anna since most of my sewing has been little-girl related and I thought I should make an effort to include Thomas.

Because I'm Craftier Than I Thought

I've been a busy elf with my new sewing machine.

Last weekend I took an old $0.50 sweater I bought at a garage sale and made Anna some wool pants. They turned out pretty well, if a little balloon-y up at the top. Then, this morning, I made these:

If you can't tell, they're wool soakers. I followed a free pattern that I found here. It was pretty easy to make. It would have to be for me to follow it.

After I get done lanolizing it a couple of times, it should be great for napping and overnights! Next time I'd like to try a lighter-weight sweater. This one was fairly thick, especially after I felted it. A fine gauge sweater would be terrific for day-time use.

I think it would be fair at this point to mention that I have officially become my mother. For years she sewed all of our clothes (except the legwarmers--those purple legwarmers were the greatest!) and on the side she explored a number of esoteric crafts. Among these were stenciling (and by this I mean our house, our garage, chalkboards, etc), paper-cutting (like lampshades), and straw weaving. Considering that the next project on my list is dipping my own beeswax candles, I think I can safely say the transformation is complete.

Winter Cheer

This is one of those things that you never knew could be so good. Bailey's is alright, I might say, but until I'd had homemade Irish Cream I never understood how good it could be. Rachel and Chris gave us a bottle last year for Christmas and kindly followed it up with a recipe a month later when we found ourselves forlornly holding an empty bottle.

This is strictly a winter treat. We made a batch to celebrate New Year's Eve (or was it Christmas?) and needed to refresh the supply this weekend. I love to have a bit mixed in my hot chocolate. I don't usually fix what isn't broken, but in this case mixing a bit in is all to the good.

It's an Honor Just to be Nominated

I was given the Crunchy Parent of the Year Award over the weekend. I won it based on my latest entry which was submitted just under the wire on December 30th. I sewed A a baby sling for her dolls. Here it is, being worn by the grateful recipient.


She doesn't look too excited in the picture so you'll have to trust me when I tell you that she was thrilled. My little guy, T, even got in on the action.


He'll make a great dad, someday.
My sister in law, Rachel, thought this was the cleverest and the Most Crunchy Mom thing to do, so she is the one who gave me the award. I gratefully accept.

If I were really clever, however, I would have had it made before Christmas and given it to her as a gift.