Hand Spun Hat

I volunteered (or was I conscripted?) to knit a hat for a family friend using this beautiful hand spun Finn wool.

This yarn is so wonderfully soft I can't stop petting it.  I haven't decided whether to do a striped hat, maybe something like Amy Andersen's Oliver Jogless Stripes Beanie or Jared Flood's Turn a Square hat or perhaps something with slipped stitches or a fair isle pattern.  Any suggestions?

This Week's Canning Project

I finished up a batch of about 16 cups of grapefruit marmalade this weekend.

My mom's grapefruit tree has been excessively prolific this year so marmalade seemed a great way to use some of them.  Actually, this was more of a recanning process as I had made and canned it about a month ago but it didn't set up.  So, I opened up all the jars and added some pectin.  Success!  Perfectly set and delicious.

Mom gave me another couple of bags of fruit on Friday so today I'm making a batch of grapefruit-ginger granita.

What's your favorite grapefruit recipe?

Jeweled Again

I've started another Jeweled Cowl. 

This one is for my boss.  She loved the one I made for myself and since her birthday is next month I thought this would be the perfect gift.  I wanted to use Malabrigo Lace again and wanted to make it in red because that's her color.  Abuelita's just what I needed - Malabrigo Lace in Ravelry Red.  Perfect!

The beads are from Fusion Beads.  They're size 8 Japanese seed beads.  I like the play of the light amber beads against the red; it makes me think of a Bollywood production.  Hope she likes it!

Canning Day

Sterilized jars ready to be filled with Grandpa's barbecue sauce

When I was little there were only two occasions where I recall my paternal grandfather would spend any time in the kitchen (other than to get a can of Hamm's out of the fridge when my grandmother wasn't around to get it for him).  One was when he would make a pot of chili beans and the other was when he made barbecue sauce.  He wouldn't let anyone else in the kitchen when he was cooking up a batch of sauce and he wouldn't share his "recipe" with anyone.  Except his daughter-in-law - my mom.

My mom and I recently started making grandpa's sauce again.  Every few months we whip up a batch or two, can it, and share it with family.  I love spending time in the kitchen with my mom.  She's always been a great cook and, thanks to her, my brothers and I have always enjoyed cooking.

Mmmm...saucy

I enjoy the process of canning.  There's something so satisfying about hearing the "pop!" as the jars cool and the vacuum seal forms, and I love seeing the filled jars on the shelf ready for whenever I need them.  Most of all, I love that my grandfather's tradition lives on.

Gadgets

I'm not usually a fan of kitchen gadgets that are only designed for one purpose or gimmicky items that purport to make a job easier.  Really, Slap Chop?  I can wash my chef's knife in far less time than it must take to clean you with all your fiddly bits.

One exception, though is my metal lime juicer.  It gets the job done, keeps the pips out and is easy to wash up.  Occasionally my local produce market has them in stock for far less than they run in the chain retail stores.  I think I paid about $3.99 for mine.  The only problem is that my lime juicer is good for just that - limes.  So I was thrilled when my mom presented me with two more juicers in larger sizes (she shops at the same market).

I love that they're color coded for limes, lemons and oranges.  Now these are some single use tools I can appreciate!

Score!

Picked up some yarn yesterday for $2 a skein at Abuelita's sidewalk sale.

I got 3 skeins of Fiesta Yarns La Luz.  It's 100% silk, which I've not worked with before.  I had second thoughts after getting home with this one because I failed to note the "dry clean only" instructions on the band before buying it, but I think it might make a nice shawl.  I also bought 7 skeins of Berroco Ultra Alpaca Light and 6 skeins of Classic Elite Inca Marl.  

While I was there, I checked to see if they had any Malabrigo Lace in stock because I want to make a couple of Jeweled Cowls as gifts.  I hoped to find some red - and lo and behold they had Ravelry Red in stock!  I also got a skein in the Paris Night colorway.  I apologize for the bad photos but my camera sucks.

My mom, ever the sneaky one, also bought my some gorgeous Prairie by Madelinetosh.  840 yards of lacy goodness.  The colorway is called Grellow, which describes it perfectly.

I don't know whether I'll use it on its own or with my other skein of Prairie in Byzantine.

Think I'll have to go on a yarn diet for a while.

More Color Affection

I've just started adding in the third color on my Color Affection shawl.  No time to knit today, though.  Off to a taping of the public radio show Says You (working on a Saturday night - what an exciting life I lead).  Hopefully I'll be able to make some progress on this tomorrow.

The colors are a bit off.  More pics later.