Sweet making for Yule

Better late than never.
I did make sweets for Yule.
I made fudge, both white chocolate fudge and peanut butter fudge.
I also made coconut ice and some melt in the middle truffles.
Oh! and some peppermint creams.

We had our usual Yule feast with home made pork pie and sausage rolls made from scratch.  I've learnt how to make puff pastry, and as it takes so little time to make, (Rough Puff Pastry,) I made the pastry for the sausage rolls, the meat was the very tasty sweet chilli sausagemeat from Kennedy's butchers of Morecambe. 
At some point between Xmas and New year, I also made cheese gougeres.  These are lovely cheesy bites made with cheese choux pastry.  They vanished almost as soon as they came out of the oven.

To me Yule is a time of getting together with family, having a good time with great company, and tasty food.  It can a really smashing time, if you concentrate on togetherness of the family, rather than the gift giving.

Next "sweet" first I plan is a batch of Scottish Tablet.

Latest knits

 I love this pinwheel cardigan.  I made it because I wanted to make one, and then gave it to a work colleague for her daughter

 Shadow had to have her toe amputated because of a growth on it. I love the bandage they put on it.

Above are photos of Robyn and Lily designs by Anniken Allis.  I enjoyed making them, and learnt new techniques in the process.  They are a Yule gift for a family member.

 This is also a Yule gift for a family member

 These two baby jacket were made just because I wanted to, again.  The blue one is my first ever crocheted item crocheted other than in a square or triangle.

And  a last look at that pinwheel cardigan.  I should make myself one seeing as I like it so much.
Sorry some of the photos are a little blurry, not sure why.
I've also been making chutneys for presents.  I've made carrot and coriander chutney, sweet courgette relish, rosemary jelly, chilli jelly, piccalilli and tomato and roasted pepper chutney.  Next weekend I think I'll make some sweets as well.  Fudge always goes down really well and I enjoy making it.  I've also made two small cakes to be given as gifts, but have yet to ice them.

Weekly cooking "self" challenge

Back in late March or early April I "self" challenged myself to try out a never before tried recipe.
This week has been Chicken Liver Pate, it smelt, and tasted ok when I had finished making...it is now in the fridge .
Last week I made panacotta with a homemade raspberry jelly.  I liked it, and colleagues said it was good.

Well, how did they go down?

I asked for feedback about the chocolate scones, and I got it.
You see, I shouldn't eat chocolate as it gives me a migraine.
The general opinion was although they were good scones, they were dry.  (Cocoa powder does tend to dry a mixture.)  Also, one person said the walnuts did not "go".  If I make chocolate scones again I think I will use hazelnuts as they are a "wetter" nut, and possibly raspberries or blueberries in place of the chocolate chips.
But, unless you try new things out you don't know whether they work or not.

Baking "experiment"

I'm not 100% sure why I decided that I would try to bake chocolate scones, but I did.  I have never seen, or heard, of chocolate scones before and wondered why.
I'll not say what changes I made to the recipe, only that they were logical changes, if you bake.
They are just about ready to be put into boxes to keep them fresh, but they smell great and look like normal scones, only they are brown, due to the chocolate.
After they have been sampled by my "guinea pigs", I'll add feedback to this post.
For the record, I made chocolate scones that have chocolate chips and walnut in them.  And....isn't experimenting how people create new recipes?

Passing the sundress

I have been busy knitting, crocheting, but had a problem which meant I was without my pc for several weeks.  And it's been very warm here, so sitting in front of a pc has not been top of my priority list, not with the warm weather beckoning.
Anyway, the projects I currently have on the go are granny squares for a bedcover and a four ply jumper for Edwin.  The jumper is dark blue so I have only been knitting after work and until the light started to fade, then I have been changing to crocheting granny squares.  I don't really need to watch what I'm doing with those.
I had also knitted a sundress for my great niece, but the edgings are crocheted and I couldn't get them to sit right, so I've asked Mum to finish it off as she is much more proficient at crocheting.

Search for needles for Mum

Mum has heard about some birch needles that are decorated, so my current mission is to find out who sells them, and she'll probably get at least one pair for her birthday.
I've just seen a gadget to put your ball of wool onto so that it unwinds as you knit.  I think it cost around £30.  That's a little expensive, so if you want to use one of those gadgets but are on a budget there's a simple answer.  You know those things designed to put kitchen roll on?  Well, they fit the bill perfectly.  I bought myself one when knitting with some "doughnut" balls of wool.  (you know the ones, they make the wool look lovely and squishy, but get in a tangle if you aren't careful, it was just perfect for those.
I have been knitting etc, just have been without my pc for the best part of four weeks.

A pair of hats

Well, not a matching pair.

 This little lovely is a baby hat from Itty Bitty Hats.  I did want to knit it, but I will say that sewing all the "rosebuds" on the crown make the crown of the hat quite stiff and I am not so sure if it will be comfortable to wear.  After all, to me stiffness = uncomfortable.  I do like how it looks though.

This other hat is a beanie hat made in Aran weight wool.  It's very comfortable and snug.  Perhaps I should make lots of thick winter weight woollies and then the weather might warm up a little?

Busy little fingers

I've been spending quite a bit of time knitting lately.  It's a relaxing thing to do especially when you've been told to rest by the doctor.  Below are photos of what I have been making.

 Above is a hat in aran weight wool for an adult, it was for me, but I'm not so sure it suits me, so it's looking for a good home.  The fingerless gloves are made with the same sock yarn as the shawlette of the previous post and will be staying with it.  I think I know who to gift them to.

 This shawlette is for me, it is in James C Brett's Monsoon aran weight.  I love knitting with this yarn as it has a very soft handle to it. The close up below is so you can see the daisy pattern and the upper part. I enjoyed making this and the edging was added in a very unusual way.  The pattern is from a Simply Knitting magazine.

 

This little baby coat and hat are to go with the blanket I made last year, and my younger son's girlfriend is going to give them to her friend who has recently had a baby.   I might just make a hat from the Itty Bitty Hat book as well for this particular baby.  This is a second appearance of this pattern as I made it in a blue blend for a colleague, at least three years back now.
Perhaps it's time I made myself something major to wear now, I am working on a cardigan, but have changed the pattern panel as the one in the magazine wasn't working out correctly.  (The number of stitches kept getting more, understandable as it calls for two stitches to be made, but only one taken away.)

Had to order some wool

Yes....I know I wasn't going to buy any before July!   But......I started to make a shawlette, thinking I had two balls of the same yarn with which to make. And..........in artificial light it looked like I did have..........but in real daylight, I'm afraid it was obvious I had two different shades, and as the wool is variegated...similar to Noro dyeing, that I had to buy another ball of the same shade.
I tried to be good and only get the one, but the market where I got it from no longer stock the wool, because the customers will not pay the price asked for it.  Also, the balls are of the loosely wound type and tend to start to fall apart if handled too much.
So I went online to get a second ball of James C Brett's Monsoon.  And while I was there I found Passion also by James C Brett in a beautiful colourway. Passion is a chunky yarn, whilst Monsoon is an Aran weight.  I seriously can't see why this yarn is not more popular. It is beautifully soft to handle. Knits up lovely and washes well, with no pilling. If you knit with cheaper yarns you'll get cheaper results.  All acrylic looks good for maybe a season, two if you are lucky. And what is the point of spending your time and love in knitting a garment in inferior yarn, just for it to turn ugly with washing?
I don't hate acrylic in yarn, just think that it should not be used to knit that special garment.
Anyway, confession over. I should soon be able to finish the shawlette, and post it here so that you can see it.

First finish of 2013

 As you can see my first make/finish of 2013 is a shawlette.  On the pattern picture it is worn with the point at the front as a scarf.  I used a sock yarn for it and think perhaps it should be knitted with a slightly thicker gauge yarn.  However, I think it's pretty.  No home as yet, but as I am going to try to knit some gifts for next Yule....I might not say who the finished objects are for. The picture does look as if it is quite big, but it really is just a delicate bit of froth.

Crafty aims for 2013

I'm going to try to make serious dents in my fabric and wool stash, even trying not to buy any of either, for at least the first six months of the year.
There's a patchwork quilt I have all the fabric for and started, but ground to a stop, make a bit more of that up, perhaps even finish it might be a goal, but definitely  do some more.
I've long thought I would like to do some entrelac knitting, go that can go on my list.
I'm enjoying making my own bread, and like the varieties I can create, so that can join the list, too.

This one is probably a necessity.  I think the kitchen is long overdue a re-paint.  Peach/apricot I think, with white wood work, and try to get a kitchen door.

There, I don't think those goals are too bad, they are achievable, and require me spending time doing things, which will keep me distracted from being on my own.

I'd love 2013 to bring along a "Mr Right", but I'm not holding my breath.

I think I should also try to finish the "Tropical Waterline" cross stitch that I started many years ago, and the Lakeland view long stitch that I bought for Mum, but was too fiddly for her to do.

Pressies finished

I did finish the things I wanted to get done for Xmas.
I made another jumper for Edwin, and a scarf for John, Sam's partner.
Unfortunately, I didn't take photos.
:(
Ah! Well!
Have decided, if I want to give knitted gifts next Yule, I am going to have to start making some now and wrap them and put them away.

I have made sweet chilli sausage rolls again this year, and again, they were well received and demolished in record time.

Some pressies

I decided that seeing as time is something I have a relative amount of, that I would knit some Yule pressies, and two birthday pressies.  So without further ado, here's what I have done so far.

 This scarf is for Becki for her birthday, seen here modelled by Growlum Ursa, he wasn't very pleased with me putting girly scarves on him.

 This one is for Skye for Yule.  Although these scarves are very pretty they did tax my patience on the very last row.  You start with 120 stitches, and steadily increase, on the cast off row I counted over 1100 stitches.  It took the best part of an hour to cast it off.

 These are some ankle socks I made for Mum for her birthday

This is a jumper I have made for one of my sons with a close up of the stitch in the lower photo.  It took me three weeks knitting in the evenings, so I should be able to get the other done in time for Yule.

Yarn ordered

I've just ordered some yarn from Kemps for Yule gifts. 
Can't say who it's for in case they read this, but I expect a super squidgy parcel around Wednesday.
Now I should go cast on the ankle socks for Mum.
An up date on things  made since last posting on Wednesday.
Oh! and in a few more weeks I'll have to send for the yarn intended for a friend.

Browsing the net.

I know I'm not the only person to do this.
But here I am, Sunday afternoon.  No one at home but me and the dogs.
So....I've been thinking of Yule gifts, and browsing to finds a suitable yarn to make a jumper for my sons .  The my mind wandered to the Knitting Goddess site, as Samantha bought me a set of mini skeins for my birthday.  I've been knitting up a lacy cowl the pattern is Robyn by Anniken Allis, aka Yarn   Addict.  If you scroll down the page, it's pictured on the left, in purple, mine is part of a rainbow, as the yarn is a rainbow of mini skeins.  I'm wondering if I should indulge myself and subscribe to the monthly mini skeins?
Think I'll go for a walk to think it over.

I'll post soon with recent finishes, there have been a few.

Some more things made in the summer break

 Above is a baby blanket that took quite a while to make.  Mainly because I had two or three projects going at once rather than me knitting slowly.
I'm very pleased with how it looks and the colour is much better in real life than in the photo.  The yarn is a variegated acrylic yarn from Aldi.  It is much softer than I expected and will stand up to being thrown in the washing machine, which is imperative for a baby blanket.

And the hats on the blanket?
Well, they are from Itty Bitty Hats, again. The blue and pink ones are the same, only different colours, made in Mochi Plus yarn which is a dream to knit with.  The stripey hat is called Candy Cane in the book, and I made it in red and white 100% cotton.

The blanket and two of the hats have homes in the future, and I dare say the third hat will be homed fairly soon.

Not Knitting this time

I still have been knitting, but thought I might share with you what I made the other day.
Hmmm! Should I tell you what they are, or let you guess?

Think I'll let you guess.  I will say however that they are all the same type of thing.  The middle picture is a little blurry. Sorry about that, glass seems to reflect.

Quick post

I have just received some Mochi Plus yarn...it is so scrummy...the cotton top I am making for me might take the back seat while I make this up..
It seriously is a beautiful yarn  :D

More baby cardigans and my first ever socks

 First there's a stripey boys jumper.  I love the neck on this as it fastens on both sides with a couple of buttons.  Getting a wriggly bay's head through a jumper neck is not everyone's idea of fun.  This would look good in any colour stripe I suppose, and I might make one in girly stripes. No home for this one yet.

 The above bolero cardigan just asked to be knitted as soon as I got the magazine with it in.  I've given this to my great niece Amelia. I love the edging, which is a knitted lace type edging as opposed to the more usual rib bands.

 This ballet top has no home as yet either.  It was a quick knit as it is entirely garter stitch.

Last, but not least.  The first ever pair of socks. They should be with their owner by now as I posted them last Monday. I hope he likes them.