Thirty plus one and a few t-shirts to boot

Last Thursday I turned thirty one years of age folks. It may come as a surprise to hear that last year I turned thirty on the exact same day! If you were there with me on that night you too will bear the mental scars and I trust you to keep the secrets! I've written about turning thirty, what was going on then and this isn't about that. This is about how amazing this year has been!

What brought this to my attention? Other than the fact that it's going on around me? Gig t-shirts. I kid you not. Gig shirts hold a special place in my wardrobe heart wardrobe...heart...ah well, you get it. I have to really like a band to buy a shirt and considering my average gig attendance of the past 5 years or so has been between one and two per year, for me to go to SEVEN gigs between June 2011 and June 2012 is astonishing! (By the time June ends the figure will be nine, but who's counting?)

Upon reflection of this collection I notice that this year has had me see bands that I absolutely love and all of the gigs have been excellent, with the exception of one. I'm sad to say that Funeral For a Friend aren't a band I shall see live again. The singer's voice is strained and they seem to be under the misguided delusion that they are more metal/punk than they actually are. Inciting a circle pit at your own gig is lame. That said I still hold the music dear.

All of the others, though, were immense. The best of the year? Impossible to tell. Capdown for sheer transporting-me-back-ten-years factor and for not having lost an ounce of energy, Rise Against for being the first gig I went to with Matty since we got together (and it was bloody amazing), Nada Surf because it's Nada Surf who NEVER tour the UK, Orbital because those guys are back on form, Gaslight because it was their only UK show in forever and everyone there wanted to be there very much and Coheed? Coheed was all the way across the pond in Gainesville FL!

I like to get a shirt from shows I go to for a few reasons. Nostalgia - whenever I put it on I'm reminded of the event, how I felt, who I was with, what we did, where it was and all the other stuff that happens at gigs. I've bought and lost/donated to charity many, many gig shirts/sweaters. I regret getting rid of each and every one I no longer possess. All the memories of the fun times spent with friends and making new friends. And the dancing! Ah, the dancing! And the drinking, but mostly the dancing! I also like getting gig shirts because the chances are they'll be specific to the tour and you are unlikely to find them in stores or on merch sites. 

So anway, this post is more for me than for anyone else. I want to remember what a fantastic year 2012 has been so far and how far removed it is from 2011, how much can change if you really want it to, how much better life can be and gig shirts are how I choose to remember. It's for me to be able to look back at and smile when I think of all the fun times I've had, what has been accomplished and how much I have to look forward to right now.

Seriously. I might burst.

:-)

A crocheted peg/clothes pin bag

With a sad sigh I decommissioned my peg bag last week. It's served me well for the duration of it's tour, but it was no longer fit for purpose what with purpose being containing the pegs, not spewing them all over the floor for Isaac to then scarper off with! I made that one too, using some sort of vinyl fabric stuff which I shan't recommend for sewing because it's not ideal as it tears along the stitch line!! Anyhoo, that was three years ago and I've learned a lot since then. So. I needed a peg bag. I saw a few patterns online, but I'm essentially lazy and so decided to make a really reeeeeeeeally easy peasy one. Then I decided to write it down...

Crocheted peg bag/clothes pin bag

A few points before you read on. 
1. This is my first attempt at writing a pattern so please bear with me. 
2. I have quite a few pegs which it why it's so long.
3. Stripes are not compulsory and I haven't included them in the pattern.
4. Oh yes, I'm writing it in US crochet terminology because that's how I learned!


I used:
2 balls Rowan Hand Knit DK Cotton
4mm/G crochet hook
A wire coat hanger (I got plastic coated ones from Wilko's)
A circle of substantial cardboard (i.e.: not junk mail or cereal box, unless you layer it up)



Make a magic ring. If you have no idea what this is, see an instructional video here (although I only have two loops on my finger to begin with so I only pull the tail rather than faffing with pulling two loops).

Round 1: ch 3, (first stitch), 11 dc into ring, pull tight & join with ss into back loop of top ch of first ch 3 (12 st incl. ch 3)
Round 2: ch 3, (becomes last stitch of round) *2 dc into next dc* 11 times, dc into same st as ch 3 so that the ch 3 is your last st, join with a ss into back loop of top ch of ch 3 (24 st  incl. ch 3)
Round 3: ch 3, *2 dc into next dc, 1 dc into next dc* 11 times, 2 dc into dc before ch 3, join with a ss into back loop of top ch of ch 3 (36 st  incl. ch 3)
Round 4: ch 3, *2 dc into next dc, 1 dc into next 2 dc* 11 times, 2 dc into next dc, 1 dc into next dc & ch 3 becomes last st of round, join with a ss into  back loop of top ch of ch 3 (48 st  incl. ch 3)
Round 5: ch 3, *2 dc into next dc, 1 dc into next 3 dc* 11 times, 2 dc into next dc, 1 dc into next 2 dc  & ch 3 becomes last st of round, join with a ss into  back loop of top ch of ch 3 (60 st  incl. ch 3)
Round 6: ch 3, *2 dc into next dc, 1 dc into next 4 dc* 11 times, 2 dc into next dc, 1 dc into next 3 dc  & ch 3 becomes last st of round, join with a ss into back loop of top ch of ch 3 (72 st  incl. ch 3)
Round 7: ch 3, working into the back of the st only - dc in next dc & each dc around, join wit a ss into top ch of ch 3 (72 st incl. ch 3)
Round 8 - 28: ch 3, dc in each dc around (72 st incl. ch 3)
The final round may require some jiggery pokery on your part to do it how you want. I started by making the hook bit and bending it at a right angle to my crocheted round. I wanted it to be at the back of the bag which made things easier! After that I bent it round as I went so the shape was even and the right size.
Round 29: ch 2, hold the wire so that it sits on top of the dc, push your hook through the dc as you would normally so it goes under both loops of the st and the wire, yo and pull loop through, put hook over the wire, yo and pull through pulling tight so that the wire sits snugly inside your sc and isn't flapping about, carry on sc-ing in this way around the wire into each st around.

To finish off I did what I usually do at the end of a project worked in the round which is this: cut yarn with a good and long ish tail, pull tail through stitch, thread yarn into a needle, insert needle (from the back) into sc before ch 2 from beginning of round, pull through and insert needle back into st where tail originates and weave in ends.

Bend wire around hook part to secure and complete circular top.

Measure the radius of your base and use a compass to draw a circle on the cardboard. Alternatively you can draw around the base, but I am a geek and like to do things proper like. Place in the bottom of the bag. It doesn't need securing in any way because, let's face it, cardboard is inanimate and isn't likely to attempt escape. The cardboard isn't entirely necessary, but it prevents unsightly mis-shaping when the pegs are in-situ! I was planning on laminating my circle, but really couldn't be bothered. You could always crochet two circles and sew them together with a cardboard inner and then crochet up if you were really bothered about it roaming free inside your bag?

You can bend the opening to any shape you like and can even bend it flat so it shuts when not in use!

Et voila! The easiest peg bag EVER.

If you find any errors please let me know! Also if you do make one then I'd love to see it!

Home made nut milk

When Isaac first started to wean I made him hemp milk for his Weetabix and banana at breakfast time. What with one thing and another I stopped making fresh milk and slipped into buying soya milk. I've noticed that he is now quite snotty for much of the time. I'm aware that kids in nursery are renowned for being snotty, but I also know that my child isn't usually a snotty boy and that soya is very mucous forming. As we don't drink cow milk at home (you wanna know why? Aside from dairy farming being barbaric, read this, terrifying stuff to be sure) he consumes quite a lot of soya by way of milk and yoghurt. I'm not so keen on this as un-fermented soya (i.e.: pretty much everything we eat - milks, tofu, meat substitutes etc) isn't the wonder food stuff it's cracked up to be. Read about that here.

I don't really measure things when making milk, but I usually end up with about a litre at the end of it all.

Ingredients

-Approx 125g almonds*

-Sweetener (if desired) - I use agave nectar, but maple syrup works well too

-Water*

*The more/less nuts/water you use will change the consistency/creaminess of the milk.

Tools needed

-Blender - a good one

-Straining device - you can buy special nut milk bags, but I use a muslin square or a sieve

-Storage for finished product

Method

1. Soak the almonds in warm water overnight. Ensure they are covered completely by the water and there is room for them to swell. (Obvsiously it's going to cool, but that's ok!) Soaking them loosens the skins, increases the size of the nut, increases the nutritional value of the nut and makes the nutrients easier for your body to access, makes them easier to blend and improves the quality of the milk.

2. Empty the water and rinse the nuts. Peel the nuts. Sounds hard, but it's actually quite fun. You sort of squeeze them and they pop out of their skins! Be careful though, they don't half shoot out at a ferocious rate of knots! I've lost a few down the side of the cooker before!

3. Blend with water. My blender is a push down from the top sort of whizzer and can pulse/blend about 1/3 litre water at once so I divide the nuts into thirds and do it equally. I add a squeeze/pour of syrup to the nuts at this stage. The amount you use with depend entirely on how sweet you like your milk. I suggest starting with about a tablespoon for the entire litre. You might not even want to add sweetener if you're sweet enough already! I tend to pulse it all a few times then leave it whizzing for about 30 seconds...or as long and it will before it overheats...poor old whizzer that it is.

4. Strain. I put my muslin square over the neck of a wide jug and poke it down a bit so it forms a sort of bowl then fix it in place with an elastic band. Pour the water and pulverised nuts into the muslin. When as much of the fluid has strained through as is going to on its own, remove the elastic band, wring/twist the muslin  above the waste nuts and squeeze down forcing the excess out. Keep wringing and squeezing until all the excess has been squeezed out. You'll be surprised how much extra comes out! You could use a bowl and a sieve just as easily, but I don't expect it would be as effective as using a muslin. As I do mine in 1/3 litre batches I tend to pour one lot into the muslin/jug and then whiz the next lot while the first lot is straining. I only wring & squeeze when all of the nuts have been whizzed and strained.

5. Pour into storage receptacle. I used a glass bottle obtained quite cheaply from Ikea. Glass is better for storage of anything period. Plastic leaks all kinds of nasties and alters flavour. You'll need to shake it each time before you use it because the almond content will separate from the water. 

You needn't waste the remnants; I'm told it can be used in baking, but I've never been that adventurous!

I've made a couple of litres of almond milk now and Isaac likes it! I've made it both with and without skins on the nuts and I prefer without. The latter attempt owes to pure laziness on my part, but the extra effort really is worth it. Leaving the skins on is also much harder on your blender. You could make almond milk without soaking the almonds, but you'd need to blanch them because the skins are very bitter. It wouldn't be as nutritious as made with soaked nuts though. A good recipe for that method can be found here.

I assume the same recipe could be applied to any nuts, but would need to be modified. Hazelnuts have different skins so I don't know how that would work, you'd probably have to leave them on. Hemp milk is best made with de-hulled hemp seeds and no soaking required! The taste, however, is quite earthy and possibly acquired. I like natural tasting stuff though.

Here ends my nutty spiel. Despite my waffle it really is easy to do!

Much ado about bubbles

All kids LOVE bubbles. Fact.

Is it just me that calls them Michael Bubles?

A birthday "card"

In April this year my very dear friend Lou turned 30. At the time I had been in somewhat of a creative slump and decided it was high time I dusted off various crafty related tools. I've known her all of my life and didn't think a store bought card would suffice to represent the value I place on our friendship, no matter how many soppy verses it might contain. That only left the option of making one so I set about scouring the web for inspiration; I found myself perusing a page I bookmarked a looooong time ago: Sublime Stitching. I LOVE this site, the designs are gorgeous, not twee in the slightest and (most importantly) within my embroidery skill level! Anyhoo, I happened upon the book (which I have since purchased) and fell in love with the cover design. I'm not so hot at conjuring up my own designs and have no qualms borrowing, as long as credit is given...I don't make any profit from it either before anyone gets upset.  I made a few tweaks to the original to make it fit with the birthday affair et voila! 

Now, I know what you're thinking: that's not a card Sarah. You're absolutely right. It's not. I finished the embroidery and then started to panic about how I was going to make it into a card. Framing seemed a little excessive and I couldn't see how to turn it into an actual card without making a hash of it. It was suggested to me by a friend that perhaps turning it into a cushion might be a good idea and also offered some fabric that went with the theme. The same wonderful lady also showed me how to make the world's easiest cushion cover! It's amazing what happens when you verbalise panic - kudos Bec!

So there we have it, a 30th birthday "card" for my friend of old; here's to the next thirty years of being friends!

It's [not] a dress

One day a few weeks ago while thinking absent-mindedly about upcoming birthdays and was totally stumped as to what to get for a friend's daughter. I um-ed and ah-ed for a bit and then decided to make a nice little dress from a pattern I saw a while ago. I couldn't remember where it ws from, so I Googled it and found this one which looked almost identical. Now that I come to write this I cannot for the life of me locate a link. Gah! Anyhoo, it looked easy enough and half of it was crochet - how could I fail?

About a year ago I purchased a beautiful piece of Liberty fabric that had been reduced (massive win as it's usually approx. £21 per metre - yikes!) I decided to use that for this project. The button I gleaned from my hoard of spares and odds and another win was not needing to buy the cotton yarn for the trim as that had been making friends with my stash for about three years now! I once had grand designs for a Totoro hat, but  (considering the love/hate relationship I have with knitting) that's best left alone. Especially as Isaac is now far too big for the pattern sizings!

I digress...I do that a lot...back to the "dress".

The fabric part didn't take very long, but the measurements seem to concur with the finished item being far too restrictive to be a little girl's summer dress unless she wanted to stand around looking pretty rather than running around which is what every little girl I know does! Weird. I even added six more inches to the width to allow for more ruching!

So, I chopped a bit off, re-hemmed and made it a top instead; hopefully she'll be able to walk in this version!

I gave it to her today and await the verdict from my friend to see if fits her lovely little daughter. Fingers crossed eh?

Happy birthday L!

Update 12.06.06 - it fits!