Elemental Stitches

Winter to Spring: Life in the Backyard

Our weather has been amazing this week!  It is hard to stay inside with bright sunny skies and highs at 70 F.  Brae and I have been spending our afternoons riding bikes, preparing for Spring garden planting and cleaning up a mossy overgrown winter backyard.

My little winter garden never got off the ground.  With almost 4 inches of rain in December my little seedlings drowned in lakes of mud.  Lesson learned.  Note for next year: Next time make sure the plants have some cover from torrential downpours.

The last couple mornings I have rediscovered the joy of sitting on my back porch in the mornings with the sun warming my goose bumped skin, hot jasmine green tea warming my hands and a book in my lap. I think renewing this Summer habit has yanked me out of my Winter patterns.  I am yearning for hot days when I have to pour a cup of cold water over my head to keep cool.  I know this break from winter isn't going to last more then another week (rain is already in the forecast for Feb 3rd), but its too late for me.  I am in the mood for Spring cleaning, Spring planting, and most of all Spring farmers markets.

In the Kitchen

Cooking everyday in the winter is essential at our house.  The oven keeps the downstairs living areas warm during cold rainy weather.   We also need hot & filling meals to give us enough energy to get through a long cold day outdoors.  The past couple weeks our kitchen has been full of spicy Indian curry, pear and apple galettes, recipes with roots and no knead bread. 

I love sweet winter pears.  They are only in season for a short time and I don't want to miss out so I started making galettes with them and its pretty easy.  Roll out some homemade or store bought pie crust into a circle on parchment paper and spread sliced fruit in the center leaving about 1 1/2 inches around the edges.  My favorite recipe is the tart/pie dough from Alice Waters cookbook The Art of Simple Food.  Probably one of the best cookbooks out there.

Sprinkle everything with cinnamon, sugar and a little flour.  I added a little cheddar cheese because it brings out the apple flavor.  Fold over the edges and baste the whole thing with apricot jam.  Slide the whole shebang to a cookie sheet and bake on the bottom rack of the oven for 40 minutes at 400 degrees F.

Let it cool about 10 minutes before digging in.  We ventured outside to enjoy a rare semi warm day while the galette cooked and mine got a little darker then it should be, but it still tasted great.

Sweet potato fries are also another winter favorite of ours.  I slice these, toss with olive oil and sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.  Bake at 350 degrees F for about 20-30 minutes or until potatoes are easily pierced with a fork.  I sprinkle a little more brown sugar before I scarf down half the plate.  This is one of the only ways my daughter will eat them.

I also rediscovered my favorite bread recipe this week and we made it together.

It was finally warm enough to go out back and gauge the yard.  Its going to need lots of work come spring.  My veggie garden has been hibernating for the winter.  I didnt really plan it that way, but I haven't had enough dry days to work outside.  All my seedlings died in our first series of rainstorms, probably drowned.  The only plants still hanging on are the mint, rosemary and oregano, all of which I am still enjoying every time I can squeeze them into a meal.

What's cooking in your winter kitchen?

Winter Warmth

Since we moved to the central coast of California I have been forced to deal with bone chilling, freezing wet cold that seeps into your core and chills you to the bones.  We don't have this kind of cold in the high desert.  In the desert the temps dip below freezing every night and the wind gusts at 40 mph several times a week, but its generally dry and the cold is interrupted by warmer daytime temps which get into the low 70s on a good day.  Somehow I got away with wearing tank tops to school under my jackets all winter long.

Now, wearing only a tank top under my coat would be crazy.  I would be shivering in my boots in minutes.  To walk my daughter to school in the morning I wear jeans, a tank top which is covered by a long sleeved shirt, a heavy jacket, a cowl pulled up over my chin, and a hat.  I even wear my hair down as an extra layer of warmth against the cold.  My bare hands retreat inside the arms of my jacket to keep my fingers warm. 

But you know what?  I have fallen in love with this rainy wet weather.  I love the stormy gray clouds, daily scattered showers and the early morning fog that rolls into the bay dampening the noise of the city and forcing us to slow down on our way around town.  I love when the rain splatters against the windows and overflows the bird bath in the yard.  When the heavens break open and we get more rain in a couple hours then the desert gets in two years. 

My jacket is not able to keep my hands as warm as I like and its kinda weird to walk around with your hands missing!  So last week I finished up a pair of Susie's Reading Mitts (Ravelry Link Here) and I ADORE them!    These mitts have taken care of my cold hands and turned out to be the most beautiful thing I have ever made!  The gentle variation of cream and brown looks like falling snow on a bare winter forest.  I got lucky with this yarn.  It seems like it was made for this pattern.  I used Cascade Eco Duo in #1711, an all natural variegated color pattern.  Its the same super soft yarn I used for my cowl a couple weeks ago. 

I wear these mitts all the time now.  While reading, walking my little one to school, or taking winter photos.  They keep my hands toasty and my fingers free to do whatever page turning or button tapping that needs to be done.  Now all I need is a matching hat.

Carefree Clothes for Girls - Month 11/12

Spending the last year sewing from this book has improved my sewing confidence tremendously.  I feel like I am better at visualizing a project before I start.  I also now know enough about sewing that I can use my new knowledge and logic to figure out problems, instead of feeling frustrated and lost because I haven't mastered the basics. 

Do you know there are only two projects left?

The Lace Trimmed Coat

And the Pants with Leg Warmers.

The coat has lots of dainty details like lace and buttons.   The pants have knitting which can take some time if you are not a fast knitter.  

So this month you can pick either of the two patterns or both. 

Its up to you. 

In case you are curious I plan on doing the pants.  I've never sewn knitted fabric to woven fabric before.  Have fun and remember to include your link on this post when you are done!

Winner for Nov/Dec Sew Along

Hi everyone!  I am happy to announce that Rachel from Nest Full of Eggs is the winner for Nov/Dec.

Please check out Tanya's dress too, both came out great!

Rachel, you have a special knitted gift coming to you!  Look for an email about the details!

I would love to show you my dress, but I was not as fast as these two and it's not finished.  I know, I know, I am way behind!  I'll catch up! 

Also I am announcing the next project tomorrow!

Remembering Comet

It is always hard to let a beloved pet go.  Today my mom had to put one of our family dogs to sleep because he had developed an untreatable bone cancer.  We had him 11 years, since he was 6 months old.  I know he lived a wonderful happy and healthy life with us.  So many dogs are shuffled from home to home never finding a place where they can live out their lives loved and cared for.  Our home has never been one of those.  Once you are in, you are here to stay.

Things I always want to remember:

- I loved how Comet would hide under the big juniper bush next to the outer gate.  When people would come to visit no one would know he was there.  When they were halfway to the house they got the strange feeling something was watching them from behind.  Its a bit intimidating to turn around to see a big husky calmly watching you as he blocks off the only exit.  Even though he looked scary he was not aggressive in the least, he loved everyone he met instantly, but he was sure to let them know whose turf they were on.  I definitely got the impression he thought the whole situation was hilarious.

- He was the smartest dog I have ever met and understood a lot of English.  I swear he would respond with his facial expressions and "talk" back to me.

- My mom has a huge yard for a Californian.  When Comet was young he loved to catch sparrows.  He would bolt across the yard at top speed and leap into a flock of sparrows snatching one right out of the air.  It was incredible.  He escaped from the yard every once in a while to go exploring and would bring home a fair share of rabbits, squirrels, gophers and even a lamb.  He did let the lamb live.    He only herded it back to our house and into the backyard scaring the little critter half mad.

Thank you for being a loyal companion and friend.  Rest in peace buddy.

 

Finished Knits

I am working on my dress are you?  You have until this Saturday Jan 8th, 2011 to finish and post your link!

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Solstice, Brae's birthday, Christmas, and New Years slid by so quickly I hardly had a chance to enjoy them.  Instead of visiting family we were visited by many friends who we haven't seen since winter quarter started at their colleges.  Some stayed for a couple days, others for a week, and one more is staying for a couple months while his son is in the hospital nearby. 

Tom and I had a blast watching Brae open all her presents and have spent many frigid afternoons watching her ride her new bike in the driveway.  We have had a hard time finding a well fitting helmet.  Anyone know of a good kids bike helmet? 

I did my best to separate the holidays from her birthday, which falls on Dec 24th.  Its tough, but we just try to make Christmas Eve all about her and not about the holiday.

There was no way I was going to knit all my gifts this year.  I didn't want that added stress so I kept it simple.  My sister wanted a pair of fingerless mitts so I made her a pair of Thanksgiving Day Mitts.  The pattern can be found here at TwinKnits.  Or on Ravelry.

I finished these in just a couple days of knitting.  The pattern is simple, but not so simple that it becomes tedious.  The cable pattern is very similar to the Star Crossed Beret & Cowl patterns.  I might make myself a set one day using all three patterns.  I knit with the super soft and squishy Spud & Chloe Sweater yarn which I will definitely use again. 

Brae was the only other person who received something knitted this year.  She was in desperate need of some warmies.  I used the Legwarmies pattern by Alana from Never Not Knitting.  The yarn is Debbie Stoller's Alpaca Love.  A nice inexpensive yarn I found at Michaels. 

I also made matching fingerless mitts.  I winged it with a generic mitten pattern modifying the tops to make the mittens fingerless.  It worked out perfectly. 

I had planned on a matching hat but didn't get to that.  Its on the list for this month.  Ice has moved in and is chilling us to the core on the way to school every morning.  My new cowl has been great at keeping away the chill.  So great that I have plans for a hat with the same yarn. 

More on that soon.