Oooh saucy!

Learning to make my own clothes is making me much more aware of my body and I'm starting to think about not just the kind of clothes I want to wear but the kind of shape I want to be in.  

the great news is that sewing is great for appetite control!  I start sewing and completely forget about food.  Hours can go by before I realise I haven't eaten.  

Then when I stop I suddenly realise I'm starving.  Let me introduce my Emergency Blood-Sugar Crash Prevention dish:  Avocado on toast with Pistachio Dukkah and Chimichurri Sauce.

Avocados are now almost permanently in residence in my tea towel draw.  They hang out there until ripe then get moved to the fridge to slow the process down, so I usually have one ready to eat in a hurry.

Dukkah is a lovely Egyptian condiment made from roasted pistachios, sesame seeds and spices that gives a delicious punch and crunch.

Pistachio Dukkah

50g Pistachios                       

1 Tbsp sesame seeds

1Tbsp pumpkin seeds

2 tsp coriander seeds           

2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp smoked paprika

pinch salt

pinch chilli flakes (optional) 

Toast pistachios, sesame and pumpkin seeds in dry frying pan until golden.  Pour onto plate to cool.

Toast coriander, cumin and fennel until fragrant.  Add to plate to cool.          

Blitz in spice grinder with salt, paprika and optional chilli to desired texture. 

South American Chimichurri sauce is AMAZING.  I use it on baked sweet potatoes, in noodle dishes, on fish and chicken but I think it sings the sweetest song with avocados.

Chimichurri Sauce

Small punch of coriander and/or parsley

1/2 tsp oregano (dried or fresh)

2 cloves garlic

1/2 tsp chilli flakes/fresh chilli

21/2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 lemon juice

2 tsp red wine/white balsamic vinegar.

Blitz together and keep in jar in fridge. You can add more or less herbs etc and balance out the flavour according to your own taste.  I like a touch of balsamic vinegar for sweetness. Spread on avocados then sprinkle with dukkah.

Ofcourse, if you need a little sweet fix and want to avoid sugar there's always the Deliciously Ella chocolate chia cookies, or Honestly Healthy's gooey vegan brownies!

They certainly hit the spot and stop the sugar craving.

Waistline, is that you?

Long time no see!

Its beginning to feel a lot like Christmas

Back in June my fantasy of having lots of hand knitted presents to give at Christmas seemed like a great idea and easily achievable.

It also felt a bit daft.  After all there were still 6 months to go and it was early summer.  People might think I'm crazy (or crazier).

And I didn't really feel motivated to start.

Now its late November and my plan for socks, hats, hand warmers and hot waterbottle covers galore is hopelessly behind.

I've ditched the sock plan anyway.  Is it me or are socks just really boring to make?  Maybe I need to have another go.

I'm quite tempted by the 'knitting two socks at the same time' technique.  For a start I think I'd enjoy the technical challenge and also it means I would avoid the dreaded One Sock Malaise.  Although only making one sock probably wouldn't matter in this house - the attitude amongst The Young seems to be 'the odder the better'.

Anyway, socks are off the menu this year.  So are hot waterbottle covers.  I've completed two but I have to confess that the second item gave me a touch of One Sock Malaise; once I'd done one side repeating it just didn't appeal.

Hence .....

Ta dah!

Whatever

This creative journey is revealing how low my boredom threshold is!

Baby hat knitted in the round.

Now hats are great - so many shapes and sizes and quick to do.

My problem is that to reduce the monumental stash of wool in my cupboard I'm trying to match the wool I have with the patterns I want to knit.  In order to do this successfully and not end up making things that come out the wrong size I need to unravel (see what I did there???) one of the great mysteries of knitting.

Gauge.

That means making a sample square of knitting to establish the right amount of stitches per inch on the 'fabric'.  If your sample matches the pattern requirement, you're good to go.

Everything I've read so far tells me 'gauge' is crucial and that I ignore it at my peril.  I know I have to master it, but it requires a level of maturity that I haven't arrived at yet.  I still enjoy diving in and making mistakes - then scouring the amazing online resources like here to help problem solve.

I like learning this way for now as the items I'm knitting are usually pretty small and the mistakes are easily sorted. But I do want to knit myself a jumper/cardigan as part of my capsule wardrobe and bought a beautiful pattern from the Amercian company  Brooklyn Tweed.  I can't understand a word of it at the moment and I don't want to end up making something I can't wear so mastering gauge and getting the yarn & needle size right will be a vital first step.

By the way, if you want to learn to knit and make cool, fab stuff (I do, I do!) - this blog is brilliant.  I am hoping if I read enough of it and keep practicing I can hang out with the cool kids.

Mastering Cable stitch on Handwarmer

Meantime, at the foothils of my knitting journey are handwarmers.

Quick to make, loads of different designs and even though, like the socks and hot waterbottle covers,  there is the 'second one' to make, somehow it doesn't seem to matter.

They are a great way to practice new stitches and techniques.  I've  finally got the hang of that lovely wavy pattern that was the mysterious Cable!

On the next pair I want to up my technical challenge and make Fair Isle mits with a thumb gusset.......

It may be a Happy Christmas 2016 for  someone!

PS Having just read the hilarious Yarnharlot's blog about being Christmas ready, I'm feeling a bit better about my state of affairs.  Its good to know I'm not alone!

Growing Roots

As I was pulling these babies out of the soil this evening I realised that I have as much to learn about growing stuff as I do about making stuff and intend to celebrate the small gardening successes I've achieved.  (Although to be honest, the beetroots were Mr M's project).

This was our first year growing beetroot.  They are such a generous little plant.  From tiny seeds we were able to harvest the leaves all summer to add to our smoothies and salads.  Now its late November and although the beetroots are small (probably because we didn't 'thin' them out and give them enough space of their own) they are packed full of nutrients and flavour.  I read that eating two raw beetroot a day will help lower blood pressure.

I've also been reading about natural dyes and quite fancy using beetroot at some point to dye some yarn!  But I'll wait a while on that - maybe with next year's harvest?  

I'm being quite strict with myself about buying yarn at the moment but I do have my eye on some  I'd like to use in future projects.  One is using the plant-dyed wool from Elisabeth Beverly.    Elisabeth has combined her passion for wild flowers and plants, and knitting with natural fibres, to develop a gorgeous range of cashmere and merino 

I met Elisabeth a year ago at a local yarn festival and was sorely tempted to buy some skeins of cashmere dyed in the most beautiful, delicate hues.  I promised myself that I would work on my skills to justify buying such luxurious yarn.  And even though socks are not my thing at the moment  - I quite fancy knitting my mum some cashmere socks as a treat. 

In the meantime I'm super excited about the fingerless mittens pattern I've just downloaded PLUS I haven't even told you about my Fair Isle Club blanket project! 

No time now - I'm off to try this recipe sent by Daughter K from her yoga retreat.  Going to combine it with some sweet potato chips, cashew mayonaise and roasted chilli & cumin broccoli! 

Slow Food.  

Yum.

 

Beetroot, Avocado and Coriander Salad

Grate 1-2 whole beetroot, finely chop 1-2 cups of fresh coriander.  Mix in some olive oil, apple cider vinegar or lemon juice, dulse and kelp powder (these are optional seaweeds and it can be made without).  Then add 1 teaspoon of tamari or good quality soy sauce, minced garlic and spirulina powder (also optional).  Stir it all together and mix  it up well and then add one diced avocado, mix again.  Eat and enjoy!  Instead of coriander, you can also use basil, rocket, baby greens, anything goes!   

GrannyKnit

All babies should be swaddled in Grannyknit.

Grannyknit is Love made Visible.

On a cold November evening our Little Love was wearing this smock coat with a gorgeous pink hat knitted by her other granny.

Perfect.

Vintage Smock from 7th little Sublime hand knit book using Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino.

The perfect present.

Sometimes the simple things are the best.  Like gathering rocks from walks and beaches to use as fabric weights.  Practical and also full of memories.

Ready for decoration

In my perfect fantasy studio all these rocks are beautifully decorated.  However I think I keep picking the wrong kind of rock.  Too many rough surfaces.

Hence the rather wonky mandala above.

 I tried to remedy the rough surface by painting one and covering it with a couple of layers of diluted pva glue.  It did make a slightly smoother finish, but I haven't plucked up the courage to decorate it yet.  I keep going here and here for inspiration.

I also had fun learning to 'wet felt' rocks.  I know it seems a bit daft to wrap rocks in wool - Pinterest has a lot to answer for.

Anyway, my goal is to create a  stash of them and add embroidery and embellishments.  I just know there'll be fun techniques and stitches I can learn in the process.

I get so excited when I discover a whole new area of creativity to be explored and developed.  I need to keep reminding myself that this is the SLOW process.

If you want to have a go I found a great tutorial here.  Let me know how you get on.  I'd love to see the results.

Anyway, in the meantime my little stash of nicely sized and shaped rocks needed to be kept in something lovelier than an old plastic fruit punnet.  And Daughter L came to the rescue....a gorgeous little handmade rope bowl she'd bought in Majorca and gave to me for my birthday.

She had thought about my needs and met them perfectly.

It really is the thought that counts!

(By the way - the pattern at the top is the amazing West Water Tunic from here.  Made a couple now, they're fun to make and look gorgeous on Daughter L.  Will blog about them soon.)

And so we'll begin.....

I have set myself a goal in 2016 to create a capsule, hand-made wardrobe - hence the Fashionably, and to make it myself - hence the Slow!

Ofcourse, being at the start of the project this all feels very exciting, ultimately do-able and a great adventure to embark on.  In my head, my wardrobe will be perfect and done in the utmost taste.

Hmmm.....  I remember the time I decided to make my own Christmas wrapping paper.  I spent hours decorating brown paper with lovely Christmas-theme stamps and gold ink.  I wrapped everything beautifully and tied them up with string. In my head there was a glorious pile of exciting, festive gifts ready to emit a warm glow from under the tree.

When I stood back and really looked - there was a pile of dull stuff that looked ready for a ParcelForce delivery.

I read a quote the other day that said 'sewing is not all it seams', meaning that sewing isn't just about going up and down seams with a machine.  In fact that is but a small part of the process.

And after making loads of mistakes and wrecking yards of fabric I now realise that an important part of the creative process is the PLANNING and PREPARATION.  

Never mind.   I've now got loads of fabric scraps for quilt projects.  And those wonky garments I've made are worn on days when I don't plan leaving the house!  

Whenever I'm sewing there comes a moment when I suddenly need a needle and thread.  Then the search begins for the needle threader.  I don't know about you but getting distracted looking for something is a very dangerous thing.  I can end up hours later reading a really interesting article on neuroscience and emotion when all I was doing was googling knicker elastic suppliers.

Anyway, all of this is to explain why Fashionably Slow's first project is......

Ta Dah!

The Dressmaker's Jar

Ok, don't look too closely, it is a bit wonky.  But its useful, re-purposed an old jar and scraps of ribbon and fabric and is cute...to me.  PLUS, after a quiet 15mins listening to the Archers, most of those needles are threaded and ready for action.  Button need sewing on?  Right away.  Tailor's tacks for those darts?  No prob.  Need to mark a hem with some thread...easy peasy.