Outdoor pillows

A friend came up with another idea for feed sacks, and I'm so glad she did. I am loving these outdoor pillows:


 
 It's not a fun "fabric" to sew on but the results are so worth it....

Knit and Crochet

This was a commissioned project I just finished.  It is a great summer hat and socks for a newborn.  She was looking for a lacy summer hat and booties, but most are just too warm for summer.  And booties usually just don't stay on babies feet. This is what I came up with and I think she really liked the finished product.  I like it so much I will be making some sets to sell this summer at the Farmer's Market.

The hat is crocheted in a small shell pattern, and the socks are knitted with the same shell pattern crocheted around the top. The little pink crocheted flowers and leaves just finish it nicely.

My Own Birthday Cake

I had such a hard time figuring out what kind of cake to make myself this year. Chocolate is always my first choice, but this spring chocolate just seemed too heavy, besides I had just made my all time favorite German Chocolate Cake for my nieces birthday a couple of weeks before, so I was on the lookout for something light.....

Then I remembered this great cake I had made a few years ago for a friends wedding. White cake with white chocolate mousse filling and sliced fresh strawberries, perfect!

I'm not much of a cake decorator, but I AM all about taste!  I think next time though, I would split my layers so I could get more filling into the cake, it's not a real sweet filling so it would work out great, and I always have leftover filling, so that would be no problem either. 

The cake if from Martha Stewart, Perfect White Cake it takes 9 egg whites, and since we have an over abundance of eggs right now...........................

The filling I adapted from Martha Stewart, but I can't find her recipe to link it too, so I'll just post what I did. When I followed the recipe from her site the first time I made it I had a ton of leftover, so since then I have cut it down by half and now by 1/3. Seems like everytime  I make this recipe I change it up a little:

White Chocolate Mousse Filling:
1/2 C. powdered sugar
2 Cups heavy cream
1 teas. unflavored gelatin
half a package of white chocolate chips
3-4 egg yolks

Whisk yolks and sugar until thick and pale, set aside
Bring 1 cup of cream to boil, temper into yolk mixture, but back in pan, whisk constantly over medium heat, until thick and reaches 185 degrees, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat add gelatin. Pour hot mixture over chocolate, let stand a couple of minutes, then whisk until smooth and shiny. let cool.

Whip remaining cream, then fold into cooled chocolate mixture. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

I used fresh sliced strawberries, but I think raspberries would be good too, to add between the layers.  Then I frosted with Buttercream frosting.  I'm not much on decorating, but I am all about taste! 

First Felted Purse

I'd been wanting to try felting for a while now, but I've been leery about spending money on wool and then ruining the project.  But I finally indulged myself and knitted a purse using Lions Brand Fisherman's wool, it's made for felting so thought it would be a good place to start.  I learned A LOT from this first project, so that in it self was worth it.  I would use this yarn again, but I wish they had more colors to choose from.  I would take pictures prior to felting too......


This wasn't the shape of the finished project, my sides were too floppy, so I took them in and hand sewed the sides, you can see this on the inside of the purse.  I then used the extra fabric brought inside for pockets. I talked my husband into making me the button from a deer antler, nice.

 

I would also make the straps shorter, I was thinking that the felting would help with the stretch, but it doesn't seem to make that much of a difference, so eventually these straps will be too long.  I won't make the purse as big next time either, A friend said if I had used bigger knitting needles it would have shrunk up more, that will be something to play around with next time.  I think for a first time it came out pretty good, I'm already thinking about my next bag, I think summer colors...............

A Cowl for Christine

My niece was complaining about the cold in Montana, and I'd been wanting to make one of these "infinity scarves" or "cowls", see them called all kinds of things.  Turns out she loves it, and now my daughter and I want one too.........good thing summer is coming on so there's no hurry!


 
 I used some Chenille yarn from my stash and a size N
crochet hook.  Crocheted in front and back post to make squares, and crocheted in the round so there is no seem. It was easy and worked up fast.

Energy Bar

My niece gave this recipe a couple of weeks ago, and I finally got around to making them. I figured I would like them since I like everything that is in them.  The texture reminds me of a Cliff Bar, and I love Cliff bars! You can add all the good things you like to the main recipe:

1/2 C Honey
1/2 Cup Molasses
2 2/3 Cup Oats
1 Cup Flour (I used Spelt)
2 Cups of a variety mix ins: nuts, seeds, shredded coconut, peanut butter, raisins, dates, etc
1 tsp cinnamon ( I just noticed when typing this out I forgot the cinnamon)

Mix all together (kitchen aid mixer works great) should be wet, if too floury add water, if to watery add flour. With wet hands press into jelly roll pan, Bake at 350 degrees for 10 min, once out of the oven cover with another jellyroll pan until cool. Cut into bars.

Little Knitted Hat

The other day I was watching Knit and Crochet Today and they had this little knitted hat on there, it was so cute! I've knitted socks and scarves, but I've never tried a hat, how hard can it be?  So I went to the Knit and Crochet Today website to get the pattern, like they said to do................I must be really dense, because I cannot find that pattern there. So I just found a simple hat pattern and made it to look like the one on their show:

 

I thought it came out pretty good, and it was so easy!, A couple of things though, so you don't have the pink and black weird line thing on the bottom, the first row of adding the other color should just be a knit row. and when you add the do wacky on the top make sure you don't tighten the top too much first!  The top is just eye cord looped around.  

I enjoyed this so much I made another simple hat without any eyecord:

I'm so used to the feel of a crocheted hat, I love how knitting makes even the not so soft yarn feel soft and cushy. Now on to my next pair of socks........