I don’t know about you, but I am all sorts of optimistic and excited about 2012. I am confident it is going to be a productive year. Carole’s prompt for today, Ten Things You Want to Do in 2012, is perfect to help me focus on how to make the year everything I want it to be.
1. Publish e-book of crochet patterns. Since summer I’ve been slowly stitching away on a series of potholder patterns, one of which is available already through CraftSanity Magazine. My nephew is going to do the layout design work for me, and I’m looking forward to the challenges of creating an e-book. Of course, having taken an e-book class with Shannon at the Knitgrrl [virtual] Studio, I have a solid base from which to experiment.
2. Ride a century. I love my Trixie Trek bike. I’ve been training inside as I’m a wimp about riding in the cold, and once the warm weather is back, I plan to put many, many miles on Trixie to train for a 100-mile ride. I might get a bike tattoo once I reach that goal!
3. Refine my elegant, minimal wardrobe. I spent close to a year dressing with 33 items. Different items each quarter, but still limited. All fall I’ve been planning a new minimal wardrobe project in which I spend the 52 weeks of 2012 with only 52 items. Don’t worry, I’ll share my list with you later this week!
4. Sketch and paint more. I get a lot of pleasure from drawing and painting, even if the results don’t satisfy me. Neal recently made the wise observation that if I wanted to improve my watercolors, I ought to watercolor more often. Wise man.
5. Make a souffle. The scene in Sabrina when she is at the culinary school in Paris and forgets to turn on the oven when making her souffle amuses me. I hope I will at least turn on the oven!
6. Garden with Greater Gusto. I had little gusto for gardening in 2011. I’m aiming for a bumper crop of veggies in 2012!
7. Knit TTL Mystery Socks. I’ve done my gauge swatch, and maybe later today I’ll work on the cuffs. I’ve never made it through the KAL as its usual run in October comes at a too-busy time for me. I’m optimistic that I’ll do better with my participation in January.
8. Knit Sprossling. I have the yarn. I have the pattern. I want this sweater, and the only way I’m going to get it is to make it, right?
9. Build my conversational French skills. I have a good schoolgirl’s grip on French. I can read it passably. I can manage to get out a few phrases that keep me from appearing rude. The next time I go to visit Sara, though, I want to not only speak more fluently, but more importantly, to be able to understand the replies of those with whom I’m speaking. I’m going to use this BBC course as a start, and I also plan to visit a nearby French patisserie for their conversation nights.
10. Cultivate kindness. It’s all too easy to get snappy and judgey, which I dislike in myself. I’m going to strive to break myself of those reactions as much as possible.
11. Be bold. I’ve long believed that life is too precious and short to be wishy-washy and cautious. I’m not afraid of failure, yet I am not as bold as I know I could be, so in 2012, I want to open myself up even more to the possibilities and risks before me.
12. Dance. My body and heart love to move, and this year I want to try out different forms of dance. Jen has long inspired me with her ballet tweets, Neal became intrigued by contra dance recently, and I’ve always loved to swing. This is the year to dance!
Yes, you saw right; I broke the rules and listed TWELVE things because it is 2012! The list could go on and on, and my personal journal has a list I’m building that does seem to go on and on.
I love to start a new year with a hike, a tradition that I first joined in 1991. Today’s hike was extra special as my dear friend who invited me all those years ago came to CT from NY to join the hike.
We had a beautiful spread of food, great company, and perfect weather. I can’t imagine a happier way to get acquainted with 2012. I hope you have a year filled with health, joy, and adventure!
The rasion d’être for our trip to France, of course, was Sara and Patrick’s wedding. After a lovely wedding, they had the most romantic reception: a cruise on the Oise River. Dinner was delicious, and dancing was…well, let’s just say that Neal now has a reputation, and some young French couples may have an odd idea about American-style dancing. It was a magical night that ended with a cab ride back to Paris. I nodded off during the drive, but awoke just in time to see the Eiffel Tower. Was it all a dream?
I’m thrilled to share the conversation I had with designer, cook, and photographer extraordinaire Kristi Schueler. Kristi’s serialized e-book Nourishing Knits was recently published in its entirety, and I was eager to hear all about it!
Congratulations on releasing Nourishing Knits! It is a beautiful collection of patterns and recipes. Can you talk a little about how you matched the patterns and recipes?
As with many creative endeavors, at least for me, it started with lists of possibilities. From there my editor, Amanda, and I narrowed stuff down. Fortunately, Amanda is part of my knitting group so she was familiar with my cooking and had tasted many of the recipes that had made the list which helped. In some cases the recipes and patterns paired themselves – like the Rosemary Scented Grapefruit Curd and the Tapas Totes pattern. Some became paired because a main ingredient was reminiscent of the pattern – like Ciabatta and the Antipasti Bread Pudding or Buttercream gauntlets with Rhubarb Filling and Almond Buttercream recipes. Others were paired simply for their color like Challa and Smokey Sweet Pumpkin Seeds or Ganache and Chocolate Almond Butter.
There seems to be a lot of similarities between cooking and knitting. What connections did you find between developing recipes and designing patterns? How does your approach differ for each? (or, how is it similar?)
Both knitting patterns and recipes require orderly thinking and clear instruction, a skill my scientific background helped to hone. Making a recipe repeatedly takes much less time than a knitting pattern so I’m usually less firm about the plans of a recipe when I jump in than I am with knitting patterns. I often rely on my intuition as I go when cooking, then I go back for refinement based on feedback I get from taste testers or test cooks. With my knitting patterns I often have the pattern nearly fully drafted before I cast on.
I really appreciate that all of the recipes in the book are vegetarian. I confess, I was surprised when you told me recently that you are not vegetarian, but then you mentioned that your husband is. Can you share how you handle meal planning in a dual-dietary restrictions house?
In general planned meals in our house are vegetarian and have been for over a decade now. Most days I probably have at least one vegetarian meal and I regularly have vegetarian days. Writing vegetarian recipes was not outside my comfort zone. I think like a vegetarian and it comes in handy as we like to entertain and that frequently includes vegetarians and vegans from time to time. I automatically analyze how each new non-vegetarian recipe I come across could be made vegetarian and whether it would be satisfying.
As for meal planning in a dual-dietary restricted household, my husband is a great cook too, so it is a shared job. I used to only eat meat when dining out until this past year. I discovered that for me, personally, I felt much better with a higher protein diet than I was getting with our vegetarian fare and I have managed to loose 60 pounds this year because of the change. To be fair my husband also lost 30 pounds, remaining vegetarian. We still cook much like we did before except I’ll often have the vegetarian main as a smaller portion and cook a chicken or turkey breast fillet on a small countertop grill. The meat portion of my meals is not the star, it is often just hit with a bit of spices I feel coordinate with the vegetarian dish and that is that. If I cook any meat more elaborate than that it is usually for lunch while Drew is at work. With the cool weather here I have been toying lately with the idea of making a beef roast or roasting a whole chicken and freezing left overs, but really our freezer is about overflowing so I’m not sure I’ll follow through on that thought.
All that said, I really like recipes that can be pulled together with whatever can be found in the fridge and pantry so many of the main dish recipes in Nourishing Knits could easily have meat added such as the chili and the savory bread pudding. Because I like to cook off the cuff I tried to include some variations and substitutions for recipes where it was appropriate. Personally, recipes serve more as jumping off points than strict instructions to be followed, so I hope everyone feels free to alter the recipes as needed to suit their family’s palette and dietary needs.
It’s hard to pick a favorite pattern from the book, but I confess I have a secret favorite that I can’t wait to knit (Masala slippers if you must know). What is your favorite pattern? Why?
You do know asking a designer to name their favorite pattern is akin to asking a parent which child is their favorite, don’t you? Truthfully, my favorite pattern is almost always the most recent one off my needles. I just get so darned excited when I finish something it is always the “best” in my mind at that point. I hope that never changes, as that excitement is often what propels me through any finishing tasks.
Which was your favorite pattern to design?
The Masala slippers were quite interesting to design because I really do thrive on challenges. That one provided me an excuse to dust off my knitting backwards skills as one option for dealing with working colorwork flat. I didn’t want to work them in the round and use steeks because there are many people afraid of steeking. Plus I sometimes get waylaid by finishing tasks more elaborate than weaving in a few ends, which is certainly where steeking lands.
So, I set out to make the slippers with no finishing required beyond weaving in ends. Doing that required some planning and discussion, but it makes them a really quick project to whip out believe it or not. I’m dying to knit myself a pair in red and whilte – especially if I get the red and white flannel pajamas I’ve been eyeing for Christmas!
You use a nice blend of commercial and indie yarns in the samples. What factors led you to the yarns you used?
Each pattern was matched with its yarn in a different manner. Some were chosen when only the general type of project was known and the design planned around the yarn, but others the pattern came first and the yarn was chosen to suit it. Early on we set a color palette so color selection definitely came into play. In addition I wanted projects in a variety of yarn weights. And as an indie designer I want to support indie yarn companies, especially those whose products I have found to be of top quality. But, selling downloadable patterns means I have to keep in mind yarn availability outside the US and made sure at least some of the yarns used were available overseas so I tried very hard to balance the commercial and indie yarns.
Learning to spin my own yarn has provided me with the tools and knowledge I need to substitute yarns without trepidation, though I know many do not feel the same. I tried to provide enough information that substituting should be doable for anyone. Each pattern has approximate yardage noted in addition to the number of skeins of the yarn used in the sample. The fiber make-up of the yarn and the weight and length of put-ups is all included. For the handspinners, the yarn images running along the tops of the pages are even to scale and can help in planning the yarn they want to spin for a given project.
The photography in your book, just like that on your blog, is fantastic. Can you share some food or knit photography tips?
It is cliche, but true — light is always key in photography, whether it is for food or knitting or anything else. Whenever possible use natural light, preferably diffuse such as that in light, even shade or a bright overcast day. Do not forget that you are in control. Manipulate the light if needed by reflecting some back into the scene with a piece of white foamcore or an auto sun shade to soften harsh shadows or diffuse it with some mylar stretched over an artist’s canvas stretcher frame.
I know that it is nearly impossible during the winter months to shoot with natural light, but nothing beats it. If you have to use a flash, diffuse it or bounce it off a white ceiling to light the scene more like natural light. If you don’t have a hot shoe flash that can bounce, you can diffuse a point and shoot’s flash with 1 layer of facial tissue. I actually wrote an article this past year titled 10 Ways to Improve your Fiber Art Photography for Ennea Collective, and much of what I included really applies to food photography as well.
What else would you like readers to know?
As I mentioned earlier, I love challenges and learning new things. That means frequently my knitting patterns are rather challenging. My task with Nourishing Knits, in addition to creating a collection of patterns around a given concept was to simplify and let one interesting idea or technique take center stage per pattern. Bordeaux challenged me to learn how to make cable patterns reversible and Cornucopia took a traditional way of adding borders on shawls and applied it to the edges of a cowl. I really like how that approach stretched me and the type of designs that resulted. It also made these patterns more accessible to wider range of knitters than much of my previous design catalog.
Another goal in designing Nourishing Knits was to balance the advantage of a downloadable e-book while keeping it easy and economical to print parts out at home. Because I was not printing it I was not stingy with space and determined the page count would be what it needed to be. Charts are sized for easy reading, standard abbreviations are at the back of the book, but any non-standard ones are included in the pattern pages so they are at the ready when working a project. Since file size and page counts were not of primary concern each pattern and recipe has a full page image so you can see details on the screen, but there is no need to print off those ink-demanding pages. I also tried to include close-ups of pattern details in the pattern pages themselves so there is some references to consult if working on the project on the go.
Nourishing Knits is available for download through Ravelry. Ravelry members can learn more about the book and purchase it here, and non-Ravelry members can purchase it through my Ravelry store at . Everyone can browse all my patterns, including those in Nourishing Knits, here. Also, every pattern in Nourishing Knits is available individually, but the recipes are only available in the the book. I blog at Fiber Fool and am on Twitter as @FiberFool, Facebook and Google+ if you’d like to connect with me.
Kristi, thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me and for creating a beautiful book for the cooks and crafters!
Readers, here’s the giveaway part: hop on over to Ravelry and decide which pattern is your favorite, then leave a comment here letting us know. Kristi has generously donated a copy of MY favorite pattern, Masala, for a lucky, random winner, to be drawn at 9 a.m. on Saturday, December 24th. Be sure to check out her Facebook page and follow her on Twitter to learn about more cooking and designing adventures!
Carole kindly asked for our to-do-before-the-holiday list. Early on, back when my blog was called Wearing Black in New Mexico, I often used it for a receptacle for my to-do lists. I even crossed out items as I accomplished them. I can’t promise that much precision over the next few days, but I will share my list:
1. Buy a kissing ball. I put one up from Christmas until Valentine’s Day, but I keep forgetting to buy one this year!
2. Bake cookies. I’ve pulled out the recipes and blocked Thursday as Cookie Day. Neal is even taking the day off from work, just in case some testing is necessary.
3. Wrap and ship PA and TN gifts. The final gift I was waiting for arrived yesterday, so I can mail everything off. That post office line shouldn’t be bad, right?
4. Review gift list. I confess that I was not as organized as usual this year. I don’t know if there are gifts for everyone, but I’ll finish up by Sunday, except I must…
5. Finish mom’s shawl. My mom asked for a hairpin lace shawl, which I started last Tuesday but have not done much to finish. Time to get cranking on it!
6. Write a few last Christmas cards. I wrote most of them over the weekend (and, yes, I write a brief note and address the envelopes by hand…a rarity, it seems), but I have to find a few addresses and mail out the last few.
7. Wrap Neal’s gifts. I use brown kraft paper and ribbon to wrap, which keeps my task simple.
8. Make a vegetarian dish for Sunday’s supper. We’re going to my MIL’s, and she is making ham. She’s always thoughtful about having a little vegetarian plate for me, but this year I think I’ll make a big tray of the lasagna I made for dinner last night.
9. Devise a plan for Christmas Eve. We’re not hosting anyone this year, nor are we visiting anyone. I want to come up with a festive plan so it doesn’t turn into just another Saturday.
10. Soak in the tub. My hope is that grades will be submitted by Wednesday night (one class done; half my portfolios are graded…this is an achievable dream), gifts will be wrapped by Friday afternoon, and I will be able at some point to luxuriate in things being complete.
* I made Wink in no time flat as a gift for my hair stylist. I modeled it just before I went to see her. I couldn’t exactly grab it back once she’d done my hair all pretty for a picture. Well, I could have, but that would have been a bit bizarre.
We rented an apartment in Le Marais, a district recommended to us by several friends. It suited us perfectly. We were moments away from fantastic shopping and Rive Gauche. The apartment was small, clean, and just right for our needs. Each time I approached the door, I felt a little thrill. And, for the record, it was behind this door that I read Heather’s manuscript (I promised a picture to her).
I spent Thanksgiving break in Paris. It was my second time there, but my first time falling in love with the city. I look like a bizarre unicorn in this picture, I know, but Eiffel Tower after dark was just magical. Every day was filled with adventure, and as the year winds down, I’ll share my favorite moments here. Hope you enjoy them!
I love this week’s topic. I have real joy in bringing something special to a party, something that will make the hostess happy, and I’m tickled when I’m on the hostess end of a lovely gift. Here are some of my ideas for a great hostess gift. If you need more ideas, well, just take a look at all the ToT participants’ lists, which you can get to from Carole’s blog.
1. Quilted Coaster set. These are fun to whip out, and since they don’t require much fabric, if you have even a little stash, you can make them at the last minute.
2. Bubble bath basket. Hostessing, even a lunch, can be tiring. A bubble bath cures all. Put in a scented candle, a loofah, and, of course, the bubbles.
3. Fantastic bottle of wine. I’m lucky in my package store. There are several people who work there (including one of the owners) who are so great about recommending excellent wine in whatever price range I need. I’ve read some etiquette guidelines that deplore wine as a hostess gift, but the hostess does not have to open it during the party! She can tuck it away!
4. Breakfast basket. I am compelled to clean up before I go to bed after a party, and in the morning, it sure would be nice to have a fancy breakfast. Include a beautiful loaf of bread, maple syrup, jam, and maybe a jazz cd (my favorite breakfast/brunch music).
5. Homemade delights. I canned nothing this year, but when my shelves are stocked, hostess gifts are a breeze: pop an apple butter, a peach butter, a relish, tomatoes–whatever–into a brown bag with some raffia tying it up, and your hostess will invite you right back!
6. A Good Book. If the party is themed, give a related book. Or, pick your favorite novel, memoir, or book of poetry to share. If you’re reading this, you are probably crafty, so make a book mark to go with it.
7. Flowers. To my way of thinking, there are two approaches to hostess-gift flowers: either get something inexpensive in great quantities (carnations come to mind), or get something really showy and dear, but a minimal number of stems. I miss the local florist I used when I lived in New York. She always, always had something unusual that I could bring to my hostesses.
9. Bowl of fruit. Not just any fruit, though. Find something really ripe and perfect, buy a few of it (figs! or pomegranates!), put it in a pretty bowl, wrap it in tulle, add a wide-ribbon bow, and you’ve got a lovely offering.
10. Extravagant tea or coffee. Don’t bother with mugs; we all have enough of those. Consider what the hostess prefers, then find the poshest brand around.
Really, I don’t think you can go wrong if you simply consider what may make your hostess’s next day a bit more pleasant.
What’s your favorite hostess gift to give? How about to receive?
Well, hey there! Power outages, trips to Paris, grading frenzies…there’s a lot for me to share, but I’ll start with a Ten on Tuesday. This week, Carole asked for Holiday Traditions. This is a bit of a challenge; my family is so spread out that it is difficult to maintain traditions from childhood, but we’re not a family that is steeped in tradition anyhow. Traditions established in my last marriage have no place in this new life, and after celebrating eight holiday seasons together, I guess Neal and I have started to create our own. So, here it is, a mix of old and new:
1. The silver tinsel tree. My asthma prohibits me from having a real tree, and I’m of the mind that if I’m going to have something fake, let it be REALLY fake. I adore this tree.
2. Baking cookies. One of my best friends arrives from New York each year for a cookie-baking frenzy. We usually bake for about 8-10 hours. It is so fun to share the cookies with merchants and friends.
3. The Christmas boot. My family didn’t have Christmas stockings; we had ceramic Christmas boots made by my gram. I still use mine, though I now also put out a stocking made for me by my ex’s aunt.
4. Holiday movies. Nothing gets the spirit going like a good holiday movie. I’m not a fan of the more modern classic, you know, the one with a leg lamp? I go for the old-school classics like It’s a Wonderful Life.
5. Christmas cards. Each year I waffle on sending these. I learned a hard lesson the first year I was separated from my ex. My card list at the time hovered around 100. That year I did not send any out; I was too blue. I received only about 15 cards. So now my list is more limited, but I find I enjoy writing the cards more.
6. Butternut squash galette. Is it tradition if I’m the only one who cares? As a vegetarian, holiday meals can be a little bland, unless the sides are spectacular. I make this recipe every year for my holiday feasting. I don’t always have it for the holiday meal, proper, but it is my go-to festive dinner.
7. Submitting grades. This may seem unrelated unless you, too, are in academia. I like to submit my fall semester grades as quickly as possible, and that last “send” is the real signal to me that holiday festivities may commence in full.
8. Christmas Eve gift opening. My siblings and I were allowed to open ONE gift on Christmas Eve. I still love to do this. It helps with all that anticipation!
9. Christmas Night gift opening. I like to save some gifts until after our family dinner. Christmas Night sometimes feels like a let down. Neal and I are usually home alone, no little ones to enjoy, no one to play games with us, and saving a few gifts keeps the festive atmosphere going just a little longer.
10. New Year’s Hike. The holidays extend to the New Year, right? This is a tradition that I started participating in around 1991 or 1992 in New York. After I moved away, it sort of fell apart, and last year, I finally said “enough”. I missed the noon-time hike and picnic, and I re-established it in Connecticut. It is the very best way for me to start a new year.
How about you? What are some of your holiday traditions?
