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Monday, December 26, 2011

Knitting Song... LOVE IT!!!

Well I just found this... thanks to Susan of the Knitajourney Podcast... it is too awesome.



And it is 'muppets'... yes I realize they are in the Fraggle Universe... but they are still Jim Henson Muppets.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

A White Elephant's Heart?

Well here I sit after my dad's side of the family Christmas party. 

I think I was okay... I know I had other things going on in my head but that is not for here.  It was fun.  We had a lot of creative things going on, which give me an idea for the year that my dad hosts it.  Things I can do, create and help with. 

We, however, did something new this year.  We did a White Elephant gift exchange.  Now it isn't a nice gift exchange.  This was the more horrible the better White Elephant.

I suppose I should explain a White Elephant Gift Exchange.  It is basically getting rid of something you have and gifting it to someone else.  Something you don't like or don't want.  Now some of that stuff is worth something to someone else.  You never know. 

A second hand shop is a good place to find White Elephant Gifts if you do not have something you want to get rid of.  Garage or Yard sales are another place. 

I did not totally do the right type of gift.  I did a 'Choose Your Side' box.






The note reads...
"Choose your side:
Coffee or Tea
Vampire or Werewolf
Red or Blue.
Let the battle begin!"

I had red and blue coffee cups, instant packets of coffee and tea, and marbles in the theme of Vampires and Werewolves.  I thought it was fun.

I was wrong... there was an old lamp, a wall hanging cheap plastic tiki mask, and a dead animal bag.  Though the toppers had to be the tong and the heart.  Yes someone (my father and his wife) brought a heart and a tong.  Eeeww.

Mine was a party in a box... couple of old games, a blender and two other items... which will, if this continues next year, be involved in White Elephant Revenge...





Yes that is a wig and a plaster hand... oh the ideas I have.   And there will be updates... but only covertly.  Because it will have to wait until next year for the reveal.  Mwhahahahahahaha!!!!

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Brownie Queen Strikes Again...

Well here I am again.  About to go and show off my work.  Not knitting this time 'round but something delicious and fun.

Now let me start by telling you a story about me and baking.  I can't bake cookies to save my life.  They never turn out.  Whether it is because of the ingredients I put in them or that I forget they are in the oven or do preheat the oven or let the dough sit out on the floor too long I am not completely sure.  I just can't seem to have them turn out.  Brownies, however, I am excellent at. 

It started when one night I got a craving for brownies and we did not have any brownie mix in the house.  So I pulled out my trusty Betty Crocker Cookbook and looked up brownies.  I made sure I had all the ingredients and went to town making homemade from scratch brownies.  Ever since then I have been the brownie queen.

My favorite brownies to make are a Yule tradition.  My mom when I was little would make peppermint brownies and I adored them, because mint and chocolate are the bestest thing ever.

Well you can see were this is going.  I started to make peppermint brownies as a regular thing.  This week I made a couple of batches of peppermint brownies and a pan of raspberry brownies, substituting raspberry flavoring for the peppermint flavoring. 


I did cheat a little on these.  Normally I make a glaze to go on top of homemade frosting.  I didn't make the glaze and I did not make the frosting. 





I bought frosting and added the flavoring to it.  I just was not in the place to deal with it at the time.  But the girls that got to eat them did not mind. 

I brought a couple of plates into my work that night.  They loved them.  One place was for the closing staff and the second plate was for the following morning crew. 


I had fun making them and have found out that baking with butter makes and even better brownie.  I ran out of butter on the last pan and had to use margarine, they did not turn out as nice.  I can't wait to make more and make the frosting and glaze style ones. 

Once I do that I might actually put up the recipe... we will see.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Colors... to drink?

I am alive!!!!! *looks at last date of journal and cringes* Sorry... it has been awhile hasn't it. 

Well on the good side of things.  I have a very very very very very rough draft of Moosehold Part Two... now all I have to do is re-write part one.  And I have earned a fair amount of points for my competitive knitting group on ravlery. *grins*  That will be coming later though.  Right now I want to show off what I have done for dyeing.

I had fun.  I figured out Kool-aid dying.  I would love to do a little bit more permanent but I really don'thave space to do what I want to do right now.  So my next couple of dying excursions will be Kool-aid as well.  But it still will be fum and I will definitely be posting stuff on the dye experiences I will be having.

So here is my first excursion into dying...

First off preparing my dye...




I had prepped up my yarn and set everything up in the tub.


Then rolled it up and set it aside for steaming and moved on to the next color set.





And set that one up differently because I didn't like how the colors on the first one ran together.


Then I steamed... and didn't take any pictures but afterwards I soaked them to clean them






Pretty yarns...


So there is my first excursion into dying and more to come next month. 

Really I will have another showing here soon enough, and it will be something pretty and inspiring.