A Rich Seed Cake

I'm attending a series of history presentations around the American Revolutionary War, from the events leading to it, to the actual years of the conflict (which were several after 1776, if you didn't know), and early days of the new Republic.  Since I haven't been able to participate substantively, I asked if they would be interested in having some cakes or cookies baked from period recipes - and the organizers eagerly accepted.

For the first one, I chose a Georgian era recipe from The British Museum Cookbook, reprinting Mrs. Raffald's recipe for a "Rich Seed Cake".  I made a few changes in process, because I wanted to take advantage of my stand mixer, and it has only one bowl:

I started by whipping four egg whites stiff, and
moved them to a separate bowl to wait.

Same bowl, I was lazy and did not wash it.
Softened butter (one cup) and white sugar
(three-quarters of a cup, can be one cup).

Butter and sugar whipped until light.
I stopped to scrape the sides a couple times.

Adding the egg yolks one at a time.

Adding (possibly too many, I estimated) anise seeds, plus one
teaspoon each of ground cinnamon and ground nutmeg.

I added two cups of  flour one half-cup at a time,
alternating with the whipped egg whites.

I probably should have started with the egg whites and mixed
them in completely but I thought this might keep more of the air
in the mixture, since that is the only raising power in this recipe.

I decided to use a fancy pan for the baking, and forgot to take a photo before putting it into the oven.  I also forgot to tap the pan to knock out any air bubbles before baking.

While the oven was on, since I'd been successful in foraging for blackberries, I made a batch of muffins which were shared with (very appreciative) neighbors:

I used a friend's blueberry cake recipe, but instead of layering
the batter and berries, stirred the berries in and scooped.

Final results, before I packaged up the muffins to deliver to neighbors:

Of course I sampled before delivery.  All reports are that the 
muffins - which are not too sweet - are very yummy.

I wrapped the cake in clingfilm to stay moist and mellow overnight:

Pockmarked by the air holes, and hopefully not too dry or dense.

My house smells wonderful.

I might try her recipe for "Wiggs" if the presenters are talking about the similarly-named political party.

Also this week, I went to a local group's gathering, and wanted to take something interesting but not too complicated.  So I started a shawl, using sock yarn doubled.  The colours are not ones I usually like, but this will be nice and a bit of warmth, and if somebody wants it I won't be sad to pretend generosity.

The yarn was dyed by the "Little" of a local dyer in Texas, and is called "Space".  The stitch markers are leftover Turtle Tokens that I give to people who join the daily walks at some conferences I attend.  I've since seen the dyer's Fallen Moon Drops pattern and one colourway is similar to this, so since it's just been a weekend's knitting I am tempted to frog and reuse the yarn - but I am desisting.  I have another skein or two of her yarn that I can use, or of course some other.

Collaborative.

A designer offered a pattern for groups to use to make a shawl and asked if they would donate it to an event in May.  The shawls will decorate the hall and then be raffled, with proceeds going to domestic violence prevention.

A few of us in KnitTalk decided to contribute, with several persons knitting pieces or doing putting-together, and one writing a note in French to send with it:

I will use the ball in the centre to work the borders.

I've done the April puzzle:

Before, with most of the shaped pieces on the left.

Close-up showing a human-shaped
piece, which isn't as visible in the
upper photo.  And the flowers.

I sent off a box of thank you cards, totaling 282.  I didn't write six per day for Lent, as I'd intended, but the box is full (there were some in it already, for those checking the maths) and I will start another when I return from my next trip.

[Apparently I neglected to post this when written in April.]

Revisiting a childhood activity.

This week was busy with an assortment of things, including a professional organization mixer on Tuesday, which happened to be Cinco de Mayo.  So the food was a taco bar (tasty, but not worth photographing) and we made paper flowers to contribute to an artist's work:

I made this type of flower as a child, and it was very quick to remember how.  Of course the artist showed people how to do it, had the pieces of paper precut (you can see a pile of deep blue at the top of the lower photograph), and even some of the flowers ready to fluff.  I did several from start to finish, and we look forward to the finished image.

Most of my yarning this week was making Warm Up, America! pieces, using up leftovers of acrylic, because any pattern I wanted to do needed more focus than I could manage.

Three in various garter stitch patterns, lower right is crocheted.

Currently OTN is one from their 30th Anniversary Pattern Bundle, a block in bamboo stitch which I hadn't heard of before and looked intriguing.  I have some speckled yarn that I wanted to work into a pattern stitch, and so far it's going well.  I'll probably take it and some other balls of yarn on my business travel this week, something easy that doesn't need much focus.

I also had my book club at the library on Wednesday, and errands plus all the trip laundry, and time with my mother after being away for a week.  Today is Mother's Day and my brother and his wife and I went to my mother's house for brunch.  Going out on Mother's Day is too crowded and noisy for us.

This weekend I started a more complicated item, the "Winter Sapphire" pattern using yarn that I purchased in Iceland.  Because the yarn is a bit "sticky" I realized I will need to pull from the outside, so went on a hunt for one of my Lemonwood mini-minders.  I think it's not officially the two-ball size, but it works for me:

Fiberuary 22-28

22:  Different ballpark, same Sidewinder Hat.

23:  Knitting on the trip home.  Checking size of hat against the length of my book, because the instructions said the hat should be about 8" long before the top decreases and my book is about that size.

24:  Home!  But not quite, stayed at my mother's due to the late hour our flight arrived home.  Busy with helping her unpack, sort mail, and of course work was heavy.  So not too much more knitting.

25:  The Sidewinder Hat is at the point of decreasing.  But it's late so I will do that tomorrow.

26:  All day conference, took a shawl I began out of a skein of handdyed yarn purchased at last year's Carolina Fiber Fest.  It's the Tiny Kerchief pattern but continuing until I run out of yarn.  I didn't have the pattern in the bag (ooops!) so had to hunt as I wasn't sure I remembered it correctly.  Luckily I finally found it, and it's free, so now downloaded to my phone.  A couple people asked what I was doing, and one said it was a "baller move" to bring it - I pointed out it's just a fidget item that helps me focus.  After I returned home I finished the Sidewinder Hat, adding a fluffy pompon purchased at Michaels.  I debated white or black, hope I chose correctly.

27:  I took a garter stitch scarf to a concert at the community center tonight, and got a bit done.  The yarn has long passages of spotted, then a bit of solid, so it feels as if you're not making progress then it goes very quickly.

28:  I worked on the scarf a bit at a community brunch (helps to prevent unnecessary nibbling), then remembered I need to finish a friend's embroidery - begun by her husband, and my friend doesn't stitch.  I did a bit but realized one colour is missing, so I'll have to pick up another skein if possible.

Ending the month by working on the UFO Blanket.  And I finished the February puzzle:

   

Typically American Measurement

There are jokes and memes going around about how Americans will use anything as a unit of measurement to avoid the metric system.  My friend Trish and I joked about it and decided to display her Great Big Squishy Scarfie Thing against their Grand Caravan:

Current length, on Colour #21 of 25, is about 2/3 of a Grand Caravan.  I've knitted on it twice (somehow, not this trip!), once when I was there for "AIDA" and once at Maryland Sheep & Wool.

I did some knitting of my own, a scarf of Bernat Blanket that I left in Dallas to donate to Warm Up, America! at DFW Fiber Fest next month, and three hats; four if you count the one I knit on a friend's machine so I could try it:

The green one with brick stitch at top left will go to the local
guild's Hundred Hats Challenge collection; the other three are
destined for a different charitable project.

This time I was there to see her son in "HAMLET", portraying several characters, primarily Rosencrantz:

This wasn't the only play I saw this weekend, though.  On Friday I went to the Allen Contemporary Theater to see two friends in what turned out to be a spectacular production:

I've recommended it to people, and they report the shows are
selling out before they can get tickets.  Kudos to ACT!

And then this went into a black hole, instead of getting published.  I thought I'd hit the "Publish" button!

Since then, I finished another two hats for the collection, and half a scarf for WUA:

Ooops, the top one is a repeat from the previous photo.
Both hats are AlwaysBeKind yarn.  Scarf is a Caron Chunky Cake.

I've planned some projects (probably too many to get done before DFW Fiber Fest), and finished my Berie Shawl of the "Sunset Skies" yarn:

When I saw how much is left, I decided not to frog back and add another garter row in the center, and there isn't enough remaining for a border, so the shawl is as it is (and fits me well) and the last bit of yarn will go into a hat or something.  Yes, I have the ends to run in, but that's just a few minutes of work.  I love how it feels, very soft and cuddly.

Back. With yarn and knitting.

Just a quick report - I did knitting, and am into the second skein, second half, of the Berie Shawl:

Not much done on the Albuquerque Shawl, but attention must be paid so it's not good for knitting while sightseeing or reading or during intermissions:

Yarn and fabrics acquired, and some fiber for a swap at the annual meeting for one of my local fiber guilds:

LOTS of photos taken, and I may get around to summarizing the trip.  I had fun, not enough sitting-around time as one sometimes gets on vacations, did some hiking, saw a number of museums plus some places I wanted to see and will visit again, and ate a lot of good food.

Following up.

I don't know where my yarn winder is; I have one, but don't use it because I like hand-winding.  However, I thought the gradient blank from last week would show better when wound in a cake.  So I used some Michaels vouchers and a coupon to buy a new one, and after a few minutes of work, wound from the blank into a cake:

Also shown, the notebook I am using to record the processes.
I think of it as my lab notebook for dyeing.

I haven't started anything with it yet; I am debating between a dragon egg bag and a Bohus-inspired hat.  In the meantime, I took some leftovers with me on a quick overnight conference trip, and made mitts:

I finished a mindless scarf (no photo) and started another, and I've packed some balls of yarn and needles for this week's trip.  Three days, three hats?

I had to frog and restart my next shawl, of the handspun I bought in Paris and an unrelated pattern (it was created for a commercial yarn) from the same shop.  I put it down just after starting a pattern section, and couldn't get started again, and it was easier to frog back into the first section and restart.

I made the stitch marker from a couple bits I picked up near the Louvre in the early morning where hawkers would set up later in the day.  These must have fallen off some of the tchotchkes they sold.

I've been back to the fused glass studio, making jewelry and picking up the items I did a couple weeks ago.  The jewelry uses a small kiln you can set in a microwave oven, which is much too tempting.

  

Above are the before and after of my original pieces.  The long one, which will be a pendant, started from a leftover piece in the bin to which I added more bits.  The other two are a pair of earrings.  One of the instructors noted that my compulsion to design pieces that are mirrored, so they will look the same on each ear, is a sign that I am a jewelry designer.

Here are the other pieces I made, two pendants or pins, and another pair of earrings:

    

I'm a bit sad that the coloured stringers disappeared in the pendant, so it doesn't match the earrings as well as intended.  But they all look rather pretty.

This week I was back to more traditional fused glass:

In two weeks I'll pick up those pieces, and maybe make some more jewelry.  And possibly add some to the piece at the top, depending upon how it ends up looking.  I am in the "open studio" phase where I pay for time and we weigh my pieces and I pay for glass.  Upside is that if there is a cool piece I didn't use, I can add it to the weighing and take it home for later use.  😊

Plunging in Again.

I haven't dyed yarn since moving, but offered to teach a class at DFW Fiber Fest this year, which they accepted.  Last year at DFW Fiber Fest I took a course in natural dyeing (eco-printing, the teacher calls it) and a friend was in the class; she told me that she had fun but is sensitive to compounds so couldn't do more at home unless she could order pre-treated items from the teacher.  That class used cotton fabric as the base, which needs to be treated with washing soda and other harsh mordants for the dye to bind.  I mentioned that I've done dyeing using kitchen-safe (and mostly edible) products, and she talked me into applying.

Shortly after DFW Fiber Fest opened registrations I was told that nine people had registered for the class, which was more than I expected!  In this weekend's update, we found out that the class has SOLD OUT.  I am in shock.  Complete shock.  Yes, it is a small class (fifteen students) but I didn't think that many people would be interested.

The first year of DFW Fiber Fest (2006) I taught this class, and had three students registered.  I might have had a fourth as walk-in.  I've kept in touch with two of the three.  One of the students went on to run a dyeing business for a while (I have some of her yarn in my stash) and the other does spinning and other things; I don't know if she still dyes.

So I figured I need to work on the agenda for the class, and make sure the schedule will allow for what I want to show people.  This means doing some test dyeing.

One item I want to show them is dyeing on blanks, which are preknitted (could be pre-crocheted; I am going to test that also) pieces of fabric that are dyed, then unknit (or un-crocheted) and made into something else.  Mostly these are called "sock blanks" made from two strands of fine yarn knit together, that are then dyed or painted and unraveled, allowing for two matched socks without having to figure out where a stripe begins, as you do with a single long skein.

I found some yarn of a good weight (since the premade blanks are more than I wanted to charge students for class supplies) and with a small swift and knitting machine, gave it a try:

  

The skein is just shy of 200 yards and made a blank about 31" long:

I also prepared some leftover bits of yarn from other projects.  I wound three hanks, and had a bit of some moth-nibbled yarn from a donated stash that I simply tied in a couple of places with yarn.  The two on the bottom are the same yarn, but it was in two pieces (I think because of socks? or moths) so I wound different lengths to show how that can affect the end result.

Then it was into a dyebath.  I took some notes about quantities, and started with some green dye, then pink, and finally blue from a set I'd purchased a couple Easters ago to dye eggs:

I had no real plan, just water and white vinegar and dye, and part of each piece, except that the small tied one I threw in whole.  I forgot to take a picture of the pink in progress, but remembered for the blue:

It was such an incredible colour I went to my charity yarn stash for some other yarns to add to the pot.  I had a bit of beige and a quantity of white with blue specks, which you see at the bottom and top of the above photo respectively.  I'd planned to leave the white yarn with just green, until I saw the blue, so I dyed part of the white in blue and left some alone.

End results looked great when I put them on my drying rack:

I couldn't wait for the small bit to cool before I unwound the yarn tying it:

And this is the final result arranged similarly to the first photo, but with the additional yarns at the right:

Yes, not much of the pink, no surprise to anybody who knows me.  For the two at the bottom, I decided to leave one partly in the original and dyed the other; originally I was going to leave both of them with half undyed, but I liked the blue too much.  In retrospect, I could have done the smaller one in half-pink, so it's something to remember for a future dyepot.

Speaking of which, I wish I'd done two of the blanks, so I could wind one into a ready-to-work cake and the students could see the before and after for a gradient.  So next up will be to create two blanks (and maybe a third for crochet - or should I do two for crochet so I can leave one and wind one to show the differences?) and dye them together, then wind one into a cake.

While the yarns simmered (it takes about an hour for the dyebaths to exhaust, important to know for a class) I finished the Giverny Shawl, except for running in the ends:

Not much of the yarn left, so I didn't do the ruffle edging.  But I think it's fine as it is.