I got a new sewing machine for Christmas - well, I got money to pick out a new sewing machine, which I did a couple of weeks ago. And since then, I’ve been lost in the wonders of sewing. I have been obsessed with making box bags some of which I’m going to make for the LYS and some of which I think I’ll put on Etsy. I’m still in the development stage and every one I make helps me get closer to the “it” bag. I went and bought some cute cottons at the local quilt shop and this is my first cube bag:

So, I need to make another one and incorporate the changes I want to make and see how it turns out. Who knew bags could be so technical?

I finished the Rocktober socks and wore them without taking a picture, so as soon as I wash them and get a picture, I’ll blog about that. I’m terrible. I know, and can’t seem to help myself. Ugh.

And other than sewing too much and knitting not enough, I’ve been baking bread. I recently bought The Bread Baker’s Apprentice, which was on my wish list for at least a year, and I love it. I love the variety of recipes and the way he explains the entire process. I’ve learned a lot about making bread and figure out that I wasn’t kneading my bread nearly enough. So far I’ve made 2 batches of one of his white sandwich bread and it’s wonderful.

Spiked Apple Crisp

5 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
1 tsp cinnamon
orange rind from one small orange
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 shot Grand Marnier
1 shot Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine apples, cinnamon, lemon juice, orange rind, Grand Marnier, rum. Toss to combine and pour into buttered tart or casserole pan. Combine dry ingredients and cut in butter with pastry blender (I use my hands to rub the butter in) until crumbly. Spread mixture over top of apples. Bake uncovered until apples are tender and top is lightly browned, approximately 1 hour. Serve warm with cream, whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or a drizzle of caramel sauce (although I prefer it plain).

I adopted this recipe from one I found in Colorado Cache Cookbook, but changed it enough that I thought I could give it to you. I love apple crisps and this one has a nice thick fruit mixture with a nice crumble topping. I generally like oatmeal toppings, but this one might change my mind about that. The orange zest cuts the sweetness a bit and adds a nice layer of flavor. I like to use apples that are starting to get a little soft and are past the point where you want to eat them alone. It’s a great way to use that fruit that’s been in the drawer a little too long.

Jen was nice enough to offer me her leftover Roctober yarn so I can finish my sock! I finally ran out of yarn last night and I have about 3 inches left to knit. Jen’s generosity is just a small example of how wonderful and generous the online knitting community is. I’m so lucky to be a part of such a great group. I knit a gauge swatch for the Manly Maze sweater from No Sheep for You. I’m using Debbie Bliss Rialto, but I didn’t get gauge on size 5s, so I need to do another swatch on 6s and see I get closer to 21 sts/4 inches. And since that sweater is a whole lot of stockinette stitch in the round, I think I need a little something more interesting to break it up. I was thinking of the seeded cable sweater from Sensual Knits. Isn’t it pretty?

What makes a good “diet?” For that mater, what is a diet? In our society, diet generally has a negative connotation. It signals deprivation. You have to cut out all the things you love and eat boring stuff in order to lose weight. Personally, I think that’s why diets suck and programs like Weight Watchers work for a lot of people. For me, as soon as you tell me what I can’t have, that’s all that I want. I’m difficult like that! The thing I struggle with is not just what I should eat, but I shouldn’t eat and figuring that out isn’t the easiest thing in the world.

I just finished reading Skinny Bitch and I can honestly say that I found it interesting. The authors strongly and passionately advocate for a vegan lifestyle. They make some valid points, and some not so valid. I have to preface this entire discussion by reminding you that I grew up on a cattle ranch and I live in a state where the major industry is agriculture. I believe in agriculture and wouldn’t have traded my upbringing for anything. Considering that, I have a hard time buying the idea that every single thing in the cattle (dairy, chicken, pork, fishing…) industry is horrible, cruel, disease infested, chemically tainted, and disgusting. Do I think there are a lot of changes that need to be made? Absolutely. Do I think I am blessed to be able to eat locally raised, slaughtered, and processed beef? You bet. I also think eating steak every single day probably isn’t a good idea for a lot of reasons. I generally cook meat for dinner for a couple of reasons. First, Travis is a card-carrying carnivore. If it doesn’t have some kind of meat in it, he doesn’t want to eat it. No excepts - well dessert is an exception. Second, I grew up eating meat and I know how to cook it. Third, it’s quick and easy. The reality is that even if I wanted to, I couldn’t cut meat out of my diet. And honestly, I don’t want to.

Personally, I don’t think deprivation works, but rather that moderation is the key. YiaAnn helped talk some sense into me and remind me that all you have to do is be smart about what you eat. I need to eat more whole grains, fruits, and veggies. I need to eat less desserts, refined sugar, and simple carbs. I probably shouldn’t eat as much cheese as I do, but sometimes I’m just lazy and eat cheese and crackers for lunch, and I wouldn’t do that if I had salad fixings or soup to choose from. I love to bake, as I’m sure you all have noticed, and I don’t have to give that up as long as I don’t eat everything I bake. Travis works with more than a hundred guys every day. I’m sure they’d be happy to take a large portion of my baked goods. That way I get the benefit of baking and having a treat now and then without having temptation staring at me 24/7.

Life is for living and we all need to find the balance between health and happiness that works for us. There is no one size fits all. I’d love to hear about how you found that balance in your life. You’ll inspire me.

I’m busy working on the second Bartholomew sock.

The only problem is I only have this much yarn left

That isn’t anywhere close to enough and I’m so annoyed. I’m so close to actually finishing a project and I’m running out of yarn. If anyone has any left over STR Rocktober they’d be willing to sell me (I don’t need an entire skein!), I would be eternally grateful. I don’t really understand why I’m running out of yarn. These socks are for me and they aren’t any taller than a normal sock, so I’m perplexed. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to look in your stash for me.

I know I told you that I’ve been working on a pair of socks from Cat Bordhi’s new book. I just turned the heel on the second sock and was struck again by the brilliance of the construction. I’m generally the kind of person that values tradition - I mean traditions are important in our every day life. However, I’m not the kind of person that will never look at anything new just because that’s the way it’s always been done. That’s how I feel about the heel flap and gusset sock construction. I like it, it works, and there’s a reason it’s a classic. However, I’m not opposed to trying something new. Enter the new Cat Bordhi book.

This particular pattern has you do about 6 inches of the leg and then you start the increases on the instep and ribbing on the back.

Then you do the heel. This pattern calls for a reinforced heel, which I’ve never used on the bottom of a sock, but I assume it will wear much better than a plain heel. There’s nothing particularly unique about the heel, but I do really like her instructions for short-row wraps and picking up the wraps. Her method makes for a wonderfully smooth heel.

After you turn the heel you work the “back of the heel.” This is done in sl1, k1 repeat as well and this is where you add the plain stitches back in (I’m not sure that’s the right description) by working until 1 stitch before the gap, decreasing across the gap, and turning until all the stitches are worked (is that a short-row too?). When the heel is done you start in the round again with the instep stitches. You don’t pick up a single stitch and there aren’t any holes! What’s not to love about that?

And then you knit until it’s time to do the toe. Oh, and she tells you how to use your row gauge to calculate exactly how much length the toe will add, so you know exactly when you need to start on the toe. Brilliant!

The thing with me is that I tend to jump into things with both feet without a lot of thought. Generally, it works out pretty good - luck mostly, I’m sure. And I tend to be pretty obsessive about the things I do. Knitting, spinning, sewing, reading, General Hospital, karate… the list goes on and on. The one thing I’m obsessive about, but not in a good way, is food. I love food. I love to eat and I would totally suck at dieting. I think it’s a willpower issue. So, when I look at the things I’ve been eating - holidays excluded because you know that really shouldn’t count - let’s just say it sucks. I eat crap. I eat mostly carbs - sugar is a carb after all - and very little of what eat would be classified as good for you. So, as I’ve noticed that the weight is slowly creeping on, I’m left pondering what course of action I should take. More exercise is the obvious answer - at least in part. I went to a spinning class (the stationary bike kind of spinning) and enjoyed it, but I’m wondering if I should just try running a couple of mornings a week rather than paying money to go to a class. Although the class mentality works for me - that’s why I’ve stuck with karate for so long (well, honestly that’s why I stuck with karate in the beginning, but now I do it because I absolutely love it). I like the accountability of a class - having to be somewhere at a certain time, but the money thing gives me pause. Why do I need to pay $5 a class when I can step out my front door and run for free. Oh, the decisions. So, in typical Stephanie fashion, I haven’t done anything. But aside from exercise, I think I need to start eating better. I’d like to think I could just decide to eat better and do it, but I can’t. That’s not me. A friend mentioned this book to me and it’s actually a book I picked up in the bookstore a few months ago and then put back down because there’s no way I could go vegan. I live with a man who eats like a 15 year old boy and can’t keep weight on (he was pissed the other day because he lost the 3 pounds he’d gained over Christmas and he did nothing other than go to work and the gym - if I didn’t love him I would seriously hate his guts). There’s no way he’s going to go without meat - not in this lifetime anyway. But, I’m intrigued enough about the ideas in the book to want to know more. So, I’m going to do some research and see where it leads me. My friend and I are going on a girl’s shopping trip on Saturday, so I imagine it will be a good time to discuss the pros and cons. If you have anything you’d like to add to the debate, please feel free - the more the merrier. And if this goes anywhere, you can bet your ass I’m not telling my dad (the cattle rancher)! He would seriously disown me.

I signed up for NaSpiMoMo (there’s a Ravelry group) for no other reason than I have a wonderful wheel that I have been sorely neglecting. And like I said, I do better with a class (and isn’t a group sort of like an online class?). My goal is to spin the camel alpaca that I have had in the basket and on the wheel for months. Months!

We’ll see how that goes, but at least it’s some motivation for me to sit down and spin.

I’ve started a new sewing project. The last attempt at pants was a bust, but I’m still hopeful that these will work out better.

I have some inexpensive cotton that I’m going to use for a muslin and I’ll keep you updated on the progress. In sewing news, my major Christmas gift was money for a new sewing machine. And I’m so excited. There aren’t any sewing machine stores in Laramie, but there’s one in Cheyenne and a couple in Colorado. I need to go look at machines, but I’m kind of intimidated. There are so many machines and so many options that I just don’t even know where to start. I did read a really good article on how to buy a new machine, so I’m going to take that to heart and see what I can come up with. I’d like to stop and look on Saturday, but I may need to just go by myself one day and try a bunch of machines (right now I’m leaning towards a Pfaff, but I have no idea which model might be the best for me that I can actually afford).