Take 2

Our second attempt turned out better, especially on the frosting front.  On the cookie front, incomparable because I just bought a sugar cookie mix and called it "done."  

For the frosting, we pained on watered-down royal icing in white.  Then, we piped on runny royal icing in green and blue.  They turned out awesome!  

Just for the record, we used two types of brushes to paint the base coat on the cookies.  One was a boar bristle 1" basting brush made by OXO.  The other was a silicone basting brush that we have had lying around in the drawer.  I went to Michael's again and I did see some small brushes made by Wilton, but I had already talked to the experts at the local kitchen shop, who said a basting brush would work, and they were right!

-吴碧芙

Incredible

...but inedible.  Our first attempt with Royal Icing went rather well.  I made the dough last night and baked the cookies this morning.  The tester cookies we tried ended up being very dry--like cardboard dry---like chip-a-tooth dry.  

The dough did not come together like it should have, it looked like little crumbles, and I needed to add water.  It rolled out like normal, and it baked nicely.  I probably should have made a gingerbread house out of the dough, based on how structurally sound the finished products came out.  

I wanted the type of icing I had on a cookie at a wedding of two of my classmates in 2003.  Some internet research showed me that it was probably Royal Icing, and I wanted to try it out. 

I got a few icing implements, including bags and a tip, meringue powder, and white-white icing coloring.I watched videos and read recipes online.  I considered many techniques, including piping and flooding and painting.  In the end I couldn't figure out what type of paintbrush would be foodsafe (none of the websites told what type of brush they were using/recommending).

I suppose we will try again with sugar cookies this time.  I would like to paint, if I ever figure out what kind of brush to get...ideas appreciated on that front...

-吴碧芙

Curry Chocolate

I've trolled World Market for the past three years looking for this to show up again on the shelves.  It's a strange pairing that tastes surprisingly good.

Other combinations that I like:

• onion bagel with peanut butter
• tomato-basil bagel with peanut butter
• garlic and lemon
• sauerkraut on pizza
• pickles on pizza
• soy sauce and peanut butter
• pizza dipped in ranch dressing
• scrambled eggs with maple syrup

-吴碧芙

Winterberry

This weekend I finished the scarf I've been working on since March.  It's a "pass-through" scarf, which means there is a little tunnel for one end of the scarf to pass through, allowing the scarf to cross at the neck, without being bulky.  I did a lot of research on "keyhole" scarves before I saw something similar to this pass-though, and I ended up just making something up on my own.  The wrong side of the pass-through is done in a contrasting color. -吴碧芙

[Insert Owl Pun Here]

Another case of "right place, right time," as we took an impromptu trip to World Market, coupons in hand.  I thought, "There seem to be a lot of owls and owl motifs in here."  They never have owl cookie jars though.

The only specimen on the shelf was cleverly snatched by my husband.  Consider it a 1 year+1 week anniversary gift.

A little smaller than the others, he definitely looks cute alone on the counter while the others are still in boxes.
-吴碧芙

Prereading

I have almost finished my seasonal book selection Bloodless Revolution by Tristram Stuart.  "Seasonal" due to my vegetarianniversary coming up on Halloween (18 years now).  The book was a very boring history of vegetarianism in Europe and America, from scientific advances to medical and theological reasons for vegetarian movements through the years.  It got better around page 372, in which Percy Bysshe Shelley and his second wife Mary Shelley were discussed.  Admittedly, 371 pages is a long time to wait for the mildly interesting Shelleys.  The last chapter looks a bit better, discussing more modern vegetarians, including Hitler.

One of my friends has recently read Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain, and she has posted on her blog and Facebook extensively on the topic of the book.  Having read her posts, and having heard the author on NPR, I have finally given in and ordered a used hard copy, which hasn't arrived yet.  I'm interested in this book as a Meyers-Briggs INFJ (Introverted-Intuitive-Feeling-Judging, online quiz available). From what I have read, Quiet describes the definition of an introvert, how our society came to value extroversion over introversion, and something about how the introvert-extrovert dynamic plays out in church/religious situations.  There is also, presumably, a section on group work.  My thoughts are the following:

Why are there more introverts in China?  This may be a case of introverts being made.  There is a Chinese saying, "The nail that sticks up will be hammered down," commonly described as similar but opposite of "The squeaky wheel gets the oil."  I suppose, I was more comfortable in China in some aspects, due to this expectation of introversion.  I also suppose that I am likely to be more extroverted in another language because it's not my language, and I don't really hear what I'm saying in the same way as I do in English, and I don't think about the vocabulary and shades of meaning before saying things, mostly because in Chinese, I only know one way to say something, for better or for worse.

Are introverts born or made?  One of my parents is somewhat of an introvert, and the other is somewhat extroverted, but not extremely so.  Based on that alone, perhaps there is something genetic or something about emulating one's parent's mannerisms and relationships with others.  However, I do know the exact moment when, if I was not already, I became more introverted.  In first grade, I was that proverbial nail.  I remember always raising my hand, giving unexpected answers, and receiving the negative feedback that would make anyone try to avoid talking in front of class, or large groups of people, for that matter.

Are introverts essentially opposed to group work?  I have always considered group work to be my friend.  Why?  Because if you can practice your answer in a small group, then talking in front of the large group is not as scary.  So I support small group discussions.  However, I don't like group projects, although pair projects are ok.  Group projects, I kind of hate, but mostly because I don't trust the group, not because the social situation stresses me out.  Group work to me is entirely separate from my introversion.  I don't want to give the control of my grade away to 3-4 other people who don't really care about my grade and may not be as diligent about the work as I would be.

Lastly, what would it take to make an introvert more extroverted?  I've been a teacher...That's weird, right?  Because I don't like talking in front of big groups.  First of all, my aunt once told me that while walking in heels, "Pretend you know how to walk in heels."  So when teaching, or SLP-ing, I pretend I'm an extrovert.  Secondly, I'm able to feel confident when I'm the expert and when there is no threat of someone telling me my answer was wrong or my comment was stupid.  Thirdly, I feel a responsibility to be the teacher or SLP that is affirming to students and children especially.  Affirming to a fault, like my Czech professor, who said, "Right, good job" and then gave the correct answer, even when my Czech was totally wrong.  I don't know if that's the right thing to do, but I almost want to cry when I think about my Czech prof because she was so sensitive to how her students felt, especially in Czech when even the best-intentioned student is likely to get a lot of wrong answers.  And sometimes you need partial credit or a little encouragement before you feel comfortable saying something else in Czech.  And sometimes you need to be told "Good job" even when you did a somewhat ok job, because you truly tried.  I wish she had been my first grade teacher.
-吴碧芙

Finally

If you visited me or I visited you a year ago, you probably saw me working on these socks, made with KnitPicks Felici in the colorway "Afternoon."  I stopped during the first sock because my foot was long, it was taking forever, I wasn't sure the short-row heel would turn out as well on the second sock, and my foot was a lot longer than I thought, so it was taking forever to get down to the toe.  I believe I picked this first sock up again sometime in the spring, but I kept trying it on, and I kept needing to keep knitting.  

In the meantime, I worked on some potholders, hats, and tried starting the swatch for a super cool sweater.  When I gave up on the sweater, even before the 4 in x 4 in swatch was finished (due to gauge issues that I don't care to think about or discuss right now), I finally decided to get over it and just finish the pair of socks, to get them out of my project queue.  I had also bought some new yarn, and needed to get these of the needles.

They turned out ok, but I must've started the second toe a little early or the second skein had a little thicker orange stripe.  Whatever the reason, it always happens to me, one toe has a little extra color, even though the whole rest of the socks perfectly match.  I mean, look at those heels!
-吴碧芙

Modest Harvest

I watched a baby patty pan squash form within the heart of the leaves of the plant in the bucket in our makeshift garden.  The one I was watching is still on the vine, and a surprise patty pan popped up out of nowhere, so big that I had to harvest it as soon as I noticed it.

So far we have gotten two Valencia tomatoes, which are medium-sized, dark orange in color, and full of flavor.  The Valencia plants have already set two more tomatoes, with flowers that look promising for more.  We have also gotten over 2 pints of yellow pear tomatoes, more than we know what to do with, and two baseball-sized round zucchinis.  

We originally ordered seeds from Annie's Heirloom Seeds.  The squash seeds sprouted and became these great plants that actually produced.  The tomato and basil sprouts did not survive, so on Mother's Day we went to the local nursery, just down the road, and got the basil, Valencia, and yellow pear plants as replacements.  All were replanted in 3 gallon buckets on our little apartment patio.

This little garden was what drove us to look for a house, where we could have a real garden, and possibly enough room to cook our own produce and can or freeze food for quick dinners.  After three months, we found the house that we will take possession of in a little over 1 week.  Next year, hopefully we will have a more established garden, more established roots, and a bigger harvest.

-吴碧芙

Non-Penelope

For once I found a mistake and DIDN'T rip it out and re-knit it.  This is not my style, especially when it comes to my Penelope accessories.  This hat was not the easiest, with trying to cover the lining and figuring out how much the pattern affected my gauge.  While working on it, I noticed the grey purl row around the bottom, but even at the time, I thought it wouldn't be worth it to tear it out.  Over the weeks, it began to really bother me.


I thought, "There must be a way to cover it."  And I came up with this ingenious little 2-stitch attached i-cord that really did the trick.  It's not bulky like a regular i-cord would be, but it was enough to cover the mistake row, and it gives a nice finish to the hat.   

  -吴碧芙

Adaptation

I don't know why I've been very interested in hats lately. After finishing a hat with Jojoland Fantasia, my thoughts turned to some kiwi green Lamb's Pride wool yarn I had hidden away in my stash. I decided to challenge myself by adding a cable on both sides of the same basic hat pattern. I also decided to try a felted flower for an embellishment. I tried two flowers, but the one that looked the best was crocheted and felted with a very easy boiling method (boil in water, dip in ice water, rub between hands, repeat until fully felted).

Before

After

The flower was easy to sew onto the hat, with a large button for the center.  I finally settled on a pattern called "Banana Tree" for the side cables. I had to convert the pattern from flat knitting to in-the-round for the hat.  Since the pattern is asymmetrical, every other row needs to be reversed for the in-the-round conversion.  Secondly, the cable stitch twisting is all the same direction as written, but with purls and knits reversed.  (I found all that out the hard way, so now you don't have to...you're welcome.)  Banana Tree is such a beautiful and interesting cable, which looks quite nice climbing up the sides of this, otherwise plain and basic, hat.                        - 吴碧芙

Forest Sunrise

Jojoland Fatasia yarn has an interesting colorway called "Forest Sunrise."  Even though it's hot outside now, I really wanted to make a scarf and hat with this beautiful (superwash wool) yarn.


This basic hat pattern is a quick knit, and the yarn does all of the color work on its own.


There is little continuity between skeins, so the scarf is not likely to match and the pieces not likely to look like a "set."


This one was finished a few weeks ago.  I'm on to other things now.


- 吴碧芙

Vint-a-hoot

My friend from grad school in Vermillion, who now lives in Rapid City, was in town and stayed with us last night.  Today we woke up, hung around talking, and went out to lunch.  We went to a little local Italian place, and then we looked around in some of the boutiques and shops near the restaurant.


We drove by Pier 1 and decided to stop by.  Neither of us had been there in a long time.  Luckily, they had recently added this little retro repro owl jar, in two sizes.  I got the small size, which is still a nice size for a cookie jar.  Five jars on the counter now...


-吴碧芙

Penelope the Unnecessary

I decided to convert Penelope the scarf into a hat, knitted in-the-round.  It's the same hat as usual with a neat bobble design, which happens to match my Penelope scarf.  It was a small project, and the grey lining was already knit (for a hat I started 2 years ago, although I didn't get much further than the lining).  This hat knit up in under three days, just in time for nothing, as I don't anticipate needing a hat for quite a while.

-吴碧芙

A Little Knitting Trick

Of course, I've ripped back 4 times on this piece, and countless times on other projects before having this little strike of genius.  Considering I ribbed back 2 more times on this scarf, a little scrap yarn saved me a few minutes and, most importantly, the headache of picking up loose stitches.

This scarf is my personal creation using the Austrian Rib pattern, along with my own made up pattern that is supposed to be like bobbles on strings.  It's my own pattern that usually causes the problem while I'm working out the kinks and figuring out how to keep the fabric from curling.  I'm used to pulling out my work up to 10 or more times until I'm happy with the results.

So here is my tip: Once you have finished a portion of a project that you are pretty sure you will not need to rip out, grab a piece of scrap yarn and a tapestry needle.  Leave the knitting needle in the work, and follow the knitting needle, as you string the scrap yarn along the knitting needle and through each stitch with the tapestry needle.  Then, continue knitting as normal, leaving the scrap yarn in that row.  Avoid hooking the scrap yarn when you are knitting through each stitch.  The scrap yarn should stay at the bottom of the stitches.

Now, if you don't like what you have knit, you can rip back to that scrap yarn row.  The scrap yarn holds the stitches, so you can't rip back too far.  The scrap yarn holds the stitches in the right order and just as they would be on the needle, so there is no risk of twisting stitches or messing up cabled stitches when you pick up the stitches.  Just insert the knitting needle along the scrap yarn and you are ready to knit again.  You can even leave the scrap yarn in, just in case you need to rip back to that spot yet again.

When the piece is finished, or when you know you won't want to rip back anymore, pull one side of the string, it should pull right out, as it is basically holding the place of a straight knitting needle.  You could add a piece of scrap yarn every few inches, just in case you make a mistake in the following few inches.


-吴碧芙

M1: A Knitting Mini-Tutorial

These are probably some fabulous uninventions (noun. something that one created without outside references, although it is entirely possible that someone else has also created the same thing).

m1: A Knitting Mini-Tutorial (for Continental Knitting)

m1: Note the working yarn must cross behind itself

First, the m1 (knitting abbr. "make one stitch").  I saw a picture that showed Barbara Walker's m1 stitch, which is somewhat unique.  I've seen many ways to m1, but this one is my favorite because, if you pull the yarn tight enough, the possibility of inadvertently creating a hole below the m1 is greatly reduced.

Hand position for regular knit stitch

Here's the thing, this m1 is kind of a backwards loop.  When I first started using it, I would drop the yarn, make a loop, just turn the loop until it looked right, and then slip it onto the right needle.  This method was confusing, slow, and inefficient.

Then I realized that, as a Continental knitter (one who holds the yarn in the left hand and "picks" with the right working needle), my finger was already in position for creating the m1 backwards loop.

Hand position for m1 stitch

The method is wicked easy.  Leave everything in the same position as when knitting.  Bring your "guide" finger forward, curling around the front piece of yarn.  Pick up the yarn from the back of the guide finger, from the bottom, as shown.  Remove your finger, and you will have a perfect backwards loop: one stitch made!

-吴碧芙

Felted Potholder Pattern

Follow this link  for my first knitting pattern.

-吴碧芙

Don't buy...DIY

Just bake...

 While I can't take credit for execution of any of these misleadingly simple recipes, I can take part credit for choosing a husband who makes amazing food and tries new recipes and techniques.

Today he said, "I'm going to make Cheez-Its." 

"Really?  Is that even going to work?"

"Oh yeah, I found a recipe on the Internet.  It only has 4 ingredients.  The reviews say, 'Yeah, they taste exactly like Cheez-Its.'"  

...and serve.

And indeed they do taste exactly like Cheez-Its.  If you have a pasta wheel, you can make the edges look nicer.  A skewer creates a hole in the center to make the experience more pleasant.


The birds like them too.


-吴碧芙

Knitting Block

Rick Rack right side

After suffering from "knitting block" for over two weeks, I finally settled on a pattern for this yarn that I ordered with a specific person in mind.  I like the colors so much that I wish I had ordered more than one scarf's worth.  And now the colorway, Knit Picks "Nevermore," is discontinued.

The cast-on edge of the yarn is fuzzy because I probably cast on over 20 times, in different patterns, including, at first, the Rick Rack design.  I did want to make this Rick Rack scarf from the very beginning, but the first time I started it, the stitches were too tight and hard to knit in the pattern.  I foresaw myself doing this very tedious knitting for months, so I decided to abandon the idea.  I couldn't find anything else to knit, although I did try a number of patterns.  I even paid for one of them, but still decided not to go with it.  

Rick Rack wrong side

I thought I had settled on a "cross stitch" pattern, but it was kind of annoying.  The Rick Rack pattern appealed to me again because it has the look of the "cross stitch" pattern, but it's broken by knit stitches, providing a break if the pattern is too tight or hard to knit.  Furthermore, the "wrong side" is not objectionable.  In fact, it looks pretty normal, like 1x1 ribbing with slightly wide stitches.


Even in this pattern, I cast on 7 times with 3 different sizes of needles and 4 different stitch counts, settling on #7 needles and 42 stitches.

-吴碧芙

3 Does a Collection Make

When I'm around on the weekend, I like to meet up with my Chinese exchange partner.  She's a doctor at one of the main hospitals in town.  I originally started meeting with her a year ago, but now my Chinese is in steady decline.

We spent the last few weekends with each other's  parents.  I mean, my parents came to visit and then we went to Sioux City the next weekend.  ("Each other's" sounds like we switched places, right?)  

The following weekend we had a nice weekend in Omaha.  Omaha is my Hong Kong.  In the vast wasteland of people and food traditions I don't understand, Omaha is a breath of fresh air.  Contrarily, while Hong Kong is where we would go to get rare American foods and experiences, Mexican food, pizza, and tortillas to take back to Shantou, Omaha is where we go to get better ethnic foods, including Chinese baozi, something we haven't been able to buy at home, ever.

Folksy Owl

So last weekend was our first weekend home in a long time, and my first weekend to practice Chinese in a few weeks as well.  As I turned to leave, I saw the Folksy Owl all alone with a few little owl appetizer plates on a little table in the cafe.  It's quite a unique looking owl cookie jar, and a happy addition to my little collection.  

Imagine that previously I was looking in vain for an owl cookie jar, and now I have found 3 unexpectedly.

-吴碧芙 

Fascinating New Things

I'm trying out the updated Blogger interface, which seems to have many new capabilities and looks pretty.  For example, in old Blogger, I was unable to figure out how to set the copy beside a figure, which is somewhat of a default in new Blogger.

I have been working and knitting lately.  My new project is a ZigZag Scarf, and I am far beyond where I was when I snapped this picture.  The goal of the scarf is to be colorful, without being "rainbow."  As with any knitting project, I learned two new techniques to throw in my box of tricks: the mitered decrease "md" that decreases 2 stitches (seen on the left, downward point in the photo), and Elizabeth Zimmerman's make one "m1" that uses a "backwards loop" (seen on the right, upward point in the photo). 

The ZigZag is kind of a placeholder, while I think about what to do next.  It's also kind of a monster, since I pulled out all of the colors of yarn I own, which are now scattered around the living room, waiting for me to decide which color to use next.  So far, 14 different colors have been used, and it measures about 4 ft. long.

-吴碧芙

Le Pièce de Résistance

I'm glad to report that I have finally finished that great masterpiece of heart-breaking genius, testing the mastery of knitting and crochet skills, trying the limits of human patience and diligence...Penelope Scarf, you are my Everest.

I restarted this scarf three times in the round. This version is knitted flat. The finished scarf is about 9 ft. long, and by it's weight, it will surely stretch longer, meaning at least once around the neck is obligatory, lest tails drag on the floor. It is also about 10 in. wide, including the black crocheted border.


I couldn't resist modeling for the film shot, although it's not super comfy to wear it like this, especially in 42 degree weather over here on Feb. 1(!).


The worst part is, now that I'm done with this, I don't really know what I want to do next.
-吴碧芙

Owl's Well...

I went to meet an old Iowa friend in Omaha a few weekends ago. There at Anthropologie, there was a great array of owl cookie jars, presumably retro remakes. However, they had a hefty price tag of almost $100 each. I mean, they weren't THAT awesome, but it was still hard to leave without the cute one that had mostly green glaze on it. I just thought to wait, until it goes on sale, or until it goes out of style and people want to get rid of it and sell it to me for cheap.

But last weekend, while out shopping for other things, I came upon a brighter, more colorful, and at a less prohibitive cost...right here in my own city. See how cute?


-吴碧芙

Coming Undone

Knitting this scarf has become a Sisyphean ordeal. At first I assumed that the pattern's 80 stitches (in the round) would yield a scarf too thin for my taste, so I cast on 120 stitches. After putting in 1.5 feet's worth of work on it, I decided that 12 in. wide was too wide, especially in the round--the doubled fabric made the scarf very bulky.

I frogged (knitspeak for unraveling massive amounts of stitches) the whole thing and started over with 88 stitches. After 2 feet of work and about 5 months of the scarf hibernating within my stash (knitspeak for massive amounts of yarn, none of which is assigned to a project), my husband asked me what ever had happened to my Penelope scarf.

The film starring Christina Ricci greatly influenced my need to find a pattern and make the scarf for myself. The unique, stained glass-esque scarf plays a big role in the movie. Christina Ricci's character "Penelope," born with the curse of a pig's nose, is kept cloistered in her parents' mansion, until she decides to run away, wearing the scarf to hide her nose from the public. I first saw the movie on the plane home from China, so it was bound to be associated with good feelings for me.

After the inquiry from my husband, I pulled the scarf out of my stash about a week ago, to start working on it again. However, this was the 88-stitch version, and after a few rows, it still seemed too wide. I decided to frog it again and eventually cast on 72 stitches. I was determined to finish the 72-stitch version. So I spent most of last week working on it, and last night it measured 1.5 feet. I mean, it's knit in the round, so not only was it wide, but also doubly thick fabric. When knitting in the round, one must do double the knitting for the same length or scarf. Also irking, the colored hexagons in the movie scarf are smaller, but let's not be too picky when there are very few free patterns available (that mention the movie specifically) for this project.

A new Ravelry search for "stained glass" yielded a pattern I hadn't seen before. I started the small version this morning and frogged the original for the last time this afternoon. "Stained glass" has smaller colored circles and is knit flat. I enjoy knitting it, and feel like all the work is actually adding to the length of the scarf rather quickly.



Perhaps it is fitting that the name is also connected to Penelope the wife of Odysseus, who, while waiting for Odysseus to return home (which took 20 years total), staved off her persistent suitors by weaving a shroud. She said she would choose a suitor when she finished the shroud, but at night she would unravel the work, so as to postpone her choice, over the course of THREE years. That's commitment...both to a husband and a project.

-吴碧芙