This was a very quick spin, a gift for a friend who did my PDF pattern design for me 
Fibre: SCF Wide Awake on Polwarth
Ply: 2 ply
Weight: about a 3-4ply (!! yes!!)
109g
‘friends’ Category
-
Spin: Wide Awake
May 17, 2011 by sunrisesister
Category fibre, friends, spinning, yarn | Tags: | No Comments
-
8 Months On
May 17, 2011 by sunrisesister
This week is a big one. It was our anniversary on Monday, Tille turned 16 months old yesterday, and it’s my birthday this weekend. But my mind is elsewhere..
A pretty non-descript photo, right? Well, yeah. It’s 8 months since my spine decided to gang up against me, and I was left bedridden, in and out of hospital, reliant on heavy pain medication and friends to (literally) pick me up, and then using a walking frame to get around. The good news is, 8 months later I am functioning again as normal, and I am oh so very grateful for this. Mobility is something I dont take for granted any more.
I have never experienced pain like that before (and I have had 4 kids!) and I dont care to again, thanks!
Category family, friends, health, peanut | Tags: | No Comments
-
Magic Loop Baby Socks
May 8, 2011 by sunrisesister
I am very pleased and proud to release a brand new knitting pattern, Magic Loop Baby Socks – a pattern for baby or toddler socks, designed specifically for the magic loop technique on one long circular needle.
You can buy it now via Ravelry
It’s only $3.50 USD!
A big thank you to my knitterly friends for their support and encouragement, and a special thank you to Christina for her help with photos, and to the amazing Anne at Ink and Tea for making the PDF such a joy to read.
If you are a newbie to the magic loop idea, please give it a go. I would love any feedback you have on this pattern, or if you spot any errata. Enjoy!!
Category celebration, friends, geekery, knitting, pattern | Tags: | No Comments
-
Dumplings
April 17, 2011 by sunrisesister
Dumplings aren’t just a food, they are almost a religion in their own right. They have experienced a surge in popularity in Melbourne lately, with people discovering how delicious, fulfilling and fun they are to eat. Just this week I went to the famous Shanghai Village Dumpling house to re-discover this delicacy myself, after a long absence.
Of course, many cultures have ‘dumplings’ of many varieties of their own. But here we are talking about the Chinese Jiao Zi kind, the ones you can have steamed or pan-fried. Both delicious, but some devotees have a strict preference. I am polygamous in my dumpling eating.
So, we decided to have a dumpling-making and eating session!
My recipe is as follows:
Chicken and Pork Jiao Zi
Makes a WHOLE LOT of dumplings. Over 100. Enough to feed 6 adults and 4 kids, with leftovers.
1KG pork mince
1KG chicken mince
1tblspn corn starch
a small handful of finely chopped chinese or strong garlic chives
a tablespoon of xiao shing wine
a good grind of black or white pepper
4 cloves of good Australian garlic, crushed
a generous chunk of fresh ginger, minced
a splash of soy sauce (I use premium)
2 teaspoons of sesame oilAnd many, many rice dumpling skins. We had 3 packets of 60. Enlist help from friends, and all share the fruits of your labour together!
Mix the ingredients together, and put small dollops (about a teaspoon) into the middle of each skin, sealing with a drop or two of water, as you would for making ravioli.
Kids love making these, and really, you cant go wrong!
Fold, seal, and crimp. There is a traditional way of doing this, but we just decided to wing it!
And what a magnificent mountain of dumplings we did create!
Pan-fried:
Pour a little vegetable oil into a hot non-stick pan. Let the dumplings cook for a moment or two, and then splash over half a cup of water, and put the lid on. The water will make the oil spit like crazy, but at the same time, make a heck of a lot of steam, which cooks the dumplings. After a minute, take off the lid, swish the dumplings around, flip them over, and repeat, adding more oil or water as is needed.
Cook until the dumplings are golden brown on at least one side.
Steamed:
Lay dumplings in bamboo steamers, atop of either cabbage leaves, lettuce leaves, or baking paper. Place on top of a wok or pan with water simmering underneath. Remember to check the water levels frequently, and top up from a kettle if needed.
Steam for at least 10 mins, or until the dumpling skin is soft, and the filling cooked. We appointed a highly skilled and VERY experienced dumpling eater to test one of each batch, y’know, just in case!
Cook in batches, and serve with condiments like soy, spicy dumpling sauce, vinegar, or chilli paste.
We ate them with stir-fried bok choi with garlic and oyster sauce. YUM!
Photos taken by the lovely Christina N/@knitster/cn33
Category children, foodage, friends, pictureporn, pictures | Tags: | No Comments
-
Recovering
April 15, 2011 by sunrisesister
Well, the good news is: the arm/hand is recovering very well! Much smaller and neater scars this time, and the stitches are staying put for a changes. The cast came off on Monday, and I have been able to do lots of things – cooking cleaning driving and washing.
And a teensy bit of knitting.
Yes, already. Pretty amazing huh? Nothing extreme, but purely by accident, I designed a sock pattern! I am typing it up now, and will be taking lots of photos to go with it. Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, I have finally popped my Melbourne Comedy Festival cherry! I went to see Arj Barker on wednesday with friends, and can’t wait to go see Gabriel Iglesias this sunday night with N!
I had better go bust out the camera for some pattern photos!
Category catching up, friends, geekery, holidays, knitting, pattern | Tags: | No Comments
