Special Kneads: Getting It Right

I've been working so hard on my bread skills. I've bought books. I've researched. I've enlisted the help of Kitchenaid + dough hook, I've let it rise for hours upon hours, and I've sought advice from friends. Only to, at first, produce this mess:


Upon further reading, I realized my water was too hot, therefore killing the yeast straight away. So I went back to lukewarm water, kneaded electrically with the dough hook, and tried to regulate the temperature of the rise by doing it in the oven, as per this recipe. I got this:


It wasn't bad. I took it to dinner at a friend's house and his children gobbled it up with butter. But I knew I could do better. Then a new friend (who knew D.O.P.'s of films gave such good domestic advice?) told me to do it by hand so I could feel the dough, only let it rise 45 minutes the first and second time, turn the oven up so the blast of heat makes it puff even more, and use more yeast than is recommended. So I pressed on.


I tried more tips from this book, which I found at the thrift store. I sifted the flour so it would be nice and fine and absorb the yeast easily. I also frothed the yeast, placing it in lukewarm water with a teaspoon of sugar, and letting it foam for 10-15 minutes on its own, before I added it to the flour and fat. I baked it at about 400 degrees, and I had to take out the top rack since it was growing so high. Friends, look what I got!


There was much jumping up and down at the stove. There was mozzarella and rocket eaten on this bread. There was the best toast we've had in months, topped with a free range egg. And though I'm going back to trying whole wheat soon, I'm so happy to have succeeded on my first farmhouse white loaf. A few more of these and I can start to get creative. Stay tuned for more "special kneads"!
P.S. I love these photos. It looks like the loaves are looking wistfully out the window.
P.P.S. Do you have a favorite loaf?

Wrap Skirts = Summer

Every Summer I get an urge to make myself at least one new wrap skirt. I'm addicted to them. I have about ten, some of them thrifted, most of them handmade. I always find vintage patterns for wrap skirts, and even though they're probably the easiest thing in the world to draft a pattern for, I always buy them. Here are a few of my faves, both vintage and new:


This Summer, the urge hit me again. I've been carrying a big piece of this fabric around for about three years now (I bought it here in Portland, then moved it to London, then brought it back - crazy, right?). I didn't quite know what I wanted to do with it, so I defaulted to a wrap skirt, from the pattern on the bottom right. The results:




Some wrap skirts are front opening. This one opens from the back. Though I fear the moment when I'll leave the bathroom with the back of the skirt tucked into my underpants is inevitable, I still appreciate being able to cross my legs without it flopping open. I lined it with a black cotton.


This would be a really quick sewing project, except that I'm an extremely slow sewer. Every seam is french, everything sewn is basted first. In the end, the skirt took me about two weeks, but judging from how long I've had previous skirts I've made, it'll help me keep future Summers all wrapped up!

Marled Ruffle

I knitted this dress while during our month in corporate housing, when my sewing machine was still packed up, when I needed some sanity over lunchtimes, and when I could successfully ignore the lists of things we had to do to set up our new life.
The front:

I've made it before here, which made it easy to whip another one up in no time. I love the back ruffle, and would love to see it on a little person (which one will it be?) who is new to walking, come winter.

I can picture it worn with red tights, so I attached some red buttons to the back closure, to match my imagined outfit. It would also be great with a special cardigan!

I love knitting items multiple times. It just seems to come together more easily, and the pattern adaptations I make the first time really help me along. All my Ravelry details are here for the old one and here for the new one. The back:

This one is going in the "deep freeze" (as Nigella would say), meaning a ziplock bag with the air squeezed out, awaiting it's future wearer at a time when 100% wool is more appropriate!

Return of the Craft

Friends, I have so much to tell and show you. I've finally got the crafting back up to pace with my own sewing room in our new house, which is where I am throughout this World Cup. It's so great, and I fear there's no going back, but let's cross that bridge when we come to it. I also formed a craft group with friends, have been working on my bread technique (to varied success), and am still shopping to get enough seating in my house to return the many cooked meals we've enjoyed at friend's houses as of late.

Image from The Sartorialist of Prada, Milan

One thing that's slowed down a lot for me is knitting, but that's usual for Summertime, I guess. With a few exceptions, I can't seem to work on anything bigger than a baby sweater. The image above, however, has me totally inspired.

Smocking 101

I've been teaching myself some smocking, and developing some shirt patterns! I'm so excited about this. It's something I've been thinking about for a very long time.

I have a pleater, which I'm still mastering. It's so hard to do on your own, but this video is helping me a lot. I can't wait to show you a finished product. Stay tuned!

My New Home: Part 1

There are a lot of down sides to moving house as much as I do. There's the constant buying (and purging) of items, the smashed belongings dropped at your door by the moving company, leaving lovely rented apartments knowing that you'll never live in them again. These things are difficult (not to mention expensive). I'm already enjoying my new home in Portland immensely, however. We only have the basics so far, but the way the wrap-around windows throw so much light onto the vintage 1950s features and the few items we've bought, is really inspiring.





It almost makes me not want to buy too much more. And yet, I can hear the call of thrift, beckoning me.

Last Weekend

I'm so sorry I haven't been here. I've been everywhere, running around. We finally moved into our new place (details coming soon!) but it's bigger than we've ever had, and therefore emptier than we've ever known. Here are some photos from this past weekend. We woke up to a clear view of Mt. St. Helens, trolled the vintage shops for furnishings, and ended the day with a city fun run and parade. Portland, truly!