My sister gifted me several silicone baking mats. I had never tried them before; I usually just use parchment paper to bake. I was pleasantly surprised how well they worked to bake scones! The bottom of the scones were nicely browned, just like when I use parchment.
The mat washed up easily, stores easily, and there is one less thing to go in the trash can. Nice. The scones were made from a baking mix from Sunrise Mills, which turned out nice and flaky.
My eldest recently found a beautiful crocheted drawstring bag from a local shop (I’m very excited about the new shop, there are fibers to spin and classes being lined up!) The bag is beautiful, but needed a liner to hold the dice my eldest wanted to put in there. We pawed through my fabric stash and found some light weight black knit that would stretch well with the crochet and wouldn’t show through.
Because the bag had a round base and cylindrical sides, I matched the design with the lining, cutting a circle of fabric the size of the base, and a rectangle slightly oversized.
I started sewing the long edge of the rectangle to the circle, leaving room on the rectangle for the side seam. I used a jersey stitch on my sewing machine to keep it stretchy.
When I finished the base seam, there was extra fabric on the rectangle, which is OK, better than not enough. I trimmed the extra fabric off and sewed up the side seam.
With the seams facing out, I fit the liner to the bag, folding over the top of the liner, and hand stitching the folded edge to the yarn work. I was very careful to follow the bag just below the drawstrings so as not to impede their function.
I am pleased with the liner, it expands very well with the crochet, doesn’t peek through the stitches, and should keep anything put inside nice and safe.
Here is my confession: I do not craft everyday all the time. I do go and hide in a video game for extended stretches because sometimes I just need to go into a battle I’m confident of winning. The latest obsession has been Stardew Valley. First off, crafting is a heavy element in the game, so it appeals to my maker’s soul, and then there are the mines where I can cathartically destroy rocks and monsters. Creation and destruction coded into a beautifully addictive game. Oh, and there is fishing. Yay fishing! I have been so absorbed that I have reached end game, 100% perfection, as it is called. Yes, there are a million things to remake and rebuilt and rearrange, but the overarching goals have been met. I even have a golden chicken that lays golden eggs. Hm. Maybe it is time to get back to my real life craft room.
Once the avalanche of grubblies and scratch stopped, the chickens went back to eating from their regular feeder. Phew. And the application of duct tape over the metal plate was not a deterrent. Double phew. I put down the duct tape to take the sting out of stepping on freezing metal.
I made two loaves of sourdough and took them in a trip. To protect them from things like dust and dog hair, I wrapped them in plastic wrap. I read that storing in plastic will soften the crust, which is not always desirable on artesian loaves.
I am pleased to report that after three days the bread was still good. Yes, the crust was slightly softer, but it was quite a robust crust to start with. I am happy the sourdough has a longer shelf life before going stale than bread raised on yeast alone.
Critters and Craft 