April 27, 2011

Dandelion Reprise

April 27, 2011/ Elizabeth Foss

{From the archives. Reviving and revising a post from last year, with a mix of pictures from this year and last, before they all become "wishing flowers."}

The day began with an announcement from Karoline:

"Mama," said she, her fist full of dandelions for me to put into a tiny pitcher, "we have so many beautiful yellow flowers and the neighbors have none. I'm going to pick them all and scatter them in everyone's yard just like Miss Rumphius. Then, there will be beautiful yellow flowers everywhere."

We dug up a Dandelion Syrup Recipe and suggested that Karoline and her sisters and her friends gather the flowers for syrup making purposes.

They spent a glorious couple of hours making their fingers a lovely shade of yellow.

They stirred some "dandelion soup."

They measured until there was enough.

They brought it in to boil and steeped.

We read Miss Rumphius and Dandelions and The Dandelion Seed and Stars in the Grass at bedtime.

The next day, we added sugar and cooked and cooked.

Dandelion Syrup.

Brings sweet tea to a whole new place:-).

When I tucked Katie into bed that night she commented, "Some people call dandelions weeds. Don't they see the flowers? Everyone should have a girl to show her the flowers when all they see are the weeds."

Everyone should.

The Recipe

250 Dandelion tops (yes, really; count them). Please be sure your dandelions haven't been treated with herbicide or pesticide

the juice of 1 lemon

4 cups of water

2 pounds of sugar

In a large pot on the stove, stir the dandelion tops with the 4 cups water, bring to a boil and then cover and simmer 1 hour. Cool and allow the dandelion tea to continue to steep in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, strain the tops, reserving all the tea. Mix the tea with two cups of sugar and the lemon juice. Simmer, stirring occasionally, on the stovetop, until the water evaporates and you have syrup. A froth will form on the top of the syrup. Turn off the heat and allow the syrup to cool completely. it will thicken as it cools. Pour into a jar. It's a got an earthy flavor that is nice stirred into tea.

April 25, 2011

Rainy Afternoon? Dye Yarn!

April 25, 2011/ Elizabeth Foss

Several weeks ago, Elizabeth sent the girls some undyed yarn and Easter colors. She posted instructions for dyeing yarn and encouraged each girl to express herself with her own hank of yarn. They were eager to get after it. I promised that we would do it one rainy afternoon.

And then the bluebells bloomed and we were outside, rain or not. But late last week, it rained and I was all bluebelled out, so we set about to dye yarn.

My girls had seen a sneak peek of Larkspur's beautiful yarn, so they'd settle for nothing less than using every color in the packet. Since I didn't happen to have pipettes on hand, I figured we'd give yarn painting a try. (I also brought out a turkey baster. It was clearly obvious it wouldn't give us detail but it kept Sarah entertained the whole time.)

I determined from the get-go that I would help one girl at a time. Good call. They required careful supervision.

The yarn was tied in several places, using a figure-eight style tie. We left it tied. Critical to minimize tangles.

First we soaked the yarn in 1 cup of warm water and and 1/4 cup of white vinegar. The girls eagerly squished the yarn and turned it over, careful to be sure every strand was wet.

We mixed our dye in our watercolor jars. We added one tablet of Easter egg dye and 1 tablespoon vinegar. And let it fizz. Fun. We talked a little about the chemistry of it all.

[Just an aside, but I dislike both math and chemistry. I'm beginning to suspect that Elizabeth is on a mission--via yarn--to convert me to someone who embraces math and chemistry. Between dyeing yarn and doing the math on a Baby Surprise Jacket, I'm seriously using a part of my brain I've tried to avoid. Embracing math and chemistry would truly be a miracle.]

Then we filled the cups with water--about a half cup's worth. We spread the table with a big green garbage bag and set our cups in the middle. Then, we circled the dye with the yarn. And we used our watercolor paintbrushes.

We talked about a pattern and everyone understood that we were going to move around the yarn in a rainbow order. Katie and I worked on hers first. I got her started and showed her how to paint the yarn on top and make sure she was painting the layers in the middle and then to carefully flip it and get the underside. She took off on her own and Karoline watched. There was blessed silence as she worked--everyone concentrating and creating. There was no end to Katie's patience.

Karoline required a great deal more help. First, Mary Beth guided her around. She soon decided that she wanted all the colors Larkspur had, but she was only interested in painting the purple herself. Mary Beth and I thoroughly enjoyed painting it for her helping her finish.

When the yarn was all painted, we carefully transferred it back to the large (15X10) glass casserole dishes. I covered them with plastic wrap and then I microwaved them individually. I microwaved for 3 minutes and then let it sit for 5 minutes, repeating this four or five times. lately, I've suspecting that my microwave isn't really working at full power even when it says it is, so I'd adjust your times accordingly.

Then I left to go to the airport.

When I returned, the yarn was completely cool. We ran a cool bath and swished our yarn around gently for about ten minutes. Then, we pulled it out of the tub, gently squeezed and placed it on the bathroom floor between two thick towels. We instructed Karoline to bourre until she was too tired to bourre any more. So, she gladly danced on the balls of her feet for few minutes. We hung the yarn to dry in the bathroom and waited patiently until the next day.

When there was no dampness left whatsoever, each girl recruited a brother to help her wind her very own ball of yarn.

Ta-Dah!

Mary Beth still has a hank of merino-silk to dye. But now, we're off on a bit of a rabbit trail. I'm pretty sure these books will work for high school chemistry for both of us, no?

Remember, there's a great bargain to be had on Easter egg dyes this week;-). Go!

For undyed yarn, Knit Picks, has a wide selection at a reasonable price.

{Comments are welcome}

March 30, 2011

Yarn Along: One Pink "Fweater"

March 30, 2011/ Elizabeth Foss

Pardon me, please. I'm a little late to the Yarn Along.

I was knitting.

Elizabeth teased me last week that I had my first UFO (Unfinished Object). Indeed, I had casted on for Katie's shrug before finishing Sarah's.

But only because I didn't know how to finish Sarah's.

I definitely don't think I will be the UFO type. I'm all into finishing. Like stay up until midnight and get up a 5 AM to finish finishing. So, this week, Sarah's "fweet fweater" is finished.

{Come here, Baby Bedhead, see what Mama has for your morning surprise.}

And Katie's is completed all except a few more easy rows of length and the ruffle.

{{{And blocking and buttons (but I don't know how to do those yet and I've lost the buttons somewhere in the van).}}}

The goal is to finish all by Friday, when I expect the mailman will deliver yarn for Karoline's striped shrug. I don't want to start something new until I finish these.

We're reading lots of knitting-and-wool-related picture books. I cleared out the glass-fronted cabinet in the family room and installed our yarn (a shelf for me and a shelf for the girls), a basket of needles and such, and these lovelies:

Phoebe's Sweater (for more on Phoebe, don't miss this interview and Phoebe Mouse's blog)

Freddie's Blanket

Knitting Nell

Charlie Needs a Cloak

and these for next week:

February 09, 2011

Chasing Away February Gray

February 09, 2011/ Elizabeth Foss

When the outside is undoubtedly gray, day after day after day,

it's time to make color come alive inside.

I like to wait until midwinter for

an infusion of new color

with which to doodle,

jot,

and journal...

We can get them all broken in just before it's time to capture the glorious colors of spring.

See Ginny for a grand collection of color.

{This winter's art supplies come from Stubby Pencil Studio. I was not compensated in any way for this post. We're just getting to know them, but so far, we're pleased:-)}