I made Pugliese bread today from The Bread Baker's Apprentice. My bread slashing technique is getting better! The first few times I tried it I did not do anything photo worthy. The crust came out nicely because I used a cast iron skillet in the oven with water in it to create steam. The interior of the bread needs work, it should be filled with lots of big holes like ciabatta, but haven't been able to create that kind of crumb yet. Practice makes perfect!
6/27/2010
The Bread Baker's Apprentice - Pugliese Bread
I made Pugliese bread today from The Bread Baker's Apprentice. My bread slashing technique is getting better! The first few times I tried it I did not do anything photo worthy. The crust came out nicely because I used a cast iron skillet in the oven with water in it to create steam. The interior of the bread needs work, it should be filled with lots of big holes like ciabatta, but haven't been able to create that kind of crumb yet. Practice makes perfect!
6/24/2010
More Baking - Pizza and Wheat Bread
If your boyfriend ever asks you if you need anything from Costco and you say bread flour, be prepared for him to come home with 50 pounds. I'm going to be doing a lot of baking! Today I tried another recipe from The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Light Wheat Bread. It makes a nice plain sandwich loaf and it's one of the few recipes from the book that only takes one day to make.
I also whipped up a couple of pizzas for dinner. One veggie with zucchini, artichoke hearts and roasted yellow peppers; and one meat with pepperoni, sausage and green chili. Now I just have 47 more pounds of flour to use up.
5/27/2010
Worn Out Jeans? Make a Rag Quilt!
I recently went through my closet to clear out some old clothes. Some were in good shape so I donated them, but some of the jeans & cords were worn out complete with holes in the knees. I made them into a comfy rag quilt! There are lots of directions for making rag quilts all you need to do is a quick google search. I do have a few tips: get some good rag quilt shears otherwise you will hate yourself for ever starting this project. Another tip is stay by your dryer when you do the first wash and empty the lint trap every few minutes. You'll be surprised how much comes off while everything is fraying! For this particular quilt I used fleece for the backing, it's super warm and cozy!
5/26/2010
The Bread Baker's Apprentice - Anadama Bread
I've decided to learn how to properly bake bread so I checked out a copy of "The Bread Baker's Apprentice" from the library. There is so much information in this book that recipes (called formulas in the book) don't even start until page 103! Today I made Anadama Bread which has cornmeal and molasses in it. The recipe made three 1 pound loaves so I baked one, put one in the refrigerator to bake in a few days and froze one. I'm really curious to see how the frozen dough works out. It would be nice to have a few different kinds of bread ready to go in the freezer!
4/20/2010
Cooking From The Veganomicon
Last night I made the Leek and Bean Cassoulet (P. 172) from the Veganomicon cookbook. I used veggies that I bought at the farmer's market and fresh thyme from my windowsill herb garden. It was so good! One word of caution: this recipe makes a lot of food!
4/07/2010
4/06/2010
Cigar Box Ukulele Build - Frets
Frets are finished! I also trimmed some of the paper label away from the cigar box in preparation of attaching the neck.
4/03/2010
Cigar Box Ukulele Build - Soundhole
Today I cut the soundhole. I don't have a lot of tools so I had to improvise. I took a piece of jigsaw blade and stuck it into my X-Acto knife holder. It wasn't perfect, but it worked. I smoothed everything out with a file and some sandpaper.
My favorite part is you can see the guy on the inner box label through the hole!
3/30/2010
Cigar Box Ukulele Build - Neck
I got the fretboard glued to the neck. It was a precarious operation and I wasn't prepared for it. There was no real way for me to clamp the pieces together so I ended up holding them while dinner burned on the stove. Ooops! This morning I stained the assembly with Varathane golden mahogany wood stain. One thing I always screw up on when gluing wood is being too messy. Wherever you get glue on your project it won't take stain so be more careful than I am!
3/29/2010
Cigar Box Ukulele Build
I started a new cigar box build over the weekend. This time I'm working on a ukulele. I got the neck, tuners, strings, bridge and nut from a kit I bought on Grizzly.com. The fretboard is going to be cut from a piece of basswood and I bought fret wire from StewMac. I was originally going to use an Arturo Fuente cigar box, but I've changed my mind and am using an old Royalists one instead.
First I drew a template for the fretboard. I then traced the image onto my basswood and cut it out with a coping saw.
I laid out the frets by tracing the spacing from another ukulele I have. Then I used my coping saw to cut the slots into the fretboard. More to come this week!
3/24/2010
How to Make a Sock Monkey Tutorial
Making a sock monkey is pretty easy! All you need are a pair of Rockford Red Heel socks, needle & thread, and some stuffing. Some people embroider on the eyes and add eyelashes, but I decided to go with button eyes since it's easier. 
The first step is to turn one sock inside out. Next sew a seam on both sides of the center of the sock starting a few inches from the white heel and across the end of the sock, rounding out the feet. Cut in between the seams and turn the sock right side out. Use the opening left in the crotch to stuff the legs, body and head. I had trouble getting the stuffing into the legs so I used a chop stick. Finish up by sewing the crotch opening closed.
The second sock is used to create the ears, mouth, tail and arms. For the arms cut the upper part of the sock into two pieces lengthwise. Seam, rounding the ends and stuff. For the mouth cut the heel from the sock leaving a brown edge around the white. Fasten on the lower part of the face, stuff and finish sewing around the top. You can sew a stitch of either black or white across the lips, but I left mine plain.
Next, sew on the ears and add the eyes. I thought the button eyes looked really cute, but embroidering them on with black thread works too. If this monkey is being created for a toddler or baby it's probably best to embroider them so there won't be a choking hazard. After completing the face sew on the arms.
The very last step is the tail. Using the one inch strip cut from the second sock, taper to end of cuff, seam and stuff. Then you just need to sew it on his butt! The cap is optional and some people use the toe of an additional sock leaving 1/2 inch of brown to roll for a brim. I was lucky enough to get a cool red knitted cap. You can also add a jacket, vest, skirt or anything else you think would look good on your monkey. That's it! 
3/09/2010
Ralph Bakshi: Surviving in Tough Times
This talk by Ralph Bakshi is why I decided to work on my own stop motion piece. I always wanted to make my own film but thought I could never pull it off. After watching this video I thought, why not?
3/08/2010
Building Props for Stop Motion Animation
The first scene in my short film takes place in a bedroom so I am building the props I will need. Today I made a bed! I used 3/4" and 1/4" square dowels and some thin scrap wood I had. The mattress is 4 layers of corrugated cardboard topped with quilt batting and white fabric. Now I am going to sew a mini quilt for it!
3/06/2010
More Stop Motion Puppet Work
My stop motion puppet is moving beyond being a skeleton and now has skin! I used acrylic felt, embroidery floss and fiber fill to flesh it out. It's not done yet, but getting there.
3/04/2010
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
I've painted 62 art cards and all I have to show for it is carpal tunnel syndrome. Ouch. I'm still going to paint art cards, just not everyday.
3/03/2010
3/02/2010
3/01/2010
Daily ACEO Art Card #60 Thomas Jefferson
I'm continuing with my presidential portraits. Today I painted our third president: Thomas Jefferson. Click Here To Buy This Art Card
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