The Lovers, The Dreamers and Muppets

 

Yesterday, I needle-felted a new, old friend.

Kermit the Frog was my first love. When I was a little girl, I was a HUGE Muppet fan. I loved the Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, Sesame Street...I had plush versions of all of the characters, and would line them up next to me in bed before I fell asleep. Kermit was always on my left. Gonzo was usually on my right. Piggie, (that pushy frog-chasing hussy), was placed strategically at the end of the line after Rowlf, or Dr. Bunsen Honeydew.

So you can imagine my surprise and pleasure when I recently saw an OK GO Video for the Muppet Show theme song, learned that there was an ENTIRE album of Muppet tribute songs, 

AND a new Muppet Movie due out on November 23rd! I was so excited I went into an Animal-style freak out of happiness!!!!


Then started missing all of my old plush Muppet-y friends. And that was when I knew I needed to get out the needle-felting supplies. 

I'm hoping to needle-felt the whole gang. But the bust o' Kermit was my first attempt. I didn't have the right kind of green I needed for his skin, so I blended two colors together until I had an olive green, and a lime green for his collar. 

I kept working my needle, and looking at photos of Kermy until his familiar, loving face began to emerge from the piles of fluff. 

When I was done needle-felting, I was so happy to see my old friend, I took him outside to show him around... we stopped in the pumpkin patch for a while,

I taught him about Venus Fly Traps, and warned him not to get too close, 

And then we came back inside, and decided to put on a classic movie... in part, so we could both see old friends!

Hope you like my needle-felted Kermit the Frog! I'm so happy with him, that I've already started a second one- this time, his whole body! 

Who was your favorite Muppet? Who should I needle-felt next? Fozzie Bear? Beaker? Sweetums?

Baking Buttermilk Bread

This weekend included trampoline-jumping, swimming with nephews and nieces, party decorating, lots of cooking & baking, and tons of recipe-sharing. Some are family recipes I'm happy to have married into, some come from treasured cookbooks with dog-eared pages and notes in the margins. All of the recipes were favorites of this bride-to-be and made her wedding shower that much more special.

The party was on Saturday afternoon. On Friday afternoon, I was taught by my sis-in-law Melissa, how to make a delicious Buttermilk Bread. This bread is crusty on the outside, and so moist and tender on the inside. It's great for sandwiches, or just for nibbling on all day long! 

The recipe comes from the cookbook, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. BOTH of my SIL's swear by this book. Inevitably, I'm going to have to buy my own copy so that I can stop stealing theirs.

In the meantime, I'm sharing this recipe with you. This recipe makes three 1 1/2 pound loaves.

2 cups lukewarm water
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast (2 packets)
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
6 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
butter or neutral-tasting oil for greasing the loaf pan

Mix the yeast, salt, and sugar with water and buttermilk in a 5-quart bowl, or a lidded (not airtight) food container.

Mix in the flour without kneading, using a strong handled spoon, a 14-cup capacity food processor (with dough attachment), or a heavy-duty stand mixer (with dough hook).  If you're not using a machine, wet your hands to incorporate the last bit of flour.

Cover (not airtight), and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top); approximately 2 hours.

The dough can be used immediately after the initial rise, though it is much easier to handle when cold.  Refrigerate in a lidded (not airtight) container and use over the next 7 days.

On baking day, lightly grease a 9 x 4 x 3-inch nonstick loaf pan. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 1/2 pound (cantaloupe-size) piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides.

Drop the loaf into the prepared pan.  Fill the pan slightly more than half-full.

Allow the dough to rest for 2 hours.  Flour the top of the loaf and slash, using the tip of a serrated bread knife.  Brush the top with melted butter. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown.

Remove from the pan.  Wait for the bread to cool completely before slicing.

And note that while we made the dough on Friday, we didn't bake it until Saturday morning. The dough keeps for 7-days, so don't feel like you have to kill yourself to do it all in one day! 

In my opinion, there is nothing better than the smell of fresh-baked bread, so if you have a busy and stressful week ahead of you, I'd suggest you make this dough one night, and bake it the following night when you get home from work! Mmmm the soothing powers of fresh-baked buttermilk bread...

Photo Saturday: Bridal Bliss

This weekend I had the pleasure of being with my lovely niece who is getting married this fall. I know it's late in the day, but I wanted to dedicate this Photo Saturday to her and share with YOU, this photo of the bride-to-be, floating away under a bouquet of balloons. Ahhh wedding bliss!!

Paper Garlands for a Fall Bride

Chances are that while you're read this, I'm in a mini-van with my sister-n-law and four children cruising through the hottest part of California to attend a wedding shower for one of my nieces. The big event is in October, and her color palette is chock-full of fab autumn colors. Being the crafty aunt I am, I volunteered to make a few garland prototypes. She can choose her fave, and I'll make the rest to hang at the reception. 

We both agree that the look of a fabric pom-pom (like the one I made here) is to-die-for. But guess what. ONE fabric pom-pom uses almost A YARD OF FABRIC to make! Crazy. I experimented with smaller, hand-sewn pom-poms that used less fabric, but when one sister-in-law said they resembled "used tissues" I got a bit flustered with fabric, and moved on to my old friend, paper. 

Using a 3 1/2 inch diameter scalloped punch, I quickly cut circles out of some fall-colored paper I'd picked up at Michael's. (Cutting the fabric took FOREVER by the way.) 

I folded the circles in half, and half again. I then opened the folded circles so that the creases were visible. I squished all four sides, so that the circle resembled a square, and then pressed two opposing sides together. (What?! Photos below... )

Using quick-drying Elmer's glue, I glued 5 of the pieces together to make a circle (see 8th image from top.) Then I glued in two more folded pieces on each side of my paper circle, and held the whole thing together with wooden clothes pins until the glue set. 

Each paper pom-pom uses 9 round, and takes about 5-minutes to make from start to finish. I completed 9 paper pom-poms, and ran a needle and thread through the set to see how they looked. Just about as adorable as the fabric pom-pom in my opinion...

But I am bringing all of my fabric attempts, and the dainty needle-felted heart garland I also made (seen here above the paper pom-poms) but ultimately, it's up to my niece... keep ya posted on what she likes best! (And PS- If she doesn't love the paper pom-poms, they will be strung above my couch on a permanent basis! I'm love how her colors match my circa 2001 Ikea blanket! 

Knitting a Jute Satchel

The first time I used my round loom for knitting, it was to make a collection of soft squishy beanies for a few kids I love. This time, I wanted to turn things around and knit a bag that I could use to hold my water, sunblock, and camera while out on a late-summer/early fall hike, or for collecting shells, driftwood and salty treasures at the beach.

Since I'm on a budget, and wanted to knit a satchel durable enough to handle the great outdoors, I stole borrowed 2 bundles of jute cord from the garage, used my 8-inch diameter round loom, and 3.5mm straight bamboo knitting needles, and to complete my bag, I also used the plastic sewing needle that came with the loom kit, a wooden bead for my bag clasp, and a pair of scissors. 

Casting onto straight needles is a bit different from casting onto a round loom. In my last loom-knitting post, I referenced these YouTube video for help casting on and casting off the loom. I still think they are extremely helpful if you have never cast on a loom before. Once you cast on the loom, you can basically keep on knitting until you reach the length of bag you want. 

After knitting/purling about 30 rows, I cast off the loom, and set aside the now-finished sack portion of my purse. 

I grabbed my bamboo knitting needles, cast on 6 stitches (cast on more if you want a wider strap) and knitted until the strap was long enough to cover my torso (130 rows was my magic number- but keep in mind that I'm very tall, and like a super low-slung satchel.)

Once I had my strap done. I cast off the needles, and cast on another 16 stitches to make an outer flap for the bag, so that I could close and secure it. I knit/purled 12 rows, and dropped a stitch somewhere along the way (I'd like to say it was on purpose...) Since my little flap now had an open spot in the knitting, I grabbed a wooden bead that would fit through the hole, and decided to use my mistake as a make-shift button hole. 

Using the plastic needle that came with the loom knitting kit, I used a few lengths of the extra jute fiber to attach the purse straps to the inside of the bag (if you find that your straps are too long, you can simply tuck more of your strap into the purse before you attaching it.  I also sewed my flap to the top of one side of my purses opening, and then sewed in the wooden button when I knew where the hole would line up. 

When my bag was complete, I was immediately pleased with it! It's sturdy enough with the jute fibers, that it can handle desert hikes, and beachy days, and since it's knitted, sand and dirt sift right out of this bag, and if I'm carrying a water-bottle with a lose cap, there's no problem if the bag gets a little wet!

I've already started my next outdoor bag out of cotton cord, since I like the durability of this bag so much. 

Perhaps I can come up with a design manly enough for my husband to want to wear one while we are out in the wild- so I won't have to carry his stuff too!

Photo Saturday: Student Terrariums!

I just got home from my Make-Your-Own Terrarium class at the Urban Craft Center! My students were incredible, and we had tons of fun making and decorating our terrariums. 

Here's a quick shot off of my phone. I just loved all of the great accents the students used in each piece. Hope you are all having a fun and crafty weekend!

Last Chance for the Terrarium Class!!

There are a couple of spots left for this Saturday's Build-Your-Own Terrarium class at the Urban Craft Center in Santa Monica, CA! 

I have sooo many rad plants all ready for you to pot up in a cute terrarium and bring home! From bug-eating plants, to bizarre-looking succulents... you are in for a treat!

Call the Urban Craft Center today (310) 392-0139 to reserve your spot for THIS SATURDAY's class from 12-2pm! 

Celebrating Summer with Cherry Turn-Overs

 

Fresh cherries make me exceeding happy. I was the little girl who ate cherries until she was ill. Every summer. For more summers than I care to admit. It never deterred me from cherries. Should this behavior have been a warning sign? I say no- and continue collecting recipes that showcase my sweet, pitted addiction. This weekend, fresh off a week-long summer cold that annoyed me to no end, I took back my kitchen, and baked up some cherry turn-overs.

A woman I used to work with had posted this recipe on her blog. I was inspired, and since I had a family dinner to attend on Saturday, I thought turn-overs were the perfect dessert for portioning out sweets to a large group of hungry relatives. I dusted off my own cherry turn-over recipe and got to work.

Crust:

Puff Pastry (Normally, I like to make my own, but I was still low on energy)

Filling:

About 3/4 pound fresh, washed and pitted cherries

2 Tbsp granulated white sugar
1 Tbsp finely grated lemon zest
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 Tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp salt

 
2 Tablespoons milk for sealing

Coarse grain sugar for dusting


First, pre-heat your oven to 375°F. Then wash, and pit your cherries. Note, this could take forever if you don't have an awesome cherry-pitter (as I do not.)

Then, in a large bowl, mix the cherries with sugar, lemon zest & juice, almond extract, cornstarch and salt and set aside until ready to fill the turnovers.

 

Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll it out to about 1/8 inch.

 

Using a biscuit cutter or inverted bowl, cut out as many rounds as your dough will allow. Knead the scraps of dough together to roll out and minimize waste. Try to not to do this too many times, I find that store-bought puff-pastry doesn't like to be "over-worked."

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking (Silpat) mats and place dough rounds onto prepared baking sheets. Pile a couple of spoonfuls of cherries onto half of each dough round.

 

Brush the fruit-side edge of the turnover with milk, and carefully fold the sides together. Use a fork to seal the pouches closed. Use a sharp knife to carefully cut slits in the top of each turnover to allow steam to escape while baking. Brush the tops of the turnovers with a beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse sugar.  Bake turnovers on bottom and top third racks for 15 minutes. Then rotate the sheets and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack.

Serve warm or at room temperature, with vanilla ice cream. These are a crowd-pleaser for all ages!

And I'm proud to say that I did NOT eat these until I became sick... in case you were wondering ;)

DIY Terrarium Class at the Urban Craft Center!

Hey Los Angeles friends! I'm teaching a "Build-Your-Own Terrarium" class at the Urban Craft Center THIS SATURDAY from Noon-2pm!

To sign up for this awesome class, call the UCC at 310-392-0139, email them at: hello@theurbancraftcenter.com or drop by the studio any time during normal business hours (11-7 daily) before This Friday! 

Will you choose a bug-eating carnivorous plant terrarium? Or a desert-scape succulent terrarium? 

Only $45 for your very own terrarium of radness! Space is limited, so sign up now! See you Saturday!

xoxo

radmegan

UCC Contact info:

310.392.0139 * hello@theurbancraftcenter.com * 2433 Main Street, Santa Monica, CA 90405