Suit Shirt

My son is tall and has long arms so most shirt sleeves are too short for him. He's attending a funeral next weekend and when he was home last weekend he tried on the only plain white shirt he has. The sleeves were quite short and he would have liked them showing out of the suit sleeve. So I suggested that I just add some material on to each sleeve. He wouldn't be taking his suit jacket off and no one would know.


I remembered that I had cut a sleeve off of another white shirt to make it into a short-sleeved shirt. I never finished it but I thought that I could use the sleeve material for the extension piece. Unfortunately the sleeves are different widths so I had to cut the suit shirt just above the sleeve placket to get the same width. Then came the problem of how to attach the lower edge to the new piece because they were different widths too. I decided to try the upper edge first to see if it worked before figuring out the lower one. I put the cuff piece inside the sleeve so I could sew the wrong sides together as I wanted to make a flat-felled seam. Then I pulled the cuff piece out so I could iron the new seam to have it easier to trim one of the edges before turning the other one over it.

I was trimming away when it hit me. Duh! Why not just use the the other cuff piece as the cuff piece for the suit shirt and I wouldn't have to fuss with getting the lower edges to match. I'll have to wait to see what my son says but other than switching the buttons if he wants, I don't see that it will matter. (Ok the shirt is flat-felled seamed and the cuff piece serged but who's going to peek in his jacket sleeve?) The sleeve is now 9 cm longer.

Next is trying to narrow the shirt. Sigh.

Shirtmaking

For a few years I've been saying to my son that I should make him a shirt as his arms are too long for store-bought ones and he's so thin. I tend to put off sewing because of my machine, but I need to get started. I've wanted my own pattern, so I'd have the directions and photo too and I finally found one in a Suuri Käsityö Kerho magazine from the recycling center. It's from 1982 though, so I hope it will do.

I started by finding the pieces on the pattern page and writing the numbers on the edge so that they would be easier to find again. I've traced all of the pieces out. I couldn't remember what langansuunta was in English so I just put a T (for thread) everywhere it was written and waited until I had the computer on to look what it was. Grainline of course! Tomorrow's task is to take my son's measurements and compare them to the pattern pieces to see what needs to be changed. I don't know if I'll be able to change them very well but I hope so.

I just sent off my request to Peter at Male Pattern Boldness for an invite to the MPB Men's Shirt Sew-Along. So hopefully seeing all of the other shirts will inspire me.

Today's Question: Do you have any shirt making tips?

Eatting Carrots

I've been eating too much wheat products lately and I was craving something fresh. Not interested in a salad I thought I'd try making a dip out of my veggies. I took a fat carrot and sliced it thinly on the diagonal for my "chips". I wasn't sure how I wanted the dip spiced so I decided to make it first, see how it tasted and then add spices. I liked it so much how it was that I didn't add anything else.

Fresh Dip

2 dl unsalted mixed nuts (I used raw)
½ red pepper, cut in chunks
1 avocado, cut in chunks
1 large mushroom, cut in chunks
1 tomato, cut in chunks
1 tsp lemon juice, or to taste
salt and pepper, to taste

Process nuts in a food processor until small bits. Add rest of ingredients and process until the consistency is to your liking. Serve with carrot chips.


I've been tempted to make carrot squares for a while now as I haven't made them in many years. I seldom frost things unless it is a birthday cake. I thought I'd make the cream cheese frosting to go with it as I've never made it. I licked the beater and didn't like it at all. But I frosted the carrot squares with it and hoped for the best. I was really surprised that once the frosting was on the squares it didn't taste cheesy at all.

Cheese and Crackers

I would like to find a versatile nut cheese recipe. Though this Simple Almond Cheese tasted good and was otherwise easy to make, it wasn't worth the hour it took to peel 2½ dl of soaked almonds. The recipe says to pop off the peels but only about 5 of mine slipped off. The rest I had to scratch off. Good thing for podcasts! I used dried dill instead of garlic. I think I'll try them again but either use unpeeled almonds or buy them peeled.

Spicy Sesame Crackers
2 dl flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ dl oat flour (I made it from rolled oats)
1/4 dl sesame seeds
1 ½ tsp pizza spice
black pepper, to taste
chili powder, to taste
dash salt
50 g margarine
3/4 dl milk

Preheat oven to 200C. Sift flour and baking powder together. Add oat flour, sesame seeds and spices. Cut in margarine until well mixed with dry ingredients. Add milk and stir to blend together. Flour board and roll out dough until thickness desired. (I try to roll it out as thin as possible, but that is just me.) Can use cookie cutter to cut shapes or just cut into squares or other shapes. Prick each cracker twice with fork. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or longer if thick, but check after 8 minutes to see how they are doing.

Starting Off the Year

Last year my son's grandmother gave me 18 balls of some old goldy coloured wool she had and I've set a goal this of trying to knit two rows a day on this Cable and Lace Baby Blanket (Ravelry link) with it. I want to work on something else too but I haven't picked anything. Maybe some sewing? My son hasn't decided what symbols he wants on the extra cross stitch pieces. He feels that the love and happiness signs that came in the same magazine are too common.

My son and his girlfriend went back home today because he has an exam tomorrow. His girlfriend's mother decided to drive them back and so one of the grandmothers and I went along too. It's so quiet here knowing that he won't be coming in the door for a while. We went out for pizza before we left them and I was surprised that I was the only one who couldn't finish theirs. But it's waiting in the fridge for breakfast. Nothing like cold pizzeria pizza for breakfast and I haven't had some for years.

We were told that the water would be off on Tuesday, which meant that the radiators would be cold too. Fortunately for some reason we still got cold water but no heat. As it was around -14°C outside I was expecting the apartment to cool down fast but I was wrong and we didn't have to wear outdoor clothes inside! It was nice being able to wash our hands without fiddling with water containers. In the evening we let the air out of the radiator and got some heat.

Today's question: Do you keep a list of what projects you want to do?

Last Day of the Year

I have a few blogs. I started them, wrote in them for a while and then abandoned them. I've always planned to bring them all together into one blog but I haven't got around to it. I don't know why I have a blog and seldom write in it. I have thought of just deleting it but somehow I don't want to! Though I don't comment often or for many I never do, I read a lot of blogs. And I want one of my own.

So a new goal for next year is to do my best to write here once a week. I also need to go through this blog and add the tags I often forget to write at the end of posts. Let's see how I do.

I only made a few Christmas presents. I forgot to take a picture of the cookies and crackers I gave as a present.

This Fancy Crocheted Cross Bookmark was for my sister.

My son's partner likes turquoise, so when I noticed that this turquoise was no longer in the new colour palatte, I bought a ball so I'd have it if she wanted anything knitted or crocheted from me. When I asked what she'd like for Christmas, she suggested handwarmers and she found the Emerald Green Handwarmer pattern, so I made them. I liked how they turned out. I made a few changes. One being to knit them in the round. It's so much easier than having to fuss with a seam.

I was at a flea market and came across a few CrossStitcher magazines. Issue 190/September 2007 had this free kit with it and I thought that my son might like it. Though the pattern said that it would take 12 hours, it took forever! I didn't even get it done in time for Christmas. I showed him the suggestions in the magazine of how to frame it. One of them was to cross stitch two smaller pieces with Chinese characters on them to place on each side of this piece. That's the one he chose so I'll have to find some matching aida cloth and get them done too.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Babysat Again

I had another fun time with my friend's grandson. We made pizza again though this time we had tinned mushrooms instead of fresh and I think he would have eaten them all straight from the tin if I had let him.

This time we also made cupcakes because he wanted to make something else too. I used this Easy Mix Cocoa Cupcakes recipe because it had oil it and I thought it would be easier for him to handle. I had almost all of the ingredients in their own containers so he could mix them together himself. He also wanted to try everything. I warned him that cocoa powder doesn't taste good but he was willing to try it. He didn't like the oil and buttermilk mix either. He wondered at having to sift the ingredients together (recipes here don't usually call for it.) As I was using a sieve I only sifted them once. When it was time to add the boiling water it was my turn to do the stirring. They turned out well and we enjoyed them.

Babysitting a Six Year Old

A friend of mine had a meeting to go to with her partner. She asked if I could get her grandson from pre-school and take care of him for a few hours until they could come to get him. I've taken care of him before but not for quite a while and I tried to come up with things for us to do.


As he would be with me over dinner time I thought we could make our own pizzas. I measured out the ingredients ahead of time (and forgot to take a picture before he emptied his containers) and had everything ready before he came.


He made his own dough and rolled it out. Then he cut up the turkey slices, red pepper and fresh mushrooms (that he was trying for the first time!). We used ketchup because that is what they used at home. Then a bit of pizza spice. And after he put on his toppings he sprinkled on some cheese. It turned out quite well and he ate almost the whole thing. I'm taking care of him next week too. I wonder if he'll want to do it again. Does anyone have any suggestions for something else we can cook if he doesn't want pizza next time?

Single Serving Pizza Dough
1 dl flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
dash salt
1/4 dl milk (or more if needed)
1 tbsp oil

Pre-heat oven to 200°C. Mix dry together. Mix in wet. Stir with fork until well combined. Use hands to form a ball. Roll out on floured board. Pile on toppings. Bake until cheese has melted but dough hasn't turned too brown (according to my guest).

Candy Roll

When my son was younger I would get him a chocolate advent calendar but as he grew the amount of chocolate for each day seemed so small. So I crocheted a candy holder and put a candy or chocolate in each pocket. Then he grew older still and for a few years I bought enough licorice and small chocolate bars to hang on a bulletin board. The first year I wrapped them in newspaper photos that I had saved up but then we decided that it wasn't necessary to wrap them so I just thumb-tacked them onto the board.


He has moved out but I still asked him this year if he wanted me to put something together for him and he did. I had to get it ready in time for him to take it back with him last weekend because we don't know if he'll be home again before December. I thought of a crayon roll and decided to only make 20 pockets so that wider things could fit in if he wants to use it for something else too. Some of the pockets have more than one treat in them. It isn't too easy anymore finding 25 different small things. I wonder if he will save them until December!

I'm linking this to

Green Beans and Ham

I spoke on the phone the other day with my three year old nephew. We've only talked a few times and we've never met so it isn't always easy to think of things to say. I asked him if he liked to read and he said that he did so I asked him if he knew the story Green Eggs and Ham and I said off by heart 'I am Sam. I am Sam. Sam I am.' He said that he knew it and at the end of the story he (referring to the character) realizes that after trying them he likes green eggs after all. I thought that it was funny that he was able to jump to the end of the story without the book being there. I wonder how often he has heard it.

I haven't been cooking much. Now that I'm on my own it is easier just to have a sandwich (or popcorn). I've enjoyed testing recipes and need to do more. This Thai Inspired Green Quinoa is another of Carla's recipes. Green beans are one of my favourite vegetables but I seldom eat them. It was nice to find a recipe that was easy to make and includes chickpeas too.

Tinned soups aren't very common here. There are dry soups but they always seem to taste so artificial. So I haven't had any cream of something soups since I've lived here. For some reason I started to think would cream of mushroom soup be hard to make from scratch. One of the first recipes that I came across didn't have many ingredients so I decided to try it. It was a Fresh Cream of Mushroom Soup. Simple to make and tasted good the next day. I did use less broth like many of the reviewers suggested. I only made half of the recipe because I had bought the mushrooms before I thought of the soup. I liked it so much that I went back the next day to get more mushrooms but they were all out. Next time I'll be sure to make the whole recipe!