Thanksgiving, spinning and yes, even an FO…
…happened over this past long weekend.
Thanksgiving…happened. Everyone told me it was fine and I know I sound pretty annoying when I talk about it but I was beyond disappointed with my dry turkey and burned stuffing. I’ve been doing this for at least 12 years now, you’d think I’d have it down. I’m consoling myself with the knowledge that RR’s deep-fried turkey was moist and delicious so our guests were able to combine his with my bone-dry offering so it was hardly noticeable. What did I learn from this experience? I won’t be in such a hurry to put the thing in the oven next year and I’m done with 20+lb birds. Done.
On the plus side, it made great soup (I started with this recipe - and then messed with it):
In my defense, I was jarred out of a lovely dreamless sleep in the pre-dawn hours by the freaking fire pager. The dispatcher announced that there was a car accident and where - I put two and two together immediately, RR was a bit slower. Someone lost control of their car on the way to work at the end of our driveway:
See the car 2nd from the right in the picture? That’s my Jeep. I told you RR was a bit slow in figuring out where the accident was. ;o) This lovely wake up call messed me up for the rest of the day - I was not prepared to be up at 6 (I didn’t go to sleep the night before until about 3ish).
Okay, whining is over.
Next, the spinning!
Remember this (on the left)?
After spinning all 8oz for (what felt like) 100 years, it became 750+ yards of Navajo plied fingering weight:
Two skeins since I couldn’t fit it all onto the Sonata plying head. One skein is 200+ and the other 550+ yards. Just as I was finishing up with the plying, Kelli aka Knitter Bunny brought these to my attention. She said they knit up quickly so I thought I’d give them a try - guess what, she’s right! Even with Thanksgiving, I finished these up in a couple of nights of knitting while watching TV:
Pattern: Serpentine Mitts by Miriam Felton (free pattern).
You can see my Ravelry project page here.
Yarn: My handspun - Crown Mountain Farms pencil roving in Amethyst spun to a 3-ply fingering weight. (I’m pretty sure I still have enough left for matching socks)
Needle: Knitpicks classic circular size 2.5mm
Thoughts: I like this pattern, it was fun and quick to knit. You think they’ll be too tight, but if you follow the directions and measure (and trust the designer) they fit like a glove. (no pun intended…) This was also my first thumb gusset - it was easy! Go knit a pair! ;o)
Tags: FO 2007, hands, handspun projects, Spinning
Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.
November 27th, 2007 at 1:06 pm
I’m sorry your turkey was burned. I prefer a 13-15lb bird for the best cooking and eating experience.
Love your new mitts, I just added them to my Ravelry queue.
November 27th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Don’t feel badly about the bird. It’s hard to remember something that you only do once a year. At least, you didn’t have to worry about how long RR would be gone that morning. ;^)
Great mitts and beautiful spinning!
November 27th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
The whole dry turkey thing is why I will forever be a deep fried turkey convert. Plus? Brian makes the turkey so it’s one less thing I have to mess with!
Ohhhh…I need to make myself some mitts, and that pattern is beautiful! Yours are really gorgeous. Thanks for sharing!
November 27th, 2007 at 2:38 pm
Wow, you obviously have the navajo plying down, I’m still trying to get it to look good! Beautiful job on that!
November 27th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Yikes! Another too-close incident to your house (I remember the electrical fire of a few months ago).
I’m glad to hear your Thanksgiving was ok. At least over, at any rate.
Finally, how many yards you think you used in the mitts?
November 27th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
I just added those lovely mitts to my queue as well - gorgeous. I’m glad you survived Thanksgiving and I understand completely the disappointment of the meal you slaved over. Tell everybody that you need the time to pout and process and they can take their reassurances elsewhere. I don’t know why but the perfectionist in me does not like it when people try to tell me everything is fine and that they liked it anyway.
November 27th, 2007 at 3:57 pm
Holy COW! The yarn is gorgeous, even better looking than it was on the bobbin. Man, that’s some sexy fiber. I wanna see! Can you bring both yarn and mitts the next time I see you? Please? (with sugar on top)
Sorry about your turkey, but remember… your family and friends love you, and it’s not about how perfect you are. It’s about the fact that you took the time and tried so hard. You rock, and don’t you forget it.
November 27th, 2007 at 4:23 pm
Wait. RR drove to the scene? I guess early morning can do that to you
The yarn and mitts look great! Very, very nice, and now in the queue.
November 27th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
Thanks for the pointer to the gloves , just what I was looking for. Try putting the turkey in an oven bag, take it out a 1/2 hr or so before serving and it will finish cooking and let the juices soak back in,works for other roasts too. But you know, with plenty of fixin’s and gravy, I doubt few people except the cook really notices what state a turkey is in as long as its brown on the outside and its not raw! I’m sure everyone enjoyed the meal regardless.
November 27th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
wow, the yarn looks great.
having never made a turkey, i never complain.
November 27th, 2007 at 10:21 pm
What gorgeous yarn! I remember you spinning it and I wondered what you would make with it. Those fingerless mitts are lovely (and with my cold hands typing right now, I’m thinking perhaps I need a pair!)
November 27th, 2007 at 10:27 pm
Gorgeous spinning! It became a lovely set of fingerless mitts too.
I’ll have to take a closer look at that soup. I’m planning on making a turkey soup with the rest of our leftovers.
November 27th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
Clearly you did not serve enough alcohol, or else no one would notice a burned turkey. Hell, they probably would have accepted PB&J if the martinis were good.
And that handspun yarn is so gorgeous I want to eat it. (Better than turkey, for sure!)
November 28th, 2007 at 7:25 am
I am beyond impressed at your yarn. I just Navajo plied something I expected to be worsted but it came out bulky. Still nice, but still.
The colors are beautiful and the mitts are lovely. I’ve been commissioned by my daughter to knit two pairs of them for her teachers (surprise to me!) and this pattern is on my short list.
November 28th, 2007 at 9:26 am
Love the mitts!
November 28th, 2007 at 10:13 am
I’m of firm belief that the turkey is to blame and not the cook. Some are wonderful and juicy, others aren’t and I’d challenge Martha Stewart herself to contend with the latter. Hope nobody was seriously injured in that accident. The yarn and mitts are absolutely beautiful! I’m heading out to download the free pattern immediately. Isn’t the internet and blogging wonderful for knitters?! Take care.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:28 am
Sorry to hear about your Turkey. I know how annoying it is when the turkey dosn’t come out right. It sounds like everything worked out in the end and that soup looks so good!
Beautiful handspun and gorgeous mitts! I think might just have to make those.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:02 pm
Your mitts came out great! Those are on my definite, have to knit, list.
Sorry your turkey came out dry. I’ve made a few dry ones myself over the years. I didn’t cook at all this year, which worked for me.
November 29th, 2007 at 10:57 am
Nice Matters. That’s why I’ve nominated you for the award. Please click through to my blog for the details.
November 29th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
Sorry to hear that Turkeyday was less than perfect.
You definitely have a beautiful pair of new mitts to cheer you up though! Love the colors!
December 1st, 2007 at 2:52 pm
The yarn you spun is fantastic! The mitts are gorgeous.
