Sunday, October 30, 2011
And speaking of clothes made of curtains...
We were watching Sound of Music tonight, and I wondered: Maria makes the von Trapps one set of play clothes from the curtains, but where do the other ones come from? In the "Do, Re, Mi" sequence, they all wear a few sets of clothes, but the housekeeper only gave Maria enough to make dresses for herself. Where'd she get the rest of the fabric? Was it a pre-Tim Gunn, "Make it work" moment?
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Chinese Lantern Skirt
I saw this skirt in Threads Magazine and was intrigued. It looked pretty easy, very comfortable, and fun and stylish. I've never cut anything (deliberately) on the bias, so it was a new technique I wanted to try.
I got some grey silky jersey from Fabric.com and the Chinese Lantern Pattern from Fashion in Harmony and was good to go. There are only 2 pattern pieces, 3 pieces of fabric and 5 seams. The hardest part is finding enough space to cut out the fabric.The picture doesn't really do it justice. The fabric is gorgeous, very 40's film star, and the bias cut makes it drape beautifully. I didn't make a drawstring waist, I just used elastic.
I can see wearing this with a t-shirt and flats for running around or with a nicer shirt and heels for a date night or something fancier.
It took me about an hour to sew, even with my learning curve for my narrow-hem foot. I might have to find some other fun fabric and make another one.
Bedsheet Shirt
Not all my projects turn out well. I really only like to talk about the good ones, but trust me when I say I have my own share of failure. Sometimes I just give up and sometimes I have enough gumption (or stupidity and raw materials) to try again.
I had a bunch of cotton broadcloth in a neat black/teal/pink/white design from a project I never started. I figured I'd finally get on the tunic/leggings trend that's been going around and decided to make a long shirt. I found Simplicity 2255 and got started.
Everything was going well until I tried to put the collar on. I couldn't get everthing to line up properly and some sailor-blushing words started coming out of my mouth. I figured I'd cut something, like the buttonhole facing or front pieces, wrong, so I increased my seam allowance (which meant re-doing the hem, due to the pattern) a little. Still no go. I threw it all in the trash.
For some reason, I didn't want to let this fairly easy pattern go without another try. I didn't want to go out and buy a bunch of new fabric in case things didn't work out again. So I looked at what I already had.
And what I already had was a sheet set. I was going to use the flat sheet as a quilt backing, but I had the fitted sheet and pillowcase left over. I cut the elastic off the fitted sheet and cut out my pattern pieces. I eventually figured out that I'd cut the actuall pattern piece for the collar out wrong, so I re-traced it, re-cut it, and had a success.I really like it. It's very comfortable and flattering. There are 2 bust seams and 2 back seams, so there's enough shaping to look good, but not so much you feel squished. I'm a little stumped on how to style it. With black leggings and a black belt, I feel a little 80's, but not in the modern way (is that an oxymoron?). I still have the pillowcase, so I might make a tie belt and some carriers and see how I like it.
It's not quite making clothes out of the curtains, but it was definitely a creative use of my stash.
Chocolate Cherry Cake
This cake is delicious and easy. And gorgeous and impressive. And people will love you for it.
It's the Chocolate-Covered Cherry Cake from Beki Cooks Cake blog. Her taste test on fondant was interesting and helpful. I don't use fondant, but maybe I'll start branching out.
For my cake, I baked the batter in 2 8" rounds, chopped up some of the extra maraschino cherries for the filling and used a buttercream icing mix, which had meringue powder already in it.
My ganache topping wasn't as smooth as hers, but I was more interested in getting the "drips" right than smoothing out the top. It gives it... character, right?
When my friends took their first bite, there was no sound but muffled "mmmmm"s in the room. I love the chocolate/vanilla buttercream combination and the ganache and cherries added even more texture and dimension. I almost cried when I ate the last piece the other day.
It's the Chocolate-Covered Cherry Cake from Beki Cooks Cake blog. Her taste test on fondant was interesting and helpful. I don't use fondant, but maybe I'll start branching out.For my cake, I baked the batter in 2 8" rounds, chopped up some of the extra maraschino cherries for the filling and used a buttercream icing mix, which had meringue powder already in it.
My ganache topping wasn't as smooth as hers, but I was more interested in getting the "drips" right than smoothing out the top. It gives it... character, right?
When my friends took their first bite, there was no sound but muffled "mmmmm"s in the room. I love the chocolate/vanilla buttercream combination and the ganache and cherries added even more texture and dimension. I almost cried when I ate the last piece the other day.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Robot Dress
As I've mentioned before, both my girls love robots. We've gone from Wall-E to Transformers, which means Star Wars can't be far behind.
My girls are also girly-girls, which means sparkly shoes, dresses and twirly dresses. The combination is all sorts of awesome and I hope it lasts.
I found some adorable pink and orange robot fabric (called I Heart Robots) and knew I had to make a dress out of it. I found a really cute Simplicity/Project Runway pattern and went to work.
I love it, and The Bean loves it. The Belly is going through a phase where she only wants to wear, like, 3 dresses, so I haven't made one for her yet. The dress pattern is also really easy to make and customize, so I might have to make some other dresses for them from the same pattern.
My girls are also girly-girls, which means sparkly shoes, dresses and twirly dresses. The combination is all sorts of awesome and I hope it lasts.
I found some adorable pink and orange robot fabric (called I Heart Robots) and knew I had to make a dress out of it. I found a really cute Simplicity/Project Runway pattern and went to work.
I love it, and The Bean loves it. The Belly is going through a phase where she only wants to wear, like, 3 dresses, so I haven't made one for her yet. The dress pattern is also really easy to make and customize, so I might have to make some other dresses for them from the same pattern.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Black and White Chocolate Cake
Sometimes a recipe just jumps out from a blog, website, book, etc. For me, the latest to catch my eye was the Black and White Chocolate Cake from Dorie Greenspan's From My Home to Yours.
(Actually, I've been dying to make the cake on the cover ever since I got the book, but I need to find a good high-altitude 7-Minute Icing recipe.)
I liked the combination of chocolate flavors, that it was a little more intricate than the things I'd been baking lately, and that it had components that I could make in stages, ahead of assembling time.
I didn't have any chocolate bars large enough for shavings or curls, so I made a stencil with my Silhouette and dusted the top with cocoa powder. It's not as clean as I'd like, but it wasn't bad for a first try. The design is fairly intricate, and I needed to press the stencil into the white chocolate cream more so the cocoa powder wouldn't "bleed" underneath it.
The layers weren't as clean as I'd like. As a habit, I automatically halve the chemical leavener in any recipe to adjust for altitude, but I think I needed to leave a little more in so the layers would be higher. (Also, my cutting technique could use some help.)
It's a very delicious, fancy-looking, make-ahead cake. I definitely liked experimenting with the stencil and need to find another recipe to try it with soon.
Black-And-White Chocolate Cake
For the Cake:
For the Dark Chocolate Cream:
For the White Chocolate Whipped Cream:
Chocolate shavings or curls for decoration (optional)
Getting Ready:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350degrees F. Butter two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans, dust insides with flour, tap out the excess and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.
To Make the Cake:
Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. Add the eggs one by one, and then the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla; don't be concerned if the mixture looks curdled. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, adding the dry ingredients in 3 additions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients); scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and mix only until the ingredients disappear into the batter.
Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.Bake for 28 to 30 minutes, rotating the pans at the midway point. When fully baked, the cakes will be golden and springy to the touch and a thin knife inserted into the centers will come out clean. Transfer the cakes to a rack and cool for about 5 minutes, then unmold, remove the paper and invert to cool to room temperature right side up on the rack.
To Make the Dark Chocolate Cream:
Bring the milk to a boil.
Meanwhile, in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar, cornstarch and salt until thick and well blended. Whisking without stopping, drizzle in about 1/4 cup of the hot milk--this will temper, or warm, the yolks so they won't curdle--then, still whisking, add the remainder of the milk in a steady stream. Put the pan over medium heat and, whisking vigorously, constantly and thoroughly (make sure to get into the edges of the pan), bring the mixture to a boil. Keep at a boil, still whisking, for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.
Whisk in the melted chocolate, and let stand for 5 minutes. Then whisk in the pieces of butter, stirring until they are fully incorporated and the chocolate cream is smooth and silky. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the cream to create an airtight seal and refrigerate the cream until chilled, or for up to 3 days. Or, if you want to cool the cream quickly, put the bowl with the cream into a larger bowl filled with ice cubes and cold water and stir the cream occasionally until it is thoroughly chilled, about 20 minutes.
To Make the White Chocolate Whipped Cream:
Put the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl and put the bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Stir frequently to melt the chocolate evenly. Meanwhile, bring 1/2 cup of the heavy cream to a boil.
When the white chocolate is melted, remove the bowl from the pan. Pour the hot cream into the melted chocolate and let it sit for a minute. Using a small spatula, stir the chocolate gently until it is smooth. Let it sit on the counter until it reaches room temperature--it can't be the least bit warm when you add it to the whipped cream.
Working with the stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the remaining 1 cup heavy cream only until it holds the softest peaks. Turn the machine to high, add the cooled white chocolate all at once and continue to beat until the whipped cream holds firm peaks. Turn the whipped cream into a bowl, press a piece of plastic wrap gently against the surface to create an airtight seal and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 6 hours.
To Assemble the Cake:
If the tops of the cake layers have crowned, use a long serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to even them. Slice each layer horizontally in half. Place one layer cut side down on a cardboard cake round or on a cake plate protected by strips of wax or parchment paper.
Remove the dark and white chocolate creams from the refrigerator and whisk each of them vigorously to loosen and smooth them. With a long metal icing spatula, spread enough dark chocolate cream (about 1 cup) over the cake layer to cover it completely. Top the cream with another cake layer, cut side up, and cover this layer with white chocolate whipped cream, making the white layer about the same thickness as the dark layer. Cover with a third layer, cut side up, and cover with another cup of so of the dark chocolate cream. (You'll have some dark chocolate cream left over--use it as a dip for madeleines or sables). Top with the final layer of cake, cut side down, and frost the sides and top with the remaining white chocolate whipped cream. If you'd like to decorate the top with chocolate shavings or curls, do it now.
Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or overnight.
(Actually, I've been dying to make the cake on the cover ever since I got the book, but I need to find a good high-altitude 7-Minute Icing recipe.)
I liked the combination of chocolate flavors, that it was a little more intricate than the things I'd been baking lately, and that it had components that I could make in stages, ahead of assembling time.
I didn't have any chocolate bars large enough for shavings or curls, so I made a stencil with my Silhouette and dusted the top with cocoa powder. It's not as clean as I'd like, but it wasn't bad for a first try. The design is fairly intricate, and I needed to press the stencil into the white chocolate cream more so the cocoa powder wouldn't "bleed" underneath it. 
The layers weren't as clean as I'd like. As a habit, I automatically halve the chemical leavener in any recipe to adjust for altitude, but I think I needed to leave a little more in so the layers would be higher. (Also, my cutting technique could use some help.)
It's a very delicious, fancy-looking, make-ahead cake. I definitely liked experimenting with the stencil and need to find another recipe to try it with soon.
Black-And-White Chocolate Cake
For the Cake:
- 2 cups cake flour
- 2 t baking powder
- 1/8 t baking soda
- 1/4 t salt
- 1 1/4 sticks (10 T) unsalted butter, room temp.
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 t pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
For the Dark Chocolate Cream:
- 2 cups whole milk
- 4 large egg yolks
- 6 T sugar
- 3 T cornstarch, sifted
- 1/4 t salt
- 7 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted
- 2 1/2 T unsalted butter, cut into 5 pieces, at room temp
For the White Chocolate Whipped Cream:
- 6 oz premium quality white chocolate (such as Valrhona Ivoire or Guittard), finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Chocolate shavings or curls for decoration (optional)
Getting Ready:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350degrees F. Butter two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans, dust insides with flour, tap out the excess and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.
To Make the Cake:
Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. Add the eggs one by one, and then the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla; don't be concerned if the mixture looks curdled. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, adding the dry ingredients in 3 additions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients); scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and mix only until the ingredients disappear into the batter.
Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.Bake for 28 to 30 minutes, rotating the pans at the midway point. When fully baked, the cakes will be golden and springy to the touch and a thin knife inserted into the centers will come out clean. Transfer the cakes to a rack and cool for about 5 minutes, then unmold, remove the paper and invert to cool to room temperature right side up on the rack.
To Make the Dark Chocolate Cream:
Bring the milk to a boil.
Meanwhile, in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar, cornstarch and salt until thick and well blended. Whisking without stopping, drizzle in about 1/4 cup of the hot milk--this will temper, or warm, the yolks so they won't curdle--then, still whisking, add the remainder of the milk in a steady stream. Put the pan over medium heat and, whisking vigorously, constantly and thoroughly (make sure to get into the edges of the pan), bring the mixture to a boil. Keep at a boil, still whisking, for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.
Whisk in the melted chocolate, and let stand for 5 minutes. Then whisk in the pieces of butter, stirring until they are fully incorporated and the chocolate cream is smooth and silky. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the cream to create an airtight seal and refrigerate the cream until chilled, or for up to 3 days. Or, if you want to cool the cream quickly, put the bowl with the cream into a larger bowl filled with ice cubes and cold water and stir the cream occasionally until it is thoroughly chilled, about 20 minutes.
To Make the White Chocolate Whipped Cream:
Put the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl and put the bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Stir frequently to melt the chocolate evenly. Meanwhile, bring 1/2 cup of the heavy cream to a boil.
When the white chocolate is melted, remove the bowl from the pan. Pour the hot cream into the melted chocolate and let it sit for a minute. Using a small spatula, stir the chocolate gently until it is smooth. Let it sit on the counter until it reaches room temperature--it can't be the least bit warm when you add it to the whipped cream.
Working with the stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the remaining 1 cup heavy cream only until it holds the softest peaks. Turn the machine to high, add the cooled white chocolate all at once and continue to beat until the whipped cream holds firm peaks. Turn the whipped cream into a bowl, press a piece of plastic wrap gently against the surface to create an airtight seal and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 6 hours.
To Assemble the Cake:
If the tops of the cake layers have crowned, use a long serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to even them. Slice each layer horizontally in half. Place one layer cut side down on a cardboard cake round or on a cake plate protected by strips of wax or parchment paper.
Remove the dark and white chocolate creams from the refrigerator and whisk each of them vigorously to loosen and smooth them. With a long metal icing spatula, spread enough dark chocolate cream (about 1 cup) over the cake layer to cover it completely. Top the cream with another cake layer, cut side up, and cover this layer with white chocolate whipped cream, making the white layer about the same thickness as the dark layer. Cover with a third layer, cut side up, and cover with another cup of so of the dark chocolate cream. (You'll have some dark chocolate cream left over--use it as a dip for madeleines or sables). Top with the final layer of cake, cut side down, and frost the sides and top with the remaining white chocolate whipped cream. If you'd like to decorate the top with chocolate shavings or curls, do it now.
Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or overnight.
Friday, September 16, 2011
One apron, two ways
My friend, S, is raising money to walk in the Atlanta Breast Cancer walk this fall and is hosting a silent auction to help. I was very happy to make a few things, which will hopefully sell, to assist.
I found the Shimmy, Shake and Bake apron and coordinating Too Hot to Handle oven mit in Denyse Schmidt's Quilts book. (Side note: I'm still working on the bed quilt. I'm quilting by hand during naptime, so it's taking a while.)
I had a bunch of Paris-themed fabric left over from some other projects, so I started with that. The scale of the fabric pattern worked really well with the piecing for the apron pocket. I was even able to cut the Eiffel Tower out so it worked in the design. And I thought the pink was a nice counterpoint to the black, and also fits with the breast cancer awareness theme.
I also had a bunch of fabric left over from making dresses for The Bean last summer, so I went ahead and made a second set. It's a little more 60's-ish, with the colors and dots, but also fun and funky.
They were really easy and quick to put together, and I was able to use fabric I already had in my stash. I highly recommend these patterns if you want to make a personalized home-type gift for someone.
We'll see how they sell this weekend.
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