Sunday, March 3, 2013

Hi. Nice to meet you Rolags ~

Whirlwend Rolags by whirlwendy
Whirlwend Rolags, a photo by whirlwendy on Flickr.
Popping-in to give you a tiny peek at what Whirlwend has been up to lately ... expanding my obsession with color by dying and carding fiber for spinning and felting.

The little sweeties I made above are called Rolags. Here is a little video by the  über-talented Michelle Snowdon over at Wooldancer that shows you how to make them + how they can be spun on a wheel to make yarn...



Tip for other Fiberistas making rolags this way :: I'm finding it's a bit easier to roll the fiber off the drum carder when sandwiched between two dowel rods so it doesn't slip.

Check out some of my batts (and rolags very soon) here.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Koi Whirlscarf

Koi Whirlscarf by whirlwendy
Koi Whirlscarf, a photo by whirlwendy on Flickr.

colors . . . remind me of koi gracefully swimming on a sunshiny day . . . brilliant oranges mixed with pinks and hints of purple . . . 


This one-of-a-kind wearable was handspun by me, Wendy, on my spinning wheel from soft cotton fabric wrapped around a pre-spun cotton core. 

Nine, two yard loops. Very versatile. You could wear it long or loop it twice or even three times to make it even cozier.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Pssst! It’s Cookie Time

Peanut Butter Cookies by whirlwendy
Peanut Butter Cookies, a photo by whirlwendy on Flickr.
Did you know March 1st was National Peanut Butter Lovers' Day? In honor (okay, just a coincidence) I made some yummy peanut butter cookies via this recipe.

Decided to take them a step further by adding some sanding sugar on top + punching out smaller cookies to make these über-cute mini versions. Sending these off to a friend, but the outer discarded edges are ALL mine! Mwwaahaha!

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Happy Leap Day!

Enjoy your day! by whirlwendy
Enjoy your day!, a photo by whirlwendy on Flickr.

February 29 is a date that usually occurs every four years, and is called leap day. This day is added to the calendar in leap years as a corrective measure, because the earth does not orbit around the sun in precisely 365 days. { via wikipedia

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Good Korma

Good Korma by whirlwendy
Good Korma, a photo by whirlwendy on Flickr.
It's true, I have a thing for spicy food. And lately I've dusted off my slow cooker to make some stellar Winter soups. Craving more texture+spice, I decided to recreate one of my favorite Indian dishes ~Korma~ as a one pot slow cooked meal. It worked!! Are you ready for the goods? Into the cauldron went...

1 pound boneless skinless chicken { cut into one inch cubes ~ breast or thigh or both
1 huge russet potato { cut into half inch cubes
1 small red onion { chopped
1 sweet yellow onion { coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves { minced ~ psst, i tend to go heavy on garlic to keep the vamps at bay
1 huge chunk of ginger about the size of a thumb { minced ~ i'm a bit crazed on ginger too
1 (14.5 oz) can of stewed tomatoes
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon garam masala { i used my own mix, but you can get this at most groceries
1 tablespoon curry { i used madras
1 teaspoon red chili flakes
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon crushed cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 healthy grinding of pepper
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup or so of chicken broth { optional, could just add water but I had some on hand
3 carrots { peeled and sliced into quarter inch slices ~ added these at halfway point
1 good handful of cherry sized tomatoes { sliced in half ~ added these at halfway point
1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt { at at end before serving

cover + cook on high about 4 hours or on low about 6 to 8 hours ~ enjoy.

/newbie chef extraordinaire, wz

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Season's Greetings ❤

Tried to make my cards simpler to produce this year. Decided to make postcards. All was good until I realized the die-cut heart, that relates to the message on the front and back, could not be punched. Tore apart my favorite heart hand puncher to try to hammer out of paper instead with no avail. After running around town looking for a solution this morning, the best was to die-cut two 1/8 inch holes then hand cut a V. Sending extra ❤ out to everyone this year!!!

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Spiced Apple Whirlscarf

Spiced Apple Whirlscarf

colors . . . remind me of an autumn barrel of apples before becoming spiced cider . . .
candy apple reds mixed with cinnamon browns and bright granny smith apple greens.

This one-of-a-kind scarf was handspun on my wheel, plied with complimentary thread,
then freeform knit by hand. Made from a wonderful corriedale blend wool, kettle
dyed by neauveau.

 The cozy petal-like form connects to wrap interestingly around for a cozy fit and look.

 - - - - - - - - - - - - -
 length = 40 inches / 102 cm.
 width = 5 inches / 10 cm.
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  Go ahead, spice things up!