Hummus :)

Okay! Okay! Hummus

15 ounce can of garbonzo beans - drain and set liquid aside
1 clove fresh garlic
2 tblsp tahini or 1/4 cup of sesame seeds
1 tbsp of olive oil (I sometimes omit this with good results)
1 tsp powdered garlic or 2 tsp if you have no fresh on hand
2 tsp tamari or regular soy sauce if you have no tamari
2 tsp cut pimento
1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

Put beans and all ingredients into food processor or blender and blend until smooth. If you like incredibly thick Hummus then omit any of the reserved bean liquid. If you want to use as a spread rather than a dip....add up to half of the reserved liquid. Chill for at least an hour for flavors to meld.

Test other additions such as jalepenos, black olives (drained), onion, green onion, sun-dried tomatoes. ENJOY!

TWITTER FRIENDS

Twitter friends,

Thanks for stopping by to answer these questions. I truly appreciate your time and help:) Drawing for free gift will be held on December 15th from names of all who chose to respond. One winner-one GREAT gift :)

I am curious as to whether my knitting and crochet friends purchase small yardage samples/accent yarns to add to projects?

Would it be practical to offer 5-25 yard sample/accent skeins? Priced between $2.00-$5.50 :)

If you liked the colorway/colors would you purchase several skeins in order to make a project?

What weight/wpi do you find most useful for accent yarn?

****Please just add your answers as a comment and I will get an email with the information****


The reason that I am asking is that with watching my grand-daughter nearly full-time and other household duties, I am finding it difficult to spend a week(on what would normally take a day and a half) making 150-200 yards of two-ply yarn. I love to spin and have mastered spinning navajo ply-as-you-go. On my small Bosworth this gives me about 20 yards per skein of three-ply yarn. I have tons of wool which I wish to get spun and out of my storage, so I am looking for a workable way to do this and your answers will certainly help with my decision on how to proceed.

Gloves Complete and No Cooking Tomorrow!

I finished the hand-dyed hand-knit fingerless gloves last night. Here they are:




I have enough of this yarn left to make another pair of similar gloves :)

Lately I have figured out the technique for navajo-plying as you go. I watched a video several months ago and it finally sank in that this could work. The disadvantage is that the largest skein I get on my small spindle is about 20 yards. That is an ideal amount if someone just plans to use the yarn for embellishments or a few stripes in a sock, but anything larger will require dealing with the small knots. Personally I never have problems with hiding the small knots. The only item where knots prove ominous is socks-knots in sock cuff ok, but not anywhere else.

I will try making some bulky yarn with navajo-plying on one of my larger spindles and see what I get for yardage there. If anyone has any tips or suggestions feel free to leave a comment :)

Almost done with the first fingerless glove of the order. There will be plenty of yarn left for another pair if anyone should wish to order :)

My favorite part is the spiral striping...so cool!

Studio Tour Update and more.

The Studio Tour weekend (two weeks ago) went very well. There were 50+ visitors during the two day tour. Financially the weekend was a little off from last years event. There was a 25% decrease in sales, but I did make a point of letting folks know that I take custom orders at any time :) and this has already proved fruitful.

On Monday, I dyed some 70% merino and 30% silk yarn black and sapphire blue for a customer who had purchased one pair of fingerless gloves during the event and wanted another pair for herself. The yarn is dry and I can start knitting today! Monday morning and afternoon I knitted a pair of baby fingerless gloves in a new pattern.




Monday evening, Tuesday and part of yesterday I knitted a scarf for my hubby as an anniversary present.



Last night I crocheted a scarf and most of a beanie while watching "A Night at the Opera." This is a gift to a friend's daughter who just loved this neon bright and bulky yarn that was donated to the local art center.


Wow........I need sunglasses to look at the picture :)

New Family Member

Four weeks ago we were blessed with this beautiful addition to our pet family. Her name is CoCo and she is 16 weeks old. She was headed to the Humane Society and my hubby just would not let that happen.

Upcoming Studio Tour Weekend

On November 8th and 9th, NaturallySpun will be participating in Tacoma's Studio Tour Weekend. You can visit and view my latest creations at Tacoma Art Place located at 1116 S 11th St., Tacoma, WA. The event will last from 10:00-4:00 both days. There will be spinning demonstrations, fiber information, and a great give-away. Also, there will be a special item for purchase with 1/2 of the proceeds to benefit Tacoma Art Place. Please stop by and browse for Holiday gifts with NaturallySpun.