Farmish Momma

apple butter and boot cuffs

By Tricia on November 20, 2013 in Knits and Crochet, Uncategorized

I finally found the box that holds all my boots. Funny how a little thing like a pair of boots (or two, OK, four) can suddenly make your once bare looking closet feel like it is full of possibility. With this nippy weather and mornings full of frost, a pair of boots really does make my day. Last week, while mourning the missing box of said boots, I decided to come up with a pair of boot cuffs. I cast on a half a dozen times but once I would start a lace pattern, it would all look wrong to me. I pulled out my lace pattern book and tried three or four which were all frogged. I did complete this one in yellow but it will never get a mate because I really don’t like it and I took bad notes so probably couldn’t redo it even if I wanted to. Most of that work was done sitting next to the woodstove encouraging Eddie (who is in charge of keeping that fire going) as he tried different methods of starting the fire. The good news is that Eddie has gotten working the woodstove down to a science so if there is any down time, you can find me there, right in front of it most likely surrounded by little ones looking for a snuggly place to play. I have moved my tea kettle to the top of the woodstove and tea has become quite the popular thing around here now since there is most always water going in the kettle. For me, right now, it’s coconut oolong tea given to me by my Alex, oh how I miss her.

I am now working on a simpler style of boot cuff, no lace except perhaps around the top edge, hmmm maybe in a white cotton thread or perhaps a light beige. We will see.

Today, I have a date with an apple peeler and my favorite soup pot (aka canning pot) to make about 20 pounds of apples into apple butter. I am blessed to have my friend Charlei’s recipe which our kids loved when she gifted us a jar this summer. It does not look like any of the apples we got at Huber Farms will make it into apple sauce since the kids have raided the variety I bought to make it. Apples with peanut butter, apples with hazelnut spread, apples with well, everything. I hope to perhaps can up some apples for pie making later on and perhaps we will have to make another visit to the farm to get some applesauce canned after all.

I am yarning along with Ginny this week after not having the time to do so for quite a while. I guess life is finally slowing down as my knitting basket has a half dozen started projects in it already. I plan to knit today while the apple butter cooks though I need to hone in my apple ninja skills to keep those kids away from the rest of my apples. 50 pounds I purchased, really! Those kids and their apples.

Thank you for all your comments and emails about our new larder. Alot of you sent emails about what all is in those jars, why we keep our eggs on the counter, what meals me make and I will answer those questions in a few days…promise. Oh and thanks for all the love on the free chalkboard labels tutorial, I can’t wait to see what you all do with that.

Comments { 9 }

label your pantry with free chalkboard paper

By Tricia on November 19, 2013 in Sewing and Crafts, Tutorials and Patterns

I do not like to spend money, you did know that right? Honestly, my first memories of life revolve around my mother trying to make it and keep us fed. I recall her saving her pennies in a gallon jug and taking it to the gas station to buy gas. She scrimped every cent and never bought herself anything. We always had what we needed and somehow she kept us in a private school (really no idea how she did that) and never wasted anything. She is my hero and that was imprinted on me at a very early age. Money spending…no. I like to save it.

So with so many projects to do here, I have to get creative to not break the bank. The other night while Poppa and I where waiting at the painting department for our paint to be mixed, I told him that I needed to find chalkboard paper but it was too expensive in the places I had found it and I didn’t want to buy a whole roll of chalkboard sticky paper to label all the jars in the new pantry. As I leaned on the counter, daydreaming a bit to pass the time, I turned my head and there it was, the perfect solution and free.

Now, my husband is used to me raiding the painting chips in the painting department for all kinds of little projects. Aren’t they great. But I must have had an excited look on my face as I zipped over to the wall full of paint chips because he followed me. These paint chips, the ones that are only one color per block are the perfect “chalkboard” paper. They are matte and they come in every color imaginable. I quickly decided on blues, browns and blacks and grabbed 2 or 3 of each. I told the girl mixing my paint what I was up to and she loved the idea.

So there you have it. There are so many color possibilities and some paint companies have paint chip cards as big as a post card if you need a really big label.

I just traced the jar lid onto the back of the paint card, cut them out and then just put them on top of the metal jar lid and then placed the jar ring on top. I know there are circle punches that would make the job way easier but remember what I said about spending money, scissors are free. Easy peasy. For the bigger jars that are not mason jars, I used my glue gun to affix the label to the front and just in the nick of time too, last night the girls made a batch of raising oatmeal cookies but confused the confectioners sugar for flour??? Our flour isn’t even white but they did it and of course it was not edible. At least now, everyone knows what is in the jars.

If you missed our new real food pantry post, here it is .