Sock it ...to me!

I looked through my stash and I realize that I had left over bits of sock yarn left. Mostly pink. As a knitter, it's sacrilege not to make your own socks. Store bought commercial socks are soo different from handmade ones. The big difference is the comfort & style. I hate boring socks. When you start to wear handmade socks afterwards you don't go back. I have just four pairs of hand knitted socks from last winter. They have a long life to them. There so resistant and very durable. I keep them going by machine washing and hanging them to dry.

My plan is to bring my collection up to at least seven pairs. This is numero five. One things for sure, I say NO to store bought socks. And when it gets too hot I'll go bare feet. After this, I'll have to convince my partner to get rid of his store bought socks. He already owns three pairs of handmade socks so I'll have to get busy.

I love and enjoy knitting socks and have made them for friends. It's a little pleasure of life. Considering each pair takes about 35 hours to make. I would have to charge $350 per pair! That's if I wanted to make a living off it. That's crazy.

For now, I'll have fun knitting socks for myself and a few of my lucky friends!

Make it Vancouver!

Make It...

The Croatian Center, Vancouver.

Just returned from Make It, Vancouver. A busy/fun selling all things handmade show. Firstly, I'm impressed by the quality from the merchants. And secondly, the diversity of the merchants showing.

This is the last weekend and I'm amazed how the event organizers can pack so many merchants in one small room. I fell in love with many merchants but my favorite was the hand dyed scarfs. I've never seen anything like it before. Very original, well made with a Turkish trim design. Sorry I don't have the pictures but here's the link.

I plan on being part of it in November. And coming back from it was a great experience on what it takes to be part of this handmade show. The merchants and customers all seem to be having a grand time. I do understand that to be part of a craft show is so important. You come in direct contact with your customer and exchange ideas between artisans. It's all very supportive.

Now my task is what to include to sell. November will offer more of a winter theme and Christmas will be around the corner!

Introducing two new classic cycling caps...

La Doyenne Cycling Cap by Galstudio.ca

I'm so happy to introduce two new cycling caps with a classic twist. When I went to the fabric store I had a gut feeling when I saw it. That feeling without words.  I just have them. The green is 100% Cotton Twill and the plaid is Polyester/Cotton. I quickly rushed home.

After my last stitch, I was so amazed with the results. These caps go beyond cycling and right into urban fashion.  So far, I'll be bold here, they're right up there in my top five favorite caps.

They are named, 'La Doyenne' after the oldest and most prestigious classic race  Liege-Bastogne-Liege. And, 'Ardennes' after the three classic races in Holland and Belgium. I feel they emanate a freshness and joyfulness of Spring. I love both!

Ardennes Cycling Cap by Galstudio.ca

Up for the new Classics.

This is an example of the Marinoni old script I saw...

taken from Richard's 1987 bike!

Well, the classic's have ended for the season. My two new cycling caps, in production,  reflect the Ardennes  Classics with the hint of the forthcoming Spring. The Ardennes Classic races are exciting even for a newbie cycling fan like me. I'm looking at it from the historical point of view which grabs my attention. Of course, my partner is a cycling maniac and he always has something new to say. It's one of those finer details in the microcosm of the cycling world. So diverse yet  beautiful. Like a subtle flavour in wine. The more you understand it the more you can appreciate it.

I even spotted a Marinoni bicycle as we walked down the street.  It literally jumped out at me. Many folks can spot a Ferrari sports car, it's not everyone can spot a beautiful Marinoni bicycle. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera. Even Richard  passed  it without noticing. And, I guess I'm getting better my spidey bike sense was tingling. The color was metallic purple with the old Marinoni script. One thing's for sure I wouldn't have left this classic bike unattended and casually locked beside a parking meter.

Quatre-Quarts.

The Pound Cake was first invented in the early 1700s in England. I love it. In French, it's called Quatre-Quarts. Which means four quarters. It's magical to take the four ingredients (butter, flour, sugar, eggs) in the same proportion and combine with any thing you want to make a fabulous cake.

This is the basis of this cake. I added slivered almonds, coconut, orange rind/juice, and wheat bran. The rule is that a pound cake should not have  a liquid. The wetting agent comes from the eggs. I broke the rule and added one orange and it's juice. To make me feel less guilty, I added the bran.

I can't wait for Richard to come back from his bike ride and see this cake. It's so delicious, I have a feeling that this cake will not live long!

Plunging into Perfection.

I once again learned something valuable. It was yesterday while designing and producing my new Cafe Racer Cozy. Made from, of course, recycled bicycle inner tubes it's not always the most easiest material to work with.

Perfection. Hmm. I thought I knew how to deal with my overly perfectionist tendency. There it was. It showed it's ugly face while I was working on the cozy. My thoughts on perfection is that you can be professional yet it doesn't mean you have to be perfect all the time. For many years, I stopped myself to be creative. Thinking if you can't do something perfectly... just don't do it at all!

It's in the process that perfection will eventually arrive. You have to be aware during the process of making. So every attempt goes closer to perfection. Every person has their  own idea of perfection. I won't get into that.

When I made the first prototype for the cozy, it was sleek, racy with a grey stripe in the middle ready for action. It was perfect. But on the practical side, it wasn't nice. The reclaimed plastic made it stiff and hard to wrap around the coffee press. It looked perfect but that's where it fell short. Frustrated, I went back to the drawing board with close consultation with Richard. And we both decided that the grey plastic strip was  a no go. Our idea is to keep it like our Piccolo Pouch. We tried it and we finally go it!

Yesterday was a day from Hell. Probably not the day to redesign a cozy prototype. The inner tube challenge my patience. But I love a challenge and with perseverance I produced seven refined coffee cozies.

Life is beautiful this way. It always offers you the possibility to better oneself. The true challenge is to stay in the process of learning everyday!

My Grate Pizza!

One of my indispensible tools I cannot do without in the kitchen is the hand grater. I use it for grating garlic, ginger, citrus, chocolate & Parmesan cheese. Friday night is pizza night. And who doesn’t like it? I started making it once my partner moved in with me during our time in art school. I have a special ingredient  that I discovered from an Italian chef. Here’s my Friday Night Pizza recipe. Bon Appetit!

Le Pizza Dough

1C. Semolina Flour (the special ingredient!)

1C. Whole Wheat Flour

1C. White Flour.

1C. water 110F (1/2 t of yeast  + 1 t of sugar mixed in water)

¼ t of salt

Mix dry ingredients together add in water mixture. I use a kitchen aid blender because it’s faster. You can also knead it by hand but it will take longer. The dough should form a nice slightly sticky & moist ball. It should hold it’s shape. Place in an oiled bowl. I use olive oil which prevents it from sticking. Put plastic wrap or wet towel over and place into the oven with light on. Place a cup of very hot water next to bowl for two hours.  While the dough is rising make the sauce well before so it can have the time to sit.

The Tomato Sauce

1 small can of tomato paste.

7 cloves of grated garlic (a metal grater is recommended)

2T Olive Oil

Black Pepper

10 squirts of Tabasco Sauce

1/3 C of Oregano

1T Red Wine Vinegar

Combine ingredients and set aside while the dough is rising. This is a good time to enjoy a glass of wine or two!

After two hours, it’s time to assemble your pizza. Warm your oven to 475F. Sprinkle enough cornmeal (about 2-3 T) on a baking sheet. Spread dough out and stretch it over your baking sheet. I use a 10 X 15 inch rectangular baking sheet. Spread sauce over the dough. I use two types of grated cheese, usually old cheddar and Friulano. My favorite toppings are bacon, olives, cooked chicken, zucchini, and mushrooms. Place in the oven for about 14 minutes. Afterwards, put on to the top grill and turn the oven to broil until it’s golden and crispy. You will have to watch it from burning.

Let it cool 5 minutes or you’ll burn the roof of your mouth because I've already experienced that!

Enjoy!