strawberry season

Friday I went strawberry picking with Dr. Steph and Denny and their kids, and it was so much fun! We went to Reesor Farm, not far at all, and pick your own sure is pretty cheap! We picked for about an hour, and I came away with 5kg (11 lbs.) for my very own. (Denny and her son had about the same as me, Dr. Steph and her two kids picked 9 kg! Whoa.)

Yum. Have I mentioned lately how much I love my new camera?

With my family away on vacation and me on my own, there’s just no way I could eat them all myself. I wasn’t planning to, anyway. So once I got home, I got busy right away putting up the fruit.

I washed, hulled, and froze 2 baking sheets’ full (then put them in freezer bags the next day; it’s so they don’t freeze in a big clump):

I made “fridge jam” (as opposed to freezer jam, because I just stuck it in the fridge) – just fruit, sugar, and lemon juice, macerated for awhile then cooked down in a pot. An intermediate step on the road to jam tarts!

Then the next day, I made strawberry ice cream! In my old-school hand crank machine. I used this recipe, which uses eggs but is uncooked. It’s yummy! I don’t think I have a photo of a bowl of it, but I’ll try to remember later when I’m eating it! (We’ll see how that goes!)

And yes, there has indeed been some knitting around here parts. I had a bit of the knitting ennui there for awhile, but I think I’m back on track! Finishing up some old projects, starting some new ones. An older one that’s almost done, the cashmere sweater:

Just in time for the sweltering weather, eh? Well, that’s kind of how the knitting goes. I am planning on writing up my notes on how I converted the Unwrapped pattern to a cardigan and the other details – I don’t feel comfortable writing up the whole pattern since I used Jody’s yoke, but I’ll write up a little bit on how to make your own. The sweater just needs some type of closure, and a good blocking. Maybe clasps, maybe not.

Oh, and the handwoven scarves in my Etsy shop are now on sale – each is just $85. I’ve got more in the works, but just need to clear some stuff outta the studio!