Fluffbuff

  After all the kitty drama at the end of last week (we are back to normal, thank you for all your good wishes!), getting a wonderful gift in the mail was just what the doctor ordered. The package from Olga brought me an ounce of Habu merino in a color that happens to match exactly the silk+steel I'd been swatching with. Grazie mille!! By the way, check out Olga's kusha-kusha scarf and look around her blog for more Habu yarns and projects. And if you're not sick of Habu news and pictures yet, there's more at Coloursknits.

Habu packages look deceptively small; this one has *a lot* of yardage in it. I didn't even bother to swatch this time and cast on directly for a scarf. I am knitting with one strand of silk+steel yarn and one strand of merino and they are working beautifully together. Not only that; I am also enjoying the knitting process a lot more then when I was knitting just with the steel yarn.

The scarf is narrow, but it'll probably end up quite long, unless I run out of the silk+steel yarn early. It's hard for me to judge as I've never used a cone before.

What I like about this project is that it's mindless stockinette and I can pick it up any time without having to worry about rows and stitches. Which reminds me: I haven't touched the Myrtle Leaf shawl in several days.

Posted by Francesca at 3:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

With all the commotion of the last few days, I forgot to follow up on my little anniversary gift, after I asked you to post links for good online tutorials in the comments. Apologies for not posting about this sooner.

The draw was for two skeins of Regia sock yarn in Antik Patch colors; each skein makes a pair of socks. I like this yarn a lot and more than half my current socks are made with this same pattern, just different colors. Since I haven't been knitting socks in a while, I'd like these to go to a good home.

I put your names in a basket and asked Pipie to pick one. He likes the sound of crumpled paper and was eager to please. Your names will now be toys for the rest of the day.

Here is his pick:

Bea, please email me your address and I'll put your yarn in the mail. I am glad Pipie picked someone who knits socks. :)

In case you are not familiar with Whip Up and Purl Bee, I'd like to add them to your suggestions for online tutorials. Check them out.

Hope you are all having a good weekend.

Posted by Francesca at 9:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

  See? It's not just me; I didn't make this up. Most of the time, Italian restaurants abroad are really awful.

If you don't believe me, trust the Accademia Italiana della Cucina. See the article on the BBC website.

Posted by Francesca at 1:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

It was bound to happen. Mornings have been cool again and Kelvin has resumed his early morning position on top of the kitchen cabinet to roast his tummy and butt in front of the heat vent.

Prima o poi doveva succedere. La mattina ha ricominciato a far freddo e Kelvin ha ripreso la postazione d'obbligo in cima ai pensili della cucina per rosolarsi pancia e sederino di fronte all'uscita dell'aria calda.

This morning we were woken up by a car alarm that went on and on and on… so when I started making breakfast noises it was earlier than usual and Kelvin was still half asleep. He got excited at the prospect of breakfast — yummy chicken leftovers from last night — before he was fully awake, and rolled over without realizing he was on the kitchen cabinet. I heard him tumble and land on the metal bowls. Water and dry food all over the kitchen floor.

Questa mattina ci siamo svegliati grazie all'allarme di una macchina che non finiva mai e mi sono messa a preparare la colazione prima del solito, mentre Kelvin era ancora mezzo addormentato. Si è eccitato all'idea della colazione — il pollo della sera prima — che non era ancora sveglio del tutto e si è rotolato su un fianco senza rendersi conto che era sul pensile. L'ho sentito tombolare giù e cadere sulle ciotole di metallo. Acqua e croccantini sono volati dappertutto.

Then I saw blood, tried to check him for wounds, and he limped away from me. Quick, call the vet, get kitty in the carrier, drive to the office…
Poor Kelvin had torn a toenail in his front left paw and the vet removed some shards and cleaned the wound. Fortunately, she could leave the "quick" in, and the nail will regrow. Il rigatino (the little striped one) came home with antibiotics and a fashionable bright blue bandage that lasted all of twenty minutes. And that's not all.

Poi ho visto il sangue, ho cercato di controllare dove si era fatto male e si è allontanato zoppicando. Chiama il veterinario, infila Kelvin nella cesta da trasporto e corri fuori. Povero Kelvin… si era spezzato un'unghia e la veterinaria gli ha tolto le schegge e pulito la ferita. Per fortuna gli ha potuto lasciare la parte interna che permetterà all'unghia di ricrescere. Il rigatino è tornato a casa con un pacchetto di antibiotici e una benda di un bel blu brillante che è durata venti minuti. E non è tutto.

As soon as we set foot inside, Piper got very upset and started meowing like he's never done before and a couple of minutes later he was actually hissing at Kelvin. Hissing! You have to know that Kelvin is Piper's hero; he's the cool guy and Piper will follow him anywhere and put up with anything just to get his attention. And now he's hissing at him? Before we could figure out what was going on, Kelvin was licking furiously at his bandage until it popped off his paw, then proceeded to lick the wound with the same enthusiasm.

Non appena abbiamo messo piede in casa, Piper si è messo a miagolare come un disperato e dopo un paio di minuti addirittura a soffiare. Soffiare! Dovete sapere che Kelvin è l'eroe di Piper e Piper lo seguirebbe dappertutto e si farebbe fare qualsiasi cosa pur di avere un po' di attenzione da Kelvin. E adesso gli soffia contro? Prima che potessimo renderci conto di quel che stava succedendo, Kelvin si era messo a leccare furiosamente la benda finchè è letteralmente saltata via, dopodichè si è messo a leccare altrettanto furiosamente la ferita.

Quick, call for another appointment, explain situation, get kitty back in the carrier, drive to the vet… This time we came home with a darker blue bandage and a supersized hard plastic collar that will need to stay on for three days.

Chiama di nuovo il veterinario, spiega la situazione, metti il gatto nella cesta, salta in macchina… Stavolta siamo tornati a casa con una benda di un blu più scuro e un collarino di plastica dura che dovranno durare tre giorni.

If you think Kelvin was upset the first time, imagine now. He's the picture of despair. And Piper got even more upsest this time around, but now we know why. Cats recognize each other by scent, not by sight, and Kelvin was soaked in disinfectant and doesn't smell like his usual self. Fortunately, the vet had a suggestion. Fasten your seat belts…

Se pensavate che Kelvin fosse agitato la prima volta, immaginate ora. È il ritratto della disperazione. E altrettanto dicasi per Piper, ma almeno adesso sappiamo perchè. I gatti si riconoscono dall'odore, non dalla vista, e la zampina di Kelvin è stata immersa in un bagno disinfettante per cui lui non ha il solito odore. Fortunatamente, la veterinaria mi ha dato un suggerimento. Allacciate le cinture di sicurezza…

Get some vanilla extract (hey, I just happen to have some) and smear it on the nose and butt of both cats. Yes, the butt, too. That way, they'll both smell different than usual but they'll also smell the same. Well, it worked for a while, but I guess I didn't apply enough vanilla extract and Piper started to act aggressive again. This time he actually growled. So now Pipie is locked in the bathroom and Kelvin is miserable but at least won't have to deal with Piper for a while.

Prendete dell'estratto di vaniglia (meno male che ce l'ho in casa) e applicatelo sul naso e il culetto di entrambi i gatti. Si, anche il culetto. In questo modo avranno tutti due un odore diverso dal solito, ma sarà l stesso odore per entrambi. Beh, per un po' ha sembrato funzionare, ma mi sa che non ne ho messo abbastanza e Piper ha ricominciato a fare il matto. Questa volta ha addirittura ringhiato. Così adesso Pipie è chiuso nel bagno e Kelvin è infelice ma almeno per un po' non deve aver a che fare col rompiballe.

I feel awful for Kelvin and even guilty because I think that if I hadn't started to prepare breakfast earlier than usual, none of this would have happened.

Mi dispiace per Kelvin e mi sento anche in colpa perchè penso che se non avessi cominciato a preparare la colazione prima del solito, tutto questo non sarebbe successo.

The stalker

And there he goes again! He almost killed himself getting up there, and I almost killed myself getting him down.

Ready to give up?

Temporarily resigned
Temporaneamente rassegnato

At least his butt smells of vanilla.
Almeno ha il sederino profumato alla vaniglia.

Posted by Francesca at 1:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (25)

Thank you for the help with the Myrtle Leaf shawl issue. In case you missed the comments to that entry, yes, there was a mistake in the pattern. It wasn't me! Although I really should have thought about running a search for errata as soon as I started running into trouble.

Grazie per l'aiuto con la questione dello scialle Myrtle Leaf. Nel caso non abbiate visto i commenti, sappiate che si, c'era un errore nelle istruzioni. Non era colpa mia! Anche se avrei dovuto pensare a fare una ricerca per l'errata corrige appena mi sono resa conto del problema.

So, after checking the errata for Victorian Lace Today, I restarted my shawl and now have three repeats done. Yay! Oh yes, there's 37 more repeats to go, but at least the pattern is looking good now.

Così, dopo avere controllato le correzioni per Victorian Lace Today, ho ricominciato lo scialle e ho già tre "repeats" (italiano?) fatti. Si, lo so che ne ho altri 37 ancora da fare, ma almeno adesso il motivo sta venendo fuori giusto.

Not that you can see much this way, but I didn't feel like blocking it just to take a picture.

Non è che si veda molto bene così tutto raggrinzito, ma non avevo voglia di bloccarlo solo per fare una foto.

By the way, one of you blogged (or emailed me) about knitting the border at the same time as the body of the shawl and I had meant to try that out, then of course I lost the bookmark (or email) and I can't even remember who it was. Boohoo… Even though I think it's too late to start doing that now, since I am not, repeat NOT, ripping this any more, would you please send me the link to that post? Please, please, pretty please?

And I promise to double bookmark the entry and take double dose of vitamins and eat more fish so I won't forget again.

A proposito, una di voi ha fatto una entry (o mi ha mandato una email) su come lavorare il bordo allo stesso tempo del resto dello scialle e mi ero ripromessa di provare la tecnica, solo che poi naturalmente ho perso il bookmark (o la email) e non ricordo neppure di chi era. L'arterio galoppa… Anche se penso che sia troppo tardi per questo scialle, perchè non lo disfo più neanche se mi pagano, mi rimandi l'indirizzo di quella entry? Per favore?

E prometto di farci il nodo doppio e prendere doppia dose di vitamine e mangiare più pesce così non me lo dimentico più. Davvero!

Posted by Francesca at 3:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Today Fluffbuff is a year old. Back when I started this blog, I had no idea how much it would come to mean to me and certainly did not imagine the friendships it would bring. It helped me rekindle an old friendship that had fallen by the wayside, stay better in touch with a couple of friends who moved away and make new friendships.

Oggi Fluffbuff compie un anno. Quando ho cominciato questo blog, non avevo idea di come sarebbe evoluto e certamente non immaginavo le amicizie che mi avrebbe portato. Mi ha aiutato a riconnettere con una vecchia amica, stare meglio in contatto con un paio di amiche che si sono trasferite e a fare amicizie nuove.

If I have a knitting problem, I can count on other knitters to help me solve it (it happened just yesterday and now I am back on track with the beginning of the Myrtle Leaf shawl); if I'm down, I can count on a few good words; if I'm happy or have a FO object to show, I can share it with you.

Se ho un problema di maglia, posso contare su altre/i knitters per aiutarmi a risolverlo (è successo proprio ieri e ho già ricominciato lo scialle Myrtle Leaf); se sono giù di morale, posso contare su una parola buona; se sono contenta o ho un progetto finito da far vedere, posso condividerlo.

So, thank you all for visiting and commenting and generally making my days better. And thank you for occasionally breaking free of cyberspace and popping something in the mail. It's been fun to receive things in the mail from some of you who I haven't met in real life (yet) such as:

JoAnne, who sent me a generous sample of qiviut so I could try it out.
Briana, who mailed me some beautiful horse hair that I hope to post about soon. Now you are curious, eh? What is the crazy woman going to do with horse hair? I am afraid you'll have to wait until I find someone who can make a little video for me. It's a small thing that I've been wanting to do for a while. You'll just have to keep coming back. :)
And I know I have something Habulicious in the mail right now from Olga.
Participating in SP8 also meant making friends with Rosie in the UK and Rachele in Japan and having a wonderful time sending and receiving gifts.

There's so many of you that I would love to meet in person. I guess I should start traveling soon, eh? Some of you are in the blogroll in the right column and some aren't, because I've been really bad at keeping that updated. I'll try to do better from now on.

A special mention for a couple of non-blogging friends: Elisabetta in Hamburg and Lucia in Reggio Emilia. Talking to you in the past months has brought back memories of my life in Italy and caused cravings for all things Italian again. Betta got me started writing in Italian again and Lucia keeps me on my toes. I wish I could put all of you in this post, but I'm submerged by paperwork and have taken too much of a break from "duty" already today. But you know who you are: Stephanie, Karen, Barbara, Andrea, Sylvia, Priscilla, Marina, Jared, Laurence, Zita…

In fact, I am running out of time to finish the Italian translations! Sorry, sorry, sorry!

Almost forgot…
I'll put together some goodies to send out in the mail. Pictures probably only tomorrow or Wednesday, but if you want to put your name in the hat, just leave me a comment and tell me of your favorite knitting or sewing or paper craft (or other) tutorial. If it's an online tutorial, please provide the URL. I know bloggers do this *before* their blogiversary, but I've been a little discombobulated lately, so bear with me.

This post not checked for typos or stupidity.

Posted by Francesca at 5:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (23)

Considering that I am probably the knitter with the most UFOs in the Alpha quadrant, I shouldn't even be thinking about a new project, right? But do I care? Course not. There's something about starting a new project that is just irresistible and once in a while I even finish an item or two. Really.

So, while I am giving my steel yarn a few days' rest so I can start again with renewed enthusiasm in a week or so, I got my hands on a big fat skein of Lorna's Lace in a gorgeous indigo shade and three nights ago I made a swatch for the Myrtle Leaf shawl on page 142 of Victorian Lace Today. This is actually the shawl I wanted to make right away when I got the book, but didn't because it seemed more sensible to start my first lace project with a pattern that didn't require attention on every row, as this one does. Eventually, I went for the Trellis shawl because the pattern was easier and worked only on the right side.

But back to my swatches. The first swatch was pitiful; I screwed up the SSK and SSP so when it didn't look right I blamed it on that. As it turns out, that was only half the reason. Being the impatient person I am, instead of making a new swatch, I cast on the required 87 stitches for the real thing. Almost immediately, I realized that 87 stitches wasn't quite right. Once you knit together 2 stitches in first row after casting on, you are left with 86 stitches and the pattern clearly only requires 85 (a multiple of 11 plus 4 stitches on each side = 77 + 8 = 85). So I ripped and cast on 85 stitches and everything seemed ok. OR was that my first mistake?

Two days and almost two repeats later, I found out that something was wrong again. Everything looked good with the first repeat, but at the beginning of the second repeat the leaves close properly in one of the columns but not in the other. Where the leaves should close up to a pointed tip, they stay open and the joins are offset by one stitch (or so it seems to me). I am not sure I am describing the problem clearly, but has anyone else had problem with this pattern? Am I doing something wrong or is there a typo in the pattern itself?

Help! Somebody please tell me what I'm doing wrong!

In my frenzy, I ripped everything out before taking pictures. Then I started another swatch and had the same problem. I am clearly making the same mistake over and over. Someone please rescue me from my misery…

Oh, I forgot… I transcribed the pattern to a little flipbook, so I have one line of instructions per page. I checked and rechecked my transcription several times and couldn't find an error.

Posted by Francesca at 7:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

  Well, someone is having a grand time today for his birthday.

Now you see him.

Now you don't.

Why the little UK flag, you ask? Because Piper (a.k.a. Pipie, patatino, faccia da tortellino, and more…) is a British Shorthair.

Of course he has no clue about birthdays, but I like to make the day a little special by giving him extra treats and leaving around more bags than usual for him to play with.

Is it dinner time yet?

Tonight we'll have grilled salmon and he'll also get his tasty share along with his all-time favorite toy: the wine stopper. Not a bad way to celebrate turning four, no?

Posted by Francesca at 2:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

I am not sure how that happened, but there's shamrock in my rosemary pot and origano in my sage pot.

No basil-labeled pots, but plenty of basil. This one is anise basil I got the other day. And before someone tells me how well my herbs grow… ahem… they seem to do well because I keep buying new plants. Regrettably, my thumbs are anything but green and my herbs wouldn't even last a week if it weren't for Ben's continued efforts.

Italian basil, 'cause I can't stand the gargantuan kind with leathery leaves that is so popular around here. I like my basil thin and fragrant and fresh from the plant, though I've been known to use the "other" kind on occasion, but only in tomato soup, certainly not in salads. It's like chewing hide.

Origano.

Some pots awaiting new plants. I haven't been able to find thyme or sage plants in quite a while so these pots have just been lying there.

Okay, not a herb… this is Piper stealing Kelvin's breakfast. Today I let him because it's his birthday. Our little one is four today.

Posted by Francesca at 12:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

I know what I said in private emails to a couple of you. I liked the idea of coupling a wool+steel or silk+steel strand with a merino strand, but I was too lazy to rip the piece I had already knitted — I already had a good 30cm done. Also, I wasn't sure it was a good idea to rip a knitted fabric that contains metal; what if the metal part became brittle as a consequence? Yadda yadda yadda… (still trying to justify my laziness).

That was before I discovered that I had a loose half stitch two thirds down my piece.

Still, I was going to pick it up with a crochet hook and not rip anything.

And *that* was before I discovered that I had undone my stitches exactly one stitch over respect to where I should have. What kind of idiot does that? Okay, don't answer that.

Did I mention that I knit at night and even with the light at its highest setting I have trouble seeing what I'm doing? It's something to do with how my eyes react to artificial light (same reason I can't drive at night), but I just can't knit during the day so what's the alternative? No knitting or the occasional goof.

A better knitter would probably have found a way to salvage the whole thing, but I was already frustrated so here's my scarf now.

The good thing is that now I can rethink the whole thing and probably get the merino yarn to go with the steel yarn and knit something a little less plasticky and more satisfying to the touch.

Posted by Francesca at 4:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)

  It's been a few crazy days with lots of work stuff, very little sleep, dental work, tech issues and more. All this to say that I didn't get much knitting done.

I did manage a couple of swatches with the wool+steel and silk+steel yarns.

Below is a swatch with both yarn worked single on metal Addi Turbo. It was very slow going and quite frustrating. The yarn takes some getting used to, especially the cast on.

This swatch was worked on the same needles but with two strands, combining the two yarns. Much easier to work this way and the result is a more substantial fabric. I had expected a more sculptural quality to the knitted fabric; I thought I'd be able to sort of shape things a little, but that wasn't the case. With the double thread swatch, thought, I can stretch the fabric and get a narrow or wide swatch depending on the direction of the stretch.

Because of the loss of brain cells due to stress and lack of sleep, I found myself at a total loss for creative ideas and decided to knit the simplest, most boring scarf ever. Just a plain rectangle with the two yarns worked together. That's what you see on the wooden needles in the top photo.

Posted by Francesca at 5:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

Another good mail day. Today I received something unexpected and wonderful from my friend Andrea who moved to Maryland last October. She has been taking a letterpress printing class and sent me two beautiful hand printed pieces. One is an image of a kitty (is that Mama cat?) and the other a calendar page for April with a quote from Robert Frost.

Grazie, Andrea!

And if that wasn't enough, I also received two books I had ordered last week: Simple Sewing with a French Twist and Lotta Jansdotter's Simple Sewing. Let's see if it's really that simple.

Posted by Francesca at 8:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

  Pipie is very interested in the latest yarn shipment. There must be something intriguing in the way the yarn smells because he can't stop sniffing it. I am extremely sensitive to smells, but can only detect a faint odor, neither pleasant nor unpleasant.

I had been thinking of trying out Habu's steel yarn and finally ordered a cone of silk+steel and one of wool+steel. Habu's packages are always cool. The 2-ply cashmere comes in tiny balls and the steel yarn in cones. Each one is only 0.5oz, but it looks rather imposing on the cone.

I tried to get pictures without the kitty, but it wasn't easy.

The charcoal yarn is 75% wool and 25% stainless steel.

The brownish yarn is 69% silk and 31% stainless steel.

I am very curious to see how they feel and knit up.

Posted by Francesca at 5:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)

Too much to do to take the day off. At least I got my weekly dose of yellow when I went grocery shopping this morning. Trader Joe's had two varieties of daffodils and some pretty bluish flowers (name anyone?) in bright vases made of strawish material. I got green and yellow vases.

Troppo da fare per prendermi la giornata libera. Almeno mi sono procurata la mia dose settimanale di giallo quando sono andata a fare la spesa stamattina. Trader Joe's aveva due varietà di giunchiglie e dei fiorellini blu-viola (genzianelle?) in vasi coloratissimi fatti di materiale fibroso tipo paglia. Ho preso verde e giallo.

Between getting house stuff done and business papers organized (a neverending process), I started working on my assignments for an online class I am taking at UCLA Extension.

Fra i lavori di casa e la riorganizzazione cartacea per l'ufficio (un'impresa che non finisce mai), ho cominciato le letture per un corso online che sto facendo con la UCLA.

Kelvin is always more interested in water, but Pipie had a close look at my papers.

Kelvin è sempre più interessato all'acqua, ma Pipie ha dato un'occhiata alle mie lezioni.

And then some book-logging between upstairs and downstairs. After our friend Ed moved out, I started filling up the bookshelves in what used to be his living room.

E poi un po' di sfacchinaggio a trasportare libri dal piano di sopra a quello di sotto. Da quando il nostro amico Ed ha traslocato, ho cominciato a riempire la libreria in quello che prima era il suo soggiorno.

It's going to take some time and for now I am simply putting books on the shelves based on size (some books only fit in the tall center shelf) and broad grouping. I'll refine the arrangement later. My tiny office has been overflowing with stuff and being able to move some of it out is a big help.

Ci vorrà del tempo e per ora archivio i libri solo in base alle dimensioni (certi libri possono andare solo nello scaffale alto del mezzo) e criteri grossolani. Farò meglio in seguito. Il mio ufficio è molto piccolo e da sempre stipato all'inverosimile. Riuscire a togliere qualche libro è già un aiuto.

Happy holiday weekend to you all.

Buona Pasqua a tutti.

Posted by Francesca at 4:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

Pipie's new favorite thing: squeezing between the etagère and the window to catch the sun and the occasional spider or gnat.

And while Pipie's catching the sun, Kelvinito is catching some zees.

Posted by Francesca at 9:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

  We made paper!

Okay, step back. Today was the first meeting of a new LA guild: the Los Angeles Fiber Guild, a.k.a. LAF. Appropriate name for a guild starting off on April 1, no?

The guild had been in the making for a few months, thanks primarily to the work of Janel, Una, and Theresa. LAF is a new kind of guild because it's an interdisciplinary guild for all things fiber and our first workshop today was about papermaking. Future workshops will include silk ribbon embroidery, basket weaving, felting, knotless netting and more.

We started the meeting with some catching up (all of us who showed up today are friends from GLASG, the local spinning guild) and a short show-and-tell.

Theresa brought her short-row blanket which got first prize at Visalia's Conference in the knitted accessories category. Somehow I like everything Theresa makes. Last time she was at my house she was knitting the short-row scarf that I fell in love with and had to make right away. I have a feeling this blanket will join the list of future knitting projects chez Fluffbuff. Isn't it gorgeous?

Elena had the socks she spun and knitted following a pattern designed by Janel and which also placed first at Visalia's.

The meeting took place at a school in downtown LA in a room that the kids use for gym, lunch and other activities. The school has an art focus and the room has a lot of cool artwork.

A giant US map on the floor…

and a clear Warhol thing going, from the Campbell tomato soup cans…

to the portrait treatments we are all familiar with.

We started our papermaking workshop by shredding our junk mail. I had just gotten rid of all my recycling stuff but had plenty of business printouts destined to the shredder that worked out beautifully.

The paper got shredded, soaked and fed to the blender. Some of us added pieces of colored tissue paper to the slurry to colorize it. I decided to keep mine as it was to see exactly how the laser printed sheets would turn out. Since I always have loads of those, I would love to find a good use for the stuff.

Pour the slurry in the deckle-and-screen mold.

Add pieces of paper, flowers and anything else you want to use as an inclusion.

Let stand for a minute or so and remove the deckle (the frame part). Put a screen over the wet paper, a towel over the screen, and roll out as much water as possible.

Set out to dry.

We had to weigh down our sheets because they kept folding and flying away.

Back home; my paper is almost dry.

Before and after: from laser printouts to handmade paper. As Janel told us: you need a sheet of paper to make a sheet of paper.

The ink formed specks in the paper that remind me of vanilla ice-cream.

During my undergraduate years, I bought a papermaking frameset that I actually never got to use. I am going to dig it out and run some tests soon.

Posted by Francesca at 6:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)

   My grandmother used to buy chocolate-dipped alkekengi at a pasticceria in Bologna, under the portico besides San Petronio. I think it was called Pasticceria Zamboni or another name starting with Z, but I am not sure. Maybe my friend Betta can correct me here. Alkekengi, or chichinger as they are sometimes called in Italian, were not a popular fruit and that pasticceria was the only place I had ever seen them. They were delicious and available only a couple of months out of the year — when the fruit was in season — and that made them even more special. Since we lived in Ravenna and my grandmother would go to Bologna only every few months to buy bookbinding supplies for my grandfather, we only ate those treats once a year. Dipped in dark chocolate, with the dried leaves sticking out to be used as stems, they made a lasting impression on me.

Over a year ago, I found them at Whole Foods without realizing what they were (here they go by the name "golden berries"). They just looked yummy and I can never resist golden yellow. After I brought them home and tasted them, I realized that they were alkekengi. I tried to get the people at Whole Foods to procure some with the leaves attached so I could dip them in chocolate, but they could only find them already plucked and packed. I did try the chocolate treatment, but it was a bit of a disaster.

A couple of days ago, I found them again. I was surprised because I remember distinctly that in 2005 they were in the store in October or November, so maybe these come from a different country or maybe they are in season twice a year. Anyway, I'm going to get me some chocolate and try again.

Chichinger al cioccolato! Yum.

Posted by Francesca at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Thank you to all of you who answered my question about how to handle comments. I have decided to keep replying individually, at least until the number of comments and private emails becomes unmanageable. Whenever the topic relates to useful information, as in where to find something or how to do something, I will also post that information on the blog as its own post since you pointed out that people don't really go back to read new comments after they have commented themselves, which is a very good point.

Posted by Francesca at 7:45 AM | Permalink