What are your other hobbies?

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01-15-2015, 08:39 AM

#61

GreyQ

Senior Member

Join Date: Jul 2012

Location: Minneapolis, MN

Posts: 594

Quote:

Originally Posted by nanacc

I have abandoned most of my other hobbies besides quilting. I have done refinishing of cabinets and furniture. I used to do a lot of crochet(thread and yarn) and some knitting...Carpal tunnel and Arthur stopped that. Have done fabric painting and tole painting(still have a stash of paint waiting for me). Helped DM do macrame. Had large gardens and lots of canning...Family illness, farming, and mainly Arthur's visit took that off the list. Have a huge yard, but cannot keep up with flower beds, so have reverted to mostly perennials. The funny thing is that I haven't completely given up on any of it...still have all patterns and books, yarns(with ufo's), paint, etc. Books have to be added to that!

Your gardens may have reverted to perennials but my perennials have reverted to weeds. I just keep telling people that it's ornamental grass & bird seed plants. I really have to make an effort to get things under control before I get ticketed by the city.

01-15-2015, 10:03 AM

#62

jbj137

Super Member

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: Duncan, SC, 29334 USA

Posts: 4,580

***
*** You mean there are other things besides quilting?
***
*** JOKING
***
*** reading, dancing, & petting my cat, Gus.
***

01-15-2015, 10:19 PM

#63

4dogs

Senior Member

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: Fletcher NC(cool, green mountains)

Posts: 646

I play clarinet and piano; I love cross stitch and knitting; but when I have a free minute, its always my sewing machines that call out to me the loudest.......

01-18-2015, 10:38 PM

#64

ArchaicArcane

Super Member

Join Date: Jul 2012

Location: Not Here

Posts: 3,817

I'm a little late to the game.

My non-vsm hobbies are:

black and white film photography - I still have a wet darkroom beside my quilting studio.
baking. I used to cook too but these days I don't do a lot of it. I manage to bake from time to time still. I have a sourdough starter I keep in the fridge that's been alive for probably 8 years. I also have standing "orders" for my sourdough bread whenever I make it.
Motorcycles - we ride street and dirt
Anyone who rides motorcycles does well to know how to repair them. It's maybe a hobby/necessity but we do all the work required besides tires to these bikes - It's not a lot these days, we've got really reliable and well cared for bikes so they usually treat us right too. DH's area of specialty is mostly the suspension, internal engine, brakes and for the dirtbikes - jetting. I get all electrical duties and the care and feeding of the street bikes. Just finished installing an alarm in one today and the other bike is almost rebuilt from the accident this summer. I also get bodywork duties which I try to employ/require as seldom as possible.
We used to geocache but haven't in a while.
In the summers we take the trailer into some nicer places to ride so I guess we're RVers too.

01-19-2015, 05:54 PM

#65

HelenAnn

Senior Member

Join Date: Feb 2013

Location: Central Minnesota

Posts: 442

Oh my this is not going to rhyme. There is some ADD I like to garden, mostly perennials and mostly hostas. In the spring it is mushroom hunting the summer is swimming and yard work the fall is pheasant and deer hunting the winter is clening and refurbishing sewing machines. Through it all are the dogs, I have Large Munsterlanders two at present planning for a pup in 2016. Then dog training will kick in again. I make quilts for the babies. Spend as much time as I can at "The Lake". Trees are a real passion because I can never learn enough about them. Walking when ever I can and listening to audio books so I can stay busy and still read.

01-19-2015, 11:06 PM

#66

4dogs

Senior Member

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: Fletcher NC(cool, green mountains)

Posts: 646

HEY d0 you have a good recipe for the starter to do sour dough bread? I have tried a couple and been disappointed in the results...........just thought I would ask..............

Quote:

Originally Posted by ArchaicArcane

I'm a little late to the game.

My non-vsm hobbies are:

black and white film photography - I still have a wet darkroom beside my quilting studio.
baking. I used to cook too but these days I don't do a lot of it. I manage to bake from time to time still. I have a sourdough starter I keep in the fridge that's been alive for probably 8 years. I also have standing "orders" for my sourdough bread whenever I make it.
Motorcycles - we ride street and dirt
Anyone who rides motorcycles does well to know how to repair them. It's maybe a hobby/necessity but we do all the work required besides tires to these bikes - It's not a lot these days, we've got really reliable and well cared for bikes so they usually treat us right too. DH's area of specialty is mostly the suspension, internal engine, brakes and for the dirtbikes - jetting. I get all electrical duties and the care and feeding of the street bikes. Just finished installing an alarm in one today and the other bike is almost rebuilt from the accident this summer. I also get bodywork duties which I try to employ/require as seldom as possible.
We used to geocache but haven't in a while.
In the summers we take the trailer into some nicer places to ride so I guess we're RVers too.

01-19-2015, 11:45 PM

#67

ArchaicArcane

Super Member

Join Date: Jul 2012

Location: Not Here

Posts: 3,817

Quote:

Originally Posted by 4dogs

HEY d0 you have a good recipe for the starter to do sour dough bread? I have tried a couple and been disappointed in the results...........just thought I would ask..............

This is the "junk food" one that I make:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/san-fra...urdough-bread/

I use butter instead of margarine, water instead of milk, fermipan yeast - about 2.5 tsp - 1 TBsp instead of a "packet", typically for our elevation it's about 3.75 - 4.75* cups of flour - I also have a thick starter, so that has a lot to do with it, and I omit the onion topping.

*The main reason for the variance in flour is that I use a fresh ground wheat - ground minutes before it's put in the dough, in fact it's usually still warm from the grind - which tends to soak up less moisture. For a whole wheat loaf it's about 4.75cups. For a all purpose flour loaf (junk food) - it's 3.75. A mixture of course will land somewhere in the middle.

The original Sourdough recipe I used is starter, flour, water, salt and a little extra yeast to help it along so proofing times are realistic.

I typically make it with 3/4 kamut and 1/4 all purpose flour or white wheat because Kamut doesn't develop much gluten. If you want that recipe, I can go find it too.

That's a heavier dough and a lot denser crumb.

DH is addicted to the SF sourdough recipe so it's what I've been making lately.

Oh! Or were you wanting the way to get the starter?
There are a few ways -

lots of bakeries have them and will sell a little or you can order it dried online. Lots of people are disappointed though when they order SF starter that their starter doesn't yield a SF sourdough tasting bread. That's because the yeast beasties in SF are different than anywhere else and the yeast beasties you bake with are what provide the flavor of the bread. Eventually the locals will crowd out and replace the imported ones, hence the flavor change.
You can also start your own - 1 cup water, 1 cup flour and leave it sit uncovered on the counter til it starts to froth, then feed it and let it sit again. This is how you catch the "wild yeast" of a sourdough. Do this a couple times then put it in the fridge. You should be able to get away with feeding once a week after that.
You can cheat. 1 cup flour, 1 cup water, about a half tsp of instant yeast. Set it on the counter uncovered til it froths. Feed it, let it sit. Do this a couple times then put it in the fridge. You should be able to get away with feeding once a week after that.

To keep a sourdough:

To revive a sluggish starter (especially if you forgot to feed it for a few weeks) - a tsp of sugar will perk it right up.
Don't forget to feed a young starter. It's too fragile at the beginning. A mature starter can weather a couple to a few weeks without food but it will be very sour and need several feedings (probably close to the number you missed) before it's no longer offensively sour and becomes useable again.
To make sure you get a natural yeast flavor - not just a colony of the instant yeast - leave the starter on the counter partly uncovered for a few hours each time you feed it. If you forget it over night, feed it in the morning and put it back in the fridge. The idea of the fridge is to slow its appetite not starve it - so we don't put it in the fridge when it's hungry, only after it's well fed.
Your starter is a pet. It needs food and water and exercise on a regular basis. If it goes unused, it will get very acidic and sour smelling. That's not the goal of a sourdough. "sour" refers to the acidity/ph, it shouldn't strip paint!
stir the hooch back in! After a couple of days, your starter will start to separate - the alcohol will rise to the top. This is called "hooch". It's part of your starter - stir it back in - don't discard it.

01-20-2015, 06:17 AM

#68

Alawai

Member

Join Date: Dec 2014

Location: New England

Posts: 82

Basically most of the fiber arts (sewing, quilting, dyeing, spinning, felting, knitting, crochet). Reading, writing, piano, ukulele, learning languages (my native language is French, I'm teaching myself Japanese, Korean, Italian & Mandarin). Yoga, traveling & belly dancing.