Turtle Pants

Ari has decided he wants to be a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle for Halloween; Leonardo to be exact.  So, before he could change his mind again, we went out and purchased his costume.  Not thrilled with the Ninja Turtle costumes on the market, we decided to just buy him the mask and piece the rest of it together.

We found a nice shirt to go with the costume, but the right color of green pants were hard to come by.  I figured I could make him some pants, so I bought some green fleece and went to work.  As I was making them, I envisioned the scene from the Grinch cartoon where he was making his Santa suit.  Just cutting an outline of what I wanted to make and sewing it together.  It worked quite well, for all intents and purposes, and now Ari has a pair of turtle pants.  The first article of clothing I have ever made.

Upon making this garment, even with the crude nature with which it was made, I gained a deeper respect for those who really know how to make clothes.  My cousin Eva, of Eva + Daniel fame, has just started a new blog called Belle-Mère Belle-Fille dedicated exclusively to creations made by Madame Sutter and herself.  She also has an Etsy shop featuring original clothing of exceptional quality handmade in France (and I do mean exceptional).  I am lucky enough to own something made by Eva, and it is simply wonderful.

If that's not enough, my friend from Chicago, Michelle, is launching her own clothing line called Dollparts; which is a clothing line made from recycled textiles.  Her clothing line utilizes eco-conscious fabrics, remaindered or discarded textiles, as well as vintage and thrifted pieces.  Michelle started a kickstarter campaign to raise funds for getting her designs into production.  It would be awesome if anyone would donate (even as little as $1) to her cause.  She only has a few days left to get pledges, so act fast!

I don't know how I got so caught up in the world of fashion, but I'm loving every minute of it!  Oh, and I'm happy I was able to make a small contribution with the turtle pants.  Who knows, they may be the next big thing!

Mayonnaise

I have recently gotten into the practice of making my own mayonnaise, and with such palette pleasing results, I don't know why I didn't try it sooner. I have been making it for a couple months now and it all stemmed from a conversation I had with Eva and Daniel. I don't remember how we got on the topic, but Daniel told me it was easy to make and that his mother had a recipe. In a matter of days, Eva sent me an e-mail with Madame Sutter's mayonnaise recipe; it looked easy enough, so I decided to give it a try.

Basically, mayonnaise is made by slowly adding oil to an egg yolk while whisking vigorously to disperse the oil. The oil and the yolks form a base of the emulsion, while the lecithin from the yolks acts as the emulsifier that stabilizes it. The recipe I got from Madame Sutter also calls for vinegar, salt, pepper, and celery seed. I have also experimented with it a little by adding other ingredients to play with the flavors a bit. I have only made my mayonnaise from whisking it by hand, but it can also be made with an electric mixer or food processor.

In my opinion, the flavor of homemade mayonnaise is far superior to that of any store bought brands, and I know exactly what is in it. Double bonus. It really is so easy to make, too! It is so much fun to see the emulsion form and then continue to build into such a thick consistency; it's like magic. Whisking it by hand, I usually have Valerie slowly drizzle in the oil while I whisk with reckless abandon, it's quite a sight I'm sure. I'm thinking about trying it with my electric mixer or food processor because I am going to have to make a lot of it for the chicken salad we are going to serve for Emilie's birthday party. I don't know if my arm can stand the amount of whisking I would have to do to make several batches. I'm leaning towards the electric mixer because I am afraid of breaking up the emulsion if I use the food processor.

I am glad I finally conquered my fear of making my own mayonnaise. My perception of it being a daunting task was unfounded. I'm thankful for Eva and Daniel nudging me in the right direction, and thankful for Madame Sutter for being so generous and providing me her recipe. Now if I could only get my hands on an authentic French baguette recipe, I'd be all set!