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How (much) can I minimise the cooking time of red split lentils? As I can't go camping or bike touring at the moment, I'm taking the chance to experiment with some home-made dehydrated meals - doing everything at home but as if I was on the road. One idea is based on red lentils, with a separate sachet of dehydrated vegetables/vegetable powders/herbs/spices to rehydrate into a sauce, the whole thing served with couscous or pasta. Stated cooking times for split red lentils range from 10 to 30 minutes; my DIY lightweight alcohol stove runs for about 10-20 minutes on a fill and I'd ideally like to boil water for the accompaniment as well on a single fill (both to minimise the amount of fuel I have to carry and to avoid the risks associated with refilling a hot stove or delay waiting for it to cool). So how quick-cooking can I make my red lentils? My first thought is to soak them for a few hours, which I tried today (4 hours soaking) with reasonable success. This simulates knowing by mid-afternoon that I need to cook a dinner. I may experiment with a shorter soak, as it would be good to be able to cook at shorter notice. But is it possible/worthwhile to cook them and then dry them again (properly dehydrated so they'd keep)? Is there some other idea I'm missing? <Q> I can’t give you numbers as I haven’t experimented with it yet (but am very inspired to do so by your post), but assuming that you will be heating water for a morning coffee or so, have you considered putting the lentils into a smallish thermos container, topping them up with boiling water and letting them soak / slow cook during the day? <S> Adding your dehydrated veggies and spices wouldn’t require any serious cooking at all, just a quick reheating or bringing it back to a boil. <S> The idea is roughly based on the principle of a haybox , where food is cooked by placing the hot out into an insulating environment. <S> And combined with the “quick soak” method for beans, where the beans are not soaked in cold, but boiling water, but for just thirty minutes instead of overnight. <S> Admittedly, this would probably get the lentils in the danger zone for longer than the canonical two hours, but on the other hand, we are not dealing with proteins like meat, raw eggs or dairy. <A> Cooking then in unsalted water Pressure cooking - saves 50%-60% of time Soaking them for 2-3 hours and cooking <S> Generally, I find red split lentils are the easiest ones to cook <S> and they cook in a very short time than any lentils. <S> Yellow split peas take longer to cook. <A> I'm skeptical about whether adding/omiting salt makes a difference, but it may. <S> Also experiment with adding a little baking soda; pH affects cooking time (and the final consistency), and 'neutral' isn't the limit of the usable range. <S> I haven't found any really reputable sources on my own, but this excellent answer discusses the role of baking soda in detail: <S> https://cooking.stackexchange.com/a/45012/74018 <S> Finally, take whatever steps you can to get "fresher" dried legumes. <S> I've personally experienced 2x variation in cooking time just with stuff that was hiding at the back of my pantry for too long. <A> A frame challenge answer: <S> Instead of processing your own lentils, you might look into preprocessed products with reduced cook time. <S> Right now, my pantry contains two products that might be interesting for your case. <S> One is a red lentil pasta that has a cooktime of 6 minutes, it's possible that other shapes have even quicker cooktimes. <S> Another is chickpea instant couscous - it only requires you to pour boiling water over it and let it sit at room temperature. <S> I haven't seen red lentil couscous, but it wouldn't hurt to look around for this kind of product (or directly base your meal on the chickpea couscous). <S> If you insist on making your own, you might look into parboiling your lentils instead of presoaking them. <S> This will likely reduce your cooktime a lot, <S> at least it does so with other food like rice. <S> I haven't done it myself, so I can't get you an estimate, but it is likely that significant time savings lie in that direction.
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But you could always adjust the time when you start the lentils to fit stricter food safety guidelines or your personal risk tolerance, e.g. boiling the water at your lunch break.
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Why does pistachio ice cream not taste like pistachio nuts? I have eaten pistachio nuts (roasted, salted) many times and I like it. I also like pistachio flavoured ice cream, but I don't find it much similar. If it wasn't named like that, I would probably not make the connection at all. Why is the flavour so different? Is it similar to "Banana" flavoured ice cream, which often uses some chemical compounds supposed to taste like banana, but which doesn't really either? <Q> Firstly, let me disagree and say that I have tasted some (amazing) pistachio ice creams that tasted very much like the actual nuts. <S> That said, I can think of several reasons why the ice cream might taste differently from the nuts: <S> Artificial flavours, like you suggest. <S> You might be able to figure out from the ingredients list if these are used. <S> Salt. <S> If you have only eaten salted pistachio nuts, you might have a different benchmark for pistachio flavour. <S> Temperature. <S> The temperature of food and drinks radically changes how it is perceived when tasting . <S> This is why (bad) coffee is OK when hot, but terrible when at room temperature, and why melted ice cream tastes much sweeter than the frozen stuff. <S> A final side note, which I include mostly because I find it interesting <S> : I used to think 'banana flavour' was based on a different type of banana than commonly found in stores. <S> Doing some searching for this question, it turns out I was wrong . <A> This adds a couple more slightly speculative reasons to L.Schoon's list , which I commend. <S> Solubility: <S> In ice cream, the pistachios are blended in with water and fats. <S> When you eat them whole they're not. <S> Any fat-soluble flavour compounds will be much more available in the ice cream than when chewed (and mixed with saliva, i.e. water). <S> Some flavour compounds are definitely much more fat-soluble than water-soluble, such as capsaicin. <S> Actual sugar and salt are of course very soluble in water. <S> Mouthfeel: <S> this has a complex interaction with taste, but is all part of the experience of eating - think of the difference between buttered toast, dry toast, toast with jam (with/without butter). <S> These actually overlap in practice, and there's a whole field of scientific literature on the subject; one relevant paper is Effect of Fat Level on the Perception of Five Flavor Chemicals in Ice Cream With or Without Fat Mimetics by Using a Descriptive Test . <S> The main conclusion for this question is that some flavour compounds were detected more strongly in full-fat ice cream, while others were detected more strongly in reduced fat recipes. <A> That is largely due to the cost difference in the two products, as well as the difficulty in processing pistachios, and probably also the fact that almond flavoring is common and generally well tolerated (by people not allergic to it, anyway!). <S> The almond may be hiding behind "natural flavors", as the most common almond flavor (Bitter Almond, or Benzaldehyde ) (which also doesn't taste like the almonds you might eat, which are sweet almonds). <S> For example, even Ben and Jerry's Pistachio Pistachio ice cream contains some almond flavoring !
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Most pistachio ice creams are made with some, if not most or even all, almond and almond flavoring in addition to pistachio flavoring. Salt is a flavour enhancer, after all.
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What is the Best Way to Keep Digestive Biscuits Fresh I bought a bunch of biscuit packets (ginger nut, digestives, bourbon biscuits) and couldn't resist opening a pack or two to try them. Now I'm afraid they'll go stale if I just leave them half opened. I have Tupperware but not super airtight or high quality. Nor do I have any dedicated biscuit tins. Should I keep them in the packet or transfer them somewhere? Can I use a glass pickle jar? What is the best way to keep biscuits fresh? Any tips on making a DIY tin? <Q> You're thinking along the right lines. <S> Airtight is what you're aiming for. <S> Old fashioned biscuit tins were probably less airtight than a lot of modern plastic boxes <S> anyway, so just use the smallest tupperware box you can fit them in (all types in together is fine). <S> I'd leave them in their wrappers, but it doesn't matter. <A> A traditional method, used by my mother, which seems to be quite effective is to add a few sugar cubes in to a container with the biscuits. <S> The sugar absorbs some of the moisture there by extending the life of your biscuits. <S> This however is only effective if you are using an air tight container. <A> is the way to go. <S> The only additional concern is that bourbon biscuits contain a filling which is usually some sort of chocolate icing. <S> This releases a little bit of water which can make other biscuits soften fairly quickly, so I would store those separately if possible.
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I agree with ChrisH for the most part - air-tight If you don't have any container at all, they keep for a few days with the end of the wrapper twisted round and clipped shut; that's enough of a seal.
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What does resting mean I'm a little confused with what resting actually means. I've typically seen this term being used where you move food (typically meat) from the oven/grill/heat and then keep it warm for "some time" (maybe 10's of minutes depending on the size). What has confused me is Gordon Ramsay's burger video, where he is cooking burgers on a BBQ. He then moves the burgers to the "resting" rack (if that is the right term) within the BBQ. This rack is still above the heat. To me, this is not resting, this is cooking at a lower heat. https://youtu.be/v191Y8AUk6w - He says this at 4:43 where also says "they'll continue cooking". AT 5:50, he closes the lid! I'm assuming resting does not mean "left alone" because many recipes, such as a roast, call for us to put meat in the oven and leave it alone until cooked. So my question, which may be a double question is: Is there a definition of what resting means and if so, what is it? <Q> There is, as you've seen, no universally precise definition. <S> Broadly, though, "resting" refers to allowing heat to diffuse through the food. <S> Although the burgers are "still cooking" once placed on the higher rack, the amount of heat being applied is nowhere near as high as when they were on the grill, and following the resting the temperature differential will be lower than when they were first taken off the grill. <A> This is a good scientific approach to looking at the concept of resting meat. <S> We do know that "carryover cooking" is real and that items continue to cook once removed from the heat. <S> This needs to be factored into your preparation. <S> I would encourage you to read the information I linked above. <S> His bottom line: <S> Roughly speaking, comparable amounts of moisture evacuate during cooking as dribble out after slicing. <S> If the final temperature is below 130F, collagen barely shrinks and there is no difference between resting and not resting. <S> If the final temperature is above 145F, the rested meat will exude more juices than the non-rested, but... <S> Resting meat merely shifts when and where the juices are exuded- <S> the total loss is about the same if you allow the juices to be reabsorbed. <S> Thicker meats benefit slightly from resting- <S> mostly by making them easier to slice and resulting in a more uniformly cooked roast. <S> But remember the thicker the meat, the more "carry-over", so adjust the cooking temperatures accordingly. <S> Don't waste the juices! <S> Incorporate them into a sauce or sop them up on the plate. <A> All foods contain a certain amount of water, even meat. <S> Those waters, when heated up through cooking, begin circulating through the food, faster and faster, raising the interior temperature of the meat(or whatever). <S> This is called convection. <S> When cooked food is removed from the heat source, convection does not just come to a dead stop; it takes a while to slow down, and then, eventually stop. <S> All the while the meat's interior temperature continues to rise and the food continues to cook (this is called "carryover" cooking). <S> If you cut into meat while this convection action is still happening, all of the waters (juices) swirling around come flooding out. <S> This water loss results in dry, overcooked meat. <S> By waiting for convection to stop, those waters are reabsorbed into the food and it retains it's moisture. <S> Also, if you wait until the internal temperature of your meat is where you want it to be before taking it off the heat, carryover cooking will overcook the meat.
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Resting commonly means to remove the meat from the cooking surface and allowing it to sit, untouched, for some time.
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Rising dough with closed/airtight lid? We have, because of Corona, started to make our own bread daily. This means we have dough in a round bowl in the fridge all the time, taking up a lot of space we can't use (on top of it, but also around it, because of the corners).I was wondering if it's possible to buy a square container with a completely closing lid, to make space on top of it in the fridge, as an extra shelf. The problem I see, is that the yeast is creating air bubbles in the dough, basically filling the container with gas and therefore overpressure. What kind dough-containers would be suitable? Do they need an air-valve to prevent overpressure in the container? <Q> Most containers are not completely airtight. <S> If you are worried that something like a cambro container seals too tightly <S> , you can cover it with a baking tray or square plate, rather than the original lid. <S> Of course, make sure that there is enough head space between the dough and the top of the container, to avoid spills. <A> I would recommend thinking about a rectangular or square container for another reason beyond space saving - if you are doing long cold rises (as suggested by your question), you may at some point try stretch-and-fold techniques. <S> I personally find this a lot easier to do with a square container than a round one. <S> I wouldn’t go for a vent, because of your dough really is on a fridge-exploring mission, a small vent won’t hold anything back and be a pain to clean. <S> Instead, check on the dough occasionally (unless you have your recipe down well enough to know how the dough behaves) and knock it back if really necessary. <S> The only type I would not chose is the clamp-down lids, because they can’t pop open if necessary. <S> If you don’t have a container with a lid and would rather continue using the bowl you have, consider a plate or pot lid for round containers or simply a chopping board. <S> Here’s a peek into my fridge (yes, the containers seem oversized, but this dough needs it): <S> Both are of the “cheapo, with a not-so-well-fitting lid” kind. <A> I must say that I'm more experienced with focaccia or pizza than bread, namely products that need to be rolled out before baking. <S> Speaking of the time window of a night/few days in the fridge, I've tried various kind of containers more or less airtight <S> and I'd say that it doesn't make a difference. <S> Nor would I say that you absolutely need a valve. <S> I do use rectangular containers but this is due to the fact that I need to roll the dough afterwards on a rectangular baking dish. <S> Again since it's products that need to be rolled, the main point is to prevent the surface to dry, that would make the rolling a mess.
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Any food-safe, appropriately sized box should do, active dough will be creating gas, but except for the most tight lid types, the lid will simply pop up at one edge or corner, even with some weight on top. Alternatively, just poke a few holes in the lid.
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Overheating a pizza stone? I bought a pizza stone without realizing that the max temperature it would withstand is 450 F (according to the instructions). My oven goes up to 550 F, which is the temperature I'd rather bake my pizzas at–is it OK to overheat the stone for the sake of the pizza? <Q> As always, it comes to the meaning of "OK". <S> The most likely scenario here is that the stone's life is shortened and it cracks. <S> It's impossible to say when this will happen, it could be soon or it could stand up to hundreds of pizzas. <S> So if for you it is worth it risking the stone, you can do it. <A> First disclaimers first, "always follow manufacturers' instructions." <S> With that out of the way, the real answer is "it depends. <S> " If it has accessories (e.g. handles or feet), or is a composition stone (e.g. solid-surface countertop, which is made of mineral pieces plus bonding agents and filler - think of it like particle board, with a base material of stone rather than wood), then its maximum working temp COULD be limited by one of those other materials. <S> (I have a formative memory of a spatula that melted when used in a hot pan. <S> But I think that sort of inappropriate construction is less common nowadays, and unless your "stone" is made of plastic that doesn't apply.) <S> Keep in mind that your "stone" was (we'll hope) designed for life inside your oven where, even if you baked at just 300 F, it will be exposed to MUCH higher transient temps. <S> In a natural gas oven, for example, the flame will be in the neighborhood of 2,000 C. Granted, the burners will be behind baffles, but during heating there will be air currents that greatly exceed the set cooking temp, and any quality baking piece will have been designed to survive that incidental exposure. <S> Furthermore, mfr's recommendations (which you really should always take into consideration) can be somewhat arbitrary. <S> There could be any number of legitimate reasons why they stamped it "450^F", but which don't actually mean it's no good at 550. <S> I'm sure you're hoping for something definitive, but what I can offer is a high degree of confidence that unless you see some element that looks delicate and worries you, you can bake your pizzas and be fine. <S> (In my experience your stone killer will be physical shock. <S> I've always worried about thermal shock (i.e. placing a cold item on a hot stone), but I've yet to have a problem with it. <A> It depends on the type of pizza stone and the material it is made of, but going up to 800F should be no problem for most ceramic stones.
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If it is a natural stone and nothing more, then it should easily survive whatever heat your oven can throw at it. If you want to avoid with certainty the stone breaking after 4-5 uses, don't use it outside of the parameters determined by the manufacturer.
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Dough failed to rise To bloom the active dry yeast as part of my recipe, I had to substitute 1 cup whole milk (which needs to reach 110F) with organic evaporated milk (0.5 cup) mixed with 0.5 cup distilled water - this mixture was mixed and then brought to 110F. After trying to bloom (no noticeable blooming) occured and mixing with 3 cups of bread flour and 1 cup AP-flour, the 1-hour resting period resulted in perhaps a ~0.1-0.2 increase of the initial dough size, which is unacceptable and confusing. All things considered, what possibly resulted in this failed attempt at this ingredient substitution? Also, what are some options to mitigate this situation? EDIT/UPDATE Using organic whole milk (same volume/temperature), blooming occured! So, do not use (just) evaporate milk for uses as I described it. <Q> You could simply try to bloom the yeast with water and sugar. <S> It should become visibly active within a few minutes. <A> There could be a two reasons why you're not noticing any blooming. <S> 1. <S> The yeast could be dead due to not being stored properly. <S> 2. <S> Your altitude and climate can affect baking and cooking so you may have to experiment a little with temp. <S> ( I am in a very high altitude with a very dry climate and the best bloom I've achieved from the yeast was with a temp of 100°f.)As the answer above states: you can try giving your yeast a pinch of suger to eat to see if that will wake it up. <A> Could the evaporated milk have its sugars in a form that the yeast couldn't digest? <S> I wonder if adding a teaspoon of sugar to the yeast might now have aided blooming.
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Could be that your yeast was simply not alive.
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What's the trick to seal sous vide foil if liquid contained I experience problems with sealing sous vide dishes if they contain liquid. Think of marinade for example. While sealing, the liquid is flowing up and prevents proper sealing. Current workaround is to take more foil for example or seal without proper vacuum. Do you know of a 100% working trick? <Q> I would say that having lots of liquid makes your life easier, not more difficult, because you don't need the vacuum at all. <S> The purpose of the vacuum is to have heat conduction take place properly. <S> If you were to put a piece of dry food in a plastic bag and close that, the air trapped in the bag would act as an insulator, preventing from the water bath to heat the food. <S> The good thing about marinades and other liquids used in cooking is that they are great heat conductors. <S> So if you have a bag full of liquid, with pieces of solid food swimming in it, the sous vide process works as intended, without any vacuum. <S> The most practically convenient way to go about it is to use ziplock bags without a vacuum device. <S> You place your food-with-liquid in the bag, submerge most of the bag, and manually press out the air, then seal by hand. <S> A few air bubbles will be left inside, but they're not a problem. <S> From there, you can proceed the same way as with a heat-sealed voided bag. <A> A trick I use is to freeze the liquid into flat pieces and put the frozen marinade in the bags before sealing. <S> Once the liquid thaws you can then squish it around the food in the bag. <S> The same technique works with non-liquids as well, like butter and pastes. <S> Anything soft tends to get sucked out when using a sealer. <A> I am assuming you are using a simple consumer vacuum sealer . <S> It is not uncommon for these devices to struggle with sealing a very wet product. <S> Here are a few things that might help, although I cannot promise 100% effectiveness. <S> Note that for sous vide cooking, you don't need a perfect vacuum. <S> You merely need to take enough air out of the bag for the product to touch the water (via the plastic) essentially everywhere. <S> Thus, your second 'workaround' is a good approach. <S> You will have noticed that when you pull the air out of a sous vide bag, the liquid will not start to flow until (almost) all air has been pulled out. <S> Your first workaround (simply using a bigger bag) gives you more time for that liquid to reach the sealer, and will therefore also work. <S> It is wasteful, however. <S> Similarly, being very alert with switching from 'vacuum mode' to 'seal mode' (if your device works like that) might help you avoid getting liquid in the sealer. <S> A trick I have found to work quite well is to elevate the vacuum sealer with respect to the bag. <S> Thus, the liquid will be held back by gravity while you pull the vacuum. <S> Finally, if your device lets you do this, you might try holding the 'seal mode' for longer. <S> This gives you a chance to boil off/displace liquid that prevents a seal. <S> My sealer comes with 'dry' and 'wet' modes explicitly for this purpose (although I tend to prefer manual operation). <A> That way you don't get any kind of issues with any machine, since you're now sealing solid food! <A> We certainly have this problem with our home-grade vacuum sealer, and I usually find a combination of a few things works well. <S> Try to limit the liquid to the minimum required for the effect; marinades in a sous vide don't need to be very substantial in most cases, as the vacuum sealing process helps them penetrate, and particularly if it's a long cook time, that longer time at an elevated temperature also helps with marinade penetration. <S> For smaller amounts of liquid, use a bit more bag, and hit the 'seal' button before the liquid gets to the top. <S> This will be needed with basically any amount of liquid, only thing that varies is the amount of liquid vs. amount of bag. <S> With large amounts of liquid, don't bother sealing the top at all. <S> Put it in a regular bag (or if it's easier, a for-vacuum bag only sealed on one side), and then put it in the sous vide obviously air-side up. <S> As long as the liquid is sufficient to cover the thing to be cooked, the sous vide will raise the temperature of that liquid to the cooking temperature, and that gives you your cooking action. <S> You can use a zip-top bag if you're worried about food safety issues related to the bag being open. <S> Some models of Foodsavers, at least, come with a vacuum "sipper" that is basically just a tube with vacuum at one end, and then a glass "marinator" container . <S> This lets you marinate under vacuum in a shorter time <S> (at least in theory, I don't know how well this actually works; studies seem somewhat negative). <S> You could try that, if you want, to avoid marinating during the cooking process. <S> (You don't actually cook in the container, note; this is a pre-cooking step only.) <S> But I think the main thing is that if you can, marinate before you sous-vide, if you really want a large amount of liquid. <S> If you're willing to give it a day or so before you cook, this will get the marination done without worrying about sealing a zip-top bag.
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One trick that works very well for sealing liquids with any vacuum sealer: Freeze your liquid before sealing (in whatever container) then transfer to the bag to be sealed.
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How to clean up after kneading dough? I've been making my first steps in baking recently. I usually knead the dough in the same large bowl I mix the dough in to minimize the mess but it's still a pain to wash the bowl and any sponge I use for it gets ruined afterwards.Any advice on how to make washing off dough? <Q> Kneading in a bowl is time-consuming and doesn't give as good a result as kneading on a flat surface, however I'll concentrate on cleaning. <S> First, don't let things dry out, it's much easier to clean when things are moist, if you do let it dry out moisten it and let it soften before you try and clean it. <S> Use cold water as hot water makes starches and proteins stick a lot more. <S> Next, invest in a curved dough scraper, and use it to scrape out the dough scraps from the bowl into the garbage before you clean it. <S> A curved plastic one works best as it has a bit of flex, although in a pinch you can use a big metal spoon. <S> I scrape by bowl pretty much clean before I put it into the sink. <S> Use the flat of the scraper to clear most of the dough and flour from your countertop, then spray down with water, let it soak for a few minutes, then scrape again. <S> Once you have it scraped well sponge it down. <A> Alternatively (with respect to @GdD's answer), let it dry out completely . <S> Totally dry dough doesn't stick all that well to many surfaces (glass, plastic, non-stick). <S> It then chips/scrapes off quite easily. <S> If I get it on my oak worktops and don't notice immediately, that's what I do, scraping with a plastic scraper or a butter knife, even a fingernail on the last bits; the same approach works on my stand mixer bowl and dough hook. <S> With some containers you may need to soak a few stubborn bits especially if they're caught in corners, but oiled wood doesn't like that. <S> I hand-work my dough either on a pastry mat or <S> if that's dirty non-stick sheet (which isn't non-stick against dough unless well-floured, but cleans easily). <S> These are both fairly easy to wash up. <A> Amazed nobody else has given the easiest answer, which is to soak it in warm soapy water for a while (at least a few minutes, up to an hour) before scrubbing it out. <S> It makes everything soft and partially dissolved <S> and it just wipes away. <A> For handwashing: Use a dishwand instead of a sponge (the dough won't stick to the plastic bristles). <S> Use warm rather than hot water, to avoid 'cooking' the starch onto things - but no need to use cold water. <S> Alternatively: Scrape <S> as much of the dough as you can into the bin with a plastic spatula. <S> Then put it the bowl in the dishwasher. <A> and any sponge <S> I use for <S> it gets ruined afterwards <S> I had the same problem until I started to use a brush like this one <S> (courtesy of Ikea <S> https://www.ikea.com/fr/fr/p/rinnig-brosse-a-vaisselle-vert-90407811/ ) <S> It really makes a difference: cleaning the brush is much easier, including greasy/oily substances (in addition to sticky substances like dough in your case)
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If you are clearing up wet, very wet is the way to go, and a brush clogs less than a sponge.
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What could this utensil pair be used for? The photo is of a utensil found in a European (French) kitchen. What is its use? The knife is 7 inches (18 centimeter) long. <Q> The handle of the round plastic object feels really distinctive to me. <S> It would clearly work with a normal hammer-like grip, but it also has the thumb-print inviting the user to choke the grip up close and apply lots of force. <S> I'm pretty sure it's for scraping. <S> The metal tool is a bit confusing; it looks like it could cut, but it's clearly not a knife. <A> I found a Swiss website that offers a similar set of tools, called « <S> Ustensiles à courge», which translates to «Squash utensils». <S> Squash utensils <S> I believe that @ShapeOfMatter correctly identified the purpose, so I am givng that person the correct answer status... <A> It could also be a form of grapefruit knife <S> I believe.
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After a minute's thought, I'm comfortable guessing that this is a child's pumpkin-carving kit.
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Butter chicken too tomatoey I recently made Sanjeev Kapoor's butter chicken and found the taste too acidic/tomatoey. It was tasty but it lacked the authentic butter chicken flavor. This was surprising to me considering the amount of spices called for. I followed the recipe nearly to a tee. My leading theories are: did not cook tomatoes long enough (cooked about 15 min) did not cook tomato puree long enough (cooked about 15 min) too many tomatoes (8-10, followed by 2 cups tomato puree) Any thoughts? <Q> Any time you find a tomato based food item "too tomatoey" <S> you're more than likely tasting the acidity of the tomato products. <S> I always add a pinch of sweetener to any tomato based dish I make. <S> And why you often hear of somebody's secret ingredient in a chili cook off to be something with sugar in it like peanut butter or chocolate or honey. <S> Start with a teaspoon of honey, sugar, brown sugar, agave nectar, etc, and go from there. <S> Also, try using coconut milk as the cream butter chicken recipes call for, as that may also alter the taste to conform to what you are accustomed to. <A> I used to always have this problem cooking tomato-based curries. <S> To balance out tomato-ness, you either need something bland like dal, something with body and sweetness like onion (I also usually add a little palm jaggery or coconut sugar to wet curries and other sauces that have tomatoes), or some oily fatty creamy rich stuff (or all of them :D). <S> I watched the video and I noticed that the tomatoes he used were really dry, and the tomato puree he used was thin (not very concentrated), so if you have juicy tomatoes and concentrated tomato puree you should probably use less. <A> There are two variations in tomatoes. <S> One is highly acidic and another one is sweeter. <S> I generally find tomatoes which are not elongated but <S> not round comes with sweet notes. <S> Tomatoes to butter chicken are added to balance sweet and sour. <S> If your sauce happens to be of more tomato flavour make sure you try to cook puree in oil before adding spices. <S> Once you see tomatoes with no raw flavour, you can add spices and chicken pieces. <S> To keep the consistency of the sauce, reduce the number of tomatoes and add 5-6 cashew kernels to make a thick sauce. <A> I researched quite a bit and found that the longer you cook tomatoes the more you cook out the tomatoey flavor. <S> Cooking 8-10 fresh tomatoes for fifteen minutes is not nearly enough. <S> It needs to be cooked for at least 45 min if not 1-2 hours. <S> That reduces it to near a paste <S> and then you lose that tomatoey flavor.
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If you want to make the dish lower in fatty ingredients like butter, oil, yogurt and cream, you need to reduce the quantity of tomatoes to avoid it tasting too acidic.
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How do I keep eggs from sticking to a pan while cooking? I like to cook eggs in my toaster oven, but the one thing that I don't like about it is how the eggs will stick to my pan after cooling and its just so difficult to clean off afterwards. I end up having to take a very stiff brush to the pan and even then it takes a full 5 minutes of scrubbing to clean it off. How do I keep the eggs from sticking to the pan in the first place? A few things: It's usually around 3 eggs, whisked in a bowl, and salted before being poured into the pan (I think its called a fritata?) The pan is definitely NOT non-stick. I think it's an aluminum cake pan, but I don't really remember. I butter the pan before pouring the eggs in. Oven is set to 150 C, cooks for about 10 minutes. I realize I might be overcooking things, but would NOT overcooking solve my problem? I need some advice here. Is there a way to solve my problem with this pan or should I just go out and buy a new one? <Q> This combination is never going to work - it will stick no matter what. <S> If you want to keep this method of baking, you will have to switch the pan. <S> A nonstick pan will work, and while it is new, you might even be able to slide off the eggs without any crust sticking to the pan (while later it will be just easier to clean from the stuck stuff). <S> You might also decide to switch to a glass pan - it will also stick, but you will have an easier time cleaning it, especially with a bit of a soak. <S> Using glass in a toaster oven will make the eggs stick a bit more though, because it creates a stronger crust. <S> In both cases, there will be some time involved in cleaning <S> that's more than just cleaning, say, a bowl in which you reheated some soup - there is no way around that with your chosen method of preparation. <A> You use a non-stick pan if at all possible. <S> They are inexpensive and make egg cookery much easier. <S> However, one tip that helps even with any pan is to preheat <S> the pan before adding the butter and eggs. <S> If you care about the science, this is usually attributed to a steam effect : some of the water in the egg, when it hits the hot pan, begins to vaporize, and the layer of steam separates the cooked egg from metal. <S> Overcooking would certainly not be improving anything. <S> If anything, the long cook time is giving the bottom layer of egg more time to stick onto the pan and burn. <S> But again, the bigger issues are cooking surface and lack of preheating. <A> Line pan with foil. <S> With your system the egg is going to stick. <S> Let them stick to aluminum foil. <S> Line your baking pan with aluminum foil and use as you normally do. <S> Then you can throw out the foil when you are done.
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So, if you leave the pan in the oven for a few minutes to preheat, you might be able to reduce sticking.
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Adding a smoky flavour without adding spiciness I rather like a strong smoky flavour in some of my food - I've tasted some rather lovely smokey vegetarian Mexican bean wraps for instance. However, I've struggled to replicate this in my own cooking without making things rather hot! I've tried smoked paprika, which is lovely but the smoky flavour simply isn't that strong in any that I've tried. Cumin didn't seem to do much, and Chipotle has a lovely smoky flavour - but unfortunately a fair punch of heat to go along with it. Is there anything else I can try to get a nice, strong smoky flavour but without the heat? <Q> Depending on what food you are trying to imbue with a smoky flavour, you have multiple options. <S> I here focus on methods that will just give you a smoke flavour, rather than smoked ingredients. <S> Actually smoking the food seems an obvious suggestion. <S> The internet will suggest any number of ways to set up a smoker at home, although you might not want to go through the effort or have to deal with the smoke. <S> Cold smoking is often done with cured meats and fish. <S> As the name suggests, this is smoking (actual smoke from actual fire), but without the heat, often accomplished by creating some distance between the fire and the food, and having the smoke travel from the former to the latter. <S> This guide seems quite comprehensive, including some ideas for a home setup. <S> Cold smoking has similar drawbacks to hot smoking. <S> Some companies make 'smoke guns' such as this one by Breville/Sage , that accomplish the idea of a cold smoker on a much smaller scale. <S> Thus, no need for elaborate setups, nor the risk of smoking up your whole house. <S> Finally, you can look for ingredients or additives that give you a smoky flavour. <S> Liquid smoke is reasonably common. <S> I have also seen powdered versions of this. <A> In addition to the other good answers, I would add that a lot of the smokey flavour in Mexican foods comes from the chili varieties used. <S> A good variety for smokey flavour is Ancho (dried Poblano) , which are very mild, but have a delightful smokiness to them. <S> They are a key ingredient in some of the very popular sauces like Adobo and enchilada sauce. <S> This one is most likely too spicy for what you want, but is certainly a nice smokey flavour. <A> Good quality mild/sweet smoked paprika does have quite a smoky flavour. <S> Pimentón <S> de la Vera is a Spanish variety that's reliable whatever the brand (dulce is what you want, not picante). <S> Adding some cumin helps bring out the smoky flavour, though the flavour of cumin isn't exactly smoky. <S> If that's not enough, and using more gives too much of a paprika flavour, smoked garlic is a good addition. <S> Smoked onions should be good <S> but I can't buy them and have never got round to making them. <A> I distill my own whisky (it's legal here in New Zealand). <S> Occasionally if I want a really nice smoky flavour to the endproduct <S> and I can't be bothered with actually smoking oak pieces, and I cheat a little bit instead <S> You may be able to use that idea for your cooking as well. <A> Another additive that I don't see mentioned much is smoked salt . <S> Obviously it will add salt to a dish, but it capable of delivering quite a bit of smokey flavor. <S> I have some that my sister in law gave me as a gift in a ziploc freezer bag and the smoke smell was so strong that I had to put it in a mason jar as well. <S> Very, very smokey. <A> Caramelizing sugars will give you a nice smoky flavour, but you have to watch it every second <S> or you just get burnt. <S> I soak raisins in juice (peach, apple, tomato) plus vinegar and cook them over low heat until they start browning and dissolving. <S> It produces a rich smoky taste perfect for BBQ sauce. <S> Just add more tomato paste for body and you have an amazing condiment for any type of meat - or to give tofu and the like a convincing grilled flavour. <A> Molasses / Maple Molasses and real maple syrup each add a depth of flavor that can enhance smoky flavors. <S> While neither alone achieves the effect you want, adding either may help you along to your goal. <S> A little goes a long way, if you want the flavor enhancement without much sweetness. <S> You will find various barbecue sauce recipes contain either of these ingredients. <S> For maple syrup, you would want to use the darker grades. <A> It turns out that smoke is partially a liquid a room temperature. <S> Alton Brown even did a segment on liquid smoke on Good Eats: https://youtu.be/R3JetOoEngs?t=544 . <S> After seeing that I've been using liquid smoke in a lot of food. <S> Most of them are not made of fake plastic chemicals. <S> They're made from smoke that's been cooled off. <S> Also, this is how most BBQ sauces get their smokey flavor. <S> They literally pour in liquid smoke. <A> If you want to know how they make the BBQ flavour (of which smoke is an ingredient of), you can watch this episode of a dutch television program which investigates these things: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuZkmPStZv4 <S> You could try to use auto generated subtitles, I don't think there are English variants, so sorry for that.
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I think some of the smokiness comes from the drying process, which may include smoking, so substituting fresh poblano will not work A (much) hotter smokey flavour is provided by Chipotle , which is dried and smoked jalapeno and is also commonly used in Adobo sauce. - I add a few teabags of a chinese tea (Lapsang Souchong tea), which is basically liquid smoke in a tea bag.
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What if I microwave Beyond Meat? I have a bag of Beyond Meat crumbles. Before reading the bag, I microwaved the crumbles in a bowl until they were thoroughly heated. ...Then I noticed that the bag says " DO NOT MICROWAVE ". Is there a health concern with microwaving the product, or are the directions intended to ensure that the product is as enjoyable as it can be? <Q> There are no health concerns with microwaving food. <S> Microwaves excite water molecules to heat food, they don't change food or make it dangerous. <S> When a product says do not microwave it means one of 3 things: <S> The packaging is not meant to be microwaved: heating some types of packaging can cause bad tastes or smells in food, or cause the packaging to release unhealthy chemicals. <S> Putting the food in a microwave safe dish solves this problem <S> Microwaving can sometimes cause a rubbery texture, or make it soggy <S> As @fraxinus rightly points out some foods can explode in the microwave, especially food with a shell or airtight covering of some sort like eggs and potatoes. <S> Heat causes pressure to build until the shell or covering fails, causing a 'rapid unscheduled disassembly' as they say in the aerospace industry when something blows up Number 2 is the most likely reason the package said do not microwave. <A> On the Beyond Meat website there's no mention either way of microwaving (other than the section that reproduces the packaging you've already seen), however searching their tweets <S> reveals that they concede it's possible, though undesirable, to microwave the stuff: <S> https://twitter.com/BeyondMeat/status/615620476862230528 <S> while you can microwave the #BeastBurger, we always recommend grillingfor the best taste, texture and experience! <S> https://twitter.com/BeyondMeat/status/424243984341684224 <S> most of our fans eat them [Beyond Chicken Strips] out of the box, werecommend pan frying them, but they are totally microwave safe! <A> Health related concerns are off-topic here, but pretty much anything that can be cooked on a stove can be heated in the microwave, whether the food is then palatable is another issue. <S> There are a few things that are worth considering: Microwaving food cooks differently to on a stove in that the water in the food is heated by the microwaves, this can lead to unpleasant textures in some foods Similarly, microwaving some items has a burning risk if they are a dry food like bread - the inside browns before the outside (reverse toast anyone?) and could potentially catch fire without warning <S> Cooking on a stove usually means adding some other ingredients such as oil or water to help heat it, which alters the taste and can enhance flavour; you might not get this with food heated directly in the microwave.
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Microwave heating causes undesirable texture changes in the food.
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Sticky, messy sourdough: overfermented, or ambient factors? I've made the same sourdough bread a dozen times before, with small variations in parameters: 360g white flour 240g whole wheat flour 390g water That's a 65% dough with 60% white and 40% whole wheat flour. I've been using the sponge method wherein the night before baking, I'm mixing half the flour (300g) with the water and 60g stiff (100%) sourdough starter. The next morning I mix in the rest of the flour, 2% salt, and knead by hand. This has worked well throughout March-May, but the last two times I attempted it I'm having trouble with dough that is sticky, stretchy, and a nightmare to handle. Last time I ventured for 70% hydration and 1:1 white to whole wheat flour and it got very messy and I abandoned it. Now, when I'm sticking to my tried recipe, I'm still having the same issue: No matter how much extra flour I incorporate, the dough will not become more manageable... it seems it's ready to swallow an entire pack! Do you think it could be: the sponge, which was left at room temp. for about 10hrs, is overfermented? (I don't have a picture, but it looked normal, bubbles like a tapioca pudding, no signs of hooch) the ambient humidity has messed up the recipe in a major way? a combination of both? It's warmer (25C) and wetter (55-65%) here this rainy June as opposed to ~22C / 40%.If the sponge is overfermented, does halving the starter help in any meaningful way? Or should I give it less time? If the flour has been soaking up water in the pantry, how much water should you add to get a predictable result? Do I just weigh a pack of flour and work out how much extra water it holds? As for The Blob, do I continue to incorporate flour into it and hope it starts holding shape, or does an overfermented sponge preclude me from getting a decent loaf? Update I've been using the same brand of white and whole wheat flours throughout. Nothing substantial about the technique has changed. I knead the bread by hand 10-15 mins through a series of smear-scrape-twist motions, as shown below in the River Cottage Bread Handbook: 65% hydration with 60-40% flour mix was my safe space, and the dough just doesn't seem to come together as of late. <Q> This is a bit unusual, but from your picture, I think your long rise at a high temperature (25C) has indeed overfermented your sponge. <S> It's not so much that the yeast is used up: in fact it might still be active. <S> Hence the lack of structure. <S> You can't fix this by adding any small amount of flour. <S> Instead you could use this dough as preferment. <S> Then you will need to add plenty more flour and water (maybe matching the amounts already used) and knead again, or use a no-knead rise (but not 10 hours) to develop gluten. <S> A method for finding the moisture content of flour that's practical in a home kitchen is suggested here: https://bakerpedia.com/processes/moisture-in-flour/ . <A> Sixty five percent hydration is not that wet in the sour dough world. <S> Adding extra flour during the process, of course changes that. <S> I would stop adding extra flour and concentrate on building the gluten structure, which, from the picture, it looks like you are lacking. <S> Can you specify your process of mixing and kneading? <S> My sourdough often looks like yours, until I build up the gluten with a series of slap and folds. <S> I often use a higher hydration, as well. <S> So it's not the result of being too wet. <S> There are so many variables in bread making, that it is difficult to pinpoint what has changed. <S> It is possible that the warmer weather has things moving along more quickly, but 25C <S> (77F) is a temperature that makes sourdough pretty happy. <S> Is it 25C where you bake, consistently, for the entire process? <S> Is every other variable the same? <S> No changes in flour (type or brand)? <S> To me the dough in your picture looks salvageable. <S> A few sets of stretch and folds (maybe 3), spaced out by 30 minutes should help. <S> If it doesn't come together, add another set. <S> Then let it ferment and rise. <A> Adjusting the overnight rest time from 9-10 hours to 7-8 hours has produced reliably kneadable dough in the 60-65% hydration range, instead of a sticky mess. <S> The ambient humidity doesn't seem to make a noticeable difference. <S> Below are the experiments, for the curious First experiment: more of the same <S> My intention was to leave the dough to ferment for a shorter time overnight, but an "alarm-clock malfunction" caused me to inadvertently repeat the scenario I originally posted about: 65% hydration, with half the flour added to the water and left overnight ( <S> ~10 hours) at about 24-25C. <S> In the morning I mixed the rest of the flour, and started kneading. <S> For the first couple of minutes I thought I had it sorted, the dough was sort of together and relatively kneadable. <S> However, as I continued to knead, it collapsed to a very similar consistency to my original attempt: stretchy, sticky, like over-chewed gum. <S> I persisted for another 10 mins, then I tried a few rounds of stretch and folds as per @moscafj 's suggestion, and it did seem to make the dough tauter, but I ultimately ended up with what could be called a misshapen frisbee, with a dull, enamel-cracking crust. <S> (I have next to no experience handling and shaping doughs this soft, s there might have been one or more other mistakes in the process) Second experiment: stiffer dough Intent on not wasting another dough / day, I bumped the hydration down to 60% and left the sponge (who'd now be at 120% hydration) at the same room temp for a bit under 8 hrs. <S> Following the same technique, the dough ended up being very easy to maneuver and, crucially, felt familiar for a 60% dough of this composition (i.e. a bit stiffer than the ideal). <S> The bread turned out great so, despite the ambient humidity being 24C / 70% RH last night (that is, uncharacteristically moist), I couldn't really feel a difference in the dough consistency. <S> Third experiment: <S> back to 65% For the final experiment, I baked two loaves, one at 60% hydration and one at 65% hydration, with a 8-hour sponge fermentation time. <S> The doughs were very manageable, and the loaves turned out great, if slightly underproofed — better safe than sorry, I guess :-)
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The problem is that the gluten that developed in the first few hours has been broken down in the long fermentation. After a few rounds of experimenting, I think I have narrowed it down to overfermentation of the sponge .
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Can I know if lemons are safe to eat whole (peel and all)? Is there any way to tell if lemons contain a residue of something that is harmful to humans? The last two winters we have been buying oranges in bulk through a website , directly from the farm and i really like it. I would like to buy lemons in bulk too.They say their lemons are not treated with anything but I would like to have a little more reassurance. The fruit is not certified organic. When buying in a store I assume the person buying the fruit for the store tests occasionally and consumer organizations and governmental organizations also sometimes test.But now I will be buying directly from the farm, without the middleman so to speak. Related: Lemons and oranges coated with imazalil EDIT: The type of answer I am looking for is how can I test, at home, in the kitchen if the fruit is covered with something like fungicides. I know citrus is often waxed, but that can be washed off, and I will wash the fruit anyway before eating. Alternatively, maybe pesticides and fungicides are so expensive that farmers are likely to avoid it if they can. Remember, these fruits are shipped straight from the farm, only fruit that is in season is sold, so there is no reason to keep them long. <Q> this may be too simple. <S> But I would think you could ask the owner of the website what chemicals the farmers use. <S> Especially if you are concerned about particular ones. <S> I haven't seen a web store without a "Contact us:" <S> link <S> I guess the owners could lie to you, <S> but without knowing a lot about chemical tests, that's the best I've got. <A> I am adding another answer to respond to the edit. <S> Unless you are a trained chemist and own a chromatograph - in which case you wouldn't be asking this - you can forget going into that direction. <S> Alternatively, maybe pesticides and fungicides are so expensive that farmers are likely to avoid it if they can. <S> No, the opposite is actually true. <S> The reason why pesticides and fungicides are used to a much larger extent than the public wants is that this practice leads to highest profits. <S> Insects, viruses, fungi and bacteria tend to kill plants and/or spoil fruit long before it can be picked and sold. <S> If no poison is used against them, part of the produce (or in some years, all of it) becomes unusable after the farmer having invested many workhours and maybe having gone into a debt they intend to pay after selling it. <S> The price of the chemicals is negligible in comparison. <S> So farmers always have an incentive to use more and more incecticides, herbicides etc. <S> than is technically needed, as a kind of "insurance". <S> (By the way, this "you cannot test it yourself" part is a basic statement about food safety, it applies to pretty much anything you eat, not just pesticides on lemons). <A> No. <S> There are so many products used in so many different ways in crop protection and as preservatives for harvested fruit, that it is impossible to say beforehand what the most likely contaminants are and how to test for them. <S> I was hoping only waxed fruit is treated with preservatives, and that i could test for wax easily, but it is impossible to say if a lemon was waxed, and unwaxed lemons may be contaminated also. <S> I have not even been able to find a top 10 list of most-often found pesticides and preservatives on/in lemons. <S> The name that does come up very often as a preservative applied after the harvest is Imazalil. <S> The up-side is, it can be washed off to some extent. <S> But this only focuses on the zest, and unfortunately 1/5 of Spanish lemons (and 1/2 of the Turkish) contain chlorpyrifos, which is neurtoxic pesticide that will be banned at the end of this year (2020). <S> It is added to the ground so it is in the fruit, not just on it. <S> In general however most of the preservatives and pesticides stay within safe margins (Dutch link). <S> If the farm also sells to supermarkets and such the product will have to be clean enough to pass tests, which most fruit does. <S> I have found little info about what organic farmers use to protect their crops, what i found seems pretty ok <S> (Dutch link). <S> Also the lemons are in season <S> currently so they are anyway less likely to be treated after harvest. <S> The best options are to contact the farm and decide how much to trust them or to rely on store-bought food that has some labelling and certification. <A> As always in life, you can never prove a negative. <S> Your goal becomes even more utopic when you state it as "something that will cause me harm" <S> - it's not always clear what will cause you harm. <S> But you might be able to use labeling to sift out the most egregious cases. <S> Governments help you protect yourself from harmful pesticides in two ways: First, they forbid use of the worst offenders. <S> Second, for some of the allowed pesticides, they require that they are listed on a label. <S> Then there are also certification organizations which have a similar role: they set up more stringent criteria for use and labeling, and only allow their certificate on foods that meet the criteria. <S> So, there is a possibility you can know it (barring fraud) for some substances in some jurisdictions. <S> The way to go about it would be: Check if substance X is listed on the label. <S> If it is, you know for certain it is there. <S> If it isn't, go to the next step. <S> Check if substance X is legal in your jurisdiction. <S> If not, you can stop worrying about it. <S> If yes, go to the next step. <S> Check if substance X is required to be listed on the label. <S> If there is such a requirement, then you know for sure it has not been used. <S> If there is no such requirement, there is no reasonable way to know it. <S> Repeat with the next substance you care about. <S> If you are buying fruit with a certification, you have to compare both the government's list and the certification organization's list. <S> Also, sometimes there are government-restricted certifications like "Bio" in Germany (note that comparable words may have no legal meaning in other places, e.g. "organic" is AFAIK not regulated in the USA). <S> So generally, if you want to get more knowledge on the subject, you have to study local regulations.
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Again, the conclusion is - if you can't trust someone who should know (either the farmer themselves, or a government agency which takes random samples of fruit available on the public market to ensure its regulations are followed) you have no way to know. There is no way that you can, personally, in your kitchen, test for specific chemical substances.
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Is there a way to quantify smoke in meat while cooking? I've observed across multiple meats and cuts of meats that the other impact of smoking varies greatly. Additionally, while actually smoking my perception of the flavor is overloaded and doesn't return to normal until probably the next day. The three variables I consider are themeat itself, the time spent in the smoker, and the temperature. Outside of extremes (like obviously too hot or too short) I find it virtually impossible to disentangle the individual variables' impact on desired outcomes (smoke flavor added, fat rendering, protein breakdown) and undesired outcomes (dry, tough, et cetera) The goal is to adjust my recipes more purposefully and efficiently; not just to follow someone else's recipe. Is there a proxy (not simply tasting) way to know the amount of smoke penetration or smokey flavor? Edit: I'm thinking something along the lines of the charts showing sous vide eggs by temperature, or the doneness of a steak, or milk in tea. The intent is to known that "it's done enough" while smoking. <Q> Well... yes. <S> You could test samples taken from the meat at different depths to measure penetration. <S> You'd need a reasonably well-outfitted chemistry lab to do a good job of this. <S> Honestly, though, objective measurements are not the right way to go about this. <S> There's a reason food scientists do both chemical and organoleptic tests. <S> Objective chemical measurements are always going to be an imperfect approximation of subjective experience. <S> If the color of the test strip tells you something's not very smoky, and your tongue tells you it is, which are you going to believe? <S> If what you're looking for is a way to reliably compare the results of multiple attempts over time, just take small samples and freeze them, then compare them [using your tongue] once you're back at max taste. <A> I know of no such scale, however you could use a Subjective Organoleptic approach, which is how the Scoville chili heat scale worked (although they use a chemistry based approach for the most part now). <S> My understanding of it is that you dilute food and test how much of it you need to detect the quality you are looking for, like sweet, acidity or smokiness. <S> Strong flavors will be detectable much more diluted than weak ones, so by testing multiple foods you can build up a picture of the subjective strength of each on that characteristic. <A> My BBQing colleagues use <S> the cut-test - a ring of smoke penetration can be seen (in pork and chicken at least, I don't know about darker meats) in the meat that has some bearing on how heavily the meat has been smoked. <S> I don't know if this is standard practice or just something they came up with (Edit: turns out it is something BBQ judges look for). <S> It seems that this is related to how long the meat was smoked, how hot the smoker and probably how the meat was pre-treated (brined?, marinaded?, rubbed?). <S> In response to @phil's comment, I have been to the source of all BBQ knowledge, amazingribs.com , where they combine science and BBQ and had a look for smoke rings : It turns out that the smoke ring is actually linked to Myoglobin - a pink protein in the meat, and its exposure to heat, nitric oxide and carbon monoxide, NOT smoke (particles in suspension in the air) per se, but gasses made by combustion of wood or charcoal in the presence of air. <S> It only happens at temps below 170 F (~77 C). <S> So it doesn't directly measure how much smoking has gone on, but rather how long it has been in the presence of CO and NO at relatively low temperatures - often in direct relation to how long it has been smoking. <S> So - TLDR, the "smoke ring" is not directly related to smoke, but rather to the presence of gasses found in high abundance in smoke. <A> Use measured amounts of ingredients like smoke salt or liquid smoke. <S> If your current methods of introducing the smoky flavor to a dish can't be easily measured, you could consider using alternative methods to do so that could be. <S> For example, you could measure out an amount of an additive like liquid smoke or smoke salt that you could add to the dish. <S> That way, every time you use the additive, you'll be able to ensure that the same amount of smoky flavor is added if you use the same amount of the additive, and since you're not using actual smoke, you'll be able to taste the food to judge its flavor without having your ability to taste the smoky flavor drowned out by the smoking process.
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There are analytic chemistry techniques used to measure the concentration of phenols, which are the primary contributors to a "smoky" flavor.
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What are these white spots in my bread dough? I'm making hot cross buns following this recipe: https://domesticgothess.com/blog/2020/03/09/vegan-hot-cross-buns/ About an hour into the first rise, I'm seeing these alarmingly mold-like dots in the dough. I didn't see these when I was kneading it. The only things I might've done abnormally for this recipe were: My soy milk might've been a touch too hot when I added the yeast. I was afraid it would kill the yeast, but it looks like the dough has risen normally. Not sure if that has something to do with the appearance of these spots. For the soy milk, I made it using cooked soybeans blended up with water. It was done in a high speed blender and the soy milk appeared quite smooth, but could these be unblended soybean chunks? I used kosher salt. Perhaps the salt was not fully dissolved by the time I let it rise. Are there any other possibilities for what these spots could be? <Q> It's impossible to say what it is - but I am quite sure what it isn't. <S> I have never seen or heard of a pathogen (mold or otherwise) which is able to build visible colonies during such a short time at room temperature, especially in the presence of yeast. <S> And your yeast was not dead - the dough rising proves it. <S> This is almost sure some ingredient not being mixed well. <S> There are a few alternative explanations such as you covering the bowl with a nonpermeable lid and having enough condensation to drop onto the dough surface, or maybe (and we are getting into really weird/rare territory here) <S> the vegan substitutes acting in unusual ways and managing to clump somehow. <S> I would bake and eat - it is one of the exceptions where I can't connect this unusual photo to the "when in doubt, throw it out" rule. <A> Try feeling the texture of the spots. <S> Otherwise, if the texture is smooth, it might be something else. <A> Based on your response to my comment, it appears that you have undissolved salt in your dough. <S> I've seen this before. <S> You can use kosher salt <S> when baking bread, just be sure to add it at a stage when there is enough liquid to dissolve it.
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If they are clumpy when you press down on them, it might be a case of flour clumping together when mixing.
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Firming up Neapolitan Pizza Crust We cooked some pizza last night and had a good time. However, the crust was limp. I was expecting to tap the bottom and hear the tap tap tap sound but it was too soft. We have an Alphaforni 5 Minuti Wood fire oven running at 500°F. The temperature was measured using the built in thermometer. I had preheated the oven for over an hour. The dough was sitting out of the fridge for about 2.5 hrs before we got it into the oven. How can I get the bottom crispier? What would cause such a soft bottom? <Q> 500F is not really that hot, in terms of Neapolitan pizza. <S> Traditionally, they are baked for 2 minutes or less, at 700F - 900F (371 - 482C). <S> So, this could be a temperature, <S> and/or a cooking surface issue. <S> What type of oven are you using? <S> On what type of surface is your pizza cooking? <A> I've heard that Neapolitan pizza is traditionally served with a soggy base in the middle . <S> I've never been to Naples <S> so I can't confirm that this is true, but you might just be cooking a "classic" Neopolitan pizza :) <S> That said, I prefer a crispy base like you! <S> I can think of a few possible explanations for a crispy crust and a soggy base/bottom: <S> Trapped steam. <S> Try resting your pizza for a minute on a wire rack to let steam escape from the base before serving. <S> The pizza was taken out prematurely , which prevented the pizza from developing a hearty base/crust. <S> If you have a thick pizza, you can even end up with pizza that's doughy in the middle. <S> Wet ingredients can cause the crust to absorb all the moisture from the sauce and ingredients (use low-moisture mozzarella!) <S> Cooking on a non-conductive surface . <S> Unlike most indoor ovens, most of the heat in an outdoor oven doesn't come from below the pizza -- it usually comes from the wood, which is lit and placed next to the cooking area. <S> If the cooking surface isn't conductive for some reason, you might end up with a soggy bottom. <A> An authentic Neapolitan Pizza usually has a rim that is fluffy and soft in the inside and comes with a delicate eggshell crust (cornicione) and when cutting a slice of it, it is expected to bend at the tip. <S> So if you are aiming for a crunchy crust you probably don´t want a Neapolitana. <S> To reach this goal you can tweak some parameters: <S> Lower the hydration to less than 50% <S> *, official Neapolitana calls for 55-62% and hydrations of 70% and above are common. <S> The reason for this is that the water 'explodes' to steam faster at the 900°F than the dough cooks creating the big, fluffy alveoli in the rim. <S> According to this lower temperatures will also help create a crunchier crust because the water evaporates slower leading to a more compact and thus stiffer result. <S> Your 500°F should already be a good choice and I would not recommend to go even lower. <S> Add 4-8% oil to your dough, this will give the texture more crunchiness as 'fries' the dough a bit. <S> Neapolitan doug does not contain oil at all. <S> Increasing the amount of salt (e.g. by 0.5%) also might help a little as it strengthens the gluten network. <S> (For this reason doughs used for pizza acrobatics contain much more salt than doughs for baking.) <S> * All percentages are bakers percents.
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Preheating a pizza stone or cooking your pizza in a cast iron pan could help transfer the heat from your oven to the base of your pizza.
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What are some effective tips for cooking bacon in the microwave? I typically cook my bacon in the oven or stove top. A relative of mine saw me do this and recommended using the microwave instead. I have two questions on this: Is this food safe--does using a microwave kill the bacteria/pathogens in pork? What are some effective methods to ensuring I get the same results as I would in an oven or on the stove top? <Q> The USDA even lists microwaving bacon as a safe way to cook it: <S> The three main ways to cook bacon are in a skillet or pan on thestove, in a conventional oven, or in the microwave. <S> The length of timeto cook bacon depends upon the type and thickness of the bacon, theheat used, and the desired crispness. <S> That said, I wouldn't expect the same (or even similar) results as cooking bacon in an oven or on a stovetop. <S> Microwaved bacon usually ends up rubbery instead of crispy and brown. <S> You also can't collect the rendered fat and reuse it since you usually microwave bacon on a paper towel. <S> Serious Eats wrote a great piece on how to cook bacon and advised against microwaving bacon due to the texture, but try it for yourself! <S> Microwaved bacon is perfectly safe to eat and, at the end of the day, only you can decide whether you like it or not :) <A> This technique is what I have been using and it works well for me, although it isn't the same as ones cooked on stove or in oven. <S> You put lay bacon strips on the top of an upside-down bowl (that is microwavesafe and can handle high temperature, so no plastics or normal glasses), has a plate under the bowl to collect the fats (optionally with a paper towel), and cover the bacons lightly with a paper towel. <S> For timing, it depends on too many factors so just try it out with your microwave settings and see. <A> My neighbor cooks her bacon in the microwave, but she also likes taking it to fully crisp, rather than leaving it with a little bit of chew to it, so I don't know how well it works <S> if you like it less well done, but works well for crispy bacon. <S> She's gone through a couple of different 'bacon trays' through the years. <S> Her original one looked like this one from Nordicware , but she now has a round ceramic one. <S> (if your microwave is large enough, I recommend the square/rectangular ones, as you can fit whole strips on it without trying to curve them or needing to cut them down to fit on the tray) <S> To use the trays, you just lay out the bacon on it, hopefully not overlapping too much, then place a layer or two of paper towels on top of it, and then microwave it for a few minutes. <S> The exact time is a function of your microwave's wattage, the thickness of your bacon, and how you like it cooked, but she usually starts with 6 minutes, and then does one or two minute steps 'til it's done to how she likes it. <S> If you have a powerful microwave (greater than 1000W), or you're only cooking a couple of strips, start with 4 minutes or even less if both are true) <S> She also checks how much grease has come off when she's checking how far done it is, and will drain the tray if needed. <S> (into the trash or a clean container if you're saving it ... not down the sink) <A> I simply lay out the bacon on 2 or 3 thicknesses of paper towels on a plate, and put 2 or 3 on top, and cook it about 30-60 seconds at a time until it is the right level of doneness. <S> The paper towels will absorb the rendered fat as it cooks leaving it crisp. <S> In my experience a special tray is not needed. <S> If your microwave does not have a plate inside that spins you should turn the plate every 30-60 seconds for even cooking.
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You can cook bacon that is safe-to-eat using a microwave.
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How do I get better at tasting? I think this question might be borderline off-topic. I am open to suggestions for making it fit the SA format better Many drinks (coffee, whisk(e)y, wine) are more enjoyable once one can discern the different flavours in those drinks. I.e., once one moves beyond 'tastes like wine' to 'tastes like blueberries and honey'. The same is true for some foods (chocolate comes to mind, with descriptions similar to those used for wines. Also olive oil .). On top of that, it is a fun (and, for cooks, useful) skill to be able to taste a dish and mentally separate out the different ingredients that went into it. Some people (so-called supertasters ) are predisposed to have a sharp sense of taste. Assuming I am not a supertaster, how can I improve my tasting skills? <Q> You get better through concentration and lack of distractions. <S> Just as you shouldn't eat while watching TV. <S> You'll miss all the flavors. <S> Sit back. <S> Take small samples. <S> Let it lay or slosh around in your mouth for a while--several seconds at least. <S> Think about what you taste and feel. <S> Soon you will find those one-tone flavors have a background to them or a subtle second or third flavor coming out of nowhere. <S> After a while, you'll start noticing those underlying flavors every time you use that ingredient and notice it missing when you have a not-so-good variety. <A> You can improve by tasting things up and taking notes. <S> In the case of wines, which I'm more familiar, (and other alcohol) <S> you can usually find local wine tasting groups, or when it is OK, go to a wine bar and get small pours of different wines and taste and take notes; ask before if you can do that, and do it at off-peak time. <S> (and don't drink and drive) <S> For other products, try to find specialty stores for the product you want to taste, sometimes they can sell small sample of different products they have. <S> For example, my local chocolate store can sell me a sample box of different chocolate, white, milk and dark chocolate of different level of cocoa (50%, 70%...) <S> good luck. <A> Another approach you could take is by starting to bake/cook. <S> If you understand how to create something, e.g. a cake or a curry, you can start experimenting with changing the amounts of flavours and seeing how that impacts the end result. <S> Adding lemon zest to a cake creates a really different result than leaving it out. <S> Adding more or less cumin to a curry changes the flavor at the end. <S> Eventually you get comfortable with guessing the impact of those little tweaks, and I find that this also makes me better at determining what I'm eating in a restaurant. <S> There's also the fun challenge of trying to recreate what you tasted earlier, for which you have to pay careful attention while eating and maybe even take some notes. <S> Source: I've been baking with my mother from a very young age. <S> Due to a pesky food intolerance there were hardly any baked goods we could get from the stores. <S> My mother took it up like a champ, became a baking machine and shared those baking sessions with me. <A> There are different factors, that influence taste: Personal human limits: Everything that contributes to taste has a threshold, at which it becomes perceptible. <S> Humans have different thresholds to different chemical compounds, so it may taste different to you, than to someone else. <S> Treating your palate right: Being able to taste subtle flavours is sometimes a matter of contrast. <S> Regular consumption of sodas, strong coffee, super sweet stuff, etc. will make it harder to pick up subtle notes. <S> If you really want to improve your perceptiveness you should avoid food and drinks that impart the "extremes". <S> Having a framework and learning: <S> For me the major thing about "learning how to taste" is the vocabulary. <S> It helps to describe what you taste and learning which differences two similar flavour descriptors have, helped me to learn the nuances. <S> For example in beers most flavours are really subtle. <S> It might be easy to find out, that a certain beer tastes like tropical fruits, but then differentiating peach, mango, lime, orange, etc. <S> is a lot harder. <S> I would say, that I've been able to taste all these things before, but I didn't had the right framework to differentiate the flavours that much. <S> Speaking of drinks again, for me it helps to focus on a certain aspect when having a sip: <S> For example I focus on what flavour strikes me at first when taking a sip, then with the next sip I concentrate on how it develops, and then what the aftertaste is. <A> Sense of smell can play a big role in how you taste food. <S> It is important to really smell your food before you eat it. <S> Also make sure to breathe properly while you are eating. <S> One trick that has always fascinated me is I can be munching on some walnuts and when I walk outside they actually taste different. <S> Other than that, if you practice it, your perception of tastes will become better too. <S> Wines are great to practice with because winemakers are heavily invested in consistency and standing out subtly, but honestly I think it would work with any food, especially if you can practice on something familiar. <S> One thing to keep in mind is you probably won't taste the same things/way as other people. <S> Unless your goal here is to eventually get into professional tasting, then don't worry about trying to taste 'a hint of citrus with overtones of elderberry' or whatever in your wines. <S> Instead, focus on the tastes that are coming to you in whatever language or description seems to fit the best. <S> And have fun!
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It helps to have common examples of that descriptors or even the "pure thing" at hand to learn flavour descriptors.
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Where does the green part of the scallion start and the white part end? I've been using Hello Fresh for a while now and many of their recipes include the step: "Trim and thinly slice scallions, separating whites from greens." Looking at a typical scallion, I see a clearly green part, a clearly white part, and a relatively substantial greenish-white no man's land in the in the middle. In the recipes, the greens are used as a garnish or sometimes in salsas, so I feel like the super green, super thin parts are most desirable there. The whites, on the other hand, are usually used as a cooked ingredient, sometimes, but not always in something lightly colored like rice. In my gut, the greenish-white part feel like it should be considered a white, up until the part where it loses it's white-ish moisture and softness. Are there any problems (flavor, cooked texture, etc) I should worry about by using that middle section as whites, or where should I draw the line? <Q> If you want to be really, really picky, then the 'green' is each individual leaf as it breaks away from the cylindrical whole. <S> That leaves you with the decision as to whether to pick off each leaf, giving you a bit of extra 'white' or just make some relatively arbitrary decision after you hit that first leaf 'node'. <S> So, unless you want to pick off each leaf, then it's 'about here <S> … ish… ' <S> Personally, if I'm being 'a bit picky' I will unwrap the outer layer for the first couple of nodes, where they go unattractively lumpy, purely for aesthetic reasons & include the rest in my 'white' distinction. <S> Once I get far enough <S> I [that I can't be bothered any further] then I pick out any remaining 'white' bits & go all-in for the rest of the greens, until I hit the raggy ends, which join the roots in the compost bag. <S> Once you've actually cut to the green line, separation for 'fussy distinction' reasons does get easier, as you're no longer dealing with the entirety of the onion & its reluctance to part layers without ripping down to the root - you can just pull bits off & deal with them separately. <A> This applies also to leeks. <S> The practical answer is: as you like it. <S> Not everybody follows the French culinary traditions, and there are people who use the whole plant, as well as those who use only the green part, throwing out the white. <S> You can easily experiment with this and decide which you like best, it is unlikely that you will get anything more terrible than a snot-colored vichyssoisse. <A> It varies a lot. <S> In Chinese cuisine, where scallions are extremely commonly used, the dark green end is used for garnish, while the lighter part and white end are usually used as an aromatic with ginger and garlic. <S> A few examples from my favorite Chinese cooking channel, here's a recipe for scallion pancakes that cuts somewhere in the middle of the light green section: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iblk2-1QNGM <S> If you watch videos from that channel (almost all of which incorporate scallions or something similar), you will see that many different choices are made. <S> If you are going for a garnish, only the dark green ends would usually be used, but sometimes you do see the method of julienning the lighter part and blanching in ice water to cause them to curl up, then using as garnish. <S> Sometimes the entire length is used, chopped into sections 1-2 inches long, or sometimes cut on a diagonal. <S> It's really up to you and what you prefer and <S> what recipe you're making, scallions are extremely versatile! <A> It depends on the recipe, but most commonly I would cut across the whole bunch where the lowest clearly green part is. <S> In your photo, that would be about 1/3 way down from the top of ?? <S> ?. <S> I would call the part above the cut green and that below white. <S> If green color is a distraction I will cut off more greens and probably not use them at all. <S> Try it and see what you like. <S> One of the great things about cooking is you do a lot of it. <S> If one dinner isn't perfect, you will learn and the next will be better.
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The classic "high dining" answer is as you propose: the tender light green part gets kept with the white, while the mature part of the leaf gets removed and thrown away, or used for something different than the white part. It depends somewhat on the recipe.
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Oven semi-baked semi-fried potatoes starting from raw (for the lazy cook) The objective of this question is to avoid spending time in front of the stove, moving a stove-top method to the oven to enable, in particular, quadrupling the amount that can fit in a skillet, without also quadrupling the cooking time. My batch of peeled russet potatoes now sits in salted water for about an hour, to absorb the salt. The idea is that fried potatoes are, from experience, tastier and crunchier when the salt is deep inside, not just on the surface. Next, I'll cut the potatoes into wedges and fry them. Deep frying is unnecessarily unhealthy. My standard method is to parboil and fry in the same pot/skillet. For that I mix water and oil, boil the wedges in the water/oil base semi-covered until the water evaporates. Frying starts on its own once the water is gone. The remainder of the time I must be near the stove—to turn frequently. This method doesn't scale easily (cooking quadruple the batch takes quadruple the time in front of the stove). Worse, it requires a teflon coating, which I'm trying to move away from. This all works well, but I'd like to do nearly the same in the oven, to avoid the labor of standing in front of the stove, and to be able to handle a larger batch for a larger number of guests. How will the following work out? After cutting into wedges, air dry for a few minutes in a colander—long enough to dry, but not so long as to turn color. Coat the wedges in oil. I'm planning on melted coconut oil, imagining absorption into the outer layer of the starchy potatoes. Bake in the oven at 425F for an hour (in glass). When I see semi-baked semi-fried potato wedges at restaurants, I'm sure no one stood in front of a stove, turning frequently in small batches. Am I on the right track? Is turning halfway (or, worse, multiple times) absolutely necessary? What stops the oil from falling all the way down; or, alternatively, how can I encourage absorption to make this an oven method? N.B.: I know I can do this using a bag from the supermarket. I'm avoiding hydrogenated oils. Results 1 I'll put here pictures of experiments using the ideas suggested in the answers. Using Max's answer (parboiling wedges, briefly air drying, coating with oil, then baking) produces the following. The texture and taste were perfect. The only fault perhaps is that baking (in a preheated oven) did not seem effective. It was necessary to broil on low. This meant that the labor to produce the fries, even though less than turning over the stove, was still more than I wanted. In particular, it would be nice if the amount can be doubled with only doubling the necessary parts (peeling, if done, etc). 2 I see that Willk anticipated the broiling step. What's odd in aiming directly at broiling (rather than as a rectification) is that the oil will navigate down, hence the top, the part with the least oil, will be the side to broil. Is there then no higher oven temperature (450F? 475F) to experiment with that enable full-surface oven frying, foregoing both the frequent check-if-they-re-burning and the turn-them-over steps? In the following experiment, the potatoes are sliced rather thin (~4mm; ~1/4") to ensure they cook through. They are then brushed with oil on both sides, and are turned halfway under the broiler. The outcome is somehow not quite as satisfying as the first (parboil). Perhaps it needs fine-tuning. Mainly, though, this doesn't scale. If instead of cooking for two people you want to suddenly cook for eight, thin slicing will mean that your oven time will quadruple, which would sort of make you yearn for deep frying. <Q> Restaurants usually pre-cook (either parboil or parfry) <S> their potatoes and freeze them in serving portions. <S> When baking potatoes, I prefer using a metal pan sheet instead of a glass bakeware. <A> I do this all the time. <S> Does this make me a bad person? <S> Cut potatoes into wedges or sticks, coat in oil (add spices if required), spread on a baking sheet and bake at 180-200C (depending what else is in the oven) for 20 minutes or so, till they're done, turning once. <S> Also useful for other vegetables; parsnip, carrot, sweet potato... or paprika, zucchini, aubergine if you add them halfway through. <S> edit: To avoid having to scrub the baking sheet I might use a sheet of baking paper. <S> I never thought of silicon sheet, I shall try that. <S> But it's not so bad to clean an enameled sheet, if you soak it while you are eating. <S> Mine have raised edges. <S> edit 2: the point of this method is <S> , you get the fried food taste and feel, the browned edges and <S> so, without deep-frying, so you save drenching it all in fat. <S> The food doesn't fry on the sheet, it bakes, but with oil on the outside, so <S> it's sort of micro-frying. <A> Broiler potatoes! <S> Slice them. <S> Worchestershire <S> if you want. <S> Toss in oil. <S> Salt and pepper. <S> Under the broiler they go! <S> You will have to figure out top rack or one down depending on how hot your broiler is. <S> I take them out and turn them over and put them back in when they look brown on top. <S> Sometimes I sit by the oven with a drink to keep an eye on stuff under the broiler. <S> But even if the potatoes get a little toasty they are still good. <S> When you take out potatoes and they are done, you can sprinkle some grated cheese on them and put them back in to toast the cheese. <S> Yum. <S> If you do not believe me, google "broiler potatoes" and marvel at the many. <A> Cut potates in wedges Boil salted water (the bigger pot the better - <S> the temparature will not drop drastically so the wedges will have not have to sit for long in the water) <S> Put batches of wedges into water and boil for a short time (time depend on your potates) <S> you don't want to boil them, just to make the outer side little softer. <S> take wedges out and spread out for drying (no need to put them in freezing water, a little extra time is ok). <S> Dry wedges (I usually put them for 1-2 minutes in oven preheated to 120°C), put them in bags and freeze. <S> Fry them when needed in max temp your fryier allows <S> Usually when fries are pre-fried (or pre-baked or whatever) <S> the temperture They are put into is very consistent. <S> So when the potatoes are put in the (for example oven) they are first dried in low temperature <S> so the outer surface will absorb a fine mist of oil. <S> And fine mist is very crucial. <S> If you are spraying oil thin of pointing nozzle up or straight rather then down. <S> Then shake and oil-mist again. <S> When you bake them (which is around 220 celcius) <S> you need to remeber that temperature drop when you open the oven. <S> You also introduce cold tray and wedges so the temp is not 220 from start. <S> I would rather set to 240 with grill (or turbo grill) option, keep it like that for 5 minutes afte putting food in and then drop to 220 with a fan turned on. <S> When the fries are pre-fried they go through a very hot (220 °C) oil (but it's not oil <S> , it's a mix of different fats) for a very short time. <S> The temperature ensure that potatoes are pre-cooked and very little oil stay on fries themself (because it's very hot and runny and just drop back to the frying basin)
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I would just parboil the potato wedges, then coat with oil and put in oven until golden brown (or just brown-ish).
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Is there a quintessential Italian hot sauce? Fill in the blank: Franks is to America what Cholula is to Mexico what Sriracha is to Vietnam what ______ is to Italy. One of my recipes which is a spin on Orichiette with Rapini, calls for hot sauce. I usually use Sriracha since it tastes good but I do find it's a clash of flavors sometimes. I'd like to replace it with an alternative that's representative of Italy. I have no experience with Italian hot sauces, what are the popular ones? I know "sauce" has an additional meaning when it comes to Italian cuisine: I'm not looking for arrabiata or red sauce or anything like that. I mean something that comes in a bottle, perhaps crushed peppers and chilis with vinegar. <Q> Bottled hot sauce is not much in demand in Italy. <S> I'm in central Italy, but I think in the south where spicy food is popular, chili is added fresh or dried to a dish rather than through a bottled sauce. <S> I did find one example from Delizie di Calabria which is a common brand: http://www.deliziedicalabria.it/notizie/145-nd-sauce-la-salsa-piccante-senza-compromessi <S> but I wouldn't call it typical. <S> In my local supermarket (Tuscany) <S> the only hot sauce available is Tabasco! <S> Again, I welcome anyone from the south to correct me if I'm mistaken, but hot sauce is definitely not a thing here. <A> I have family both in the very north and the very south of Italy. <S> In the north, spicy food is not super common but there is usually a jar of dried chilies in olive oil somewhere in the kitchen and they are available in restaurants. <S> In the south there is always either fresh/dried/in-olive-oil <S> /powdered chilies on the table (at home and in restaurants). <S> But I don't recall seeing a bottle of "hot sauce" anywhere (except maybe some tabasco). <A> Whenever I see spicy food in Italy they mostly use hot chili. <S> Other than that <S> , oil flavored with spicy chili.
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The only one I know of is the Calabrese Spread/Sauce.
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How to predict and adjust the spice level of dal? I have made countless recipes from popular Indian books and when I taste the end result, I always feel like the dish needs more spice. For example, I tried a recipe for Sri Lankan Dal with coconut found below and thought it could use more spice and it's usually too late by the time everything has been cooked since the dal needs to simmer with the spices. How can someone gauge the needed spice level of a recipe before hand? And how can someone amend the spice level after the dal has been cooked? Fry the spices in some oil and add it back to the dal? Recipe: 450g red lentils 3 cardamom pods coconut oil 1 cinnamon stick 3 whole cloves 2 brown onions, thinly sliced 4 cloves of garlic, crushed 2cm ginger, peeled and grated 2 green finger chillies, finely sliced ⅓ teaspoon ground turmeric 250g kale 200ml tinned coconut milk salt ½ teaspoon mustard seeds 2 tablespoons desiccated or fresh grated coconut juice of 1 lime Recipe taken from Fresh India: 130 Quick, Easy and Delicious Vegetarian Recipes for Every Day by Meera Sodha. <Q> Firstly, it has to be said - <S> the way you learn to judge quantities is … practise. <S> However, there are several factors at play here… <S> "Indians" [sorry, I'm generalising a whole continent into one word for convenience] <S> don't eat mouth-stingingly-hot food at every meal. <S> Some food is mild, some is 'go-for-it'. <S> Some is rich, some is bland, some has heat, some has aromatics. <S> There is a North/South divide on 'spiciness' or 'heat' with the Southern continent going for hotter examples, Northern more dependant on aromatics. <S> Western "Indian" restaurants have tainted our view of what "Indian" food is. <S> Dal can be pretty bland anyway. <S> Your recipe is towards the bland end of the spectrum of possible dal recipes. <S> The 'Sri Lankan-ness' in it is really only the coconut & perhaps the mustard seed. <S> So, that done with, in a broad sweeping generalisation kind of way, to your issue. <S> The recipe as written is missing a lot of what I would consider a 'basic' dal. <S> For a whistle-stop basic chana dal… Boil dal with turmeric for half an hour <S> Fry cumin, garlic, onions Add tomato, ginger, green chilli Add chilli powder, turmeric, garam masala [or supermarket 'curry powder' <S> depending on availability], asafoetida, coriander powder, dried methi Add to dal mixture Simmer until happy. <S> If you want to trick this up to feel more Southern or Sri Lankan, substitute coconut milk for some of the lentil boiling liquid, sub coconut oil for the ghee, add curry leaves & black mustard seed. <S> Chillies, fresh green or ground red to taste. <S> Some of the ingredients you can add more later. <S> Chilli powder, garam masala or 'curry powder' if you want a quick boost. <S> Other aromatics such as cardamom & clove, if you cheat & use them in powdered form, you can boost at any point. <S> They're not as potent as whole, but they're a quick fix. <S> Another cheat is garlic powder, which is used by many restaurants rather than fresh - again, not the same as fresh, but can be used as a pep-up at any time <S> [watch it doesn't go lumpy, make a thick slurry with water first to be safe.] <A> There's a few factors that may be at work here: <S> Quality of spices: how good your spices are to begin with, as in how much flavor they impart to food is an important factor in the result. <S> Better quality means more flavor. <S> Keep in mind <S> New York Times recipes are catering to an American sense of how heavily flavored food <S> should be <S> You need to develop a sense of how much it takes of the spices you buy to produce the amount of flavor you want, and adjust the amounts upward. <S> If it's bland, add 50% more or double and see how that works. <S> It helps to take notes of how much of each spice you use each time. <S> You can then use that information to customize future recipes. <A> Most of the dals I know are made by boiling the lentils (with or without vegetables, tomatoes, salt, green chillies, turmeric, even whole peppercorns) and then frying spices and/or aromatics separately and adding them to the dal. <S> There are some exceptions, but in any case you can always get away with frying an extra pinch of chilli flakes/powder in oil and throwing it in at the last minute if you want to add some heat. <S> Other spices that are commonly added that way are mustard seeds, cumin, curry leaves and hing (asafoetida). <S> The key thing is, you need to fry the spices <S> well enough to release their flavour into the dish (if you must avoid oil, dry roasting and grinding works too). <S> Boiling spices just doesn't do that <S> well - you end up with something bland and bitter that only tastes good after a day or so in the fridge for the spice oils to diffuse. <S> Another tip to bring out some extra flavour - add some souring agent like lemon juice, tamarind or amchur (unripe mango powder). <S> But this only works if you fried the spices properly!
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Where you are in the world and where you shop can make a difference Freshness of spices: If you have spices that have been sitting for awhile you may have to use more to get the same flavor Personal taste: the recipe may be underspiced according to your taste, but fine to other people's taste.
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How does one glue together fried onions with an edible, savory adhesive? I'd like to make a bar that consists of fried, crispy onions (also known as “Bawang Goreng”) that are glued together. The glue should be edible and savory. I wonder what the best recipe would be for this kind of glue. With some quick googling, I found that some people use a mixture of water, flour, and salt as an adhesive paste. I'm afraid, however, that the fried onions won't be that crispy anymore if I apply this mixture to it. So my question is, do you have any other ideas for a savory food glue? In particular, one that would somehow fit the taste and bite of fried, crispy onions? <Q> Oooh! <S> This is interesting! <S> I think the first thing I'd like to know is there a requirement for the entire bar to savory? <S> Because a lot of foods mix flavors and textures. <S> Salted Caramel with nuts is an easy example. <S> I can't remember the episode <S> but there was an interview with David Chang of Momofuku on the Splendid Table where he spoke about his grand unified theory of flavor where the most satisfying dishes contain sweet, bitter, salty & sour (often now with hot and umami added in). <S> If you are willing to add in others you expand the range quite a bit as most sticky things are sweet. <S> And you could have just that binding layer be sweet. <S> If not the next question I'd have centers around what sort of textures are acceptable along with how long until consumption? <S> If, it short term maybe something <S> Tamagoyaki would work. <S> That's more adhesion by pressing into a softer material and obviously wouldn't work if you are thinking bar as in a packaged bar that gets sold in a store. <S> Modified corn starch and rice are options. <S> You could enrobe or possibly even spray those. <A> Dough. <S> I make oatmeal cookies with so many other things in them that the dough can barely hold them together. <S> Chips, nuts, dry fruit, coconut; all that good stuff. <S> I can imagine that strategy here. <S> You could do the same with your crispy onion. <S> Make dough with butter, flour, egg and baking soda. <S> Mix in the onions (gently! <S> you don't want to smash them!). <S> Or make cookie then gently press in onions to keep them whole. <S> You want so much onion that it is barely a cookie. <S> You could deep fry these <S> and then you would have a fritter. <S> Or you could bake them into a cookie or bar. <S> If you add some sugar to the dough it will brown when you bake it. <S> The thing will be converging more on a cookie if it is sweet <S> but the browning is a good savory flavor. <S> You could add spices appropriate for what you are shooting for. <S> I would add spice to dough and shake red pepper flakes on top. <S> In fact I have a bag of fried onions intended to top salads and Mac&cheese. <S> I think I will try this cookie. <S> Will followup. <A> It might be worth experimenting with transglutaminase RM , which is an enzyme that glues proteins together. <S> Given the low protein content of onion, I suggest the RM formula, as it has added sodium caseinate. <S> However, this might not be enough additional protein, and you could use extra sodium caseinate, as these folks do for their veggie burgers . <S> I'm not clear on your process, but you might try mixing these ingredients with your onion, refrigerating to set, then fry. <A> Instead of starting with the fried onions, you might want to consider frying the onions yourself. <S> There's a dish called an "onion loaf". <S> (I think I first had it about 30 years ago at Buddy's Crabs & Ribs in Annapolis, MD ... <S> it's no longer on their menu, and I have no idea <S> how wide-spread it is) <S> As best I can tell, it's a bunch of onion rings (battered & fried rings of onions), that's pressed into a loaf pan when it's still warm, then inverted onto a plate to serve. <S> I managed to find three recipes online that all call for baking for 10+ minutes once they're in the loaf <S> pan: <S> https://www.recipetips.com/recipe-cards/t--153116/onion-loaf.asp <S> https://www.food.com/recipe/easy-onion-ring-loaf-76405 <S> https://cookpad.com/uk/recipes/12360557-miller-carter-fake-away-onion-loaf <S> # <S> If I were going to try to make it more like what you're asking for, I'd probably look to Indian recipes (onion bhaji or onion pakura) where the onions are sliced thinly, fry them up in batches and then salt & squish each batch individually. <S> (maybe a plate, paper towel, fried onions, paper towel, then a weight of some sort) <S> If you find that you need to bake them further, perhaps fill a sheet pan, then place a second sheet pan on top to squish them down, and then bake it for 5-10 minutes. <S> (it won't need as long as a loaf, as the food is thinner) <S> And as fried foods don't stay crispy forever, you might want to add something else into the batter to add crunch ... <S> like coarse ground cornmeal.
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An Indian style fried onion cookie could have curry type spices (cumin, black pepper, cardamom, coriander, ginger, slivered toasted almond etc) and it would be good and highlight the onion star of the show.
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How to unclog the stove After cleaning the stove holes with some liquid detergent, one of them is clogged now. I used a sewing needle, without any effect. Did anybody run into this problem before? <Q> The jets can be unscrewed, using a properly sized wrench, and cleaned with an appropriately sized cleaner. <S> Once clean they can screwed back in. <S> They are typically made from brass and are soft. <S> Using the wrong wrench can round off the hex head. <S> Inserting anything from the outside will push debris into the fuel system and while it may clear the hole it leaves the debris inside. <S> It is better to remove them for cleaning. <S> If damaged they are easily replaceable. <S> Before doing anything check the documentation for your stove. <S> The installation or maintenance instructions may include directions for replacing the jets. <S> I use an oxy-acetylene torch tip cleaner on my stove jets if they are clogged. <S> My tip cleaner provides sizes 6 to 26 one of which fits my jets. <S> It is inserted and gently run in and out to clean the orifice. <S> Rather than being smooth the cleaners have very small ridges on their sides that help to remove debris. <S> If not used carefully they can act like a file and enlarge the size of the orifice in the jet. <S> Keep the cleaner aligned with the orifice vice at an angle. <S> It needs to go straight in and out. <S> The cleaners can also be bent when inserting. <S> Hold them close to the insertion point when clearing the jet. <S> If it seems too hard try a smaller size cleaner. <A> So if you wait long enough at most a day I’d say. <S> The residual water should evaporate unclogging itself. <A> You could try heat. <S> Both jets contribute to the manifold. <S> You could light it and let it run and hope that the heat will unclog the blocked one. <S> Or you could leave the manifold off and heat up the jet with a flame - maybe just from a lighter, or a cool flame from a torch. <S> If it is moisture in there that could dry it up.
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More importantly the orifice in the jet can be unintentionally enlarged or damaged easily. To clean them I select the largest cleaner which easily fits into the orifice. I do not turn off my gas supply, just insure the burner is off and stays that way until you are done. It’s probably clogged with water.
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Dried basil leaves instead of bay leaves I have to make an Indian curry which requires bay leaves. Apparently I don't have them at home. I read on google here that dried Basil leaves can be a good substitute for bay leaves.Now dried bay leaves, which we use in curries and soups have a strong flavor totally different from the minty flavour of Basil leaves.Can anyone advice me on this, if someone has used this substitution. <Q> No , this would be a bad substitution. <S> Instead use cinnamon, in a smaller quantity, and preferably whole. <S> Or leave it out entirely and rely on the other spices in your dish. <S> In my opinion at least, dried basil leaves are mostly flavorless. <S> They certainly lack the sweet, fresh, minty flavors of fresh basil. <S> They might lend your dish some complexity or slight woodiness like a Mediterranean bay laurel leaf from the plant Laurus nobilis . <S> But even in European dishes, this seems like a poor substitute. <S> But in any case, the "Indian bay leaf" or Cinnamomum tamala is a whole different species, and probably what your curry recipe is looking for. <S> Unlike the subtle menthol and tea-like qualities of a bay laurel, this leaf has a mild cinnamon scent. <S> Thus a better substitute is cinnamon or cassia. <S> More generally, both these leaves have quite subtle flavors. <S> In a dish with many different flavorful components, it plays a relatively minor role. <S> It can often be omitted without a huge loss in flavor. <A> I wouldn't use basil unless for a coconut-milk style Thai curry. <S> But for Indian curry, there are also "Curry leaves" for sale in Indian food shops and markets which are delectable. <S> Even their scent is intoxicating. <S> They look like bay leaves but are larger. <A> Having said that, dried bay leaf adds a pretty subtle flavour, so you could just omit them without any trouble <S> : it's a nice flavour if they're present, but not going to wreck the dish if they're not.
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As another alternative, whole allspice berries have some of the savoury, earthy flavours of bay leaves (especially dry bay leaves).
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How to de-seed a watermelon? It’s summer and watermelon time. I know how to pick a good one (pro tip: a good greengrocer who has preselected the best batch on wholesale market). Then I cut myself a nice fat slice - and the problem starts. I am not a fan of watermelon seeds. I grew up with watermelon served in wedges and then eaten by slicing off bite-sized chunks with a paring knife, removing the seeds as they appeared. But I would prefer to pre-cut the whole fruit in chunks, ready for portioning and then eating with just a fork or spoon. No matter how I cut, there will always be seeds in the chunks and by the time I am done poking around with a paring knife, the pieces look like a crater landscape and there will still be some seeds left. Or I get small pieces floating in a lot of juice. Now, at home I can spit out the remaining seeds, but in the office, I’d rather spare my desk neighbor. So how can watermelon be cut and deseeded cleanly and efficiently? “Buy a seedless watermelon.” is explicitly excluded as an answer. Let’s focus on handling watermelons with seeds. <Q> There are several hits on google, and many videos illustrating how to de-seed a watermelon. <S> Most have you cut the watermelon length-wise to expose the rows of seeds, which are generally in a circle down the center of the melon (imagining the pattern if you were to look through the end). <S> When you cut lengthwise, you expose the rows of seeds. <S> I prefer to remove both ends, and the rind first. <S> Then, slice in length-wise wedges. <S> You can often hold a wedge in both hands and gently break it along the line of seeds. <S> You can also cut the seeds out fairly easily this way, and create seed free pieces closer to the peel. <S> However, there is quite a bit of melon surrounding the seeds. <S> That, you just have to work at. <A> The way I, and all my fellow country-men and women do it, works only on well ripened water melons. <S> Imagine <S> the watermelon is the globe and the stem is the north pole. <S> Start cutting it at about 75 degree latitude along longitude lines, keeping the knife as perpendicular to the surface as possible (towards the south pole that will not be possible any more). <S> Don't make the cuts wider than a timezone hour. <S> Generally, thinner is better, but be reasonable. <S> After n cuts, you'll have n-1 slices of watermelon falling aside. <S> Depending how thin your slices are, you will end up with some slices having no seeds, and some slices having seeds only on the outside, with very rare slices with seeds inside. <S> The seeds will be parallel to the exterior surface. <S> Now you need to make a new cut just above the seeds line, knocking a bit the seeds themselves, resulting in a mini core slice that is seedless and a larger seedfull slice. <S> Since all the seeds are now exposed, the only thing left to do is to turn the slice with seeds down and the rind up and knock the outside of the rind a few times with the back of the knife. <S> The gravity will do the rest and voila, seedless watermelon from seedfull watermelon. <S> If the watermelon is not ripe, the seeds will be too well attached and only part of them will fall. <S> Now you can slice the rind away and cut everything in blocks if you wish. <S> Repeat with each slice. <A> There is no particularly easy way, you have to manually remove the seeds as most of them are still connected to the fruit. <S> I use a spoon to de-seen mine, but I hold it close to the tip of the spoon <S> so I can be exact with it. <S> You can also cut it into chunks and then de-seed each chunk from all sides, this does work <S> but I think it is less efficient because you spend a lot of time turning each piece.
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The way to make it efficient is to slice it thinly, remove the seeds you can see on one side, flip and remove from the other side, then cut it up into smaller chunks after you de-seed it.
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What's a good substitute for basil in pesto sauce? I'm making some pasta at home with a pesto sauce. The recipe I'm referring to asks for some basil leaves to go along with the pine nuts in the food processor. Unfortunately, I can't find basil where I live, and I'm looking for a something else to put instead. What's a good substitute? For that matter, what does basil taste like -- is it like spinach? <Q> If we're talking about the big classic pesto alla genovese, then unfortunately... <S> There is no substitute. <S> Basil is the majority ingredient in pesto. <S> None of the other suggestions here will taste even remotely similar. <S> You'll be making a completely different dish entirely. <S> It will be some type of vegetable/oil paste, but it will not taste anything at all like pesto. <S> It would be like trying to make baked beans without beans, or french onion soup without onions. <S> These ingredients are so dominant and so essential to the flavour of the dish that there's literally nothing left without them. <S> Just forget about it and make something else. <S> It won't be pesto without basil - not even close. <S> Critically, if you're using this pesto as a component in a larger dish thenit definitely will not come out correctly with any of these substitutions. <S> Pesto is used in a lot of ways and every recipe that asks for it is expecting the flavour profile of a basil pesto. <S> No substitution will be effective in this case, and each recipe that calls for pesto will have its own unique flavour profiles that will clash in various different ways with each of these substitutions. <S> If you're desperate, whatever substitutions you do end up making will depend heavily on what you're ultimately doing with the pesto - what you're pairing it with. <S> We don't know what that is, so it makes it that much harder again to make a reasonable suggestion. <A> The good news is, you can make pesto almost out of any green using the same process and proportions as with basil -- it just changes the flavor profile. <S> I make pesto-style sauces out of chives, cilantro, kale, arugula... <S> I would not be surprised to find you could make a spinach pesto. <S> Basil tastes very different from spinach, though. <A> There are a lot of varieties of basil, that have some subtle differences in taste, but there's usually a mild background of licorice. <S> (And honestly, basil was ruined for me for many years after my mom mentioned it, because I hate licorice.) <S> Cook's Thesaurus recommends : oregano <S> OR thyme <S> OR tarragon OR <S> summer savory OR equal parts parsley and celery leaves OR cilantro <S> (This works well in pesto.) <S> OR mint (especially in Thai cuisine) <S> Personally, I'd just go with flat leaf parsley or some other tender, mild green leaf, and a bit of oregano and/or tarragon. <S> (but only if you can get them fresh, do not use dried herbs for pesto). <S> You could also consider making some of the other varieties of pesto , as not all use basil. <A> The word "pesto" actually refers to the manner it is traditionally made (with a mortar and pestle) and shares etymology with both "pestle" and "paste". <S> And that's basically what a pesto is: a paste. <S> In English-speaking countries, "pesto" is typically used to refer to pesto alla genovese these days - the one you're probably thinking of, with basil and pine nuts and olive oil and cheese. <S> And if you're looking for something as close to that as possible, there's lots of great advice in the other answers about herbs you can substitute for basil. <S> But feel free to be inventive! <S> Pick your favorite herb, <S> whichever nuts you like the taste of (or none at all), add garlic oil instead of olive oil... <S> whatever suits your fancy. <S> Rest assured that your own recipe is just as authentically a "pesto" as anything you can buy in a jar. <S> A personal favorite of mine is to use sage and ricotta . <S> I've even seen pesto made with cilantro (and for those of you who have cilantro soap mouth, note that pulverizing the cilantro denatures the chemical that causes this unpleasant taste for you). <S> And while we're on the subject, if you want to learn a ton about pesto the first episode of the four-part Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat miniseries (the "Fat" episode) covers pesto. <S> It's a good watch if you love Italian cuisine. <A> I'd look at making Chermoula, which is based on cilantro, and cumin. <S> It's also a paste, useful as a sauce or on its own. <S> It's delicious! <S> Here is my go-to recipe: <S> Chermoula 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted1 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted1 cup cilantro (small stems ok) 1 teaspoon fresh ginger (a thin slice about the size of a quarter) 3 garlic cloves1/3 scant cup olive <S> oilZest from 1/2 lemon (about 1-2 tsp)2 tablespoons lemon juice, preserved lemon optional1/4 teaspoon <S> cayenne3/4 teaspoon salt, more to taste1-2 fronds saffron1 red arbol/cayenne chili, deseeded, chopped. <S> Toast seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring until fragrant and golden. <S> Coarsely chop the cilantro and parsley. <S> A scissors is a good tool for this; point it tip down in the measuring cup and cut the leaves. <S> Then place them in a food processor and chop very fine, or chop on a cutting board. <S> You should have 1 cup finely chopped herbs. <S> Place the garlic and salt in a mortar and puree. <S> Add a small handful of the chopped herbs, and gently but firmly grind until the herbs begin to dissolve. <S> Add another handful. <S> When all of the herbs have been mashed, work in the spices, 1/3 cup olive oil and lemon juice. <S> Taste and adjust seasoning. <S> Add more olive oil or salt if desired. <S> Serve with grilled fish and/or vegetables, or with chicken. <A> I have used garlic mustard in a pesto recipe. <S> It was OK but it was not pesto. <S> I don't plan a repeat. <S> We have too much of it; it's invasive. <S> https://www.invasive.org/alien/pubs/midatlantic/alpe.htm <A> I feel like mint may be the closest thing in flavor to basil, though it's not really close, and is too strong. <S> Tarragon is also has something in common with Basil. <S> I would maybe try spinach for bulk, with some mint and tarragon, using a ratio of around 4:2:1
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Good news for you: you can make pesto out of just about anything .
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How can I render bacon fat without frying it? I wanted to render the fat from some bacon to produce bacon grease.The usual advice that you see on the internet is to simply fry whole strips of bacon at a low heat, for a longer period, and the fat will melt away from the meat proper. That normally works for me. The other day I wanted to try someting different. I have previously rendered other fats in different ways. I've tried a 'wet render', by simmering at a very low temperature in water. That worked well for lamb fat. And I tried a 'dry render' by putting the fat in the oven at a lowish temperature (gas mark 3 = 160C), which worked well for chicken skin. I tried these methods with some bacon fat, that I had cut off from the meat of back bacon strips. So it was just 16 white strips of cold fat. But they didn't work. With the wet render, no matter how long I simmered for, the water didn't get more than a tiny bit oily. The dry render behaved similarly, except that it did give a tiny bit of fat, but nearly all of the fat was still whole, the bits hadn't reduced in size at all after I baked for about 5 hours. Why didn't it work? At first I thought the temperature might be too high, but it's not like the bits were getting blackened or anything. And surely a higher temperature would also show signs of rendering the fat, it wouldn't just arrest the entire process. <Q> Chop bacon finely...or even use a food processor. <S> Place in a pot. <S> Add just enough water to cover the bottom of pan and prevent initial sticking. <S> Place on very low heat. <S> You might even need a heat diffuser. <S> Too much heat produces off flavors. <S> It might take a few hours. <S> You will have rendered fat, but also the cracklings (the stuff that doesn't render). <S> Strain. <S> Use both the fat and the cracklings. <S> Really, it's the same process for rendering beef, pork, duck...any type of fat rendering. <A> Put it in a zip loc or better yet a vacuum sealed bag and simmer at 155 for a few hours. <S> Sous vide is best. <A> From where I come from, we usually chop bacon finely, not mince or grind in a food processor (that process is used by industrial facilities, and the fat obtained is okay, but there are no true, chunky cracklings, which is a pity). <S> Moscafj gave good advice, follow his instructions. <S> Also, you can slightly salt the bacon and stir frequently when it starts melting. <S> A peeled onion (cut in half, if very large) and added to bacon when it starts melting adds to the taste. <S> You discard the onion when you drain the fat.
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You don't want frying, just low, gentle heat.
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Experimenting with garlic, does cooking kill the flavour? I have been experimenting by adding extra cloves of garlic into my pasta sauce every time I cook it. I make a quick pasta sauce by caramelizing onions in a pan, adding very finely chopped fresh garlic (its practically a paste), and whatever other vegetables is my pick for the night. Then I add chopped tomatoes/passata and reduce. It seems to me no matter how much garlic I add, I do not get a harsh flavour. I just get a nice, deep, complex yet subtle flavour that I wouldn't instantly attribute to garlic. I am currently at the stage where I am adding more than half a bulb of garlic to a one person sauce. Is there any point in adding this much garlic? Is the garlic responsible for this "nice, deep, complex flavour"? Would the same effect be achieved with less garlic which is more coarsely chopped? I understand that the longer garlic cooks, the weaker the "garlic" flavour gets, but is this flavour disappearing or is it developing into a new flavour? <Q> Garlic mellows pretty rapidly with heat. <S> Dropping it 2 minutes before you've completed sautéeing your onions is enough to knock the raw edge off it - in fact <S> that's the common deciding factor as to when to add your liquids, "Fry until the raw smell is gone". <S> After that, the longer it simmers the more 'relaxed' it gets. <S> If you want more punch, try adding some more fresh right at the end. <S> You'd be surprised, too, how much punch you can get adding dried garlic powder right at the end too. <S> I use it in tarka dal to really give some 'front' to the flavour & aroma as it is served. <A> What you are discovering is that you can control they way <S> garlic impacts a dish. <S> You do this depending on how it is cut, chopped, mashed...and cooked (from raw to lightly toasted to slowly caramelized...)... <S> and when it is added to the dish. <S> You will have to decide how much is enough...or too much. <S> The flavor will not cook away, but does change. <A> Adding to what Moscafj said, the reason you get the harsh flavor is a chemical called allicin, which forms as soon as the cell walls of the garlic are broken. <S> That's from this video (check around 6:42 for the discussion of garlic). <S> Some pasta sauces have you introduce differently cut/grated garlic at different times so that you can layer different flavors.
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Raw garlic is certainly more "harsh" than cooked.
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Is there any substitute for butter (or oil) on puff pastry? I tried to create puff pastry. For medical reasons I should minimize the fat on my recipe. Puff pastry is mainly made by 3 important ingredients, flour, water, and fat (butter or oil). Unfortunately, I learned that butter and oil, consist of 100% fat. I've successfully created puff pastry using oil in a pan before. It works! I create 2 doughs, one dough is formed using flour and water, the other one is using flour and oil. Then, I do the pastry folding. So as no-fat alternative I tried using a flour-water dough and a flour-applesauce dough, laminated as for regular puff pastry. The result was crisp at the outside, but uncooked on the inside. I baked twice as long, and the result were very thick hard crackers. I can see the layers with different color, but there is no air in between the layers. I've also tried only using flour-water dough pastry, folded. Again I can see different colors of the layera, but no air in between. I haven't tried making the second dough with egg yolks though. It may interesting to see the result, since egg yolks supposedly have around 63% of fat. Research After that failed experiment, I read some articles about the science behind the pastry. It says that the pocket of air is formed because of the boiled water that becomes gas, trapped between the fat layers. I assume, it happens because the oil and water are not soluble. On the other hand, the boiling point of water is 100 C (212 F), yet the boiling point of oil is around 300 C (572 F). I see here that vodka has a boiling point around 78.3 C, which is lower than water. I haven't tried vodka for the mixture with flour because vodka actually is also soluble in water. My question is: Is there any food grade liquid that has boiling point over 100 C and is not soluble in water? <Q> No. <S> An edible organic liquid that does not dissolve in water, almost by definition, is an oil. <S> That's not the important thing, though. <S> Substances like mineral oil are edible yet non-nutritive; they pass through the body unchanged and would be compatible with any dietary condition. <S> The problem is that, because they are not digestible and not water-soluble, they, ah... lubricate things. <S> Down there. <S> The amount you'd have to use for puff pastry would cause some real digestive issues. <A> I have never heard of anybody trying that, but beeswax may fulfill the role butter usually has in puff pastry. <S> According to wikipedia and my own experience, "beeswax is edible, having similar negligible toxicity to plant waxes, and is approved for food use in most countries." <S> This page suggests to use it instead of oil or butter to grease cookie sheets and baking molds. <S> Beeswax is not as malleable as butter though, so I'm not sure whether it can be used like butter to produce the layers in puff pastry dough. <S> (Try perhaps melting it and use a food brush to apply a thin layer, as if applying egg yolk). <S> Of course the texture of beeswax is more, well, waxy than butter. <S> You certainly don't want too much of it in your cake. <S> Whether the result is at all palatable is up to experimentation! <S> I'd be glad to hear about your results in a later edit. <A> One poster has advised (correctly) that it's the water turning into steam between the layers of puff pastry that provides the liftWhat we need to understand is it's the fat content, in whatever form that takes, which enables that. <S> Fat floats on top of water. <S> Therefore, when the water turns to steam, the fat factor stops it from going through the next layer of pastry, forcing it to rise/lift. <S> You're not going to make puff pastry without a fat aspect. <S> That's what puff pastry is: water, flour, and fat. <S> If you remove the fat aspect, it's the same as completely removing the flour or water. <S> It's simply not going to happen. <S> Try using filo instead, but even in the making of that, fat content is involved. <S> Kind regards,David Crosswell, Master pastry chef.
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Bottom line: there are no straightforward non-nutritive substitutes for fats and oils which do not cause diarrhea or loose stools.
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How to harvest peppers and tomatoes for later use in sauces without harming taste Is there anyway I can pick my peppers and tomatoes now and freeze them immediately for later use to make hot sauces and tomato sauces? I am trying to find the most efficient way to process my pepper and tomato harvest. The pepper stems and seeds would be removed, the tomatoes would be halved and cores removed before freezing in vacuum bags. Once I have enough peppers and tomatoes, I would thaw them and make hot sauce and tomato sauce respectively. Furthermore, I want to smoke my peppers to make chipotles (for chipotle hot sauce), however it is not really efficient to smoke 2 pounds of peppers every couple of days. I would like to smoke all 20+ pounds of peppers all at once. Its just that 20+ pounds of peppers don't ripen all at once. I have several pepper varieties I use to make hot sauce and I have a couple different paste tomato varieties to make tomato sauce. I do not have enough peppers and tomatoes to pick right now, but over the next 3-4 weeks I will have over 100 pounds of tomatoes and over 20 pounds of peppers to harvest. I know the peppers and tomatoes will be soft when thawed, I am worried that the tomatoes may taste sour due to the freeze. I am not sure how the peppers will take the smoke flavor when soft. I was considering dehydrating the ripe peppers as I pick them over the next few weeks. But when I want to smoke them, the dehydrated peppers might not take the smoke flavor. If I had to rehydrate the peppers before smoking, the "waterlogged" peppers might not take the smoke flavor. I understand the flavor will not be the same as making sauce with fresh produce. It just doesn't make sense to make small sauce batches every 3 days for the next 3-4 weeks. Let me know if you have any suggestions or how I should tackle this feat in a different way that I may not have even considered. There has to be an easier way to accomplish this. If I must freeze the produce, I would greatly prefer to freeze them the same day I harvest versus picking everyday for a week then a big freeze on the weekend. Those peppers I picked on Monday might start to soften by the weekend. All sauces will be canned and spend 30 minutes in a boiling water bath. <Q> We've been freezing both vegetables for years, with no loss of flavor. <S> Tomatoes <S> Unless your tomatoes have very thin skins, I recommend that you skin them prior to freezing. <S> If you don't remove the skins first, you may wind up with the leathery skins floating in your sauce, which isn't really appetizing. <S> To easily skin a tomato, press the back of a sharp knife onto the tomato, press gently, then rub the fruit to loosen the peel. <S> Next, just make a small cut and start peeling with the sharp side of the knife. <S> We also remove all seeds at that time. <S> Alternatively, use a food mill ( not a food processor) to process the tomatoes. <S> We freeze the tomatoes in roughly one-quart amounts, which is what we generally use at any one time. <S> Peppers <S> As you noted, you'll cut the peppers in half and remove the seeds, but we've found with experience that the frozen peppers, when thawed, turn mushy; we get around this by using the peppers as soon as we remove them from the freezer. <S> They even retain a little crunch! <S> We freeze our peppers by cutting them into edible-sized slices (after removing the seeds), laying them out on a cookie sheet, and then putting the entire sheet into the freezer for a couple/three hours. <S> This helps the slices to freeze faster (which we assume helps keep them move flavorful, but that's an assumption only); it also keeps them from sticking together after we bag them. <S> When the slices are frozen, we bag them. <S> We then use only the number of slices we need for a dish, cutting them up immediately upon removal from the freezer bag and adding to the dish mostly frozen to avoid the yucky mushiness. <S> Given that thawed peppers are really not appetizing, I don't know if you'll like the end results after smoking them. <S> They will definitely NOT hold any kind of crunch and may even somewhat disintegrate in your sauces. <S> Well worth a try to do it, though, especially if you do only a small test batch first. <A> Since the peppers will be used in sauces/ for cooking, the peppers becoming less crunchy or noncrunchy from freezing will be ok, & the flavour should remain very well: just maybe place them somewhat flat when freezing so they will thaw more rapidly and evenly. <S> And smaller amounts per packet can also be excellent & convenient for unthawing and directly cooking with them in smaller amounts. <S> Peppers freeze quite well, and freezing different pepper varieties separately is convenient. <S> Your frozen peppers should take in and blend flavours much better than rehydrated ones would. <S> Your tomatoes should freeze just fine as well! <S> Freezing them in flattish packets rather than in deeper shapes will help them freeze more rapidly, and also help them to thaw more rapidly and evenly. <S> Freezing the tomato sections solidly without space between them works very well. <S> The sweetness and flavour of your tomatoes should remain just fine! <S> Wiping moisture from the packets, then allowing the packets to freeze separately, and then stacking the packets after they are frozen, can help avoid having packets freezing all stuck together. <S> And the thinner the packets, the more rapidly they freeze and thaw. <S> Your resulting sauces could have great blends of flavours & be just as delicious as if preparing them directly from fresh! <A> How about drying the peppers before smoking them? <S> This question ( Smoking dried peppers? ) on Cooking SE covers a couple of methods. <S> It seems the flavor is not quite as good as with fresh peppers, but still worthwhile. <S> At least it sounds better than trying to smoke defrosted peppers. <S> Hot peppers are easy to dry. <S> Use a long piece of string to tie the stems, leaving some room between peppers for air flow. <S> Hang the strings of peppers up someplace with good airflow for a few weeks. <S> As each batch of peppers ripens, start them out on the drying process. <S> By the time you have enough peppers to be worth smoking, you will have some fully dry peppers, some partially dry peppers, and some fresh peppers. <S> Smoke them all at the same time, and you will get a range of different results. <S> You may need to remove the different peppers at different times. <S> One person on the question I linked used a hot smoking method on a grill, and they managed to almost burn their dry peppers while their fresh peppers didn't get fully done before they had to put the grill out for the night. <S> Another person used a cool smoking method and seemed happier with that. <S> (If you try it, please let us know what method you use <S> and if you liked the results. <S> It would be particularly interesting to know how they compare to smoked frozen peppers.)
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Freezing your peppers and tomatoes after harvest as you describe should work just fine!
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Making tomato mix thicker without surge in calories I got on trying to eating more healthy and as a part of that, I take a few tomatoes, cucumber and garlic and blend that into a sort of a drink. It's far more convenient and quick to smash a bunch of veggies into a blender and mix the crap out of them, rather than slicing and hacking. It also scales better - making a mixaroo of 3 or of 5 tomatoes takes the same amount of time, whereas slicing time is proportional. So I'm aiming at eliminating any obstacles along the way to wiser food choices. I'd like to make it less liquidish, aiming for a thicker texture. I've tried adding broccoli, cauliflower, nuts and seeds. I tried adding oat flower and soy protein powder. It gave an improvement but to be acceptably substantial, I need to push in quite a lot, which kind of defeats its purpose. Is there something very calorie thin but structurally dense that I could smash into my drink? Extra bonus if it's rich on fiber. <Q> Your primary option if you want to add a thickener, you can use any hydrocolloid you wish. <S> I will not list them here again, since it isn't necessary that every single question on thickeners on the site gets the full list. <S> You can download Martin Lersch's free reference book, Texture: a hydrocolloid recipe book , and start experimenting. <S> I can also not tell you which one will be the best for your case - they all produce different textures, and it depends on your personal preference which one to use, and anyway, you have to see which one is accessible for you. <S> A second option for getting any tomato based liquid thicker is to either cook it down on your own, or to replace some of the fresh tomatoes by concentrated tomato paste. <S> The third option, deseeding, was already given in Keith Ford's answer. <S> And you already mentioned the fourth, bulking up with dry ingredients such as your soy powder. <S> I would say the four together give you a pretty wide range of alternatives, try them out and see which one you can best live with. <A> Your "drink" sounds a lot like gazpacho. <S> When making gazpacho, bread is often blended in, primarily to increase the viscosity...not necessarily "calorie thin", but an option. <S> Olive oil is also emulsified into the mix, creating an enjoyable texture, and adding to the flavor. <A> The reason that your "drink" is thin, is that you are not removing the water and seeds from the Tomato. <S> Peel them and take away the water and seeds before you put them in the blender. <S> Go here https://www.deliaonline.com/cookery-school/techniques/how-to-skin-and-de-seed-tomatoes <A> I suggest adding flax meal. <S> This is very high in fiber, but not very high in digestible carbohydrates. <S> It won't take too much, so the surge in calories won't be so bad. <S> You will have to measure it out. <S> Unfortunately, the Omega oils in this have some calories. <S> The option that better fits your criteria is psyllium husk powder; plenty of thickening and fiber, yet almost no calories. <S> 30 grams will be 100% of your daily fiber, but just 100 calories. <S> That would make your drink plenty thick, with not to much taste. <S> I prefer the way flax tastes though, and it is super healthy with Omegas and protein and such. <S> There are some more things to add on this list ; perhaps Chia? <S> I haven't tried them all, so can't comment on them. <S> It might be worthwhile to research each individually. <A> One alternative, instead of adding thickeners, would be to remove some water. <S> As mentioned in Keith Ford's answer, you could remove some water manually by de-seeding the tomatoes. <S> OTOH, there are various ways to systematically reduce the moisture of the smoothie itself: <S> The old-school approach would be to reduce it in a pot on the stove. <S> That is, keep it just barely simmering, uncovered, for a long time, to evaporate off a bunch of the excess water. <S> This does, of course, imply that the result will be cooked, which may not meet your criteria. <S> (Side note: if you are okay with cooking it, you can get a lot of thickening out of a small amount of starch by mixing it in cold and then cooking the whole thing for a few minutes.) <S> The heat in a dehydrator is low enough that you're not cooking anything, just speeding up evaporation. <S> If your objective is a thicker drink, as opposed to a 'leather', just take it out after a fraction of the time given in fruit leather recipe instructions. <S> The quick, easy way to make a thicker smoothie without using a thickener is to use a juicer instead of a blender. <S> Juicers separate the liquid and the pulp as they go, so you can easily just take the heap of pulp, mix however much of the liquid back into it as it takes to get the consistency you want, stir well, and dispose of the leftover liquid any way you like (down the drain, use as cooking liquid, etc.). <A> A super-easy solution with an ingredient many people have in their house: Mashed potatoes. <S> I've successfully used a bit of mashed potato to thicken salad dressing, it might suit your needs here. <S> I also sometimes sweeten soups with sweet potatoes, but they have a more noticeable flavor that doesn't fit your list.
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(You can even buy dried mashed potato powder, which thickens stews nicely but has usually had most of the nutrition processed out of it.) A classic, no-cook, but still time-consuming option would be to pour the stuff into a food dehydrator, using the liner sheets that are used for making fruit leather from fruit purée.
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How do you safely defrost a whole lamb? Some supermarkets sell a whole lamb. The food safety rules for meat dictate defrosting in the fridge, never at room temperature. The next-size down, a turkey, doesn't even take 24 hours to defrost. It takes either 48 or, if very large, 72 hours to defrost. How do you reconcile these two rules? In other words, how do you defrost a whole lamb before cooking it? Is this meant for chefs who have a fridge that will fit a lamb? Are folks meant to start roasting it while it's frozen? I doubt it would cook through, no matter how gentle the fire. Do birds (turkey, ..) require special attention because they spoil particularly rapidly, and for a lamb one would get away with defrosting at room temperature? Would 24 hours do it? Would that be actually safe? I suppose if it's October or March, then defrosting outside in some regions at +5C might work, except that the temperature outside is never constant, which doesn't help much (with either defrosting or with food safety), and that you'd have to stand guard overnight to make sure no other wild animal discovers what feast is ready for them. <Q> Food safety rules are written around the ways bacteria reproduce, not around the chefs' convenience. <S> There is no difference in the speed of getting unsafe between different types of meat (or any other type of non-shelf-stable food). <S> And cooking from frozen is indeed not an option. <S> So yes, you are meant to defrost it in the fridge. <S> You could do it whole, or you could remove parts of it while still frozen and defrost these, then cook, while the rest stays in the freezer. <S> If you don't have the equipment to do either of that, then your kitchen is simply not ready to deal with buying a whole lamb. <S> I don't doubt that there are many people who buy it and defrost it outside of the fridge, they just either don't know the food safety rules or make the decision to not follow them. <A> There is another food safe option to thaw meat quickly, and it has saved the Thanksgiving meal of many cooks: <S> In cold water . <S> To ensure that the meat stays in a safe temperature range, frequently changing the water is required, ideally by running the cold water tap just a bit. <S> The meat itself will act like a huge ice cube, contributing to keeping the surrounding water cool. <S> Facing the task of defrosting the lamb in question, I would probably resort to my bathtub, because it is like an oversized kitchen sink, complete with faucet and drain and can be sanitized easily afterwards. <S> Cold water thawing is messier and needs more attention than just thawing in the refrigerator, but will on the other hand be significantly faster and needs no hacking up of a frozen slab of meat. <S> The rule of thumb is thirty minutes per pound of meat, but that’s really just a rough estimate, geometry, water temperature and movement and ratio of water to food will be factors. <A> If the restaurant in question has a walk-in cooler (an insulated room that is cooled to fridge temperatures), the lamb could be defrosted there.
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Yes, the lamb is also meant to be defrosted in the fridge.
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Can I just rinse a shaker, solely used for immediate consumption of whey with milk? ...and wash it properly every 3rd or so day. Keeping the shaker inside of the freezer, to slow(/perhaps prevent?) the bacteria growth? • By rinse, I mean to just shake it up with some water until all remnants are whisked away • And by wash, I mean use a detergent with a sponge or a brush <Q> It’s definitely not “clean” afterwards. <S> But even for the bits left in the container food safety guidelines apply, so if you immediately freeze the shaker in between uses, you just have to add up the time the shaker spends in the danger zone and/or above freezing. <S> Whatever value reaches the „no longer safe“ threshold first (two hours for the danger zone above 40°F/4°C, three days in the fridge) gives you the “now it’s really time for a real cleanup” trigger. <S> Off the cuff, I‘d say that your three day cycle would still be technically safe. <S> Whether it’s really a good idea is up to you. <S> I like my food prep equipment fresh and clean for each use. <S> And of course in a commercial setting all food handling and cleaning regulations have to be observed independently of what I outlined in this answer. <A> I agree with Stephie here about the food safety aspect - if you use the freezer, it will be safe. <S> The logistics of it are much more complicated than just washing it though, to the point where I don't think you are doing yourself any favors. <S> First, you cannot dry it, or your towel will get all fatty. <S> You will have to place a dripping wet shaker in the freezer, so you'll suddenly have to defrost the freezer very frequently. <S> Then you'll get it out for use, and have a frozen shaker - just trying to screw the cap back on might take more time than washing it in the first place. <S> Then, when making your drink, you will freeze your fingers off, and your drink will be very cold (although to be fair, many people like their shakes very cold). <S> And in the end, if you use flavors, they will mix between the different batches. <S> And you have something taking up space in the freezer, which most people find is in too short supply in the first place. <S> If you decide to use the fridge instead of the freezer, you get a different set of problems. <S> While the fridge doesn't freeze (usually), having excessive amounts of water in it is no fun either and you'll have to soak it up with a towel pretty frequently. <S> Between that, you'll have other items in the fridge getting wet now and then. <S> Also, you will have to keep track of when to wash the shaker - the safe time is 3-5 days, or earlier if you notice spoilage, so you have to be organized enough to know you haven't exceeded it. <A> Yes you can/could (you're the king/queen of your kitchen, no one will come crashing through your door). <S> But you shouldn't ... make a habit of cleaning it up after each use. <S> No need to go nuclear, <S> a few drops of cleaning liquid and hot water and a quick wash should be enough.
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More frequent cleaning will also serve as extra safety net in case some cleaning cycle was not perfect. So let’s be clear - rinsing with just water won’t remove all of the fats and proteins in your container. Also, because it runs counter to best practices, guests who encounter it might judge you negatively.
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How to make ice cream base using evaporated milk easier to work with? I sometimes try to make “chewy” ice cream using evaporated milk or dulce de leche made using the “boil a can of sweetened condensed milk” method in the base. For the batch I’m wrangling now, I used a 14oz can of dulce de leche, 3 cups of heavy cream, a uhh... lot(?) of cocoa powder (I just added more until the dairy looked like it’s not getting darker anymore) and a 4oz bar of dark chocolate. (The dulce de leche adding around 220g of sugar.) When chilled, this thickened into a puddingy paste that barely flows without coaxing, and my (cheap) ice cream machine started being unable to move it in about 10-15 minutes. (Although a thermometer registered the mixture as below freezing near the middle-ish.) I usually just pry this out of the machine and into the freezer because what else am I going to do, and end up with fairly tough, albeit not icy icecream. Is there anything that would make this base easier to work with without significantly changing the ingredients? Recipes for this style of ice cream usually have even more evaporated milk compared to the rest in them, sometimes even adding egg yolks which would likely thicken this even more. (Based on my experiences making chocolate+caramel icecream, replacing sugar in the recipe with caramel made out of it seems to make it so that using egg yolks is the difference between having the base churnable or not.) I’ve been debating whipping the liquid up (or maybe just tossing it into a blender) before and after chilling to aerate it before it goes into the churn - after all it’s mostly cream and should be around 25% butterfat, but I have no idea if this would be helpful, and maybe there’s better tricks. <Q> From the clarification in your comments, it sounds like the amount of solids that you are introducing to your recipe is effectively absorbing almost all of the liquid ingredients that are typically added. <S> Note that as far as I can tell, for the purposes of this recipe with regards to ease of churning, I consider the cocoa powder, dark chocolate, and to a lesser extent egg yolk and evaporated milk as "solids". <S> These are all things that will cause the liquid in your recipe to solidify faster when chilled vs. the usual liquid ingredients. <S> Hope <S> this is helpful. <S> Good luck! <A> I don't think you can use this recipe with a standard machine. <S> Ice cream machines are supposed to only freeze ice cream to a certain temperature (the "draw" temperature) and the rest happens in the freezer. <S> To ensure that you don't overchurn, modern cheap home machines have some kind of sensor for the resistance of the mass, and professional machines have a special type of bearing such that the dasher stops moving at a certain viscosity even though the motor continues turning. <S> Machines in between those two classes (such as home compressor machines in the 200-2000 Euro range) are notorious for having short lifetimes if not stopped before the ice cream has frozen too hard. <S> I am pretty sure that the sticky mass you are describing has <S> higher viscosity than your machine has been designed for, so you won't be able to continue with this machine. <S> You could try a manual method (either entirely with your hands or with a hand cranked machine) or go some kind of DIY route and build something to churn for you, using some kind of motor adapted to the task (high torque, low speed). <S> This may not be sufficient though, since a normal dasher design won't be able to exchange the just-frozen mass from the wall with the warm mass in the middle when the viscosity is too high. <S> In the end, you might be looking at either direct freezing (which will still produce something scoopable with this kind of recipe, just not too similar to what we usually regard as ice cream) or high-tech tomfoolery with liquid nitrogen and the like. <A> When creating ice cream you always have to balance a couple of parameters of the product. <S> The two of most importance of them are the desired sweetness and the freezing point depression that directly affects the hardness at the serving temperature. <S> This is usually gained by choosing a mixture of different sugars that differ in their sweetness and anti-freezing properties. <S> As I nowhere read "sugar" in the ingredients you list, I assume you just rely on the sugars already contained in the other ingredients, which are some sucrose from the choclate and some lactose from the dairy. <S> They are both disaccharides and both have a medium freezing point depression. <S> In general I would recommend to replace some of the sugar in your mixture with dextrose/d-glucose, that lowers the freezing point much more effectively than sucrose. <S> Adding more milk powder also would have a similar effect, as it is high in lactose content that has the same anti-freezing effect as sucrose but a much lower sweetness, but you should also aim to not exceed the amount of it over ~10% of the total mixture as it then could affect the texture in a negative way. <S> If nothing of this is an option adding some alcohol, ideally some sort supporting the taste, also could serve this purpose. <A> This is very anecdotal, but I finally finished fiddling with this batch. <S> Throwing the mixture into a blender made it flow a lot easier - wildly guessing long protein chains got broken up, it didn’t gain much in volume for aeration to explain this. <S> (I might try whipping up in a future experiment but my stand mixer is close to falling apart.)Still very thick, but less paste-like. <S> It also churned without messing up the machine for 40-50 minutes; but moving between containers made me lose a significant amount of the base so that could have contributed. <S> As far as the final texture goes: marginal improvement if any. <S> Still not easily scoopable, and very “chewy.” <S> (To each his own, but my teeth are acting up this week and really don’t like biting into anything cold.)
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If you want the mixture to be easier to manipulate for the churn, I think your best options are to either introduce more liquid (and thus dilute the other solid ingredients) or to reduce the quantity of solid ingredients that you are using in the first place.
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What are the advantages of watercolour paper over sketch paper? I've been looking around for some paper for watercolour painting. Watercolour paper can be over double the price of sketch paper. What makes watercolour paper better? Should I invest the money, and buy the watercolour paper, or save my money and take a chance on the cheaper option? <Q> Watercolor paper is, normally, quite a bit heavier and made from cotton. <S> Basic watercolor paper, 140lb, is okay for practice and will tend to buckle unless stretched. <S> The expensive 300lb paper is where professionals tend to land. <S> In any case, the paint pools and absorbs differently than normal paper, and gives you options around blending, washes, etc. <S> that you can't otherwise get. <S> It's just not designed for that. <S> In any event, sheet watercolor paper can be had and you can always cut it into smaller sizes for practice, which is pretty common anyways. <S> The cheaper option will only frustrate and disappoint, it's already a challenging medium, don't make it hard on yourself. <A> That really depends on the paper itself. <S> Usually, sketch paper will be too thin for watercolors to come out in a satisfactory manner. <S> That being said, it all depends on what your final outcome is. <S> Where the piece will be displayed, and what effects you are trying to get. <A> Depends: are you sketching (with pencils, presumably), or are you painting with watercolors? :) <S> If you're sketching/drawing with pencils and other dry media, the sketching paper is probably to be preferred, because the vast majority of what is available as "watercolor paper" is cold-press, i.e. pebbly/rough surfaced. <S> If you're painting with watercolors, unless you're using a particularly dry technique, the sketch paper will probably simply fall apart on you. <S> You need to use a paper that is designed to withstand watercolor techniques such as washes and blending, which pretty much means using the heaviest-weight watercolor paper you can afford, or using a lighter weight and investing in the equipment to stretch it as it dries. <S> Either way, though, a paper that tears when wet will not cut it. <S> And if you're doing neither sketching nor watercolors, but, say, pen and ink drawings, neither sketch paper nor watercolor paper will be particularly satisfactory. <S> Moral of the story: match the paper to the material/technique.
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Traditional paper, made from wood fibers, is much thinner and absorbs the pigment faster, will generally buckle and warp rapidly and is much more likely to rip and tear when wet.
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How do you choose a stitch length when straight stitching an arbitrary fabric? When looking to sew a piece of fabric, what factors are looked at to determine the correct stitch length? <Q> Stitching lengths: <S> 2mm is the short stitch length that should be used for lightweight fabrics, for satin stitching, and decorative stitching. <S> 4 - 5mm is the long stitch length range that should be used for basting and topstitching. <S> Stitches for Dummies puts it this way: <S> The average stitch length for mid-weight fabrics is 2.5 to 3 mm/10 to 12 spi. <S> The average stitch length for fine fabrics is 2 mm/13 to 20 spi. <S> For heavier fabrics, basting, or topstitching, use 4 to 5 mm/5 to 6 spi. <S> Personally, I baste by hand and use a shorter length stitch for strength when necessary. <S> This video explains where I am coming from! <A> The theory behind stitch length is pretty straight forward. <S> The longer the stitches, the fewer within each inch, therefore, the looser the seam. <S> Short equals tight; long equals loose. <S> Another way to think about it is: short equals stronger and permanent, long equals weaker and temporary. <S> I found this article very helpful in understanding the basics of choosing stitch length. <A> In addition to the good answers by other responders, I want to add that with a short stitch, you also increase the possibility of puckering, sometimes a longer stitch gives a much smoother appearance. <S> When the stitch length is very short, yes, you can achieve some seam strength, but if the fabric is light-weight and/or has some stretch and <S> the seam has none (short stitch length used), the fabric can tear away from the seam, or the thread in the seam can even break if pulled hard enough. <S> There are so many variables with the fabric you are using, its weight, density, stretchiness, etc., that it's always good practice to do a quick test on a small piece of your fabric (including linings and interfacings if used). <S> Most newer machines have very good User's Guides with a lot of useful information, including tables showing best stitch lengths for different types of fabrics, best needle size, what foot to use to achieve a certain stitch, etc.
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The shorter the stitches, the more will be packed into each inch of stitching, creating a tighter seam. 2.5 - 3mm is the average stitch length range that should be used for medium weight fabrics.
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How to protect & preserve water color paintings Is there a particular coating that I should be using to protect a watercolor painting? And what is the best storage option for preserving paintings? <Q> There are a couple of things that will definitely work to help preserve displayed paintings: <S> Paint quality. <S> If you want the paint to remain vibrant over time, then you get what you pay for. <S> Artist/professional grade paints are substantially more lightfast than student or children's paints. <S> So, if you want it to stick around better, get the good paint. <S> Ultraviolet light protection. <S> If you're going to display your work, display under UV filtering glass. <S> This helps to preserve the colors from damaging light and, as an added bonus, protects from the touch of errant fingers. <S> :) <S> It's not terribly common to do that, but becoming more prevalent amongst those that don't want glass in front of their painting. <S> My general take is that if the paper gets dusty over time, dulling the color, it's harder to clean than glass... <S> Mind you, for storage long term, it makes a lot of sense to consider. <A> After I complete a watercolor painting on paper, I seal it with 3-4 coats of Krylon GLOSS UV-Resistant Acrylic Coating. <S> I don't like the finish of the MATTE coating (plus, it dulls metallics). <S> I use light coats and let each dry at least 30 minutes <A> Tips from Artists & Illustrators : <S> Before storing your work, take the time to ensure it is as you want to find it. <S> Remove any unwanted pencil lines, or carefully dampen a piece of kitchen towel to lift off fingerprints. <S> Put a date on the back if you haven’t already and place it in layers of acid-free tissue paper. <S> When it comes to looking after and even framing your paintings, it is worth remembering that paper is a fragile, sensitive material. <S> Always store your work horizontal and fl at; a plan chest is clearly ideal. <S> Nothing detracts from a painting more than tatty edges and bashed corners. <S> Never store watercolours in plastic sleeves, such as the ones sold as portfolio pages, as this will ruin the paint surface. <S> As for framing your work, there are obviously lots of personal choices you can make with regards to the frame, mount colour and so on, but let me end with my three golden rules in the column opposite. <S> 3 Golden Rules for Preserving Watercolours Keep a gap between the glass and artwork A window mount that conceals the very edges of your work will do this, by the minimum 2mm. <S> If you are planning to just attach your painting to the frame’s backing board, you will need small wooden fillets to create this minimum breathing space. <S> Avoid masking tape or sellotape <S> It will rapidly stain the paper and cause irreparable damage. <S> Any good art shop will stock PH-neutral, waterbased adhesive and archival tape. <S> Choose where you hang your work carefully Avoid areas of humidity (such as bathrooms and kitchens) and places that will experience extremes of hot and cold, such as just above radiators, or on the inside of exterior walls. <S> Watercolours will fade if hung in direct sunlight too. <S> Modern pigments are far less fugitive nowadays, but careful hanging is still vital to their longevity
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You can also get UV archival fixative sprays that are suitable for watercolor work.
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What are food safe finishes for woodworking projects, ie. turned bowls There are many different products to finish your projects with. What types are food safe and what should one look out for when finishing a project that needs to be food safe? <Q> There are many different kinds of finishes that are food safe. <S> It turns out most finishes once dried or cured are food safe to one level or another. <S> Most finishes that cure are only food safe after they have finished curing which, sometimes can take quite a while, days, weeks, for some months. <S> Many of the food oil finishes are very food safe, peanut and walnut oils for example. <S> However, these are not hypoallergenic, since people with nut oils can react to the finish in the wood. <S> Though people with extreme allergies could even react to the walnut wood itself. <S> Natural waxes are excellent food safe finishes that are also hypoallergenic. <S> Bees wax is a good one and apparently paraffin is also a good one , even recommended for cutting boards, which means with the knife in contact with the top it <S> , you are sure to get some mixed in with the food. <S> My favorite wax is Carnuba wax , it is claimed to be the most hypoallergenic wax out there <S> and it is also the strongest/toughest natural wax known. <A> The complication is that products used for finishing may contain additives and solvents which are potentially toxic although solvents, which by their nature disappear once the finish is cured tend to be less of a issue than drying agents. <S> The best advice is to look for products which are specifically sold as being food safe this can be confirmed by checking their safety data sheets. <S> Solid waxes are generally fine as are are unadulterated plant derived oils such as tung oil and linseed (flax) oil. <S> Paraffin and carnuba waxes are routinely used as coatings and release agents for confectionery etc. <S> You get food grade finishing ingredients in raw (eg oils and waxes) form fairly easily from craft and catering suppliers as they are widely used in confectionery and cosmetics and blend these to make the type of finish you want. <S> Alternatively many wood finish brand have specifically food safe products <S> as there is clearly a high demand for fruit bowls, chopping boards etc. <A> When turning wood, I use paraffin blocks to finish the projects. <S> I hold a solid block against the turning piece and make sure that everything is coated. <S> Then I take a clean cloth and buff the turning piece up. <S> The only downside in my opinion is that it doesn't penetrated the wood very deep this way.
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Most waxes and oils are, in themselves, food safe in indeed may of them are in fact food ingredients.
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What are good options in colored pencil blending, especially for a traveller? I generally use the Faber-Castell Colored Pencils, which are vegetable oil based, but I also use PrismaColor Premier from time to time. I normally use Odorless Mineral Spirits to blend, but it is a toxic substance and so not something I normally want to travel with. What are some other possibilities for blending that can be used, especially for those that want to work on their art when traveling? <Q> PrismaColor has a colorless blender pencil. <S> Make sure the tip of your pencil is sharp and apply the colour in small circular motions to get an even result. <A> An alternative is to travel with watercolour pencils. <S> I have recently started to use them, and the blending solvent is water (obviously!). <S> The pencils can be used dry—like normal colored pencils—or they can be applied "wet" to get the desired watercolor effect. <S> In wet application, the artist first lays down the dry pigment and then follows up with a damp paintbrush to intensify and spread the colors. <S> This technique can also be used to blend colors together, and many artists will apply both techniques in one art piece. <S> Artist-grade watercolor pencils typically come in 60 or 72 colors with a few 120 color assortments. <S> wikipedia <S> Faber-Castell and Curan D'Ache have beautiful sets, but as I'm only starting out <S> I'm currently using Derwent. <A> Possibilities for blending depend on the extent and/or stylistic appearance of the blending you want to achieve. <S> You can blend mechanically by using readily available tools that are small and lightweight: <S> Your fingers, bare or wrapped with a small cloth or tissue, are always with you. <S> Blending stumps or tortillions allow more precise blending than with your fingers. <S> A kneaded eraser also allows more precision blending as well as a way to pick up media, creating highlights. <S> They are extremely effective when using graphite pencils/powder and with charcoal. <S> You can utilize Impressionist techniques of laying down various colors that then blend in the eye and brain of the observer. <S> Georges Seurat and his pointillism technique are good examples of that. <S> An oldie but a goodie. <S> Never be afraid to experiment - you can do so before you leave to increase your confidence. <S> Also don't forget to experiment with various types of papers. <S> Here are some links that illustrate and explain the use of these blending tools: Blending stumps and tortillions. <S> Kneaded erasers. <S> I think you'll enjoy sketching your way around the globe: <S> The materials are lighter, less bulky, and more rugged than carrying an expensive camera and lenses. <S> Others will be interested in what you are doing: this is an excellent way to meet new people and exchange information with them. <S> You never have to worry about locking your materials in a safe when you leave your room, like you would a camera. <S> If your materials are lost, they are relatively quick and inexpensive to replace. <S> You can remove completed drawings from a sketchbook and mail them home as you go along. <S> They will then be immune to theft. <S> Have many good trips. <A> Derwent also has a blender pencil, but they also have blender pens. <S> They don't smell like alchoholic based pens and the are very good at blending. <S> They're also not very expensive. <S> I paid 7 euros for two 2 years ago. <A> Depending on the size of your set you can use the colours themselves <S> I don't have a blender and even though I use caren d'ache <S> I prefer to use a white pencil apposed to water <S> I find this easier than buying a blender as well and doesn't compromise the colour like water might. <S> I have previously found that blenders are very hard to use so by building up the colors in layers you can blend them with each other.
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Further, you could layer colours (start with the darkest) and use a (near) white pencil to burnish the colours.
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How to cut a tiny circle in paper? When papercutting, one often has to cut very small circles, like below. When I do that, I often break my blade. How should I cut small circles or other small holes? Think about ... Should I apply pressure or not? Should I only turn the knife on its place or really move it? Should I hold the knife vertically or diagonally on the paper? <Q> Punch it Given the size of the holes you are doing this might not seem like useful advice <S> but I would bet that this is what the artist in the picture did, as those are not perfect circles. <S> Outside of this you could use a small punch to get a perfect circle. <S> The way you get that to work is put a lot of paper (or some other thick material) underneath so that the "work" paper will be less likely to tear out. <S> For larger holes or if punches are not available Whatever you need to do that feels comfortable so that you can do one continuous cut . <S> Should I only turn the knife on its place or really move it? <S> Keeping the work stationary for me is a problem especially for circles, as you are moving your wrist and arm around more, which could put strain (cramping from repetition) on you faster (which in turn is asking for small mistakes). <S> This can also reduce your control of the cut. <S> I find this makes the motions easier and they take less time. <S> Should I hold the knife vertically or diagonally on the paper? <S> While the cut would naturally be at a slight angle with what I am describing, I would try to avoid doing so and try to cut as vertically as possible. <S> Cutting on a diagonal can weaken the edges of the cuts making more susceptible to damage. <S> It is definitely important to try and do the cut in one pass. <S> Hesitation or multiple cuts can create nibs or stray fibers. <S> This is fixable of course <S> but you have to remove more material which can affect the shape. <S> However if done right corrections like that can be hidden as most people won't notice. <S> Should I apply pressure or not? <S> Not sure of the best answer to this other than not too much. <S> You want the knife to do the work. <S> As long as your tool is sharp you should not have to put too much force into it. <A> It really does depend on how big the circle is. <S> For tiny circles <S> I recommend not using the knife at all. <S> Find a pair of compasses (or, in a pinch, a dried-up pen or sharp pencil will do), and use that to punch a hole in the paper. <S> Of course, you can also use the knife in much the same way, by poking the hole with the tip of the knife. <S> Note that this solution is for tiny circles, i.e. less than a millimetre's diameter. <S> You will more often need a solution... <S> For slightly bigger circles <S> If you can fold the paper at all, a hole punch is a good solution (yes, I know I'm cheating). <S> Use it to punch half a hole, and when you open the paper back out you have one complete hole. <S> If you really want to use the knife for this, you can - I tend to keep the knife still and move the paper, as I find it gives me more precise control over where exactly the cut is made. <A> This will probably work well for decently-small sized holes that are around 2 mm in diameter: <S> These things can be pretty useful. <S> You often see them in paper cutting three of them at a time, so you can put them into your binders and duo tangs. <S> If you've got a decent quality hole punch, you should be able to make clean cut holes without any bending - and there you have it! <A> How to cut a tiny hole using a knife: (This method requires a very steady hand and caution.) <S> Draw the hole. <S> You can use whatever technique you want. <S> If you want to avoid people seeing marks, you can draw and cut the hole from the reverse side. <S> I have also used a scoring tool instead, as this leaves no marks afterward. <S> Use the correct blade . <S> I use blade 11 for exacto knives. <S> You need something very fine and very sharp. <S> Perforate the outline. <S> Lining up the blade with the direction of the line, repeatedly puncture the outline. <S> Work your way around the circumference, leaving a gap between each puncture which is smaller than the average length of each puncture. <S> Go around a second time, this time puncturing the gaps between each mark, separating the interior from the exterior and completing the hole. <A> You could try using a sewing needle or dressmaker's pin, repeatedly pricking the paper along the circumference of the circle. <S> That would effectively result in a very closely perforated circle. <S> Then lightly press against the circle using some other blunt-tipped tool, and it should eventually pop out. <A> In Dutch traditional paper cutting only a fine pair of scissors was used, very pointy ones which were sharp over the whole length of the blades. <S> Then a semi circle would be cut on the fold so that when unfolded the hole would be a circle. <S> I bet it would take a lot of practice to get it right. <S> For bigger holes a very small fold would allow the start and then one blade of the scissors would be inserted to cut the whole shape. <S> I believe most cut paper artists would not switch to this method until the hole was about 3mm diameter or irregular in shape. <S> The whole of the work was cut freehand, no other tools used, except for sometimes a pencil line to give guidance. <A> You can use old bullet casings as punches, in a pinch. <S> Hit them with a ball peen hammer.
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To cut very small holes the paper would be folded over the center of the hole and only that little bit pinched. As with all cutting make sure you are using tools that are sharp! I am in favour of moving both the work and your hand at the same time.
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How can paper be glued to cardboard without creating wrinkles? In my projects, I often wish to affix a piece of paper to a more rigid material, like cardboard, and to do so using relatively large sheets of paper (say, around a square foot or two). However, I find that it is very difficult to get the paper to lay flat after placing glue on it. Are there specific types of adhesives or techniques for applying glue that minimize the amount of wrinkling caused? I understand that the wrinkles are caused by the paper expanding when it is exposed to moisture. Thus, I've tried to minimize the amount of glue I use, as well as tried letting the paper sit for a bit with the glue before placing in against the other surface to give an opportunity to expand beforehand, but still haven't gotten a good result. I've tried using wallpaper paste, PVA glue, and wood glue for this purpose, but the results seem very similar with each. <Q> Use SprayMount , or similar - it is formulated for exactly this purpose: fixing paper to cardboard. <S> What you do is place your artwork face down on a piece of newspaper, spray a single, thin coat on the back, then place it onto the cardboard. <S> It dries almost instantly, so there is no wrinkling, while still giving very good, invisible adhesion. <S> There are some varieties which are repositionable/removable too! <A> I have a small project where I make name blocks for kids. <S> I basically glue some paper to a painted 2x4 (craft paper, wallpaper samples... <S> I reuse what ever I find). <S> I had a similar problem. <S> No matter what paper I was using. <S> My process involves using Mod Podge as my adhesive agent. <S> What I do now to try and stop the wrinkles is hang the paper from a line or string and use an acrylic spray to stiffen the paper. <S> One light coat on both sides. <S> Now when I glue that to my block it doesn't buckle <A> Try using Glue Tape it is not really wet like standard glue its more of a thin gel strip. <S> This works wonderfully. <S> If you have to glue a large number and in a huge area <S> this is probably not cost effective but if you are just doing a few and don't really need a lot of adhesive <S> this is the crafter's sliced bread! <S> For your project I suspect it will be perfect. <S> You can find them anywhere that sells craft supplies. <A> Two things you can do to avoid this problem. <S> Spray your paper with Acrylic sealer - Spray <S> both sides of the paper several times and allow to dry. <S> sealers acts as a makeshift barrier. <S> You can mist the paper with water - <S> This is especially important with thinner papers,then also use a roller. <A> <A> I had the same problem sticking computer paper to cardstock for a project I was making and became very frustrated because I had spent a lot of time coloring and designing it and had to start all over again. <S> Just use double sided tape! <S> It is so easy! <A> I would suggest spray adhesive. <S> It gives an even coat and is not too wet. <A> Spray adhesive like Super 77 works best for large sheets. <S> (if you need it permanent... otherwise there are repositionable spray adhesives) <S> Don't put down the entire sheet all at once, start with one edge and tack it down evenly using something to smooth it down as you slowly lower the rest of it down onto the surface. <S> Just make sure to smooth it continuously as you go, removing any air bubbles or wrinkles. <A> What I do is use acrylic medium - apply it to BOTH <S> the back of the paper and the cardboard you want to glue the paper on. <S> Then carefully apply & push away bubbles. <S> Use gloss medium - and if the result should not be glossy, seal with mat medium at the very end. <A> After you evenly apply the glue gently start to apply the paper from one corner using something with a flat side as if you were trying to carefully squeegee water off of a glass window. <S> This trick may not work with thinner paper, but you can use it from small to large projects. <S> Depending on the material you are using, you can also use a Xacto knife to make a very tiny slit and gently squeeze the excess air out if you do find any bubbles or wrinkles before the glue dries. <S> This works with most glues as long as you're not using too much and it's applied evenly.
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If you do need to use glue, what I would do is use an ice cream stick to evenly spread a layer of glue over the paper, and when sticking it to the cardboard, use another ice cream stick to make sure that it is nice and flat.
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Is there a way to cleanly cut styrofoam? My roommate is a bit of a pack rat and has several old TV and computer monitor boxes with styrofoam supports. I am thinking of cutting the styrofoam into little "bricks" and building a small house out of it. Is there a trick or special tool to make clean cuts without making a mess of little styrofoam bits everywhere? <Q> Is there a trick or special tool to make clean cuts without making a mess of little styrofoam bits everywhere? <A> Cut firmly but not so deep as to tear the Styrofoam. <S> Basically just the tip each pass and make multiple passes. <S> It will be slow and tedious <S> but if you do it right <S> it wont be messy. <S> A faster method is to use a scroll saw with a vacuum attachment. <S> This will create more pieces of Styrofoam but most of them should end up in the vacuum receptacle reducing the amount of clean up. <S> This will be alot faster at the cost of a bit more clean up. <A> They call them hot knives. <S> Specifically designed for making clean cuts through styrofoam.
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An X-Acto knife is probably going to be your best bet for the least cleanup of loose Styrofoam. Yes, it's called " hot-wire (foam) cutter " and can look like this: You can even make one yourself out of an old flash light ( YouTube ).
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For how long can oil paint be worked into? I paint with Winton oil paints, and I usually 'work back' into a layer of paint after a couple of days, using a bit of white spirit to do so. How long do I have before the oil paint dries to the point that this is no longer possible? <Q> Obviously, the more you wait the harder it will be, but within a week should be fine. <S> White spirit is not recommended it will attack and unsaturate the color, better use a painting medium. <S> You also run the risk of violating lean over fat by using a variable quantity of white spirit. <S> There are also mediums that delay the drying time, but the easiest way is to use oil as a medium. <A> Winsor Newton has this fantastic guide to show the drying times of various available colors. <S> Here is the info and the link to the full page with additional details. <S> In short, here is the range: <S> Fast Drying Oil Colors (Around 2 days) Medium Drying Oil Colors (Around 5 days) Slow Drying Oil Colors (More than 5 days - up to around 12 days) Working with oil color allows for a certain degree of flexibility while painting, as it takes longer to dry than other media. <S> Should you want to alter your work days into a project, oil color allows for such changes to be made. <S> Its malleable nature, in addition to the depth, purity, and vibrancy of pigment quality, makes oil color a favorite among some artists. <S> Familiarizing yourself with the properties of various oil colors and their drying rates will help you achieve the best results, in addition to avoiding cracking and other mishaps. <S> Generally, oil colors become ‘touch-dry’ in thin films within two to 12 days, but different reactions of each pigment when mixed with oil results in varying drying times which will affect your work. <S> We’ve rounded up critical information about each of our key oil color ranges and the drying rates of various colors for your convenience. <S> Read on and print out the charts when choosing your oil colors of choice for easy reference! <S> For specific color drying times, click here . <S> For additional tips on working with oil paints, click here . <A> Once the paint layer has become tacky it is no longer possible to work back into it. <S> It is not advisable to use white spirit for painting in oils. <S> Mineral spirits is better but even so it should never be used to re-activate oil paint that is partially dry. <S> By adding more thinner to the paint you will be weakening the paint bonds and the paint will flake off. <S> If you need to work on an area after it is dry to touch you will need to re-paint that area. <S> You can 'oil out' the area to give it a 'couch' to work on and then re-paint. <S> When painting over the first layers you will also need to follow the 'fat over lean' rule, so add less mineral spirits and a little more oil with each layer.
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There is no simple answer, it depends on many factors like the temperature of where you live, sun and wind exposure, the amount and type of oil, the thickness of the paint, the color pigment itself.
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What is the difference between cheaper oil paints and more expensive ones? I use Winton oil paint that I get for £8 for a 200ml tube (for any colour). Some tubes from other ranges (from the same shop) cost up to £160 for a tube the same size - and there is different pricing for different colours. There are several different ranges in between at different prices. Why the huge disparity in pricing for paint, and what do you get in the more expensive ranges that you don't in the cheap stuff? <Q> There are many things that can set apart great paints from others: working-qualities of the oil specific source of the oil chemical pigments pure-mineral pigments colorfastness of the pigments metals in the pigment consistency of pigment grain-size pigment density / fillers. <S> Each of these can mean different things to the rest of the materials you will use in producing your painting, which is a bit beyond the scope of this question. <A> Always buy the best you can afford. <S> The answer can get complicated, but generally the lower priced brand use only cheap manufactured pigments and fill the tubes with cheapo filler, over diluting them . <S> The same is true for "student grade" version of good enough brands like W & N. <S> Almost always the cheaper paints are actually more expensive than quality paints , in view of the amount of actual pigments used. <A> On one hand there is the general quality of the paint such as the formulation of the base, density and particle size of the pigment as well as the consistency of quality from one batch to the next. <S> There is also the pigment itself. <S> Traditional pigments can vary hugely in price depending on the source and although there are inexpensive synthetic equivalents of any colour you might want specific pigments may be desirable for more subtle and specific qualities of transparency and luminosity. <S> One example is real ultramarine which is made from ground lapis lazuli and is very expensive indeed, the dry pigment powder almost seems to glow in daylight. <S> More traditional pigments may also be desirable for reasons or historical authenticity or for reproducing specific techniques and effects. <S> A lot of mineral pigments are metal oxides and may be toxic and so tend to be much more expensive to process and get hold of in the context of modern consumer safety regulations. <S> In practice this often comes down to how the pigment itself reflects light. <S> Many oil painting techniques rely on building up many semi-transparent layers to achieve sophisticated lighting effects, especially for things like skin tones and atmospheric effects which you obviously can't do if the paint has a lot of opaque filler.
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More expensive brands have a broader palette because they use some pigments that are more expensive to produce and some natural pigments that are more costly to acquire.
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What should I use to draw under oil paint? I was drawing onto my primed canvas in pencil, in preparation to paint over the top in oils, but a friend told me that I shouldn't do that, since over time the graphite will rise to the surface of the painting. What should I use instead? <Q> If using graphite make sure to spray a few coats of fixative over the graphite drawing prior to painting. <S> What should I use instead? <S> You could also try: charcoal Water color pencils <S> diluted ink <A> Well, you can use graphite or charcoal pencils for drawing on canvas, but they should be sealed with a fixative or a very thin layer of gesso before applying oil over top of them. <S> That will prevent any bleed as a result of blending with the paints. <S> If you don't want to do that, then I would use paint, just very thin (thinned with thinner) and fine. <S> Mind you <S> , it's not the same feel as using a pencil, but then you also don't have the worry about layering on it. <A> Traditionally a silver pen was used. <S> see <S> http://www.naturalpigments.com/art-supply-education/silverpoint-technique-art/ <S> One of the modern alternatives is the use of fixative over a graphite drawing but it is a controversial method with no longevity evidence. <S> Charcoal will muddy the paint even worse than graphite. <S> Still the best way is to stay within the oil family and use a thin wash of oil paint or oil based pastels washed with a thinner.
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You can paint the drawing and underpaint with any water based medium, acrylic offers a good base paint for oils if you are using a gesso primed canvas.
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How do you fade one color to another with oil paint without getting the mixed color? I have a deep blue sky and a bright yellow sunset setting over a nature scene, but when painting in the yellow sunset and fading it to the blue sky I end up with a lot of bold greens that are noticeably out of place. How do you fade colors without getting the combined color? I'd like to fade a yellow to a blue without getting green in the middle. I assume the concept would apply to any two colors, though. This may not be the best example image, but here you see very bold blues, and very bold yellows without mixing into a bold forest green anywhere in the sky. <Q> There are green areas in the photo, although they are not bold. <S> Maybe your solution would be not to fade but to juxtapose bold colors. <S> Yet, if you want to fade, painting by layers will have a cleaner mix than painting in impasto <S> (glaze a very thin blue over the yellow). <S> Also you could use dots of each color next to each other for a vibrant optical blending (like impressionism or pointillism). <S> Otherwise, first fade the colors toward grey before fading . <S> One of the ways to desaturate the colors is going into non complementary biases, like fade from a blue-green (cyan, phtalo, Prussian), into a blue-red (ultramarine, cobalt), fade that to a yellow-red (azo, cadmium) then a yellow-green (lemon yellow, Aureolin). <S> The intermediary color will be greenish but muted. <S> However, I think the best way to achieve a clean contrast with high colors is to mix as little as possible . <A> In reality you cannot. <S> Sunsets are perceived in Light (RGB) where one can fade complimentary colors. <S> If done in paint or ink you wind up with a tertiary color which is typically muddy. <S> This is the difference between subtractive color versus additive color. <S> Is to answer your question, "No it can't be done properly" and it has plagued artists for centuries. <S> One of the ways to cheat is to allow the one color to dry, paint the complimentary color and fade into it and add a white wash over it to create a sense of luminance and to soften the mud. <S> First rule of color theory is 'don't fade complimentary colors". <S> Good luck <A> Really you're better off doing the main background, which is blue (top), then yellow (top), and black (middle bottom), and blue again on the bottom. <S> Make the yellow bold when you put the first coat on, then let it dry. <S> Once it’s dry, or at least partially, you can go back and add detail. <S> That’s when you go over the blue again on some parts, and lightly add white to your blue and blend it into the yellow.
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Another way is to use ochres and earth tones (transitioning with a Venetian or yellow ochre, or muting the green color with green-earth or another greenish brown paint), and yet another way is to use opposite colors to mute the intermediary color (i.e. mute the green with a glaze of red).
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What is the paper cutting art called which does not involve folding? The paper cutting craft shown here - How to cut a tiny circle in paper? does not seem to be done by folding paper (there are no wrinkles). Doesn't seem to come under origami. Since I wish to learn that kind of paper cutting art, I wish to know what is that craft called? <Q> This may simply be called papercutting! <S> From Papercutting on Wikipedia: <S> The art has evolved uniquely all over the world to adapt to different cultural styles. <S> Silhouette can refer to the art of cutting outlines or portraits out of black paper. <S> [...] <S> Contemporary papercutting is also sometimes associated with the art of stenciling, itself being derived from techniques used in graffiti art. <S> The use of hand-cut stencils in graffiti art has received international attention in recent years due in part to the artist Banksy. <S> There is also more information on Chinese paper cutting , although I can't verify the accuracy of it: " <S> [L]ong before the paper was invented... people used thin materials, like leaves, silver foil, silk and even leather, to carve hollowed patterns for beauty. <S> Later, when paper was invented, people realized that this material was easy to cut, store and discard. <S> Thus paper became the major material for them to use, and people habitually called this artistry paper-cutting, or Jianzhi in Chinese." <S> And Jewish paper cutting : <S> Jewish paper cutting is a traditional form of Jewish folk art made by cutting figures and sentences in paper or parchment. <S> It is connected with various customs and ceremonies, and associated with holidays and family life. <S> A couple of examples: <A> In the Japanese tradition, Origami is the art to fold ( ori ) paper ( gami ). <S> What you are looking for could be kirigami , the art to cut ( kiri ) paper. <S> I'm not 100% sure that kirigami is what you are looking for because kirigami, from what I know, usually involves folding the paper in two to achieve beautiful 3d images through cutting and folding paper. <S> You can search kirigami on google to get access to a lot of images, sites and video tutorials and how-to. <S> I have done some kirigami projects in the past: you must be very careful on where you cut, but the results are amazing! <A> This is known by several names such as paper cutting, paper carving, folk cutting, Wycinanki(Polish), Schereneschnitte (In German meaning scissor cuts), and Knippen ( by the Dutch). <S> In Japan Mon Kiri involves folding and cutting paper. <S> In 105CE Chinese invented paper like or simalar to what we call paper. <S> It was considered a valued commodity and wasn't cut until around 600CE. <S> By the 13th century paper cutting was done all around China. <S> They kept the making of paper a secret until around 610CE when monks brought the know how to Japan. <S> When it spread to the Middle East, Bagdad became the first place to build mills ( around 794CE). <S> In the 11th century people in Turkey were cutting paper and by the 16th century they even had paper carver guilds. <S> The Christian churh tried for centuries to boycott the use of paper because they thought Muslims were trying to take over trade and culture through paper. <S> The Jewish living and trading alongside Muslims had easy access to paper and began paper cutting for religious and mystical reasons. <S> In the 15th century when the printing press was invented the Christians changed their view bout paper. <S> Turks and Egyptians sold paper to Europe. <S> It was expensive at first and paper cutting was only done for religeous reasons then. <S> Germans brought paper cutting to America in the late 17th century. <S> So, paper cutting traveled from China to Asia, to Europe, and then to North America. <S> Amazon has some great books on paper cutting. <S> I reccomend Creative Paper Cutting by Chong-Ah Hwang, <S> Paper Cutting Book: Contemporary Artist, Timeless Crafts by Laura Heyenga, The Book of Paper Cutting by Chris Rich and Scherenschnitte by Susan Schlapfer-Geiser <S> Their are many other books on the subject <S> but, these are a good place to start.
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Papercutting or paper cutting is the art of cutting paper designs.
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What is a good technique for drilling holes in glass bottles? How do you drill holes in glass bottles (safely)? Do you need special drill bits, or tools? High speed drill or extra slow? I tried once on my drill press and I shattered the bottle. I've seen really cool things done with empty wine bottles that I wanted to try, but it's a mess to cleaning up the failures. <Q> This can be done, but the difference can have more to do with the type of glass than the method. <S> From personal experience, tempered glass is inherently stressed and is almost impossible to work with. <S> Areas towards the necks of bottles have similar issues. <S> I suggest fresh masonry bits for their cost effectivenss. <S> Too slow can cause stress from the pressure of the bit, too fast can create too much heat. <S> Keeping the work cool and lubricated is easy in this case (water). <S> I have even had some success using a HSS drill bit run in reverse (suggestion from my father). <S> Although, this tended to produce a rougher hole. <S> To be intricate and fancy (aka small and detailed) I would opt to using something like a diamond burr in a handheld rotary tool, like a dremel. <S> Let us know how it turns out! <A> Always wear safety glasses! <S> (It's a good idea with any drilling, but especially when drilling through glass.) <S> A standard drill will work fine. <S> Don't use a hammer drill! <S> Lubricate the hole. <S> Otherwise, you will probably crack your work piece through thermal stress. <S> I've never used water, but I'm told it can work, too. <S> Whatever lubricant you use, make sure you don't get it on your drill. <S> Don't overapply it, but replace what runs off/evaporates. <S> Putting a piece of tape over your starting point can help keep your bit from sliding out of place. <S> When you are done, let the piece thoroughly cool before cleaning it or it can crack. <S> Even if it feels cool to the touch, it might still be enough of a rapid temperature change to cause a crack. <S> (Cleaning will remove small bits of glass and whatever lubricant you used - <S> so it's a good idea.) <A> I have seen people use a propane torch or even Mapp gas to put holes in glass. <S> Just an fyi the Mapp gas burns much hotter and is a much quicker process, make sure you do this in a well ventilated area and do not allow the glass to cool to quickly because it will crack (so no water or fans). <S> Remember practice makes perfect. <S> Oh yeah make sure to buy a tip that is more centered that way you are only heating the glass where you need your hole to be. <A> You need an appropriate bit for glass. <S> Depending on the size of the hole, that would commonly be a tungsten carbide drill bit, diamond burr, or a diamond hole saw (I'm referring to this type, which you can buy in just the size you need or sets of sizes; they aren't expensive): Image courtesy Amazon To prevent shattering, you need to dampen the vibrations. <S> When you score a piece of glass and then tap the score with the back end of the scoring tool,you don't hit it hard enough that the force of the blow breaks the glass; a light tap creates vibrations, and the glass breaks itself. <S> Similar action causes glass to shatter when you try to drill it. <S> I've done a cool demonstration for kids of cutting a glass microscope slide cleanly with scissors. <S> The secret is doing it under water, like submerged in a basin. <S> You can do the same thing with a bottle. <S> Get a basin or plastic tub big enough to hold the entire bottle submerged under water. <S> Get the bottle under water and completely filled with water. <S> Use a long flexible extension for a drill or Dremel tool like this: Image courtesy <S> Amazon Do the drilling under water, maintaining control of the bottle and tool, and using normal hand pressure to drill. <S> You won't have the alignment afforded by a drill press, but if you start lightly to establish a mark, you will be able to keep the bit in the same location without it wandering. <S> Depending on the thickness of the glass, it may take a little time to drill all the way through. <S> Just take your time and be patient. <S> The water will lubricate and cool, as well as dampen vibrations. <S> When you're done, blow any water out of the chuck with compressed air and dry the extension and bit well.
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There are specialty bits made for drilling through glass that can be found at most hardware stores . Keep your drill speed low (if it is variable) especially if you wind up using a diamond bit. There are specialty oils sold as a glass drilling lubricant, but WD-40 works just fine and is easy to apply (with the included straw applicator).
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What circular knitting needles can I use if I am allergic to nickel? I'm a knitter who's allergic to nickel. Are there any circular knitting needles made without nickel, chrome, or stainless steel? <Q> This is an example of bamboo needles with a plastic cord connecting them: <A> There are a number of non-nickel options available, though the good ones tend to be more expensive than the mainstream options and the inexpensive ones of poorer quality. <S> The most established options: Signature Needle Arts makes aluminum needles. <S> These are very good (sharp points, flexible cables), but pricey and only available online. <S> Boye also makes aluminum needles. <S> These are reasonably good and reasonably priced and are probably the sweet spot for nickel-free circulars. <S> Clover makes bamboo circulars. <S> They are inexpensive, but suffer from dull points and terrible cables. <S> New Hue Handspuns sells carbon fiber circulars. <S> I have no personal experience with this brand, but the points and cables look at least reasonable, probably on par with Boye. <S> Only available online. <S> Addi offers plastic circulars. <S> These are similar to bamboo in terms of price (low) and quality (meh). <A> ChiaoGoo Red Lace are my favorite needles, and they’re made of surgical steel, which should be safe for people allergic to nickel. <S> ChiaoGoo’s <S> FAQ seems to say that while some of their older bamboo needles have nickel-plated joins, all their current products are nickel-free (though there’s some ambiguity about some of their bamboo needles). <A> Addi Natura Bamboo Knitting needles: the connector is made of brass (bottom needle in below photo): <S> I personally have used all three of the above Addi circular models extensively, and find them to be wonderful choices when matched to the yarn and project properly. <S> The "Natura" bamboo model is especially great for very slippery yarns such as silk or alpaca. <S> The Lace model has a more pointed tip, extremely helpful for those pesky ssk and k2togbtl stitches involved in lacework. <S> I have found the join to be just as smooth as claimed, for all of the Addi models. <S> It looks like Addi / Skacel have recently released an olive wood circular line which also features a brass connector. <S> References: <S> top photo: Camilla Valley Farm (via Google image search) <S> Addi website: <S> A comparison of their styles of circular knitting needles <A> The other option that you can do if you have a set that you love is use clear nail polish to seal the metal. <S> While you use the nail polish, use nitrile gloves as a barrier to avoid touching the nickel.
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Non-metal circular knitting needles (wood or bamboo) are also available. Addi, famous for their exquisitely smooth nickel needles, also makes two other styles involving brass instead of nickel : Addi Turbo Lace Knitting needles: the entire needle is made of brass (top needle in below photo):
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What fiber crafts can I do when I am allergic to wool? I'm allergic to wool. Is it still possible for me to knit/crochet/spin/weave? <Q> Alpaca is the most common - but there are also other, more exotic ones - which may be tolerable. <S> Plant Fibers Cotton, linen, hemp. <S> Should be completely tolerable even to the most wool allergic. <S> Synthetics Acrylic. <S> Like plants, no crossover with wool, so should be safe. <S> (This one may not apply to spinning, however, since synthetic yarns aren't made the same way as natural fiber ones.) <S> There's been at least one book written specifically for wool-allergic knitters ("No Sheep For You") and if you're on Ravelry, you can search the pattern database for patters written for non-wool fibers. <A> I crochet with cotton threads from DMC. <S> You can also look into embroidery and cross-stitch. <S> Cross-stitch can take a long time (especially for big pieces) but are really rewarding. <S> You can pick up kits online that include everything you need for US$20 and less: the pattern chart, all the thread and the cloth. <S> All you need is some scissors and maybe a thimble (I suggest leather) to protect your finger. <S> These kits can be purchased quite cheap (around US$20) and can last up to a year or more depending upon your speed. <S> They should include cotton threads. <S> I suggest starting with a small kit to see if you enjoy. <A> I'm allergic to wool <S> and I knit daily. <S> Bamboo is my favorite but silk, linen, hemp, there are even fibres based on nettles and seaweed. <S> I have also knitted cashmere and alpaca with no issues at all. <A> What about trying with silk, Alpaca, Mohair, Angora [rabbit] and a whole lot of natural plant fibres? <S> Or synthetics.
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Yes, while you may lose some techniques that depend on wool's specific properties (like felting), there are a variety of fibers still available to the wool-allergic: Other Animal Fibers
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What is a stretchy cast-on for top down socks? I just finished my first sock but the top is too tight to go over my heel. I used the long-tail cast-on, should I have used a different one? <Q> Better choices, in turns of stretch, include: cabled cast-on (super easy) <S> tubular cast-on (to go with 1-1 ribbing) rolled edge (easy, durable, and would let you still use the long-tail method) <S> The links are for TECHknitting, but these are well known techniques and a web search will bring up lots of resources for any of them. <A> If right-handed knitting, lay your right pointer finger tip on the needle while casting on each stitch to make sure there's a space between the stitches. <S> Then spin the needle clockwise all the way around before casting on each stitch. <S> I got this from the " Learn the Elastic Cast-On with Knitting Expert Patty Lyons! " <S> video on the https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA3CFC2MYDY page. <S> Then, if you need a stretchy bind-off that's done in a similar way, try Lori's Twisty Bind <S> Off : <S> Continental style: <S> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWS77BKk5NQ English style: <S> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31nfF5pG-8I <A> Sometimes the issue is not the cast-on but the number of stitches and the way that the sock and leg are shaped. <S> I have knitted several top-down (and toe-up) socks based on my foot circumference, which is how most patterns are measured, and been unable to fit them over the heel as written. <S> What helps there is to plan for a few more stitches at the cuff and adjust the decreases after turning the heel. <S> If you knit a swatch or gauge sample in the round before you start the sock, it'll be easy to see how many more stitches are needed at the cuff: measure your leg's circumference at the height you'd like the sock to be. <S> Another potential constraint is the height and depth of the sock heel itself. <S> Lengthening the heel flap may help, or if you're knitting a sock with a short-row heel, consider adding short rows (which can be tricky for the heel's overall shape). <S> Two heels with more depth, or easily adjustable depth, relative to a standard short-row heel are fish lips kiss and sweet tomato .
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The long-tail cast-on is a sturdy one, excellent for when you need structure, but not so much when you need stretchy.
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How can you preserve oil paints on your palette between sessions? Sometimes you mix a great color using your palette but then you have to put your work aside for the evening or even longer. So, how can you preserve the colors on your palette until you're ready to use them again? <Q> Light, Air, AND Temperature. <S> After restricting the air flow like by putting the palette into a container you can put it in the fridge or even the freezer for a longer period. <S> Some painters immerse the working palette into a recipient of water in the fridge for the best air restriction, because it is oil based the paint is not altered and is workable within an hour of removing from water. <S> read <S> http://painting.about.com/od/oilpaintingfaq/f/freezing-oils.htm <S> It's fine to store your oils in the freezer if you're taking a break. <S> The cold temperature will slow the rate of oxidation and evaporation, preserving the paint. <S> (...) "...by early Renaissance times professional supplies of pigments existed ... <S> Prepared oil paints were kept in the studio under water to prevent them from drying out." <S> Using left over paint within " the evening or even longer" should not require any special method. <S> Otherwise, if you add oil to the paint before setting the palette aside it will be work able for days longer, and even longer with a slow dry medium. <S> The best way is still to use paint little by little so not to have too much left over. <A> If you're working with oil paint? <S> Nothing is needed! <S> Paints on a palette will remain workable without any further interaction for a couple of days. <S> Longer than this, consider putting some cling film carefully over the top. <S> If the paints have gone a bit stiff when you come back to them, simply work them carefully with a bit of white spirit or turpentine to loosen them again. <A> Oil paint dries because of air and light (UV), so if you want to slow down the drying process, put it in a dark place without ventilation. <S> You probably want to cover it with something too, just to expose it even less to air. <A> These can be purchased at better art stores for a couple of dollars and basically lets you work with it like it was any other paint in a tube. <S> For smaller amounts, you can go your own with aluminum foil. <S> Basically, create a small pouch, doubling up to give it strength, fill it with your paint, then seal it off from the air. <A> I put a little clove oil on a cotton ball and throw it in my covered palette. <S> The clove oil slows down the oxidation process. <A> My mother has been painting professionally for over 70 years, using oil paints. <S> She keeps a fridge in her studio and puts the palette in the fridge overnight at the end of each session, when she has colours mixed that are not used up. <S> Being in the fridge keeps them in the dark as well as keeping them cool (she has spent most of her career in warm countries). <S> If she knows that it may be a few days before she can paint again, she uses clingfilm or similar as well - for longer storage, she puts the palette under a cover as well as using film.
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For longer storage, you can seal the paint inside of an empty paint tube if the amount is fairly large.
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How can I cover books with contact paper without bubbles? I have to cover some books with adhesive contact paper. Although I try to do it slowly and with the help of a ruler, I systematically get some bubbles between the book and the cover. Is there a good trick to do that properly? <Q> Try removing the paper off the plastic foil during the process, not before like removing a little bit of foil, sticking it on the edge, then pulling away the paper flat on the book. <A> I have never personally done this with books but in concept there are a few things you need to keep in mind that will help make this process easier. <S> Remove all debris from the cover of the book. <S> Dust particles and hair will make this a near impossible process. <S> Small particles that you cant see and wont show up until you make contact. <S> This is something you likely are already mindful of <S> but you need to be sure of your cleaning medium as well. <S> Something with paper fibers like Kleenex or paper towels would leave behind stuff as well. <S> Your surface needs to be flat. <S> I mean this both as your working surface and the book itself. <S> You might be having an issue if you are working the adhesive sheet from the top to the bottom of the book. <S> The binding would make the book sit not perfectly flat. <S> You might have more luck moving from left to right or more accurately start at the binding and work away from it. <A> Besides the ideas given in other answers I found two tricks to make the process easier: <S> But this is more of a remedy for when you already have the bubbles than a solution for your problem. <S> Here is suggested that you spray a bit of water in the non-adhesive side of the contact paper and your surface before putting the book over the contact. <S> I haven't tried it myself <S> but it is worth a try.
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Working from top to bottom might cause the book pages to slide as you progress. You can try to remove bubbles with the help of a pin pressing them slightly and then smoothing them out. Dust in the air as well won't be helping this so need to pick a good location
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What type of thin or light wood is suitable for making box joints? I want to make a wooden box using box joints. The box should be cube-shaped with sides of around 10cm and one side open. This is my first time to make box joints. I need the box to be as light as possible, so thin wood would be better - however, I can imagine that with thin wood, the joints would be smaller and thus more tedious to get right. Or would this not be such a problem? If thin wood is not a real option, what types of light (weight-wise) wood could I consider? For example, I read here that pine wood is easy to shape and stain. Would this be an advantage? Colour is not an issue, but cheaper wood is preferred. <Q> Plywood is ultimately the answer. <S> When making box joints or finger joints you need to have dimensionally uniform and preferably stable wood. <S> Plywood comes in many sizes and I would imagine something like 8mm would be fine. <S> If you are OK with something larger like 16mm then you would have stronger joints as there would be more surface area. <S> This is dependent on what tools you have. <S> A box joint jig on a table saw would make this a breeze. <S> I read here that pine wood is easy to shape and stain. <S> Pine is cheap. <S> That is its main advantage. <S> Most softwood is easy to shape by nature. <S> Easy to stain is inaccurate as pine (and other woods) is susceptible to blotching. <S> Blotching meaning a non-uniform stain. <S> Real wood will almost always certainly look better. <S> On box joints you are going to see the plys more <S> so you need to know if that is something you are comfortable with aesthetically. <A> Though pine tends to be lighter than plywood of the same dimensions. <S> Pine is easy to shape and will actually be easier for a beginner than plywood, since plywood (at least in my experience) likes to splinter easy around cuts. <S> It has to do with the thin layers glued together. <S> High quality (veneered) plywood has nice face that looks good, and even can 'look' much nicer, however when using box joints the edges will be visible and you will be able to see the ply's. <S> Pine will likely look better on the box joints. <S> So it's cheap, it's easy to shape, it's light, and it can look fine with just a finish coat on it. <S> As Matt pointed out, pine does tend to be blotchy with staining, so extra work will be need there. <S> Though a lot of veneer plywood is birch plywood, which is also a blotchy wood, so... <A> In the end, I went with balsa wood. <S> I didn't like the way you can see all the plies of plywood. <S> Also, pine apparently isn't easily available in Western Europe. <S> The shop employee I talked to claimed that balsa wood has little difference between spring and autumn, which makes it very uniform and easy to saw. <S> It is also very light (of weight and colour). <S> Here is a picture of the joint before final polishing and varnishing: <S> I am satisfied with the result and would use the same wood next time.
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As Matt said, plywood is likely the simplest and most stable wood material to use to make this box.
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What kind of stitch makes up t-shirt seams on commercial grade clothing? I recently decided to take up sewing, but the stitches I use to hold two pieces of fabric together (like the side seams of a shirt for example) is a simple lock stitch. My machine (like most I've seen) has several different styles of stitches but none of them even remotely compare to the stitching I find on commercial grade clothing. What type of stitch is this? My simple sewing machine stitches are nowhere near as sturdy as the stitching I am used to seeing on clothing. The best picture I could find online (without knowing what I'm searching for) can be seen in this picture. The stitch holding the sleeve onto the body of the shirt is much fancier than anything my sewing machine seems to offer. Image from LoveLaughPin.com <Q> The stitches that you typically see on commercial t-shirt seams are an overlock stitch , which typically requires a special type of sewing machine specifically for this purpose (e.g., a serger). <A> Zigzag stitches are often recommended for use if you don't have a serger, but what you really need is a stretch stitch. <S> And, many modern machines, even less expensive models have a stretch stitch. <S> If you have icons to show the stitch types on your machine, this is the icon to look for: If your machine doesn't offer this stitch, you might try looking in your owner's manual for information about sewing with knits... <S> it should tell you the best stitch to use on your particular machine. <S> If you are used to sewing with woven material (like quilter's cotton), sewing with knits can be a bit challenging because the fabric will stretch while sewing, the edges will roll up, and regular pins and sewing machine needles can cause snags. <S> Luckily there are tons of tutorials on-line about sewing with knits, so just google <S> "sewing with knits on a sewing machine" and find the tutorial that works best for you. <S> Here's a couple to get you started <S> http://www.jenniferlaurenvintage.com/2014/06/sewing-machine-settings-for-knits-if.html and https://www.seamwork.com/issues/2015/06/knits-without-a-serger <S> (at a glance these both look useful, but I haven't read them, so I can't vouch for their accuracy). <S> BTW--if you can't find your machine's owners manual, I highly recommend searching for a copy on-line. <S> Don't pay for one unless you absolutely can't find it anywhere for free. <S> Try the manufacturer's website first, and if your particular model is not available, reach out to them and ask for one. <S> Also, lots of people on the interwebs have been kind enough to scan and upload their manuals and will share them for free. <S> I like doing this because I can save it somewhere (on my hard drive, in cloud storage, etc.) <S> and I can always track it down again when I inevitably lose the hard copy version. <A> If you don't have a "serger" sewing machine try sewing a straight stitch and then zig zag close to the stitch. <S> I use a "ball point" needle used for knits.
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The key to sewing seams on a t-shirt (or on anything made in a stretchy knit fabric for that matter) is that the stitch needs to be able to stretch just like the fabric stretches.
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How can I improve my binding process to get a better result? Haven't done it in a while but I used to bind my own books so that I didn't have to pay extra for really cool ones. Mostly printed computer paper from 150 for 300 pages for the contents. This is what I did as far as the spine is concerned: Get the pages together by gently knocking them on the table and rotating it so that I was knocking consistently in all directions. Brace the spine on either side with clamps and paint stick so that only a millimetre or two was exposed. Sand the paper to ruffle up the fibres. Theory for that is more surface area for the glue to bind. Slighty dampen the paper on the spine to help the glue penetrate more. Added a little cheese cloth Using contact cement apply a couple of coats (separated by about day to be sure). I had tried Gorrila Glue a couple of time thinking the expansion would help but it just made the spine larger and I had to remove the curve it created. Continue on. Now that did work and I made about 20 books successfully. However I wasn't 100% happy with the product. Sometimes there would be single pages that did not get an equal amount of glue. So I would be using the book and open a page and turn it just to have it pop out. I gauged the strength of the book by trying to lift it up by one of the pages. For the smaller ones like 50 to 100 pages this was fine. Larger one I lost the page. This might have been an unrealistic test. I know that one folly is that I didn't make the book in booklets where the pages were grouped together by 16 or 32 pages like you would see in conventional books. At the time this was not really available to me. Now it is more likely but I would like to know if there is a way to improve on my process above without making drastic changes. If drastic is needed so be it. Perhaps my choice of glue was bad. It needs to be strong yet flexible and preferable penetrate easy. Contact cement seemed to work fine outside of the issues I mentioned. <Q> You could punch holes through the leaves, and sew, using an asian-style bind , or use overcast sewing before binding. <S> You will need an awl, or drill/drill press to punch holes through the paper before sewing, though, and of course, you're losing more of the edge of the paper than using folded signatures and the book won't open flat. <S> But you will have a proper sewn binding that doesn't rely on glue to keep the pages in, and will be more archival in quality. <A> After stage 3 saw shallow slots across the spine, then glue strings (cords) into the slots. <S> I would use PVA glue myself, but maybe contact cement works better for you? <S> I would also glue a backing onto the spine over the first layers of glue and the cords. <S> I have used fabric but have also used cartridge paper both successfully. <S> Having said the above I will add that printing signatures using booklet form and sewing the signatures together (then gluing and adding reinforcing ...) is far more robust than the above, and more likely to open flat. <A> I think that your most important step is the sanding of the binding edge. <S> Believe it or not, in commercial binderies we usually used a white, "Elmer's-type" glue for a cold binding glue (for "perfect-bound" books we used a hot melt glue that would look ugly but be concealed by <S> a "wrap" cover that you don't <S> (?) have). <S> This is an example. <S> The cheesecloth is a great strengthener. <S> You should "fan out" the binding edge after it's been ground well (kind of like flipping through a deck of cards) to expedite the glue up between the pages, then soak 1/16" to 1/8" of the spine in the glue. <S> Then, add the cheesecloth (the glue will hold it there. <S> Let it partially dry, like 5 or 10 minutes, then add 1 or 2 more coats of glue on top of that. <A> Binding it using e.g. coptic stitch is of course more robust, but takes a lot more time and practice. <S> Then you glue and bind the book as normal. <S> This way, there is a larger surface for the glue to bind. <S> The disadvantage is that if you lose pages, you will now lose 2 instead of 1.
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You want to "ruffle up the fibres," adding surface area for the glue to stick to, but most importantly, you want to sand the edges enough so that they are all affected evenly--to the point that all of the signature edges are part of the same plane. An option might be to fold the pages once and place all pages on top of each other with the folded sides on one side.
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Is it possible to frequently change colours while crocheting? I am a huge gamer and love pixel art in general. My friend turned me onto crocheting a while ago and one of the first things I asked about was pixel art. Her response and my own limited experience tells me that it is not realistic to do. At least not ones that have many colours. I see more pixel art with knitting which I am not sure I have room for in my creative suite. Is it possible or even advised to do pixel art by crocheting? Could I have a single stitch one colour while having all the ones surrounding different? Is that just too many tails to deal with and would the project be weaker as a result? <Q> You might try a method called "Corner to corner" crochet (C2C). <S> It seems to be relatively "new" and was something I was really intrigued to find out about. <S> It's often used for making diagonal-style blankets but there are certainly examples of it being used for pixel-style art work. <S> It has the benefit of being dual-sided and it does allow for semi-regular changing of yarns. <S> Creating your own patterns should be relatively simple with some graph paper and colored pencils/markers. <S> Here's what it looks like: click image to view project As you can see, it does a pretty awesome job with pixel-style art and does allow for regular changing of colors. <S> Here's a work-in-progress image for reference: <S> There's a very in-depth video of how the basic concept of C2C crochet works on The Crochet Crowd . <S> It doesn't explain the more regular color changing process <S> but I think that's something that can be figured out using the instructions for projects like this Christmas tree. <S> The best part is that the only stitches needed are chains, slip stitches and double crochets, so this should be extremely simple, regardless of skill level. <S> Also note that, if you're interested in really small scale, you could probably go crazy with this using steel hooks (under 2mm) and cobweb-weight yarn or embroidery floss. <A> For small areas that change colors frequently, some knitters use "duplicate stitch"--using yarn threaded onto a darning needle to mimic one or more stitches. <S> (TECHknitting describes it well.) <S> If you use short lengths instead of letting the ends cross on the back side, or if you're finished with a color, it's possible to tuck the yarn ends into the next few stitches as you go-- <S> one end on the current row, one end on the next one when you come around to it. <S> This works best when the crochet stitches form a solid ground ( <S> all US single = UK double or all US <S> double = UK triple). <S> I don't have a link; it's common when making amigurumi. <A> Most likely a single stitch per pixel is too high a resolution. <S> Think more in terms of at least 3, preferably more stitches per pixel. <S> The basic idea is that you don't cut or tie off each time you change the color - you just hold all the colors you need in continuous yarn threads and switch to a new yarn when color changes, leaving all the connections between patches of various colors on the inner side - which will be a criss-crossing mess of threads running from point to point. <S> It's going to be tricky to keep the joint points from stretching with all the loose yarn left, so you might consider easier tasks first, if that's "one of the first things" you want to do.
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For crochet it would be a bit trickier but still feasible, depending upon the stitch to mimic.
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How to paint the background of a portrait painting? Assumption: I have painted a bird with water colours. Now I want to colour the background green. I will start painting from the edges of the bird's body and take my strokes outwards. My problem with this approach is that the brush stroke directions will be visible. Also, if I get too close to the bird's body, I fear some colour will get on the bird as well. Moreover in the following painting, the painter has used different colours for the background, yet no strokes are visible! What is the technique to achieve such result? Does the kind of paint make a difference here? Am I supposed to first paint the background, then paint the bird? http://www.jesuspaintings.com/bluebird_of_happiness.htm <Q> The paint does make a difference in whether or not you can easily paint over the background. <S> Watercolor, for example, does not easily cover other art and you would need to use a different technique for the background if you used this medium. <S> Most other paints (like acrylics or oil) are thick enough that you can easily paint over the background without any effort. <S> Thicker paints <S> With thicker paints you should paint the background of the image, get it as you like it, and then paint your subject over the top. <S> This has the down-side of not being very forgiving <S> should you make mistakes to your main subject, fixing the background after touch-ups will be challenging. <S> Thinner mediums <S> With thinner mediums like Watercolor you would want to paint them independent of each other and not overlap them. <S> I, personally, would paint the subject first and then follow with a watercolor background. <S> With watercolor you can use a common technique where you apply water to the paper before using any color. <S> The water will pull the color out of the brush and disperse it to the wet areas neatly without spillage. <S> If you make a mistake with the wet brush, simply let it dry and try again before applying color. <A> You could try applying a frisket to the bird and flowers first (to isolate and protect your lighter more detailed areas) before beginning painting your background. <S> Once your background color/colors have dried you can remove the frisket from the next area you want to paint by rubbing with an eraser. <S> You can remove as much or as little frisket as you need to paint the next area (to isolate the following color) or remove it entirely (so colors can blend) before proceeding with the bird and flower areas. <A> If I were planning to paint the above Blue Bird on an blossomed Apple branch, I'd lightly, but exactly draw the outline of the bird and branch then apply rubber cement to the body of the bird and branch, going right to the pencil lines. <S> Then I'd take an air brush or similar tool to apply the back ground color. <S> When the bkgnd. is dry, peel off the rubber cement in the body of the picture then apply rubber cement to the bkgnd, right up to the image. <S> Now paint the image. <S> If you are using water colors, look into water color pencils, they will allow you to apply detailed accents in color and, with a little water, blend into the work.
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Carefully outline the dry subject with a wet brush and once the paper is wet, carefully apply your color.
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How can I cut popsicle craft sticks without splitting them? We often use craft sticks in kids projects, but I have issues whenever I need to cut them. They'll often split down the grain, all the way through the stick, making it useless. This happens no matter which direction I'm cutting, but it's only useful if I'm trying to split them lengthwise. Is there a way I can cut these sticks reliably, without tossing every other one out? <Q> Craft sticks and Popsicle sticks are not known for their quality when it comes to grain and warping. <S> So when you are cutting them, the stress is released in the easiest way possible which is along the grain. <S> This is especially true because of how thin they are. <S> One of the following methods should work. <S> They are both related in that I am suggesting multiple cuts. <S> Scoring Instead of trying to do one cut you should try and score your sticks first. <S> Scoring will help guide the break and prevent it from going through the rest of the stick. <S> So, score it once then do the rest of the cut. <S> Multiple shallow cuts Essentially scoring all the way though. <S> The slower safer method is cut though the sticks in several successive cuts. <S> Use a ruler to help cut straight so you can focus more on your depth of cut. <S> Put more sticks under the ruler to help keep it flat. <S> Either way you need a thin and sharp blade. <S> You want to cut the fibres of the sticks and not push them apart. <S> So something like standard scissors would be a bad choice. <A> The best way I've found is to do it with wire cutters (as described here ). <S> You pinch/crush the wood at the correct place to weaken the stick <S> (no need to try and cut all the way through), and then bend the cutters back and forth to snap the wood fibres until you've cut right the way through. <S> It can still be a little fiddly and you will have some losses because it won't be a clean cut <S> - I know it <S> kinda seems like a lot of trouble for such a small, humble item as a popsicle stick - <S> but if you need them cut, it seems to be the way to go as it gets you the best result for the least time and most common tools. <S> I actually found this while googling for a better way to cut popsicle sticks, guess there isn't one yet:P <A> Put the popsicle stick in a vice such that the line to be cut is just above the flat top of the vice's jaws. <S> Tighten the vices grip on the stick to support and hold motionless the material just below the cut line. <S> Then use a razor blade to cut the wood using the scoring/multiple cuts technique described in Matt's answer. <A> A fine-toothed coping saw or jewelry saw would work okay, but I’d think it’d be unwieldy. <S> I own an xacto extra fine saw blade and find it to be fantastically helpful for making straight cuts across all sorts of small stock, including popsicle sticks. <S> The blade fits into a utility size handle. <S> I use mine <S> so often I keep it in my kitchen drawer. <S> http://www.xacto.com/products/cutting-solutions/blades/detail/X239 <A> I have found a good way to cut them using a serrated knife and a clipboard with a bunch of printing paper held onto it. <S> Those clipboards with wire clips work better. <S> I slip the stick inside the wire and it holds it firmly. <S> I place so that the end I want to cut sticks out of the top of the clipboard, so I can access it. <S> Now I use the serrated knife to saw the intended part off. <S> Generally works well. <S> I also used a dremel before with circular saw blades,but it is kinda risky. <S> However placing it within the clipboard makes it safer, but cumbersome. <S> So I think this serrated knife+clipboard will work fine for smaller quantity of works, and switch to dremel + clipboard for bigger projects. <S> There may be a few jagged strands that can be cut with scissors for a smooth edge. <A> You can use a scroll saw, band saw, or copping saw. <S> No warranties, given or implied. <S> Use this set of suggestions at your own risk. <S> Use proper ear and eye protection. <S> Make sure you have proper current prescription glasses if needed. <S> Stacking and taping them may make them more stable. <S> As I've thought this over again, my ONLY recommendation would be to make a jig, on a scroll saw. <S> Use the finest blade you may have, even perhaps a metal cutting blade, with the smallest curf (spread of the teeth/width of the cut). <S> After proper adjustment, you should be able to make exact center cuts! <A> When I want a scraper that won't scratch the surface being scraped, I cut the ends of a popsicle stick or tongue depressor (wider) with a new single-edge razor (HomeCheapo) held at a compound angle, which results in a chisel edge at a 45-degree angle or a simple chisel edge 90-degrees to the length of the stick/depressor. <A> My dad has a small axe. <S> This was very useful when it came to cutting the popsicle sticks - once he deeply scored the popsicle sticks he then bent it <S> and it was a decent cut with the exception of two or three pieces of wood sticking out which could be cut off with scissors. <A> There are a lot of different ways to do this. <S> Popsicle sticks are thin wood thats also cheap, so they break easily. <S> Using a mini hacksaw works pretty well. <S> The easiest and fastest thing Ive found is a Dremel/rotary carver. <S> Find a cutting bit, and draw a line down the stick. <S> Then just cut down the line. <S> It does it just a few seconds, and you can make it as thin or as wide as you need. <A> The safest way to cut popsicle sticks while minimizing the chance of splinters, is to put on a pair of gloves and use wire cutters to clip sections off. <S> If you're working in larger quantities of popsicles, it may be faster to score them where you need them cut, prior to using a wire cutter.
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Using a sharp blade to score it works well.
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What are the different methods of knitting with two needles? In an answer to a question about knitting faster , there is a reference to knitting methods: I have a couple suggestions. If you knit in the French Method, try the German Method. If you knit in the German Method, try the French Method. What is the German method? What is the French method? As far as the common methods go in modern knitting with two standard sized needles, is that all or is there more? I don't know if standard is the right word but I mean neither small nor exorbitantly large independent needles. <Q> The German method is also called Continental Knitting. <S> It is a method of knitting with 2 needles, and a type of style of how you hold your yarn and needles. <S> You would hold the yarn in your left hand and your right hand will be on your working needle. <S> http://www.knittinghelp.com/video/play/the-knit-stitch-continental-continental <S> Another style is called English Knitting, also known as right-hand knitting or throwing. <S> The yarn is carried in your right hand instead. <S> http://www.knittinghelp.com/video/play/the-knit-stitch-english-english <S> So, the main difference between the two is the way the yarn is wrapped around the right needle before it’s pulled through to knit a stitch. <S> The choice between them though is merely preference for the most part as they both create the same resulting fabric. <S> But here is more detailed post explaining the differences: http://www.craftsy.com/blog/2014/02/english-vs-continental-knitting/ <S> As for French knitting, as far as I know it is a type of tubular knitting, not 2 needles, which requires a knitting spool instead. <A> So, others have mentioned the three most common styles on the English-speaking internet: Continental, also called German (picking; working yarn in left hand) and English/American (throwing; working yarn in right), and combination knitting. <S> As a commenter said, there is Portuguese knitting. <S> If you have ever seen somebody knitting while tensioning their working yarn around their neck or from a special pin attached to their clothing, or both if using multiple yarns, this was probably Portuguese knitting. <S> This may be the same as Andean knitting. <S> At least, from the descriptions I read, I think they're the same. <S> https://www.interweave.com/article/knitting/switch-to-portuguese-knitting/ <S> There is Russian ( https://www.craftsy.com/knitting/article/russian-knitting-technique/?_ct=rbew&_ctp=16072 ) and Norwegian ( https://www.craftsy.com/blog/2013/05/norwegian-knitting-technique/ ), which seem similar to each other but not quite the same. <S> And then there's Lever knitting (also called Irish/Cottage knitting, though some say that's a bit different). <S> I am fascinated by Lever knitting and want to learn to save my arm. <S> I understand it is far more ergonomic. <S> If you've seen someone knitting with one needle under the arm (and probably knitting very fast), this is probably what they're doing. <S> There's supposed to be a way to do this holding circulars, too. <S> I understand this is one of the fastest ways and thus used by a lot of people who knit for a living. <S> For one thing, the knit and purl are supposedly equally easy and therefore tension tends to be better overall. <S> I recommend looking for videos on Lever knitting, as they're as entertaining as they are impressive, but here's a nicely set up webpage with still photos and nice directions: http://www.heartstringsfiberarts.com/leverstyle.shtm <S> I suspect there are a dozen more ways as well. :-) <A> Let's not forget about Combo Knitting !. <S> It's kind of hard to conceptualize, but there are some excellent images/videos of combo knitting out there. <S> Recommended: <S> Annie Modesitt's combo knitting tutorials <S> As Mary Thomas puts it, it's "the better way to work in Flat Knitting. <S> The resulting fabric is more even and closer in construction. <S> " <S> No more furrows when you do stockinette in flatwork!
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In combo knitting, you wrap your purls the "other way", such that watching yourself purl in the mirror would be identical to the process of a knit stitch.
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How can I smoothly flatten select parts of a wire design? I have seen some simple jewelry designs made out of wire, which I'd like to replicate. These designs are made from a single piece of wire bent into a variety of shapes. For portions of the design, the wire is still perfectly round. However, some parts are smoothly flatted. By smoothly, I mean that there are no creases or hammer marks. Here's an example of what I'm describing: How can I achieve this effect? Can I use steel wire, or does it need to be something softer, such as aluminum wire? <Q> The flat parts of the wire are achieved by using a curved face chasing hammer and a hammering block . <S> The chasing hammer has a slightly convex surface that makes those nice smooth transitions from the flat part of the wire to the regular rounded part of the wire. <S> If the hammer surface is too flat <S> you'll see hammer marks on the wire . <S> Visually check the hammer face before buying to make sure that it is convex (slightly domed) and not fully flat or worse, concave. <S> Here's what one looks like: The [my] hammering block is a smooth square of heavy steel about 4" x <S> 4" square and quite heavy. <S> Steel wire is very hard to hammer and may be as hard or harder than the hammering block. <S> Aluminum wire might be softer but I've heard it's brittle and might not take hammering well. <S> Most of my experience has been with sterling silver, fine silver, brass, and copper. <S> The example photo is lovely <S> but I was taught that it wasn't a good idea to hammer where wires cross as this makes weak spots in the finished piece. <S> Maybe something has changed. <A> You don't necessarily need a specialist hammer, a small ball pein or cabinet makers pin hammer from a hardware store will do the job. <S> However you may need to polish the face as any scratches or defects in it will transfer to the work. <S> Foam backed abrasive pads are good for this as the naturally create a slightly convex face. <S> You will also need something to hammer onto, for soft wires like annealed copper or silver a hard rubber block may be adequate, for steel wire you will want something a bit firmer like end-gain hardwood (e.g. a beech chopping board or 'butchers block) or a polished steel anvil. <S> Obviously your hammering technique is critical your strikes need to be both correctly weighted and accurate and this only comes with practice and the correct weight will depend on the hardness and ductility of the wire you are using. <A> If you're aiming at producing more than one-off copy, it may be beneficial to use slanted jaws for a vise. <S> Just two pieces of aluminum L-profile, which you can put over the vise jaws, with something to slant them a little - a length of wire, or a couple small screws or something like that along the "bottom" side, to make the lower parts to come together sooner than the upper parts. <S> You can then reliably, smoothly, easily and in a controlled manner flatten the wire without risk of missing the spot with the hammer.
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The goal is to have a heavy and very smooth surface that's harder than the wire or metal being hammered so the surface doesn't get marked up opposite the side being hammered.
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Can I microwave polymer clay to harden it? Boiling washes the color down, and baking polymer clay in a classic oven is troublesome in my situation. Can I use a microwave though? If so, what settings? Any precautions needed? (say, a glass of water to create a "load" for the microwave)? <Q> Maybe, but it's probably not a good idea. <S> For one thing, the package says not to do it. <S> The manufacturer isn't just saying that because they want you to buy a toaster oven -- putting it in the microwave will result in burning. <S> Because microwaves don’t heat evenly, parts of the mass will begin to cure and harden while others remain soft. <S> Source: <S> Can you Bake Polymer Clay in the Microwave? <S> Not only will that ruin the project, it releases fumes which at best smell terrible, and at worst can cause respiratory distress and damage. <S> For health and safety reasons, you shouldn't microwave polymer clay on its own. <S> Some crafters do say you can microwave polymer clay as long as it is completely submerged in water. <S> Basically, this is boiling the item to heat it and cure it, but in a microwave rather than on a stovetop. <S> Sources: [1] [2] <S> But, some crafters say you still shouldn't -- the quality of the final piece will suffer. <S> Some people advocate using a microwave to boil water which contains the polymer clay. <S> The problem with this is that ... boiling water never heats above 212 <S> °F (100°C) ... <S> [below] the proper curing temperatures of most brands of polymer clay. <S> While you may find that the item is hard after boiling, it will be incompletely cured and will be weak and easily broken. <S> (This is true for stove-top curing as well.) <S> Some brands of polymer clay will get an icky white residue when boiled... <S> I think there’s room for experimentation there, but it’s very difficult to control the amount of heat the items would be receiving. <S> Source: <S> Can you Bake Polymer Clay in the Microwave? <A> No, it requires baking to set. <S> I have a polymer clay only "toaster oven". <S> It was designed for just using that medium. <S> Look at your local craft store, or online <A> Manufacturers have started reacting to their customers requests and produce some clays that can be cured in a microwave. <S> It must be written on the packaging and there must be an instruction of how to cure it in the microwave. <S> The instructions I saw included: <S> The clay object must have a minimum thickness of several millimeters. <S> You cannot cure thin sheets or delicate objects. <S> Always place a small bowl or cup of plain water with the clay object into the microwave. <S> This prevents overheating of the microwave. <S> Don't place the clay object directly in the middle of the microwave plate. <S> This prevents overheating of the clay. <S> Set your microwave to the power setting given in the instructions. <S> If you cannot lower the power setting, chances are high that the clay burns faster than you can stop the microwave. <S> Remember that burning polymer clay releases toxic fumes. <S> I wouldn't want that in a microwave that I wanted to use for food afterwards...
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Microwave ovens heat the inside of clay just as much as the outside, so as the cooking continues, parts of the mass will begin to superheat, melt, and actually bubble and boil while other parts of the polymer clay mass will merely begin to harden.
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What kind of glue to make a magnet adhere to wood? I've had these two small wooden heart magnets given to me a year ago, but over time, both hearts have fallen off their magnets. They seem to be attached by a thing sheet of some kind of clear glue that obviously can't hold in the long run (it's taken them both several months to fall off). If there a particular kind of glue I can use to make the magnets hold together for good? <Q> Magnets are notoriously glue-resistant. <S> There are sticky soft magnets used e.g. for refrigerator magnets, which would kinda work on the glue front, but they are pathetically weak. <S> But I believe the best solution would be to forgo the glues and obtain some tiny neodymium magnets with a hole: <S> These are very strong, so even a tiny one can support your heart, and they can be affixed to a surface with a nail or a screw, making a very strong connection. <A> I use either Elmer's wood glue, it takes 12~ hours to dry. <S> Or I use one of the thicker "super glues" <A> If there a particular kind of glue I can use to make the magnets hold together for good? <S> For good could be tough sell <S> but like Joel Huebner says super/crazy glues would work just fine for this. <S> For something this small that would be bearing much stress of weight it should be fine. <S> If you really wanted to you could use some 2 part epoxy from an applicator <S> but I don't think that is necessary. <S> One thing to keep in mind is that some of the wood you might be using would have a finish on it. <S> If you intend to use glue for any surface you might get a better bond if you sand off the finish and get to bare wood. <S> Smooth it off and then glue it. <S> The glue should soak into the grain of the wood. <A> Over at Lifehacks SE <S> I was recently introduced to Sugru , a play-dough-like silicone clay that sticks to virtually everything, hardens to a kind of rubber and is intended for small hacks, repairs and similar tasks. <S> They have a whole collection of projects with magnets on their website and your hearts would fit in nicely.
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You could try two-ingredient epoxy for other magnets; it tends to stick really well to pretty much everything and if it won't, you can practically encase anything with it.
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What type of paint should I use to decorate a kitchen appliance? I got a blender for a present, and its body is black plastic. Because of a family joke, we'd like to paint some purple decorations on it. This is inspired by very artistic hand painted stand mixers have seen, such as: I'm not sure what type of paint to use for this project. What will smoothly and cleanly cover appliance plastic, and not wear away over time (considering it may be regularly handled, and also need light washing on occasion)? <Q> There are special paints for plastic. <S> Be aware that plastic has a very smooth surface, so you have to sand it first in order to give the paint some texture to hold. <S> You may also want to apply a layer of lacquer as a finish, for extra durability. <A> The trick to painting on plastic, is to reduce the static electricity. <S> This can be done with a damp rag leaning against the object. <S> Once the static charge is controlled you can paint with enamels. <S> Enamel finish will be semi-permanent, need no primer, washable, and glossy. <S> You'll also have a variety of colors which mix and blend readily. <A> You could make a stencil using cardboard and then buy cheap ceramic spray paint cans. <S> ceramic spray is perfect & stencils are fun. <A> Honestly, epoxy is the indestructible, and permanent, <S> it is difficult to use, an expensive. <S> But it is the best solution. <S> IMHO
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If there is nothing in the colour you want, you may use plastic paint as primer/undercoat and use acrylic paint on top of that.
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How to achieve a smooth finish in oils? I admire the glass-like smoothness of some classical paints. I know to polish the gesso until it's smooth like eggshells, not to leave brush marks by mixing stroke directions, and using thin paint and glazes extensively. Are there other ways to achieve that glass effect? <Q> Thin out the paint layers and add a little more linseed oil to the paint. <S> The thinner you apply the layers the less likely you will leave brushstrokes. <S> The paint will however take longer to dry, some of the colour might yellow over time, and it may need more layers applied to the piece. <S> My suggestion is to play around. <S> See what gets you that effect best! <A> Thinning the paint too much will weaken the binding in oil paint and the paint will likely flake off. <S> Polishing the gesso may also reduce the ability for the paint to adhere to the surface. <S> The best way to get the super smooth finish is to blend the paint very well. <S> Fan brushes are the best tool to reduce any brush marks on the surface of your painting. <S> Make sure the brush is dry before using and wipe clean onto a dry rag between strokes. <S> Stroke the brush very gently at a 90 degree angle across the surface in a herringbone type pattern alternating from left to right. <S> This shouldn't disturb the painting but will reduce the brush marks. <A> To knock down your paint thickness, texture and take away brush strokes you could scrape the surface with a palette knife. <S> It's a gentle controlled scraping of the paint surface which is intended to leave the softest ghost image of the last layer applied. <S> If you want to achieve soft transitions in your paintings <S> that's one of the techniques to help get you there. <S> Here's an example of the process youtube.com/watch?v=J2aptvHIJIY <A> Glossiness in oil paintings is achieved through the painting medium used. <S> The mixture of varnish(es) with the linseed oil and turps determines how the paint will look when dry. <S> There are a number of premixed mediums you can buy, and you can make your own from recipes in artist reference books. <S> Linseed oil on its own does not have the gloss or weight to settle into a smooth surface <S> , that is the job of the varnish (or other kind or resin.) <S> Another major factor in eliminating brush strokes is the choice of brush you use when painting. <S> White bristles are firmer and will leave brush marks, the softer (red) sable brushes and fans will be smooth. <S> It is a mixture of medium and brush technique that gives you that super smooth finish. <S> edit: to downvoter, could you explain why?
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Painting with a soft brush and then lightly flicking over that with a fan brush to blend is a classic technique.
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What kind of glue works for stones and shells? I have a collection of many small stones and shells of different shapes and sizes picked up from various beaches, and it'd be nice to glue some of them together to make some sort of arty model. But these are unusual materials and I'm not sure what type of glue would work best on them. What sort of adhesive works best for sticking together stones and shells? (I'm implicitly assuming the same sort will work for both stones and shells, but if not, I'd be grateful for an answer covering both materials.) <Q> As both material are kind of mineral, I think the same glue should work on both. <S> The surface must be clean, in other words free of grease and dust. <S> Ethanol or isopropanol work usually well. <S> It will glue better on rough surface, so if it fits in your work sand paper the surface before cleaning and applying glue. <S> For the shell, depending on the type, maybe some vinegar can make it rough (acidity will attack the calcium of the shell). <S> It is a thin glue, so it won't fill the "holes" between the stones but will be almost invisible and should also stick if the contact surface is small. <S> Time for the glue to set is extremely quick. <S> If you want to glue and fill the hole at the same time, 2 components epoxy such as Araldit should work and some are transparent. <S> Those glues are usually quite "thick" but you can make them thinner by heating them (with a hair dryer for example) but they will also set faster with the heat. <S> I also had success gluing gravel on substrate using PVC glue (wood glue, or "colle blanche" in French), but I don't think it will do if the contact surface is small. <A> Try car filler. <S> You mix 2 components to create an epoxy. <S> It's not expensive, easy to handle and sets quickly. <S> I've just tried it on 2 random pebbles without preparing them and it gave a good result. <S> However, the pink color could be a problem. <A> Depending on your intended there are a number of glue type. <S> I used GOOP-II for bonding shells to a heavy textured paper - shell bits & shards stay in one place and seems to last forever. <S> Nice thing is it’s clear. <A> I have tried silicon glue as well. <S> Usually masons and plumbers use it for quick fix solutions. <S> Preheating the stones with heat gun also enhances the capability in absorbing the glue and better bonding <A> I'm with BrownRedHawk in that 2 part epoxy would be good for this job in a general sense. <S> It bonds really well to all sorts of materials <S> however there are a number of prerequisites that would hinder good adhesion. <S> You want maximum surface area contact. <S> So the items will need to be cleaned of debris and loose components (like smaller rock fragments or shell shards). <S> Rocks are going to be contoured and shells have a variety of shapes. <S> Not only that but 2 part epoxy (and many other glues known for strength) need time to cure or set in order to get a sustaining bond. <S> Pressure is required and clamps or weight perform that duty. <S> So make sure everything is clean and you have a way to put pressure on the glue joint so that it does not move while it is setting. <S> I cannot offer specific advice beyond that since rocks and shells, like I said before, are full of variety. <S> If you wanted something to go on I would build up walls of books, or other items of similar height, beside the object you're gluing so you would not have to try and balance weight on top. <S> I always found hot glue, like the ones found in less specialized craft stores, to be temporary when crafting so <S> I usually reserve it to kids crafts. <S> That is my opinion however and I am sure there are varying degrees of quality when it comes to hot glues. <A> A 'grab' type adhesive intended for construction should work well for this. <S> These are generally very viscous and packaged in caulk gun style cartridges. <S> There are various different formulations but they have broadly similar properties. <S> Gripfill is a common brand but there are many others. <S> These has the advantage that they provide immediate adhesion and are reasonably tolerant of 'difficult' surfaces. <S> They also have good gap-filling properties and so work well for regular shapes where you can't get a good flat contact area between the two. <S> One disadvantage is that being very viscous and sticky they can be a bit messy if you aren't careful. <S> It can help in this respect if you dispense some onto a piece of scrap material (wood, card etc) and use a disposable spatula to apply it with more precision than the cartridge gun allows.
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I am gluing small stones on substrate with cyanoacrylate (Superglue).
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How can I artificially age paper without staining or dyeing? For several applications, I don’t like the cool look of modern bright white paper. For some valuable prints, I prefer natural white paper without optical brightening agents. In some cases, however, I also want the paper to look old. Therefore, I am looking for a technique to age paper. The paper should look like a page in an old book, not just yellow like paper with optical brightening agents that was exposed to the sun. The result of artificial aging should resemble naturally aged paper. However, the “forged document” does not have to stand up to forensic analysis. Preferably, the process should not leave any residue that isn’t naturally found in old paper. Thus, I don’t want to simply stain or dye the paper (e.g. with coffee, tea, or brown watercolour). The use of volatile chemicals would be acceptable. The artificial aging should not unnecessarily damage the paper. The paper should not become warped and wavy (cockled). The content of the paper is written or printed in black (calligraphy ink, woodcut, letterpress printing, or laser printing). Some fading or discoloration of the black content would be acceptable or could be even desirable. (Note that the question “How can I prevent my drawings and paper from yellowing over time?” is about the opposite situation.) <Q> Place the paper in a sealed box or plastic bag together with an open jar with a bit of ammoniac in it and leave it. <S> The fumes will age it (works well with wood too). <S> Another way is to bake the paper at around 100 C (200 F). <S> It will give you an even brown colour. <S> You can put some steel wool together with vinegar in a jar and leave it for a week or 2. <S> Then apply it to the paper and let it dry. <S> It will give a nice yellowish colour. <S> This method also works very well for staining wood. <A> The only way you're going to be able to "forge a document" to look natural, without leaving any artificial residue that isn't naturally found in old paper, is by letting it age naturally over time. <S> You might be able to speed the process slightly with: direct sunlight heat (maybe by leaving it in a closed up car on the dash) <S> smoke <S> natural oils/dirt from being handled frequently without gloves dust from places like attic storage small spots of water damage on a corner or two of the paper that one may get from basement storage <S> Older documents and paper also have a certain smell to them from coming into contact with all of these different environmental "toxins", it's a musty sort of wet/moldy scent. <S> I've seen a lot of paperwork age quite quickly from not being cared for or protected from the natural elements, in these ways. <A> Place the paper you want to make look old between 2 pieces of glass, and put it in open sunlight. <S> The paper gets its old look within days. <A> I wanted to try the method of using ammonia to ageing the pages of my journal. <S> I followed the guidelines exactly how it's described on a different page. <S> I had the book attached by string to the lid of an airtight container with the book open and the pages spread. <S> I used almost an entire bottle of household ammonia, but after 2 days, there was no difference in the colour of the pages. <S> I then resealed the container and waited for a whole week, but still there was no difference. <S> I've now had my book in the container for a total of two weeks, but the pages are as bright and white as ever. <S> The only result is that the leather binding has gotten lots of really dark and ugly blotches all over and the book reeks of ammonia. <S> I have no idea how to fix it, but I'm trying. <S> In short, the ammonia did nothing for the pages, but instead ruined the binding. <S> From my experience, I have to warn about using this method. <S> I now believe that using ammonia to age paper must be a myth, that I have busted. <S> Don't do this to your book, find another method.
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An old paper could get its look from being folded repeatedly, or having the edges of it rubbed on a rough surface.
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What paint works for "mock" stained glass? I am pondering a project to make candle holders from wine bottles. I'd like to paint a "stained glass" style pattern on the outside, so it looks like a much more complex project than it actually is. What paint will provide color for the "panes", but still be translucent? What paint should I use for the "lead" borders (not translucent)? <Q> A very simple approach are Window Colour types of paint ( example ). <S> They basically produce removable decals. <S> You can either work directly on the glass or - if bottle design and pattern permit - work comfortably on a flat surface, then transfer it to the bottle. <S> (Or combine both and connect pre-made parts on the bottle with fresh paint.) <S> Lines / contours are done with opaque paints, they come in "lead grey" explicitly to mimick the lead of stained glass. <S> It needs no curing, but is admittedly less sturdy than classic glass paint. <S> Otoh, I've had one design on a big jar for two decades now, including the occasional hand-washing. <S> It has so solidified over the years that it is no longer removable. <A> Most of the sites I've found on the internet recommend Deco Art for buying glass-staining paint. <S> They sell specialised paint for use on glass, both transparent and pearlescent, as well as an opaque variety to use for leading. <S> Unfortunately their website (or at least the page I linked to, listing their products) doesn't give a great deal of detail on what kinds of paint these are or what's in them. <S> However, this site tells us more about the makeup of glass paint: <S> What exactly is glass paint? <S> Often called enamels or vitreous enamels, they are a mixture of metallic oxide pigments, flux and ground glass. <S> They are used for surface decoration, and are fired on permanently in a kiln. <S> Their colour and opacity depends on the type of metal oxide used. <S> They also discuss the difference between opaque and transparent paint, but that's less relevant to you since you only want the transparent kind. <S> For the leading, what's traditionally used is <S> lead came , thin soft metal strips which can be fixed onto the glass. <S> You can find detailed instructions here on how to use lead came . <S> Alternatively, you can just use a different kind of paint, which is essentially glass-staining paint of the same kind as above except opaque and in a black or dark grey colour: <A> When I did my faux stained glass window (see below) <S> I used hot glue to do the "lead" outline. <S> It worked really well on glass because although it sticks very well, if I made a mistake I could remove it with a little effort. <S> (And it was easy to remove the little strings of glue you always get when using a glue gun by just pulling them off.) <S> Next, I painted the dried glue with black acrylic paint. <S> It was a little tedious but I switched to using an oil paint pen for touching it up and that worked pretty well too. <S> This gives you the opportunity to make your glue lines look much neater, because you can pick and choose which of them show by which you paint black. <S> Then, to fill in the areas in between the lines of black I used more cheap acrylic paint mixed with Elmer's glue and a bit of water. <S> The ratio wasn't exact, I just experimented until I got a consistency that was fluid enough it sort of flowed into the empty spaces. <S> The Elmer's glue makes the acrylic paint translucent and look a lot like colored glass. <S> You can build up however many layers you want, increasing the opacity. <S> Finally, I sealed with a clear Rustoleum spray paint and hung it up in my window. <S> It has held up very well in direct sun for the last few years, I attribute the paint not cracking most likely to the elasticity from the glue. <S> I hope this technique will work for you! <A> You could also experiment with acrylics, they come in different opacities. <S> I've painted with acrylics on translucent plastic. <S> I know it's not glass, but at least it holds, and when applied in a thin layer, it's even translucent. <S> Here's the result I got: Even though I didn't use translucent paint, some light can shine through (especially the sky and the windows).
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You could use glass paint, it is meant especially for glass.
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What material can I use to dye paper to look older? My son wants to have a treasure hunt themed birthday party (we'll be geocaching at a local park). For the invitations, he wants pirate treasure maps to tell guests where to go. I'm going to be typing up the directions and information and map and printing multiple copies. What paper should I use (compatible with a printer or copier), and what dye could I apply (presumably after printing) to make these "maps" look aged, handled by many generations of pirates? <Q> tl;dr: tea! <S> Yup, that's right, <S> good ole' <S> Lipton (or whatever other type of black tea <S> you happen to have on hand). <S> Diluted coffee can also work, but will smell like, well, coffee-stained paper. <S> Note that this shouldn't be used on inkjet printouts, as inkjet ink isn't waterproof. <S> So I would suggest printing out the master map (in black and white) and heading out to your local office supply store to make copies. <S> After applying the tea, you can hang up the maps to dry. <S> The paper will get crinkly, but that's actually a good thing for this application. <S> If they get too crinkly, apply a cool iron (barely above its lowest setting) to smooth them back out. <S> As a final step, go out to your garage (or a similar well-ventilated but sheltered spot) and use a candle or a lighter to burn away the edges of the maps. <S> Keep a bucket of water handy, just in case. <S> Don't go overboard - just do the corners and a little bit of a few edges. <S> After blowing out the flames, break off most of the black stuff, leaving only a browned, ragged edge. <S> Note that the results will not be archival: <S> tea is acidic. <S> But for a prop for a birthday party, that shouldn't be an issue. <A> You might also want to consider simply using a parchment-looking paper (most office supply stores have some form of this type of paper) or printing a parchment design on the paper instead, and simply cutting/burning a more ragged edge, if these maps have to stand up to kid-handling for a long period of time. <A> Add a teabag to about 1/2 cup hot water and wait a few minutes for the water to darken. <S> Using a paintbrush, paint the paper with the tea Dry the paper using a blow drier. <S> This way you can blow the tea around a bit which makes the paper look more "naturally" aged. <S> You may choose to do another coat of tea if you are wanting to darken the color. <S> Depending on the look you are going for gently burn the edges with a lighter. <S> Blowing the flame out resulted in the best effect. <S> But just in case have a wet cloth (with excess water squeezed out) on hand. <S> Once completely dry, the paper is ready to write/ <S> draw on just like normal paper. <S> Tips: <S> When burning the edges, holding the paper at different angles to slightly smoke stain it also helps complete the look. <S> (Of course be careful you don't set the entire piece of paper on fire.) <S> I find burning most of the edges but leaving some parts not burnt <S> looked quite good. <A> Tea or coffee will dye it brown, but it won't look that realistic. <S> You can try burning the edges, but that looks fake, and you can easily burn off too much. <S> I've found that brushing paper with vinegar and baking it at 250º F for about half an hour works well, although it had a slightly funky smell to it. <S> If your going this route, you should make sure to do any sort of writing first , because it can ruin your pens if you write on it after baking with acid. <S> Also, don't use water-based pens— they will smear. <S> The paper will be acidic. <S> It will not be archival. <S> If you want something archival, you should probably get out some watercolors and go that route, which gives you much more control.
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Dye (coffee, tea), acid (vinegar or lemon juice), and heat (oven baking) are the typical methods for 'aging' paper, but they're also much more liable to make the paper more brittle, so if you are going to go the DIY route, you may want to start with a lighter hand on a few trial sheets and see if you can still run them through the printer.
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Is there an easy way to get my computer/printer to do booklet imposition? I'm getting into bookbinding, and I'd like to make my own sewn signatures, but I'm having problems with finding a good way to use my computer and printer to print out pages so that I can simply fold them in half and sew them into book signatures. With double-sided printing, this often requires that pages be rotated between the front/back pages on the leaf, and that pages be printed in a stair-step order, so that 1 and 16 are side by side, 2 and 15, and so on and so on, if I'm making four-sheet signatures of 16 pages, folded and sewn down the middle. Is there any way to get my computer/printer to print out pages for single-fold and double-fold signatures easily? I have a laser printer that can handle duplex printing, and I do have the full Pro version of Acrobat, and an InDesign license, but it's an old one, and I don't have any imposition plug-ins. <Q> I looked into this years ago when I was printing out some books to test my leather binding skills. <S> Back then you likely would have used dedicated software to perform this function. <S> Software has changed since then and Adobe Reader DC does this as well as InDesign from what I gather. <S> Depending on your Acrobat version it should be able to do this well. <S> In short form: the instructions from Adobe Reader DC <S> In the printer dialog select Booklet. <S> This is found under Page Sizing and handling. <S> In the Booklet Subset pop-up menu select "Both sides" if you have duplex printer. <S> Leave the numbers in the Sheets From boxes as they are. <S> Select Auto-Rotate Pages to automatically rotate each page for the best fit in the printable area. <S> InDesign has instructions to do this as well . <S> That link is for CS6 and other versions might have similar UI or more specific instructions sets. <S> The Indesign wizard for booklets is more in depth than Reader DC's and covers topic like bleeding, page spacing, magins etc. <S> Another possible solution is that many modern enterprise copy machines do this natively with their drivers. <S> A place like a copy center likely would do it on the cheap. <S> My old Ricoh at work does this function. <S> It is about 6 years old now and was not top of the line at the time. <S> This might be cheaper depending on your ink/toner costs and size of the book you are making <A> If you have a LaTeX distribution on your computer and are not afraid of using a terminal the programme pdfjam is quite handy for creating booklets from PDF files. <S> You can choose the signature size and get as output a pdf file containing all pages ordered in a way so that when printed contains the pages for all the signatures. <S> More information about this tool can be found via the following link: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/statistics/staff/academic-research/firth/software/pdfjam/ <A> It's a commandline tool and for what you want you mainly need to feed it a list of page numbers, as shown here . <S> You could easily script the page number sequencing (I'd use python) for large numbers of pages, though I'm sure this has been done before ( <S> but I can't find it at the moment).
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Assuming you have (or can export) pdf format, pdftk (server) is designed for generic pdf page manipulation.
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What does it mean to "push your values"? When I used to frequent art-critique forums, I would often hear senior artists advise people to "push values", generally with little to no explanation beyond that. I gathered that in many cases it meant to make darks darker, but that's as far as I got. What does this phrase mean in a drawing/painting context? <Q> If there isn't enough separation in the levels of the values used in rendering an image then the image can look washed out or the shapes poorly defined. <S> Here's a quick example <S> In the image on the left I limited myself to use values only from the middle range of the value scale (N4 to N7). <S> The image looks hazy as though looking through a fog. <S> I squeezed my values into too tight of a range for the scene. <S> For the image on the right I expanded the range and pulled from a broader overall range of the value scale. <S> I pushed areas that were originally at N4 to now be at N1. <S> At the other end where I had used N7 i pushed those areas to N10. <S> In both images N5 was used to render the table top. <S> I used this value as my anchor point. <S> Squeezing and pushing around it. <S> The result is the image on the right looks more intense and seems to be clearer than the image on the left. <A> It means to build up the painting from black and white values, this helps create shape and depth. <S> This is related to How to best judge grey values for paintings? <S> There are many sites on this; like “Learning to Design with Value” <S> Once a painting is done you can adjust values using glazes to modify a layer. <S> That is what is meant by critics about pushing values; expend the value range. <S> Apart from making things darker and lighter it is also essential to have a temperature range by contrasting warm and cool shades. <A> Our eyes can see a vast range of values from the brightest light of looking into the direction of the sun on a clear summer day to the deepest darkest black of and underground cave. <S> But there is no paint dark enough or light enough to reproduce those values in a painting/drawing. <S> So to make a drawing/painting as realistic as possible it is necessary to 'push' the values to the limits. <S> So it means to make the darks darker and the lights lighter. <S> In the context of composition it is better to keep the shadows and the lights separate, when you push your values it will improve the 3D look of your artwork.
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Someone saying, you need to "push the values", means they think you need to add more separation in the value levels you used to define your shapes and areas in the image as a way to help build greater depth, contrast and image intensity.
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Determining a station point for a perspective drawing For simple perspective drawings, you don't really need to get into having a station point (or vantage point, not vanishing point) at all. As I'm looking at more complex methods, a station point becomes necessary to map your plan to to perspective layout. Are there guidelines for determining where to place the station point? Is it arbitrary? I found a tutorial that explains that it relates to how far the viewer is from the object, and that moving it vertically adjusts that apparent distance. Yet, it says to always place directly below a certain point, which I'm not sure is necessary. I'm wondering how its vertical distance from the horizon line and/or picture plane, or its horizontal distance from the vanishing points, might affect the level of distortion of the object in perspective. <Q> One or two vanishing points are placed on the horizon. <S> If you're drawing with 3 vanishing points, the third will be above or below the horizon. <S> Just like the position of the horizon, the vanishing point(s) depend(s) <S> on the perspective, and at what angle you are viewing the object you are drawing. <S> In case of the one-point perspective, the upper and lower edge are parallel and horizontal, so any extra vanishing points would be at an infinite distance away. <S> In case of two-point perspective, vertical lines are parallel, so this is actually a simplified case of the three-point perspective. <A> The station point is the distance at which you are looking at an object, (i.e. how far you are from it). <S> There are no guidelines to where to place these, you can look at an object from whatever angle or distance you wish. <S> But changing your position in relation to an object (or a scene) will change the way it appears to you. <S> Here is an example of how an object/scene would look viewed from different heights (i.e. changing the horizon line), from higher (like stepping on a chair) to lower (like lying on the ground): <S> Here it is explained how different a scene will look viewed from different distances (i.e. changing the station point). <A> Answer <S> In the simple case you mention (objects laying on the line of vision) the vertical distance of the station point to the ground line of an object (laying on the ground) is the distance of the viewer to the object measured in units in the object's plane. <S> example. <S> A simple illustration would be if we draw a vertical line from the horizon and place the station point at the end of this line, we could place an object on the ground as far away from us as we are tall by bisecting the line. <S> We could place another object away from us 3 times our height by bisecting the distance from the ground line of the first object to the horizon. <S> Objects in other positions if we are only interested in the depth of the object we can easily project that line onto our line of vision or the ground line (for "floating" objects) using horizontal and vertical lines. <S> If you draw a circle with a center at the midpoint of the vanishing points and intersect that with the vision center line that is the station point. <S> A consequence of this, is that generally for 2 point perspective drawings you should place your your vanishing points further from each other than you want your drawing to be high, otherwise your perspective implies that what you are drawing is in behind your viewer which is impossible. <S> Guidelines <S> Generally placing the station point first gives you great control over your drawing as it is easier to plan everything out relative to the station point. <S> Practically you would probably want to establish your image plane for sizing, then choose your station point depending either on your preferred angle of view or relative distance to the picture plane. <S> Note that choosing a angle of view larger than 60 degrees, or relative viewing distance <S> smaller than 2 times your height will result in distortion that will look "unnatural".
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The horizon line is where your eyes are, (i.e. if are you looking the object from below, above or the front). For 2 point perspective our station point is essentially chosen once we choose the two vanishing points and a vision center line.
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Cut even circles out of felt We recently created a kid's activity out of felt . It's pretty neat... except for the circles. They're pretty uneven, with a lot of jagged edges or straight parts. Is there a technique or tool that will help us create "perfect" circles out of the felt? A swivel blade with a plastic stencil works well on paper and thin fabric, but not so much with the thicker felt material. <Q> You can try to use a compass cutter like this : <S> I find this product rather effective on materials like leather or felt. <S> The only problem could be if your felt is too thin, in this case it could be too flexible <S> and it could move around while you move the compass, but I have only had this problem when I tried to cut household linen. <A> In case anyone has a similar need in the future, I'll add a tool. <S> The question doesn't indicate the circle size, but if you're using a plastic stencil, I'll assume the circles aren't very big. <S> They're typically a collection resembling this: Image courtesy Amazon <S> I bought a cheap set years ago from Harbor Freight that goes up to 1-1/2" diameter (they no longer show it, but hardware stores, Amazon, and other places have similar sets). <S> They can punch out a circle, or align an outer and inner cut to create a gasket or washer. <S> You put the material on a surface like scrap wood, position the punch, and hammer it until it's all the way through. <S> They will punch any soft material, and cut all the way through with a clean edge, so there isn't any tearing. <S> I've punched washers out of a roll of weatherproofing felt. <S> BTW, for this kind of activity, you can also punch out other kinds of shapes. <S> They're often sold as leather crafting tools, but they work with fabric and other soft materials. <S> Note that some of these are on the small size, intended for creating holes and slots rather than pieces. <A> If your circle have a limited variety of diameter and the felt is firm enough you can consider the use of a puncher like the ones used in scrapbooking or leather puncher. <S> I don't have those available currently, but here is a little equivalent experiment with an office puncher: One sees that the punched disk will stick to the main piece on one side (right) but with a firm pull the resulting disk is quite nice (left)
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You can buy collections of shape cutters like this: Image courtesy Amazon You can get inexpensive sets of hollow punches sold as gasket punches.
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How do you bond clear acrylic to wood? I am trying to glue a piece of clear acrylic 2mm thick to a piece of plywood that is 5mm thick. They are both 76mm by 50mm and rectangular in shape. They have some cutouts in the middle. It's supposed to be a keychain. Both are laser cut pieces, if that is important. They are cut exactly the same but I am sandwiching them together for aesthetics. What adhesives can I use that will cure optically clear, i.e. does not discolor or remain noticeable in the acrylic-wood sandwich? Cheap and quick curing options would be great but I understand you can't have the best of them all. <Q> Consider a clear-drying epoxy. <S> Note that not all epoxies are equal. <S> In a general sense they can bond different materials together with ease. <S> Here is an earlier epoxy advertisement where they glued a car to a billboard with an epoxy resin. <S> 1983 a visual stunt presentation was set up to show the strength of Araldite by gluing a yellow Ford Cortina to a billboard on Cromwell Road, London, with the tagline <S> "It also sticks handles to teapots". <S> You can usually get 2 part epoxies in a dual syringe form and they are very economical. <S> Depending how often you do this <S> you might want to try a smaller one first as the shelf life of the product varies once used. <S> Cheap and quick curing options would be great <S> but I understand you can't have the best of them all. <S> Only part about this that does not meet your requirements is that they have a longer curing time then something like a craft glue. <S> Setting inside an hour but fully curing over several days is needed in some cases. <S> The resin and hardener are kept separately as liquids, hence the dual syringe. <S> In larger applications they would be two separate containers. <S> I would suggest not applying directly to your project from the syringe but onto a disposable piece of cardboard or similar. <S> That way you can manually mix the liquids together (usually 1:1 ratio) to ensure an effective reaction. <S> Then use an applicator (craft sticks) to apply to the project. <S> You are going to want to clamp this down with decent pressure. <S> There would be the issue of seepage while setting you need to be aware of. <S> Depending on how intricate your cuts are the solution will come out of the wood acrylic sandwich. <S> You want to try and wipe that off before <S> it sets. <S> Epoxy resins dry really hard so if you have to cut part of it off it will no longer show clear on the cut. <S> You can polish the edges once it cures with extra fine sand paper and / or a polishing compound. <S> A long term issue is that set epoxies can yellow over time because of UV radiation. <S> That is likely a moot point as you are making a key chain. <A> Look for clear epoxies, sometimes sold for encapsulating. <S> They'll stick fairly well to both materials, though presumably not as well as epoxy sold as glue. <S> You have a lot of contact area so the bond will be strong anyway. <S> A two part epoxy should be quite cheap - if you can get an appropriate size pack, and I'd expect curing over a few hours though you might be able to get quicker. <S> To have it as clear as possible, you need to make sure that you apply enough to fill the gap and get all the air out. <S> I've bonded two sheets of clear plastic (one acrylic, one unknown) using ordinary glue epoxy <S> (i.e. not meant to be transparent). <S> That was good but not good enough for your needs. <S> It was very slightly milky, and it cured before I had time to make a jig that would apply enough <S> so I had a few bubbles. <S> It is possible to sand and even polish (with fine wet-or-dry paper) cured epoxy, so it could be used to seal the edges as well. <S> This might be too much work though. <A> Instead of epoxy, an alternative is using peg mounts, similar to sword hilts/knives. <S> If you are worried about the epoxy yellowing, you can drill two holes and insert pegs to secure the acrylic to the wood. <S> It would still be aesthetically pleasing to look at while securing the two pieces together. <S> Most craft stores sell pegs in all sizes. <S> Or you can make you own pegs depending on how big you want the hole size to be. <S> For something like a key chain, you could use a 1/16 drill bit and then insert pegs for a clean look. <A> I have used West Systems wood epoxies with great results. <S> They are strictly professional grade and have a huge range of products. <S> Here is their clear product and it addresses the UV issue as well. <S> (As I recall their system is a two-part epoxy with interchangeable Fillers and Hardeners.) <S> West Systems 207 clear hardener from the description: 105/207 has strong physical properties, so it can be used as a structural adhesive for gluing and laminating. <S> It has excellent compatibility with paints and varnishes. <S> An ultraviolet inhibitor in 207 helps provide a beautiful, long lasting finish when used with quality UV filtering varnish. <S> 105/207 cures clear and colorless. <A> I have both the 1:1 and 2:1 epoxies. <S> One is glue and one is for crafts requiring clear pours. <S> Another is a couple 4 oz containers. <S> Last year I used about a gallon laminating pieces of acrylic with wood, then turning them on my lathe. <S> In both instances, I scuffed the surfaces. <S> For the epoxy, I used to 60 grit (increased from lighter grits used earlier and that had the same problem) because the epoxy fills gaps fine, compared to things like Gorilla glue. <S> The pieces I turned came out wonderfully, but the joints using the epoxies were nowhere near dependable, but that only showed with time. <S> The cyanoacrylate did better. <S> Many of the finished pieces on which I used epoxy were stored in my garage and came apart in the high heat of summer. <S> A few came apart when the finished item was dropped. <S> To be clear, I have not tried West systems, but I question whether the joint would do any better. <S> I am yet looking to other means of joining wood and acrylic, since the pieces I make will be used for things like walking sticks, so could see the high heat of a car on a got summer day.
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I also used some commercial grade cyanoacrylate glue (a.k.a. Super Glue).
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What can I do to store and segregate my embroidery thread? Was thinking about starting some simple cross stitching projects. I can usually pick up some cheap embroidery skeins in a large pack. The problem I have had in the past, and from what I have seen of other thread collections, is that once you take the paper off a few of them is that they get all tangled up in a mess. Makes you just want to throw out the lot. What are some storage solutions that I could use to keep my thread preferably together in the same container? <Q> My personal floss storage method is floss bobbins . <S> via Michaels <S> These are typically available in any craft store that sells embroidery floss, in the same aisle as the floss. <S> They're available in either thin plastic or cardstock, and typically have little notches at the top or bottom that lightly hold the floss in place as you wind it (and for storage). <S> If you are feeling crafty, you can get free templates (e.g. here ) to print and cut out your own -- either the more traditional "spool" profile, or more interesting/adorable shapes. <S> via Little White Whale <S> To keep the floss bobbins all stored together, there are a lot of possible storage methods. <S> The above floss bobbin set has an included ring to hold the bobbins together. <S> You can put them all in a plastic bag. <S> (The biggest limitation is your personal creativity.) <S> via Kat the Craft <S> Always write the floss color number on the tab <S> so you know what color it is after the paper is gone! <S> This does require a little up-front organizational work, but it's less effort than throwing out the tangled mass of thread and driving to the store for more :) <A> My mother once owned an embroidery business, and the way she dealt with her thread was to pre-cut it to length, then twist or braid it back into skeins. <S> With the cut-to-length skeins, you can remove a single strand of thread while leaving the rest of the skein intact. <S> (Note that this method works best for perle cotton, i.e. the type of embroidery thread that's already twisted into, well, threads, instead of individual strands of floss. <S> If you use it for stranded floss, you need to be careful to remove an entire six-strand thread at once, and only separate out the number of strands you want after <S> you've removed it from the skein.) <S> A skein winder can be very useful for this purpose, but in a pinch, an appropriately-sized piece of cardboard can work just as well. <S> You remove the paper from a skein, find the end, and re-wind the thread, either around the skein winder or around your cardboard. <S> When it's all wound, you tie a small piece of string around the threads at one of the arms (or one edge of the cardboard), and then you cut the skein in half opposite the tie. <S> Now you can either twist the two halves together -- twist each part clockwise, then twist the parts together counter-clockwise -- <S> or you can re-divide the skein into three parts and braid them together. <S> Don't twist or braid too tightly. <S> Firmly tie off the ends of the braid/twist with an elastic, so it'll continue to hold together as the skein gets smaller. <S> When you need a thread, grab it at the fold and pull it out. <S> The skein will get all accordion-pleated and scary-looking as you're doing this, but it'll smooth right back out after you have your thread. <A> Like Erica I use thread bobbins, before this I used miniature pegs which were really cute, but the wood mine were made of was stupid cheap and so ended up ripping my threads. <S> I have customised so that mine all have what number colour and make they are.
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The thread bobbins is a great way though, you can buy them super cheap but I recommend customising. You can build a custom box to hold them all in neat little rows.
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What type of glue will work well on wood and metal? As per this question I'm needing to glue a wood veneer inlay into a metal bracelet, but don't know what type of glue to use. I have a tube of Gorilla Glue, which I know is suitable for wood - should I source something else that can cope with wood and metal? <Q> That is usually one of the selling points. <S> I would caution with the use of Gorilla Glue for this. <S> While is might be a viable choice you need to be careful of its expansion properties. <S> If you do try to use it make sure you clamp appropriately and clean any excess that seeps out. <S> That is general advice for gluing in general <S> but you really don't want warping in the final product here. <S> Depending on the size of the veneer and <S> how it is prepared there is a chance for small pockets to exist where the glue could expand. <S> As long as you clamp firmly for the duration of the setting time you should be fine though. <A> I use G-S Hypo Cement which works excellent it is somewhat expensive. <A> Epoxy is certainly a good default for wood to metal joints, it also has the advantage in this application that it can be used to fill small gaps between the inlay an the surround and can be coloured or filled (eg with sawdust from the same wood or metal powder) to further disguise the join. <S> One downside of fluid adhesive is that it is quite difficult to completely eliminate excess glue 'escaping'. <S> How much of a problem this is depends on the exact situation, obviously it is more of an issue where you can't do the final finishing with the wood in place. <S> One potential alternative is double sided tape, this is fairly commonly used for inlays and veneers and has the advantage of being very clean and convenient to use and can be cut to the exact shape required. <S> You can get specific marquetry/veneer tape and there are also a variety of general purpose industrial tapes which should do the job. <A> Epoxy is the best choice. <S> Remember surface preperation is more important than the bonding agent. <S> Wood, use good tac rag, but use 120 grit red garnet paper for a rough up, some wood fibers for the epoxy to grab. <S> The wook should also be "dry" under 12% moisture contentant. <S> Metal, scuff also, no less than 120 grit Silicon Carbide (black) sand paper. <S> Then use a no byproducts cleaner. <S> Acitone use with appropriate safety steps. <S> Roll the adheared products, probably from the wood side, to remove as many bubbles as possible. <S> You could use a vacuum chamber to remove all epoxy bubbles after mixing. <S> This set of steps should give you the best adhearance between dis-simular items, as you describe.
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2-part epoxy is my usual recommendation when it comes to mating different kinds of materials together. E-6000 is also a good choice.
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How to prevent the paper from getting damaged due to a steel compass? I intend to draw nested circles for a Mandala drawing. When the compass point is placed on the paper, it creates a tiny hole. How do I keep the point from damaging the paper? <Q> Some sort of disc <S> A felt or rubber disc comes to mind. <S> Something thin with enough friction so that the point and disc won't move about. <S> This has a small disadvantage of erasing while you rotate but could have it place in your techniques. <S> It has the added bonus of being transparent allowing you to center the point on its target and not damage the paper. <S> Image from art-design-glossary.musabi.ac.jp Clear plastic has the added advantage of letting you see your work and centering your circle easier. <S> So using a sufficiently thick plastic and cutting some small shapes would work just as well. <S> If you do make your own practice with them first to be sure the compass does not penetrate it as well. <S> Or enough that it makes the plastic stick out as a point either. <S> Consider a different tool <S> A tangential answer to your question would be to use a plastic flat compass that bypasses this issue completely. <S> Image from amazon.ca <S> You just need to grab your drawing implement of choice and insert it into the desired hole. <S> Then rotate around like a normal compass. <S> Pressure from your opposite hand (as seen in the photo from the users left hand) will ensure the tool remains rotating from a fixed point. <S> Look at the below zoomed in image of the above tool. <S> You will notice the measurement markings which denotes the precise nature of the tool. <S> Click image to enlarge <A> I have a subject of engineering drawing before and that is my problem also! <S> Because it is transparent you can still clearly see the pointer of your compass while adding an extra layer of protection. <S> Before I go to school <S> I cut many small pieces of it and stick it to the container of my compass. <A> Most one-gallon water jugs at the grocery store come with mostly clear plastic lids that are thick enough to protect the paper, yet see-through enough for accurate positioning of the compass tip. <S> If the water bottle lid slides around too much on the paper, you can rough it up a bit by rubbing it with sandpaper, with a file, on the bottom of a coffee mug, out on the sidewalk, or out on a rock.
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What works for me is to use a plastic cover, the transparent one that you commonly used to cover your books. You could also just take a cut of eraser and jab it on the point as well. You will need to rest the point of the compass onto some other object first i.e. one that won't damage the paper. There is a product called a center disc that also serves this purpose. This protractor compass has many holes littered along its length.
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How can I clean a tortillon/blending stump and still keep its point intact? What is the "correct", or most effective way of cleaning a paper tortillon? Up the now, I have been using sand paper to clean the tip, however this often makes the tortillon rugged and lose its point, and in some cases causes it to unravel completely. Is there a more effective way of doing this whilst keeping the stump's point intact? <Q> Using sandpaper and then tidying up with craft knife is the generally accepted way of cleaning tortillon. <S> However, it's possible that you might be using sandpaper with a low grit level (under 120) for too long. <S> This would be almost ripping the material. <S> Finally I use a 180 grit, or greater, sandpaper to smooth out. <S> I find it much easier to have the sandpaper on the work surface and move the tortillon on the sandpaper. <S> It provides much better control and helps maintain the shape. <S> A really good tip is to get yourself a pack of double sided emery boards (nail file boards). <S> You can get boards with 100 grit on one side & 180 grit on the other in most pharmacies, supermarkets, and online shops. <A> In my experience, blending stumps can be cleaned fairly well by molding a kneadable eraser around the tip and twisting them inside the eraser several times. <S> If it doesn't get most of the graphite, etc. <S> off the first time, knead in the graphite and repeat as necessary. <S> I've tried sanding and carving them, but I've never been satisfied with the results. <S> The tips tend to be sloppy ever-after once the surface has been abraded or cut--and of course the surface itself will never be as smooth as it was when new. <S> If cost is a big factor, it's possible to make your own tortillons. <S> Just do a web search for DIY tortillons or similar. <S> I've made them and been fairly satisfied with the results. <S> Bottom line for me <S> : it's worth cleaning them with a kneaded eraser, but not sanding/carving them. <S> I find it too inconvenient to make my own, considering that the price for tortillons is quite low (and of course that the commercially made ones are better). <S> I do keep the irretrievably dirty ones and use them as drawing tools, and for places where their grubbiness is not a problem. <S> That helps to keep my cleaner tortillons from getting to that used-up stage quite so quickly. <A> Tortillons and stumps are pretty much disposable items. <S> I never clean then (although I admit I don't use them often anyway.) <A> I have successfully cleaned all my stumps and tortillions without damaging their shape. <S> I just rubbed them on an old piece of cotton sheeting, then tested to see if they were clean on a piece of paper.
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I start with a 100 grit sandpaper to get rid of the graphite\charcoal staining, then use a craft knife to clean up the really rough bits and shape.
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Is there a kid-safe carving material? I would like my oldest (about 3 1/2 years old right now) to carve something, because of the fun I had with my plaster carving . However, most carving requires sharp knives and firm materials that are difficult to cut through. I would like an alternative that is soft enough to work with using just plastic tools (which I may make myself or repurpose from other tools), but not soft like Playdough or modeling clay. That is, I want it to be able to keep its shape during and after carving. The kid-safe aspect of this is being able to avoid sharp metal objects. Is there anything out there that would work for me? <Q> If you are more interested in subtractive sculpting (removing material rather than adding it like clay), I spent my earliest sculpting days carving bars of Ivory soap. <S> There may be softer brands, but you know Ivory soap is 99-44/100% pure <grin <S> >. <S> How to Make a Soap Carving A sharp knife is not necessary. <S> Plastic knives, spoons, or Popsicle sticks could also work. <S> But I suggest investing in a modest set of clay sculpting tools made of wood (less than US$5.00). <S> They are tough enough to stand up to the soap without having a tendency to snap like plastic knives or Popsicle sticks. <S> Product Search: <S> Wood Sculpting Tools <A> While the answer of Robert Cartaino is probably the best, I think that another alternative could be candle carving. <S> Besides the loop tools proposed by @Matt <S> , that are apparently also used to carve candles, I would consider using different types metallic spoons: <S> Note that you can use both sides of the spoon, and although they are metallic, they are definitely not sharp. <S> Personally, I like the pedagogic side of using "homebrewed tools" instead of "professional tools" because: This will push the creativity of the kid. <S> My experience is: the less you have, the more creative you have to be to get the desired result. <S> It will improve their dexterity. <S> If they can do something nice with a spoon, imagine what they will be able to do with an additional simple knife. <S> Moreover, I'm sure they will have a huge pleasure in discovering the new possibilities offered by new tools later on. <A> They are not expensive and either would compliment nicely with the wood tools that Robert Cartaino suggests as well. <S> If cared for properly you should be able to put it all away and use it again given that it is a forgiving medium (Assuming you don't want to keep the treasures!). <S> Playdoh could work as well but <S> the above materials hold there shapes better and would be easier to carve with proper carving tools. <S> In a pinch this would work. <S> Loops tools <S> You can also get into other sculpting tools like clean-out or loop tools. <S> Image from <S> rednebulastudios.com <S> I wanted to mention those specifically because, even though purchasing them might be costly, there design is rather simple. <S> You can find tutorials on how to make your own . <S> Here is a link to another that makes some simple hand sculpting tools . <S> Kids could find it rather satisfying to carve out chunks to then use in other locations (destruction can be fun!). <S> Other tools to consider <S> I found the following video contains a nice introduction of some basic sculpting tools including the loop tool previously mentioned. <S> You could likely find household substitutes for some of these. <S> At least the ones you want your children using. <S> Pottery Tool Kit Demo on YouTube <S> These tools are more geared towards sculpting but some of the same techniques will apply to carving.
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Plasticine or molding clay would be a great material for something like this.
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Will putting an oil painting under glass cause damage? I inherited a painting from a relative. It has some cracks so I assume it's oil, not acrylic or watercolor. I also do not know the age, but it is not new. When I bought a frame to fit it (since it didn't have one), the frame came with a pane of glass. Will I damage the painting if I place it in the frame behind the glass? (Because I already did. It's been there for a couple of years .) If so, what can I do to mitigate the damage? There is no visible damage to the painting, I'm just concerned. <Q> As long as the Painting isn’t recently painted, within 6-12 months, then there isn’t a general consensus and the answer is: It depends. <S> The reason for the delay after the painting is finished is that it can take this long for the painting to fully 'dry'. <S> In your case, this isn't a consideration. <S> The list is endless. <S> Canvas is porous and if left open to room air, it actually acts like a filter for that air, absorbing chemical and particulate pollution. <S> Advice from the British Conservation Register on cleaning without glass: <S> Dust can be removed using a very soft brush with metal elements protected so that they cannot be a cause of damage. <S> Avoid feather dusters, sheep skin dusters, however soft, as they catch. <S> You must be careful to check that there is no paint flaking before dusting. <S> Do not attempt any dusting if the surface appears unstable. <S> Below is an example of flaking: <S> Further examples of flaking can be found on the Painting Conservation Studio website, from where the above image came. <S> It is much easier to clean the glass or acrylic than to pay for an expert conservator to restore your painting. <S> If you choose to keep the glass, make sure that the glass is spaced so it does not touch the artwork. <S> A professional picture framer can advise you in this regard, as well as recommend a quality UV protecting glass that will preserve the clarity of the painting. <S> Further advice from the British Conservation Register on cleaning the glass: <S> Always spray glass cleaner onto the cloth, not the glass. <S> Spray well away from your painting. <S> The use of backboards is recommended as a preventive conservation measure to protect against the accumulation of dust and dirt, as well as against knocks and accidental damage. <S> A conservator can fit backboards to your paintings for you. <S> When deciding what to do, ask yourself these questions: <S> Does this canvas artwork hold great sentimental value to me? <S> Am I keeping the artwork to enjoy for a long time? <S> Will I eventually want to resell the artwork? <S> If the answer is yes to any of these questions, and the work is older than 1 year, then keeping glass will probably be a good long term choice. <A> Believe it or not, oil paintings actually take years to fully dry. <S> It is a good idea to avoid glass on an oil painting the first few years of it's life for that reason. <S> Beyond that, it's perfectly fine to use glass. <S> It does not harm the artwork. <S> However, no matter what you're framing, you should never allow the glass to touch the artwork. <S> Wikihow actually has a good guide for framing oil paintings with store bought frames: http://m.wikihow.com/Frame-an-Oil-Painting <A> But why leave the glass in, can't you just take it out? <S> IIRC <S> most of the oils in the Hermitage are under glass - makes them difficult to view properly, but I assume they know what they are doing. <A> There is no need to frame an oil painting under glass if it's painted on canvas, panel, or board. <S> Glass is used in framing to protect the artwork from moisture and harmful UV rays which can fade the colors. <S> ... <S> If your painting was done on paper or thin card, adding glass to the frame will protect the support.
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As long as the painted surface is not in contact with the glass you should be OK. One of the biggest threats to your oil painting is the environment: dust, air pollution, UV rays, smoke, pet hair, kids with crayons, red wine splashes.
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What material to use for a prop sword? This was posted after a discussion of whether assassins' questions about deadly weapons would be on-topic here. If I wanted to make a sword, say as a prop for a theatrical production, what would be the best material to use that satisfies the following criteria? It must be relatively easy to make : can be made at home requiring only materials and tools which are relatively easy to procure shouldn't take too long to make It should also be realistic : rigid, not bending or flopping about even when it strikes a solid object the same colour and appearance as a real sword would be preferably reasonably heavy, so that it feels as well as looks realistic How would I go about making such a 'weapon'? Edit for clarification: the type of sword I'm imagining would probably be classed as a broadsword: not thin and pin-shaped like a rapier, but not a massive greatsword either. Example pictures (randomly picked off the internet - it doesn't have to look exactly like either of these): <Q> Wood. <S> Adam Savage (whose non mythbuster stuff I love to bits) has a tendancy of making them - see his hellboy sword . <S> He used thin plywood for a base and shaped it with bondo, covering it with aluminum ducting tape. <S> He has another video where he shows process of making a shiny not weathered 'metal' sword from a solid wood sword - the process where he covers the sword in tape starts here , but the whole video is awesome. <S> There's actually a precedent for this with solid boken, and many modern sword shaping techniques might work with wooden swords. <A> PVC Heating PVC with a heat gun will soften it, so you can flatten it between boards with clamps/weight to make the blade. <S> There are a multitude of YouTube videos from folks building cosplay swords out of PVC pipes and fittings. <S> PVC is a bit hardier than wood and can stand up to whacking a bit better. <S> While it won't look completely metallic, you can sand and paint it. <S> Again, YouTube videos abound on this. <S> It's queued to 3:46, where the sword blade is heated and flattened. <S> another Youtube video mentions that if you plan on using it as a training sword and need it to have a more realistic weight, you can just seal the end and fill it with water or sand. <S> It is PVC pipe, after all. <A> 1/4" lauan plywood from the hardware store. <S> Easily worked with a bandsaw or jigsaw. <S> Sand rough edges, and 'break' any corner. <S> Paint it a black-grey. <S> Let the "blade" continue past the cross-guard to the end of the grip. <S> Build up the grip with a few strips of plywood, then sand the corners off. <S> Make the cross guard from plywood... <S> you get the idea. <S> This is probably 10 total pieces to cut out, 6 of which are identical (for the grip). <S> Avoid the urge to put a point on it, or real edges. <S> The point would simply be an eye-poker. <S> Sharp edges are fragile and will raise splinters. <A> If you wanted a good sound on impact, as well as a good weight, the only way to go would be solid metal. <S> I've made them (in the dim and distant past, though slightly more recently than the middle ages) from steel bar stock, bought as close to the right size as possible and shaped on a bench grinder. <S> Even with power tools it was tedious. <S> A wipe over with oil will stop them rusting. <S> Either way the handle and crossguard should have some strength to them. <S> Even without an edge on them, they could do some damage if you hit another actor rather than their sword. <S> Detailed rehearsals are both important and intersting.
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Here is one Youtube video that demonstrates making the entire sword from PVC pipe. The crossguard could be wooden with rather large bolts providing a strong core; when we made them the handle was a continuation of the blade with wooden grips wound with string. You might get away with aluminium which would be much easier to work and lighter, but wouldn't sound as good.
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How can I stop my thread from bunching when using a sewing machine? I've recently started using a sewing machine to make simple cushion covers. But I've run into a consistent problem of bunching. Below is an example of what I'm experiencing: I've checked that my feed dogs are up, that the tension is on, that my bobbin is in the correct way, and that the upper thread is correctly threaded. Is there any other issues I should investigate before getting my machine looked at? <Q> Are you absolutely sure the upper thread is threaded correctly, especially through the tension control knob? <S> (I would go ahead and re-thread the machine, since it's cheap to do.) <S> Other things to make sure of (most of which you've already done, but just for completeness' sake): <S> The tension control knob is set correctly. <S> The bobbin is inserted correctly The bobbin thread is wound in the correct direction <S> The bobbin thread is raised correctly (with the presser foot up, pull on the bobbin thread: it should unspool freely with very little resistance) <S> The needle is sharp and straight <S> The feed dogs are engaged/the bobbin winder is not turned on Also, something that helped an old finicky machine I used to have was to clean out the bobbin area - the accumulated fuzz seemed to make it more prone to tension issues, somehow. <S> If none of that helps, I'm afraid it's time to visit the repair shop. <A> One fix to attempt before taking the machine into the shop is replacing the needle . <S> A slightly bent needle can appear to be sewing correctly, but once you start going at speed it almost inevitably creates one of those nasty tangles. <A> Any time I've had that problem, the bobbin was inserted in the holder the wrong way. <S> What seemed like the right way was the wrong way. <A> This happened to me after having consistent birdnesting on my piece, after checking the tension and upon removing the bobbin to check it and noticing the gigantic mess. <A> I've checked that my feed dogs are up, that the tension is on, that my bobbin is in the correct way, and that the upper thread is correctly threaded. <S> Is there any other issues I should investigate before getting my machine looked at? <S> So as to not be redundant, since you've checked most of the stuff that would go wrong first <S> I suggest the following: <S> The size of the needle is crucial. <S> The weight of the thread may be too thick for this woven fabric. <S> The bobbin tension with this thread could be part of the issue. <S> Try a different thread in the bobbin and topstitch with the thicker thread. <S> Sometimes that's a good workaround for thread thickness. <S> Different machines have the option to adjust the tension on bobbin casings. <S> Clean the bobbin holder and the entire bobbin area - no lint whatsoever. <S> Test the machine with this thread and needle using muslin. <S> Is this happening with other woven fabrics and other thread? <S> If so, the timing is probably off. <S> A tune up would be a good way to go. <A> It will take some trial & error, you need more top tension. <S> Period. <S> I don't usually mess with bobbin tension. <S> Only let a machine expert do that! <S> Each type of fabric may need different, <S> I usually take a couple 2" strips of the fabric and sample run, until it is the way I want it! <A> Read your manual... but my manual for my 1892 and 1926 Singer machines, each a different model. <S> Say but one thing. <S> Bobbin tension is one thing that hardly ever need attention. <S> Both manuals showing graphics much like your photo.
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Another thing you might check is for knotted threads jamming the bobbin area. Needle point is important, be sure when sewing wovens you are using a needle with a sharp point (knits use ball point). Too much thread tension. The presser foot is fully down (on many machines, the tension isn't engaged unless the foot is down)
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Strengthen or preserve a soap carving? After carving some soap per the suggestion here: Is there a kid-safe carving material? I made a small, but fragile design that I'd like to keep relatively safe. I'm concerned about moisture and physical strength, but also that handling the soap actually affects the shape (for instance, edges get smooth if I accidentally rub them, and it gets soft from the heat of my hands). This tutorial mentions using acrylic sealer after painting it, but I wasn't planning on painting my carvings. Will that type of sealant still hold and work? For the record, this was Irish Spring soap, and it's pretty soft. <Q> If you weren't planning on painting your carvings, how about varnish? <S> A transparent and colourless lacquer should be almost invisible after it's dried on the finished product, but will adhere to the soap and preserve your carvings as well as keeping the moisture inside the bar and preventing it from cracking. <S> From J. C. Rich, The Materials and Methods of Sculpture , p. 357 <S> (emphasis mine): <S> Soap is an inexpensive, readily available and easily worked material that is steadily gaining in popularity as a wholesome and interesting avocational carving medium. <S> (See Plate 62.) <S> The major disadvantage of the substance is its marked lack of durability. <S> A work in soap is subject to a degree of physical shrinkage as it dries out and this may result in the development of fine surface cracks, which may in time fracture through the entire piece. <S> As a soap mass dries out there is also a resultant change in appearance, from the soft and attractive surface the block has while it is fresh and possesses an abundance of moisture, to an opaque and dull surface after the bulk of this moisture <S> has naturally evaporated from the mass on exposure to the atmosphere. <S> However, a finished soap carving can be treated with one or two thin coatings of colorless and transparent lacquer , which will serve to prevent the marked evaporation of moisture from the mass. <S> Much of the attractive appearance of a feshly carved block of soap can thereby be preserved, and the permanence of the work substantially increased. <S> And this tutorial from the LDS organisation website tells you what to do after you've finished the carving process (again, emphasis mine): <S> Set your carving aside to dry for several days and then polish it with soft tissue paper, using your fingertips and palm of your hand to bring out highlights. <S> (Oh, and just for fun: <S> Has a prisoner ever escaped by carving a bar of soap to look like a gun, painting it with shoe polish, and then tricking a guard into allowing them to leave the jail; or is this only an urban legend? ) <A> I have made numerous soap carvings over the years, and have learned the following: I used mainly Ivory and Swan soaps, which were available in large bath sizes. <S> The clear finishes I tried tended to deteriorate in time, giving a flaking appearance to the carvings. <S> (Probably not good lacquers.) <S> Leaving my carvings untreated resulted in changes in color as they dried, and the resulting tones ranged from light ivory to dark cream. <S> An uncoated 14-piece Nativity set has pieces of different shades. <S> At my daughter's request, I used ACRYLIC PAINTS to color a carving of the bride and groom for her wedding cake--and the colors (and the soap) have NOT deteriorated with age. <S> I have since used acrylic paints on other carvings, with great success. <S> Acrylics can be applied in a single color, to match (or not) <S> the color of the original soap, or painted in detail if a more realistic result is desired. <S> Though I have not tried it, I suspect that applying any finish to a carving already coated with acrylic paint would be the same as adding the finish to any acrylic painting. <S> I display some of my favorite carvings under small bell jars, an added way to preserve them. <S> GLYCERIN soap, however, is a different case. <S> I absolutely love the immediate results of carving it, but I haven't yet learned of a coating that will keep the soap from becoming sticky and melting as it gets older. <S> In my search for a coating to preserve a glycerin soap carving, I contacted a glycerin soap manufacturer, who sympathized with my dilemma and confessed that it took years for the manufacturer just to come up with a secure wrapping to use in marketing this soap! <A> I've never tried this, but another approach that hasn't been mentioned would be to make a plaster cast. <S> You could make a latex mold (as described here: http://m.wikihow.com/Make-a-Latex-Mold ) and then use the mold to create a plaster replica of the original carving.
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If you wish, you can preserve your carving with a coat of transparent lacquer or tempera paint.
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What art style does this black and white work represent? My cousin makes this kind of black and white art. He doesn't have any education in art or doing paintings or drawings. He once told me he just sits and draws whatever that comes from within. So, all he makes is really original without any copying. There are some samples on his page : I was wondering if this is any known style of art? <Q> I would think that this is high contrast art . <S> The variance of dark and light colours is very high in that picture. <S> While this does not fit all the styles linked it fits enough of them. <S> This is like what you see in the classic Che Guevara graphic. <S> This effect is not limited to just black and white but excels in using minimal colours. <A> These are very similar to notan drawings. <S> Artists use notan drawings to quickly determine whether or not their finished painting will have an interesting pattern of dark and light values. <S> It is a valuable tool for establishing an interesting composition in a painting. <S> Arthur Wesley Dow wrote about notan in the 19th century. <S> His book is out of copyright available for free download from the Internet. <S> Notan originated in Japanese art. <A> But following the tag <S> technique-identification <S> - The technique frequently used to create this kind of art is Linocut .
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Matt correctly identifies the style as High Contrast Art .
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How do I keep ribbon ends from fraying? My teenage daughter dances ballet, and on a fairly regular basis we need to get her new pointe shoes. After so many pairs, I've gotten surprisingly good at sewing in the elastic and ribbons that need to go on the new shoes. One thing I would like to improve on is the ends of the satin ribbons. When they are simply trimmed to length with scissors, they will inevitably fray and unravel over time. This is only somewhat alleviated by cutting a "snake tongue" at the end, an indented "V" shape -- that angle will help the ribbons last a few weeks longer, but I'm trying to find a solution that will last for months (without constantly trimming the ends until there is really nothing left!)... How can I prevent the ends of satin ribbon from fraying? <Q> I would like to suggest something I was told while I was working on my ties . <S> That should prevent them from fraying at all. <S> It is likely that you could use something like a super glue to accomplish the same thing. <S> You don't need a lot so, while it will darken the ribbon, if used sparingly it should not be noticeable. <S> Image from <S> Wikihow <S> The page that comes from also suggests gluing as well as an alternative. <S> It also covers using heat which Stephanie's answer covers better . <S> Of course, that could also be seen as less then aesthetically pleasing. <S> So to compliment my solution <S> I would then suggest you use some thread and something simple like a tight overcast stitch. <S> The thread will hold around the polish and hopefully distract from its presence. <S> The nail polish alone should be enough to stop it from coming undone for a while. <S> That would all depend on wear and tear at that point. <A> In most cases satin ribbons are made from polyester or similar "plastic" fibers. <S> This means you can use heat to melt the fibers together: quickly run the flame of a lighter along the fraying edge. <S> My preferred technique is to hold the ribbon in one hand, close to the end, so that the end is more or less horizontal. <S> (For wide ribbons, a slight 'U' bend increases stability.) <S> Then with the other hand I sweep the flame along the end, repeating if necessary. <S> I suggest practising with some scrap ribbon, because each type of ribbon needs a slightly different amount of heat, usually more for thicker material. <S> If done right, the sealed end will look just like the rest and, important in this case, be totally flexible. <S> Even if your first attempts aren't perfect yet, you will be hiding the ends under the second ankle wrap, so it remains invisible. <S> And if anything should go wrong, you can always re-seal the ends (in the worst case cutting a very narrow bit of ribbon off first) without the need of drying time or stitches. <S> Put a lighter in your dance bag and you're good to go. <A> Get "fray check" from your local fabric store. <S> This is applied to keep fabric and ribbons from fraying. <A> I used to take ballet lessons, and the methods I've used for preventing frayed ribbon ends were to apply clear nail polish on the cut ends, or to quickly melt the cut end using a candle flame. <S> For the melting method, as Stephie mentioned, the cut ends are usually tucked out of sight anyway, so even if the end isn't perfectly melted, it won't be visible. <S> However, some problems I've had with this method are: Depending on the lighter or candle that you use <S> , the flame may not stay constant (ie they flicker or sway with any disturbance in the air). <S> This can make melting the ribbon and creating a smooth, even edge challenging sometimes. <S> Uneven melting can also result in a slightly warped ribbon, which may be more difficult to tuck in. <S> I've also accidentally singed my ribbon a few times. <S> You'll definitely need some patience, practice, and a quiet place to avoid making mistakes like this. <S> It may also not be a kid-friendly way to go about sealing the end of the ribbon. <S> (I was probably 12 when I tried doing this for the first time, and I was so entranced at watching how the ribbon melted that I melted too much of it.) <S> Nail polish avoids all of these problems, but there are still some precautions you should consider. <S> Nail polish produces irritating fumes, so unlike the open flame method, you'll need a space with good ventilation and air flow. <S> It also takes longer to dry, whereas the melting method takes mere seconds, maybe up to a minute or two. <S> However, nail polish is also an excellent tool for stopping runs in tights, so it's a good thing for ballerinas to keep on hand, anyway :) <A> One other method of heat sealing the ends would be to use a butane torch lighter and an Xacto type of craft knife. <S> Hold the blade over the flame until it gets hot then cut the ribbon. <S> It may take a bit of practice to get the right amount of heat. <S> If at all possible <S> (I don't know much about ballet shoes) lay the ribbon down on a piece of wood before cutting, it's easier and safer than trying to cut it freehand. <S> That's how I usually cut Paracord. <A> Either very small bead of superglue applied with the item sitting on plastic wrap Or clear nail polish, applied over plastic wrap also. <A> If you need to cut a lot of ribbon, you can also invest in a "hot wire" cutter: Expensive ($300): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rp9E5tkKTFg Budget ($30): <S> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oka_ERvOuYU <S> I've got the expensive one, it takes a little practice, but works as shown in the video. <S> I don't have any experience with the cheaper one (some of the ribbon I cut was too wide for it, so I've never tried it). <S> Just google either product if you want one - the cheaper product in particular can be found online in various craft stores in most countries. <S> For low quantities, sealing with a flame as suggested elsewhere here also works, but takes a bit more time and practice to get right <S> (I tended to melt the ends unevenly on wide ribbons, so gave up!). <S> Have not tried nail polish or glue. <S> Here's another video demonstration if you want to try either of those: <S> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTit6tNWkx4 <S> I'm surprised there's not otherwise a more automated product, or anything "hot wire" that does anything other than a straight cut (i.e. a pinking cut). <S> We put a lot of ribbon through a ribbon printer (hundreds at a time), and spend hours having to cut it all manually once printed.
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What you could do is to use some clear nail polish, not a lot, to stiffen the ends of the ribbon.
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What type of paint works well on plaster? So, the color of my dyed plaster died . After I finish up the details and smoothing of this piece, I'd like to restore the color with some paint. What type of paint will work well for this? I need something that will: Hold fast Work easily on the semi-porous plaster Not seal in moisture in the piece, or add to it Preferably semi-glossy to glossy Not smooth out my fine edges and detailing, or thicken/round them <Q> Since you don't want to loose any surface detail in your casting <S> and it's a porous material you are wanting to colour, have you considered using a dye or stain instead of a paint? <S> Using dyes , you chemically change the colour of your material. <S> Adding no thickness to the item being coloured. <S> I don't have much experience with dyes other than colouring Easter eggs. <S> Using melted wax to mask areas allows for ornate designs to be created. <S> Here's a demonstration of the process . <A> The easiest solution is to paint with an emulsion, such as those used on interior household walls. <S> Bare plaster needs to be suitably sealed before painting begins otherwise the paint will sit on the surface and come off very easily. <S> You can do this either by applying a couple of emulsion mist coats : <S> Dilute an initial solution of 60:40 water to emulsion <S> Then a second mist coat with the ratios reversed, to thicken the coverage but still watery enough to allow it to continue to sink into the plaster below <S> Or, you can buy a purpose made primer . <S> The link is for a UK site, but is very likely to be a product available worldwide. <S> If the plaster is overly polished, this latter option will be the best, as the plaster will not allow the mist coat to seep in and adhere properly. <S> Within the hour, the piece will be ready for the second mist coat. <S> Apply this in the same order as the first. <S> You can now apply the final coats ( either silk or matt are suitable finishes - but silk is a more reflective surface that draws the eye but can accentuate any imperfections ). <S> Depending on how intricate the piece is will depend on how many coats you might want to apply. <S> The more coats, the more the details will be smoothed out by the paint thickness. <A> Most paints don't stick very well to cured plaster so it is often best to seal the surface first. <S> If you have a lot of surface detail then shellac can work well as this will seal the surface without obscuring detail. <S> This should take oil and acrylic paints. <S> You could also consider using tinted waxes, these can be quite good for simulating stone, terracotta and cast metals and tends to look a bit more natural than paint.
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You can also use polyurethane varnish, this will cure OK on slightly damp materials and will take most paints and finishes but is more prone to streaks, drips and filling in surface texture.
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What can I do to smooth and polish hand cut glass edges? I make small frames and boxes and I like to put in mirror and glass in those projects. In trying to avoid dealing with the question I usually frame in the mirror so that no one will see the clean cut but rough and sharp edges of the glass and mirror. That is not a great idea long term and there are some things where I want a floating top for where the edges will be seen. I think the general approach is sand paper but I would like to get more information from someone that has done this before. I am more concerned about glass dust and how to deal with while working. What are the tools and techniques I could employ to clean, smooth and/or polish glass and mirror edges to the point there are safe to touch? <Q> I think I can help you. <S> To make a living, I carve glass. <S> Tabletops, door fronts, serving platters, and almost anything else made of glass has seen my efforts. <S> By far the best tool to use would be a Dremel type rotary tool with either a diamond burr or a stone grinding bit. <S> These come in quite a variety of shapes, compound materials and grit levels and are specially suited for this purpose. <S> A standard particle mask available at your local hardware store will protect your lungs when used properly. <S> Oiling the glass with sewing machine or fresh motor oil will almost eliminate any lingering/ flying dust. <S> Exactly which tools are needed to accomplish your task <S> is greatly dependent on exactly what you need to do. <S> Please visit Dremel.com for details and tutorials. <S> Great information is also available on YouTube as well. <S> If you do choose to purchase a rotary tool, you will find it is also very useful for a great many other things. <S> I use either a 150 grit, cylinder shaped (similar in diameter as a #2 pencil), diamond burr, a silicon carbide grinding stone (same shape/ size) or a chainsaw sharpening stone (the blue one). <S> Information on these bits and others can be found at Dremel.com. <S> Be sure to wear your mask, oil your glass, and set the tool to a low speed prior to starting. <S> Be gentle and WEAR YOUR EYE PROTECTION. <S> I can't say enough about the eye protection thing. <S> Been through many pairs of glasses, but still have both eyes. <S> Undamaged! <A> A tile cutter with a diamond blade works to smooth the edges of glass. <S> I bought one at a garage sale to cut slate tiles and found it also works to finish glass edges. <S> Mine has a way to tilt the blade also. <S> I first lightly run the glass edges at a 90 degree angle against the diamond <S> saw blade, IE, with the blade straight up and down. <S> Next I tilt the blade over and bevel the edges very slightly. <S> I usually end up using a fine diamond sharpening hone to go over the edges after words to be sure there are no sharp edges left anywhere. <S> The nice thing about the tile saw, it is a wet saw <S> so this keeps the glass dust under control. <S> Small tile saws can be purchased very cheap, but the cheap ones do not have a way to tilt or angle the blade <S> and I do really like that feature. <S> ~ <A> By the sounds of your application, a table-top glass grinder is the right answer. <S> I'm saying this from a couple assumptions: <S> It sounds like you're making many of these and just want a nice edge to your mirrored glass. <S> You probably want minimal effort to accomplish this, for now. <S> You have <S> not described the need to artistically embellish the edge of the mirror / glass plates. <S> Many of the dremel-related answers address the issue that you may begin to decorate the edges in an artistic manner. <S> If that's something you'll plan on, then a table-top grinder is probably inappropriate because it serves mostly two purposes: to grind cuts smooth to round edges and make meager, coarse, bevels <S> If you'll only need to do one of the two above, then the glass table grinder is fine. <S> However, you will need a jig if you want to grind regular angles. <S> A jig is basically a sloped block that will hold the glass at the angle you want to grind the smooth angle. <S> See below. <S> You can create a few of them for the common angles you'll work. <S> In case it's not obvious: the jig is generally a 'free' block and isn't mounted to the table. <S> It can be mounted, if that's more convenient because you basically have one type of cut that you ever do. <S> Many times, a table will have a couple holes drilled in them, for the jig to mount into via pegs. <S> How to handle jigs is probably another question altogether. <A> These units are quite affordable at about $150 for a small tabletop grinder or even cheaper at some Chinese online stores. <S> They are great for smaller pieces of glass but not for large ones. <A> I am currently cutting bottles for crafts. <S> I used a glass cutter and cut bottles by hand with boiling water and ice. <S> It works if you have time. <S> It was a waste of my time. <S> I went to harbor freight and bought a 4 1/2" tile saw for $50 and a smooth edge 4 inch blade. <S> It cut right through it. <S> I've now cut about 30 bottles on the same blade in about an hour. <S> Smoother than the glass cutter and way quicker. <S> If you have $50 then don't waste your time. <S> Time is money! <A> Lay your glass flat on your work table with the edge you want to smooth being even with the edge of your table. <S> Oil the edge of to be finished. <S> (3-in-one oil works quite well for this or even something a bit heaver will do. <S> I use the same oil I put in my Harley.) <S> Don't forget your eye protection and particle mask! <S> Using your rotary tool at a slower speed, about 500rpm, gently rub the edge to be smoothed with your stone until the desired effect is achieved. <S> This method works for any project, whatever the size.
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If you have a lot of glass to smooth, you could buy a glass grinder.
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Which glue works best for paper sculptures I have tried several types of glue but, have yet to find the perfect glue for my needs. For instance, I'm creating a miniature tree and need to glue multiple small leaves onto a branch. I don't want runny or slow drying glue that the leaves slip off before the glue dries or nearly dries. I often get a few leaves on to have them all fall off as I try placing another leaf. I then wind up having to glue them all back on all over again. I don't want to have to just glue a couple on then wait anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes or more before I can glue anymore on. Sometimes I have to sit and hold on one leaf at a time until it dries enough so that it doesn't slip out of place or come off all together. I need the glue to dry clear and matte. It will also have to work with card stock, bond paper, brown paper(such as used to wrap packages for mailing). Sometimes painted with acrylics or water color paint. Also I run into the problem of the piece I'm trying to glue sticking to my fingers or instruments as I lift of the piece. Hot glue doesn't work because I have lots of small pieces in one area and it will accumulate to much glue not to mention other issues with it. The glue I want works like this: I put glue on a piece stick it where it goes on 3D objects and it stays put while gluing other pieces next to or on top of that piece. It seems like it would be real simple but, what it seems to be and what it is are 2 different things. <Q> This can be commonly refereed by brand names like Super glue or Krazy glue as well. <S> They are advertised and being very versatile when it comes to applicable mediums and have very fast drying times. <S> Looking at one brands technical specifications as a base line we can see that it Dries in 10-45 seconds, no clamping required. <S> Most CA glues dry at or near those times as well. <S> Careful working with the stuff as you a likely to get some on your skin <S> and it bonds skin very easily <S> (Recently used it to repair my glasses). <S> Now what you could so <S> with this is use it as a placement glue. <S> Using a little just to get the leaf in place so that you can continue with a longer setting glue without concern of the leaf moving. <S> Would clamping options apply here? <S> I don't know how your leaves are made nor how they touch the tree but have you tried clamping options instead of looking for a fast setting glue? <S> Some simple like paper clips( which you can mold to conform to shape if need be) or even something like binder clips ? <S> Perhaps if you have something small and light weight to help hold the leaf in place your choice of adhesive might no longer be a concern. <A> FABRI-TAC Permanent Adhesive -by <S> Beacon Adhesives has the properties you are looking for. <S> You can find it in fabric stores. <A> I find that PVA glues or Polyvinyl acetate is an all purpose, acid free adhesive for most paper projects. <S> Also know as white glue. <S> Quick-drying, acid-free based adhesive that keeps paper flat and dries clear. <S> Apply with a brush.
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Given your criteria the glue I would think should be tried to see if it fits your needs is cyanoacrylate glue , or CA glue .
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How can I get that translucent effect on Jack O' Lanterns? I've tried to mimic to translucent technique that people use on really detailed Jack O' Lanterns, such as this: However, whenever I try I either can't get the husk thin enough, or I go too thin and bust through. Are there certain tools that help with this? I have a lot of carving tools. Do certain pumpkins work better? How should I select one? Or is this about lighting? Do I just need brighter candles/lights to shine through the the pumpkin? The lighting isn't great here. This was my last attempt last Halloween. I wanted the teeth to be translucent. As you can see, only a couple bottom teeth have any semblance of being see-through. <Q> Obviously you need to remove more material in order to allow light to shine though. <S> You know that much. <S> However, whenever I try I either can't get the husk thin enough, or I go too thin and bust through. <S> What you need are depth checkers spaced around the surface of the lantern where you are trying to achieve this effect. <S> Toothpicks would be an easy suggestion for this. <S> Put the pick in and feel the the inside of the pumpkin for where it is going to come through. <S> You don't want the toothpick protruding the inside. <S> That would negate its purpose as a depth check. <S> You know it is inside enough once you barely feel it with your fingers. <S> Putting it too far through might make it move easier which would again reduce its effectiveness. <S> With enough toothpicks you can then use the portion that is outside of the pumpkin to gauge the thickness near the toothpick. <S> While I cannot find a picture of this being done to a pumpkin (yet!) <S> a similar principal is used when making a quinzee. <S> They use sticks to make sure the whole structure is of the same thickness. <S> Likely, the tactic I described above, is what was used in your first picture. <S> Look at where you see the pinholes of light coming though. <A> I once did a pumpkin in this fashion of Archie from the comic books. <S> It was a little bit less sophisticated than the above example, so I was able to get the husk thin enough without breaking through simply by feeling my hand along the back wall of the pumpkin while I was carving on the front. <S> When it is thin enough for light to shine through, you start to feel the pressure of your carving tool on your hand. <S> For my simple design, this was plenty of technique to get the desired effect. <A> I have owned and used a pumpkin carving tip on my dremmel before. <S> It only takes away some of the layers of pumpkin peel and creates the effect!
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I have used MSPaint with awesome circles to draw attention to the holes.
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How can I make yarn from an old t-shirt and does the material matter? So my wife tells me that I have too many t-shirts (she is not wrong) as I don't wear them all fast enough before they get washed. Since I wear my favorites more often some just never see action. Naturally I will give some away but I have been fascinated with the idea of making my own crafts from that material e.g. yarn. I suppose I would just need scissors to cut it up but what can I do to make the longest strands possible? What is a good way to determine if the cuts are too thin or not? I ask because the thinner I make it the longer strands I will get but the trade off might be strength. Too wide and it wouldn't make for good yarn. Does the thickness of the shirt matter? Not all shirts are made from the exact same material thickness. Is this limited to just jersey knit fabrics (That is typically what you see pictured with t-shirt yarn)? <Q> It depends on what you're making with it. <S> When you're dealing with seamless T-shirts, I'd start at the bottom. <S> Cut the hem off, then go around and around cutting about an inch (2.5cm) in one continuous strip. <S> You can put a little mark on your finger to indicate the measurement so you don't have to draw all those lines, and it won't need to be absolutely exact. <S> Don't bother with the neck and sleeves. <S> If you want some uniformity, you'll need to play with different widths. <S> You'll need narrower strips for heavier fabric. <S> Maybe make some test strips with the sleeves and make some samples before you start into the body of the shirts. <S> The fabric is going to curl onto itself to form a strand instead of staying a flat strip if you stretch it at all. <S> If it's thin it will probably just do that anyway. <S> And that might be a good thing. <A> Three sources of T-shirt stretch - fiber, yarn, and fabric construction. <S> In the case of a cotton T-shirt, the most significant stretch comes from fabric construction (knit), yarn is second, fiber third. <S> Also, the thinner your strips, the more impact of the knit unraveling during handling, wear, and care. <S> Before you cut up all your shirts, I suggest testing different widths for strength, stretch, and fiber/yarn loss. <S> If you plan to knit your strips, give that a test too. <S> You might also test the benefits of cutting with pinking shears. <S> This is a great "repurposing" idea! <A> What do you want to do with the yarn eventually? <S> Just like any kind of yarn that comes in different thicknesses, you can cut your T-shirts in any size you like. <S> So decide on the thickness based on your project, or on the thickness of the (crocheting/knitting) needles that you'll use when you work with your T-shirt yarn. <S> As for the strenght of the yarn: when you've crafted your project, it's unlikely that one single thread will have to endure a lot of force. <S> And just like your T-shirt didn't fall apart because it has been made of very thin threads <S> , it's unlikely your project will. <S> So you can go as thin as you want, although I don't think it will be easy to find a beginning/end of the original thread and end up with a lot of sewing thread. :-) <A> I would mark and cut strips 1cm width on the bias ( so diagonally when the t-shirt is laid flat. <S> Alternatively, you could cut on the horizontal to minimise wastage but the yarn produced will not be as stretchy as that cut on the diagonal. <S> Have you any idea what you want to make?
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The thinner your strips, the stretchier they will be, and the more loose yarn and fiber that will "shed." You can increase strength somewhat by washing and drying before you cut.
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Decorate the inside of a tube? We tend to save the cardboard tubes from toilet paper and paper towels for crafts, like play binoculars and telescopes. The outsides are easy to decorate, the insides not so much. Painting is maybe doable, but a brush would hit at the wrong angle. Instead, I've thought about decorating paper and rolling it up inside. I'm struggling with how to affix this paper. If I glue the back of it, it'd be tough to get inside without wrinkling. I'd rather not tape along the seam, as it's ugly! Is there a better way to get the decorated paper inside the tube? <Q> Regardless of what you intend to decorate the inside of your tubes with, I think the solution is to apply the adhesive on the inside first and then decorate. <S> I was looking at a way to get paint brush bristles angled at 90 degrees either via a kludge, like an elastic, or a commercial product <S> but I had issues searching for "90 degree brush head". <S> What little I did find was either too large or unrealistic for this application. <S> That's when it hit me! <S> A toothbrush already has the 90 degree angle that would make for easy adhesive application on the inside of a tube. <S> You basic white glue would be fine here for this. <S> Even though it is non toxic <S> I am sure you would prefer to get a dedicated toothbrush as supposed to dual purposing your daily one. <S> Once you get a decent amount of glue inside I would roll up the paper, that you plan on placing inside, smaller than that of the toilet paper roll itself. <S> Gently put it in the tube and once it is inside all the way you should be able to release it. <S> It will open most of the way and a little massaging will help get it in place the rest of the way. <S> This should help keep glue from getting on the paper where it will be seen. <S> Using paper that is longer than your tube would be useful as you can adjust it from both ends without having to put your hand in too far. <S> Excess paper can easily be removed with scissors or knives after. <S> If you were to use something other than paper, like glitter for instance, it would just be a matter of sprinkling it inside the tube and letting it stick. <A> I bought a brush years ago that has a bend in the handle (about 45 degrees) that might work for toilet paper tubes (not long enough for paper towel tubes), but it'd be very, very difficult to use with any precision. <S> I'd recommend one of two things: <S> Use construction paper or other relatively stiff paper, and curl it up to place inside. <S> You don't need to glue the whole surface. <S> If you really want to affix the whole thing, you'll want to use spray adhesive. <S> Let it dry for a few minutes, and it'll behave like a giant Post-it Note. <S> Curl it up <S> , sticky-side-out, at a smaller diameter, and then use some sort of dowel or rod to unroll it and burnish it inside the tube. <S> You could even wrap it around a dowel or tube of a slightly smaller diameter (eg, 3/4" PVC pipe), and then just unwrap / unroll it inside the tube you're decorating. <S> And I noticed that Matt mentioned glitter <S> -- I was actually thinking sand art ... but for that, you just need to smear the glue in there, it doesn't have to be very pretty -- you could wad up a paper towel and push it through with a rod to spread the glue, then pour in colored sand, glitter, confetti, etc. <A> I've successfully painted the inside of tubes by pulling sponges through them on strings. <S> Saturating the sponge with slightly thinned paint worked best for me, but I needed a matte black finish and it took several coats drying in between. <S> It strikes me that a slightly oversized round piece of sponge with poster paint of different colours applied to it might produce a nice stripy/swirly effect (for the latter use a stick rather than a string and twist as you pull). <S> PVA or similar craft glue should work similarly. <S> You could then either use this to stick paper (rolled up of insertion) or shake up some glitter/confetti in the tube. <S> These would also stick to paint if you wanted a base colour with decoration on top. <A>
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You could just apply glue or even tape at the ends, and it'll hold fine. There is a simpler solution likely already in your possession or at least cheap to acquire for this. Cut it up so it's flat, and once you're done, seal it back up.
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How can I repair broken glass inside a stained glass project? My wife has this small stained glass decoration she made in high school that has been around forever. For almost that same amount of time there are a couple of break in one of the pieces. The pictures below are the same except the second one has arrows to give focus to the breaks. It can be hard to tell but there is some glass missing in one of the breaks. Now, is there something that can actually be done about this? I suppose I could put some solder on top of it to give the illusion that its more than one piece of glass but there is nothing for it to adhere to. Is there a possibly that the glass could be removed maybe or part of it removed? That might be more effort than it is worth for this project but that does not mean the solution is any less valid here. What can I do to fix or hide this broken glass on my wife project? <Q> Take it apart Desolder the near and far corners of the frame - easier said than done, but just patiently melt the solder and push it away with the tip of the soldering iron. <S> Glue the broken glass back together <S> Once half the frame is removed, the broken pieces will probably still adhere to the foil, but still be flexible to allow the insertion of your favorite glass glue - e.g. Loctite. <S> Of course this does nothing about patching the missing shard of glass. <S> Once half the frame is removed, the broken pieces will have to be removed. <S> If you're lucky the pieces of glass will slip off the foil. <S> If the foil continues to adhere to the glass, it might be necessary to peel off some of the solder coated foil and replace it. <S> As for filling in the cracks, the pieces will need to ground down so that cracks become wide enough to accommodate foil. <S> Foil the pieces, coat with solder on both sides of the piece, and reattach the frame pieces. <S> Do nothing Repairing with foil is going to look really klutzy. <S> Using glue still leaves a gap where the chip of glass is missing, not much different from doing nothing. <A> I might try a 'faux' joint... <S> Copper tape of an appropriate width over the cracks, solder over the tape. <S> If you do it on both sides it'll be impossible to tell that it's not an actual joint. <A> Replace the whole broken section: could look weird another <S> You're going to be lucky to get the same glass of the same colour. <S> If you could, I would replace the whole section with the crack. <S> You can do that by gently prising away at the lead (there's a plastic tool for this). <S> The other option is to replace the whole section with another type of glass, but that would look odd. <S> Adding new lead to where the cracks are: another poor option <S> As the breaks shown by your arrow form a narrow triangle, it will look odd using two new pieces of lead on those breaks, as they will almost be adjoining each other. <S> It won't look right and given the thickness of the lead, probably too hard to do. <S> Left field idea: <S> stained glass paint <S> all My suggestion is out of left field. <S> I would buy a bottle of darker stained glass paint (purple? <S> red? <S> blue?) <S> and paint over the entire work, giving the cracks a bit of extra coating. <S> It might be enough to hide the defects and make them look like variations in the glass. <S> I'd also give all the lead a black finish. <S> Use stove blacking for this.
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Place copper foil patches in the cracks
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What's a flexible, strong string or yarn I can use in this toy? I made this flexible geometry toy based on one I saw in a learning store. You can bend it into different shapes, and it's fun. Unfortunately, all I had on hand was some yarn to make the inside support. I'm concerned that the yarn is eventually going to snap, or the knot is going to unravel. It's also not water-proof, so it might not be that great for extended kid use due to the messes they make. What can I use instead? I'd like something that: Is strong, so it doesn't snap Has some flex, so the toy can bend like it's supposed to Is somewhat waterproof Can easily be knotted in a way that won't unravel Be able to have at least 3 strands of it threaded through a 4mm wide straw Here's the toy, to give you an idea of my requirements: <Q> Instead of yarn or thread, would fishing line work for you? <S> Different strengths available. <S> Is flexible. <S> Is made to be in water. <S> Can be knotted. <S> Variety of diameters available. <A> A lil drop of superglue on the knot will lock it down, the liquid kind, not a gel. <S> It wicks into the fibers. <S> Superglue, or any cyanoacrylate-based glue works great on fishing line as well. <S> Maybe try mason'-s line at a hardware store. <S> It's the string they stretch and place a hanging level on. <S> It usually comes in hot pink or other bright colors. <A> String from the baker, the kind they wrap around the box. <A> You could also use beading wire, like SoftFlex. <S> It is designed to be knotted and has a nylon coating that will protect it from moisture. <S> However @martha is correct that you will have issues with the line cutting through the straws. <S> Very thin paracord might work, but you may still have issues with mustiness. <S> And regarding securing your knots...there is a knot called the fisherman's knot for a reason. <S> Fishing cord can be super slick. <S> Check this out for instructions. <S> (I just noticed that you asked the question that I linked to, so maybe the fishermans knot didn't actually work for you. <S> Sorry about that). <S> There are also a lot of great tutorials about knot tying on-line, and they will often break the different knot types down by usage. <A> A good alternative would be Dental floss. <A> It looks like nylon cord could be used. <S> If more flex is desirable then a braided rubber cord.
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Look for knots specifically used for fishing, and you should find some good knots for securing fishing line. Some rubber is of poor quality, becoming brittle after a few years and breaking easily.
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What materials can I use for faux stained glass? I found this old colouring book that made pseudo stained glass. You colour it in however you want and then tear the page out and place it on the window. Certainly faster and cheaper then actual stained glass. I had already finished most of the book so there was nothing for my kids to do. There must be something that I could use in place of whatever material the book was made from. What can I use that I can give to my kids to make fake/faux/pseudo stained glass? What tools would best compliment that suggestion? Pencil crayons, markers etc? <Q> Depending on how realistic some people would like faux stained glass windows to be and what one's budget is, there are several solutions. <S> With scissors, one can cut out the size of your desired false window pane. <S> Then with a pencil one could measure out or trace the desired patterns to be placed on the false window from colored films, which if desired to could be cut to size to be simply taped to an actual window. <S> To make them realistic one could perhaps use frosted decorated film in various colors. <S> The cut out pieces are simply ready to be put into place once cut out and pealed freed of their protective backing. <S> Here are some color samples from Decorated Films. <S> My wife actually tried this very idea with these films some years back using clear plastic as a backing and then taped the design over real glass with some scotch tape. <S> Yellow Frosted Film <S> Green Frosted Film Blue Frosted Film <S> Free samples are available from the product details for each film. <S> You may order up to 5 different free samples per project. <S> - Decorative Films <A> If you want to make something your kids could color with pencils, crayons, or maybe markers, get tracing paper and draw stained-glass designs on it with a black permanent marker . <S> (If you do the coloring with markers, either wait several days between doing the black parts and coloring them in, or flip the tracing paper around: do the black "leading" on one side of the paper, and the coloring on the other side. <S> Otherwise, no matter how "permanent" you permanent marker, the colored markers can cause it to smudge.) <S> The advantage of this method is that it's pretty cheap, and it will probably end up very similar to the coloring book you have, at least if your coloring book is similar to what I've encountered before. <S> The disadvantage of this method is that it doesn't really look like stained glass. <S> The other option is to go to the craft store and visit their faux stained glass section . <S> Yes, there is such a thing. <S> :) <S> It involves clear plastic sheets as a base, a faux leading that's basically black dimensional paint in a squeeze bottle (i.e. you pipe it on almost like cake frosting instead of actually painting with it), and clear acrylic paints to go between your leading lines. <S> Again, the process is to paint/pipe the designs with the "leading", wait for that to dry, and then paint the designs. <S> The advantage of this method is that it looks very, very similar to actual stained glass without involving cutting glass and soldering and working with actual lead (Pb). <S> The disadvantage is that it gets pretty expensive. <S> You can reduce the expense somewhat if you can find cheaper sources of clear plastic. <S> For example, see if you can find plain clear plastic plates (like from the party goods store). <A> I've also achieved a simple stained glass look with tissue paper glued onto something clear. <S> Modge-Podge or elmer's glue your cut shapes onto glass, <S> "transparency sheets" or even clear plastic bottles, then brush another coat or two over the top of the project. <S> You can either glue black strips over the edges, or use a black permanent marker when completely dry. <S> This does take some dexterity, the tissue paper is delicate, and <S> once it's wet <S> it's even more so. <S> But search for tissue paper stained glass and see what comes up. <A> I'd be inclined to use oiled paper. <S> I suspect you'd want to color it first, then oil it ... <S> but I'm not sure what types of colors would stick best for this application, and/or give the proper translucent effect. <S> If you want something with less effort (and possibly mess) -- find a place that sells drafting vellum, and use colored pencil on it (as it doesn't fill 100%).
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One idea is to buy some clear plastic form any arts and crafts store or fabric store.
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How can I make this necklace longer? (See related question here .) I was given a necklace with a cute geode pendant. Love the color, but it doesn't fit me well -- I don't like the length it hangs at, and I don't like that the stone is horizontal instead of vertical. It's a fairly thin silver chain, connected to a couple of loops which connect to embedded rings in the rock itself. What can I do to make this longer? Do I need to replace the full chain (somehow) or can I extend what I've got? <Q> If you just want to extend the chain it is probably just as easy to buy a new chain of the correct length and do a direct swap. <S> You can get a huge variety of chains from jewelers supplier or indeed ebay for not too much money, indeed just a waxed cotton or leather thong might be just as good with this piece. <S> If you want it mounted vertically you will need to cut off the existing rings and file them flat to the mount and then add a new ring at one of the narrow ends. <S> Here you have two practical options, first to get a blank silver mount of the right size and shape and glue the existing piece on with epoxy <S> or you could wrap the whole thing with silver wire to create a sort of 'cage'. <A> if you make long links you can extend the existing chain in a way that could be interpreted as "original design" .. <S> by this I mean make two links that are the same flat rings as the chain has, but with a long rod in between .. rod to be of the length needed to extend the chain to the requisite length. <S> as for hanging it length-wise .. an interesting way to hang it with minimal mods to the existing piece .. close the existing chain using a ring at the end of a "long link" but rather than the other end of the long link's rod having another ring .. make the end of it a hook that goes around the top of the square bit with the gem stones in .. and silver solder it to the ring on the side. <S> to balance the piece <S> so it hangs correctly adjust the length of the horizontal arm of the hook <S> see that the vertical arm is off center? <S> that is to balance the weight to the side attachment <A> Since the chain is made up of small metal rings, all you have to do is twist open one ring on the chain and link in the extra chain.
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If you have some chain identical to the chain on your necklace, extending the chain is not too hard to do. If you want it to hang vertically you will need to do a fair amount of reworking of the setting, this is complicated by any soldering runs the risk of damaging the stone.
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How can I make this pendant vertical? (See related question here .) I was given a necklace with a cute geode pendant. Love the color, but I don't like that the stone is horizontal instead of vertical. The chain connects to two embedded rings in the rock itself. Is it possible to to re-ring the stone even though it's electroplated? <Q> Just thinking out loud here. <S> Rotate the pendant 90 degrees. <S> Solder hooks on the opposite side mirroring the two on the other side. <S> Add the new chain. <S> Attach the chains together with loops. <S> Done. <A> I know this is an old question, but another option that you might consider is sawing off the existing rings with a jeweler's saw, smoothing the side, and then setting the entire stone with the existing electroplated bezel into a new setting. <S> @Chris Johns is right... <S> you can't resolder the piece because of the potential for damage to the stone. <S> You can sometimes use certain stones safely with precious metal clay which is going to be finished in a kiln, but the fractures inherent to a geode would not fare well. <S> So you really need some sort of cold setting option, which led me to thinking about bezel setting. <S> If you create a custom bezel setting for this piece, you could encapsulate the entire old setting within the new bezel. <S> You could also make a new bezel out of precious metal clay (just make sure to account for the shrinkage that is inherent with PMC). <S> Either of these methods allow you to use high heat for the metal itself, without any impact on the stone. <S> You probably won't be able to use the burnishing process with this piece because the stone's face is so rough, but you could use an adhesive like E-2000 to attach it into the new bezel. <A> The problem with soldering anything to the existing mounting is that you run the risk of the heat damaging the stone, most minerals are both brittle and have poor thermal conductivity so anything other than very slow and even heating is likely to crack them. <S> It might be better to make up a flat plate the same size as the back of the mount with a loop at one of the narrow ends and fix it with an adhesive or mechanical method.
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You could create a bezel in the traditional manner, with silver plate, bezel wire and a ring, and solder all of the pieces together, then insert the stone and old bezel into the new bezel.
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