Mother's Day Goodies

We're celebrating Mother's Day tonight, which means I can finally show off my gift!

I made the photo big so you can see how blurry it is!  :D  But seriously, isn't it pretty?  I got the basket from Longaberger, who are kind of a big deal in the basket making world, and the craftsmanship on it is really beautiful.  Mom has collected these baskets for a while so I thought a new one would be nice!

Then I got crafty and made a basket liner out of linen, which I was nervous about working with at first because some friends had negative experiences with it, but I actually really enjoyed it!  It is definitely NOT wool, so going in not expecting it to be like something you normally knit with helped, and although it was a bit crisp and twiney as I was knitting it, it blocked beautifully and will only get more amazing the more it's used and washed and pushed around.  I am very seriously considering making some placemats for my home, or possibly even a wearable item like a skirt out of linen, but that's said while I firmly try to ignore the 100 skeins of yarn that I already own!

And wait, what else is in that basket?

BREEEEAAAADDDD!!!!!

I was very jealous and sad that I wasn't going to get to keep this loaf.  It baked up so pretty in the oven,  it smells incredible, plus I just had so much fun making it!  This was more fun with sourdough, and as I have a strong need (not a want - a NEED) to make another one for myself, the recipe will be coming soon.  The ingredients were nothing out of the ordinary - just flour, water, sourdough starter, and salt (yes really - only 4 ingredients!), but it was so cool letting it rise for hours and having it double in size, punching it down, and watching it do it again.  So very soon we'll go on a sourdough adventure once I get a loaf of this for myself.

In the meantime, off to deliver this to Mom!