Fri, Oct 9:
National Novel Writing Month
Time: 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Location: Pilot Books (219 Broadway E, Seattle, Wa 98102- Capitol Hill area)
Ever wanted to write a novel but lacked motivation? Well November is your month. Get the skinny on what NaNaWriMo is, how to prepare for it, how to get involved and stay motivated, and the joy of writing a novel in 30 days!
Go to the website to register and get ready to write!
www.seattlefreeschool.org
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Free is GOOD!
Wishing you could save a bit more money and still have fun? Well there's a website that can help you with that! http://freeattle.wordpress.com/ is the project of Leslie Seaton who also does www.freshpickedseattle.com
At this site she lets us know where we can go for free resources to help with all sorts of things, from health issues to getting a job to just having fun.
Check it out and let us know if you find something free that we all really should know about!
At this site she lets us know where we can go for free resources to help with all sorts of things, from health issues to getting a job to just having fun.
Check it out and let us know if you find something free that we all really should know about!
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Free Investing Class
Wondering what to do in this market? Well here's a link to some free classes to take the guesswork out of investing. Check it out here.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
New Record for Class Size!
Last night Seattle Free School held the biggest class on record thus far! 120 people came to the Cascade People's Center to learn to make cheese. While the size of the class limited any hands on participation students left with a good idea of how and where to start their cheesemaking journey. Thank you to everyone who attended for helping us break our record and prove to everyone that you can indeed get the word out about what you do without paying for marketing (something we were told was virtually impossible when we started!).
One thing we discussed at the class is how hard it can be to make mozzarella. Not so much that making the cheese is difficult but that getting it right can be very difficult for the home cheese maker purchasing milk from the store. As promised here's a recipe that is a bit easier and less likely to fail, meaning that you'll wind up with actual mozzarella instead of perfectly delicious but not quite what you intended pizza type mozzarella.
Enjoy!
Mozzarella
2 gallons cold milk
3 teaspoons citric acid (this may vary with the milk taking more or less)
1. Dissolve citric acid in warm water and stir into cold milk.
2. Bring milk temp up to 90 degrees.
3. You may add lactic culture to develop flavor.
If so add one small packet of Mesophilic starter and let set for 30 minutes.
4. Stir in 1 teaspoon liquid rennet.
5. Let set for 1/2 hour
6. Cut into small cubes, stir gently, slowly raise temperature to 95.
7. When curds settle to bottom of vat , drain off whey and cover curds with 145 degree water.
8. Stretch curds , form balls and drop in cold water.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Biggest Class Ever!?!
Last week at our Canning and Home Food Preservation class we had 75 students. So far that's the biggest Seattle Free School class ever but we have another class coming up that looks to blow that attendance out of the water. Tonight we're teaching how to make cheese and we have 140 people signed up! We'll see how many turn up but this might well be the largest class we've ever had. Why such a huge turn out? Because lots of great folks have cross posted the class information all over the city. Here's an example.
Check back and see if we've managed to break our class attendance record!
Check back and see if we've managed to break our class attendance record!
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Seattle Public Library
Did you know that the Seattle Public Library offers a large number of free classes at various branches? Well they do! Here's a link to their calender of events and classes.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Another Quick Class- Sewing!
Here's a great basic sewing class from our wonderful facilitator Beth!
Here's the 20 minute skirt:
Here's a quick and easy basic skirt, even for you "I can't sew" people. :)
This works particularly well as a way to get rid of any scrap fabric, as many weights and types of fabric will work well for this project, though I recommend using cotton for your first try.
Materials you will need:
A length of fabric (one yard of 45" wide for size 2-8, two yards for size 10-16, and so on)
A threaded sewing machine
Scissors
Safety pins
Elastic (less than 1" wide)
Iron (optional)
1) Fold your material in half (so the two selvage edges meet, and you have a fold in the middle.
2) Cut down that middle fold, making sure to keep both pieces equal in size.
3) Sew the two pieces, right sides together, so you have one long piece of fabric. You can press the seam open if you wish.
4) Sew a casing for your elastic waistband. To do this, fold over the top raw edge about 1", wrong sides together. Sew as close as possible to that raw edge, so you create a sort of tube of fabric.
5) Measure your elastic by wrapping it around your naked waist as you would a ribbon or measuring tape. Yes, naked. Subtract 2-3 inches from the length you wrapped around yourself, and cut. You now have your waistband piece of elastic.
6) Thread your elastic through the casing. The cheater way to do this is to attach a safety pin to the folded edge of one end of the elastic strip, and feed it into the casing. You'll have to inchworm your way through the casing, being sure to keep from losing the non-safety-pinned edge into the casing. The goal here is to have the elastic through all of the casing, and both ends of the elastic in your hands.
7) Once you have both ends of the elastic in your hands, stitch each end of elastic to its respective casing end, closing the casing and security the elastic in one fell swoop. At this point you will have one long piece of fabric, with a casing tube at the top, which is filled with elastic, the openings of the casing being stitched shut with the elastic secured.
8) With the right sides of the fabric together, sew those ends to make a tube of fabric. Press the seam open if you'd like.
9) Sew yourself a hem at the base of the skirt. With a 45" piece of fabric, your skirt will fall to about your knees. If you want to shorten it, now is the time! To sew a hem, make sure the skirt is inside out. On the bottom (non-elastic) edge of the skirt, fold the raw edge 1/4-1/2" up, wrong sides together. If you're feeling shakey about this part, you can sew it here, as close to the raw edge as you can get. Then fold the hem bit up again, so your line of stitching is now the bottom of the skirt, and sew a second line. If you're feeling confident, fold twice and sew once. Thus, a rolled hem.
10) Turn the skirt right side out, and voila! A brand new skirt, in less time than it takes yo have a good soak in the tub.
And of course, you can always spiffy it up.
For instance, you can sew a strip of lace to the inside of the bottom of the skirt, making it look like you have a lacey skirt petticoat on underneath your 20 minute skirt.
Or you can sew some patchwork contrasting squares of fabric onto your 20 minute skirt (for this, I love using visible thread with a zig zag stitch, to make it look 'handsewn').
Or you can add brickabrack around the hemline and/or waistline.
Use your imagination! And most of all, have fun.
Here's the 20 minute skirt:
Here's a quick and easy basic skirt, even for you "I can't sew" people. :)
This works particularly well as a way to get rid of any scrap fabric, as many weights and types of fabric will work well for this project, though I recommend using cotton for your first try.
Materials you will need:
A length of fabric (one yard of 45" wide for size 2-8, two yards for size 10-16, and so on)
A threaded sewing machine
Scissors
Safety pins
Elastic (less than 1" wide)
Iron (optional)
1) Fold your material in half (so the two selvage edges meet, and you have a fold in the middle.
2) Cut down that middle fold, making sure to keep both pieces equal in size.
3) Sew the two pieces, right sides together, so you have one long piece of fabric. You can press the seam open if you wish.
4) Sew a casing for your elastic waistband. To do this, fold over the top raw edge about 1", wrong sides together. Sew as close as possible to that raw edge, so you create a sort of tube of fabric.
5) Measure your elastic by wrapping it around your naked waist as you would a ribbon or measuring tape. Yes, naked. Subtract 2-3 inches from the length you wrapped around yourself, and cut. You now have your waistband piece of elastic.
6) Thread your elastic through the casing. The cheater way to do this is to attach a safety pin to the folded edge of one end of the elastic strip, and feed it into the casing. You'll have to inchworm your way through the casing, being sure to keep from losing the non-safety-pinned edge into the casing. The goal here is to have the elastic through all of the casing, and both ends of the elastic in your hands.
7) Once you have both ends of the elastic in your hands, stitch each end of elastic to its respective casing end, closing the casing and security the elastic in one fell swoop. At this point you will have one long piece of fabric, with a casing tube at the top, which is filled with elastic, the openings of the casing being stitched shut with the elastic secured.
8) With the right sides of the fabric together, sew those ends to make a tube of fabric. Press the seam open if you'd like.
9) Sew yourself a hem at the base of the skirt. With a 45" piece of fabric, your skirt will fall to about your knees. If you want to shorten it, now is the time! To sew a hem, make sure the skirt is inside out. On the bottom (non-elastic) edge of the skirt, fold the raw edge 1/4-1/2" up, wrong sides together. If you're feeling shakey about this part, you can sew it here, as close to the raw edge as you can get. Then fold the hem bit up again, so your line of stitching is now the bottom of the skirt, and sew a second line. If you're feeling confident, fold twice and sew once. Thus, a rolled hem.
10) Turn the skirt right side out, and voila! A brand new skirt, in less time than it takes yo have a good soak in the tub.
And of course, you can always spiffy it up.
For instance, you can sew a strip of lace to the inside of the bottom of the skirt, making it look like you have a lacey skirt petticoat on underneath your 20 minute skirt.
Or you can sew some patchwork contrasting squares of fabric onto your 20 minute skirt (for this, I love using visible thread with a zig zag stitch, to make it look 'handsewn').
Or you can add brickabrack around the hemline and/or waistline.
Use your imagination! And most of all, have fun.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
POCKETS!
According to Ellen DeGeneres we wear clothes because they have pockets, and thus a place to put our hands. But frankly pockets are great for everything. Not losing those little things that would be difficult to carry without them, for placing important things that you don't want to damage banging around in your bag, and well, for your hands too.
Wish you had more pockets in your life? Well then Sew Up Seattle can help you. Here's the information about their upcoming class:
Pockets - September 26 from 11 - 1 at
Goods for the Planet, 525 Dexter Ave N (Dexter & Mercer)
Guys and Gals
We'll put pockets on and in clothing, bags, hats, etc. or just make pockets for the fun of it. Bring your own articles, equipment and supplies or use and choose from our stash.
Let us know that you would like to come by emailing sewupseattle at yahoo.com or call 206-784-7117.
Wish you had more pockets in your life? Well then Sew Up Seattle can help you. Here's the information about their upcoming class:
Pockets - September 26 from 11 - 1 at
Goods for the Planet, 525 Dexter Ave N (Dexter & Mercer)
Guys and Gals
We'll put pockets on and in clothing, bags, hats, etc. or just make pockets for the fun of it. Bring your own articles, equipment and supplies or use and choose from our stash.
Let us know that you would like to come by emailing sewupseattle at yahoo.com or call 206-784-7117.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Blog About Cheap/Free in Seattle
Hey, so we found this when we were looking to see who posted info about Seattle Free School. The site seems to have a lot of great free and cheap Seattle information, including stuff about Seattle Free School. Here's a link to the post about us but check out the rest of the site for more free opportunities.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Friends of the Library
Seattle Free School really wouldn't have gotten off the ground were it not for the Seattle Public Libraries. And now they've written about us on their Friends of the Library Blog. Here it is.
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