How to Make Gifts for the Holidays

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:32 — 35.4MB)

Episode Details:

Air date: November 29, 2017

Guest: Rachel Kuberry

Runtime: 30 minutes, 32 seconds

Summary: In our ninth episode, Jen and Rachel discuss the joys and pitfalls of making gifts during the holidays. What makes a gift a hit? What are some memorable gifts they’ve made and received? How are handmade gifts received?

Links of Interest:

Jen’s go-to holiday Fudge recipe – I use this as the base for all of my varieties

What I Made This Week:

From the transcript: “And now I’d like to tell you about something I made this week. It’s hard to pick just one thing for this episode. I’ve been making so much lately. Homemade sauerkraut, stock from our Thanksgiving leftovers, so much bread. So I’ll go with the most relevant thing I’ve made. This past weekend, our family went out to pick up our Christmas tree. Since then, I’ve spent several days making the garlands for our home. I started doing this last year and absolutely love the effect. I went to a local church that was selling trees and asked if they had any extra boughs. They gave me two giant boxes and I went back home and started building yards upon yards of garland. I couldn’t be more pleased with how our home looks .” Continue reading “How to Make Gifts for the Holidays”

November 15, 2017March 29, 2018

How to Make Just About Anything

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:29 — 33.1MB)

Episode Details:

Air date: November 15, 2017

Guest: Quinn Shamblin

Runtime: 32 minutes, 29 seconds

Summary: In episode eight, Jen has a conversation with Quinn, who talks about why he creates and some of the projects he’s taken on over the years.

Links of Interest:

The World’s Simplest Mittens
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman
Hungry Monkey by Matthew Amster-Burton

What I Made This Week:

From the transcript: “And now I’d like to tell you about something I made this week. Several big long-term knitting projects have finally wrapped up and that has left my needles free for the first time in a long time. So this weekend, I was delighted when Emma requested a pair of blue mittens. Once she was in bed curled up under a blanket, I put on an episode of Doctor Who and knit her up a pair of chunky speckled blue mittens that she absolutely adores. This request came just in time because it finally turned very cold this week in our neck of the woods.” Continue reading “How to Make Just About Anything”

November 1, 2017March 29, 2018

How to Make a Fool of Yourself

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:08 — 30.4MB)

Episode Details:

Air date: November 1, 2017

Guest: Lisa Adil

Runtime: 28 minutes, 08 seconds

Summary: In the podcast’s 7th episode, Jen has a chat with her friend Lisa about writing romantic poetry and learning to cook Bengali food. Lisa advocates for taking risks and being vulnerable. Jen embraces awkward teenage poetry.

Links of Interest:

Blueberry Banana Cake recipe
Chicken Biryani recipe

What I Made This Week:

From the transcript: “And now I’d like to tell you about something I made this week. Yesterday was Halloween and I’ve spent the past few weeks making our family’s costumes in preparation for a party that we threw this past weekend to coincide with Emma’s third birthday. I also made her birthday cake, so it’s been a particularly busy and productive time for me. The cake I chose was blueberry and banana flavored with cream-cheese frosting. Emma directed me to dye the frosting blue and it was a big hit with all of our guests. I will never get tired of watching people enjoy the food I make.” Continue reading “How to Make a Fool of Yourself”