Stone Age..."Beer Koozie"?
Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2016 2:29 am
Alright, I suppose I've got some explaining to do, yes?
I've had half a dozen major projects in the pipeline for a LONG time now, and most of them were/are just waiting for one crucial piece of the puzzle to show up on my doorstep so I can get started. In the meantime, I chose self-inflicted fingertip acupuncture as my next viable project.
In short, needle-felting.
At the last Indiana Moot, with my good friends Odigan, Udwin, and Straelbora, I had a few mishaps over the cookfire. In fact...I think I'd be raising these gentlemen's eyebrows on their computers at home if I didn't come out and just say that I was not at my best that weekend. BUT I had a grand old time, and expect to do far better for myself next time I'm out.
Anywho, over the fire, I had a hard time moving my boiler around by the bail, was using my spoon to pick it up and move it around, and spilled a little bit twice while trying to secure a stable surface of coals to cook on. Until your coals have burned down into smaller crumbles, they really create an unstable platform, so it's a battle. I've since begun taking a rock and pounding on the coals to break them up, which incidentally adds some surface area, thus better cooking material, and keeps the level a bit more even. Problem #1 solved.
I solved problem #2, struggling to move the pot around smoothly, by filing a small groove into the backside of my spoon handle, so the bail can't slide around (I believe most of you who are on facebook most likely saw me post that awhile back.)
Problem #3, however, was a different animal entirely. You see, the very reason that Copper makes for an excellent cookpot was indeed the source of another problem. Copper is SUPER heat conductive. As a result, your hot soup is going to keep your pot too-hot-to-touch for quite some time. Now, there are two approaches to this problem. #1: Pour your soup off into a wooden noggin. Easy, cheap, functional. I nearly went this route, but I'm really trying to force myself to stay within the constraints of my current pack size, which is very minimalist in nature for a "professional traveler", & etc.
SO.
How do I get to tear into my soup or morning oats while they're still hot, without burning the crap out of my hands? While we're at it...how do I keep my boiler from banging around in my pack (and potentially getting damaged in the process)?
Enter what I've affectionately labeled a "Beer Koozie" for my boiler, after the Southern Indiana term for a foam rubber can cooler.
It's not quite finished, but the hard part is over. It was needle-felted entirely by hand from 100% hand-carded undyed wool, darned close to straight off the sheep. I made a long rectangle that wrapped around the boiler, felted the ends together into a tube, and then this evening (a month after starting) I felted a disc and then worked it into the bottom. Shortly, I'll be giving the whole thing another once over, tucking in some loose ends and bits that aren't as tight as I'd like, and then will be adding a small strap over the top to hold the lid in place during transit.
I've had half a dozen major projects in the pipeline for a LONG time now, and most of them were/are just waiting for one crucial piece of the puzzle to show up on my doorstep so I can get started. In the meantime, I chose self-inflicted fingertip acupuncture as my next viable project.
In short, needle-felting.
At the last Indiana Moot, with my good friends Odigan, Udwin, and Straelbora, I had a few mishaps over the cookfire. In fact...I think I'd be raising these gentlemen's eyebrows on their computers at home if I didn't come out and just say that I was not at my best that weekend. BUT I had a grand old time, and expect to do far better for myself next time I'm out.
Anywho, over the fire, I had a hard time moving my boiler around by the bail, was using my spoon to pick it up and move it around, and spilled a little bit twice while trying to secure a stable surface of coals to cook on. Until your coals have burned down into smaller crumbles, they really create an unstable platform, so it's a battle. I've since begun taking a rock and pounding on the coals to break them up, which incidentally adds some surface area, thus better cooking material, and keeps the level a bit more even. Problem #1 solved.
I solved problem #2, struggling to move the pot around smoothly, by filing a small groove into the backside of my spoon handle, so the bail can't slide around (I believe most of you who are on facebook most likely saw me post that awhile back.)
Problem #3, however, was a different animal entirely. You see, the very reason that Copper makes for an excellent cookpot was indeed the source of another problem. Copper is SUPER heat conductive. As a result, your hot soup is going to keep your pot too-hot-to-touch for quite some time. Now, there are two approaches to this problem. #1: Pour your soup off into a wooden noggin. Easy, cheap, functional. I nearly went this route, but I'm really trying to force myself to stay within the constraints of my current pack size, which is very minimalist in nature for a "professional traveler", & etc.
SO.
How do I get to tear into my soup or morning oats while they're still hot, without burning the crap out of my hands? While we're at it...how do I keep my boiler from banging around in my pack (and potentially getting damaged in the process)?
Enter what I've affectionately labeled a "Beer Koozie" for my boiler, after the Southern Indiana term for a foam rubber can cooler.
It's not quite finished, but the hard part is over. It was needle-felted entirely by hand from 100% hand-carded undyed wool, darned close to straight off the sheep. I made a long rectangle that wrapped around the boiler, felted the ends together into a tube, and then this evening (a month after starting) I felted a disc and then worked it into the bottom. Shortly, I'll be giving the whole thing another once over, tucking in some loose ends and bits that aren't as tight as I'd like, and then will be adding a small strap over the top to hold the lid in place during transit.