Happy Hallo-WINE!!

Just in time for Halloween, The Harris Sisters have yet another Covid-19-friendly Halloween option for you to try.  How about a virtual or socially distanced wine and Halloween candy pairing this year?- for the over-21 crowd, that is...  On our recent Girls' Weekend getaway trip, we did just that.  We sampled a mix of five wines with an even bigger selection of popular Halloween candy, and we offer our feedback on the pairings below.    Read on for all the details on these surprising and sometimes frightful combinations.  

Getting Started

Whether you are looking to pair a few candies with one good bottle of wine, or like we did, try several different combinations, your first step is finding a good list to provide you with great wine and candy matches.  Use our notes below to try the pairs that we tried and see how you like them.  

We paired 5 wines with 11 different types of candy. Here's the full list of supplies you'll need. (Substitutions for wines are listed with each review.):

Wines We Used 

• Cabernet Sauvignon
• Chardonnay
• Moscato
• Prosecco
• Red Table Wine

Candy We Used

• Almond Joy
• Butterfingers
• Candy Corn
• Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bars
• Kit Kat
• Nerds 
• Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
• Skittles
• Snickers
• Starburst
• Twix

Sweet White Wine Pairings

For this pairing, we chose to use Moscato as our wine, but you could also choose a varietal like Malvasia or Riesling, depending on your preference.   This wine is said to pair well with Candy Corn, Skittles, Starburst, and Hershey's Milk Chocolate.   After sampling all these pairings, we all agreed that Starburst and Moscato, as well as Hershey's Milk Chocolate and Moscato, make excellent pairs.  We agreed less on the other two pairings.  Misty liked the Candy Corn when paired with Moscato.  Donna did not, and I was completely undecided after the tasting, so the jury is still out on that one. And both Donna and I agreed that Skittles and Moscato make a tasty pair.  Misty was less sold on this combination, but we all agreed that it could definitely depend on which flavor(s) of Skittles you are pairing with your wine. 

Rich White Wine Pairings

We chose to use Chardonnay for the rich white wine pairing, but you could also use Marsanne or Viognier instead.  This time, we sampled Candy Corn, Hershey's Milk Chocolate, and Butterfinger with our Chardonnay.   And this time we were completely in agreement.  The Harris Sisters give both the Butterfinger and Hershey's Milk Chocolate a thumb's up when paired with Chardonnay.  And we gave the Candy Corn pairing a resounding MEH- this was neither great nor awful- just somewhere in between.

Sparkling Wine Pairings

For these pairings, we used Prosecco, but you could certainly also choose a Sparkling Rose or Champagne instead.  I should preface this particular review by saying that Harris Sister Misty is not a fan of sparkling wine in general.  Having said that, she was also not a fan of any of these pairings.  We sampled the Prosecco with Candy Corn, Nerds, Kit Kat, and Almond Joy.  And both Donna and I enjoyed all of those pairings.  But the pair of Almond Joy and Prosecco was a surprise in that it topped both of our lists, and I personally would not have predicted that one.  Trust me though, it was a winner!  

Medium Red Wine Pairings

We chose a Red Table Wine for this pairing, but most Red Blends or a Merlot would work here as well.  The medium reds are said to pair well with Kit Kat, Snickers, and Hershey's Milk Chocolate.  We all agreed that Snickers and Kit Kat paired extremely well with the Red Table Wine.  We were more divided on the Hershey's Milk Chocolate pair.  While Donna and I enjoyed it together, Misty did not.  But both Donna and Misty pointed out that I eat Kit Kat wrong.  I didn't know there was a right way.  They both break off one bar and eat from that.  I don't break it.  I just bite it across the top.  Let me tell you, they were deeply disturbed.  

Bold Red Wine Pairings

For this final set of pairings, we used Cabernet Sauvignon, but you could also try a Malbec or Syrah if you prefer.  We paired the Cab with Snickers, Reese's, and Twix.  Harris Sister Misty did not enjoy any of these pairings, but she also typically does not enjoy bold red wines.  Both Donna and I agreed that the Snickers and Reese's paired with the Cab were among the best pairings of the night.  However, the Twix definitely did not measure up.  On a related note, Misty and Donna were once again disturbed to learn that I don't love Reese's.  In fact, I would say I really don't like it at all.  I would never seek out a Reese's; however, when paired with the Cab, it was off the charts good.  Maybe that's what it's been missing for me all this time.  

So there you have it.  The Harris Sisters are nothing if not committed to in-depth research involving wine and candy.  Feel free to call on us if you decide to host your own pairing, and from all of us to all of you, Happy Hallo-WINE! 

A COVID-19 Halloween: How to Work a Face Mask into Your Costume

Are you searching for a Halloween costume this year that includes a face mask?  Whether you are planning a socially distanced trick-or-treating adventure or a virtual costume party, we have ideas for easy-to-make costumes that include a face mask so that you can still dress to celebrate the occasion in 2020 style. 

For these ideas, we brainstormed traditional Halloween costumes that might naturally include a face mask to come up with our looks. But Halloween and masks have gone together for as long as we have been celebrating Halloween, so the possibilities really are endless.  

Costume Ideas with Face Masks for 2020

Step right up for the Amazing Harris Sisters, featuring (left to right) Madame Deanna the Gypsy Lady who offers palm reading and fortune telling, Donna the 5000-year-old Egyptian Queen Mummy who mysteriously comes to life, and Misty Rose the Fastest Gunslinger in the West who dazzles with her trick shots.  

The Devil's in the Details

For my gypsy costume, I used a black cloth face mask and attached a sheer belly dancing veil across the top of the mask with safety pins and then tied it in the back.

For Donna's mummy mask, she used a disposable mask and then attached strips of muslin over top of the mask with hot glue. She dyed the strips of muslin with tea to ensure it matched her mummy costume.

For Misty's gunslinger mask, she used a traditional red bandana folded into a triangle and tied in the back.

Halloween Costume Ideas That Work with COVID-19 Face Masks

This Halloween, you can either use a plain colored face mask to match your Halloween costume (for example, use a black mask to match your witch's costume) or you could choose a costume that would be easy to decorate a mask for or to conceal a plain face mask underneath. Here's a list of Halloween costumes that easily lend themselves to working with a face mask:

1. Genie
2. Belly Dancer
3. Doctor/Dentist/Nurse
4. Bank Robber/Bandit
5. Michael Jackson
6. Wilson from Home Improvement (with popsicle stick "fence" to cover face mask)
7. Ghost 
8. Football Player 
9. Hockey Player/Jason Voorhees 
10. Nacho Libre
11. Masked Singer Characters
12. Superheroes - Ironman, Deadpool, Black Panther, Spiderman
13. Minecraft Characters
14. Big Head Costumes
15. Astronaut
16. Scuba Diver
17. Welder

Whatever you decide to be for Halloween 2020, we hope that you get creative with your costume! 

Happy Halloween from The Harris Sisters!

Flower Child's Toddler Sweater

Little Miss Dolly recently celebrated her third birthday, and in honor of the occasion I wanted to make her a special handmade present. Dolly is quick on her feet and if you're not careful, you'll just see a streak as she runs past you (on to her next adventure)! With the intricate detailing on the back of this sweater, I thought this free crochet pattern would be perfect for our fleet-footed flower child!

I ended up completing the size 4T Flower Child's Sweater free crochet pattern with a size I hook using these stash yarns:

• Red Heart Super Saver Pale Plum
• Big Twist Blueberry
• I Love This Yarn! Ivory

Modifications to the Pattern

I completed the pattern as written for the back, sleeves, attaching both sleeves, and collar. The original pattern had multiple ties in the front, which I did not think was very practical for a young child, so I modified both front pieces and finishing as follows:

Front pieces:

Row 1: as written

Rows 2-8: Ch 2, dc in each dc across. Turn.

Rows 9-10: Ch 1 (counts as hdc), hdc in each stitch across. Turn.

Row 11: Change to color B. Ch 2, ch 1. DC, ch 1 across. Fasten off.

Finishing:

With right side facing, join A in the bottom right DC stitch. Ch 1. Work 2 hdc in corner stitch (this counts as 3 hdc in corner). Hdc in each stitch around lower edge of back to back point underneath flower. Work 3 hdc in this stitch and in each corner around. Work evenly around entire piece (rather than just back portion as described in original pattern). Fasten off.

This new method of finishing will give a final row of the main color over the decorative stitching at the front placket and at the front bottom of the piece.

I added a button to the top front of the sweater instead of the the ties that were with the original pattern and I varied the colors on the collar a bit from the pattern (but I completed the stitches in the same order):

Overall, this is not a very difficult pattern to complete. It does involve some finishing work, which might be new to some beginner crocheters. But the pattern only uses basic stitches, so it might be a fun one to try if you're new to the world of finishing.

You can add this pattern to your Ravelry queue here:

Flower Child's Sweater

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