I started making my starter 11 days ago. At first, everything was going well. Lots of bubbles and doubling of the volume. Then I started the twice a day feedings and everything slowed down. My house is a little chilly, so I have been putting the starter in my oven with the light on and turning the oven on every so often to keep it warm. The starter barely doubles in volume and there are very few bubbles. The smell is very 'yeasty', like white bread dough. And although I wouldn't say it gets a 'crust', the surface of the starter is not fluid. The surface feels like kneaded bread dough- soft and giving but underneath the skin the texture resembles pancake batter. If you touch the top nothing sticks to your finger. Your photos look like your starter would be sticky. Also, once you break through this skin, there is a faint odor of alcohol. It's gotten warmer the last few days and the temperature in my house has been in the upper 70s so I've let it sit out on the counter covered in plastic wrap. However, this doesn't seem to effect its growth. Is this okay? Should I just give it more time because of the cool temperatures? Any suggestions would be great. There could be a few issues that are having an effect on your starter. I would give our Baker's Hotline a call so we can speak to you in more detail about your starter troubles!-Jon 855-371-2253

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