Not So Fancy Nancy

Outside the Box Wall Quilt, Knitting WIPs & a Girl's Twirl Skirt

Boring title, but accurate.

As a birthday/Father's Day gift I made a quilt for behind my husband's desk at work. I've told him it'll give his employees something to groove on while he's droning on talking without being so obvious as staring out the window (I was joking, but he said there are sure to be a few who agree). Seriously, I thought it would add some vibrancy to his otherwise austere office. It's only propped up on a bookshelf here - it is straight and flat. I thought I'd leave the background junk for scale.

Outside the Box from The Modern Quilt Workshop
45" x 45"
Loni Rossi prints plus Micheal Miller Fairy Frost and black, water-spotted batik
King Tut quilting multi-colored thread

Played around a bit with the quilting. Meandered in the background, squiggled in the blocks and followed the lines in the floating squares. Much more heavily quilted than my usual style. I wasn't sure at first, but after washing I really like the way the texture looks in life as you move around it. Couldn't really capture that in a single photo, but here's a quilting detail:

I didn't want to buy more batting with so many large scraps around so I finally tried zig-zagging them together. Easy as pie and it works perfectly. You just feed them through abutting each other with a wide zigzag stitch and you've got what works like a single piece.

Lizard Ridge is coming along. Just finishing the 10th block. Let's just ignore that pesky seaming for now and call it halfway. Still in love with the Noro colorways, which is what keeps this project interesting.

Summer of Lace is underway and I've got two projects on the needles so far. Going to keep this post short so I can go and knit right now. Somehow all that "slow summertime knitting" has not come about yet, but I think we're getting our groove now. It's only week two, so I have hope.

Icarus in Misti Alpaca Handpaint Lace. Triangular shawls just don't look like much on the needles, especially straights, but I think this will be beautiful.

Hanami Stole in Filatura Di Crosa Superior cashmere and silk laceweight that's so incredibly soft. I love the beaded edge.

We presented the Kindergarten teacher's quilt at the end of the year picnic and I was thrilled to see the kids so excited about finding and showing their blocks to the teacher. She says she'll hang it for next year. This scene made the work worthwhile.

A party needs a skirt. Emily likes a touch of glam.

 

That dangling middle tooth finally fell out! We were all getting pretty tired of seeing her push it out between her lips (she's got a good dose of boyness when it comes to gross behavior). Now I've got a classic gappy 6-yr-old. She was pretty excited about school letting out. Can you tell?

Off to do something rather than think about what I might do. ACTION is my goal this summer!

New knitting, dog beach & orange crush

The past month was a very hard month, so I'm happy to say I love October. Always have. Here in Southern CA October often brings the bluest skies, Santa Ana winds and warm ocean water. After mid-September Del Mar opens its beach to dogs again. That makes October Cami's favorite month too.

This weekend my husband took our youngest on a camping trip, so eldest and I had a tween version of a mommy & me weekend.

We were on the go:  Dog walks, chocolate chip pancakes at Honey's cafe, JoAnns for Halloween fabric, Dream Dinners (she helped), take-out Chinese, a sleepover (her), trying on clothes at J Jill with no one waiting for me and dog beach. Finished with brunch.

I've been craving Pannikin's steamed eggs with feta, tomatoes and basil and a bialy. Yes, I could easily make it at home, but I've been enjoying that plate at Pannikin's in La Jolla or Leucadia for 15 years and it always makes me think of happy times. Today was one of those times.

Small children are wonderful in countless ways, but I'm thrilled that my 10 year old can hang at the coffee shop now. Bodes well for future travel. We scored some old chairs in the side yard and put up our feet to relax with the worn out dog spralled on the grass. She was so tired she ignored the shop cat prowling around the lawn.

While we sat I knitted the Chevron Scarf from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I've had the book since it was published, but a but I never thought about this scarf until I ran into photos of it while tooling around Ravelry. I'm up to about 15 inches now.

LOVE that site! Seeing so many images of this project by different people all at one time allowed me to analyze how various color combinations worked together and to think about what I wanted from the project. I decided that a subtle background and a more variegated ripple in earthy colors would please me.

I am pleased.

Both yarns are Koigu, but I can't find the bands. Probably bookmarking a pattern somewhere...

I've also finally cast on Lara in Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk.

Everything was fine and dandy until two weeks ago when I got to the third ball before I was even close to finished with the sleeve. No way were my 16 balls going to make it. Found a good price through an ebay BIN sale, but of course the lot was different. The yarn has arrived, but I'm still trying to decide how I'm going to integrate the two lots. I know I could switch out every two lines, but I don't want to carry the yarn up the side on a side-to-side knitted cardigan. I think I'll do all the ribbing in the new yarn to hide any shading differences.

That's the new on the left. The differences are only visible in certain light, but I know that kind of thing can be more noticeable when knitted up. We shall see.

Forest Path Stole & Farmers Market Quilt

(Revised Thursday Mar 29:  Quilt photo was on its side [tsk tsk on me] and I added a bit of text about the design process I composed in my fogged brain but forget to type. DH was waiting for the pc last night and looking over my shoulder [tsk tsk on him].)

I've finally come in from the garden, but it seems to have worked it's way into my creative mind.

Newest knitting project is Forest Path Stole. Take a look at the Stole-A-Long and you'll see and find links to some absolutely gorgeous and amazing knitting. Me, I'm still on the border. Traveling next week, so plane time should help. This will be my summer project.

Photographing black cats is hard. Add to that her reluctance to stay still when she's in play mode. She is dangerous help! This is out in the courtyard on the new sofa. Yeah baby, finally! First furniture for the new house and it's only been one year - I'm breaking my DH slowly but surely.

I'm making this lace stole more for the process than as something I plan to wear, but who knows. Lately I don't seem to wear anything that can't get dirty, but hopefully that won't always be the case. The yarn is Alpaca with a Twist's Fino in Twilight. I love it so far, especially the color.

Using Knit Picks Options circular needles in US #3 - super sharp. I really like how flexible the cord is and the connecting mechanism works well. By now I think most blogging knitters have taken the plunge, but if you're still thinking about them I'd at least try one pair.

Here's Cami in my patio bed with David Austin's Lady Emma Hamilton and a Platt's Black flax. The space behind Cami will be filled with that dark purple butterfly bush that's putting on growth and that sage on her left will reach almost 4' high.

February and March are planting months around here. We put in six fruiting trees (low chill apples and plums), another ornamental plum, bulbs, shrubs and loads and loads of perennials.

Found that even with our mulch, the weeds find foothold. Thankfully they pull much easier though. Biggest mistake was the stacked rocks put in place before the mulch - every crack has sprouted devil's spawn. Last week I filled two full size garbage cans with weeds and unwanted gazinnias that, like cockroaches, will survive Armageddon.

All my roses are going gangbusters and the buds are forming now. I go out everyday and watch for fungus and bugs - the rose obsession has hid hard. I'm generally an organic gardener - diversity is good - but I will neem oil my babies when required. I think I'll cry when I get my first bloom.

I missed photographing apple blossoms, but here's an ornamental plum and the Lady Banks Rose.

I now understand the draw of container gardening - instant gratification!

The back door was looking kind of bare so I washed out some old terracotta pots and dug up the silver gray Dusty Miller that was misplaced on the bamboo slope.

Added the sedge for height and the flowers to bring the colors of the bougainvilleas on the back slope down to the patio. The licorice should fill in the bottoms and drape nicely in a month or so.

We're lucky around here because there are so many nurseries to visit - most of them locally owned. Toured the agri halls at the county fair last summer and learned that San Diego County has the largest number of small farms in the entire nation! Pretty cool.

The dog of course could care less. She just wants her spot in the sun. I was going to replace the mat that got, well, doggy after last summer in the dirt yard, but didn't think it was worth it. Can't tell you how many times I've tripped over her when carrying something out the door.

For about two years now fruit, veggie and flower themed prints from Kaffe Fassett and the other Rowan designers have been sneaking into my stash. It started small - a fat quarter here, a half yard there. Then when we moved here and the empty wall space screamed hang a quilt here! And here. And there too. I started thinking about a food themed quilt for the kitchen niche. Kind of a dark corner that begs for some color. It's getting color.

This is on the "design wall" otherwise known as the ugly and too high mantel in the living room. A couple of c-clamps and spare boards and it finally has purpose. Last time I just placed books at the top, but it was precarious and dangerous. Notice the cats in the photo below - they get behind there and play tackle. Narrowly missed disaster that first time so stronger measures were required.

The light in this room is actually nice for working, but a little too dark for non-flash photos. Tried the flash but it popped the colors in a funny way. Even here the purple plums pop more than they do in life and the light greens jump more too. The walls in that room are a subtle green, so this is definitely made to the space.

The pattern is the same one we used in the Kaffe Fassett class - I think he's calling it Potpourri in the next book. In his latest book it's called Tapestry. I turned it on end and took off 12" of blocks to fit the niche.

Using a pattern like this is a real departure for me because it's not a slice, dice and sew quilt. Most of the patterns I've used have you cut, sew, cut etc until you have blocks that you then arrange. Here each patch is individually cut and placed. Those empty spaces are what was left after I placed the first group of patches. This allowed me to pick and choose the remaining cuts. This all came together in just a couple of mornings, but that's probably because it's been percolating a while. I'd gotten out most of these fabrics at least twice in the past, but put them away feeling like I wasn't ready yet.

I've included this photo with the missing patches to show three points Kaffe reiterated throughout class. (1) Use a design wall. The "design wall" doesn't have to be fancy or permanent - mine will come down with the quilt. I wish I had a good spot for a permanent one, but this does the job. The cotton sticks naturally to the batting so no pins are required except for really big or long pieces like the borders - you can move things at will. I first got this idea from Jan at Be*mused whose wonderful quilts certainly show the power of creating one's quilt like artwork. She always uses a design wall and tests different fabrics. She's not afraid to cull and replace until she's happy. I've always appreciated her photos showing the process. (2) Leave no white space between the patches as you place them. You can see from these missing blocks how white space distorts the color relationships that will show up when the pieces are sewn. (3) Stand back. Kaffe kept strongly encouraging (i.e., scolding) us to move back and see the whole composition. Everything changes when you can get some distance and look at it as a whole, and not at an angle on the floor where I've always worked.

It was two of Kaffe's newer prints that gave me motivation to start cutting. The floral print used on the border and his foxgloves done in the same rich purple and red colorway became the glue that brought all the colors together. Here are come closeups. I'm so happy to finally be able to use the artichoke and flying veggie fabrics!

Since I'm taking the girls to KY for nine days over spring break I don't know if I'll start sewing before we leave - might save this for after they go back to school. Right now I'm just happy to look at fruits and flowers instead of weeds.

 

Birch is finished! Happy New Knitting Year

Cast off Birch just before the bell on January 1, 2007 at 11:30 PM. I wanted to start the new year with a finished object. Pre-blocked:

 

Blocking in action (wires from KnitPicks).

I belong to the "stretch the crap out of it" school of lace blocking. When I finished this thing was elevated 1" off the floor from the tension.

The wires are well worth it. They allowed me to pull each side to a very even line and adjustments were easier. Been eying these things for a while, but wasn't sure they were worth the money. I vote yes.

Did add to the kit by ordering fork pins today. This kit didn't have enough long straights and my sewing pins on hand didn't hold up well to the task. Also, as the tension increased the wires would jump the pin. Learned to turn them perpendicular so the T-top caught, which helped some, but I think the U shape will be better.

OK, another gratuitous shot, but I'm amused.

Post blocking shots to come when I'm appropriately dressed for modeling. Need to stop wearing my red bathrobe as a "house coat" but I'm not really compelled. I've always felt a certain connection to The Dude on this matter.

Kids have been off two weeks and we've all taken to spending inordinate amounts of time in our pj's. Four days in a row of playdates coming over have been the only thing knocking us into regular clothes (and not always then, as shown here).

The rill is serving its purpose as our personal woodland stream. As long as no not too much (I'm a realist) foreign matter gets added they can play. Yesterday Ems put on her swimsuit for a while until even she had to admit is wasn't that warm.

I'm enjoying putting this post together. Last week found me in a mood. Decided it was better to keep things to myself so I hibernated. In our world of "get it out there" I've found some things are better kept close. Things you can't change, or don't want to - really - but want to today. Things for which radical change would actually not be an improvement, but minor, manageable change is not immediately interesting (because your mind is having more fun with thoughts of radical change). Experience ... not grand wisdom per say, but just plain ol' years alive ... has taught me that when I feel this way I'm better off taking a wait and see approach. If I call every friend, startle every acquaintance (way too much information thanks) or bore strangers - or blog readers - with my frustrations I'll regret it. With some things talking is great. Therapeutic. Beneficial. The path to understanding. But with things like this I know that next week I'll find my way to that manageable change, but if I've talked, everyone around me will be expecting an explosion. No explosions forthcoming. 

To some degree I might attribute some moodiness to the time of year. I know I'm not alone (chin up Moni), but most of it's related to my own personal calender rather than the Gregorian one. We all have those moments of change - events that redirect our lives forever. If the work of countless poets and writers is any indication, I'd say I'm not alone in this human condition of melancholy reconsideration. Makes me envious of August and Raven. Cats understand what's important.

Yes, the photo is accurate. Raven is getting little white hairs all over her body. My vets haven't seen anything like it and they noticed it at the animal shelter too (took her back to get fixed). Her face has remained the darkest - she's gone pepper with a good dash of salt on her back. And yes, I'm such a sucker for this cat that I let her sleep on my swatches. Found her yesterday at the top of my shelves in another basket full of yarn. This kitten is no fool.

So, since I can't live lying around all day like a cat or dog, I'm a crafter. If the brain's running in circles, one might as well put the hands to work.

Ariann (in Rowan Kid Classic) progresses. Seeing the lovely finished ones all over blogland (Risa and Cara both love theirs) has spurred me on.

River (in Rowan Kidsilk Haze) is flowing again.

I've found for whatever reason I can't watch TV and knit this pattern. The back and forth movement is not a hard pattern, but I found myself, to abuse the metaphor, swimming against the current.

Still undecided about the beaded scrunchy thing Rowan shows holding the wrap across the front. Did any of you River knitters make one? Do you use it?

From the lost and found files:

I was connecting the blocks on the new Christmas quilt before my little hand surgery, but five days after Christmas it just wasn't compelling. Why bother?

Jan had great thoughts on starting the new year off fresh. Well worth the read. I like her attitude. Though you must finish those blocks Jan - if only to show the rest of us what the whole quilt top looks like.

So, in the spirit of new beginnings I went to put it away and found this. Oh. Would you look at that... an unfinished Christmas quilt. At least four years old! Guess I'll finish them both in 11 months. This one makes me proud of how far I've come. Cut this fabric about 4-5 months after I got my machine. No one told me it was hard to sew to points on bias cut flannel (what's bias?). I was going to do Christmas trees - how difficult could it be? Cut out a bunch of triangles and sew right? Who needs a stinking pattern? I ended up just crazy piecing all my bits and pieces after I discovered the pack of fat quarters I'd picked up didn't necessarily add up to a full quilt top. But you know what? I kind of like it for its naive energy. It will get finished in due time.

This one's time will come sooner. My first quilt top. (That box in the bottom of the closet held so many secrets!) What really makes me laugh now is remembering how I thought that dark green with the light flower stencil print was so ... bold! This from the woman taking a Kaffe Fassett class this coming weekend.

It reminds me of fields seen from the air. I even found it with the borders already cut. Fear of quilting stopped me then and ... well here we are. I intend to overcome my fear of free-motion on this one. It's not a showpiece. It's been languishing all this time. No fear.

For those of you who don't do both, quilting and knitting patterns share common phrasing at the end ... "bind and quilt as desired" and "finish and block as desired". Time-consuming, technically challenging and often tedious processes all wrapped up in five simple words. Make-or-break steps referenced with a vague wave of the hand. Run along now, this pattern is finished. It's taking me several years of knitting and quilting to even being to understand my "desires" for finishing. ... Please know I type this stuff innocently, but see my own allusions and metaphors when I proof. Too much art. Wow, that phrase takes me back! After a semester full of lit, art and philosophy classes EVERYTHING became symbolic. "Too much art," was our cry for release from the mortal coil. Time to go out to the bars kids - there's a good band playing.

BTW, I understand now why patterns end the way they do and I know there are myriad books to fill in those technique gaps, but that's an understanding developed over time. In the beginning this self-taught knitter/quilter went numb when the pattern ended ... What now? Lot's yet to learn, but at least I'm no longer frozen.

Happy New Year!

Still life w/clementines - Ariann, socks, kitten, puppy & Pi

Yes, I still knit, sew and scrap. No, I don't have to prove it. Believe it because I said so. That's why. (OK, you're nice and not one of my children, so I'll show loads of pics in a minute)

My fantasy is that "I said so" will work on the kids as well as on the 15 month old Lab. I love this dog because she's the only one who actually does what I tell her. If I tell her she has to wait for the kitten to eat...

She waits.

Now, I'm not usually one to think anthropomorphically about animals, but you can almost hear Cami's voice in these photos...

What's taking so long Raven, I can eat in 30 seconds flat!

Ooops ... you dropped one. Ya want me to clean that up for you?  (I adore that furrowed brow)

Finished? Really? Would it be ok, maybe, if you don't mind, for me to eat your leftovers. I mean, what kind of animal leaves food in the bowl?

I swear to you, she never touched the kitten's food because I told her to wait. She did get a dog cookie for being so good. I love this dog.

Love this kitten too. She's one of the most people oriented cats I've ever met. She's in my lap right now as I type, purring.

Since I've last posted we almost lost her. She got cat flu at the shelter and fell ill the day after my last post. She wouldn't eat or drink and at the lowest point my postal scale read 1 lb 7 oz. She was a tiny, fragile skeleton. I had to feed her by syringe every 3 hours until she could smell again (they won't eat if they can't smell). It was a long 7 days. Now she's very healthy and boss of the house. She intimidates the 4 year old male who weighs in at 20+ lbs, though they share our bed and play together now. She eats first with him too (poor emasculated guy).

Sorry for the long delay in posting, but along with the cat, Thanksgiving, kids, etc., I've been to the dentist six times in the last three weeks. Enough said. The only, and I mean only, nice part about it is that I've gotten some knitting done while waiting for the anesthesia to take (seems I'm "resistant" to it and require multiple series of shots - oh joy).

The sock is coming slowly. Big thanks to a very kind reader for letting me know about the chart glitch! Why "kind reader"? Because I can't find her email. But while looking I did see one from Nancy who asked which Vogue had this pattern ... it's by Charlene Schurch in an article called "Fancy Footwork" in the Fall 2006 issue. Nancy, and anyone else I've not answered, so sorry, but you were lost in the great Adelphia to Time Warner debacle transfer of 2006. No email was delivered to my Outlook for almost a month. I could read on-line and answer through their old-school interface, but I have no record of whom I answered or when. Very frustrating. "Do you have email?" became a conversation starter around here. Finally got tired of waiting for their instructions and waded through the switch manually. I was very proud of myself Risa! Four weeks of email came pouring into my Outlook at once. Still haven't cleaned it out.

The above photo really frustrates me. Without boring you with details, this has been cropped, sized and uploaded numerous times and while the only photo I can see in my new photo program (provided by Time Warner ... hummm) is the cropped version, the uncropped version is what exports every time. Can't get to the original to touch it. Now my old photo program won't open - seems the new one snuffed it out. I might not think of my animals in human terms, but I know the PC is out to get me - it's personal. PCs - the ultimate love/hate relationship! So, forgive me, but uncropped photos ahead...

Pi has been my dentist's chair buddy. Mindless knitting at its best. No photo can do justice to a pi shawl on the needles - people keep asking me if it's a hat ... yeah, a hat for Hagrid. So, you must trust me that it's coming along.

The more mathmatically minded Risa has shared her Pi formula with me, but I still don't know how far I'll get with my two balls of Brooks Farms Primero because I've not finished the first ball. I don't want this to be too small, so I'm considering plan B, but not thinking too hard yet. I'll keep you posted. Since I've got at least three more visits to the dentist to go this month I expect to make some progress.

Progress was not being made on Ariann in the Jo Sharp Silkroad. I know others have finished it in that yarn, but it wasn't singing for me so I'd put it aside. Finally got out all those handy-dandy swatches and took gauge until my eyes crossed. Matched a bunch to promising patterns, then picked Rowan Kid Classic for Ariann and cast on.

This one is singing!

The above was just a few trips to the dentist's progress. Since I started writing this post the first button hole has been made and I had a little epiphany. Mark the button placement on the opposite side of the sweater when you knit the row ... no row counting or worrying about alignment later! Maybe this is obvious to everyone else, but I'm pretty excited. Of course as I've pointed out before, I'm easily amused. As if taking photos of my knitting on clementines isn't a big give-away.

Hum, what else was posing with the fruit this morning? (Froukje - found a perfect use for your bag!)

Found this sad sock started at least two years ago, worked for a few inches last year, then tucked away again. You can see my shifting gauge. I've certainly gotten more comfortable with the little sticks because I managed 3-4 inches just last night. Stopping at the heel and started making the second. I'll stop at the same spot then decide on heel turning technique and do them together.

Finally, I've missed the memes about "show me your space", so I'll share now since I took photos during the five minutes it was organized last week when I truly cleaned my craft room. Inside the cabinets - under the desk - the whole thing. It's still not decorated because I want to make quilts for the walls, but at least it's usable.

This is the room off the foyer that's always shown in model homes as a wood paneled office. Our office is in the back bedroom because there's nothing glamorous about my filing chaos.

This room is not particularly stylish yet either given its hodgepodge of furniture, but I have a vision for the future. For now it has nice afternoon light (the room faces west, this was taken in the AM) and I can keep an eye on the kids playing out front. We debated putting the craft room right at the entry, but we only entertain friends and everyone knows about my hobbies - why not come out of the closet as it may be. I was tired of taking friends to my bedroom walk-in to see the fun stuff!

I've managed to fit in a sewing corner. There's a Christmas quilt cut and ready to sew behind the bag. See that cloth - nicely ironed and folded in the bins... it's waiting...

For those of you who scrapbook, I've found the perfect paper holders:  Costco Silk boxes. (yeah, we love Silk around here)

Just put file hangers inside and the paper is easy to sort. Seeing this makes me guilty for all those photos in boxes. So many hobbies, so little free time.

I even organized my craft closet (I was on a mission). I used to teach stamping classes and have multiples of many inks and tools, but don't want to get rid of it yet because my girls are just getting to the age of doing crafty things with their friends. I was getting sick of no being able to use the room, so I had to get some of the boxes out of the way. Those of you with basements and attics don't know how good you have it! My house is spacious, but there're no hidden spaces. None. This is the coat closet (hey, it's SoCal, we don't use coats). Now, off to work in my "office".

Portland remembered & knitting WIPs

First, thanks for your welcome backs. I've read them all in my comments section, but some have never come to me as an email - lost in the switch from Adelphia to Time Warner. I still can't download emails to my desktop, but I can now read new ones online. Please forgive any email misses on my part.

Sadly, our little cat Claude has not come home. The cats stay indoors, so we can only figure that he must have been near an open door and gotten scared out. DH had hired a guy that day to help with planting, so he must have run further up the hill to hide. He was an exceptionally timid cat - he would have never gone exploring. Coming downstairs was a walk on the wild side for him. We have preserve areas behind both sides of our street with lots of nature. I just hope it was mercifully fast. Didn't expect to find another kitty so soon, but this little darling was dropped at the animal shelter and I couldn't resist. She had exactly the temperament for this chaos and is very people oriented. Just what we needed.

Here's something I don't need.

Hum, we've established I need the kitten .... So, it must be another CO. But I did it anyway. That's my eldest's youthful hand, not mine. She's on fall break for two weeks starting today. Thankfully small one remains usefully engaged at her Montessori school. This yarn has been in my stash for years waiting for a lace pattern to make the most of a solid color. While idly leafing through the latest Vogue Knitting I found a pattern using this exact yarn. It's a physically hard knit. The repeats aren't that difficult, but all the knit stitches are made through the back loop. Looks cool, but the tight stitches on fragile toothpicks with yarn that has sticky acrylic in it is slow going. Maybe it's me. Still, I like the pattern a lot. Anyway, here's a better look sans kitten:

Noro sweater is coming along too:

Finally unpacked my Portland stash - and only two weeks after returning - a record I think. I've just realized I have a life-long habit... I unpack clothes, toiletries, etc within a day or two of returning from a trip, but the ephemera sits for (at least) weeks. Sometimes months. Sometimes years. I just don't want to explore the memories while they're that fresh. I think it's because I tend to have post-trip-blues and looking at mementos and photos from just days or even hours before just makes it worse. At the risk of sounding like a rube, I have to admit plane travel still throws me. It's all such a blur of down time and blandness that it's all instantly forgotten. I'm always a little shocked that one minute I'm in one place and then, blink, I'm home and the whole experience in which I was so deeply engaged is suddenly in "the past". Here's the family and house, all the same, but I'm different. Damn this meta-cognition. Must be more zen ... must be more zen ... must be more zen. Of course none of the above means I don't love coming home. My nest and all that. I reserve the right to have completely opposing emotions simultaneously.

I went to Portland to see paper arts friends I've known for over eight years. We're spread across the country (really spread! California, Nebraska, Texas, Ohio, Florida and New Jersey) but keep in touch via mail art and our private Yahoo group. Over the years we've done weekend getaways in Santa Fe, NYC, Cleveland (for the now defunct Art Continuum event) and now Portland for Art & Soul. We all took a class, but the main point was hanging out. Getting together with these women is pure pleasure. No pretenses. No stress. Lots of talk and laughter. Bonus points that we all like to go to art and craft shops.

We only had time for two trips into the city, so choices had to be made. We focused on the Farmers Market, Pearl District, NE Alberta St, a brief walk around downtown and Nob Hill.

First thing Saturday morning I persuaded them that the Portland Farmers Market would be worth it. It was.

Whenever I travel I look for markets. I love them all - flea markets, antique markets, arts and crafts markets - but by far my favorites are always the seasonal farmers markets. It's where you see the locals and literally get a taste of their life. It's a bit painful if you don't have access to a kitchen on your trip, but there's always fresh bread, cheese and fruit to make a meal.

I always eat street food. Tony Bourdain and I would travel together fabulously. I'd leave him the nasty bits and he'd give me the veggies. I've eaten from street vendors and hole-in-the-wall shops in Mexico, Greece, Russia, Canada, Paris and London and I'm not dead yet. If there's a line I figure it must be good. Years ago my husband and I had the most amazing sandwich in Toronto that was an unexplainable mix of French pate and Vietnamese salad and spices on a baguette. The line was out the door of the tiny shop and only one other customer was Anglo. We asked him what was good and he said just point at the sign (no English) and say "sandwich". OKayyy. It worked. I've never forgotten that lunch.

Aren't these parsnips beautiful? My kids and I adore parsnips. A potato with more flavor. Oven fry them with oil and salt.

The dahlias were beyond beautiful. It was very overcast and I didn't have a tripod, so I had trouble getting clear shots under the vendors' tents. Still, you get the idea.

This market has made displaying your wares an art form. All the vendors do it, if only to keep up with Farmer Jones in the next stall.

I was in line when a woman breezed by me stopping only long enough to say "Ah, Clapotis!" My friends laughed and said we're a cult. Yep.

This was my favorite public display of handknitting that day. Yes, I did ask permission from his mama and promised not to show his face.

After the market we went to Powell's. Love that they have the latest titles mixed with resale books. Gives browsing an extra boost because even if you've seen all the latest titles, there still might be something "new" to you. Found out of print Alice Starmore books, but none that I had to have at the price offered. This seemed more practical.

After Powell's lunch was in order. I highly recommend Henry's Tavern. One side is a bar and the other a restaurant. Forgive the dark photos. Two beers probably didn't help my arm, but I did use a pint glass to balance the camera. These crab cakes were amazing. I'm not in love with mashed potatoes but I ate every last bite of these. Sadly, one of our party became very ill (nothing to do with food at Henry's or the market) so we left downtown Portland so she could rest.

 

Sport that she is (and with hard-earned money burning a hole in her pocket) we drove to Alberta Street to find a bead store (her current hobby). Great thing about Alberta street is that it has fabric, yarn, bead, paper arts, wine and coffee shops. There was something for everyone in our group!

Close Knit is a well stocked and charming store. The women who run it were friendly and approachable. If you live in the area and haven't stopped by go find it. There're are plenty of places to sit and loads of inspiration from floor to ceiling. I'd been wanting this new Mission Falls book. Realized I wanted this Fino lace weight (70% alpaca/30% silk) from Alpaca with a Twist too, I just didn't know it until I held it.

 

Oh-so-conveniently located right next door is Bolt. Small shop, but very focused on "hip" fabrics, so the space is rich with inspiration if this is your style. Guess it's mine as I have pieces of at least 1/4 of their stock! They also have a nice selection of designer decor weight fabrics which my local quilt stores don't carry. Got this new Amy Butler heavy print there and found the book at my local quilt store when I got home. Perfect match.

 

I love neighborhoods like this where the rent is still cheap enough that small boutiques can take a shot and there are no chains.

I always tried to live in places like this when I was young, single and poor. Funny thing time. Now I'm that middle aged "arty" suburbanite that drops in occasionally to take in the atmosphere and energy.

Hardest part about getting older is that you still see the world through the same eyes. Shaw asked "Oh why is youth wasted on the young?" Trust me, it starts making sense at 40. Something tells me it's not going to stop.

A little more about Art & Soul next time.

We have cast on

I'm alive, somewhat well and once again knitting.

The jackhammers and stone saws finally stopped two weeks ago and I got cast on fever. Have been intending to blog ever since. But I couldn't focus on the screen (drat turning 41) and a new prescription was required. Then there was a four day weekend to Portland OR with art friends (photos upcoming). Then the medicines I was taking for my back conspired to rip out my stomach lining (feels like it sounds), which required dr visits, etc. Then I came home to discover our painfully shy kitty had disappeared while I was gone, which means my nine year old with whom he slept had a very rough week (lots of tears all around). Add to that housekeeping and gardening and you get the picture (which is good since I'm out of parentheticals for now). When I finally found a chance to blog this weekend Time Warner was having issues. Brenda? get on the ball woman.

The CO fever started with a nice little email from Chic Knits. Might I be interested in Ariann, Bonne Marie's new cardigan pattern? Oh yes.

Just so happens one of the those industrious little stash swatches reveled that Jo Sharp's Silkroad DK Tweed (colour 404 Boheme) had the right gauge. I could see this pattern worked in a more fluid yarn, but I like the rougher texture too. It is a little slower going across the needles though. 

Hum, that's a nice cardi, but what about a pullover for more casual wear? There's that green Noro Silk Garden (#203) feeling kind of lonely in my closet.

The pattern is Y772 from Noro Book 20. If you don't want to click, imagine an entire ribbed, funnel-neck pullover with these color blocks.

This may sound perverse to some of you, but I hate knitting rib stitch and only considered this pattern because of the intarsia. All those color changes makes the tedious front and back switching of the yarn worthwhile. Yeah, perverse. This color section had eight balls going across the row. Just finished this section last night - I'll get another section going before I take more pics.

Very pleased to report that this is the Silk Garden I love - no sticks, no excessive funky fibers, silky wool feel on the fingers and of course, those colors that keep you knitting just one more row to see where they're going to go. Bought it at Sophie's Fine Yarn the last time I visited Louisville, so I still wonder if there's a difference between what gets dumped on ebay vs what gets delivered to a LYS. Maybe it was just a production glitch that one year? Anyone with info - just for curiosity's sake?

So, two sweaters in process - very good. Still, I needed a travel-worthy absolutely mindless, alcohol-induced-dropped-stitch-proof (ok, resistant) project for going to Portland. Add that the two hanks of Brooks Farms Primero I got at Rhinebeck last year were calling me. A thousand yards of pure mohair goodness that's so soft and silky ... words fail me. This is wonderful yarn. I love the colors and wanted to keep it simple. The original Pi Shawl from Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac fit the bill with instructions that fit on a 3x5" card:  Cast on and knit forever with occasional YO rows.

This photo is from the transfer between 16" and 32" circs. Now it's in pouch form until cast off. Got the rough gauge with US8's Certainly easy as pi ... after that nasty CO. Was going a little crazy until I googled the Emily Ocher CO to find it's universally a DP-throwing, curse-word-muttering PITA, especially with silky yarn. No single bit of info I found on line turned on the lightbulb, but all together it got me there and I found it very reassuring to know I wasn't totally crazy, completely inept or both. Of all the knitting techniques I've ever done, this is the one that I would most recommend being shown in person. I got there, but precious knitting time was wasted. If you ever need it, find the nearest knitter who knows how.

So, now I'm really back. With some consistency I hope. I've found I missed reading blogs and writing mine, which is kind of nice. This is not an obligation but a pleasure. I appreciate all of you who've dropped back by 'just in case' and want to extend my thanks for the emails of support over the last three months. There are a couple of you I still need to answer. I will be forthcoming with more landscaping photos, Portland photos, knitting and quilting updates. Just wanted to get the ball rolling today. Here are a few pics of my one semi-planted bed.

Dahlias, switch grass, caryopteris (out of bloom) and sedum.

Verbena, penstemon and orange sedge in the background.

As soon as the plants arrived we had bees, hummingbirds, butterflies, song birds a lizard and a frog. The next shot was a lucky surprise I found staring me down from my PC screen when the photos uploaded.

Funky Monkey & Daizez Quilts, Mason Dixon strikes again and Birch gets drunk

I'm going to reveal a little something ... you will either see yourself or think I'm a nutcase. When I log on to typepad and look at the date of my last post I wonder what happened. I think of things to post all the time while driving, doing the dishes, sewing, knitting or any other activity that engages the body while leaving the mind to wander its own labyrinth. Of course these posts are witty, engaging, informative ... etc etc. Don't be nice and suggest I carry a notebook or some such thing - I'd never use it. I've decided my brain uses "Hey, write this in the blog ..." as its internal dialog starter. You are all my imaginary friends and I talk to you about inter-connectivity in the universe and quarter inch seams. Not to imply in the least that you're not real individuals with real lives of your own, but in my little dialogs, no, make that monologues, you're just a quiet, rapt audience. I just realized ... I miss Spalding Gray. Wow, that man could tell a story.

OK, some photos to share. I took these yesterday, but am only now sitting down at 9 PM the next day. Today I cleaned the entire garage. Not just tidied. Rearranged. Sorted. Organized. Vacuumed. CLEANED. We had some mice out there recently. Enough said if you've ever cleaned up after mice. The lengths I will go to to get my husband to put up one of those mop/broom handle bracket thingies. He claimed it was not required - that it was just too messy out there. I require it darnit and I deserve it. I am tired. Yes, I know I could put it up myself, but that would disrupt the powerful tool-use separation force in this household. I get the washer, dryer and sewing machine. He gets the power drill and all PCs (fixing, not using). I'll hammer nails with abandon, but I don't do drywall anchors or operating systems.

First, a quilt top. Two or three years ago I bought four one-yard pieces of tumbling sock monkey fabric in red, orange, lime green and white. I was young and stupid. I didn't know that not much in the way of quilting can be done with four yards of the same print. Then the sock monkey line was no where to be found and those lonely monkeys were hidden deep in my stash. This spring Moda revived Funky Monkeys. Oh joy! Bought a fat quarter pack and a story panel. Problem is that they went pastel on me. The lime became minty. The orange got soft. They introduced baby blue, yellow, pink and lavender. I pieced it anyway. This is a square Turning Twenty. The story blocks plugged right into that formula so it was very fast to piece. Just today I received some Chenille-it ribbon to join the story blocks. Will try it tomorrow and share.

Earlier in the week I'd leafed through Mason Dixon Knitting for a light diversion after a long day. Didn't really walk away with anything concrete, but that was ok. The book is so fun. So funny. You all have it, so you know what I mean. If you don't have it, go buy it now. Anyway, yesterday morning I cleaned out some of my stash closet. Yeah, some weird cleaning urge has come over me - I have to honor it because it will go away soon and may not return for many moons. Spent some time coming up with a stash recycling plan (more on that next post) and was moving along nicely when this chenille stopped me. You know those yarns you've never gotten rid of because they're so pretty, or soft, or expensive? Or pretty, soft and expensive? Bought four colors of Blue Heron Yarns handpainted chunky chenille way back when. Not to abuse my naive stupidity excuse, but I, with my new knitter zeal, thought an 8 oz hank of each would be enough to make a sweater. I mean, they looked so big. And those stripes wouldn't make my butt look huge, right? And cotton chenille worked tightly enough for a sweater wouldn't break my hands would it? So now I have four colors and not enough to do anything ... or maybe ... Log Cabin Knitting saves the day! Thank you Kay and Ann. And in the middle of the block? A vacation purchase of three hanks of recycled silk. I wasn't a naive knitter by then, but like I said, I was on vacation. We all know how that can happen.

My field of flowers is growing too. A little slowly, but surely.

 

The bias sewing was kicking my ass. That big blue one in the first row was the worst but I'm starting to get the hang of it.

Cool thing with these Daizez is that bad is still good. Ok with me. There's a great moment at the end where this whacked up bunch of strips gets squared off and suddenly ... blooms. (couldn't resist)

I will make a non-kid quilt. Really. But I've needed this sewing 101. 1/4" seams, joins, bias stretch ... I'm getting there. In the meantime my kids are reaping the benefits.

Have been thinking blue. Still can't decide on a pattern though.

Birch is kind of blue. Does that count? I've been knitting poolside while the kids play, but found out last Friday evening that Stoli, lemonade, Limoncello and lace don't mix. Well, those first three do quite nicely, but the lace gets all mucked up. Spent Saturday AM dance class undoing what vodka did.

Love the difference in to colors of these two photos taken just seconds and a puff of breeze apart.

Have a great weekend everyone.

I'll cry myself a river ... of blue kidsilk spray

October is shaping up to be a little busy around here. Getting a yellow Labrador puppy around Halloween, but I've got lots to learn so I'm busy reading. Taking the kids to Louisville, then I'm going to NYC/Rhinebeck from there. The week after we all go to Yosemite. Got another nerve root block for my back/leg yesterday. Life is good, hectic, occasionally painful (that last one) and full of anticipation. And dirty laundry. But I've got photos... or Yarn Porn according to some nice knitters on the Knitter's Review boards. Thanks for your emails and compliments.

This...

is becoming this:

Sorry this is a little blurry, the breeze and my oh-so-tired she just couldn't hold it still one second longer eight year old weren't cooperating. This drama just moments before two hours of water balloon fights and bike riding. Guess it gives it that watery effect. The colorway is called Medici and so far it's not pooling oddly. The River pattern from the latest Rowan Magazine is pretty easy so I don't need the book anymore, which makes it a bit more portable. I've added on another repeat since this was taken. You can join the fun over at Savannahchik's KAL.

A little Rowan Cashcotton goodness:

Which is on it's way to being a garment.

I've not gotten back to this in a few weeks because I need to concentrate on the shoulder shaping.

Sleeves should be straight forward, but then I still have that all-the-frickin'-way-around ruffle which I fear will go on forever.

I've still not cast on, but have picked the pattern for the first denim sweater: a cabled cardigan called Lizzie from the first Rowan Denim book. Not planning on knitting the tie - this will be a toss-it-on and relax cardigan.

Yes, those are my new Denise needles. Explored the west coast branch of Noble Knits a few weeks back and took Tess's enthusiastic recommendation. I like them so far. Great thing about crafting... a week or so later I was at the pattern tables in JoAnn's and there was Tess wearing an oh-so-chic felted Manos hat. We started chatting and suddenly a voice piped in from behind and there was a student from my former stamping class days who also liked Noble Knits and recognized Tess. We were joined by more customers and a pleasant hour and a half passed in crafty talk. All ages and backgrounds brought together by a love of creating things. It's good to get out sometimes.

What can I say? It's lovely and very soft. Elann's Peruvian Baby Silk. Her prices and very effective "get it while you can" sales strategy strikes again. Shawl probably.

This really falls in the "What can I say???" category! Was in a bad/funky mood and didn't want to touch yarn for fear of ruining something. Cutting up plastic bags proved very therapeutic. Mine isn't as tightly knit as Knight's from Simple Knits with a Twist, but I'm just having fun being soooo ironic with my bag made of bags to hold bags. Will hang it on the laundry room wall with poo/litter bags.

On a more traditional front, I pulled out this poor forlorn sock over the weekend and added on several inches while passing time at my nephew's birthday party. Cast on a good three years ago on two circulars and just didn't click with that technique. Transferred it to dp's last year, but then it got shoved back in the depths of my closet. Seems too beautiful to leave languishing forever doesn't it?

Btw, this is my 3 yr old's delicate foot, not my Cro-Magnon appendage.

The fabric passion continues:

The kitchy fun fabrics are for Christmas presents for my kids and niece. I think I'll look for some tweed to go with the French prints in the middle. The remaining on the right are just because. I really like this on-line only fabric store, Cia's Palette. She shipped on the day I ordered and everything came so perfectly folded and wrapped with a little sample cutting too. I'm so inspired by Jackie's cute bags that I'm itching to get the machine out again.

You can see from these photos that I've yet to get more than narrow stripes of sunlight anywhere in the house during the day. We get the most direct light in the winter when the sun moves south. Don't buy a house with perfect S/N orientation. The garage door gets the best light for most of the year and the back patio goes dark all winter - it's criminal from an architectural standpoint. We didn't buy the house, we grabbed the lot and said thank you. No choice about the house. Such is real estate in coastal North County San Diego.

I'll leave you with a recent photo of my angelic butterfly. Yeah, sure. Couldn't get her to pose facing the light. Oh no, that would be helping Mommy. Does this look like a sweet, helping expression? Total imp. Yarn is so much better behaved!

 

Yarn Harlot, Oregon, Sewing & Koigu

Funny how for a mom, a week's vacation adds a week's housework before and after -- doesn't add up really does it? Didn't help that for the week before departure my kids had swimming lessons and camps each day and, of course, needed all those "favorite" clothes washed and packed by 5 AM Saturday morning. For once I'd like to start a vacation with more than 3 hours sleep.

I loved Portland! Oh joy - other people do wear skirts and comfortable shoes and little to no makeup. I saw so many women of all ages who seemed comfortable looking like individuals. I live in So Cal, but it's by accident and for the time being I'm stuck here (DH's job is what he's worked to achieve and I support his desire to see where it goes). I long to live somewhere from the Bay Area north. I know, there are many worse places to be "stuck", but on the whole this is not the best match for my pale, rain-loving, mall-hating self.

Portland on the other hand, does get rain, but then, they grow stuff like