I'm mailing my donations to the Red Scarf Project. Besides scarves, monetary donations can be made through paypal. There is a link on the site.
I enjoyed making all these scarves! Instant gratification:)
Monday, September 28, 2009
Red Scarf project
I'm mailing my donations to the Red Scarf Project. Besides scarves, monetary donations can be made through paypal. There is a link on the site.
I enjoyed making all these scarves! Instant gratification:)
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Hello Kitty has her day!
My oldest sister is a Hello Kitty junkie so I have a hard time passing by anything Hello Kitty or Sanrio. I was going for a large project bag with the Halloween Hello Kitty fabric. It came out very large. I adore the fabric.
The little zipper bags are a bit of a pain to make as they zipper is sewn in by hand. I found some great little charms at the not so-99 cents store and the recent trade show.
brella has some free Totoro patterns on Ravelry and this is her little chibi Totoro. I love his bobble tail. Normally I avoid bobbles as they just seem redundant, but this is a giant bobble and is really quite cute. He is Beaverslide natural, knit with size 4 needles.
February Lady has not budged for awhile. Montego seasilk scarf has been frogged and is trying to become Ysolda's Damson, but definitely not on size 5 needles.
The final day of Shibori was really fun. I got to talk to blogless Doris who has taken the class many times and had some great samples. She disappeared before I whipped my camera out, but I hope to see her again. This time I got the long kim chee making gloves from Palama Market and my fingers were in pretty good shape, but my feet are still blue.
Monday, September 14, 2009
A Different Kind of Blues
I took a Shibori Class on the spur of the moment. I stopped by Kuni's Island Fabric for some interfacing and saw the class sample. It must have been fate as there was room in the class! The class is taught by a fiber artist and teacher, Darius Homay. I arrived Sunday with my prewashed fabric and came away with 6 different techniques! Also, blue fingers.
I lucked out as all the other ladies were repeaters, so I had private lessons! Mr. Homay was very personable, knowlegeable and I had a grand time! I have another class next Sunday. Maybe by that time all the blue will be gone from my fingers and they can get blue again.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Finished near Friday
Pattern: Children's Neck Down Bolero by Dianne Soucy
Yarn: Cascade Cotton Rich, 5 skeins
Needles: size 8 and 7
I knit the size 2. I'm still not sure about the button placement. The yardage of the yarn is small and there were knots, so there were quite a few ends to weave in. I was afraid the yarn would be too bulky to weave in well, but this turned out know to be a problem. The pattern is very quick to knit and well-written. It would be lovely in Jo Sharp's Silkroad Aran Tweed, but I wanted something a bit more rugged and easy to wash.
Pattern: I used a combination of Wendy's Toe Up Sock and Mim's Toe Up Heel Flap.
Yarn: Kool Aid dyed at the Anacortes Arts Festival this year by mwah:)at Ana-Cross Stitch needle works shop.
Needles: size 1
This was a very fun project for me. I am very cheered by the bright colors and the sweet kool aid smell.
Saturday, September 05, 2009
Odds and Ends
On the knitting scene, I am flitting from project to project. I guess I'm not the serial knitter I thought I was. I also have regret about my stash of sock yarn that is loved but has gone untouched. I envision starting a new project, perhaps toe-up with the kool aid dyed yarn and have wound it in to a ball. Of my other wips, February Lady seems to be taking forever to grow. At least I have measured my length and have the target set, and then the sleeves. Top Down Bolero seems to be the favored one, and after the collar, I'll be ready for the sleeves. Montego Seasilk scarf is hibernating and I even thought of frogging it for another project.
So on to more travelogue.
At the Anacortes Craft Festival, while I was dyeing my yarn, several of my party were getting their Fair T-shirts signed by the artist, Jack Gunther. We took up his invitation to visit his gallery. I think it's fair to say, he was an odd and interesting character. At first I thought he might be schizophrenic. His explanation of how civilization began around Mt. Vernon, complete with artifacts, such as a computer on pottery
gave us all cause to smile. I especially liked his paintings with removable magnetic parts, like this one revealing the secret submarine base under Camano Island
He also has a book, A Pictorial History of the Pacific Northwest Including the Future, told from the viewpoint of a pig. We shared our lunch with him and blogless Kathy O. got some awesome homemade salsa from the small store next door. It was a fun outing of a different kind, and I can say we were all surprised but happy!
When I look at all the picture I took, one of the biggest folders is of the Seattle Gasworks Park. This is a 19 acre park across Lake Union from downtown Seattle and features great views of Seattle including the space needle and a rusting hulk, which was once a working Gaswork. It was built in 1906 to manufacture gas from coal - later converted to crude oil. Import of natural gas in the 1950's made the plant obsolete.
Somehow this hulking mass appeals to me...
It reminds me of Myst and Howl's Moving Castle.
Changing the subject abruptly...here is a picture of Lenin in Fremont. A Washingtonian rescued it from a scrapyard in Poprad, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia) and had it shipped home and erected in Fremont (as a work of art, not a political statement). Accorded to Wikipedia it's for sale.
And last but not least a mosaic of the log cabin blogless Melody and her husband are building with the help of their son. Her husband took a two day course. He cleared the land and many of the logs went into making the house. We were there for chinking. In the mosaic are the shower, the bathroom, the kitchen and the well house where they are living until the main house gets closed up, as well as Melody's garden, Some of the objects of art from the garden came from a garage sale. She were following Melody on one of our daily adventures, and before we knew it we had followed her into a garage sale! It was one of those impromptu Melody moments that will stick in my mind as a very happy event.
The pond on the property has a beaver dam. Every once in a while her husband has to cut into it to drain the duckweed out of it and he says at 10 pm sharp, the beavers come out and fix the breach. Otherwise, they never see them.
So on to more travelogue.
At the Anacortes Craft Festival, while I was dyeing my yarn, several of my party were getting their Fair T-shirts signed by the artist, Jack Gunther. We took up his invitation to visit his gallery. I think it's fair to say, he was an odd and interesting character. At first I thought he might be schizophrenic. His explanation of how civilization began around Mt. Vernon, complete with artifacts, such as a computer on pottery
gave us all cause to smile. I especially liked his paintings with removable magnetic parts, like this one revealing the secret submarine base under Camano Island
He also has a book, A Pictorial History of the Pacific Northwest Including the Future, told from the viewpoint of a pig. We shared our lunch with him and blogless Kathy O. got some awesome homemade salsa from the small store next door. It was a fun outing of a different kind, and I can say we were all surprised but happy!
When I look at all the picture I took, one of the biggest folders is of the Seattle Gasworks Park. This is a 19 acre park across Lake Union from downtown Seattle and features great views of Seattle including the space needle and a rusting hulk, which was once a working Gaswork. It was built in 1906 to manufacture gas from coal - later converted to crude oil. Import of natural gas in the 1950's made the plant obsolete.Somehow this hulking mass appeals to me...
It reminds me of Myst and Howl's Moving Castle.
Changing the subject abruptly...here is a picture of Lenin in Fremont. A Washingtonian rescued it from a scrapyard in Poprad, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia) and had it shipped home and erected in Fremont (as a work of art, not a political statement). Accorded to Wikipedia it's for sale.And last but not least a mosaic of the log cabin blogless Melody and her husband are building with the help of their son. Her husband took a two day course. He cleared the land and many of the logs went into making the house. We were there for chinking. In the mosaic are the shower, the bathroom, the kitchen and the well house where they are living until the main house gets closed up, as well as Melody's garden, Some of the objects of art from the garden came from a garage sale. She were following Melody on one of our daily adventures, and before we knew it we had followed her into a garage sale! It was one of those impromptu Melody moments that will stick in my mind as a very happy event.
The pond on the property has a beaver dam. Every once in a while her husband has to cut into it to drain the duckweed out of it and he says at 10 pm sharp, the beavers come out and fix the breach. Otherwise, they never see them.
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Kiko
Kiko is my parents new kitten. She is very tiny. They got her from the human society yesterday and already she has explored the whole house, tested out the kitty litter and charmed everyone. I just wish I wasn't allergic.
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Food Highlights
(Warning: Long post, no knitting. Run-on sentences and poor grammar abound)
I really enjoyed staying in downtown Seattle for a few days. I was able to walk to Pike's Market several times and lust after the sweet smells coming from Pirosky's. On the last day I watched a tiny women roll out a counter-top full of dough, use a paint scraper to spread out a paste of cinnamon on it and twist the strips into twists. I finally succumbed to the green apple roll on my final day and brought it home to Hawaii. Of course the fresh fruits and vegetables were there to pick and choose. The peaches were just coming on and were sweet and juicy.
These odd flat peaches seem all the rage now, and I know they are tasty, but hey, call me sentimental, but I like 'em round...less fuzz and seed and more peach!
My friends rotated staying at the hotel with me so one could watch the aging but still personable Ms. Ebony. As Margaret is a late riser, I usually walked across the street to Ralph's for coffee and yogurt and knit on Gaia while watching the interesting characters walking up and down the street. Seattle dress is very casual. Many people rushing to work had back packs, jeans and hoodies, with only an occasional suit. There were also the street people...some reminding me of the drug dealers from the Wire, and some just plain down and out and a bit crazy and scary.
Tom Douglas has 5 Restaurants in downtown Seattle all walking distance from my hotel. I ate 3 times at Lola's, once a the Palace Kitchen and once at the Dahlia Lounge. I didn't do Etta's or the Serious Pie this time around. I was hoping for mushrooms as the last time I ate at the Palace, the morel mushrooms abounded. Alas only chanterelles were in season, but not on the menu. I really enjoyed the
beet Skordalia at Lola's and the scallops and corn hash at the Dahlia Lounge. My friend Margaret got 
hummus fries with her lamb burger. She also raved about the bran muffin from Lola's. I wan't that corn hash recipe. It looked pretty simple to make and was sooo good.
Near Fremont, I got hooked on the most wonderful coffee at Cafe Ladro. Medici...a mocha with orange zest. So yummy! Can't find it here, so I'm experimenting with my own. Would help if I had some chocolate syrup.Their pastries are little works of art and taste good to boot.
Tilth was a cute little restaurant with wonderful place settings. The cutest potato chips came
with my burger and I conjured little people with a little mandolin slicing away. I can't remember the name of the
Italian Restaurant but it was a very tasty and generous pasta dish. (update, the restaurant was named Rialto. Margaret loved her lamb shank meal!) I ate twice at Anita's. She has crepe dishes that were very yummy and great salads. Like many of the restaurants I went to, she also had very nice wine.
I had lovely fried oysters at Cutter's in Pike's Market and also at Anthony's in Point Defiance. I always go to Chinook's at least once while I'm in Seattle. I had the crab Loui and it was perfect!
The boat from Deadliest Catch was in the Salmon Bay, looking out from our table, along with these Canadian geese.
The best of all was all the fresh fruit and vegies. The black berries in the yard were so sweet and I loved picking a basket and eating them with just a bit of whipped cream (I now call this Chantilly a new word I learned at Anita's). The Sakuma Farm blue berries and strawberries I picked were so plump and fresh, the huckleberries so pretty and tart...they made lovely crisp and so yummy with ice cream. I also ate tay berries and boysenberries for the first time, and of course couldn't resist a piece of that marionberry pie. Margaret's back yard in Seattle was full of plums just getting ripe. I picked bunch and tried making sugar free jam for the first time. Only two of the four bottles sealed, but the jam was a success.
My host on Camano Island introduced me to a Danish treat...Æbleskiver.
Her pan is handed down in her family and made of cast iron. The one at Williams Sonoma is teflon....hmmm. Wonder if it will work on my glass cook top?
Another new and dangerous (to the waistline and arteries) is D'Affinois. This is a creamy, delicious brie-like cheese The Bay Leaf in Coupeville always stocks. I better pray I can't find it here in Honolulu;)
At the Sakuma Farm, I was treated to a great feast! The fruit dip was one of the highlights and one of the guests was caught spreading it on her bread...hah! It turned out to be a very sinful mix of marshmallow creme (yes that Kraft stuff made of who knows what), cream cheese and orange zest. I cannot tell a lie...it was yummers!
OMG, and how could I forget the wonderful smoked salmon from Pure Food Fish Market in Pike's Market?
I really enjoyed staying in downtown Seattle for a few days. I was able to walk to Pike's Market several times and lust after the sweet smells coming from Pirosky's. On the last day I watched a tiny women roll out a counter-top full of dough, use a paint scraper to spread out a paste of cinnamon on it and twist the strips into twists. I finally succumbed to the green apple roll on my final day and brought it home to Hawaii. Of course the fresh fruits and vegetables were there to pick and choose. The peaches were just coming on and were sweet and juicy.
These odd flat peaches seem all the rage now, and I know they are tasty, but hey, call me sentimental, but I like 'em round...less fuzz and seed and more peach!My friends rotated staying at the hotel with me so one could watch the aging but still personable Ms. Ebony. As Margaret is a late riser, I usually walked across the street to Ralph's for coffee and yogurt and knit on Gaia while watching the interesting characters walking up and down the street. Seattle dress is very casual. Many people rushing to work had back packs, jeans and hoodies, with only an occasional suit. There were also the street people...some reminding me of the drug dealers from the Wire, and some just plain down and out and a bit crazy and scary.
Tom Douglas has 5 Restaurants in downtown Seattle all walking distance from my hotel. I ate 3 times at Lola's, once a the Palace Kitchen and once at the Dahlia Lounge. I didn't do Etta's or the Serious Pie this time around. I was hoping for mushrooms as the last time I ate at the Palace, the morel mushrooms abounded. Alas only chanterelles were in season, but not on the menu. I really enjoyed the
beet Skordalia at Lola's and the scallops and corn hash at the Dahlia Lounge. My friend Margaret got 
hummus fries with her lamb burger. She also raved about the bran muffin from Lola's. I wan't that corn hash recipe. It looked pretty simple to make and was sooo good.Near Fremont, I got hooked on the most wonderful coffee at Cafe Ladro. Medici...a mocha with orange zest. So yummy! Can't find it here, so I'm experimenting with my own. Would help if I had some chocolate syrup.Their pastries are little works of art and taste good to boot.
Tilth was a cute little restaurant with wonderful place settings. The cutest potato chips came
with my burger and I conjured little people with a little mandolin slicing away. I can't remember the name of the Italian Restaurant but it was a very tasty and generous pasta dish. (update, the restaurant was named Rialto. Margaret loved her lamb shank meal!) I ate twice at Anita's. She has crepe dishes that were very yummy and great salads. Like many of the restaurants I went to, she also had very nice wine.
I had lovely fried oysters at Cutter's in Pike's Market and also at Anthony's in Point Defiance. I always go to Chinook's at least once while I'm in Seattle. I had the crab Loui and it was perfect!
The boat from Deadliest Catch was in the Salmon Bay, looking out from our table, along with these Canadian geese.The best of all was all the fresh fruit and vegies. The black berries in the yard were so sweet and I loved picking a basket and eating them with just a bit of whipped cream (I now call this Chantilly a new word I learned at Anita's). The Sakuma Farm blue berries and strawberries I picked were so plump and fresh, the huckleberries so pretty and tart...they made lovely crisp and so yummy with ice cream. I also ate tay berries and boysenberries for the first time, and of course couldn't resist a piece of that marionberry pie. Margaret's back yard in Seattle was full of plums just getting ripe. I picked bunch and tried making sugar free jam for the first time. Only two of the four bottles sealed, but the jam was a success.
My host on Camano Island introduced me to a Danish treat...Æbleskiver.
Her pan is handed down in her family and made of cast iron. The one at Williams Sonoma is teflon....hmmm. Wonder if it will work on my glass cook top?
Another new and dangerous (to the waistline and arteries) is D'Affinois. This is a creamy, delicious brie-like cheese The Bay Leaf in Coupeville always stocks. I better pray I can't find it here in Honolulu;)
At the Sakuma Farm, I was treated to a great feast! The fruit dip was one of the highlights and one of the guests was caught spreading it on her bread...hah! It turned out to be a very sinful mix of marshmallow creme (yes that Kraft stuff made of who knows what), cream cheese and orange zest. I cannot tell a lie...it was yummers!
OMG, and how could I forget the wonderful smoked salmon from Pure Food Fish Market in Pike's Market?
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Where to begin...
With the FO of course.
Pattern: Gaia Shoulder Hug by Ann Carroll Gilmour.
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden sock, Colorway S252, 1.78 balls.
Needles: Size *, Knit Picks Options
Comments: I did the picot bind off. This was the perfect project for my trip. The pattern is very easy to follow and the knitting was conducive to car knitting, and conversation.
In addition, since I was forced to look for a second ball of yarn, it enabled me to search out yarn shops on my trip. I found it at The Acorn Street Shop in Seattle. This was quite a cute little shop and well supplied. I was tempted by the Zephyr...but resisted!
Which leads me to the shops. My non-knitting friends lovingly enabled me to enhance my stash.
In Anacortes, I stumbled across Ana Cross Stitch as mentioned in a previous post. The ladies in the shop were all so nice and friendly. I got a cute cardigan pattern for a toddler. I'm thinking pink for Chris's Think Pink KAL.
While staying in downtown Seattle at the very convenient (to Pike's Market) Warwick Hotel, I was able to walk to So Much Yarn.. This was a small shop with a very welcoming classroom and staff, and a nice button stash.
I found a couple more Toddler pattern booklets in the 50% off bin. I also enjoyed the view going up and down the stairs. 
I wanted to visit Little Knits, but will have to save this for the next trip. I definitely wanted to go to Weaving Works again.
I love their sock yarn selection and came away with some Lorna's Laces. 
I wish I had taken a picture of the coat I saw at Coupeville Yarns. It was knit of Samoyed dog hair. No doubt she saw me smell it, heh, no dog smell. It was a full 3/4 length entrelac or perhaps modular coat for a statuesque women who assured me that it did not shed. Someone else had spun and died all the hair. It was quite an inspiring piece of work. She also had the cutes gnomes around the shop which she said her knitting group had shared.
There was cute little shop in LaConner, that I was pressed for time to see. I did manage to pick up some cutest sheep and strawberry buttons.
I am so lucky to have friends who enabled me to see so many lovely yarn shops. Each of the ones I visited was a little unique and the people I met were so friendly and helpful...such pleasant memories!
Pattern: Gaia Shoulder Hug by Ann Carroll Gilmour.
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden sock, Colorway S252, 1.78 balls.
Needles: Size *, Knit Picks Options
Comments: I did the picot bind off. This was the perfect project for my trip. The pattern is very easy to follow and the knitting was conducive to car knitting, and conversation.
In addition, since I was forced to look for a second ball of yarn, it enabled me to search out yarn shops on my trip. I found it at The Acorn Street Shop in Seattle. This was quite a cute little shop and well supplied. I was tempted by the Zephyr...but resisted!
Which leads me to the shops. My non-knitting friends lovingly enabled me to enhance my stash.
In Anacortes, I stumbled across Ana Cross Stitch as mentioned in a previous post. The ladies in the shop were all so nice and friendly. I got a cute cardigan pattern for a toddler. I'm thinking pink for Chris's Think Pink KAL.
While staying in downtown Seattle at the very convenient (to Pike's Market) Warwick Hotel, I was able to walk to So Much Yarn.. This was a small shop with a very welcoming classroom and staff, and a nice button stash.
I found a couple more Toddler pattern booklets in the 50% off bin. I also enjoyed the view going up and down the stairs. 
I wanted to visit Little Knits, but will have to save this for the next trip. I definitely wanted to go to Weaving Works again.
I love their sock yarn selection and came away with some Lorna's Laces. 
I wish I had taken a picture of the coat I saw at Coupeville Yarns. It was knit of Samoyed dog hair. No doubt she saw me smell it, heh, no dog smell. It was a full 3/4 length entrelac or perhaps modular coat for a statuesque women who assured me that it did not shed. Someone else had spun and died all the hair. It was quite an inspiring piece of work. She also had the cutes gnomes around the shop which she said her knitting group had shared.
There was cute little shop in LaConner, that I was pressed for time to see. I did manage to pick up some cutest sheep and strawberry buttons.
I am so lucky to have friends who enabled me to see so many lovely yarn shops. Each of the ones I visited was a little unique and the people I met were so friendly and helpful...such pleasant memories!
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Flowers in Seattle
(click to make the mosaic larger)
I was just flabbergasted by all the beautiful flowers on my trip. They were everywhere! Giant dahlias in peoples yards, colorful weeds along the way, lovely bouquets in restaurants and hotel lobbies. Both Pike's Market and University District Farmer's Market had incredible, large baskets of flowers I don't know the names of. Simply amazing!
Friday, August 21, 2009
Home from the Pacific Northwest
Chibi Totoro traveled with me to Seattle and places around. One of the things I did was the Anacortes Arts Festival. I only found the town's yarn store after bumping into a dye your own sock yarn exhibit put on by Ana-Cross Stitch.
I always wanted to try this and I got to do it without the potential mess at home. It was a lovely festival with lots of yummy food, music and craftspeople.
It was a wonderful two weeks of visiting friends, tasting and picking the incredible fresh fruit, enjoying the fun and color of Pikes Market and University District Farmer's Market, checking out new yarn stores and shopping. And yes, there was stash enhancement and shopping!
I am grateful to be sleeping in my own bed. I am even more grateful to find that the Lancaster had taken it upon himself to rid the house of roaches by plugging up the holes in the kitchen left by the druggie cabinetmaker. It's gross, I know, but anyone who lives in Hawaii knows it is a constant war and summer is the worse time. I was pleasantly surprised to find some major housecleaning had taken place while I was gone!
Once I get the pictures organized, I will not doubt saturate the blog with the travelogue 'til the cease and desist order come down.
I always wanted to try this and I got to do it without the potential mess at home. It was a lovely festival with lots of yummy food, music and craftspeople.
It was a wonderful two weeks of visiting friends, tasting and picking the incredible fresh fruit, enjoying the fun and color of Pikes Market and University District Farmer's Market, checking out new yarn stores and shopping. And yes, there was stash enhancement and shopping!
I am grateful to be sleeping in my own bed. I am even more grateful to find that the Lancaster had taken it upon himself to rid the house of roaches by plugging up the holes in the kitchen left by the druggie cabinetmaker. It's gross, I know, but anyone who lives in Hawaii knows it is a constant war and summer is the worse time. I was pleasantly surprised to find some major housecleaning had taken place while I was gone!
Once I get the pictures organized, I will not doubt saturate the blog with the travelogue 'til the cease and desist order come down.
Monday, August 03, 2009
Getting Ready for a Trip
I'm leaving for Seattle Wednesday night for a retreat with my Saturday walking group, and visit to my blogless friends, Margaret, Betty and Ebony, and I'm starting to get excited! I signed up to work a 10 hour day tomorrow in some fit of notbeingabletosayno-ness. At least I have today and Wednesday off. Today is for a massage, stocking the 'fridge for the Landcaster, and tidying up the bed and craft rooms. Tomorrow is work, wrestling with the archaic electronic medical record and trying to deduce processes in a cryptic work environment. Good thing medicine is still challenging and interesting! I'm also looking forward to a nice sit down dinner with some high school classmates. Yup, we make 40 years this year! Dang I'm old! Wednesday is for packing.
The most important thing, is what to bring to knit. Must be portable, something small, something needles won't drop off to easily...sounds like a sock or two.
Montego Bay definitely gets to come. Seasilk is very squishy and it's on circs.
So that leaves several likely suspects.
I'm leaning toward the Gaia Shoulder Hug, by Anne Caroll Gilmour in Noro silk Garden sock, Col No. S252. While socks are the sensible choice for travel, my sock mojo has been missing for quite some time now.
I decided not to bring February Lady as it has >200 stitches and is starting to weigh a ton.
The plan is to dye this cotton in a natural dye of some sort, as it is organic cotton. Some possibilities are indigo or kakishibu as I understand that can both dye cotton without mordants. I like the idea of a little indigo dye pot. The easy way out is to use that cherry Dylon I have had in my cupboard forever and it would allow me to destash that.
I'm happy to hear the Knitted Brow has been reunited with Mr. Pat and the Fabulous Ella and Rascal Cricket. I miss her already, sigh.
Happy Knitting! A hui ho!
The most important thing, is what to bring to knit. Must be portable, something small, something needles won't drop off to easily...sounds like a sock or two.
Montego Bay definitely gets to come. Seasilk is very squishy and it's on circs.So that leaves several likely suspects.
I'm leaning toward the Gaia Shoulder Hug, by Anne Caroll Gilmour in Noro silk Garden sock, Col No. S252. While socks are the sensible choice for travel, my sock mojo has been missing for quite some time now.I decided not to bring February Lady as it has >200 stitches and is starting to weigh a ton.
The plan is to dye this cotton in a natural dye of some sort, as it is organic cotton. Some possibilities are indigo or kakishibu as I understand that can both dye cotton without mordants. I like the idea of a little indigo dye pot. The easy way out is to use that cherry Dylon I have had in my cupboard forever and it would allow me to destash that.I'm happy to hear the Knitted Brow has been reunited with Mr. Pat and the Fabulous Ella and Rascal Cricket. I miss her already, sigh.
Happy Knitting! A hui ho!
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Just a bunch of hats and scarves
I took a little spur of the moment trip to the Big Island to visit blogless Keoki in Hilo. She took me on a little scenic trip along the Hamakua Coast. It was typical Hilo...humid, overcast and misty. We stopped to overlook Onomea. At one time there was a natural arch but this has fallen into the sea.
The road went down to Hakalau, where a sugar mill once stood. A group of picnicers showed us much aloha, sharing poke, water and we talked story for awhile. While talking one of them pulled up an ulua and it was soon turned into more poke, seasoned with limu kohu. Talk about fresh fish! This group of people belong to Basic Image. Their mission statement: " Basic Image, Inc. is an organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of natural and cultural education and recreational resources for the benefit and inspiration of present and future generations".
I was too chicken to try the top shell, but if you want to make these, microwave 7 minutes and poke out with a nail. Actually, I don't eat fish raw either. I do like it fried, though:)
The Hilo Farmer's Market was full of food, flowers and color. We had the best green papaya salad!
Kim is moving back to the Mainland soon. She has packed her house and shipped the poodles so it's for real. While I understand the move is a good one for her, I will miss the knit nights, the phone calls, the cupcakes, samurai werewolf flicks.... At least there is Facebook. I hope to hear continued stories of life in the fifth grade. I will also be losing one my my hat models:(
The knitting has been a series of hats and scarves. I'm a little tired of them. My nephew wanted a beanie the colors of the Jamaican flag. Plymouth Encore was not available in the brighter green and there is so much yardage, I can make a whole lot more hats. Perhaps I'll make some for donation. The scarf is a pattern I got in a Tacoma store and is called Julie's Fantastic Scarf. It is one row lace and very fast to knit. I used two skeins of Royal Llama Silk, a very nice yarn to work with.
On the work scene, I'm working a lot more due to a provider leaving and one being on vacation. I put in 24 hours this past week, will put in 40 hours next week, and 10 hours the following week before flying off to Camano Island and Seattle. All these hours have seriously impacted the "retired" feel. Oh well, the paycheck will be nice as I'm sure I'll find many treasures in the great state of Washington. I'm looking forward to Deception Pass, the strawberry farm, the lavender farm, and hanging with girls, and my favorite doggy, Ms. Ebony.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Yarn Acquisitions and the WIP, Baby February
I received a very nice package in the mail thanks to Claudia's MS ride. The package included some very squishy sock yarn from Lavendersheep, the cutest darn card with miniature knitting, sock needles and cable needle, and a sock pattern. As one who rarely win anything, I am elated! Maybe I'm ready for Vegas...there may be 1.3 million out there for me:)
I've gone on pink roll, and these are my latest splurges at Little Knits.
Cashwool is merino wool, no cashmere, and the laceweight gauge is quite scary looking . What was I thinking? The pink has a slight lavender tinge, and was difficult to photograph.
This cottonfine is more of a rose with s slight orange tinge. I wanted to try out this yarn that is 20% wool.
I'm encouraged by the progress of February Baby. I had such a block doing February Lady, but I may try again. After all, it's just a big February Baby.
Icarus is bound for the frog pond...maybe tomorrow.
PS: or maybe today for
Ball of seasilk formerly known as Icarus.
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