Party Time!

Party Time, you ask? What? You mean a party to celebrate New Year's Eve? Ringing in 2013 with party hats, streamers, 2013 sparkly eyeglasses, and lots and lots of drink? No, none of that. Well, okay, the drink can stay. For me it's Knitting Party Time!

Ever ready for a party involving yarn, I've joined two groups this year. The first is very informal. In fact, there is no planning or shopping required. Mary, of America's Knitting, has made a suggestion/challenge to use 2013 to complete some of our many WIP's and UFO's. (Works In Progress and UnFinished Objects) She's calling it 12 in 12. (12 in 12 months, not 12 in '12. I guess that would then be 12 in '13!) At the end of each month we are to choose the WIP for the next month. From the first to the last day of the new month we are to try to complete the project, finally. One of the first questions asked of Mary was along the lines of, "But what if I see another project, or some yarn I'd like to buy during this time? I need stash!" No problemo, replied Mary. You may buy, cast on other projects, jump back and forth between projects. Just try to complete the chosen WIP.

So much to choose from. About six years ago I bought a sweater kit from Arnhild Hillesland of Arnhild's Knitting Studio. This year I've signed up to attend my first of her annual retreats in Ames, Iowa. The retreat scheduled for the first weekend in March. I'd love to have this sweater complete by then. Plus, I'm no dummy. There are 31 days in January which makes it a much better choice than February!

Here is 6 years' work:

The second group is almost as informal as the first. No signing up, no paying a fee. Kristen of Jimmy Beans Wool has designed a Mystery KAL (Knit A-Long) to use Lorna's Laces special color for December 2012, Christmas at Downton. I'm a huge fan of Downton Abbey, shown on PBS, as many others obviously are. Lorna's Laces has sold a record number of this colorway. In fact, this color in Sportmate, the yarn being used for the KAL, is now completely sold out. Any other sport-weight yarn (200-270 yards) may be substituted. And actually, I was ordering mine before they could process the second batch, so I ended up buying Shepherd Sport instead. 

To join this group simply go to the Jimmy Beans Wool page on Ravelry and follow the thread for the Downton Abbey Mystery KAL.

I hope to "see" you at one of these gala affairs!

Happy New Year!

-Lynn Anne

"Thanks Mom! Many people are freezing right now as the temperatures fall. They're burning furniture in the streets in Rockway. Charities are saying donations in the form of money are most needed but knit hats will also keep everyone a bit warmer until they can receive some help and shelter."

Those are the words from my daughter, Allyson, (she's the model for Cottonwood at the subway entrance across the street from her apartment) as she replied to my Facebook post, calling my knitting friends to help make warm hats, mittens, scarves, etc. for the people who are still suffering in the aftermath of Sandy. I hadn't heard about burning the furniture, but last night while watching the news I thought that if I were there I'd probably start pulling out any wood to burn for fuel and warmth.

So, pull out your yarn and knitting needles. We want to get items to that region quickly, so I would think that simply knit warm accessories would be the best. I am adding links for free patterns, and just all-around great patterns.

Ann Budd's book, The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns the one that has mittens, sweaters, hats, and gloves pictured on the cover is a great source since she has many designs in many sizes and gauges.

Hats - Any color, any size. Machine washable is helpful, but 100% wool is warmest. Label whether or not it can be machine dried. Hats with cuffs around the ears would be useful as they can be pulled low around the ears. Rolled brim hats are cute, but may be uncomfortable to wear while sleeping.

The Nonsuch Knits pattern "Hat With Heart" is linked on the right-hand side of this blog under Free patterns. You will be directed to Ravelry where it may be downloaded for free.

Troll Toe Hat by Ant B Knits is a cute pattern for a child's hat (newborn and up) knit from the top down, so you will learn some of the basics for toe-up socks. Fun. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/troll-toe-hat

Gentleman Hat by Marjorie Dussaud is a very sharp looking hat for men, women, and children. Three sizes are offered in DK weight yarn, with changes for different gauges. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/gentleman-hat

Scarves/Cowls - These are always great for keeping your neck warm. A wide scarf that can be crossed over the chest will serve a dual purpose. Cowls, ditto. Close-fitting cowls or long ones that can be doubled would be fine. Again, label the fiber content.

Bark is a quick-knit free scarf pattern to the right under Free Patterns, again. It could easily be made into a cowl by joining the cast on and bind off edges.

Darkside Cowl by Sarah Fama. I just completed this cowl. It is very quick to knit and can be easily altered for any size. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/darkside-cowl

Chunky Charity Scarf by Kathy Christensen will be a quick knit in many different yarn combinations. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/chunky-charity-scarf

Mittens/Gloves - All sizes again. Mittens are faster to knit than gloves and they have the added benefit of keeping fingers together and warmer. If they have work to do, though, gloves will aid in dexterity. Once again, label the fiber content.

Basic Mittens by Molly Matters http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/basic-mittens-11

Glittens Revisited by Jillian Necky. This seems to be a great convertible/flip-top mitten pattern using worsted weight yarn. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/glittens-revisited

Child's Simple Striped Mittens - a Sivia Harding pattern based on an Elizabeth Zimmerman classic. Sure to be a winner! http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/childs-simple-striped-mittens

So there are a few pattern links to get you started. All of these patterns were located on Ravelry and are offered free by the designers, (There were over 3200 free mitten patterns!) so go take a look for yourself for many, many more patterns.

Allyson also mentioned that monetary donations are always needed. When asked, she said that The American Red Cross or New York Cares would be terrific donation sites.

I can collect any items in the Omaha area. If you live elsewhere, I have contact names that I can forward to you. Just let me know.

Thanks to all-
Lynn Anne

Hat Season

After two mornings of Omaha's first hard freezes of the season, my thoughts have turned to keeping warm. I'm not a fan of being hot (ask Dave who can mimic me so well. "I don't like to sweat!") so I have a little extra bounce to my step. There is a cowl around my neck as I write, and I've been locating all my mittens and gloves. I also come across two lovely hat patterns.

The first is Autumn Tam designed by Sandy Blue for Simply Shetland:

This is a gorgeous, traditional tam, knit in a fingering weight Shetland sheep yarn, creating a warm yet light hat. The pattern, as written, calls for 10 colors of Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift. Multiple tams can be knit from all that yarn. I'm planning on sharing with some friends.

The second hat is the Sluggy Bonnet by Tanis Gray for Juniper Moon Farm:

We may have had a horridly hot and dry summer, but sure as the sun will rise tomorrow (it's not yet December 21, 2012) the winds will be howling down the road in a few weeks. Just as I was thinking that I needed to protect my ears I located this cute worsted-weight earflap hat. Not only does the Sluggy Bonnet look warm and not too difficult to knit, but it's a FREE pattern.

Happy Fall knitting!

Pattern Up!

Just this afternoon I added a new FREE pattern to Ravelry. Vivienne is a shawlette, 50" wide with a 15" drop. It is triangular and knit from the top down in in mostly stockinette stitch with channeled eyelet rows. The increases happen every row along the side edges and every other row down the center. This creates a shawl with a much bigger wingspan than drop. Great for wrapping around your neck on a cool evening. I used a little less than a full skein of Cascade Yarns Heritage Hand Paints, a very nice yarn that has a nice drape when knit with slightly larger than usual needles.

The name, Vivienne, is borrowed from the heroine to the book The Soldier's Wife, by Margaret Laroy, a novel set in the Channel Islands during the German occupation of World War II. Vivienne learns that she can adjust to difficult situations while still dealing with love and compassion for her friends and family.

Follow the link to the right to download this pattern through Ravelry.

Report

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

by, Lynn Anne Banks

Most of our family traveled to France to celebrate the 80th birthdays of my parents this year. My lovely, kind, and generous sister (along with her husband) found this lovely villa in Rousillon, located in the Luberon region in Provence. Socializing into the wee hours of the night on the terrace and little excursions into the countryside were the order of our days.

Dave was a sweetie and drove me further out to a small farm in Sainte-Croix-a-Lauze...a lavender and mohair type of farm! The mohair is sold to a co-op, shipped to Italy to be processed, and then returned to small farm shops in Provence. I picked up some mohair and silk in the owner's lovely little shop:

and...

Ooh, la-la!

And then there were the curly-haired Angora goats who give us the lovely fiber. The girl on the left was especially friendly, enjoying chin scratches as only goats can!

Dave and I then took the fast TGV train up to Paris for a few days sight-seeing.

A limited amount of knitting took place, mostly on the plane somewhere over the northern Atlantic, but wine, cheese, and bread were consumed in large amounts. Ahhh, Paris!

And that is what I did on my summer vacation.

Day 1: Tools of the Trade

The Day 1 part of Adventkalendarschal 2010 is complete. This was easy and enjoyable, with a 8-stitch repeat. Easy-peasy. The one thing that came to mind was how important the "tools of the trade" are. After testing out a few needles, it became apparent that I needed to use US 3 to get gauge, or more important to me with a scarf/stole, a "fabric" that looks nice. I borrowed a #3 from a 3-year old WIP, but it was 32" long. This ended up being much too long for this project, making the knitting feel cumbersome and awkward. I must have a 24" #3 somewhere in the house on a different WIP, but I broke down and bought a new needle. What a difference! The knitting just seemed to flow along.

I was so pleased, I moved on to Day 2 - a motif pattern without repeats. I lost count on Row 3, ending up with too few stitches. As I was tinking it seems that I've dropped one or two stitches. Rats. I think I'll wait until tomorrow with natural light coming through the windows to figure out where I am in the pattern. I was really hoping to get a big jump forward today.

The yarn is gorgeous for this pattern. It isn't noticeable in the photos but there is a gentle shift from cherry red to orange/red and back again. I can only describe it as "alive".

24 Days in December (and November)

My yarn is wound and my needles are at the ready! I've always loved knit-alongs and the crazy pre-Christmas season is no exception. I've wound a skein of Lorna's Lace's Helen's Lace in color Ysolda Red...

(oh, gosh, isn't it beautiful?) to make Adventkalendarschal 2010, a free pattern on Ravelry for a lovely lace stole designed by some (obviously) lovely German women. The general premiss is one lace pattern each day in December until the 24th. And voila, presto you have a Christmas stole.

You who know me, know that LAKNITS (my Ravatar) stands for Looney-Arse Knitter Nears Irrationality This Season - or some such sentiment.

So, here we go. I'm casting on this evening. I know it's not December, yet, but seriously, only 24 days?

Christmas Comes Early

On this date, at 4:20 p.m. Central Time, I saw my first house in the next neighborhood decorated for Christmas! Am I the winner? Just asking.

Dinner and a Movie

First and foremost, no, we aren't having rabbit! It seems the babies have flown the coup, or rather, hopped the warren. The evening after my last post, I saw Mrs. Rabbit scurry away as I opened the back door. Two of her children were just outside the safety of their nest. Cute as cute can be. They were each about the size of my fist with little bitty rabbit ears and beady little black eyes. Yesterday they were gone. The Rabbit family has relocated to a different rabbit neighborhood. I hope they keep in touch with a Christmas card or two!

Dinner tonight will be a lovely vegetarian dish that my sister found and served when we were visiting in London this spring. She was the one to think that arugula (rocket in the UK) would be so much nicer than green beans. The combination of sweet potatoes with peppery, bitter arugula, pasta, and feta cheese is awe inspiring!

Here, then is Sweet Potato and Feta Pasta a la Laurie:

2 sweet potatoes

1-2 bags, or a big bunch of arugula

1 lb round or short pasta of your choice

3-4 Tbsp good olive oil

a good handful of pine nuts (Darn conversions! The recipe calls for 50 grams.)

1 Tbsp olive oil

6 oz. feta cheese

Peel the sweet potatoes into 1-inch cubes. Boil in salted water for about 5 mins, until just about tender. Drain. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water; drain., saving a little of the water. Return pasta to pot with a splash of the good olive oil. and 2 Tbsp of the cooking water. Quickly stir-fry the pine nuts in 1 Tbsp olive oil until golden. Place all of the cooked ingredients in a warmed serving bowl, crumble the feta cheese over the top, add a splash of olive oil and toss with arugula to slightly wilt before serving.

Pick a movie to watch while enjoying dinner, or if you're really (reel-y) lucky, try to stay awake for the midnight showing of the last episode of Harry Potter. I won't be there at midnight, but I'm excited to see the movie. Excited and sad. It doesn't seem possible that this is The End. When I read the last book, I knew I still had the movie in my future. As of midnight tonight, well...the book is closed.

"Goodnight, Harry."

Mr. McGregor's Garden

We've had gardens big and bigger, and now we have a very small garden. This spring we purchased two 4"x4" raised bed forms. The perfect spot for them was in front of my studio window where I could watch the seedlings become large plants. (Massive plants! Take a gander at the zucchini leaves.) I bought plastic fencing to put around the upper edges to keep any little critters away from the tender seedlings. One planter has the zucchini, green beans and a tomato plant, the other had spinach, beets, and peas. This mini-garden also sits up against the patio - the very same patio that our two hunting dogs run across at least four times a day, when I take them outside.

I guess I didn't plan very well, since all the early plants were in one planter. Maybe I should have planted the early vegetables along with the slower ones to harvest some and save space for the others. On the other hand, it would have been nice to re-plant some quick-growing vegetables in the same planter after harvesting the early ones. This is where the story gets interesting.

Two weeks ago Dave went out to pick the last of the peas. I had planted them in circles around a "teepee" of wooden stakes. He was downstairs for several minutes and then called me to come down. There was something different in his voice. When I got outside, he was standing by the teepee, holding some old pea vines. "Take a look at this, " he said.

In the exact center of the teepee was a depression filled with dried grass, fur, and several fuzzy, squirming animals. The ears were small, yet too big for mice or rats. Baby rabbits! Mrs. Rabbit had managed to get through or over the fence and built a nursery in - the - very- center of my peas. Not a pea, or spinach leaf, or beet was ever nibbled. But here was her family. Raised beds, fencing, two hunting dogs (is it too late for a refund?) and still Mrs. Rabbit decided this was the perfect bunny spot.

Fast forward two weeks, and they're doing quite well, thank you. This may seem surprising to those of you who know that Dave has four geese, two ducks, two turkey tails, two deer, an arctic caribou, and a musk ox suspended on the walls of his "man cave", but even he decided that it would be bad form to eat his neighbors!

Since we cut away all the "walls" of their house, I've tied cut grasses and weeds to the teepee for a little protection. I've never seen Mrs. Rabbit, but her children are growing, so she must be there every night. I even used our Webber kettle cover as a sun block yesterday, as it was so hot and humid and I can't imagine how sweltering it must be for furry bunnies in the moist dirt, with grass covering them.

I suppose I should start designing clothes for the bunnies. Let's see, a sweater for Peter Rabbit, dresses for Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail, and a jaunty jacket for cousin, Benjamin Bunny. Sock yarn would do well. It's washable!

Claire

A new FREE pattern was just added to my Ravelry page. Claire is a light-as-air stole, knit with Rowan Kidsilk Haze. There is just one written row! Repeat that row until you run out of yarn, then bind off. Easy-peasey!

If you want your stole longer or wider simply add pattern repeats - and more yarn. My finished measurement are 63" x 19" using the 2 skeins of "Killer Red" (unusual name for such a gorgeous deep coral) that were in my stash.

I'm glad that I managed to get the above photos last evening as this morning has been rainy and gray. At least my petunias will be happy when the sun comes out later today.

Flood Pants

I've been meaning to introduce my new patterns, but I feel this needs to be shown, first:

This is Omaha from the north. It's an amazing sight as the Missouri River is flooding eastern Nebraska and western Iowa. There have been so many natural disasters in the U.S. this year. I realize that people can get overwhelmed. Just keep the farmers, restaurant/shop owners, families in your thoughts...and The Red Cross can always use some monetary support.

Home Again, Home Again

I got home yesterday at 4:30 pm. My pajamas were on by 7:00, in bed by 7:30, read one chapter, lights out (not that it was dark) by 8:00, and sound asleep in 5 minutes. After 11 hours I felt delightfully refreshed. Two hours later, I was feeling heavy-eyed again. Fun times in Columbus at the TNNA Market! It wouldn't have been so bad if I had acted intelligently and gone to bed early each night to be ready for another busy day. But, nooooo, I stayed up till after midnight talking with my good friends from Twisted Yarns.

The exhaustion started before that, though. I only got about 2 hours of sleep before my flight since the alarm was set for 2:45 am, but I woke up at 2:15 to just stare at the clock, waiting for 2:45. Luckily, I was entertained by listening to late-night radio and a man who had his aura "read" by sticking his finger in a machine where they could see his aura "glow" (he then went into a room where all sorts of gases were blown at him, and then his aura was re-read and was...different!), and a woman who feels that people are sneaking into her house and poisoning her Frosted Flakes since she feels sick every time she eats a bowl of them!

I felt as though someone should have checked my aura as I was driving to the airport. It was 3:45 am and hardly a soul was on the road. The speed limit was 45 mph on a 4-lane street, and I was doing slightly over 50 mph when a car pulled directly behind me after entering the road froma ramp. Red lights went off in my head, luckily, since when we drove under a street light I saw that it was, indeed, a police car. Not wanting to appear even more guilty, I took my foot off the gas to slowly reduce my speed. Eventually he or she must have decided that I had learned my lesson for the day and pulled away from me.

Things seemed to be running fairly smoothly at the airport, but I was so sleepy I almost didn't realize that I was being waved into the dreaded scanner. I have a thing about that machine. It's not so much the picture-taking as the incomplete testing on long-term effects. So, I requested, for the second time, to be patted down. This seems better to me. The TSA ladies have been nice and polite, and use the back of their hands at "sensitive areas". After the pat-down, you are instructed to stand where you are while they run their gloves through a scanning device. Beep-beep-beep. Her gloves read positive for "chemicals". Chemicals? I'm trying to think ...deodorant?...laundry detergent?...no perfume...what? Now I got to enter the "private room" with two TSA ladies for an additional pat-down. Great. Do I want an attorney present? Truly, it wasn't that bad. Just more of the same. We even discussed underwire bras and how the wire broke for one of the ladies. (Ouch.) A few more minutes and I was declared "clean".

Luckily, from then on things got better. The other passengers didn't even shy away, thinking that there must really be something up with me since I had a double pat!

Home. Still sleepy, and trying to put faces, names, and business cards together. Bit by bit, it's all coming back to me. I met so many interesting people while at Brown Sheep's booth and walking and walking around the convention center floor.

To market, to market, to buy a fat pig.

Home again, home again, jiggety-jig.

To market, to market, to buy a fat hog.

Home again, home again, jiggety-jog.

To market, to market, to buy a plum bun.

Home again, home again, Market is done!

Announcement

The Nonsuch Knits website is up and running! Stop by and see it at www.nonsuchknits.com. I'm very pleased.! I love the slight movement and interactive feel. Dave's pretty pleased since many of the photos used were taken by him. But, I have to give major praise to Tomek Sawan, the wonder tech! He understood what I needed from the start and didn't mind the many, many emails back and forth. "So, how do I...?" Check him out at Atomic Design and Media. You'll be happy you did!

Now I need to dash off and finish packing for an outrageously early flight to Columbus, Ohio for the TNNA Market. I'm excited to have a space at Brown Sheep Company's booth. My 6 Brown Sheep items are ready to go. They're on Ravelry now. When I get home, I'll put some photos of them on this blog.

I'll try post while I'm at Market. There are links to Nonsuch Knits' Facebook page and Twitter on the website.

See you when I get back!

NYC Dreamin'

Just a week ago, as of this very moment, Dave and I were sitting at La Guardia, waiting for our flight home. Ah, New York! We spent a long weekend visiting Darling Daughter #2 (DD2), Allyson.

Visiting = eating.

The Meatball Shop. Who would have thought - meatballs on a salad!

Aroma. We had a fabulous dinner downstairs, with lots of wine. (Don't miss the restroom down there!)

Tom & Jerry's for a Hendrick's Gin, limeade, and cucumber.

Sweet Grapes for drinks, and then dinner at

The Ten Bells Oh my what a dinner! I'm happy to announce that after many tapas plates, and 4 hours later, we were the last group in the back. (Thanks for the final bottle of wine, Arturo!)

Lombardi's pizza, delivered, so I have to check the address, but oh, my goodness, it was pizza as I remember. What is it that is so special with the sauce? And a terrific meal at a

Chinese Restaurant. (Once again, I need to check my facts.) And what trip can be complete without hot pastrami at

Katz's Deli? "Send a salami to your boy in the army"!

By this time, Dave and I had to slow down a bit and eat more sensibly...protein bars and green tea and then strolling down the ramps at the Guggenheim Museum.

Isn't it great when a weekend can contain so many links?

Allyson and Chris were very obliging hosts, with Ally even being coerced into some modeling for me!

With all of the food, and walking to find the food, there wasn't that much time for LYS spotting. I did get to Purl Soho. It's such a pretty and colorful shop! Then we wandered over to Downtown Yarns where I bought some Malabrigo Lace to make a lovely long vest. Very warm and welcoming shop!

The only glitch came with our return trip. Because of weather around NYC we didn't walk through our front door until 2 am. The older I get, the harder that is to take! I sure hate to admit that, but it's a fact.

I'm now "TNNA minus ten days". It's been a busy week since I got home. There's a lot to write about with this, but it will have to wait for another day!

Lego Post (Bits and Pieces)

Nonsuch Knits is now on Facebook. Just don't laugh when you realize that I have no idea what to do with it! Honestly, I wish someone would write how-to instructions for the technological illiterate. Jeesh. I promise to get "buttons" and "banners", etc., but my kids are all celebrating Cinco de Mayo tonight, so my questions for them will have to wait till tomorrow. (We were absolute Mexican cuisine failures tonight, eating a pasta dish from an Ottolenghi cookbook along with a Californian red wine.)

I met Debbie Macomber today. (I said "Hi" to her once at Stitches, but I won't count that.) She was in Omaha to speak at a fund-raiser dinner for The Omaha Hearing School. We had a lovely few-minute-conversation, and something may come of it in the future. I wish I could come across to people as half as friendly as she truly appears to be. By that I mean to say that she is one of those delightful people who makes you feel as if you are the most important person in the room while she is speaking with you. When I grow up I'd like to be like Debbie!

More exciting news is that I will be at the TNNA Market in June! Brown Sheep Yarn will be displaying several of my new designs for a trunk show. I'll be at their booth during the day and then enjoying my evenings with some of the Twisted Gals from Twisted Yarns. (I was just trying to think of some witty way to mention mixing work with pleasure, when it dawned on me that this trip will be ALL pleasure! Please, fiber and friends? What's not to enjoy?)

Knit on!

Spring in the UK

One more pattern is complete for the Brown Sheep Company trunk show. Here is the Tetbury Throw, complete:

This is a quick knit throw using Lamb's Pride Bulky, and best of all for some of you...it's made with all knit stitches. Yep, not a purl in the project. The patterning comes from an easy to remember slip-stitch pattern. My favorite part, though, is the bold border of garter stitch with mitered corners. The finished size is 38" x 47", perfect for covering your lap and legs on a chilly morning. If you were to use a DK yarn, you'd end up with a baby blanket of about 21" x 35".

I named the pattern for a town in the Cotswolds, a region in western England. We got to travel to England in March to visit my sister and brother-in-law. We had a perfect mix of time in their house in London, along with visiting their new/old cottage in the Cotswolds.

This isn't theirs, but the photo captures the mood of the area with the weathered stone cottages. (I want a dry stone wall!)

Being a more temperate climate than Omaha, the spring flowers were in bloom.

And then one of my favorite features...sheep!

These ladies are, in fact, neighbors to my sister. I'm having her keep an eye out for available fleeces.

No trip is complete without visiting at least one LYS. Mine this time was "loop" in Islington.

It is a lovely shop where they treated me to some of their signature candies as well as their canvas bag, as you can see. I managed to find some gorgeous English lace-weight yarn:

Juno Fibre Arts' Alice Lace - and since this blog does not have "feel-o-vision" you'll just have to imagine the happiness in 70% Baby Alpaca, 20% Silk, 10% Cashmere. Yum. I've got to design a shawl that is "yarn worthy".

Na Na Na-na

Hey kids! It's been a while since I've posted. I think of you often, but I'm usually so busy knitting that I don't take the time to put my project down and head to this shiny screen of technology. Unfortunately, I was knitting so much I injured myself. Next time I'll know better and take a break. When I knit using bulky yarn I put too much stress on my right shoulder (broken when I was 9 years old) and then I get nerve issues that travel down to my hand. This was the cause:

I've been requested by Brown Sheep to design and knit some pieces for a trunk show that will begin at TNNA in June. Very exciting! This little number will be a throw/ afghan when it's all grown up.

I also have a hat/mitten/cowl trio:

And a lace stole:

I'm still waiting for yarn to arrive to start some socks and a sweater.

The weather here in Omaha has turned back to winter after some glorious days that were just teasing us. Once again, the ground"s white, the sky's white, and our fire is going. I took this photo a couple weeks ago and posted it on Facebook, but didn't want to put it in this blog since the weather had taken such a nice turn. The photo seemed so out of place with the warm sun - just as red and green look so awkward after Christmas. Now the landscape looks the same as when I caught this Bald Eagle sitting in a tree behind our house:

We don't have any large bodies of open water that eagles like right near us - the Missouri, Platte, and Elkhorn rivers are all 5-25 miles from us - but I sure am glad that this guy/girl decided to drop in for a few minutes! About 50 yards away was another large trees filled with 20+ nervous little birds who were all keeping a wary eye on the Big Guy!

Oh...Na Na Na-na. Last night Dave and I were hanging out listening to songs he's downloaded to his iPad. He found a bunch from the 60's and 70's that were taking us for a little stroll down Memory Lane. It was surprising to us that he had 4 songs with they heavy, thought-provoking lyrics containing an assortment of "Na-Na's". A good Na-Na speaks volumes! (The dogs headed to bed after we started singing along to the choruses.)

Steam - "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye"

Journey - "Lovin', Touchin' Squeezin' "

Deep Purple - "Hush"

The Grass Roots - "Midnight Confessions"

Please post to me if you think of any other Na-Na songs. I'll compile the International Na-Na List!

I'm still working on the Stora Dimun Shawl, slowly, though I think it will be this weekend's pleasure knitting.

Enjoy the last days of February. It brings Spring even closer - though I always hear my Grandma Clark telling me not to wish away my days.

LA

Shawl, Cookies, and WIP Wednesday

For some time now I have been meaning to get a decent photo of this lovely shawl onto this blog.

This is the Winter Mystery Shawl 2010 from Goddess Knits, knit using Spinning Bunny's Blue Face Leicester Lace Weight Yarn. The mystery shawls from Goddess Knits are great fun. Once a week "clues" are released through Yahoo!Groups. The clues consist of charted rows to be knit before the next week's clue. The mystery is not knowing what the finished shawl will look like. It is a bit of a leap of faith, though I've never been disappointed. This pattern is obviously winter-themed, with beads (a little difficult to see here) knitted in using a crochet hook to load each bead.

The yarn was delightful to use. There was one massive skein of lace weight yarn, that when wound into a ball, didn't have a single break. That's happy dance wonderful! I chose color Merlot and enjoyed the soft and lofty feel. Being hand-dyed there was quite a bit of color bleeding onto my fingers. I had to be extra careful not to let the yarn slide across the off-white upholstery. When the shawl was complete I simply ran it through a couple rinses of vinegar and water to set the color. I'd gladly use this yarn again.

Today, being Groundhog Day, I had to break out my groundhog cookie cutter to celebrate. (I just googled "groundhog cookie cutter" and found many available.) I use a terrific sugar cookie recipe that tastes and looks like the best from a bakery. I had been given this recipe by a friend and felt that I shouldn't openly share it until I discovered last year that I had the same recipe written done on a 3x5 card from years ago.

Here's my favorite sugar cookie recipe:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Cream the butter; add sugar and vanilla; mix well. Add flour and salt; mix well.

Roll the dough to 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch thick and use cookie cutters.

Place cookies on ungreased baking sheet, covered in parchment paper. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops look dry. Do not bake until brown.

Cool.

Decorate.

I spread a thin coat of melted chocolate (6 oz. chocolate chips with 1 tsp. solid shortening melted in a double boiler) on the back of the cookie - the groundhog's shadow! There isn't any vanilla ice cream in this house, or else I'd put a scoop in a bowl, stand a groundhog in the ice cream, and then drizzle some homemade hot fudge, as more of a shadow, behind him.

Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow this morning, so winter will be over soon! I wanted to take a sunny picture of these little guys, but the 4 degree afternoon chased me indoors. We'll see how accurate the Punxsutawney rodent is!

"Hey, you dang woodchucks! Quit chuckin' my wood!"

And so now onto WIP Wednesday. I've been designing a few things for Brown Sheep Yarns. This is a sneak peek at the beginning of a stole. The yarn is wonderful to use. I just love lace.

Knit through everything!

Lynn Anne

One - Done

I completed Litla Dimun Shawl this weekend. Here it is:

(If you put your computer on the floor and then lie in your right side you will see this photo as it is meant to be seen! For some unknown reason Blogger has decided that even though I rotated this photo on iPhoto I must not really want it that way.)

No matter. I do love this shawl. In fact I've been wearing it all morning while straightening up my blog page a bit, since it looks like this outside:

Actually, it's a bit worse now, but I'd never get a good shot of it since the ground, sky, and trees are currently all the same color. We've been having freezing fog (I've never experienced that before this year) and drizzle.

No matter. The shawl is making me happy. Cheryl Oberle must be a tall woman as the photo of this shawl in the book hangs just past her waist, while on me it's down to my bum. There were a couple other issues with the pattern, like the gusset decreases on Row 151, and do you decrease 8 stitches in the main sections on Rows 151 and 171 along with the usual 2 decreases, or in place of ? No matter. I learned to just roll with the punches. Like "Shakespeare in Love":

"Strangely enough, it all turns out well."

"How?"

"I don't know. It's a mystery."

With the weather the way it is around here, I was thinking about all the women through the ages who ran about town or farm wrapped in a woolen shawl. I wear a down jacket, wool hat, felted mittens, and bulky scarf, along with one of many pairs of non-skid Gortex-lined boots. It wasn't always this way. Once again, I am in awe of those who came before us.

So that got me thinking and I googled the Faroe Islands. Wow - they're really out there! Eighteen islands are floating smack-dab in the middle of the northern Atlantic, northwest of Scotland and their Shetland Islands, halfway between Norway and Iceland. Now...they may be the final stop for the Gulf Current, but still...I bet they get some interesting storms rolling in.

Take a peak for yourself, it looks lovely when displayed by the tourism board! Faroe Islands (Check out the Gallery, and the Icelandic sheep on the roof!)

So, on to Tvey, the Faroese word for two. This is the cast on and first rows for Stora Dimun Shawl. Once again, I'm using yarn that is listed in the pattern, Blackberry Ridge Woolen Mill Silk Blend in color red trillium. The yarn looks very red in the book photo, but is actually a lovely raspberry. The pattern starts the same way, at the base, and with more stitches, but has a very different feel with 75% wool and 25% silk.

Knit through everything!

LA