Just look at that knitting bag.

It’s filled to bursting, poor thing.

The problem is the rapidly-growing afghan, I’m just about finished with my third skein of yarn and this is starting to get bulky … and we’ve got quite a ways to go.

I think it’s about time to separate my knitting into separate bags.

Did you know that the Superbowl is going to have some 3D spots this year? And, not only that, Chuck … my beloved Chuck … is coming back with new episodes on Monday–starting with an episode entirely in 3D! So you can imagine how delighted Mom and I were to find the display of 3D glasses at the grocery store this morning.

Apparently, the technology is entirely new, and watching without the glasses is still possible, but, well where’s the fun in that? Although–my problem? I knit while I watch television, so I don’t really know how much I’ll be able to watch WITH the glasses … but at least I have the option.

And meantime, yay for Chuck finally being back on the air. (Because, gosh, have I mentioned that it’s my favorite current tv show?)

We were at the grocery store to pick up some chicken and some carrots. Because, yep, you’re seeing what you think you’re seeing. Homemade, from scratch, chicken soup, using the chicken stock/broth I made last week. I’ll have to let you know later how it tastes … although the sip I had a little while ago? It still doesn’t taste “chickeny” enough to me, though it at leasts tastes acceptible. It sure looks and smells good!

And, you’ve got to admit I tried.

Remember a couple weeks ago, when I told you how I’d gotten duplicate orders from Bath & Body Works? And how I emailed them to let them know, and was irritated that they wanted me to call them instead of dealing with it via email? And that they sent me a UPS label so I could return the duplicate items?

Well, I got my Visa bill today. Guess who got a CREDIT for her return from B&BW?

Yep. They refunded me for returning items I hadn’t actually bought in the first place.

Corporate America at its best, folks.

The next question–would you think less of me if I just let this go at this point, instead of butting my head up against the B&BW brick wall again?

Tags: General by --Deb
13 Comments »

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
2 Comments »

Carole posted today that it was her 4th anniversary, and that made me realize … I completely missed mine!

Four years, two weeks and one day ago, I started this blog. Wow.

I started, actually, on a slow afternoon at the office, and posted this picture. It was already something like 3 years old, but it was the only one I had on my office computer and, well, Chappy looked adorable.

I mean, really–LOOK at that adorable little puppy face! He was about 8 weeks old in that picture.

(And, honestly, my hair didn’t look THAT red, just in direct sunlight.)

My first REAL post was from the next day, and had actual spinning pictures–a bright, pink silk/merino yarn that I spun for a friend for her birthday. (In fact, it’s her birthday today–happy birthday, Cindy!)

It also quickly became obvious that having an “I’m Reading” section on my sidebar was going to be ridiculously time intensive for me.

Anyway … a few minutes of boredom at work, followed by four years of great fun … so, thanks everyone!

Tags: General by --Deb
16 Comments »

I did promise that I’d show you the next picture with something for scale. So, there it is next to the review copy I got in the mail yesterday.

That’s 30 rows so far, and one and a half skeins of yarn.

(And yes, the color of the yarn looks a little too orange, but, well …)!

Speaking of orange, I’ve got both sleeves done on my sweater, too.

It’s supposed to snow tomorrow, but it’s going to turn into rain, which means it probably won’t be “rompable” which is kind of bumming Chappy out.

Hope you’re all having a good day. Sorry this wasn’t more interesting … but, at least I had pictures!

Tags: General by --Deb
4 Comments »

My sister gave me a pizza stone for Christmas. Well, technically, she gave me glass knitting needles that I would never use. So we exchanged them for a pizza stone which I just got the other day, and, anyway, today was the first day I had a chance to use it. So I decided to pull out my original, favorite bread recipe.

It turns out, I’ve been baking bread for twenty-one years now. 21 years!

I know this because I saved the pages from the Food and Wine issue that had the first bread recipe I fell in love with, and it’s dated February 1988.

Really, though, my love affair with baking bread goes further back than that. I blame Louisa May Alcott, really. Uncle Alec tells Rose in Eight Cousins (one of my childhood favorites) that the true way to tell a real lady is by the quality of her bread and her buttonholes–none of that fancy cooking and embroidery. Naturally, I wanted to be a lady (or at least, I wanted to be when I wasn’t outside playing in the woods), so I immediately started trying to teach myself to sew and to bake.

Of course, there were setbacks. I would read “set dough in warm place to rise” and would put my bowl of dough into an oven set to warm … so that the poor dough would start to bake around the edges. Trying to mix it without an electric mixer was hard on my arms, and Mom would complain that I was making a mess. (Which I probably was, BUT she also would walk into the kitchen at the worst possible moment before I had a chance to clean up.) I actually grew to detest the smell of yeast so much that I couldn’t bring myself to eat the bread I baked–and couldn’t stand warm rolls at restaurants anymore, either.

I was only about 11, though, and Mom doesn’t bake so she couldn’t help me out, so you have to make allowances, okay?

Then, in 1988, I found this article, with the author talking about baking bread with his daughter, and how she said, “But it’s alive. It feels like clay with life in it,” and how it became a tradition for them.

Not to mention that the recipe sounded like FUN. You start a “sponge” the night before, and get to throw ice cubes into the oven for steam. Much more fun than the Betty Crocker recipe I’d tried from Mom’s old cookbook!

I haven’t actually made this bread in a while … years, even … but I did today.

And you know what? Throwing ice cubes into a hot oven is still fun.

A couple links for you:

An article about Martha’s Vineyard in the current issue of the Smithsonian, written by Pulitzer Prize-winning Geraldine Brooks. That’s a triple-win combination, and a sweet little article about Winter on the island.

Do you remember the movie Much Ado About Nothing with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson, back when they were still married? It came out the same summer as the Jurassic Park movie and I dragged Mom miles and miles to the (not so very) nearest movie theater playing it and sat entranced with the gorgeous scenery, lush words, and great story and acting (Denzel Washington! Robert Sean Leonard! Even Keanu Reeves). All while dinosaurs loudly rampaged on the other side of the wall–an interesting juxtaposition. Anyway, my very favorite scene from the entire movie is right here on You Tube. When Denzel and the others try to convince Benedick that Beatrice–who really despises him–loves him. They talk loudly about her passion while he eavesdrops, dumbstruck, but oh, it’s so, so funny! Kenneth Branagh is pure genius in this scene. Love it, love it, love it.

The recipe, if you’re interested:

[Read more →]

Tags: Baking, General by --Deb
8 Comments »

Mom and I went to Starbucks this morning and the socks I was knitting coordinated perfectly with the coffee cup.

You actually can’t see it in this picture, but there’s a blue stripe on that cardboard cup holder, too.

Okay, maybe you had to be there, but hey, at least this gave me an excuse to show you the socks I’m knitting! They’re Jitterbug yarn in the color “Copper Beech” and are just lovely.

Now, I owe you for weeks and weeks of Saturday Sky, so I finally cleaned off the memory card of the camera I keep in my purse, so here are a bunch for you, all at once, taken mostly on the drive to work in the morning …

Yes, this one was on my drive to work.

I took this at lunchtime one day a couple weeks ago. See the snow falling?

Also on my drive to work.

Another one on my drive to work–if you look really closely, you can see the ice on the trees. It looked so pretty with the rising sun shining through the branches, but my little Canon couldn’t quite capture it.

This one was just this afternoon–that nifty stripe in the layers between cloud and blue sky…

Tags: General by --Deb
2 Comments »

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
3 Comments »

You’re dying to see a picture of my haircut, right?

(Hey, it’s the best I could do. And my camera and my sweater look good too, huh?)

I’m not the only one who got a haircut recently, though.

I gave Chappy one at lunchtime. Mostly just the fur around the edges of his ears (and the inevitable mats underneath), and the long fur covering his furry toes. That will make trimming his nails SO much easier! I pretty much left the rest of it alone because it’s been so darn cold lately.

I’m making progress on my Briar Rose sweater, too. I’ve got the top of the cardigan finished, and am almost done with the first sleeve (since I’m making them 3/4 length).

See the texture? That’s reverse stockinette stitch at the top, and from the point where the sleeves divide downward, it will be regular stockinette. Just for a little extra interest.

Can I just tell you how much I’m adoring the colors in this yarn? SO pretty!

I’ve started my Sylvi afghan, too. I know, this looks tiny–does it help to know that those are size 10.5 needles? And that I’ve only knitted about 15 rows and am almost done with my first skein of yarn?

(Next picture, I’ll try to add something for scale. You CAN just see the row counter in the corner, though.)

Here’s another interesting link for you–portraits of all 44 U.S. Presidents, morphing into one another. Very interesting! I must say, though, that some of these gentlemen were better looking than others. (And some of them had better portraitists.) The only thing I don’t understand is why it’s set to the music of Bolero?

And, from Boston.com … 48 fabulous photos from the inauguration yesterday.

Tags: General by --Deb
9 Comments »

A few links for you on this inspirational day.

President Obama’s inaugural address … as a Word Cloud.

Do you want your own Obamacon? Go here.

(Chappy hopes you like his. He was thinking about food.)

Now–other than politics:

How about an AMAZING video about LUCK?

Really. Honestly. This video is absolutely amazing. Go watch it!

Speaking of videos. Don’t forget–as our new President told us today–to “Pick Yourself Up, Brush Yourself Off, and Start All Over Again.” (Well, Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers style.)

Though–watching them DANCE to the song is even better. And it’s one of my favorite dances of theirs.

Continuing the theme, how about this one? As a country, have we finally Reached That Day? This is one of the most goosebump-creating songs I think I’ve ever heard (though watching it on video doesn’t compare to seeing it performed in person with a wonderful cast.) That’s from Ragtime, you know–which had amazing songs. Like the opening number, which Mom says is her favorite opening number ever.

Now, I DID see the swearing-in this afternoon. I took an early lunch and left the office at 11:40 so that I was home in time. I threw Chappy’s schedule off by showing up early, but he promptly climbed into my lap when I settled in to watch with Mom and Dad. Not that he stayed there for long–he’s really not a lap-sitting kind of dog. He did love when I went and got my sandwich out of the fridge, though. I ALWAYS eat at the kitchen table, so eating in the family room in front of the television? A real surprise for him.

I’m really glad I got to see that moment of history, though–and REALLY glad I didn’t try to get it streaming on my computer at work because I heard that the feed kept freezing. (So many kazillions of people trying to watch, no doubt.) I was a tiny bit disappointed in his inaugural address because it wasn’t as inspiring as I thought it could have been–though it had its moments, for sure. But I thought his victory speech on Election night was better. (Although, I was beyond tired, watching that one, so …?)

Anyway. It’s a new day, people! Now, do what the nice man says and go out there and start making a difference!

Tags: General by --Deb
2 Comments »

Our neighbor across the street was just taken away in an ambulance–something about the flu and not being able to breathe, so we’re hoping that she’s mostly okay. I’m still seeing flare in my eyes, though, from the plethora of flashing lights out there–even though they’ve been gone for an hour. Watching them get her down the steep driveway was almost scary. We got some extra snow tonight, just a dusting, but it’s obviously slippery out there. The ambulance driver more or less skiied down, and two of the three people steering the gurney almost landed on their knees. They ended up backing the ambulance partway up the driveway so that they only had to wheel the gurney halfway down, but … that was a little scary. We’re sending good thoughts, though.

Chappy’s been fidgety ever since–doing a lot more barking and pacing than is usual at 9:00 at night. But, he’s in Watch Dog Mode, so, it’s to be expected, right.

So–be careful. He’s watching you!

You know my good friend Susan at the Martha’s Vineyard Fiber Farm, right? Well, she’s got a brand-new, fancy-schmancy website. Go check it out! (Though, unfortunately, they’re having technical difficulties with the LambCam for live action flock excitement, but, well, they’ll get that fixed.)

You also know, of course, that as of tomorrow, we’ve got a new President. (You may have heard?) I’m planning on taking an early, long lunch tomorrow so that I can actually watch the swearing in at noon … and see the Inaugural Address right afterward. He gives such good speeches, and Inaugurals are traditionally HUGE and moving and historic. I really, truly don’t want to  miss it and, darn it, the office can manage without me for a little bit.

You realize, of course, that–barring any terrible, unforeseen accidents–this means that the Curse of Tippecanoe truly is broken? You know, the one that meant that every U.S. President elected in a year ending with zero since 1840 has died in office. William Henry Harrison (1840), Abraham Lincoln (1860), James Garfield (1880), William McKinley (1900), Warren Harding (1920), Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1940), John F. Kennedy (1960).

It had been said, of course, that the curse had been broken by Ronald Reagan’s having survived his assassination attempt in 1981, but … who was to know? You couldn’t really say one way or another until or unless the President elected in 2000 survived his full term. And since we’re into the last hours of George W. Bush’s presidency … I’m willing to say that it looks pretty promising.

See? We’re seeing all SORTS of new history tomorrow!! And, frankly, seeing this 160-year old tradition die is much better than seeing more Presidents die. (Because, no, even though I have not been fond of George Bush, there’s no way I ever wished him to fall victim to this curse. I wouldn’t have wanted Al Gore to die, either, and I didn’t like him any more than Bush.)

Oh, and folks? Send good luck my way, would you? I’ve got an interesting prospect for my freelancing business … as in, really interesting, fun, and I WANT this job! So … if you wanted to send along some good luck, um….

Tags: General by --Deb
8 Comments »

No, I’m not saying that our refrigerator has shuffled off this mortal coil (heaven forbid!).

What I’m saying is that, with all that lovely cold, cold air out there … what better way to swiftly cool a pot full of the chicken broth I made last night? Because, of course, there are all sorts of bacterial rules to follow–you have to cool it quickly before bacteria can take hold, and yet you can’t put a container of boiling-hot liquid directly into your refrigerator, either, because it will bring down the temperature for everything ELSE.

So, why not take advantage of all that nice, chilly air outside? It’s about 25 degrees today–a twenty degree improvement over the same time yesterday–but that’s still colder than our refrigerator AND I’m reasonably confident that one pot of hot chicken broth is not going to affect the overall air temperature out there.

Evidence of how warm the pot was when I put it down (and how dirty our deck is).

This, of course, was after the broth had simmered ALL night long. Even before I ate breakfast, I pulled out all the solids and transferred the liquid to a new pot for cooling, so I could get the stock pot clean. I transferred to my stainless steel pot because (1) the largest bowl is currently filled with leftovers from last night’s supper and (2) it’s got handles. If I’d been truly smart, I would have stashed the clean pot in the freezer overnight so as to start the cooling process as quickly as possible.

Chappy, of course, couldn’t understand why I was bringing food out onto the deck–but, more importantly, why I wasn’t opening the gate so he could go PLAY in the snow!

Oh, and other than the fact that I still hadn’t had my breakfast or my coffee and was wearing my slippers (aka Keds Champion slip-ons)? There’s a hard, crunchy layer there, and he came back to the door a lot more carefully than he ran out there–it only LOOKS soft and romp-able.

Besides, when I got him back inside, I gave him some of the chicken from the pot … so, I don’t think he was unhappy for long (grin).

Still, here’s the result. The color at least looks like chicken broth, but the spoonful I tasted still doesn’t taste like chicken SOUP. I’ll be interested to see if this gels at all in refrigerator, like my grandmother’s used to. See the pile of clean pots and bowls behind it? That’s what’s left to put away. You THINK this is just going to take one pot and then you end up with all these extras!

And, I hope  my sister didn’t want that disposable food container back. It came full of cookies for Dad’s birthday last week and Mom washed it out to send it back, but it was such a nice, handy size … I kind of adopted it. (Um, Patty? Just let me know if I owe you another one!)

Okay–got to go check on the cake. Because–those berries I bought yesterday? There were extras (since they were having a buy one-get one sale), so I had to bake SOMETHING to serve the berries with, right?

Tags: Baking by --Deb
11 Comments »

So, really … what ELSE would you expect me to do on a cold, cold winter Saturday, right after a haircut?

Of course! Do some baking!

And this is a recipe I’ve been meaning to try for a long time.

Red, white, and blue “Presidential Muffins” from Espresso Love. They used to have the recipe on the website, but now it’s in the new cookbook. The author created the recipe when President Clinton was vacationing on Martha’s Vineyard–the full name, incidentally, is “Presidential Muffins: Patriotic, but Non-Partisan”). I figured that–even though it’s not exactly blueberry and strawberry season, it was an appropriate weekend to make them, since we’re ushering one President out and a new one in on Tuesday.

But, that’s not all!

I made soup, too!

That’s Spinach-Tortellini soup, from the same cookbook. It’s not really the prettiest soup, but it sure tasted good! (You can get the recipe from the author’s blog, too.)

And wait! There’s more!

Amy’s been swearing up and down that this is the best chicken broth recipe in the world.

You may not have noticed, but I’m chicken-stock-impaired (right along with pie-crust-impaired). Those are two kitchen things that I really want to be able to do well, but can’t. Whenever I try chicken stock, it comes out like chicken-flavored water, not SOUP. Very frustrating. But, I decided to give it a try and bought a chicken at the grocery store this morning. It’s on the stove now and is supposed to simmer for 12-14 hours … or, you know, until I get up in the morning.

Meanwhile, Chappy has been enjoying being my taster, and a big help cleaning the dishes.

Tags: Baking by --Deb
7 Comments »

You may have heard on the news? It’s been a little chilly this week. So it’s been like my Handknit Sweaters Greatest Hits week–all the heaviest sweaters that are usually too warm to wear inside these nice, heated buildings we humans have invented. They’ve made it out of the closet at last.

My Celtic Dream. My Olympics sweater. That pretty, orange Karabella cardigan. Celtic Icon. Even Bjerk. All of them have been worn this week. As have a nice assortment of handknit socks, shawls, and my one and only pair of pulse warmers.

I tell you, this is exactly why knitting is one of my favorite hobbies!

Because, did you hear? It’s kind of cold outside. Now, here in New Jersey, it’s not as cold as, say, North Dakota, Minnesota, or Illinois this week, but it was only 6 degrees when I woke up this morning, and it’s only 12 degrees right now. (Farhenheit, of course.) The best you can say is that it’s sunny and not windy–so the snow on the ground is staying put rather than blowing in people’s faces. Which is something.

Not exactly the kind of weather to take a swim in the Hudson River, though. Did you HEAR about that plane crash yesterday? Except for the two geese who apparently took out BOTH engines, the pilot maneuvered his … well, essentially his glider … down to a perfect landing in the Hudson River, where the water was about 35-40 degrees. But not only did he ditch the plane perfectly, so that it floated nicely instead of breaking into pieces and dramatically plummeting a la the Titanic, but he brought it down within perfect reach of a slew of ferry boats that hurried over to pick up the stranded passengers from the wings of the plane. Every one of the 155 people on board survived and the worst injuries (other than to the geese) were to a flight attendant who broke both her legs and a few cases of non-life-threatening hypothermia. Isn’t it nice to hear about a plane crash with a happy ending?

Although, really, that’s two in two months. Do you remember that fiery slide from the runway in Denver, Colorado, just before Christmas? Where the plane exploded into a fireball just moments after everyone ran for safety?

Personally, I’m taking this as a sign that Capital-T-Things are looking up.

Do any of you subscribe to Real Simple magazine? I don’t know if you’ve noticed (my mother hadn’t), but one of my favorite parts of the magazine is the section dividers–illustrations made out of folded paper that blow me away every time. And this issue–since it’s the February edition–has a wintery theme. Including knitting.

One picture has a basket of knitting sitting next to a chair by a cozy fire … and I’ll forgive the artist for the knitting-in-progress looking more like weaving than knitting since it IS made out of tiny little paper strips and that’s challenging enough without trying to accomplish stitch detail.

The scarf hanging by the door has that garter stitch feel to it, though, and looks like it would keep a nice, paper person very cozy.

Though … they might need new slippers once this dog is through with his snack …

In my own knitting? I’m just about at the armholes of my Briar Rose, top-down, raglan cardigan, and I got this far on one of my three skeins of yarn. I don’t expect the sleeves to use up more than … two-thirds? … of the second skein, so I’m cautiously optimistic that I’ll have enough yarn to finish this at a decent length. Although I’m going to have to remember to leave enough for the button bands!

And now that my Harvest Cardigan is done, and this sweater is at its first major milestone, I’m at a mental place where I can start my Sylvi Afghan, which I plan to do this weekend. (You’ve been wondering, haven’t you?)

My only other real plans this weekend? I’m getting my hair cut tomorrow, which it badly needs. In fact, refreshingly, it’s not looking great today–because you know how hair is, it usually looks fabulous the day before a haircut so that you start doubting yourself and wondering if maybe you can’t wait another week or two before getting it cut. But no, today I’m looking at mine and thinking, oh yes, it needs a haircut! I think the dry, winter heat is affecting the curl.

Oh–and if you’re like me and you don’t have Direct TV so that you haven’t been able to watch Friday Night Lights this season … tune in tonight for the broadcast season premiere! I can’t tell you how happy I am to see this show back. I’ve been trying very hard NOT to read/hear/see spoilers about season 3 as it’s aired via satellite, but I have heard that it’s a great season–maybe not as perfect as season 1, but definitely better than season 2. So, yay! It comes highly recommended.

For that matter, speaking of television, Burn Notice comes back next week. Psych started up again last week and is also on tonight. And it’s just two and a half more weeks before Chuck comes back, and I can’t wait. That is still my favorite current show, and lately it’s not just me–Mom and I have been rewatching Season 1 over the last week or so and I’m just enjoying it so much. Mom says I’m a “Chuckaholic.” Okay. I can accept that!

Have a great weekend everyone.

Oh, and, do me a favor? Cross your fingers for me!

Tags: General by --Deb
5 Comments »

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
5 Comments »

So, just a few things…

I wore my new sweater today and loved it. The sleeves are just the right length. It’s comfortable, soft, warm, lovely … the shoulders are just a bit too wide, because the seams don’t sit AT the shoulder, but that’s really not something I’m worrying about. Or about the fact that it’s a few inches longer than it really should be. (Although that’s something I should just expect from Silky Wool at this point.)

The only problem? The buttonholes are just a LITTLE too big, and it doesn’t really want to stay buttoned. This is not a serious problem, though; it’s easy to fix. I’ll just pull out my needle and thread (or yarn) and tighten up the holes a little. Making them a touch smaller is EASY.

You all know I like to read, right? I mean, if you haven’t realized that yet, you must be a really new reader–in which case, welcome–or just haven’t been paying attention when I post my monthly reading lists. But, anyway, I mention it so that I can refer you to this great article about how reading really does make your brain smarter. (With thanks to Joanna for the link.)

It’s cold and getting colder … We’re supposed to get 1-3 inches of snow overnight AND for the temperature to be somewhere around 19 degrees (F), with a low of something like 2. Which is, of course, much warmer than it is in the middle of the country, but still! Cold!

And, darn, I broke a nail today … Which I mention not because I ruined my manicure–I don’t HAVE manicures–but because it’s been throwing off my typing and everything else ever since. It luckily didn’t break all the way down into the quick, so it’s not painful, but it was nastily jagged there for a while, and after I got to a nail file and at least smoothed off the edges … Well, am I the only one who needs all her nails roughly the same length? Having one nail drastically different than the others always affects my dexterity–especially my typing. And so I took a few minutes at work this morning to file down all 10 of my fingernails. Because, well, they WANT me to be efficient, right?

Oh, and that brand new HP computer I bought my Dad for his birthday? For whatever reason, it WILL NOT GO TO SLEEP. No matter what the Power Settings are set to, it never drops off, and if you manually put it into Sleep Mode, it wakes up again after about a minute. It’s an insomniac. It won’t nap, it won’t sleep, it’s like a new baby, except (thankfully) it doesn’t cry.

But, WHY would they put together a computer that doesn’t sleep, right out of the box? WHY? It makes no sense! I’ve spent a couple hours “chatting” with HP Support and not only are they appallingly slow typists, they keep starting off their instructions … no matter how many times I explain that I’ve checked all the basic stuff … by telling me to click on Control Panel and then Power Settings. Grr! And then, “What kind of keyboard are you using.” Um, gee, the one that came in the box with the computer? Sheesh.

Tags: General by --Deb
8 Comments »

First, I apologize for the blurry final picture–it was the best of the first batch I took, where my camera mysteriously chose to focus on the wall behind me, but which I didn’t notice until the tripod was away, the sweater back on the bed, and all the pictures copied off the camera, and I was finally sitting DOWN. So … well, at least the others came out okay. It’s just that I only had it buttoned all the way in the first group, but, well, you folks have imaginations, right?

The sweater, you’ll remember, is the Harvest Cardigan from Pam Allen and Ann Budd’s Color Style. (Which was a book I was really impressed with.) For reasons beyond comprehension, there are only 3 of these being made on Ravelry, since it’s such a beautiful pattern.

I made mine out of Elsebeth Lavold’s Silky Wool rather than the Shetland called for in the book, and naturally I had gauge issues, so mine came out longer than it should have but … it fits well, looks great, and the only problem I had was that a 3-stitch steek really just is NOT wide enough for Silky Wool yarn. If I were doing it over, I’d do at least 7 stitches across for the steeks. The only modification I DID make? I made the button bands wider than in the pattern … just in case I had picked a larger button.

Yes. I chose button #2. As torn as I was between it and button #1, it ultimately came down to no contest at all. Because while both of them would have been more or less perfect for this sweater …

Button #1 is EQUALLY perfect for my upcoming Briar Rose sweater. Don’t those buttons look fabulous with its orangey goodness?

So, with one button that was perfect for this sweater and only this sweater, and one that was perfect for two, well … no contest.

And, can you believe how long my hair is getting? Good thing I have a haircut appointment for Saturday. Would you believe it’s been since August that I stretched this last cut? I took this picture last night, incidentally. For whatever reason, my hair was badly tangled from skimming over my shoulders all day, so I pulled out my hairbrush before I took my shower … You know, it always amazes me how smooth and silky my hair feels after I brush it. I’m so used to the clumps of curls. And, it looked so pretty, pulled over my head, I figured I’d take its picture before I got it wet.

And, the reason I don’t usually brush my hair? Look how full it looks right now, with the clumps broken up and each hair doing its own thing … if I left it like that and went about my day, it would be about twice that volume in about 30 minutes and would make me look like a crazy person. The curls keep everything under control, but the trick to that (and to avoiding frizz, if you’ve got curly hair) is NOT TO TOUCH it. Not ever. Never, ever break up a curl clump if you don’t have to … that just frees each individual strand to curl on its own and is the start of chaos.

Oh … I just realized something. The sweater in the book had some embroidery on it … maybe I’m not 100% finished after all!

Tags: Finished Knitting, General, Hair, Knitting/Spinning by --Deb
16 Comments »

It’s blocking, which means, except for sewing on the buttons, it’s DONE. I reinforced the steeks and the sleeve seams by hand last night, and all the ends are woven in. As soon as it’s dry, the only thing left is to sew on the buttons.

Woohoo!

Tags: General by --Deb
8 Comments »

Warning: Food Pictures Ahead

Start the day with waffles.

Ice and fresh snow.

But … it’s ICY snow, with a hard crust over the soft stuff. Not suitable for paws and running.

It seems so unfair.

But there was fresh bread with dinner.

And the lasagne was really good.

And the salad was truly beautiful (even if it was, you know, salad).

Mustn’t forget the birthday cake.

All in all, I’d say Chappy had a darn good day.

Really, the only drawback, from his point of view … other than NOT being able to romp in the snow … was that there was simply no time for a nap. Which means he is tired, tired, tired tonight! But, in a good way.

Hey, I finished my sweater! I finished the second buttonband last night, wove in the ends today, reinforced the steeks and the seams, just to be safe, and now it just needs to be blocked and the buttons sewn on. Woohoo! Pictures will be forthcoming as soon as it’s blocked, because right now she’s kind of curly around the edges and says she’s embarrassed to be seen that way.

Not only that? I got some spinning done. Two ounces of my MVFF Cormo. (It’s amazing how much spinning you can get done when you actually, you know, sit and spin.) I brought my wheel down to the kitchen today so while we were all sitting and chatting and laughing, I spun. So I finished the bobbin I started at New Year’s … did I ever actually tell you that I was spinning AT the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve? Now I’ll ply it with the other bobbin, and I’ll have TWO skeins of MVFF Cormo yarn in the original, natural color.

Have a good Monday, folks–if such a thing is possible!

Tags: Baking, Chappy, Family by --Deb
5 Comments »

You can’t make a cardigan without some way of closing it, right? And so, I bought some buttons. Naturally, though–being me–I had to buy more than ONE so I could pick just the right buttons for my lovely (if ill-behaved) Harvest Cardigan.

I ordered them from the Buttons Galore shop on Etsy and they just arrived today. Which is a relief, because you know that I don’t like having multiple projects, and now I can finish the second buttonband. (I was waiting, of course, until I knew for sure which buttons I was using so I could be sure to make the buttonHOLES the right size.)

But, now, for the decisions. In no particular sequence:

There are these. We’ll call the Button Number 1. They look like metal, but aren’t, and attach via a post on the back. I like these better on the sweater than I thought I would.

Button number 2, who makes up for in height what it’s lacking in width. It’s visually the smallest of the buttons, but it’s got depth. Right now, I think this one is in the lead. Simple to look at, complimentary colors, and yet it’s got character.

Button number 3, which looks like little, brass sand dollars.

Button number 4. even though I thought this might be too “busy” for this sweater, I couldn’t resist buying these. I love the coin motif and actually think it looks better on this sweater than I expected … but still, I think these lovely buttons deserve a simpler sweater.

Buttons number 5. I had high hopes for this button, which is a lovely brown with scrollwork that kind of mimics the pattern in the sweater … and yet I don’t think it works quite as well as it could.

As always, you can click on any of the pictures to get a better look. Which buttons do you like?

What else have I been doing today? Well, it’s Dad’s birthday, and I got to give him the gift I bought him last week.

Yep. A new computer. A bare bones HP Pavilion from (of all places) Walmart. This is a first for me and except for a bag of African Violet soil two years ago, the very first thing I’ve ever bought there. Dad has desperately needed a new computer for months now and, really, my only regret is that I couldn’t afford to buy him a better one. Still, this is a dual-core, 160 gb hard-drive, 2 gb RAM computer (running Vista) with a 19″ lcd monitor. I bought a wireless usb adapter to go with it and, well … it’s miles ahead of the one he had … I hope!

I wonder if the 1GB memory card I bought him for Christmas for his Dell would work in this one? Because he threw the case it came in away, so it’s not like I can return it!

Oh, and apologies in advance for those of you complaining that I’ve been baking too much and providing too much temptation. Because, well, it’s my Dad’s birthday today and you KNOW I had to bake him a cake!

Tags: General by --Deb
25 Comments »

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
7 Comments »