Wednesday am update

Ok, the fire is pretty much out, people have returned to their homes, things are returning to normal after a harsh reminder of life in southern California.

Another sign of spring:


The peacocks at the L.A. Arboreteum


are strutting their stuff! (photos by Miss H.)

Waves and Fire

Today has been a very mixed bag. H and I drove down to the Long Beach marina for some quality mother daughter time. Even though it felt hot over by the ocean, it was nothing like the 95 degree heat of Arcadia. We shopped, had a nice lunch and walked along the water. I even saw a seal pop up. We drove home, cranked up the a/c and took naps. I thought it had been a perfect day. I woke up to breaking news of a fire in the foothills above Arcadia. We called some good friends up in the hills and they were about to evacuate. Around 7:30 pm, we went out to do some errands and we could see the fire. I've lived in the San Gabriel Valley on and off since I was a teen. I have never seen a wildfire so clearly and so close. There were 100 hikers and 60 boy scouts trapped behind the fire for a while. They were safely evacuated. However, the fire is out of control and I fear for my friends' and neighbors' homes. We can see the fire from our driveway, it is that low in the foothills. You can see flames rising into the air. Over the past 6 hours, the flames have grown and moved from west to east, south to north and then to the south again. I'm hoping that the morning will bring better news for the residents of Sierra Madre and upper Arcadia. Please keep a good thought.

Party Over Here!

We are thrilled to say that Hannah has made the Constitution Team at her high school. This is a VBD (very big deal). Approx. 600 kids applied, 25 made the team. This is a wonderful reward for a great kid who has had a very difficult spring. Thanks to everyone for their good wishes and support and it's on to the White House in '09! Oops, sorry, I got carried away. Maybe the White House in 2029! I should live so long! Cross your fingers for Senior Men & Women!

Even with my rotator cuff problems, I have been knitting away. I seem to only want to knit bags, blankets or something with 15 or more colors. I don't know what that says about me..... I've ordered three grab bags of Tahki Cotton Classic from WEBS, when that gets here, I'll start the ubiquitous mitered squares blanket ala Mason Dixon Knitting and January One. I also want to make the Babette blanket and Kaffe Fassett's brocade throw. Plus, the Barn Raising Quilt and Olive's Afghan from the fab new book Knitalong. In the bag department, I've just finished Nonibag's Flamenco bag and have cast on the Winter Berries bag. Other bags waiting are the Bobble Tote from the current Vogue Knitting (design #7, I'm too tired to link), and the freebie pattern they just featured on Knitting Daily, the Floral Gathering Sac by Pam Allen. That's all I dare admit to at the moment.

Have a great weekend! I just heard that we're going to have a mild Santa Ana here, so it will be warm and breezy.

Held Over by Popular Demand!!

The Spring Artisans Boutique has been extended through Sunday, April 13th, Noon to 5 pm. See address & other pertinent information below. Yes, it's going to be another (unnaturally) hot day here in the San Gabriel Valley, but they'll have the a/c blowing at the store. Drop by and say hi to Hannah and the other talented artists.

Spring Boutique!

The San Gabriel Bead Company is hosting their Spring Artisans Sale this weekend. There will be many items for sale by talented artists, including my talented daughter Hannah. Hannah has been working night and day to get ready for the show. All you knitters out there will be interested to see Hannah's own brand of Prism-like yarn, hand tied into fabulous color coordinated skeins at a fraction of the price. There will also be some handknit items, handmade stitch markers and jewelry.

Here's the info:

SPRING BOUTIQUE-APRIL 11TH & 12TH

Please visit the Spring Boutique and Artisan Studio this April 11th & 12th at the San Gabriel Bead Company. Featuring the work of
-Anthe Wozcyna- Gomez
-Susan Kelso of Luna Grace Designs
-Mandi Tafoya of HippiDippi Designs
-Alice Neal
-Christa Hamilton
-Cynthia Millar
-Hannah Mathews-Ward of Hannah.Math.Stuffs

Jewelry, Beadwork, Knitwear, Yarn, Tool Cases, Polymer Beads, and Much More Will Be Available For Purchase

San Gabriel Bead Company
325 East Live Oak Avenue
Arcadia, Ca 91006
(626-447-7753)

From the 210 East: Exit Santa Anita Avenue and head south for 2.6 miles. At Live Oak Avenue, turn left and continue heading eastbound until you pass Albertson's. The SGBC is located on the north side of Live Oak Avenue next to Advance Insurance and Carmine's Arcadia on the corner of Fourth and Live Oak. Parking in rear.

Boutique Hours:

Friday, 4/11/08
12-6pm

Saturday 4/13/08
10-6pm

Sweet Sixteen!

I usually keep quiet about my sports leanings because I don't want to jinx things, but my team, UCLA, just beat Texas A & M 53-49 after trailing by as much as 10 points in the second half. Oh yeah! It may be Easter but Christmas just came to Bruin-land. Woo Hoo! I'm now going to lie down in a darkened room for a while to try to return my heartbeat to a normal rhythm.

Happy Spring

Happy Spring, Easter, Purim, whatever applies.

How do you like my new avatar?

Still working away on the Koigu jacket. The new Noni patterns for spring are out and I think it's a great group of designs. I especially like Flamenco bag.

Signs of Spring

1. Everything possible is blooming here, making it impossible for me to breathe. pollen, pollen, everywhere!

2. It is much warmer than it has been. Had to turn on air conditioning in the afternoon.

3. Car is now hot after being parked for a while due to #2.

4. Spring 08 Vogue Knitting is due out soon. Janice Rosema has a good looking piece in the issue. Congrats, Janice!

5. The Spring Knitty is out!! Lots of good stuff. I especially like the Lace Ribbon scarf by Veronik Avery.

Has anyone out there tried Zyrtec? If so, does it knock you out? I think it works really well, but I am so sleepy and "hung over" after taking it.

I am a Violet What Flower Are You?

Give me my hour back

and nobody gets hurt! As a person with awful sleep patterns, it is really painful to lose this hour every spring. I know I'm in the minority, but I can wait for daylight savings time. a long time. So, it was an extra miracle that I got up, got ready and made it over to Unraveled (link in sidebar) to hang out with my peeps Sunday afternoon. Janice Rosema (link in sidebar) and I are both working on the Koigu Oriental Jacket. We are using similar colors and it was fun to brainstorm about the piece and compare progress. I don't think it would be telling tales out of school to say that the instructions can be less than clear. That said, the Painter's Palette book which contains this pattern and many other well known koigu designs, is half off at KnitPicks.

Knitdad (link in sidebar), Sylvia, the lovely Jillian and our gracious hostess Christine rounded out the knitting circle. There has been a great hue and cry in local knitterdom due to Knitdad being ill, but I can tell you that I personally laid eyes on him and he is on the mend! Now if he would just stop adding me to his spam list so that my mail would go through, things would be swell, heh heh.

My thanks to everyone who kindly offered to help me with my yarn in the event that I did quit knitting. I'm happy to say the crisis has been averted and all the Koigu, Habu, Handmaiden, kid crack haze and company will be staying put.

Thursday Thoughts (posted on Friday)

My first post for March and it's already the sixth! Where does the time go? We are in danger of turning into our own urgent care center. Sick kid, sick cat, terminal sinus problems for me...it's enough to make you drink. You know things aren't going too smoothly when you are gathering doctor and dentist notes into a folder to take to the school. Or, when you are leaning your whole self onto a 22 pound cat to force a cone back onto his head and losing the battle! Or, still, when you get the cone on the cat and he continues to loudly lick the inside of the cone--not at all getting it that he's not connecting with his intended target. Even I have to admit that's not too bright.

I've been feeling frustrated with my knitting lately. I want to do so many things, then get bogged down with details or my hands start hurting or some other distraction, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. I found myself in a snit a few days ago, thinking to myself that that was that, I was going to just quit knitting, do something else. Of course, that has passed. I have restarted my Koigu Oriental Jacket.


I have started over, tweaked the colors and I really like how it is looking. I read on Ravelry that it took a woman 4 months to make hers. I'm going to see how much progress I can make on this if I concentrate. I'm not saying I won't go off on little side ventures, because I know myself and I will. But this will be my main focus.

Finally, the last of my Christmas knitting. This is the Nove scarf by Vyvyan Neel.


She also the designer of the popular Argosy scarf from Knitty. Nove was an interesting knit, although I have to say that the little "finger" fringes got a bit old.

On to TGIF!! It's supposed to be in the 80's this weekend (sorry!). Don't forget to Spring Forward this weekend. I am already missing my lost hour...

Insert catchy post title here

Flow tank top from Norah Gaughan Design Collection, vol. 2.

On my third start, I have about eight inches done. While I love this yarn, I don't know if I would recommend it. It is fairly treacherous to work with. I've spoken to several people on Ravelry who are also knitting Flow and they're all having problems with the yarn.

New yarn alert:

This is Birch from Teva Durham, Loop d Loop/Tahki yarns. 90% cotton, 10% silk. There's a nice little booklet cleverly named Loop-d-Loop by Teva Durham volume 2. Here's a link to the Birch page at Tahki's site color card.

Random Stuff

It's starting to look like spring here...the camellias are blooming and the rose bushes are leafing up.


Arty (or as arty as my photos get) shots of my
Anne scarf.


Total length is about six feet so far. Just a little more and it'll be done.

I'll leave you with this gem from Paula Abdul. How does she come up with this stuff?

I want to squish you, squeeze you,
Hang you off my rear view mirror.

I'll admit it, I watch American Idol...

How'd they do that?

Amazing knitted animation from YouTube




It has been a fun weekend. Saturday, a freeform crochet class with Janice Rosema. These pieces are the start of a freeform vest.


Today, a mini yarn crawl with Knitdad. No photos taken today due to our joint participation in YAPP (Yarn Acquisition Protection Program). It was a beautiful sunny, cool day here in Los Angeles.

New Noro yarn! This is Taiyo, color #4. 40% cotton, 30% Silk, 15% Wool, 15% nylon. 200 meters per ball!



I think I may like this yarn more than Silk Garden. I've started MK Carroll's Anne scarf:

The photos are rolling in...

I've been on a roll lately, finishing things, which is a really good thing because I've come down with a wicked case of startitis! I'll save my startitis story for tomorrow's post. Here is a Noro Striped Scarf, ala Jared Flood (brooklyntweed), that I made in December.



These scarves are addictive. You can combine different noro colorways endlessly and they all work! My only problem with it is that the 1 x 1 rib really stirs up my carpal tunnel. Oh well, anything for art, right?



Speaking of Noro, did you know that there are two brand spanking new Noro yarns out for Spring/Summer? I have some of it right here. more tomorrow.

Happy Birthday to Yoooooouuuuuu

Who's my favorite male knitting friend/dad/blogger? Why, Knitdad, of course. It's not always easy to be a man who knits, but Larry does it with aplomb and style. Everyone go over to his blog and wish Larry a happy birthday!

PS This is not a big reveal! I'm not saying that Knitdad is my dad. He's waaaaaaaay too young for that! He is a great dad to the lovely Lisa D.

Saturday Photos

I have finally taken some photos of some finished pieces, plus some WIP's.



This is my Forsa scarf done in the chocolate raspberry colorway of Trendsetter Tonalita.

This is a crazy neckwarmer for H, made of Ozark Handspun.

The so-called 200 Scarf, a birthday present for H. Huge yarn + size N crochet hook pretty much equals immediate gratification.

This is the new Seduce yarn from Berroco in the passementerie green color. For the Flow top from the Norah Gaughan Collection, vol. 2. love this yarn-rayon, silk & linen.

This is the front of Tink Knit's Flower Market bag, details have not yet been embroidered onto the surface. I'm really looking forward to using this bag this spring.

Finally, this is really a nondescript photo, but I've got about four feet done on the Babykid Ruffle shawl.

Like the Phoenix

I'm back and so are two old projects. I may have been premature in thinking that I was over the creeping crud a couple of days ago. Now, though, finally, I am starting to feel human. This would be great except for the fact that the kid is showing signs of falling prey to it now. Two days of finals and one day of Academic competition lie ahead....fingers crossed!

As many of my friends know, I am a big fan of Marta McCall, whose website is Tink Knit Months ago, maybe even a year ago, I knit the back for the Flower Market Bag. Well, I have finally dug out the yarn & charts and am now about 1/3 through the bag front. The plan to make the bag is quite clever: You knit in the basic shapes then put in the details after knitting the front with embroidery. It's still intarsia, but much simpler than having to knit in all the details.

I'm also working on the Tink Knit pattern Silver Leaf Satchel. The knitting is completed. Now comes all the finishing work, which in this case, is pretty extensive. I am going to start silver leafing the leaves soon. I love this bag and am looking forward to using it.

The other ollllllllllllld project I've picked up again is my Color on Color scarf from the ubiquitous Scarf Style book. This project is so old that the knitalong group on Yahoo has apparently disbanded!

This is a photo of a completed COC scarf, I'm about 1/4 of the way through. Any other lapsed COC knitters who'd care to join me? FLM? AD? CH? Knitdad or Unraveled Gal, care to start one? come on, you know you want to!

TGIF!

And I really mean it, thank God it's Friday! What a week. The creeping crud caught up with me on Tuesday and I have been down and out all week. It seems to consist of 96 hours of unrelenting misery after which you feel a little better and stop praying for death. Then, there's this week's weather! Rain, lots of it, wind, hail and cold. If the weatherpeople are correct, we're in for another big storm due in Saturday night. I love the rain, I just don't want any homes to slide off hills...

If you are on Ravelry, you have to go to the Bobby's page and check out the nominees for most colorful project. Talk about eye candy! Our own Janice Rosema is nominated along with the incredible Prudence Mapstone. So many inspiring projects. I still love love love Babette's blanket. Actually, I love love love color.

Also out on the internet now is the Interweave Knits Spring 2008 preview. This time, I will reserve judgement until I have the issue in hand. However, there seem to be quite a few projects on small needles with negative ease. I'm just sayin'

I've finished two projects this week, no photos yet. The first FO is a huge crocheted scarf for the kid's birthday. Check out the blog, Yarn Ball Boogie for the original. Secondly, I finished my Forsa scarf in the Chocolate Raspberry Tonalita. I really love this yarn. It was cold enough today that I actually wore it. I have witnesses!

You Say it's Your Birthday

I need my sister here to sing our annoyingly raucous version of the Beatles' Birthday song. It is 11:30 pm on the 21st, the end of the Martin Luther King holiday. I remember how long it took for this to be a holiday and how much it meant to people when it finally happened. I will also remember this day, always, as the day I checked into the hospital to have my daughter. She was born a little after noon on the 22nd. Happy Birthday!!

Here are a few birthday haiku for Miss H:


today's the big day
for my beautiful sweet girl
It's your day, birdie



seventeen years past
dark haired smiling beauty mine
joyous birthday wishes



beautiful quirky
scary smart politico girl
chase your dreams always


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hexagon count=5, only 290 left

I knew it!

A list of 50 Ways to Improve Your Life in 2008 in the Dec. 20, 2007 issue of U.S. News & World Report contains #50--Knit LIke a Hipster! Yay! We knew it all along. I also like #46--Brew A Better Cup of Coffee. None of that Maxwell House stuff. seriously. They also list "Eat Dark Chocolate." Here's the whole list, presented by the US News staff on video

Unfortunately for me, there's been no actual knitting today because my arm is hurting too much. This hasn't stopped me from thinking about knitting. I've spent a lot of time on Ravelry lately, skulking around my friends' projects and queues. To no one's surprise, many 2008 items will be felted bags. Berroco's Doll bag & Pignoli bag are high on my list, as well as the Lucy Bag (Two Old Bags) and the Fat Bottom bag from The Happy Hooker. I still plan to make the Modern Quilt Wrap before the heat returns to L.A. as well as the Mr. Greenjeans cardigan or the Central Park Hoodie. Yes, I may be joining the CPH bandwagon, now that Knitting Daily has kindly resized the pattern to include us big boned girls. I discovered during this past unseasonably cold spell that I don't have a decent cardigan to wear when it is cool.

Let's see...what else? Well, it's on my Ravelry projects list, so I may as well come clean. I've started another huge project with many pieces and many colors. It is the Patchwork Throw from Erika Knights's Essential Crochet. Here's the "throw"

Rowan Cotton Glace, 12 colors, 7 balls of each, size D crochet hook. In my defense, I do have a lot of Cotton Glace in my stash from the early Rowan years, so this won't require me to sell blood to acquire the remaining yarn. Dye lots aren't a problem, except perhaps for the border color, which I think will be Dijon. I'll pause a few seconds while certain of my friends stop hyperventilating. You know who you are. It's ONLY 295 hexagons! I have 2 done. piece of cake. As one LYS owner said to me, "You always have something going on with lots of stuff." yup.