Brewgal has a long commute. Not as long as the 144-mile round trips between Rockville and Gettysburg Mr. Brewguy and I used to make on a daily basis.
I miss the cows and the horses I used to see on those trips up to Pennsylvania. I guess that's why I love Bohemian's photos. It reminds me of those days when I could drive out into the orchards of Adams County, park the car up on a mountain in Ortanna and sit listening to the sounds of birds.
But I digress.
My commute is long enough to allow my mind to wander. I have a few minutes of nice scenery, punctuated by insane Maryland drivers whose time is CLEARLY MORE IMPORTANT than Brewgal's. *deep breaths*
Ahem. Anyway, yesterday, as I was driving home to the dulcet sounds of DC101,* I came up with the following haikus.
For most of you this will be tame stuff. However, I warn those of tremulous sensibility that what follows is rather rude. Naughty bits are referenced. Bodily functions are discussed. Proceed on your own recognizance and don't send me nasty emails because you feel post-hoc offense.
In parenting books
Not once did I read the words
"projectile pooping"
Empire State needle.
Old Doc Big Apple, pricking
the ass of the sky
*Yes, I realize "dulcet" and "DC101" are rarely mentioned in the same context. It's SARCASM, people!
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Quote of the day
"Get me a scientist!" -- Tommy Lee Jones in Volcano.
As if we're all on retainer and can be called up at a moment's notice like The Geek Squad (TM). Imagine it: huge bands of scientists, roving the countryside, looking for problems to be solved. We could wear badges!*
Cat up a tree? Call a scientist! (a tall one)
That missing sock? Call a scientist!
Global warming? Call a scientist! Oops, did that already. Inspectors general at two agencies have begun an investigation into whether the Bush administration has suppressed government scientists' research on global warming, officials at NASA and the Commerce Department confirmed yesterday.
*Ok, FINE. Everyone repeat after me: "Badges? We don't need no stinkin' badges!" Then if you haven't already, go rent Treasure of the Sierra Madre so you can know whereof you speak.
As if we're all on retainer and can be called up at a moment's notice like The Geek Squad (TM). Imagine it: huge bands of scientists, roving the countryside, looking for problems to be solved. We could wear badges!*
Cat up a tree? Call a scientist! (a tall one)
That missing sock? Call a scientist!
Global warming? Call a scientist! Oops, did that already. Inspectors general at two agencies have begun an investigation into whether the Bush administration has suppressed government scientists' research on global warming, officials at NASA and the Commerce Department confirmed yesterday.
*Ok, FINE. Everyone repeat after me: "Badges? We don't need no stinkin' badges!" Then if you haven't already, go rent Treasure of the Sierra Madre so you can know whereof you speak.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Stashing and busting
Little Brewer #2 is a genius. Look at the drawing he did on Paint. This would make a fabulous yarn!
It looks like a sunset. I officially name this color "Jeffrey"
In other news, I've been pondering the rules for Knit From Your Stash.
(if I could figure out how to add a button to my sidebar, I would. HMTL=1, Brewgal=0)
For instance, are the following scenarios within the KFYS rules:
- Can I buy yarn from a thrift store? Net yarn = +, but cheap
- Can I take apart items I have already made and re-use the yarn for another project? Net yarn = 0
- Can I buy items at the thrift store, take them apart and re-use the yarn, yadda yadda yadda? Net yarn = +, but possibly offset by effort.
Can you tell Brewgal has been loitering around the thrift store lately? My zip code has an excellent mix of households that are new families and families that were original owners. This means that when the original householders move on to warmer climes or Leisure World, they downsize. And this often means the knitting stash gets donated.
Yesterday, while Little Brewer #2 and Brewguy were having "guy's day out" at the Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum, Little Brewer #1 and I ran errands. We came away from the thrift store with a great cache of needles and an odd kntted garment. I am not sure how to describe it. It was open in front like a cardigan, seamed under the arms, short sleeved. What attracted me was the geniune norweigan frog clasp and the feel of the wool. I am sure it was knit with unprocessed fibre because I could feel the lanolin. Heaven! And for $2.50, worth the price just for the clasp alone.
I tried it on just to make sure it couldn't be salvaged as a stand alone piece. It fit like a slightly off-center short sleeved blanket. Oookaay, let's frog that puppy!
When I'm finished, I'll post before and after photos.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Crisis!
I had a dental appointment yesterday. Just a cleaning. I say "just" for those of you who do not harbor a deep, ingrained fear of dentistry.
Unlike myself.
WARNING: scary dentistry story follows. Feel free to skip! I've had four root canals in six years to fix problems from prior bad dentistry. In the first, the anesthetic never took effect completely. *feel free to cringe here* Two others occurred simultaneously, about three weeks after Little Brewer #2 was born. Someday I will write a book entitled "The Root Canal Diet." I lost 50 pounds of combined baby and me weight. Perspective: I'm 5 feet 10 inches tall. My weight went down to 125 pounds. And it was not a good thing.
You have no idea how good food tastes when you've been unable to eat for a month.
My reward for getting through this particular appointment without crying was to stop by my favorite local thrift store for a look-see. Twenty-three dollars and one hour later, I came out with the following:
1 Hello Kitty down jacket, size 6
1 Old Navy soccer jersey
1 black purse
1 pair enameled cufflinks
3 long sleeve t-shirts
3 issues of Vogue Knitting magazine circa 1995
2 Bernat booklets
1 copy of animal knits by Zoe Mellor
1 copy of Vogue Knitting - the 1989 reference book
It is the Vogue reference book that has precipitated my crisis. I was taught to knit by my maternal Grandmother (twice, but that's a story for a different post). This is the woman who could eyeball a pattern and recreate it in her head. When she passed away I was lucky enough to inherit some of her stash, needles and her wooden swift. I still have the fair isle sweater she knit for me in junior high.
There, in the book, were the instructions for the knit stitch and the purl stitch. And I became aware, as I once knew, that I KNIT WRONG. At least, wrongly according to the gurus at Vogue. When I knit, I put the needle through the back of the stitch, rather than taking the front of the loop through the back. My purls seem to be ok.
Yet my finished work is, to me, indistinguishable from "correct" knitting. Why then the crisis?
Have I completely screwed up the others I have taught to knit? Probably not. Adding more knitters to the universe can't be a bad thing.
Is my work crap? Various opinions may be voiced, but I don't think so.
I think it is the fear that someone will tell me I am doing it wrong and this will destroy my love for the craft. This fear kept me from knitting or crocheting in public until fairly recently.
So now I'm mad at myself for falling back into the trap of "different=bad." I need to grow up.
Unlike myself.
WARNING: scary dentistry story follows. Feel free to skip! I've had four root canals in six years to fix problems from prior bad dentistry. In the first, the anesthetic never took effect completely. *feel free to cringe here* Two others occurred simultaneously, about three weeks after Little Brewer #2 was born. Someday I will write a book entitled "The Root Canal Diet." I lost 50 pounds of combined baby and me weight. Perspective: I'm 5 feet 10 inches tall. My weight went down to 125 pounds. And it was not a good thing.
You have no idea how good food tastes when you've been unable to eat for a month.
My reward for getting through this particular appointment without crying was to stop by my favorite local thrift store for a look-see. Twenty-three dollars and one hour later, I came out with the following:
1 Hello Kitty down jacket, size 6
1 Old Navy soccer jersey
1 black purse
1 pair enameled cufflinks
3 long sleeve t-shirts
3 issues of Vogue Knitting magazine circa 1995
2 Bernat booklets
1 copy of animal knits by Zoe Mellor
1 copy of Vogue Knitting - the 1989 reference book
It is the Vogue reference book that has precipitated my crisis. I was taught to knit by my maternal Grandmother (twice, but that's a story for a different post). This is the woman who could eyeball a pattern and recreate it in her head. When she passed away I was lucky enough to inherit some of her stash, needles and her wooden swift. I still have the fair isle sweater she knit for me in junior high.
There, in the book, were the instructions for the knit stitch and the purl stitch. And I became aware, as I once knew, that I KNIT WRONG. At least, wrongly according to the gurus at Vogue. When I knit, I put the needle through the back of the stitch, rather than taking the front of the loop through the back. My purls seem to be ok.
Yet my finished work is, to me, indistinguishable from "correct" knitting. Why then the crisis?
Have I completely screwed up the others I have taught to knit? Probably not. Adding more knitters to the universe can't be a bad thing.
Is my work crap? Various opinions may be voiced, but I don't think so.
I think it is the fear that someone will tell me I am doing it wrong and this will destroy my love for the craft. This fear kept me from knitting or crocheting in public until fairly recently.
So now I'm mad at myself for falling back into the trap of "different=bad." I need to grow up.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Blogfodder
Happy New Year, Everyone! It's that time again, time for New Year's Knitting Resolutions!
- I will tame (organize) the Stash of DOOOOM.
- I will either finish or frog the half-started projects and return the yarn to the Stash of DOOOOM.
- I will attempt socks.
Ok, I'm bored. Coming up with knitting resolutions seems so pedestrian. Let's just say I'll knit more and be done with it.
Lately I've been reading other blogs more than writing my own. I guess I'm not thrilled hearing myself talk. I mosey'd over to Samurai Knitter and saw she wanted to know where we all knit.
I like Samurai's take-no-prisoners approach to knitting. If we were all pirates, she would be the one teaching the new recruits how to drink rum and taking them all for their first pirate tattoo.
I don't usually do what other blogs tell me to do, but what the hell! Photos of my knitting corner.
Here is the corner of my knitting sofa: Note the comfy pillow to support my arm.
and the other corner showing one of my many knitting reference shelves:
(it's the packed one in the middle)
Congratulations Samurai, you've managed to make me blogfodder.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Christmas with Al
Alpaca, that is. Two weeks before Christmas I realized, much to my horror, that I did not have a big gift for my father. Big as in significant, not size. This is a tradition in my household. Everyone gets one "big" gift and one or two little gifts. With two weeks to go, I was sure I could knit him a scarf so off I went to the Stash of DOOOOOM. I picked out some lovely black Alpaca I bought last spring at Maryland Sheep and Wool and started a modified basketweave pattern.
I was into the second ball when tragedy struck- a hole. My own fault, as I had joined in the middle rather than at the end of the row. No problem, thought I, I'll just rip it and start over, this time using a simpler pattern (3x3 reversible rib). I still have a week to go (I'm not the fastest knitter).
On December 23 I snagged the scarf pulling it out of my purse. ARRGH!
Now I had a serious problem. I cannot knit a scarf in two days. I can, however, crochet a hat in that time if it does not have a major pattern.
I forgot that last bit.
I ran to my newly-purchased book on Charted Celtic Cross-Stitch, chose a twisted rope design and got to work. The design is done using tapestry crochet technique where the contrasting yarn is carried behind the main yarn and brought forward for the design. I used Alpaca and some other soft vintage yarn from the DOOM stash.
Here is the finished result:
I was into the second ball when tragedy struck- a hole. My own fault, as I had joined in the middle rather than at the end of the row. No problem, thought I, I'll just rip it and start over, this time using a simpler pattern (3x3 reversible rib). I still have a week to go (I'm not the fastest knitter).
On December 23 I snagged the scarf pulling it out of my purse. ARRGH!
Now I had a serious problem. I cannot knit a scarf in two days. I can, however, crochet a hat in that time if it does not have a major pattern.
I forgot that last bit.
I ran to my newly-purchased book on Charted Celtic Cross-Stitch, chose a twisted rope design and got to work. The design is done using tapestry crochet technique where the contrasting yarn is carried behind the main yarn and brought forward for the design. I used Alpaca and some other soft vintage yarn from the DOOM stash.
Here is the finished result:
Here's a shot of the hat being blocked on tupperware. Note my arm. I am wearing my bathrobe because it is CHRISTMAS MORNING and I have not finished weaving in the ends. I think the pattern turned out nicely. I would have enjoyed it more had I not been working so feverishly.
Note to self: start making Christmas presents in JANUARY.
Saturday, December 23, 2006
No Casino for Gettysburg
The Pennsylvania Gaming Board has decided not to award a slot license to Crossroads. This means there will NOT be a casino in Gettysburg. You can find a link to the story on the New York Times site here.
*begin soapbox*
I am THRILLED there will not be a casino in Gettysburg. Yes, LeVan et al. said the casino would not have been visible from the battlefield (what, it's invisible?) and yes, there probably would have been a short-term increase in revenue/jobs for Adams County. IMHO, the resulting increase in crime, traffic and loss of ambiance would not have been worth the short term gain.
Honestly, I really could not have imagined a worse place to put a casino- except perhaps Salt Lake City (my apologies to Salt Lake City). A casino right next to Gettysburg, a major civil war battlefield. Imagine- Pickett's Charge Keno! Confederate 21! Union Penny Slots! 55,000 dead!
Ugh.
*end soapbox*
Friday, December 15, 2006
Happy Birthday to Me
December birthdays are a tricky business. They are often lost amid holiday preparations and bouts of the flu. Case in point: last year's birthday was a washout. This year, however, was glorious.
Mr. Brewguy took me to the Flag House Inn in Annapolis for a parents-only overnight adventure. My parents (who ROCK) babysat the little brewers overnight. Mr. Brewguy spends quite a bit of time photographing politicians at the State House in Annapolis so he was eager to show me around. Ireland seems to be in vogue these days - there are at least 5 Irish pubs (I can recommend both Sean Donlon's and The Galway Bay) and two stores carrying Irish goods.
The best part was my knitting book score. One of Samurai Knitter's book recommendations was Charted Celtic Designs. Finally! I have some old celtic design sourcebooks but have been incredibly frustrated trying to figure out how to make my own charts using celtic patterns (that twist goes where???) I was thrilled to find two celtic cross stitch books at one of the aforementioned irish gift store (should have written down the name!) on Main Street and promptly bought them.
Mr. Brewguy took me to the Flag House Inn in Annapolis for a parents-only overnight adventure. My parents (who ROCK) babysat the little brewers overnight. Mr. Brewguy spends quite a bit of time photographing politicians at the State House in Annapolis so he was eager to show me around. Ireland seems to be in vogue these days - there are at least 5 Irish pubs (I can recommend both Sean Donlon's and The Galway Bay) and two stores carrying Irish goods.
The best part was my knitting book score. One of Samurai Knitter's book recommendations was Charted Celtic Designs. Finally! I have some old celtic design sourcebooks but have been incredibly frustrated trying to figure out how to make my own charts using celtic patterns (that twist goes where???) I was thrilled to find two celtic cross stitch books at one of the aforementioned irish gift store (should have written down the name!) on Main Street and promptly bought them.
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Fear not!
This is the lesson I try to pass along to everyone I teach: do not be afraid of the knitting. I am not sure how this fear of knitting got started. I myself had this fear when I first started knitting: the fear that I would make a mistake and as a result, ruin the whole piece.
You cannot ruin the whole piece. You only need start again. Sure, it can be frustrating if you are twelve inches into a complicated lace pattern only to discover you've dropped a stitch at inch #four. This is why lifelines were invented. And yes, it helps if you use reasonably-priced yarn until you are comfortable. This is why Red Heart is $1.99 a skein.
In the beginning, however, you have to be free to experiment. Work out how to hold the needles in a way that is comfortable for you (continental, american).
Experimentation is how I stumbled across my current scarf pattern, a reversible rib. I was sitting in my car, killing time before my doctor's appointment. Having learned my lesson about not bringing a project, I had needles and a nice dk weight varigated merino in my purse. "Let's try a drop stitch pattern!" I thought to myself (I had just finished re-reading the Clapotis pattern after seeing the photos on Franklin's blog). Ok, that looks yucky (rip, rip, rip). Now what? Cables would not show very well on the stripes. I had already tried a straight stockinette. This yarn was recovered from another scarf I made in stockinette that rolled like a stack of quarters no matter how much I blocked it.
Then I tried a 3x2 rib pattern on an even-number of stitches. I have lately become enamored of even numbered patterns on odd-numbered stitches. I thought this would make a nice crumbly nap but it turned out to be much more interesting.
Brewgal's Reversible Rib Scarf
Cast on 34
Knit first row (I find starting with one knit row is easier than starting the pattern off the cast on row.)
Slip 1, knit 1 (edge stitch). *Knit 3, purl 2* repeat 6 times, knit last two stitches.
Repeat this row until scarf reaches desired length, knit last row, cast off.
Nothing fancy. I used #6 needles on dk weight yarn. This makes a cute little 2-stitch-wide rib on both sides.
XXOO Permalink
You cannot ruin the whole piece. You only need start again. Sure, it can be frustrating if you are twelve inches into a complicated lace pattern only to discover you've dropped a stitch at inch #four. This is why lifelines were invented. And yes, it helps if you use reasonably-priced yarn until you are comfortable. This is why Red Heart is $1.99 a skein.
In the beginning, however, you have to be free to experiment. Work out how to hold the needles in a way that is comfortable for you (continental, american).
Experimentation is how I stumbled across my current scarf pattern, a reversible rib. I was sitting in my car, killing time before my doctor's appointment. Having learned my lesson about not bringing a project, I had needles and a nice dk weight varigated merino in my purse. "Let's try a drop stitch pattern!" I thought to myself (I had just finished re-reading the Clapotis pattern after seeing the photos on Franklin's blog). Ok, that looks yucky (rip, rip, rip). Now what? Cables would not show very well on the stripes. I had already tried a straight stockinette. This yarn was recovered from another scarf I made in stockinette that rolled like a stack of quarters no matter how much I blocked it.
Then I tried a 3x2 rib pattern on an even-number of stitches. I have lately become enamored of even numbered patterns on odd-numbered stitches. I thought this would make a nice crumbly nap but it turned out to be much more interesting.
Brewgal's Reversible Rib Scarf
Cast on 34
Knit first row (I find starting with one knit row is easier than starting the pattern off the cast on row.)
Slip 1, knit 1 (edge stitch). *Knit 3, purl 2* repeat 6 times, knit last two stitches.
Repeat this row until scarf reaches desired length, knit last row, cast off.
Nothing fancy. I used #6 needles on dk weight yarn. This makes a cute little 2-stitch-wide rib on both sides.
XXOO Permalink
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Stash Rambling
My yarn stash is filled with all sorts of unusual yarn. I have a habit of picking up stray skeins from many places: yard sales, thrift stores, my parents' basement. None of it is in sufficient quantities to make a sweater but I can always go stash diving for emergency scarf yarn.
I have yarn that has been around longer than I have. Yarn trucked back from my mother-in-law's house in Los Angeles. Yarn inherited from my grandmother and great-grandmother. Yarn in bright skeins, yarn in half-finished projects. Yarn that is on the verge of turning into yarn zombies. How appropriate for the Stash of DOOOM.
I don't know why I've been so hung up on zombies lately. I certainly wouldn't want to meet one. Maybe it's because I recently watched Shaun of the Dead. At least, I almost watched it. Stupid TiVO didn't record the last 10 minutes of the movie.
Then I came across this. Some clever person has recreated Dawn of the Dead using knitted characters. Wow.
I have yarn that has been around longer than I have. Yarn trucked back from my mother-in-law's house in Los Angeles. Yarn inherited from my grandmother and great-grandmother. Yarn in bright skeins, yarn in half-finished projects. Yarn that is on the verge of turning into yarn zombies. How appropriate for the Stash of DOOOM.
I don't know why I've been so hung up on zombies lately. I certainly wouldn't want to meet one. Maybe it's because I recently watched Shaun of the Dead. At least, I almost watched it. Stupid TiVO didn't record the last 10 minutes of the movie.
Then I came across this. Some clever person has recreated Dawn of the Dead using knitted characters. Wow.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Thanksgiving
In times of plenty, it is not the food we are most thankful for,
but the friendship and love of those who care for us,
and those we care for in return.
And the pie.
but the friendship and love of those who care for us,
and those we care for in return.
And the pie.
Sunday, November 19, 2006
I need more bookshelves.
The problem- where to put them? The current bookshelf layout is thus:
And they're all FULL! Full of books on almost every subject: old Time-Life science books, children's books, fairy-tale books, knitting books (not nearly enough of those!), homebrewing manuals, psychology journals, textbooks on statistics and psychology, reference books, cookbooks, science fiction fantasy books, and the occasional trashy novel. For those of you who would suggest I simply get rid of some to make room, BITE YOUR TONGUE. How can I choose between the merits of Cognition: Theory and Application versus The Thousand Recipe Chinese Cookbook? Ok, I'll admit I probably no longer need The Official X-Files Compendium, seeing that the show is off the air, but giving away one book will not make the space I need.
Why can't I give books away? I blame my parents (how convenient!) I come from a household where books filled every corner of the house, where my mother went to escape into a little "me" time. We had so many books my aunts and uncles used it as their own personal library. [Much to my mother's dismay. She started losing so many favorites she began putting her name and address on the books so that when she visited *them* she could take books back.]
Anyway... my current master plan involves moving all the clothes from the closet in my study and installing bookshelves there. That should give me enough room so that all the books have their own space, instead of having to sleep two-deep like workers in tenament housing during the early 1900's.
Next problem: what do I do with the clothes from the closet? I need more closet space.
The problem- where to put them? The current bookshelf layout is thus:
- covering two walls in the family room. Brewguy won't let me cover the back door. Stupid fire codes.
- covering one wall in my study.
- lining two out of three hallways
- in the corner of the living room
- covering three walls of the basement.
And they're all FULL! Full of books on almost every subject: old Time-Life science books, children's books, fairy-tale books, knitting books (not nearly enough of those!), homebrewing manuals, psychology journals, textbooks on statistics and psychology, reference books, cookbooks, science fiction fantasy books, and the occasional trashy novel. For those of you who would suggest I simply get rid of some to make room, BITE YOUR TONGUE. How can I choose between the merits of Cognition: Theory and Application versus The Thousand Recipe Chinese Cookbook? Ok, I'll admit I probably no longer need The Official X-Files Compendium, seeing that the show is off the air, but giving away one book will not make the space I need.
Why can't I give books away? I blame my parents (how convenient!) I come from a household where books filled every corner of the house, where my mother went to escape into a little "me" time. We had so many books my aunts and uncles used it as their own personal library. [Much to my mother's dismay. She started losing so many favorites she began putting her name and address on the books so that when she visited *them* she could take books back.]
Anyway... my current master plan involves moving all the clothes from the closet in my study and installing bookshelves there. That should give me enough room so that all the books have their own space, instead of having to sleep two-deep like workers in tenament housing during the early 1900's.
Next problem: what do I do with the clothes from the closet? I need more closet space.
Friday, November 03, 2006
My synapse in living color
I drew this cartoon of my synapse flying back from the math section. Note the flames.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Why advance planning is good
Sometimes events sneak up on you. A few days ago I had the following exchange at dinner.
Brewguy: Yeah, they did a sonogram and moved her due date up from November 10 to November 1.
Brewgal: November 1? Thats....
(pause while my synapses rush across town to the math section. Typically my synapses take a breather after work by relaxing at Cafe Homebrew, where they are seen sipping Belgian Ale with the nightie-clad pirates scheduled to appear in tonight's REM spectacular. The synapses are VERY annoyed at being asked to do MATH after 6pm).
... THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW!
Brewguy: Yeah.
Brewgal: But...but... I have to make a hat!
Brewguy: You'd better get on that then.
Brewgal: You couldn't have told me this last week?!? {Actually, I only thought that. What came out of my mouth was} Eeep! Grrrr.
Brewguy offered to do the dishes (he really is a sweetie) while I dashed down to the Stash of Doom. I grabbed a ball of Patons Look At Me in Jewel Tones and I got to work.
16 hours and an arm cramp later, I had these.
The mittens were an afterthought. I've never made mittens before so I just created a pattern in my head and went for it. As you can see, I ran out of the Patons and had to supplement with some other remnants.
Note to self: make more hats. In advance. The synapses will thank me later.
Brewguy: Yeah, they did a sonogram and moved her due date up from November 10 to November 1.
Brewgal: November 1? Thats....
(pause while my synapses rush across town to the math section. Typically my synapses take a breather after work by relaxing at Cafe Homebrew, where they are seen sipping Belgian Ale with the nightie-clad pirates scheduled to appear in tonight's REM spectacular. The synapses are VERY annoyed at being asked to do MATH after 6pm).
... THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW!
Brewguy: Yeah.
Brewgal: But...but... I have to make a hat!
Brewguy: You'd better get on that then.
Brewgal: You couldn't have told me this last week?!? {Actually, I only thought that. What came out of my mouth was} Eeep! Grrrr.
Brewguy offered to do the dishes (he really is a sweetie) while I dashed down to the Stash of Doom. I grabbed a ball of Patons Look At Me in Jewel Tones and I got to work.
16 hours and an arm cramp later, I had these.
The mittens were an afterthought. I've never made mittens before so I just created a pattern in my head and went for it. As you can see, I ran out of the Patons and had to supplement with some other remnants.
Note to self: make more hats. In advance. The synapses will thank me later.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Little Victories
Ha! And again, Ha! The laughing Cable Pixie has laughed her last. I have tackled the cable beast and I am victorious.
I am making a scarf for Brewguy featuring teeny cables on a 4x4 rib. Put 2 sts on cable needle and hold to front, knit 2 from back needle, knit 2 from cable needle, purl 4. I pulled the yarn out of my stash, a lovely burgundy wool blend, probably Plymouth.
My stash... Let me rephrase that: my Neverending Stash of DOOM. (that's pronounced DOOOOOOOMMM, like a zombie who's drunk one-too-many bottles of Chateau Dura Mater)
This is scarf #9 since September. I am SO BORED with making scarves. My next holiday gifts will be wristwarmers.
I am making a scarf for Brewguy featuring teeny cables on a 4x4 rib. Put 2 sts on cable needle and hold to front, knit 2 from back needle, knit 2 from cable needle, purl 4. I pulled the yarn out of my stash, a lovely burgundy wool blend, probably Plymouth.
My stash... Let me rephrase that: my Neverending Stash of DOOM. (that's pronounced DOOOOOOOMMM, like a zombie who's drunk one-too-many bottles of Chateau Dura Mater)
This is scarf #9 since September. I am SO BORED with making scarves. My next holiday gifts will be wristwarmers.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Broken links
I've just discovered the links to my free patterns are broken. I'll work on fixing them. In the meantime, click on the following archives to find the patterns:
Seedy Border Town Scarf = November 2005
Grandma D's Heirloom Crochet Cape = June 2005
Olivia's Knitted Baby Bonnet = August 2005
Brewgal's Crochet Hat (an award winner!) = January 2005
Seedy Border Town Scarf = November 2005
Grandma D's Heirloom Crochet Cape = June 2005
Olivia's Knitted Baby Bonnet = August 2005
Brewgal's Crochet Hat (an award winner!) = January 2005
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Le poèt en dedans*
I am constantly stunned and humbled by the creativity of the little brewers. Yesterday, while Brewguy was cooking dinner (spaghetti accompanied by a lovely Spanish temperanillo), Little Brewer #1 sat down at the dinner table and wrote a poem. I will spare you the misspelled words (she is in 1st grade, after all).
The leaves blow
The trees whistle
The birds sing
The shoes tap
The shirts wiggle
The socks wobble
The hands touch
The wind blows
and you are the best
[*French translation provided by BabelFish]
The leaves blow
The trees whistle
The birds sing
The shoes tap
The shirts wiggle
The socks wobble
The hands touch
The wind blows
and you are the best
[*French translation provided by BabelFish]
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Lessons learned
Wherever you go, there you are. And you better have your knitting with you. (after Buckaroo Banzai)
Little Brewer #2 is an airplane nut. At 3, he can spot the difference between a 747 and a 737 in flight. So Brewguy thought it would be a great idea to go out to the Montgomery County Airpark to see some WWII bombers, the B-24 "Witchcraft" and a B-17. These two old planes were in town for the Air Force Memorial dedication. It is not often that planes of this type show up in Gaithersburg and Brewguy wanted to shoot some video for the newspaper so we trundled off to the airpark. The B-17 was on the ground (tours for $10!) so we gazed at it for a while through the fence while waiting for the B-24 to show up.
And waited.
And waited some more. Finally, THREE HOURS LATER, the B-24 arrived.
The Little Brewers passed the time wrestling each other into submission. I stood there, watching the geezers ooh and aah over the aircraft, mentally cursing for not bringing my knitting. I have 12 scarves to make for holiday gifts- I could have knocked out at least one or two sitting there next to the tarmac.
Learn from my misery. Always take a project with you wherever you go.
Little Brewer #2 is an airplane nut. At 3, he can spot the difference between a 747 and a 737 in flight. So Brewguy thought it would be a great idea to go out to the Montgomery County Airpark to see some WWII bombers, the B-24 "Witchcraft" and a B-17. These two old planes were in town for the Air Force Memorial dedication. It is not often that planes of this type show up in Gaithersburg and Brewguy wanted to shoot some video for the newspaper so we trundled off to the airpark. The B-17 was on the ground (tours for $10!) so we gazed at it for a while through the fence while waiting for the B-24 to show up.
And waited.
And waited some more. Finally, THREE HOURS LATER, the B-24 arrived.
The Little Brewers passed the time wrestling each other into submission. I stood there, watching the geezers ooh and aah over the aircraft, mentally cursing for not bringing my knitting. I have 12 scarves to make for holiday gifts- I could have knocked out at least one or two sitting there next to the tarmac.
Learn from my misery. Always take a project with you wherever you go.
Friday, September 08, 2006
Monday, September 04, 2006
Homebrew Day
Happy Labor Day, everyone! Brewguy is homebrewing today. He is making a Belgian-style ale entitled Little Belgian #3. This is the second round for this batch of yeast.
I love waking up in the morning to the smell of the mash tun. There's something wonderfully earthy about the smell of brewing beer. Later, the tangy aroma of hops will waft up. When you brew, you quickly discover who likes beer and who does not. Those who can't stand the smell of the brew typically do not like to drink beer. There also seems to be a correlation between dislike of beer and dislike of coffee. Perhaps the two flavors excite (or dismay) similar taste buds.
I love waking up in the morning to the smell of the mash tun. There's something wonderfully earthy about the smell of brewing beer. Later, the tangy aroma of hops will waft up. When you brew, you quickly discover who likes beer and who does not. Those who can't stand the smell of the brew typically do not like to drink beer. There also seems to be a correlation between dislike of beer and dislike of coffee. Perhaps the two flavors excite (or dismay) similar taste buds.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
