These irises started blooming about the time the tree peony blossoms died back. Now they’re both faded and the summer flowers are coming on.

And peas! I have peas! OK, maybe only enough for one meal if you have a tiny appetite, but these make me happy. They’re bigger than this now and I’ve been pulling them off the vine and eating them raw. Next year, I’m planting a ton of them. They taste like spring. So.good.

&

If you change a few of the pronouns this is pretty much what happens when I sit down at the computer these days.

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Because I’m supposed to be spinning in preparation for Tour de Fleece in July, I have of course been hit with the knitting bug. I’m working on the Minimalist cardigan (Ravelry link) and have the back, a front and half the second front finished. Because I started this in March, having the body nearly finished is lightening fast knitting for me. There may actually be a whole sweater finished in one year. Can I hear a whoo and a hoo? It’s navy blue moss stitch so I’ll wait to show you progress when front #2 is finished.

Speaking of knitting, (weren’t we?) have you seen this series called Fit to Flatter that Amy Herzog of Stash, Knit and Repeat is doing? I’m on a quest to figure out how to fit sweater patterns to my shape and this series is perfect. I’m only up to Number 3 about assessing whether a pattern will flatter or flop. Very well done.

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My oven is on the fritz. I should have figured it out sooner, but it took a flopped German apple pancake, pecan bars that burned on the edges and didn’t cook in the middle, brownies that didn’t rise (not a complete failure because fudgy brownies are the best but these were a little thinner than I like) and finally chocolate almond bars that completely burned on the bottom before I realized that I haven’t lost all my baking skilz and maybe the oven needs a tuneup.

Nothing pisses me off more than wasting perfectly delicious butter, sugar, chocolate chips and almonds.

&

Wandering off to find something to eat. I think I hear chips and almonds calling my name from the pantry. Not cooking these.

ETA: to add links I was too lazy to do yesterday and clarify a point here and there.

It seems like a century since I was last here.

~

The travels for health and pleasure are finished for a while. Jack has been checked out tip to toe and the upshot is he’ll be a woodworker for a long while yet. A cranky, deaf woodworker, but nonetheless. The doctors’ visits will yield at least one post about hearing loss, but that will keep for another day.

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The peonies and irises are the best I’ve seen in years. The storms have mostly spared their blooms, an amazing thing considering the amount of rain we’ve gotten. Days and days of it.  So much, that a few of the plots at the community garden have tadpoles swimming in them. The only harvest there will be frog legs. ewww

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Some creature has been digging up my transplants, going after the bone meal I use in the soil. Not unusual in itself, but the way the plants appear to have been picked up and placed out of the way makes me suspect the raccoons.

I solved the problem with little cages and coffee grounds to mask the bone meal odor.

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Last night a young raccoon was on the deck drinking the hummingbird nectar. He laid down flat on the railing and looked so forlorn when I came out to get the feeder that I let him finish drinking it before I took the feeder away. sigh

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I’ve been knitting, but not spinning and I need to get my spinning mojo back because Tour de Fleece is coming up in another month. TdF is a month-long spin-every-day project timed to coincide with the Tour de France. Unlike that endurance event we don’t have to undergo any doping tests. But then our winners also don’t get pretty boys handing us flowers and stuffed animals and kissing our cheeks either. Cookie, can you do something about that?

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There’s been a pair of socks (the same pair) on the needles for nearly a year. The second toe is in sight.

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I like physical exercise when I can see results. Let me haul straw and push wheelbarrows and I’m a happy girl. Make me go to a gym: cranky girl.

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My reading has been eclectic:

How to Win Friends & Influence People (let people know it’s all about them) and How to Stop Worrying & Start Living (don’t worry, be happy). It’s taken me 3 months and I’m still not finished. It went back to the library today.

The Twitter Book. I learned two new terms: ambient intimacy, a lightweight but meaningful connection, and attention economy: distributing ideas and comments about what people care about. How do you measure the value of attention? Oh and this blog got it’s first tweet mention. Amazing.

Carrots Love Tomatoes. Don’t plant garlic next to pole beans but it’s OK to plant it next to bush beans. Wah?

Sally Melville’s Mother-Daughter Knits. The patterns don’t sing to me, although the Classic Shirt and the hoodie are possibilities.  However, there’s an excellent, concise explanation at the front of the book regarding getting sweaters to fit. I’ve taken Sally’s classes and it sounds much like her. As well as this post from TECHknitter on designing and fitting knitwear. I’d knit more sweaters if I knew they’d fit me when I’m finished.  Perhaps after 15-odd (very odd) years of knitting, it’s time to figure it out.

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I killed all the zombies by uninstalling the game in an after-midnight fit. Up till all hours, not getting any work done, throwing corn cobs at pixels. Enough already.

I hope the marigolds are doing OK without me (in the Zen Garden of Plants v. Zombies, that is).

I was very impressed with the organization and quality of the festival, especially since it’s an all-volunteer effort. A lot of work went into making it a success and we were glad we picked this one for our fiber fix for the year.

The downside, as often happens with these things, was the weather. While it didn’t rain, it was cold and damp. My second purchase of the day (after some lace weight yarn) was a pair of alpaca socks. I sat in the vendor’s booth and switched my athletic socks for the wool ones and the day immediately got warmer. Yes, of course I have wool socks, but not as thick or yummy as these. Before long we all had new wool socks, which probably saved the day. 

Gail and her new socks

(note felt balls on hat (made by Geri) which garnered many comments )

At lunch we passed on the vendors selling walleye chunks, popcorn and fudge, and had a picnic in the car with the heat turned up high until we thawed out.  Then we went back for Round Two.

I was sort of restrained in my purchases, meaning I came home with money left over and pretty much kept my credit cards in my wallet. I didn’t buy everything that called to me, but enough that I’ll have new yarn and fiber to play with for the rest of the year. I also bought my first support spindle, which will be fun to learn to use.

Geri in her festival-bought hat and me being a responsible blogger

Bunny in a bucket…

….next door to a three-day-old goat in a box

Cheese curds on the way to see the…

…buck-toothed llamas (loving the matching halters/scarves)

and clowning around at the end of the day

We’re considering our options for next year’s trip. The only thing we’ve settled on is it will be later in the year so it’ll be a little warmer.

~~

Tomorrow my sisters and I are going here. Gail flew west and Geri flew east and we met in the middle on Wednesday. Yesterday we drove north and we’re in position to attack in the morning. Since the weather bunnies are predicting an inch of snow tonight, I think the hat and mittens I threw in the suitcase at the last minute will come in handy.

Today’s sightseeing was a bust because it’s been raining since we got up at 5 am (yup, 5 am). But the lilacs! The lilacs are in full bloom. Too wet to stop and smell the flowers but lovely to see.

~~

We had lunch with one of Gail’s college friends, a woman who has lived all over the world. She asked what we were doing in town. When we explained about the fiber festival, there was a moment of silence and then she changed the subject. It’s not an uncommon reaction. Muggles just don’t get it and the looks on their faces when you explain it are getting tiresome.

So we’ve decided to stop telling people when we go to a sheep and wool festival. Instead, we’ve decided to tell them we’re in town for a prostitutes’ convention.

It’s called a ho down.

Somehow I don’t think we’ll have to explain that.

~~

That is all.

Well, look at this:

This is from the MOPACA alpaca show that I went to a few weeks ago. I entered Laminaria in their fiber arts competition and it took first place in its category. Second place went to another Laminaria done in handspun alpaca. It’s the first time I’ve entered a competition and don’t expect to do it often but thought I would give it a try this once.

Woot!

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We’re having typical April weather, warm and humid, changing to heavy thunderstorms, changing to chilly and damp the next day. I’ve started my garden for this year, planting a second crop of lettuce on the deck since the first crop with leftover seeds from 2009 didn’t germinate. I went to the nursery and bought two more seed packets, planted some from each of those and then noticed one of the new packets was also from 2009. Hmmm. I hope they stored their seed better than I did.

New this year: peas! Let’s see if I can grow peas in one of my deck boxes. I soaked the seeds for 24 hours before planting, inoculated them with this powdery stuff to protect them from disease and gave them a nice tidy bed this weekend along with a few sweet peas just for fun. I was so excited 48 hours later because there were green shoots in the box! Peas!

Nope.

It’s a volunteer violet that self-seeded.

If I get peas, you get a picture, until then it’s just a box of dirt.

And there’s other gardening news, but that will wait for it’s own post. Right now I’m far behind in my chores in my virtual Zen Garden and there are zombies on the lawn.

Bad hair day

This weekend was the annual MOPACA show at Hale Arena and despite the dire forecasts for treacherous travel by the weather bunnies, I skipped out of the house Saturday morning to commune with some fiber on the hoof. Who can resist an arena full of these funny-looking, gentle, humming creatures?

Apparently most people. There were five cars in the parking lot when I pulled up an hour after the doors had opened to the public. I wondered if the show had been canceledt. But no, the alpacas were there, the audience just didn’t show. Last year I thought the attendance was sparse, but this year it was nearly non-existent. It’s too bad; while the fiber/yarn purchasing opportunities are limited, the people are friendly and it’s a great opportunity to learn more about alpacas and even get an opportunity to pet one or two. Owners are constantly walking around the show with their animal on a leash and they’re always willing to answer questions.

I spent most of my time talking to booth owners and to some of the Fiber Guild members who were demonstrating knitting, spinning and needle felting. (Mostly to me and each other.) I came home with a single skein of Suri alpaca fingering weight that will get turned into a scarf or small shawl. And one other surprise that I’ll share sometime in the future when I can show a pic of it.

And best of all, I snagged an invitation for our Fiber Guild to visit this farm in the spring. There are very few paco-vicuña breeders in the country and we’re fortunate to have one in our vicinity. Should be fun to take a group out and see these guys up close and personal.

Not a bad way to spend a snowy, icy first day of Spring.

Who you looking at?

Here’s the first thing I pulled out:

Over 260 yards of handspun Blueface Leicester in lovely shades of brown, deep red, greens and yellows.  A while back I won a contest at Jessalu’s blog and the prize was a skein of Jess’ handspun yarn.

As a new spinner, I’d just as soon give up a lung as give away a skein of my handspun, so I feel privileged to receive this lovely stuff. It’s beautiful and soft and a wonderful prize that I will have fun playing with.  This girl can spin. Thank you Jess!

Here’s the second thing I pulled out of the envelope:

My Stitched by Jessalu bag. I love this fabric and whipped out the credit card as soon as I saw it on her site.  The bag is just the right size for a pair of socks or a hat project, or even a small lace project. Since I can’t sew worth a damn, I’ve been admiring the straight seams and lovely workmanship. This girl can sew.

(She knits too; but hard as I looked I couldn’t find any handknit socks in the envelope. I think that was a different contest. Sigh.)

Happy as a clam over here.

And may I draw your attention to the photos taken outdoors in sunshine. In my opinion, winter’s done — even if they are predicting snow for Saturday. Pffft. I guess that means I need to change my header from the winter snow scene one of these days.

Jessalu’s signature bee zipper pull

this officially uses up my quota for italics for the week.

unless I change my mind.

First, find a good supermarket and head to the deli section. Fill your shopping cart like so: 1. Start with some spring flowers to brighten up a dreary day.
2. Add some good Czech beer. 3. Throw in a couple rotisserie chickens. Warm them up in the microwave and carve for easy eating. Set aside the wings and drumsticks for those so inclined. 4. Don’t forget salads to go with the birds; cole slaw and potato salad are always good. I was hoping for baked beans but there were none to be had. 5. Don’t forget dessert….raspberry rhubarb pie (taste-tested before the guests arrived). Throw in some chocolate chip cookies for good measure 6. Top it off with a darling baby boy sporting a hand knit sweater that almost fits. (Double points to the parents for bringing the sweater just so the knitter can see how it fits AND triple points for remembering to bring the toys that were part of the gift, to show how well-used/well-loved they are. Both parents mentioned how pleased they were with the sweater. Guess who’s going to get something hand knit again?)

Little Jack

~

It’s good to be home after last week’s long and trying trip. There’s no fun to report, like a visit to a new yarn shop, since we spent most of the week in doctors’ offices and the rest of the time fulfilling social obligations.

However, winter’s hibernation is over and suddenly I have more than I can handle on my plate.

And I came home to some lovely goodies in the mail which I’ll post about next time. ]]> http://www.woolandspice.com/2010/03/16/hostess-with-the-mostest/feed/ 9 http://www.woolandspice.com/2010/03/06/someday-was-yesterday-fo-wise/ http://www.woolandspice.com/2010/03/06/someday-was-yesterday-fo-wise/#comments Sun, 07 Mar 2010 01:46:14 +0000 Diane T http://www.woolandspice.com/?p=3018

Now that sunlight has returned to Middle Earth* I’ve been able to get a decent shot of Finished Object (FO) #2. (Note the Japanese maple has made real progress since I last photographed it. It even has tiny little flowers.)

For years I’ve been setting aside a small bin containing yarns that were too special for everyday knitting (whatever that is). I’ve been saving them because someday I’d have time to search for patterns worthy of their specialness.

In that bin were 3 small balls of cashmere I bought on sale at one of my local yarn shops. It’s been marinating in stash because it’s cashmere — on sale cashmere — so it required a pattern that was special and just perfect.

When I realized that I kept looking at this pattern and liking it’s simplicity and the yardage was spot-on for the cashmere, I whipped out the needles and set to. This was as perfect as it was gonna get.

Because someday is now chickadees and there’s more cashmere and alpaca in that bin that needs to be knit and worn and enjoyed. And if the yarn is special enough, it makes the pattern worthy.

So what special yarn are you holding onto that should be knit?

~

Pattern: Branching Out from Susan Lawrence

Needles: US 6 Addi Natura (wooden)

Yarn: Knit One Crochet Too Pure Cashmere, 25 grams, 88 yards, 3 skeins

Size: 5 inches by 6 feet

Time to knit: Don’t remember, but off and on about a month

Notes: The pattern is easy to memorize and not difficult at all. It would be good for a beginner or perhaps advanced beginner because the number of stitches does change on a couple rows. The cashmere is soft, light and a pleasure to knit. It turned out just the right length for wrapping all kinds of ways. I expect I’ll use this scarf for years to come.

*(Knitwonpurltoo uses that expression all the time, I think it’s perfect for us Mid-westerners.)

I’ve been looking through patterns and pulling yarn out of stash, making swatches for this and that. I’d show you a picture of my knitting area (the couch and coffee table) but it just looks like a jumble of magazines, books and tea cups all mixed in with single skeins of yarn and fiber to spin. Once something clicks, I’ll be able to clean it up, but for now I feel unsettled and flighty.

Today, I think this is what I’ve settled on as my next projects. Ask me tomorrow and it may be different. (Socks aren’t listed but there’s always a pair or two in the works.)

The Minimalist cardigan (Rav link). The pattern calls for a merino/alpaca blend and I just happen to have a similar yarn in stash (we luvs the stash). The gauge is supposed to be 5 st to the inch, but I like the fabric better at 5.5 stitches. It has a little more body to it, less open and floppy than at 5 spi. I’ll rework the pattern numbers and start the back. I can always change my mind.

Oh and I don’t like the version of Moss stitch in the pattern, over an odd number of stitches. Either I’m not doing it right, or it just looks funky. I swatched an even number of stitches and used Barbara Walker’s version of moss stitch; works better for me.

Patterns are meant only as suggestions, right?

These fingerless mitts. It’s been a while since I’ve done Fair Isle and after lace, it’s my favorite kind of knitting. I don’t do it more often because it requires concentration and usually I have a lace project that takes up that portion of my knitting brain.

But I have a good bit of fingering weight yarn so it’s fun to pull skeins out and play with color combinations, always a challenge for me.

Now I just have to remember the rule about which hand is dominant for making yarn pop. I haven’t been able to come up with a mnemonic to help me hold this information in my leaky sieve of a brain.

I’ve also started something for the Red Scarf Project, using the Palindrome pattern but with an 8-row repeat instead of 6. The trick with this pattern is that it’s completely reversible, the cables look the same front and back. It gets done in bits of time since I have until December to finish it.

What about lace you say? Well there’s this:

For some reason, I’m not feeling the love.  The yarn is beautiful and I’ve gotten into the pattern rhythm now so it’s going faster. But I had to cut some repeats in the center section because I thought I would die before I finished. That doesn’t usually happen. I’m determined to complete this because I think it will be lovely when done. One of these days, I’ll make it my primary project and it will fly.

~

Pics of the finished stuff soon.  I need to put in my first zipper and I’m procrastinating.