Intrepid Fiber Wizard

what's on the needles?

The weather turned to summer last weekend - over 90 degrees - and I headed out to visit some friends who live on a lake nearby.

It was the perfect little retreat for a few hours before work. (thanks M & J) 

M & J are wonderful people to visit; great company, great food, great beer and the view??? well, just look for yourself.

 

I knit a bit, sipped on a cold one, and generally relaxed the hours away. Nice view eh?

So what's on the needles these days?

Go with the Flow Socks are a little more than half done. 

I am still loving this pattern, and the yarn from Fleece Artist is fabulous.

Fitted Knits Tube Top is about 85% done, only 3 more inches of ribbing (on those teensy size 3 needles)
My daughter's comment about this style of top is that is will 'accentuate your assets' (heh heh - truthfully, she was a little more direct about what she said, but after all, this is a "G" rated blog.. heh heh) We'll see if I ever post any shots of this one being modeled (huge grin - I think not)

and I cast on for Twinings - a lovely pattern by my friend Anne. I'm knitting it out of some hand dyed hand spun of mine that I dug out of the stash. It's a lace weight yarn - there's around 950 yards in that ball. (yup.. this project is going to take me awhile)

So what's on your needles?

Everybody's talkin' 'bout it

The word is popping up all over...
The patterns are emerging on Ravelry and blogland...
It's enticing in its all encompassing ability to be a one-size-fits-all-perfect-gift...

It's a stash buster... it's a new look.. it's easy...

it's a cowl !
And yes, I'm hooked!

I was recently asked by another friend if I would test knit a new yarn line for her - it's a combination of merino - anogra rabbit (think sooffffffffffttttt) Yes, it's super soft. It is hand dyed, hand spun. It's heavenly.
She sent me a skein of about 200 yards - and so I began testing out the cowl theory.
Here's a sneak peek at my progress today (yup.. just one day.. it is indeed fast.. that is 5 inches worth!)

I will eventually block it out so that it will be much more lacey looking than it appears right now, and I will be sharing the pattern in the future, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, you can see her (and buy some of this divine yarn) at Black Sheep Gathering. She'll be at the Duncan Drum Carder booth in the middle building. Her name is Cheryl, and you can tell her I said hi :-)

On the personal front, I have had a couple of lovely afternoons off over the last week (a delightful treat) and I have gone exploring around this great little town I live in (Olympia).

About ten minutes from my home, there is a pier called Boston Harbor. On that sweet little pier, I found out that I can rent a sailboat! (I am in heaven!) Take a look see as to the bay that I will have a chance to sail in (very soon I hope).  (click to make bigger) You can see the Olympic Mountains in the background.. sigh..

A 25 foot catalina. Sweet.

There is just nothing quite like the soft jingle of sailboat rigging in the air. I am so delighted about this.
I had spoken to a dear old friend last February about wanting to find a place to sail - and here it is, so very close. .... so come on out - don't let the "liquid sunshine" of Washington scare you off (it never stops any of us.. nothing ever has a "rain date" scheduled)

Typical Pac NW residents go out rain or shine... and I'm going to be sailing. photos will be coming
as soon as I can wrangle a full day off.

And finally, just because they make my heart sing, here are some more photos from my garden.. these are for Jane ('cause she loves them too!)... a few of my Columbine.
It's almost summer!  

A yummy Recipe

Not much new to share as far as the knitting goes, I'm just knitting  on projects that I have written about recently
Yet, I can share a couple of great fish-on-the-grill recipes  that I stumbled across recently. Spring and summer always make me think of outdoor grilled food - and so I am delighted to share these with you.
I found these in a yahoo search for on line recipes, and they didn't have any names credited to them for the authors.. but whoever you are - I thank you. They are yummy.

Grilled fish with lemon-Ginger Marinade
this makes enough marinade for 2 pounds of fish

1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
2 minced garlic cloves
pepper and salt to taste

mix together the above ingredients and marinate up to 2 pounds fish steaks that are about 1" thick (I used two tuna steaks) Marinate the fish for at least 1 hour  in the refrigerator prior to cooking.
Grill the fish on the bbq grill over medium heat for a few minutes each side until done(until begins to flake apart). While fish is cooking, heat remaining marinade in a saucepan on the stove  - bringing to a vigorous boil, then remove from heat and then use it to baste the fish on the grill. Serve fish with additional marinade poured over the top.

Grilled fish with Mango Relish

about six ounces - 1 pound of white fish fillets (I used cod)
1 teaspoon olive oil
salt and pepper

Relish
1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and chopped fine
1 sweet onion chopped fine
1 red bell pepper chopped fine
1 bunch fresh basil chopped fine
1- 2 tablespoons capers drained
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon salsa

Mix relish (be sure to chop it finely.. it makes LOTS and can be used for chips and salsa afterwards).
Rinse fish off in cold water, pat dry, then brush with olive oil and salt and pepper. Grill the fish on high about 2-3 minutes on high (until fish flakes)
Meanwhile, make relish (be sure to chop things fine) and spoon over freshly cooked fish. Serve immediately.

I hope that all of you enjoy these as much as I have. Any leftovers taste great the next day served cold on a bed of fresh lettuce :-)

Yes, Virginia, there is some knitting

A few of you, whose blogs I normally comment on, might have noticed a short hiatus in my presence... well, you see there was a computer crash, meltdown, fritz, smoosh, bump, and eventually a fizzle. It wasn't pretty. What began as slow subtle grinding type of function, eventually ended in a grand halt...and there might have been a couple of less than lady-like words resounding through wizard-land... (as well as gratitdue for typepad's ability to have pre-written blog posts with future publication dates, and public access to answer emails.... you probably didn't even miss me! heh heh)
I kept trying to do as our famous fearless leader does, and "make it go", yet alas, it was totally kaput-ski.

Thank the skies for some dear friends who quickly built me a a spiffy gently used system, then delivered it  a little while ago. There was, I admit, a bit of breath-holding on my part as they transferred almost 2300 photographs (ahem.. yes, I like pictures just a bit), assorted documents, programs etc, and then cloned hard drives (sounds rather ominous doesn't it ? ). And then ultimately the moment arose to take it off the umbilical cord to the old hard drive, and let it run on its own.
I climbed into my wizard chair, and away we went! It worked, it did its thing - all systems go Scotty - warp drive please.

Back in business now (with only a few more gray hairs).

In the meantime, there has been progress on all knitted objects in this dwelling.

Gust is almost complete   (only about 7 more rows - woo hoo)

knit in Dicentra Designs Lace Weight Alpaca..

This amazing lace weight hand dyed alpaca yarn can be purchased on line here at CMF

more details when it's complete very soon..

Socks on the needles (but of course, 'my dears)

"Go with the Flow" by  Evelyn Clark from Favorite Socks 

Knit in Fleece Artist Merino

Polar Sea colorway

Purchased at Simply Socks Yarn about a year ago

This yarn is so deeply saturated with color that it almost squeaks! I love it.

Hedgerow Socks - designed by my friend, Jane Cochran - a free internet download

knit in Claudia's Handpainted Yarn

(which was a gift somewhere awhile ago from a sock swap pal.. muchas gracias)

And finally,

Turtleneck Tube Vest from Fitted Knits

(oh how I love me a clever pattern like this one!..more on that soon)

Knit in Craft Yarn by SWTC gifted to me by Klaus over at CMF  (another thank you !) I think he still has some in stock if you contact him fast

This yarn was originally seen in a project that got frogged last year, but those details will all be explained in the near future. I'll get specific on each project (or write me if you want to know more right away)

I just noticed as I wrote this post that I am on a "BLUE" kick. How funny.

So here's to computer-wizards everywhere, and thank you to my friends Kara and Michael (you totally rock).

Now I'm off to attempt to catch up on all those blogs......

Rambling thoughts on holidays

I have been pondering all day whether or not our knitting blogs are only about the joys and frustrations of knitting life. Do we shelter our international community of 'virtual friends' from the sometimes imperfect thoughts and moments in the reality of our less than perfect days? hiding the blahs of having a good "pout"?

Sometimes, I think I have. I know that others of you in my community are more openly expressive  on your blogs than I often am - yet tonight is one of those times I need to think out loud.
So if you are here for 'typical' fiberwizard stuff, you can skip ahead (there are photos at the end)  - forgive me a moment if I ramble.
For the most part I am an upbeat person; seeing the best in life as I sometimes plod, and other times leapfrog  my way through the days. Yet there are times, on "celebration" days, like today, when I wonder if these "hallmark moments" are a set up to feel bad...... to have a pity party for a few hours... to wallow in the crappy thoughts.
I did fairly well this morning - playing in my garden, pulling weeds here and there, pushing a few more flower seeds into the now clear beds. I worked until the last possible moment before I had to quickly shower and get ready for work at the store. The pace was fast and furious in the retail world of fine women's clothing today (surprisingly enough). Then the day was done, and I clocked out for home.
I suspect that it had something to do with a truly sweet parting comment from another one of the "moms" at the store.... she said "I hope you have something special going on tonight". Her smile was enormous, genuine, and completely kind. I was speechless. I nodded and pasted a soft smile on my face as I left for home.
I didn't get to see any of my family today.
Everyone is either working, or too far away from "home" right now.
Being a Mother is not a job that has a 'completion" point - you never  "go home for the day" nor "retire" from it. It lives within your heart from the very moment you give birth (or adopt) -  and you continue to live this role until the day life comes to a close. There is not a single day that passes by me, in which I do not think of, talk to, or write to my daughters. There are often days when I do all three. They are a part of me, and I of them. I am fortunate to have a very close relationship with my girls.  We love each other deeply and express it often.
And thus,  here I am on this "hallmark" type day, thinking that it's a "set up" for feeling not so perfect. Bah. Pooh. Crap. I attempt to tell myself that it is silly to feel this way, yet the truth of the matter is that I've had a couple of mini moments of 'oh crud.' I miss my daughters. I miss my own Mom. They are wonderful people, and today this country feels far too big.

Okay.
I'm certainly okay. Just feeling the blahs as they wash over me - and looking forward to the end of this particular "holiday". I'm thinking of boycotting all holidays for awhile.
Thank goodness for knitting distractions and a good book or two.

 

Thanks for listening to this vent, from one woman's heart to the others that I know. I appreciate your friendship and wish this country was smaller so I could just walk next door and have a cuppa tea.
talk to you soon.

thoughts on blogs and life, with a bit of knitting thrown in

I have really been pondering this question over the past few days.... "what encourages us to blog?"

For me, it's not just a catalog of projects, nor only a place to question options when there is a knitting dilemma . There are other websites, like Ravelry, to do that. What I have become aware of is that I appreciate the worldwide connection with knitters - the carrying on of a "conversation" with others about my various projects, my future dream projects, and my life. It is things like this:

32175.53  United States

348.00 Canada

245.65 Unknown-

133.06 United Kingdom

71.65 France

51.18 Sweden

51.18 Korea, Republic Of

30.71 Denmark

20.47 New Zealand

20.47 Germany

20.47 Switzerland

10.24 Ireland

10.24 Czech Republic

10.24 Argentina

10.24 Estonia

10.24 Kazakhstan

10.24 Norway

10.24 Poland

I share these "stats" from my recent check on how my blog is doing out there in the world, and honestly am astonished...it boggles the mind to even consider things like this.... And while I have not "spoken" with all of you who stop by my blog, we are somehow still connected, and the world has become a smaller place because of blogs. I am in support of that.

Most of my family lives far away, my parents are in Florida (and summer in Upstate New York), I have a brother and niece on Martha's Vineyard, a brother and sister-in-law in Detroit, and a brother and sister-in-law in Tampa. I have a daughter in Seattle, and one in Georgia. My best friend (for the past 30+ years) lives in South Dakota. Sometimes, they all feel very far away, sometimes the miles disappear.

And while I have a great number of friends who live close by, there are days when I can get a bit wistful for "neighborhoods of families" - you know, those days our parents enjoyed, of walking over to see their parents for dinner - or gathering the multitudes of family members for a summer picnic. I know some of you still have this kind of event going on, but I think that it is the exception, rather than the rule. Our "families" have been spread across the world.

So this is a bit of gratitude to all of you who read (and even more so to those who comment). I love the conversation. I love that the world is growing "smaller" due to the connection of knitters. It gives me hope for a future of peace, based on the unification of the world through such joyous pursuits as knitting. All you need to do is go to any Fund Raiser that a knitter is holding (be it Stephanie's "Knitters without Borders", or Claudia's wearing the number ONE  in her Boston cycle ride this year as the top fund Raiser  for Multiple Sclerosis Society last year, or Allison's "House that Yarn Built".. and there are many more). The power of this amazing collection of people-who-knit through blogging is astounding.

We are knitting the world together one stitch at a time.
It's a good thing we're doing.
Perhaps  a sustained peace is possible worldwide because of people like knitters.
And at the risk of losing a portion of my blog readers, I offer a small political aside (which I rarely will do, on account of my gut level "allergic response to politics") I am curious how many of you have heard the song by Pink called " Dear Mr. President" - it's worth listening to. It's a good one, in my humble opinion. I heard this song randomly while I was listening to Pandora the other day. I have no idea when it was written, as I only just heard it. I am grateful for it. What a beautiful piece written about how so many of us feel. Thank you to "Pink".

So here's a little knitting content (for those who come to look at the pictures - *grins* - I do that on some blogs, don't you? *grins*)

The Vine Lace Vest has been very fun to knit. 
Clever construction means hardly any seaming.
You begin at the bottom back ribbing, and knit the back of the vest, then place one side's shoulder stitches on a holder while knitting the other one. very nice. only two seams. (yah!)

I'm off now, to go wash and block it, because I am now  finished ! (hah!) that was a tease, so that you come back to see. I am delighted with how it turned out. I'll fill you in on my small modifications when I post completion photos.

Thank you to all my blogs friends, for all the conversation over the past few years - let's keep on talking and making the world a smaller place.

Hurrah for new sock books

Charlene Schurch has done it again! A glorious new "book", co authored with Beth Parrott, called The Little Box of Socks.
Mine just arrived in the mail, and I ripped into it like a child on Christmas morning.
Is there anything more fun than new sock patterns? Well, perhaps a few things (like eating chocolate, and having good health..), yet this is wonderful indeed. There are 20 patterns contained within this small box - and each is on their own little portable card. Sweet.

I had the good fortune to take a class with Charlene several years ago when she taught at Madrona Fiber Arts in Tacoma. It was completely fun and hooked me on socks forever.

So shortly afterwards, when I was in the midst of creating Sock Hop Yarn, I sent off a couple skeins to her to test knit - you know, the old "whadda ya think?" kind of thing..... well, she loved it (huge grin)... and she designed a project using my old yarn for this little book! Woo hoo!

This is a sock knit with one of my old colors called "The Beat Goes On". And while it is a tad bittersweet, since I am no longer creating this yarn, I am still delighted with this great honor!

Thank you Charlene, for your encouragement back when this concept was just hiding out in the back of my brain. It is because of people like you, and your rah-rahs that so many fun new things happen in our knitting world.

May all you creative folks out there have someone like Charlene cheering for you :-)

On the non-knitting front, thank you once again for all the supportive, loving thoughts and prayers for my dear Kate. She is doing well - AND, she made it to prom last saturday!  Doesn't she look fabulous! You'd never know that she'd spent a few days in the hospital less than a week ago, hovering at that dangerous place of unwell.

12 of her girlfriends and she rode in a limo, and made a grand night of it. She's the one in the lovely black and white evening gown. I could not be happier for her.  Her indomitable spirit will prevail, even through all the difficulties she faces with her health. May her strong spirit guide her well through her whole life.

Perfectly wonderful socks

Thanks to Tracy, I have been enjoying some perfect sock knitting. And, thanks to Tracy's hints about this pattern, it has been a breeze to knit.
The pattern is Primavera (a free one on the web -  the yarn is Chameleon Colorworks Footsie)

Sock knitting is the best.
Sock knitting an easy pattern is even better.
Sock knitting an easy pattern that has one row of interest every 6th row is even better.

The perfect companion for a stressful week (and thus a bunch of it is done - soft smile)

Now I do not normally go for color blobs in sock yarn, but this one kind of "works", don't you think? My oldest daughter Erin said it reminds her of Easter eggs - and at first I thought it looked more like my iris.... but now, I'm thinkin' caterpillar.

I had hesitated when I first saw the color blobs appear, but then I saw something lovely over on WendyKnits site, and decided to carry on. She knit her socks out of yarn from the same hand dyers, and they turned out wonderful... so good inspiration has helped.

I have been completely grateful for such a portable, easy pattern this week - as it has been a bit of a stressful time. There's no need to go into all the details, but maybe I can paint a broad snapshot of my week: My youngest daughter, Kate (age 17) had another surgery for her Crohn's disease on April 4th. The surgery went incredibly well (or at least as well as abdominal surgery can possibly go) and she was home healing nicely.. when sunday night late, she began to have some problems with pain and swelling in her joints. By Monday morning, she was very swollen in her hands, feet and legs and went to see her MD. By afternoon, they had admitted her to the hospital via the ER, and had determined that she was having a tissue level allergic reaction to one of the medicines she had received during surgery 10 days prior.

Not a good situation.

It took them two days to get her stable, and to begin to decrease the amazing pain and swelling, and to have the painful skin rash begin to subside. All was improving, and she was released, only to have another flare up yesterday. What she had/has is a relatively rare thing called "serum sickness" - an extreme allergic reaction at the tissue level of the body. It will just have to run its course until all that medicine is out of her system.

She is stable now again,(on a fairly massive dose of steroids) and hopeful to get to go to prom tomorrow night. There was enjoyable, (and "normal" girl-talk with her today about how her dress will hide the rash on her back and legs (sorry Kate if I am embarrassing you)... I am grateful that she is able to go, and is improving. It is interesting to me that in the end, being able to talk with her about the "normal" stuff of life is what reduced me to tears.

So the very unusual situation about all of this, is that my 17 year old "baby girl", Kate, lives about 3500 miles away - with her Dad and StepMom, in Georgia. Some of you know this - some don't. It was a difficult decision, so many years ago, to allow her to move - yet the opportunities they have been able to provide her with have been worth it for Kate's future. Albeit difficult, it was the right choice for Kate.

As one who personally knows all about severe allergic reactions, and how fast anaphylactic shock can happen, I was already checking and booking potential flights when I first heard about what was happening... Fortunately, she was stabilized, and emergency flights were averted. Yet this stretched the very limits of my tolerance for "what is", to remain here in Washington. Logic speaks that I could have done nothing while there - yet the heart does not care.

I am grateful for the support of my dear friends through this - and thank you for the prayers sent out to my Kate. She is healing. She is growing (and so am I) and there will be prom tomorrow night.

 

G is for....

Garden.

" A plot of land used for the cultivation of flowers , vegetables or fruit."

I am most at home in my garden. It is here that the rich earth calls me to plant myself. I dig and hoe, oblivious to all that surrounds me. Time passes, and suddenly I find that I am weary, and ready for bed.

It is a delightful kind of exhaustion - of a day well spent. Contentment ensues. I feel complete.

It is not unusual for me to lose hours amid my flowers.  I seek their solace often when the rest of the world does not make sense, or when I have a dilemma too large for my hands - and every time, I find solutions in my garden. The world always seems to set a bit easier with me at the end of my day in the garden.

My tending of this small portion of the earth is humbling, invigorating and joyous. I stretch the limits of my knowledge, and the flowers oblige by teaching me their rhythm.
Last week, it snowed and rained from Tuesday until Friday, then Saturday, the first Rhodedendron opened it's petals. Incredible.

So many things have survived my lack of "tending" last fall.

Roses that had not been watered nor pruned for five years prior to my moving to this land, are showing amazing resilience.

I praise their strength and am delighted.

The sweet peas which I sowed in June (very late for them) not only survived but re-seeded.

hurrah.

This unknown shrub survived my harsh pruning - I was yelling at it for smothering another flowering shrub (an azalea I suspect) and I chopped it back so harshly. I thank it for forgiving my harsh pruning, and returning to life.
It not only survived, but has been blooming all winter.

My Wisteria - I ignored it completely last fall. I wasn't familiar with what type it is, and was hesitant to prune it, plus my hand injury limited my ability to do a good job, so I just let it go fallow - wondering if it would survive my negligence.

The garden has been forgiving - and once again welcomes Spring in spite of me. and I am grateful.

I have found that I have learned some of the best  wisdom in the garden. I have learned of impermanence, of right timing, of life that outlasts my own.  I have learned from soil that is too rocky and soil that is rich. I am anxious for spring to settle in, so that I may learn more from this small plot of earth which I now caretake. And I feel completely blessed.

One last word on gardening: I have begun reading a complete gift of a book. "Gardening at the Dragon's Gate" by Wendy Johnson. If you too love gardening, this will be a welcome addition to your shelves. The author is an astute student of life - of history - of gardens. It reads like a novel, and I find that I can hardly put it down. It is an epic work of organic gardening information, as well as history and folk lore from many cultures. Wendy writes as though you were walking through her garden with her on a summer's day - speaking in soft conversational tones of a great master. Bless her.

I leave you with a quote from her marvelous book: "In the first years of Green Gulch Farm, whenever a new Zen student came to work in the garden, he or she was sent out alone to spend the day sitting in meditation somewhere in the garden. When you slow down like this, the real garden is uncovered. And so is the real gardener. You unfold together. This takes time and a willingness to sit still past the moment when you get bored,  or past the moment when you think of at least thirty worthy garden tasks that you need to accomplish immediately. Instead, give yourself all the time in the world, and don't move, even if by the clock you only have half an hour to be in the garden. This is radical cultivation, for out of this stillness,, the real nature of your garden soil is exposed...... but beyond any particular lesson, sitting still on the earth restores you to yourself and to the freshness of the whole garden."

The author, Wendy Johnson, invites you not only into her incredible wisdom about the land, the folklore and it's history, but into her heart as she works the earth. It reads like a novel - and is dense with wisdom about life and gardens.

I do not know if I own my garden, or if it owns me. I am simply grateful for this small plot of earth in which to sink my fingers and feet.

I get by with a little help from my friends..

I have found that my friends are some of the most important ingredients in my life - and so when one of them sends up the knitters SOS, I respond (soft smile)
My friend Lisa, owns Dicentra Designs. I have been honored to know her for the past four years or so - and she is an awesome fiber artist, designer and hand dyer. I recall the first time that I met her - it was at a local spinners conference...... I spied, across the hall, one of the most gorgeous sweaters that I had ever seen, and I stood, walked purposefully across the hall and asked her to model it for me (remember Lisa??) The end result, (after I ooohhed and aaaahed) was that we became friends.
Lisa has an eye for color. Lisa is a "rule breaker" (which will forever endear her to my heart). Lisa is a consistent friend who has a marvelous sense of humor, loves her animals, and knows me quite well actually (despite living a few hours away)
So when Lisa mentioned in passing to me that she needed some new samples for her booth at fiber fairs, I was instantaneous in my response... of course I'd help :-) In fact, I'd be honored. The opportunity to play with some of her fabulous colorways was too good to pass by... (lucky me!)

A couple days ago, I let her know that my schedule had freed up enough to knit a bit for her - and she promptly packed me a goodie box! (again, lucky me) She sent a couple skeins, in two colorways, of her alpaca-merino blend sport weight yarn............... let's all do the collective aaaaaahhhhh.. It is truly divine.

While many have knit socks from this yarn (yes, Anne designed a fabulous pattern with this yarn) I thought to myself..... hmmmmmm I wonder if I should think a little outside the box here?
I have been working on a stole (Morning Glories - also designed by my friend Anne)  with this same yarn - and will complete it someday..

but in the meantime, I decided : cute, fast, accessible, wearable.... BABY SWEATER !
and I cast on this morning.
Like a woman possessed, I have been knitting (it is difficult to put down yarn as soft as this)
and I have almost finished the back - in the few hours I had to myself today)
behold:
Aran Ruffles from Minnow Knits
size 6 months
knit on size 4 & 5 needles

Dicentra Designs hand dyed Alpaca Merino Yarn

go ahead - click on her site.. better yet, email her and buy some. You know you want to. (huge grin and enormous laughter)

Lisa has sent me a couple of colors in this line - and I have not yet figured out what I will do with color number two.. any ideas?

The last goodies in my box from her was a skein of Lace weight Alpaca............ colorway denim............ be still my heart.............. I am thinking that I will make her one of Anne's patterns called "Gust".

Now won't that be lovely?