wonderful wallaby

this was fast and fun. I used Peaches and Cream 100% cotton- about $3 per skein. wanted something boy-ish and demin-ish and this was the ticket. same yarn used to make dish cloths, comes in great colors and so is inexpensive. this cost me about $15 to make! made some modifications to the pattern by trimming pocket and hood with seed stitch and knit the hood flat and grafted seam with kitchener stitch so there is no visible seam. knit in one piece from the bottom-up with raglan sleeve decreases, there was no finish work involved. recipient mom my workmate Shauntel was thrilled with this tiny little thing. my only gripe is how the pattern is written- more like a story than an actual knitting pattern, from baby to XXL adult. entire pattern could have been written on one page, but is written like a knitting tale over 20 pages. annoying. that being said, it is still a great pattern. might need to make one for myself....

scoop bag

I love how this turned out, but God do I hate large felted projects. working with two strands of stiff wool is hell on the hands and takes forever. big yaaaaawn. found the leather handles on e-bay and added some felted roses and metal purse feet. glad this is finished finally.

in the pink

my Summer of Baby Knits is almost done. only two more baby gifts to go!! this little cardigan is for my workmate Maggie's baby Brooklyn. I barely had enough yarn to finish this and this color has been discontinued. I had to shorten the arms by about 1 inch. I was sweating on this one, but I think the sleeve length is perfect. whew!!

sheep thrills retreat

this was the most extraordinary weekend ever. my mom and I went to a knitting retreat which is something that I have wanted to do for a long time. located in Camp Meeker, CA, Saint Dorothy's Rest is a retreat-haven. Owned and operated by the Episcopal Church, there are several house and cabins and a main mess hall for community dining. we stayed at Lydia's House which is this massive house perched at the top of the mountain. mom and I (and many) bunked together and there was a fabulous kitchen located within our house. the retreat ran Friday evening through mid-day Sunday and we were fed super-hearty, super-healthy meals in the main mess hall. we had a healthy supply of coffee, wine and good munchies at our house. the company was amazing as well as the talent. spinners, weavers, crocheters and knitters. it was a weekend to remember and I will do this again and again!! I loved every minute!! thank you Mum!!!!

fin

As I was finishing this baby cardigan today on my lunch break, the mother of the intended was packing for the hospital and loading the baby seat into the car. I made this entirely out of yarn left over from another project. Grandma is a co-worker of mine and this is for her first grandbaby. Took me less than a week of lunch breaks and evening to make. My only gripe is that I do not like the bulky appearance of set-in sleeves. I prefer a raglan sleeve that is knit in one piece from the top down like the Tulips Cardigan (see earlier post). Think I will incorporate both patterns next time I do this and will be happier with the end result.

what can I say.....

baby cardigan parts

love the leaf lace pattern in green

cupcake baby hat

started after work one evening and finished the next evening. love that I can make an awesome gift in so little time with so little yarn! that is why I love to knit. when you have a little bit of yarn in your stash you are a few hours away from a great last-minute gift. my co-worker Astrid is expecting a baby girl and this will look adorable on a teeny little round baby head!

Tulips Baby Cardigan

made for my co-worker Miguel and his wife Kelly who are expecting baby Rachael next month. this was from a kit from Coldwater Collective made from Dream In Color 100% merino. there was just enough to make this adorable cardigan and the pattern was very well written. learned some nifty new techniques, too. wish I had a better picture! will make sure the proud parents get a picture of baby modeling. this was a really fun knit and was done in less than a week of evenings watching tele. being a size 6-12 months it is a teeny, tiny. I also love that it is not girly-girl, but there is a bit of pink at the neck. had this not been from a kit, it would have been prohibitive to make. DIC yarns cost about $18 per hank. to purchase all of the colors would have been over-the-top expensive and I would have enough yarn to make 50 of these little things. think I have enough yarn left over to make a newborn-size hat, though!

rescue angel

Drake, our angel-puppy must have been sent from heaven by Kozmo and has brought so much fun and love back in to our home. Adopting a rescue dog just made perfect sense. During these heartbreaking times, so many people are being forced to give up their beloved pets. I cannot imagine how horrible it would be to not only loose my home, but have to surrender my dog or cat. When I saw Drake's picture, I knew we had to have this dog and bring him to our home. Kozmo would approve....

peaceful blast from the past

I remember this poster from when I was a teeny, tiny girl. It was created in 1966 as we were beginning our involvement in the pointless, horrible war in Vietnam.

meet Drake

6 month-old rescue chocolate lab baby

Kozmo Waldo Divine

rest in peace my dear, sweet friend. you were the very, very best dog. what you gave me I will be forever grateful for. I love you...

gorgeous tea

Gorgeous jasmine tea. My sister brought me flowering jasmine teas back from her trip to China. I finally purchased this pretty clear glass tea pot and watched the magic happen.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup with Smoked Gouda

Roasted Red Pepper Soup with Smoked Gouda

Makes 4 servings
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into small pieces
1 (12-ounce) jar roasted red peppers, drained and diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 (14.5-ounce) cans reduced sodium, fat-free chicken broth
handful fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
-- Sea Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup shredded smoked Gouda (top the soup with the cheese when serving instead of blending)

Heat olive oil in a 4-quart saucepan over medium high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, 3 to 5 minutes or until tender. Add carrots, roasted red peppers, garlic, chicken broth and seasonings. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 25 to 30 minutes.
Remove from heat. Carefully use an immersion blender and puree soup or ladle soup, in batches, into a blender, vent cover and puree soup.
Return soup puree to saucepan
Cook over low heat, stirring frequently

homemade yogurt!

I had a little yogurt maker that went back to when I was growing up. It was the Yogomatic. Very basic. It was my mom's and it was passed to me at one point. I had it for years and used it a lot. Then it simply disappeared and not by my hand! It made the best yogurt ever. Took a dab of yogurt culture (Nancy's is what we used) added milk, even skimmed variety and in 6 hours it was perfect and wonderful. I just got my little yogurt maker from Amazon and I can hardly wait for it to arrive. Isn't it cute?! I can even strain my yogurt over cheese cloth and get Greek Style yumminess! Pictured is my new Easiyo!! Love the Japanesiness of it, too. A steal at $23 and some change.

Diamond Ring the Cat

My name is Diamond Ring. I am a SBC (single black cat), fixed, petite, potty-trained, outgoing and available. I am solid black in color with stunning green eyes. I love the indoors as well as the outside. I am sweet and mellow and need a loving home. Please consider adopting me.

it was about 27 degrees outside when Kozmo came inside and hopped onto my lap for a nappie

my feet are not cold because I cannot feel them

lap dog

almost 100 lbs of dog....he is toasty-warm

button, button

Finding buttons to match this was an ordeal! These are absolutely perfect. I am just about done with this cardigan. Back, both sleeves and the left front are done and I am 1/2 way through the right front. Picking up stitches for the neck edge and seaming will be a snap. Best of all, this will not need blocking since the yarn really keeps it's shape.

Red Velvet Valentines

Vintage Valentine's Day cards...

Happy Valentine's Day!

Even if you are not in love at this moment, if you are reading this right now, you must know that I love you!!!!

Asparagus Risotto

1 cup Arborio rice
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup dry white wine (not Vermouth, but something that you would consider good enough to drink. I like Sauvignon Blanc for this, but Chardonnay is good, too)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried Italian mixed herbs
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1” pieces (I use only ½ of the stalk to ensure that pieces are tender when cooked)
1 tbs olive oil
Parmesan cheese
In large sauce pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic, herbs and pepper flakes. Cook until garlic is tender.
Add risotto and cook for about two minutes, coating rice in olive oil and until rice just begins to become slightly translucent. Add wine. Heat chicken broth in microwave or in pan until hot, but not boiling. Gradually (about ¾ cup of stock at a time) and allow to cook down before adding the next ¾ cup of stock. Stir occasionally to ensure that rice does not stick or burn. During this process, do not cover rice. The “adding liquid” process takes about 30 minutes. During the last 10 or so minutes, add asparagus.
Before serving stir in about ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese to the pot. Dish up and top with more Parmesan cheese.
*You can also substitute asparagus for broccoli, using only the flourettes. Both make the risotto a pretty soft green color.
*You can also omit veggie and stir in a couple tbs of pesto sauce.