Gnomematter

Sewing a dress

2012-01-31T19:19:00.000-08:00

I've embarked upon an experiment. I've sewed dresses before, but they've been simple affairs. I've sewed fitted blouses. I've sewed simple skirts. But after too many days, months, even years of not finding a 100% cotton dress with sleeves that fit, I began to think about sewing something more adventurous. Sure, I've found plenty of sun dresses that were 100% cotton and were cut very simply so that they more or less fit, but what about the other 353 days of the year when the weather isn't sun dress weather?

But after looking at patterns I ran into the same problem: the dresses made from just wouldn't fit.

Then I found Vogue fitting : the book of fitting techniques, adjustments, and alterations at the library, and thought, "I can do this."

I think I can do this!

So I got my own copy of the book, and New Look 6587, and decided to make dress A. Then I began to take measurements. I worked through the book, taking my measurements and comparing them with the standard measurements, and after following the "contact" link on the Simplicity site and hearing back from the very helpful people there, also added the actual garment measurements to my comparison table. The results: I needed to enlarge the waist.

After a trip to the art supply store for tracing paper, I then used the instructions in the book to trace and draw new pattern pieces that enlarged the waist and lower bodice of dress A. And after pushing the table aside in our tiny living room, and using the floor to lay out and cut out the fabric, I was able to begin sewing.

The first instructions were for something I'd never done before: stay-stitching seams, clipping them, and then curving the bodice front to fit the bodice side. (Without doing this, the two pieces of fabric wouldn't fit together without gathers and/or puckers.) And I'm so happy with the results! Sure, the pattern doesn't match up at the seam, but I'm not even trying to do that with this first dress. I'm just delighted that the seam lays flat so nicely.

I'm going to keep sewing very carefully, and hopefully, at the end, I'll have a 100% cotton dress with sleeves that I can wear most (if not all) of the year, that fits, and a pattern from which I can make more.

Sierra Beauty Apple Pie

2011-12-30T17:37:00.000-08:00

We've fallen in love with apple pie made from Sierra Beauty apples:

We get them at our local farmers' market, from Pomo Tierra Ranch, and they have so much more flavor than Granny Smiths. We've found that whether you eat them raw, or bake them into a pie, the first taste is sweet, but they have a tart finish, and are so aromatic--almost floral. We've been making pie after pie out of them, almost one a week, just like this one:

If you can, get some Sierra Beauties--enough for eating, and enough for pies!

Cedric visits the Norton Simon

2011-09-11T15:14:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at the Norton Simon in Pasadena. A rather small museum, it has a wonderful collection, so one could spend just a few hours or even all day.

Cedric particularly enjoyed the sculpture garden, especially "Mountain" (above) and the beautiful landscaping:

Cedric at the Gate

2011-08-28T19:32:00.000-07:00

Cedric and I were lucky enough to go sailing on Alma, and even luckier that Captain Jason and his wonderful crew took us just out the Gate! This is Cedric as we were approaching the Bridge, all of us very excited.

Knitting for Barbie

2011-08-17T20:08:00.001-07:00

It's been a long time since I've knit anything doll sized, and it's as fun as ever!

I call this the "Starry Night Bra & Panty Set," and the pattern's no. A58 from a wonderful site, Sticka till Barbie, and it's available in Swedish, Dutch, English and French--and it's free!

The pattern is really easy to follow, and it took just a bit of leftover sock-weight yarn, and I used 2.0mm (U.S. size 0) needles.

There's over 1000 patterns at her site, and I can't wait to knit more of them!

Date custard pie

2011-06-19T10:29:00.000-07:00

I wanted to try something completely new, and am so pleased with the results! It's not the prettiest pie, but is so delicious. The recipe is from the Fannie Farmer Baking Book, and I followed it as written. It's very simple, and I used the best ingredients I could find: free-range, organic eggs from Riverdog Farm, fresh dates that I bought at the farmers' market (I forgot to note the farm), plus milk (I used organic soy milk, since Paul can't handle cow milk), and a little salt--that's it. There's no added sweetener--all the sweetness comes from the dates.

The crust is the buckwheat crust from the same cookbook, and it's spectacular. Half wheat flour, half buckwheat flour--it's nutty and really flaky.

Whole wheat baguettes

2011-05-29T21:06:00.000-07:00

These are the prettiest baguettes that I've made! I've really gotten the recipe down (King Arthur Flour's) so that I can whip these up even with a nasty head cold. And I still follow Julia Child's suggestion about the slashes (mentioned before), but now we have a French carbon steel knife that's incredibly sharp, which makes the slashes very easily.

I've also adapted the recipe to incorporate whole wheat flour: I grind 3/4 cup wheat berries, which gives somewhere around 1-1/4 cups of flour, and I substitute that for some of the white flour in the "dough" part of the recipe. The only challenge is the crust--they're not as crusty as the white flour version, so I'm working on that!

The turtle will move

2011-04-17T18:46:00.000-07:00

I haven't yet mentioned this on my Ravelry project page, since it's a square for a baby blanket for one of the Ravelers, and we don't want her to see it until it's sent to her! But, in the meantime, I mention it here, so others who are working on the blanket can take a look.

It's going to be a Pratchgan-baby blanket, and the turtle is a tribute to the Discworld's Great A-tuin, as well as the turtle who was a Small God.

Timson's April Fool's

2011-04-09T15:45:00.001-07:00

Timson likes being in the spotlight on Ravelry--normally a bit shy, and rather a homebody, he nonetheless likes being the center of attention at a photoshoot, and he always looks forward to April Fool's when the silly hats are out and about. This year, he loved his formal look--he thinks the top hat was tops.

Celebrating Earth Hour with Cedric

2011-03-28T19:37:00.000-07:00

We had a lovely Earth Hour this year. Most of the neighborhood was very dark, and we lit a lot of candles. I knit, Paul read, and also took this photo of Cedric celebrating with us:

Timson was afraid of the candles. He gazed at the stars out the window.

Satchel rather than purse

2011-03-09T19:18:00.001-08:00

What started out to be a purse has ended up as a wonderful satchel, the perfect size to carry around my netbook, or magazines, or books, or knitting project, or quite a combination of any of them:

The lining fabric is one of the Miyabi fabrics from Sentimental Studios for moda, and I sewed a tube to sew into the strap to line it:

Since I wanted to see nothing but the beautiful right side of the fabric, I took my time sewing two pockets, one large one with a zipper, and a smaller one for pens & pencils:

I just love it. It's a bit larger than my other purses, for when I'm taking along a knitting project, or my netbook, but smaller and more comfortable than larger satchels and backpacks.

It's the second project from the birthday yarn that Paul got for me so long ago, before all those hand injuries, and I'm really excited about starting the next project with the warm gray Karabella DK Merino Silk--I'm swatching for the Essential Cardigan--we'll see!

Hexacomb Cardigan

2011-03-02T07:30:00.000-08:00

It's finally finished--my Hexacomb Cardigan. I made it with two inches of positive ease, out of Rowan Handknit Cotton (seven skeins), because I wanted a loose, boxy sweater for hot weather--not for wearing outside when it's hot, but for when you walk inside from the hot weather into an overly air conditioned building, and need a little something over your shoulders, maybe even buttoned up at first against that chill. Also, I think it will be perfect for when the breeze first comes up at nightfall after a hot day, and you need just a little something over a tank top to prevent that slight chill.

So bring on the hot weather. I'm ready!

Cedric visits Alma and collections storage

2011-02-26T11:31:00.000-08:00

Cedric had a grand day out--he got to accompany us on a tour of the work being done to San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park's scow schooner, Alma. My coworker, Gina, was also there, modeling her hard hat (we're librarians who get issued our own hard hats!):

We got to go aboard Alma, and Captain Jason told us all about the work being done, and it was very interesting! Cedric is standing on new wood, and the older looking wood in front of him (under the tools) is part of the work done on Alma in 1992:

After our tour of Alma, we got to tour some of the collections storage, and Cedric was so excited to learn what it would be like for him to live in a museum, and be an object in a museum collection--he would be assigned a special number, and photographed in a very special way:

Cedric thought retiring to a museum would be a wonderful way to live, but not for a long time--museum objects don't get outside much, although they go get to travel if they're lucky enough to be loaned to another museum for an exhibit. Then, they get to meet lots of people who visit the exhibit. Until then they lead a very restful existence in their special home. Right now, Cedric likes traveling too much to think about retirement.

February Hat

2011-02-21T12:57:00.001-08:00

I call this my February Hat, because it's still so cold out that I want a warm, wool hat, but it's also the month that the plum blossoms emerged in the garden, looking glorious, and there are still winter winds coming through, causing the "snow fall" of their petals.

The pattern is "Tigress Hat" by Kim Salazar, but I wanted more of a cloche, so I added a row of stockinette before the crown, and two more rows of stockinette before the brim, and it fits down over my ears, keeping them warm. The yarn, Rowan Harris Chunky, is much softer after a cold water soak and blocking. The hat used almost all of the skein, 75-80%.

The flowers are crocheted in DMC Cebelia cotton thread size 20, with a size 11 hook, with pink embroidery floss around the center to evoke the look of the plum blossoms. The pattern is the flower part of “Narrow Violet Edging,” from Rita Weiss’ Crochet Edgings.

A shawl, a scarf

2010-12-20T19:43:00.000-08:00

I started out knitting the Vine Lace Shrug (free download on Ravelry), aiming to use up some stash yarn, Classic Elite Bam Boo. The pattern is based on Barbara Walker's "Vine Lace" (from her Treasury of Knitting Patterns) and looks gorgeous in the Bam Boo.

As I knitted away, using up the stash, I realized the length wasn't quite right to sew up the shrug--it's a gift for a dear friend who's shoulders measure the same as mine, but her arms are shorter, since she's only ten years old!

So I made a fastener, so she could wear it as a stole, sewing a covered button and a long, tube "button" together, and inserting them into one of the lace holes:

It slips in and out without deforming the lace, so if she wants, she can take the fastener out, and wear it as a scarf:

Refining the crackers

2010-11-13T19:56:00.000-08:00

I've made the crackers dozens of times now, and found that they're even better if you roll them out twice as thin. That is, the recipe tells you to divide the dough in half and roll out two large squares--I've found that they're even better if you divide the dough in fourths, and roll out four large squares. You have to remember to pay attention to the ones in the oven--being so thin, they can brown too much very quickly, but they're so much better thinner. They brown evenly, and each and every inch is crisp.

I've also given up on the scoring and trying to get them square--we just crack them up into pieces. It's faster to the table that way!

Crackers

2010-10-10T19:41:00.001-07:00

"White Crackers" recipe from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook, 13th ed., edited by Marion Cunningham.

These are amazingly delicious with red wine--just enough sweetness and saltiness to enhance the flavor. I substituted agave syrup for sugar (so I could eat them), margarine for butter (for vegan & husband friendliness), and rather than measuring the salt, just sprinkled the amount that I'd want over them, and they're incredibly delicious. They're also really easy to make--just a few minutes to throw them together and get them in the oven--they're as easy as pie.

Tomorrow we'll have them with soup. Can't wait.

Cedric at Point Bonita

2010-09-26T14:45:00.000-07:00

Cedric had a wonderful time visiting Point Bonita earlier this month. Although it was foggy, it wasn't too foggy--the views were spectacular.

On the Alma

2010-08-21T22:53:00.000-07:00

Cedric got to go sailing on the Alma and had such a wonderful time. We sailed around Angel Island, and got to see the Immigration Station and Fort MacDowell from the water. The sun even came out for a while!

Baguettes

2010-08-04T18:38:00.000-07:00

These are my best looking baguettes yet. Granted, they're not gorgeous, but they're so much prettier than the previous ones!

I was never successful following the King Arthur Flour's recipe's instructions, "make three diagonal slashes in each baguette. Hold the sharp knife at a 45° angle to the bread, be quick, and use firm strokes." I couldn't get cuts that would open. The sharpness of the knives wasn't the problem, but I couldn't master this "45° angle" technique.

So I turned to Julia Child, From Julia Child's Kitchen, which had been of immense help with poached eggs: "Immediately make three lengthwise slashes in the top of the dough with a razor, cutting almost parallel to surface, as follows..."

That was the ticket. "Almost parallel." Worked like a charm.

Parking Sign Cozies Have Appeared!

2010-07-04T15:06:00.000-07:00

Some absolutely delightful parking sign cozies have appeared in our neighborhood! I think they may be the work of a blogger I always enjoy reading, Streetcolor, but I don't know for sure. This one is on Solano Ave. in front of Pegasus books:

And this one is down the street, nearer to Peets:

I just love them--such darling colors & festive stitch patterns--I hope more appear!

Stocking cap

2010-05-29T18:21:00.000-07:00

This is the beginning of a stocking cap, using Maggie's Rags Witch's Hat pattern as the basis for the beginning.

This gorgeous yarn was a terribly thoughtful gift--Opal, "in Variation nach Hundertwassers Werk, "Good Morning City." I'm in love with the colors!

I started this because the sprain in my hand occasionally acts up, and knitting with smaller needles is much more comfortable right now that with larger needles. Also, kntting in the round lets me do just a little bit, and then stop anywhere if I get any aches or pains, so I'm sure not to push it.

Why am I making a stocking cap rather than the socks from the pattern on the yarn's label? Because, well, I really don't like knitting socks--don't tell anyone!

The colors in Harrisville Designs Heathered Bulky

2010-05-02T13:39:00.000-07:00

The sprain in my hand is healed enough that I can do a little knitting here and there, so I'm working on the strap to the purse (Aran Pocketbook by Edie Eckman). I am struck by the wonderful colors in this yarn--the bright blues, the soft pinks--the strains of bright colors complement the base purple so beautifully. The name of this color, "periwinkle," doesn't due the variety of color justice. Sure, the purple is very true to the periwinkle blossoms in front of my home, but the gorgeous bright blues and pinks surrounding it are absent from the flower--but delightfully present in the yarn.

Slightly wheat challah

2010-04-25T14:13:00.000-07:00

My favorite recipe for challah (OK, the only recipe I know for challah!) is King Arthur Flour's Four-Strand-Braided Challah. It always turns out beautifully, and is delicious.

This time, we tried substituting some home-ground flour for white flour, almost two cups worth (from one cup of wheat berries).

It was fantastic. This is the way I'll be making challah from now on.

Round

2010-04-10T21:48:00.000-07:00

The April Ravelry pie challenge is "round," and we're a bit in between fruit seasons, so the fresh fruit choices were apples and rhubarb--but although I love those together, I didn't love them enough to make another apple rhubarb pie so soon, so it was off to the frozen food aisle. We've been paying attention to the EWG's food news (about pesticide levels in some foods), so got the organic strawberries--and in the same section they had blueberries and raspberries:

They made a delicious pie. I used a cherry pie recipe, figuring that the berries matched the sweetness level of cherries, but omitted the lemon that I usually add to cherry pie, since the raspberries probably added some tartness. It was delicious! (I also made Slightly Wheat Water Rolls, and lasagna for dinner):

The theme was green

2010-03-28T14:25:00.001-07:00

The Ravelry pie challenge group's March challenge was "green." I had been thinking of spinach pasties, or green peas in chicken pot pies, but the springtime fruit caught my eye--I started with these:

And ended up with an apple rhubarb pie:

Happy Pi Day

2010-03-14T13:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Pi Day, or, 3-14.

We celebrated with apple turnovers.

(The little piece of paper says, "POINT"!)

Home ground flour

2010-03-07T10:45:00.000-08:00

Fresh wheat berries, ready to be ground.

We just got the Kitchenaid grain mill attachment, and it's wonderful! A local market (Monterey Market) carries wheat berries, but if you're not near there, Whole Foods has them as well.

And this is the first loaf we made--we substituted 1-3/4 cups freshly ground whole wheat flour for white flour, and the bread has an almost buttery taste, in addition to the complex nuttiness of the freshly ground whole wheat. It's just amazingly delicious.

Chocolate. Pie.

2010-02-20T22:02:00.000-08:00

The February pie challenge in the Ravelry Pie Challenge group (requires free login) is chocolate pie--but Paul can't eat chocolate, and although I want a whole chocolate pie to myself, that just didn't seem advisable. So what to do?

Make a favorite pie, such as pumpkin, and apply bites of pumpkin pie to squares of chocolate, such as this amazing chocolate that I'm so lucky to be sent every now and then by friends in Germany. Every bite is amazing.

Pita bread, first try

2010-02-07T19:25:00.000-08:00

Today I attempted pita bread for the first time--although they came out absolutely delicious, the puffing was uneven. I used the King Arthur Flour recipe, and everything went well, except for the fact that the pitas puffed around the edges but not in the center. (This is not so useful for putting something inside them after you cut them in half!)

Our theory: I rolled them out with a french pin which made them flatter in the middle than on the edges. So next time, I'll try patting them out by hand, which usually results in a higher middle and lower edges (at least for me!)

We had them with the cannellini patties (we call them "bean burgers"), with a yogurt dressing and sliced cucumbers--putting it all on top of the unevenly puffed pitas like a pita pizza. Delicious!

Can't wait to try them again.

Mines of Moria knitting needle case

2010-01-13T19:34:00.000-08:00

Made for the Peoples of Middle Earth swap, celebrating the culture of the dwarves, based on Caitlin's Knitting Needle Holder Pattern (June 2002) (.jpg picture file).

More kitchen work, less handwork

2009-12-21T19:52:00.001-08:00

It's been noticed that I haven't posted about handwork in ages, and my project pages on Ravelry haven't been updated in forever--it's because my hand spends a lot of time healing in this brace. It's just a sprain, and it's healing, and I think it looks a lot worse than it is when you see it all braced up! It's just in an inconvenient location: MY HAND!

Timson has been wonderfully supportive, as usual. He won't knit in front of me, even though I told him I don't mind in the slightest. I can still bake and cook (with my devoted helper) so do keep up with some of my hobbies. And I'm draconian about my healing regimen.

Crab ravioli

2009-12-12T19:25:00.000-08:00

I was surprised at how delicious these are. We came up with the recipe out of thin air, because our darling goddaughter, when discussing Christmas dinner possibilities, said, "Ravioli," and "I like crab--how about crab ravioli?"

Out of the mouths of babes. Or, nine-year-olds:

Crab ravioli (ravioli di granchio, would that be?)

Grind together in a meat grinder:
1/2 lb. onion
1/2 lb. crab (or, "crab"--we use imitation crab because Paul can't eat real crab)

Stir in:
1 egg
1/2 c. breadcrumbs (plain--not with any spices or herbs)
1 tbsp. melted butter
1/4 c. ricotta cheese
dash of white pepper

6 sheets of fresh pasta (our pasta shop, Phoenix, has sheets that are about 10" x 13")

I got our ravioli mold from Sur La Table to assemble them, and fill each rav with 1-2 tsp. of filling--about 1-1/2 tsp. of filling is perfect. (Be sure to wet the areas of the pasta that will be the edges of the ravs for a good seal!) This recipe made about 70 ravs, enough for a main course for 3 people.

We put them on wax-paper lined cookie sheets to freeze them, and when they were frozen hard, put them into containers, and ate them a week later. We did this test, because when making them for a large group, we wanted to know if they'd do well made ahead of time and frozen--they did!

When cooking them frozen, we boiled them for ca. 10 min.--it may take 11 min., depending on how hot your water is, and how long it takes to return to a rapid boil after adding the frozen ravs. (Of course, if cooking them fresh, it will just take a few minutes.) To see if they're done, I always just take one out, blow on it a bit, and eat it to see of the pasta is cooked all the way.

We ate them with a plain tomato sauce (2 onions sauteed in about 1 tbsp. organic canola oil until lightly browned, 2 large cans organic diced tomatoes, then added 6 cloves chopped organic garlic, 2 fresh tomatoes 'cause we had them, 1 bunch fresh organic basil, 1 tsp. dried thyme, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. white pepper). We added freshly grated parmesan on top (also from Phoenix) and a Cline Ancient Vines Carignane (although they'd be delicious with white--we just adore reds, and have a serious devotion to the always outstanding Cline wines).

We'll be making dozens of these for Christmas dinner! Can't wait!

Thanksgiving

2009-12-05T21:49:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin, apple, and cherry.

And Cedric had a wonderful time at Franklin Canyon, part of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. The hikes are delightful--we saw a woodpecker, black walnuts, and wild cucumber seed pods--and the visitors' center has this amazing stuffed mountain lion that you can see very, very closely.

Apple Brown Betty

2009-11-22T19:02:00.000-08:00

We often have leftover homemade bread at the end of the week, and I make a lot of bread pudding, but was looking for something a little different when I ran across a recipe for an "Apple Brown Betty" in the Fanny Farmer cookbook. I'd never had one--never even seen one in person.

It's delicious! I cut the sweetener & used agave syrup (1/2 c. agave syrup) and did use the lemon--it came out with this amazing lemony apple cinnamon buttery flavor.

Sweet Potato Pie

2009-11-15T13:12:00.000-08:00

The November pie challenge in the Ravelry pie challenge group is family recipes. Lacking any handed-down family recipes for pies, I looked in a family cookbook, for a pie that could have been made--my mother-in-law Pauline's copy of the Prudence Penny Binding of the American Woman's Cookbook. Every family I knew had this cookbook--this edition's 1950s color illustrations are amazing.

The Nimbus Fish Hatchery

2009-11-08T14:22:00.000-08:00

We had so much fun at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery! You can get fish food for a nickel, and we used lots of nickels to feed the baby trout. Paul took this photo of Cedric from his favorite vantage point--the water and all the hungry fish made him a little nervous.

There were tons of huge salmon at the gate, some brilliant red and others pink or black. They'll be opening the gates the morning of November 9--go visit!
http://www.dfg.ca.gov/fish/Hatcheries/Nimbus/index.asp

Halloween pie

2009-10-24T21:20:00.001-07:00

Cherry pie. It's not just for summer anymore.

When Cedric hides

2009-10-20T20:34:00.000-07:00

Cedric was with me during this lunchtime walk, when we spotted the hawk on the light pole. I think it was a red-tailed hawk, but Cedric wouldn't come out to give his opinion. All he'd say was, "Polly wants fresh meat!"

I don't blame him. I think all of Cedric is smaller than this hawk's head.

Cedric's lunchtime walk

2009-10-11T20:37:00.000-07:00

Cedric has been joining me on my lunchtime walks along the Marina Green promenade. When the weather is sunny, we find the wind bracing if we walk at a good clip. It wasn't his first view of the Golden Gate, but this is still the closest he's been. (Someday I'll take him to Fort Point.)

Of course, Timson wishes for a hot chocolate after such a brisk walk in the wind, but we have work to do, and can't risk spilling chocolate on the books. We have to wait until we get home for that.

Crunchy granola

2009-09-26T20:11:00.000-07:00

I've begun making King Arthur Flour's crunchy granola every week. The photo above is from the first batch, using whatever we had in the house--walnuts, raisins, dates, and dried apricots.

We modified the recipe somewhat:
1/3 c. oil (instead of 1/2 c.)
1 c. nuts (instead of 3 c.)
1/4 tsp. salt (instead of 1/2 tsp.)
rice syrup (instead of maple syrup, because it has no sucrose)
2 c. dried fruit (instead of 5 c., to cut down on the fruit sugars)

It's fantastic. It came out exactly as the recipe said; here it is baked up, before the fruit is added (I didn't mess around with parchment paper--just greased the baking sheets):

We figured out that our recipe comes out to $6.08/lb. (King Arthur says on their blog entry that their recipe is $6.70/lb.) That's .38/oz. It sounds expensive, but the cheapest granola that we can get at our grocery store without added sugar is .50/oz., so we're coming out ahead--and that's even with the fancy, organic walnuts! With farmers' market dried fruit and nuts, in a different mix every week for variety, it's even cheaper--and more delicious.

(And in case you're wondering, our version is 225 calories per cup.)

Pasties

2009-09-17T20:10:00.001-07:00

The September challenge for Ravelry's Pie Challenge group (requires free account to log in) is the, "Take-Along Pie challenge. Mini-pies for the lunch box, turnovers, empanadas, baby quiches, things that are easy to carry with you as life gets busier again."

An excuse for pasties!

As usual, the filling was a combination of what was in the fridge needing to be used up (some aging green onions, yellow onion, and a bit of red bell pepper) and what looked good at the market (crimini mushrooms, sweet potato, turnip), combined with some sort of grain--I was out of barley, much to my surprise, and didn't want to make another trip to the store, so this time I used rice--and the usual herbs (bit of leftover fresh basil) and spices (I never remember what I toss in--it's different depending on the veggies used):

I have to admit, the combination of red bell pepper and, well, everything else, was less than successful--that flavor really dominates. Live and learn!

(Photos by Paul.)

Scarf Mania by Chris Lanier

2009-09-03T20:14:00.000-07:00

This is a cartoon written and animated by Chris Lanier, and although I've known Chris for a while, I saw the cartoon for the first time tonight and loved it--I think knitters & crocheters might like it, too. Although it really has nothing to do with knitting or crocheting, I find it interesting for making me think about how comfortable one can be--or not--in one's garments, and the influence of fashion.

And I think Romanov is adorable.

Ginger pigs

2009-08-30T20:13:00.001-07:00

Ever since my father-in-law told us how much he loved ginger cookies that were made in the shape of pigs, we've made ginger pigs rather than ginger men (or any other of the shapes in our farm cookie cutter set).

The recipe is from the Fanny Farmer cookbook, "Gingerbread Men," rolled very, very thin, and baked until golden and crisp. We also substitute rice syrup for the molasses, and agave syrup for the sugar.

Photo by Paul, pigs by Paul and I.

Better cornmeal scones

2009-08-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

These are the best cornmeal scones ever--forget the ones I already posted about. These surpass those in every way.

I came across the recipe, "Crisp Cornmeal Scones," in the April 2009 issue of Better Homes & Gardens, picked up on a whim from my public library's magazine exchange. (You can get the recipe for free from their site, I believe, if you register.)

If Hamlet were a knitter, or, A WIPs Sililoquy

2009-08-04T19:10:00.000-07:00

I wrote this for my Ravelry team, Team Middle Earth, for WWM09 (WIPs WrestleMania 2009), and offer it here with great apologies to The Bard, for the enjoyment of all who are trying to deal with their unfinished "Works in Progress:"

To finish, or not to finish–-that is the question.
Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of gorgeous designs
Or to lift hands against a sea of projects
And by opposing, frog them. To finish– to stitch
No more; and by finish, to say we end
The heartache, and the thousands of stitches
That WIPs demand. ‘Tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d. To finish, to bind-off,
To bind-off, perchance to block; ay, there’s the rub!
For in that project’s blocking what fit may come
When we have bound off this garment’s stitches
Must give us pause. There’s the respect
That makes calamity of such long stitching.
For who would bear the WIPs and scorns of time,
Th’ project’s photos, the proud fiber’s spinning,
The pangs of despis’d gauge, the needle’s breaking,
The insolence of charts, and the abbreviations
That patient merit of th’ beginner’s deciphering,
When he himself might his design make
With a bare bodkin? Who would these project bags bear,
To grunt and sweat under a bulky wool,
But that the dread of something after WIPs–
The undiscover’d project, from whose casting-on
No Raveler resists–puzzles the will,
And makes us rather bear those WIPs we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?

Cedric and coral

2009-07-27T19:09:00.000-07:00

Cedric loved his visit to the Birch Aquarium at Scripps. Besides the seahorses, the coral reefs were his favorite--he's long been a fan of the IFF's crochet coral reef, so he loved the opportunity to see the real thing.

Morro Bay

2009-07-20T19:53:00.000-07:00

Vacation was terrific. We loved Morro Bay--a wonderful town, beautiful beaches, surrounded by gorgeous parklands. Many times we caught sunrise and sunset, chasing light. Paul found the thin, wool sweater just the thing on chilly mornings.

Slightly wheat bread

2009-07-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

A warm day, the Fanny Farmer Cookbook (edited by Marion Cunningham) recipe for white bread with 1 c. of wheat flour substituted for 1 c. of white flour, and Ratatouille.

The best blueberry pie we ever made

2009-06-28T15:46:00.000-07:00

I came up with the recipe for the filling--I was inspired by the article in the July/Aug. 2008 issue of Cook's Illustrated to add a grated apple to take advantage of the apple's pectin for thickening the filling. So I modified my usual recipe to incorporate the grated apple, and it's the best blueberry pie we've ever had! Not only does the apple enhance the texture, but it adds a fantastic tartness behind the sweet blueberries. I also made the crust, and Paul did all the rolling, assembling (and photography).

Blueberry pie

Pastry for double crust

For filling, mix all together:
6 c. frozen blueberries
3/4 c. agave syrup (or honey, or rice syrup, or sugar)
1 granny smith apple, peeled and grated on the large holes of a grater
Grated zest of one lemon (1/2 to 1 tsp. or so)
2 tsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. instant tapioca
1/4 tsp. cinnamon (or nutmeg)
Dash of salt

Bake at 400F for ca. 50 min., until crust is golden and filling bubbly.

It's not the perfect needle, and that's OK

2009-06-07T18:20:00.000-07:00

I started my Hexacomb Cardigan, and I wanted, desperately, to knit this on wooden straights. I don't enjoy circulars. They're always attached--always moving against each other--there's no independence of motion!

But it was just too much cotton yarn on too small a needle, and I couldn't find a longer straight needle--the cotton just wouldn't scrunch up small enough on the straights.

And I wanted to get going, so when I couldn't find a wooden circular of the right size at either local yarn store, and I did find a metal pair at the second, I bought that pair--so slippery! The yarn's just slipping all over! But that's ok. I get to knit now.

And, sure, I could have mail ordered a wooden circular, but then I wouldn't have given some money to a LYS--in this economy, I want every dollar staying in my community. If I want an LYS, I have to spend money at an LYS--so I bought the metal circulars. Maybe someday if I have more spare money than I do now, I'll buy a wooden pair.

Repaired laundry basket

2009-05-24T20:54:00.000-07:00

The handles broke on the laundry basket--all the handles--a long, long time ago. Duct tape had served--served it best--but that wasn't good enough. We didn't want to put such a huge hunk of plastic into the trash. There had to be a way.

So Paul cut the broken top of the basket off, and drilled three holes every place it was solid, as you see in the photo above.

Then I made some "tshirt yarn" according to Polka Dot Pineapple's excellent tutorial on how to make a ball of "yarn" out of worn out tshirts.

Then I started crocheting:
(I'm sitting on our bed, and the cover, by the way, was crocheted by my grandmother. Yes. I'm sitting on it. We use our things.)

After a row of single-crochet (the American term) around the top with a size J hook, I then started another sc round, making a chain where each handle used to be. Then, I did another row of sc over that. It took two tshirts:
The basket lost a little structural integrity (it squishes a bit easier), but it works really well. The handles are comfortable and stretchy, yet strong. And the loss of stiffness isn't really a problem--the new, crocheted top of the basket is very soft, so the basket with the laundry can be squished under one arm.

(All photos by Paul. Thank you, Paul!)

Purse body

2009-05-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

It's huge! And I have very little yarn left, so I'm not sure what I'll do about handles. Timson thinks it's very cozy.

The current plan is to felt it a little, to make it smaller & denser, but not too much--I don't want to lose all the cable detail. Then I'll sew a liner in, and sew the sides together. And then figure out what to do about handles. Oh, and a zipper. And maybe some pockets in the liner.

Here it is all folded up--there's a button hole on the front flap:
I'll need a button!

Birthday presents

2009-05-09T19:55:00.000-07:00

From Paul! I originally wanted the bulky, purple yarn for a bolero, the Carie Cropped Flare-Sleeve Cardigan (Spencer Jacket) by Stefanie Japel (in Fitted Knits), but I couldn't get the gauge to come right.

So plan B is the Aran Pocketbook by Edie Eckman (in Bags, a Knitter's dozen), which I'll try to felt--the ruler is 12"/30cm, near the bottom of the purse, and I'm now working on the back:

Wanderlust

2009-04-30T07:30:00.000-07:00

Aqua Duckie and Red-Bottomed Duckie adore Cedric's tales of travel. They long to explore the open road. Where will their travels take them?

It's true: Wee Timson cannot swim

2009-04-24T21:46:00.000-07:00

With thanks to JohnK:

Ten Top Trivia Tips about Wee Timson!

Wee Timson can sleep with one eye open.
California is the biggest exporter of Wee Timson in the world.
Early thermometers were filled with Wee Timson instead of mercury.
It's bad luck for a flag to touch Wee Timson.
If you break Wee Timson, you will get seven years of bad luck.
Wee Timson cannot swim.
Baskin Robbins once made Wee Timson flavoured ice cream!
Wee Timsonolatry is the mindless worship of Wee Timson!
Duelling is legal in Paraguay as long as both parties are Wee Timson!
If your ear itches, this means that someone is talking about Wee Timson.

From the Mechanical Contrivium.

Quack

2009-04-17T21:05:00.000-07:00

Green Duckie would like to introduce Kewpie. He loves Kewpie very much--as a friend. They're just very good friends. They don't know what the future holds--Green Duckie is so young, just a few minutes old, and needs to be open to what the future brings.

Kewpie understands. Kewpie, after all, is over forty.

They know they'll always remember Berkeley.

Happy Bobmas

2009-04-10T19:50:00.000-07:00

Timson wants to wish everyone a very happy Bobmas!

love(1)

Flash your stash day

2009-04-01T07:30:00.000-07:00

That's all there is--one basket--not counting about ten balls of crochet thread that I'm slowly crocheting into curtains. The big, gray ball is Meridian Jacobs 2-ply, and I have half of a cone in addition to that, which I'm currently knitting into a spiral, round rug. I should have plenty leftover! And the brown is left over from Paul's sweater, and there may be enough of that for another sweater, too!

Below that are odds and ends, mostly, for which I have no firm plans. Fun!

Raising a glass...

2009-03-27T16:47:00.000-07:00

...to absent friends. Rest in peace, Mike. (Photo by Paul.)

Getting up early

2009-03-17T09:21:00.000-07:00

The Rancho Guadalupe Dunes County Park, at the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes, the road leading to the beach. When you paid very close attention, and were very, very quiet, you could watch the plovers and terns--you could hear them throughout the reserve until you went down to the water and the sound of the surf at the beach took over. There, little sanderlings were running all around in the waves.

Varnish quest

2009-03-07T15:56:00.001-08:00

Occasionally I have a day at work when I can't believe I'm getting paid--when I wonder how I ended up lucky enough to have this job. (There are other days, but we won't discuss them now!) I have a reference question that sounds simple: what varnish did Hilaire Hiler use on the murals on the walls of the Maritime Museum? (Also known as the Aquatic Park Bathhouse.)

I found a clue. The Archives of American Art at the Smithsonian are kind enough to lend microfilm reels via interlibrary loan, and on a reel I borrowed I found a manuscript of his that mentions using stearates. I had no idea how useful this could be to our conservator; if Hiler used zinc stearates, then they have a wealth of information at their disposal to address problems in the murals like this:
See the tiny, white splashy spots? They're not the result of someone spraying soda pop from a shaken can--they may be the result of zinc stearates in the varnish.

The conservators working on the murals were kind enough to take time out to show me exactly where the information I've provided them is helpful, and to explain many of the technical aspects of the information they need.

I still haven't found out which exact varnish Hiler used, but I did find out the composition of the paint: from the Ed Biberman Oral History at the wonderful Archives of American Art, he says:

But I had a friend, the very capable artist and technician Hilarie [sic] Hiler, who has written a book on art techniques. For the WPA Project he did a very beautiful mural in the Marina-is it the Marina Park in San Francisco? I believe it's just called "The Marina." I'd seen it there and was intrigued with its beautiful eggshell surface quality, the "sheen" that it had, and asked him what he had used. He told me that he had made a preparation of oil of spike, which is a very wonderful aromatic vehicle, with wax and oil colors. And being a very gracious man he gave me the formula for this little stew and I used it for the three murals that I painted. It is a very fine solution to one of the problems of having to paint a mural in oil.

--Oral history interview with Edward Biberman, 1964 Apr. 15, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

There's a photo of the dramatic difference between the cleaned and uncleaned portions of a section of mural that I put up on Flickr, during that wonderful visit with the conservators at the Museum.

And if anyone knows what varnish Hiler used, do let me know!

Sourdough sandwich bread

2009-03-01T20:27:00.000-08:00

Our starter, Puss, has indeed grown to become Sourpuss. We've enjoyed sourdough waffles, sourdough pancakes, and, finally, a really good sourdough sandwich bread. These loaves are my third try, and the best by far. The recipe is from The Joy of Cooking, with the eggs omitted, and 2 tbsp. peanut oil as the fat. (Besides brushing the loaves with melted butter.) I also knead the dough in my Kitchenaid for at least ten minutes.

I'm still on a quest to improve them, though--I want them more sour, and taller.

Hat and scarf

2009-02-22T19:05:00.000-08:00

This is the first hat I improvised, and I'm delighted with how it turned out. I wanted to echo the moss stitch used in the center of the scarf, which I knit with a cable pattern from Barbara Walker's Fourth Treasury of Knitting Patterns, "Cable no. 8."

The yarn is wonderful, Fiber Creations Dyed Wool, from sheep raised within an hour of where I live. I bought at Meridian Jacobs Meet the Sheep 2008, which was absolutely delightful. And the hat and scarf are so warm.

Timson really enjoys knitting

2009-02-15T12:52:00.001-08:00

It's a new codpiece. His old one wore out.

A starter's born

2009-02-08T11:20:00.001-08:00

We've recovered from the demise of our last starter, who became known as "Nasty." This one is from the same recipe, using rye flour, water, and wee bit of molasses.

We've named it Puss.

Copy holder for chart patterns

2009-01-31T21:02:00.001-08:00

Do you need a copy holder for your chart patterns, yet you're on a budge because the economy's in the toilet?

Simple: get a piece of metal, for example, a tray, two refrigerator magnets (these are delightfully in the shape of chocolates), and a colored piece of paper. Added bonus: a magnet in the shape of a Danish boy from Andersen's Pea Soup that is the perfect cable needle holder.

Bike helmet ear warmers

2009-01-24T15:58:00.000-08:00

I know that compared to a lot of places, the San Francisco Bay Area does not really have winter. But some mornings, before dawn, riding to work on the waterfront, the wind coming off the saltwater takes the temperature down below freezing. On those mornings, uncovered ears lead to dizzy spells, it gets so cold.

Before I made these earwarmers, everything else I tried interfered with how my helmet fit on my head--balaclavas, scarves, headbands--these fit right on the helmet's straps, below where the helmet hugs my head, so they pop on easily for the coldest mornings, and pop off when they're not needed, without any helmet adjustments required!

And they're so warm!

Details on my Ravelry project page; the pattern's available for free in MenKnit issue one. And be sure to see the comments on the Ravelry pattern page for this pattern for an explanation of a possible typos in the pattern as published.

Finished

2009-01-19T11:31:00.001-08:00

It's finished! It only took 17 months. It came out great--very soft, fits as it should, and best of all--I had so much fun making it.

Details: 6.58 skeins of Louet Gems Fingering weight. Color, "Ginger."

Yes, fingering weight. It's a sweater out of yarn the size of sock yarn--but so worth it. It's so soft, and the ribbing looks so good in the fine gauge knit. (If I do say so myself.)

Piroshki

2009-01-07T07:30:00.000-08:00

They were so delicious! (This is about half of them.) We roasted turkey, then ground it with plenty of onion, hardboiled eggs, herbs, spices, s&p--and wrapped it all up in a sweet dough made with eggs, real butter, and milk. The dough took all day to rise, this time of year, but it was worth the wait!

They went down easily with this year's Christmas ale from Anchor.

The Daily Sweater

2009-01-04T07:30:00.000-08:00

I really like the look of the Daily Sweater in Mason-Dixon Knitting Outside the Lines, but according to the Ravelry page for this pattern (requires login), extra-small is for a 38 inch bust.

I just don't live in a universe where a 38" bust is extra-small. In my universe, where I buy all my clothes, extra-small ranges from about 32" to 35" and anyone with a 38" bust would be shopping several racks away from extra-small.

So although the sweater looks really cute, the pattern was apparently written to be made in a universe far, far away from the one in which I live.

Gearing up for the upcoming holidays

2008-12-30T18:31:00.000-08:00

Sure, the solstice has passed, and December 25th has come and gone, but in our house, we're not only getting ready for the New Year, but for La Befana and for what our family calls Russian Christmas.

We usually make a passel of turkey piroshki.

Happy New Year, and enjoy the holidays to come!

Booties

2008-12-14T12:05:00.001-08:00

I made these awhile ago for Jonah, and I'm afraid that it took me so long to give them to him that Mr. Panda, or another of his friends, will end up wearing them instead!

The pattern is Ruth's perfect baby booties, and they took just a tiny bit of Schachenmayr nomotta Regia stretch color yarn.

Elephant surprises

2008-12-04T19:04:00.000-08:00

So I'm watching the Colbert report on radical knitting, and, suddenly, there's my elephant:

The original that they obviously grabbed from Flickr:

It would have been nice if they had asked.

Mending again

2008-11-22T07:30:00.000-08:00

We've had some mornings with frost, and near freezing temperatures near the Bay, so I've wanted more wool layers for my bike commute. But I don't want to spend a lot of money--it's not just the economy being in the toilet, it's wanting to have some money to spend on Christmas presents, on paying off debts, and, dare I dream, a vacation? So, luckily, there's Goodwill, with darling wool sweaters for $5.00. This one had many holes in it, and I didn't do extensive darning--if I can get it decent-looking so it lasts for one winter, I'll be happy.

So I just ran horizontal stitches across the holes to cinch the knitted fabric together:

Many holes were mended in about ten minutes, and then I replaced the buttons, since a few were missing. And, voila! A very warm, darling cardigan, suitable for biking & wearing to work.

Foccacia and wine

2008-11-15T21:11:00.000-08:00

My darling friends had given us Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan, and I gave the foccacia recipe a try. It's absolutely delicious. The bread comes out with a dense, moist texture, perfect to hold up to cheese, a dip in wine, or even sliced horizontally to make a sandwich. I cut down on the salt quite a bit (2 teaspoons rather than a tablespoon, and no salt on top), and topped it with only 1/8 cup garlic olive oil (made with sliced garlic sauteed in extra virgin olive oil) mixed with 1 tablespoon water. I cut the fat and salt since I like to top the warm foccacia with cheese (like a Point Reyes blue), or dip it in red wine.

The wines are two of my absolute favorites, the carignane and mourvedre from Cline Cellars. Grown in Contra Costa County, these wines are surprisingly affordable, and with every sip I feel lucky about what the phrase "buy local" means for me.

Pumpkin scones

2008-11-06T19:56:00.000-08:00

The Joy of Baking's pumpkin scones recipe is wonderful. I've modified it a bit; I only use 1/4 c. organic vegetable shortening (rather than 1/2 c. butter), use lowfat milk or soy milk rather than buttermilk, and like them a little less sweet, so I substitute 1/4 c. agave syrup (rather than 1/3 c. sugar). I also omit the egg wash at the end to cut down further on the fat & cholesterol. I then bake them as directed on on ungreased cookie sheet--no need for parchment paper if you aren't using the glaze. They come out great!

And they're even good for lunch the next day!

Schmap Napa

2008-11-01T07:30:00.000-07:00

Slightly Daft Cedric is slightly famous! His photo from his trip to Copia in Napa has been selected for the 5th ed. of the Schmap Napa Valley entry on Copia.

He was very modest about it, speechless, in fact.

Adventures in commuting

2008-10-24T17:09:00.001-07:00

I met a bus newbie named Dave, who took a photo of me with my bike at the bus terminal.

Why is the little airplane a pigeon chaser? The hum of the propeller spinning in the wind isn't just whimsical, it's enough of a sound that pigeons (and even gulls) hear it and walk out of the way before the bike and I are near them!

The Men's Book

2008-10-21T19:49:00.000-07:00

The booklet that has the pattern for Paul's sweater is actually for sale at Summer Breeze Books. And the price seems very good! I've never ordered from them, and don't know them, but they have a lot of interesting knitting items under "Vintage 10 cent items, etc."

A sleeve begins

2008-10-14T20:16:00.000-07:00

It's another stage in the Journey of the Fine Gauge Sweater: the beginning of the first sleeve! When I started this sweater, out of sock yarn, over a year ago...

nevermind...

It's the beginning of a sleeve!

I've finished the front, which looks almost exactly like the back, and I'm so happy to have started on the sleeves because they're going so much faster. Being a "vintage pattern," the instructions for the entire sweater are very brief; the pattern assumes a lot of knowledge. For the sleeves, I've written out row-by-row instructions for myself--in the original pattern, the instructions for the sleeves (above the cuff) consist of seven lines, and I've filled an entire sheet of binder paper with rows 1-45. And I'll be writing out the rest. Because that's the kind of knitter I am.

"Sisters-in-law"

2008-10-07T20:41:00.000-07:00

I love my in-laws so much!

(photo by Paul)

Challah

2008-10-02T19:41:00.000-07:00

We love this challah, and make it often. It's the King Arthur Flour's "Challah" pretty much as written, with the exception of using agave syrup instead of sugar. I let the braided bread have its final rise on a parchment paper covered baking sheet, because the glaze can make a royal mess out of the baking sheet, and don't have an instant-read thermometer--I find one can tell when the bread's done without one!

Arrr...parrrrrrrot....

2008-09-19T19:13:00.000-07:00

Timson is kind enough to appear as my avatar on Ravelry, and Casey was kind enough to create the code that makes the parrots appear! I'm particularly impressed, because Timson's parrot appeared perched on his (Timson's) "frogged" shot glass. (Timson has been known to tipple.) Timson is a gnome of few words, but on the subject of Talk Like a Pirate Day, he says very quietly, if you lean in close, "Arr."

Vegan or not, lowfat or not, cormeal scones

2008-09-05T19:42:00.000-07:00

Timson loves his cornmeal scones. (Well, Timson loves just about any type of scone!) These are really easy to prepare--the recipe below is for the lowfat, vegan version, but if you're an omnivore with healthy cholesterol levels, substitute milk for soymilk, and butter for shortening--heck, substitute cream for soymilk! (Or slather them with butter. Mmmmm.)

Mix: 1 cup flour, 1 c. cornmeal, 3/4 tsp. baking powder, and a pinch of salt.

Cut in 1/4 cup shortening.

Optional: mix in 1/4 cup raisins, dates, nuts, or whatever
Mix together 1/3-1/2 cup soymilk with 1 tbsp. agave syrup (or honey, or sugar, etc.).

Mix wet and dry ingredients together; you want enough wet ingredients to moisten the dough, yet to leave it dry enough to handle.

Pat it out onto a floured counter about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch thick, cut into eight wedges, and bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 425F for 12-15 minutes.

After a nice scone, Timson can't resist a wee tipple in his favorite shot glass.

Free Tibet bracelet pattern

2008-08-23T20:48:00.000-07:00

This is as close to politics as this blog will ever get; Timson is rather uncomfortable about public political discussions, but he had a lot of fun making this bracelet, and would like to show it off:

I came up with this bracelet because I was looking for something I could wear frequently that conveyed this message but all I could find were those plastic message bracelets, and I'm trying to reduce the amount of plastic in my life--I couldn't find anything so decided to get creative.*

The pattern's very simple--I've made it available as an Adobe Acrobat .pdf file, for free here, but if you like it, please contribute to either The Tibet Fund (U.S.), Free Tibet (U.K.), or the organization of your choice that supports Tibet or Tibetans.

*For just one reason to reduce your purchasing of plastics, see the Discover magazine article, The World's Largest Dump: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

The turtle moved

2008-08-16T20:24:00.000-07:00

Have you ever seen one of your favorite authors in the whole world next to something you made for them? Someone whose books have made you laugh out loud no matter how bleak the world had become? Someone who had crafted something that always brought you joy, even when your heart was shattered? If so, you know how I feel today.

I made one, wee square, the turtle from Barbara Walker's treasuries. Thanks to an amazing amount of hard work and incredible talent on her part & all those who participated, Shirley presented the Pratchgan to our PTerry. I hope so much it keeps him warm and brings him a even fraction of the joy he's brought all of us. Read all about it on her blog, Ramblings of a Yarn Junkie.

To see some of the squares in detail, check out the Flickr group, or if you're on Ravelry, start with Shirley's project page.

Wibble.

He went to...

2008-08-14T07:30:00.000-07:00

Copia! He toured the gardens...

...and really liked making some friends.

Where's Cedric?

2008-08-11T20:11:00.000-07:00

Do you recognize where Cedric is? Can you guess?

Water lilies

2008-08-06T07:00:00.000-07:00

I got some film back from our trip to the UC Botanical Garden which included this unexpectedly lovely shot of the water lilies. Cedric was there, but water makes him very nervous, especially this water which is the home to snakes and turtles--they're not known to eat gnomes, but when you're a very small gnome, you don't take those sorts of chances.

It's a top, no, it's a bathing suit

2008-08-02T18:16:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you can't wear synthetics, and you want to go swimming? Sure, tshirts and shorts are an option, but what about wanting something pretty? Enter the Citrus Sun Top, from Knitting Lingerie Style.

Even thought my gauge was spot-on, and my measurements brutally accurate, the cups turned out huge (even though they're the "A cup" size)--since the pattern didn't offer a "demitasse" size, I had to think of a way to get the cups to fit. Enter i-cord drawstrings:

I laced them through the trim: one i-cord through the top, tying at the back of the neck, and one i-cord through each side, fastened just where the cup meets the midriff (near the underarm), fastened in the back.

The i-cords not only keep the top from looking way too big, they will keep it on in the water!

And, yes, since the yarn is Louet MerLin, which is merino and linen, it does smell a bit like a wet dog when wet, but I'm hoping the chlorine will mask that.

The Polaris

2008-07-31T07:00:00.000-07:00

Cedric and his pal Fergus also had a great time visiting the Polaris, and you can too! She's beautiful, built in 1906, a carvel-built pumpkinseed sloop. (OK, I have no idea what that means, but it sounds so cool that I'll be looking it up.)

The crew was so friendly, and answered all our many questions, and even took special care helping Cedric and Fergus enjoy their visit, too.Fergus' pal Debbie was there, as were other pals, and we had such a good time we hope we can visit
The Spaulding Boat Center where the Polaris is based. (They're a California non-profit, 501(c)(3), so give early and give often.)

The Niña

2008-07-26T14:46:00.001-07:00

We had a fantastic time during the week at the Festival of Sail, and so did a lot of other people! There are some fantastic photos and a great video of the Parade up at Yachtpals. Favorite part of the parade? The cannon fire. The boom of cannon on the Bay is always delightful. We were watching in front of the Firehouse at Fort Mason Center, and the wind was just right so that the smoke emerged from behind the end of the pier before the Bounty in all her glory.
Cedric loved his visit to the Niña with Fergus. The crew was so friendly and knowledgeable, and very patient with their smallest visitors. They loved exploring the model:

And were so surprised that the ship was so small (the full-sized ship, that is, not the model. Although the model was a tiny miracle of craftsmanship.). It's hard to imagine sailing across the Atlantic in it, but if you're curious, check out the crew application at their website.

Less talk, more work

2008-07-21T19:29:00.000-07:00

As the artist Chuck Close said: 'Amateurs look for inspiration; the rest of us just get up and go to work.'
--Jon Carroll, column for Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2007

Just finished a novella. (Damn, that sentence was fun to write.) I don't write much about writing--it seems silly. I'd rather just go write novellas and novels (and lions and tigers. Oh my.)

But check out Jon Carroll. He's one of my favorite writers.

Portrait

2008-07-10T07:30:00.000-07:00

I'm lucky to know a very talented photographer, who takes great pictures of me like this one with my latest fabric purchase.

UC Botanical Garden

2008-07-04T21:16:00.001-07:00

Today we visited the UC Botanical Garden, and Cedric's favorite spot was the dye plants bed in the herb garden. The flowers were still stunning, and the indigo pods were lovely.

We also saw lizards, many robins and towhees, and even a roufus-sided towhee. In the quiet, California garden, we watched a small, gray mouse, no bigger than a quarter, foraging. We also stopped into the tropical house to see Odora, and I was happy that she wasn't stinky! Next to Odora is Titania, setting fruit, and another plant in the leaf stage. It's quite something seeing a flower almost as big as you, and a leaf taller than you are.

San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles

2008-06-30T18:51:00.000-07:00

We went there this weekend, and I loved it. I was most interested in Beyond Knitting: Uncharted Stitches, but enjoyed every single exhibit.

In Beyond Knitting, some of my favorite pieces were Mark Newport's hand-knit costumes; you can see some of them at the Greg Kucera Gallery website, but the images don't convey their presence--they're actual size, as if knit for a tall, powerful man, but they're adorable! I really loved Argyle Man and Sweaterman 4--and if I had $7000.00 (each, according to the gallery site), they'd be mine. I would love to come home and make believe that this is just my secret identity--in reality, I'm Sweaterman 4, and together with the other three Sweatermen, we're mustering the power of the knit cable to fight the agents of evil!

I was very surprised by how taken I was with the figures in "In Javanese Moonlight: Sha Sha Higby in Transition." They're haunting. And the "Crocheted Reef and Anemone Garden" is fantastic--look for the sweet and well executed crab and rays.

Of course, Cedric was there, but photography was not permitted in the museum. His favorite piece was the knit capitol building. And consider a membership--with it, you can bring in two guests!

Cedric's pal Fergus

2008-06-21T19:33:00.001-07:00

We get the most interesting researchers at work. This week, Cedric came in to work with me to meet his pal, Fergus, who's researching his family history--like many of our researchers, Fergus wanted to look up the ship that carried some of his ancestors in the registers. It was quite a challenge for him, since he's only a fraction of the the size of the Lloyd's Registers--even the small ones!

We were struck by their resemblance to each other--they may be cousins, but they won't be sure until Fergus gets further in his research. (It's Cedric on the left.)

Bagels

2008-06-17T20:00:00.001-07:00

This is my first batch of bagels! I used the recipe in the The King Arthur Flour baker's companion (which is also on their website) because it was the lowest fat version of the recipe in all of my cookbooks. (It's beyond lowfat--the only fat I used was to grease the bowl that held the rising dough.) I also substituted agave syrup for the sugar in the dough--I didn't see any reason to go hunt down exotic ingredients like "non-diastatic malt powder," if what I had in the cabinet would work--and also substituted rice syrup for all the sugars in the water bath. Worked like a charm.

They came out great and according to my neighbor, "they are real bagels." I'll be making them again!

Sam and Max

2008-06-05T20:25:00.000-07:00

Sam and Max, freelance police, outlasted the tshirt onto which I had embroidered them. Now they will be bringing their particular brand of aggression to a Christmas tree near you.