Monthly Archives: December 2013

Indie Gift-Along Interview 1 of 2: PAKnitWit

Posted on December 12, 2013 by Adri H. | Comments Off

Today I'm doing something a little different. As part of Ravelry's Indie Design Gift-Along, I'm interviewing two knitwear designers. In this first interview, we get to meet Sarah Jordan also known as PAKnitWit on Ravelry!

Mint Chocolate Mitts, Sarah Jordan (photo: © Interweave Knits/Harper Point)

Hi Sarah, and welcome to my blog! I'm a very curious person, and love to know how others came to this profession... So, I'll start with an easy one. How did you come to design hand-knits?

I am, admittedly, an obsessed knitter. I learned to knit when I was about 7 years old and was spending a week with my aunt and uncle in Michigan. My aunt had knit for me since I was a baby, and I suppose I expressed enough interest in learning during that week that she put some straight needles and some squeaky orange acrylic in my hands and showed me the basics. I didn't knit much other than simple scarves and the occasional hat until I was in grad school in Philadelphia and lived about a block from Rosie's Yarn Cellar. I was in a pretty intensive grad program, so I started doing a lot of knitting to relieve the stress. I taught myself a lot from the Internet at that point.

After I moved back home and started work, I continued to knit during my evenings and weekends, and that's really when I got good and obsessed, particularly with sock knitting (I'm a self-proclaimed recovering sock addict). During the day, I'm an editor/proofreader for a marketing department, which doesn't have a lot of space for creativity, so I still see knitting as my creative outlet. I also started spinning about six years ago, which has only added to my yarn stash.

I started designing because I got an idea of something I wanted to knit but couldn't find an existing pattern for it. I found that I liked the process so much that I couldn't stop. Most of my designs come about the same way -- I'll get a very specific vision of a item I want to make but am unable to find a pattern out there that looks exactly like the picture in my head. I still wish I had more time to do it (in addition to my full-time job, I have a young daughter, so my time is really limited), but for now, it's something I do to keep my brain working during evenings and weekends.

Newlin Socks, Sarah Jordan

Scullers Socks, Sarah Jordan

And it looks like you've been keeping very busy!

What inspires your designs?

Inspiration seems to come from everywhere. Sometimes it's from machine-made items that I see on people I pass on the street. Sometimes it's geometric patterns in upholstery or carpeting or wallpaper. Sometimes an image just pops in my head as I'm in that state of half consciousness just before falling asleep (and of course in those instances I have to wake up and jot down some notes so I can remember it the next day). In all cases, I design things that I would want to wear, be they garments or accessories. One technique I can't seem to get away from is stranded colorwork. I love how even with a simple pattern, the knitting looks so much more complex and involved when you add a second color.

Tiled In Cowl, Sarah Jordan

What is your favorite part of designing?

I think my favorite part of designing is starting with an image in my head and then seeing it come to life in yarn. A pretty close second is when someone else knits one of my patterns and loves the finished project.

Who are your design heroes?

I'm really inspired by many other designers, especially those who are so generous with their thoughts and experiences on Ravelry. I feel very lucky to be able to interact with designers like Julia Trice, Nina Machlin Dayton, Marnie MacLean, and Ysolda Teague as easily as I'd interact with a coworker or friend. Honestly, any designer who contributes to the discussions in the Ravelry designer groups is my hero because they're all helping those of us who are (relatively speaking) just getting started.

What do you see yourself doing/exploring in 2014?

As to next year, one of my big goals for myself is to figure out how to use my handspun more often, because frankly it's starting to take over my house! It can be hard to design with handspun because it can be inconsistent and often doesn't fall neatly into the traditional weight categories, so I can see this type of designing resulting in recipe-type projects rather than "normal" patterns. I also want to tackle the long list of patterns that have been on my "to design" list for way too long. I think I may be moving into a cable phase, because some cabled projects are at the top of that list!

Amberson Hat, Sarah Jordan

Sarah, thank you for taking the time and introducing yourself to my blog readers. Good luck with developing your patterns for your handspun yarns! Have a Happy Holiday!

Readers, if you'd like to see more of Sarah's work you can find it here on Ravelry, or you can read her blog here: http://paknitwit.blogspot.com/

- - - -

Stay tuned because next week we're having a giveaway and meeting Ambah of Ambah|Knitting Design!

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Tagged design, holiday, interview, knit, promotion

Boiled Custard

Posted on December 12, 2013 by Flarkin | Comments Off

This is a post by our great friend, Flarkin. We posted her boiled custard recipe last year on the By Hand website, but it’s such a great alternative to Egg Nog that we thought we’d post it again. – Lauria

One of my husband’s favorite holiday treats is boiled custard, also sometimes referred to as drinking custard. Where my husband grew up in west Tennessee, boiled custard can be found in any grocery store right alongside the eggnog. Sadly for him, commercially produced boiled custard was nowhere to be found in the upstate of South Carolina, the place we called home until just a short while ago. (Trust me. I looked.) After we moved there 10 years ago, he only enjoyed boiled custard on the occasions when we traveled to visit his family for the winter holidays. It was a great hardship.

A thick drink similar to eggnog, boiled custard is commonly served in the deep south in the winter months and around the holidays. Outside of the south, boiled custard is more commonly known as creme anglaise. Creme anglaise is often used a sauce for desserts, poured over cakes or fruit. Whatever its name and whether you drink it or pour it over a slice of cake, the dessert beverage has a delightful light, sweet taste with a thick vanilla flavor. It is no wonder to me that my husband missed it.

So, last year, as part of my Christmas gift to him, I decided to test boiled custard recipes until I found or crafted one that met his high expectations. It was well worth the effort. However, this year our circumstances changed. We recently moved halfway across the country to western Kentucky, and we are once again living in a region where commercially produced boiled custard can be found on every grocery store shelf. It was with great enthusiasm that I purchased several quarts of boiled custard the day it appeared in the grocery store.

Alas, I fear I am now jaded. Having perfected my own boiled custard technique, the store-bought version simply doesn’t have the same richness and flavor to me. I found myself hunting up that boiled custard recipe again. I started with a boiled custard recipe at Pauladeen.com, making several test batches. Ultimately, I eliminated a few of the egg yolks and settled on the use of a whole vanilla bean, rather than vanilla extract.

Boiled Custard, adapted from a recipe at Pauladeen.com

Like eggnog, boiled custard is made from milk / cream, sugar, and eggs. However, unlike eggnog, boiled custard (my version, at least) uses only the yolks of the egg and does not involve liquor.

You will need:

3 cups whole milk

1 cup heavy whipping cream

6 egg yolks

¾ cup of sugar

1 whole vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons of vanilla

In the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat, bring water to a simmer. You want enough water to bring to a boil and generate steam, but not enough to touch the top half of the double boiler once you put it on top. To the top half of the double boiler, add the milk and cream. Take the vanilla bean and slice into it lengthwise to expose the seeds in the middle of the bean.

Add the sliced bean to the milk and cream in the top half of the double boiler. Once the water is simmering, carefully put the top half of the double boiler onto the bottom half and reduce heat to low. Let the milk and cream mixture come to a simmer, stirring regularly. As the milk and cream warm up and as you stir, the vanilla seeds will release from the bean and flavor the mixture. (If you don’t have vanilla beans on hand and prefer to use vanilla extract, skip this step. You’ll add the extract at the end.)

While the milk, cream and vanilla are heating, in a separate bowl add the sugar to the egg yolks and whisk until the mixture falls in ribbons from the whisk.

Once the milk has begun to steam, it is time to temper the yolk and sugar mixture. While stirring with the whisk, add a quarter cup of the milk mixture to the egg yolks. Repeat 3 more times until you have added a total of one cup of the milk mixture to the yolks. This will warm the eggs up and keep them from scrambling when you add them to the milk in the double boiler.

Once the eggs are tempered, slowly add the eggs to the double boiler, stirring constantly.

When you first add the yolks to the double boiler, the mixture will be foamy on top. Remember to keep the heat low and to stir regularly to keep the eggs from cooking too quickly and scrambling. Continue stirring over low heat in the double boiler until the mixture has a pale yellow color and thickens to where the sauce coats the back of a spoon. (If in doubt, here is a good explanation of the consistency you want.)

Once the custard has reached the desired consistency, remove it from the double boiler. If you did not use a vanilla bean earlier, add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract to the custard at this time.

Continue to stir for at least another five minutes while the custard cools. If you used the vanilla bean, I recommend straining the custard after it has cooled. This will filter out any fragments of the vanilla bean that might have come loose as well as any particles of egg that might have solidified during the cooking process.

The custard can be served warm or chilled with your favorite cookies or cake. (We prefer it chilled around here.) For fancy custard, top it with whipped cream and a dash of cinnamon. If you are the type of family that leaves out goodies for Santa, might I suggest leaving him a cold glass of boiled custard instead of plain old milk this year?

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Tagged Cook

Red Barn In The Snow …

Posted on December 12, 2013 by mvobsession | Comments Off

- by Joan -

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Tagged architecture, barns, christmas, colors, New Jersey, Photographs, snow

All I Want for Christmas: Pattern Giveaway

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Lauria | Comments Off

All I Want for Christmas Ornament

This is an enormous pattern giveaway! When I contacted a bunch of designers who have made patterns with our yarn, I had no idea that so many designers would respond so enthusiastically! All of these patterns would be ones that I would enjoy having in my own personal library and many of them are small enough that they would knit up quickly to make great gifts!

This is the Lady Chadwick Cap designed by Quirky Bird Knits. It’s been in my favorites since it first came out. I love the cabled band and the twisted stitches. And, it only takes one ball of Chadwick, which I’m certain I have in my stash!

This pattern is simply darling! It’s Junco by Sarah Jo Burch. In case you don’t know, Junco is a kind of bird. I saw one yesterday for the first time, and I can see exactly why Sarah named this pattern after it. Even though you need three colors of Herriot to make it, it only takes half a hank of each color, so you can make one as a gift and one to keep!

The Rosana Shawl by Cassie Castillo is made with Findley, which will provide warmth, without weight. It’s a slight crescent shape and uses beads used throughout the lace section. I wish I had the time to knit one of these for myself.

Hope Grows Scarf and Hope Grows Cowl (below) by Stacey Pope are great accessories. Each uses one ball of Willa. Stacey donates the pattern proceeds to The Guthy Jackson Charitable Foundation to find a cure for NMO.

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO or Devic’s Disease) is an uncommon disease syndrome of the central nervous system (CNS) that affects the optic nerves and spinal cord. Individuals with NMO develop optic neuritis, which causes pain in the eye and vision loss, and transverse myelitis, which causes weakness, numbness, and sometimes paralysis of the arms and legs, along with sensory disturbances and loss of bladder and bowel control. ~From The National Institute of Neurological Disorders

This pretty knit is The Fallen Lady Stole by Amy Kaspar. Inspired by the Victorian term for a woman who cheated on her husband, this pattern is a cheat on traditional lace, with the border knitted as you go, rather than sewn on afterward as is traditional. This is not a challenging lace pattern, and takes less than a ball of Findley, so it’ll work up quickly.

I love this funky Cardiff Bay Ponytail Hat by Beth Ann Beck. Having long hair, but getting chilly easily, I think that this “hat” would be a great way to keep warm. It uses just one ball of Yearling and will be a great quick Christmas knit!

On the Front Porch Swing is a dainty shawl by Linda Day Morehouse. This semi-circular shawl is knit from the bottom up, an unusual construction for a semi-circular shawl. It uses less than a ball of Findley. You’re sure to feel feminine with this draped around your shoulders.

Elvenflyt is a fun pom-pom adorned hat by Sierra Anderson. Like the other patterns, this too takes only one hank of Sabine. You could of course leave the pom-pom off for a more sophisticated look, but a little bit of whimsy in your life is never a bad thing!

The Brazos Valley Shawl by Jenna Swanson is a perfect use of Herriot. It’s cushy and soft and will keep you cozy and warm in this colder weather. I love the bold stripes and the cabled edging.

Winter Branches is also by Jenna Swanson. I love how the pattern translates into the crown decreases. It’s an effective design and uses just one ball of Chadwick.

Turn Around by Susan Barstein is a lovely cowl knit with Herriot. Its long length means that you can wrap it double to be sure to keep out the winter chill.

Cranberry Crush Cowl by Kay Hopkins is a great way to use up that slightly-less than half a ball of Findley. It uses cushy, cozy brioche stitch, so it’s completely reversible. There isn’t an unattractive side to this cowl!

This Lombard Lace Pullover makes fantastic use of the color repeats in Findley Dappled. Jamie A Besel created a light, casual look that is sure to get lots of wear in your wardrobe.

The Marissa Shawl is one of favorite shawl patterns. Designed by Helen Rose, it’s beautiful and delicate with a complex look that is less difficult than you think, as the stitch counts throughout the lace pattern stay consistent.

This Chadwick Scarf is designed by Lynnette Connors and is a great accessory for winter. It’s a tidy length when tucked and is suitable as a men’s or a woman’s scarf. You might have guessed that this scarf is knit with Chadwick yarn!

Lynette also designed this scarf in Herriot, gracing the cover of a new magazine called Hook & Needles, a new magazine published Quarterly for both knitters and crocheters alike. Below is their inaugural issue Autumn 2013.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

All of these designers have been kind enough to give away a copy of their pattern. I was as pleased as punch at how warmly this idea was received among independent designers, because I have a massive amount of respect for them. I have five copies of Elvenflyt to give away and one winner will receive the entire issue of Hooks and Needles Quarterly Autumn 2013. That makes a total of 21 winners!

To Enter, please favorite at least one of the patterns on Ravelry (linked above) and then come back and let is know which patterns are your favorites. You might just get lost in looking at all the other patterns that they have to offer! These designers are amazing and you just might be seeing some more of them in upcoming JMF pattern lines!

To get additional entries, share this post on facebook or twitter and them come back and leave another comment letting us know that you did. This giveaway is open to folks from all countries and is open through Sunday, December 15th ending at 11:59p eastern time. We will be selecting one winner for each pattern, so check back on the 16th for the winners!

Almost all of these patterns are included in our Grand Prize Giveaway, so don’t miss out on an additional chance to win! I will pull the grand prize winner’s name before I pull the pattern winners names, so you don’t have to worry that might miss out on the grand prize by entering into this giveaway.

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Tagged Giveaway

A Snowy Lunchtime Moment

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Lauria | Comments Off

Lunchtime yesterday meant that the birds took a break for some lunch, too.

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Tagged In Pictures

All I Want for Christmas: JMF Goodies

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Lauria | Comments Off

All I Want for Christmas Ornament

Now, we know that you would love to get some JMF goodies for Christmas. Otherwise, what would you be doing here? So here are some great options for your Christmas wish list.

As I mentioned earlier today, we’re having a sale in the JMF shop! So you can get one of our awesome shares at a discounted price. We’re getting towards the end of the year, so our space is limited and you don’t want to miss out.

Our shareholders return year after year to support the farm and find connection with the animals and other shareholders. A lot of them say that the yarn is a bonus, which is a lovely thought, but this yarn is good stuff that you’re sure to fall in love with once you see it!

Lamberoos

Because our 2014 CSA yarn won’t be ready until September, a good reminder of what you’re going to receive is our fantastic JMF Calendar. I carefully selected all the photos from the last year to share and narrowing down the choices was tricky! Right now, lulu.com is offering free shipping with the code FREESHIP. They also have other daily deals, so look at the top of the screen to see if it’s a coupon code or automatically applied.

Our friend Anna Branner makes some fantastic pottery! We’d commissioned her to make some JMF mugs and she’s nearly out of stock with no plans to make more. So if you haven’t snatched one of these up yet, now is the time to do it! They can be found on her etsy shop, Cloth n’ Clay with a bunch of other great items including yarn bowls! Woops, she’s sold out, you’ll have to see what else that she has in stock.

JMF Mug Front

And we have a growing selection of patterns in our shop, with more patterns being released digitally soon! (Maybe once we’ve caught our breath from this giveaway.)

We have a ton of great stuff in our Cafe Press swag shop, including this awesome water bottle and this great tote bag

New Shop Item! We are bringing back A Year at the Farm Sock Club! This past year’s club was a little more sporadic that we would have liked, but we’ve worked up a way to improve. Instead of shipping the yarn each month, we’ll ship it out three months at a time separated into paper bags adorned with our logo with each month written on it. You’ll be on your honor not to open up the bags until the first of each month. (Or you’ll just delve right in. We don’t judge!) This is going to take some of the pressure off and ensure on-time delivery!

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

We’re giving away one of our fantastic 2014 calendars! This calendar features 13 beautiful pictures showing life each month of the farm. You’ll enjoy seeing photos of the JMF animals that you’ve come to love.

And, we’re giving away a hank of Herriot Heathers in #1000 Oatmeal and all 8 leaflets in The Haverhill Collection, designed by a terrific designer Alison Green, whom I’m happy to call a friend!

This package is worth almost $90!

To enter, leave us a comment with what your favorite or most-hated Christmas song is. We’ll randomly pick a winner, but you’ll get bonus points if you make us laugh or warm our hearts.

Please don’t miss out on entering our Grand Prize Giveaway. And remember, the more daily giveaways that you enter, the most chances you get at the grand prize!

PS – Sorry this post is so late in the day. Blanket shipping was crazier than expected. More on that soon!

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Tagged Giveaway

Family Santa …

Posted on December 10, 2013 by mvobsession | Comments Off

My dad was a police officer in Newark, NJ. For many of his years on the force he worked in the Emergency Squad division. During the long hours between calls the guys would keep themselves busy in various ways like cooking. Near the Christmas holidays they always came up with a special project, like candle making for instance.

In 1956 they made Santas. I still have ours. Santa stands about 3 and 1/2 feet tall and is made from press board. After the outline was drawn the guys cut out the Santas and my dad set to work drawing the features, clothing and bag of toys. At that point our Santa came home and my mother and I painted him. I’m not sure how many coats of paint we used but Santa was spread out on our kitchen table for about a week before he was completely dry. I don’t know what kind of paint we used either but here it is 57 years later and he’s not chipped or faded. This was the only time I ever remember the three of us doing a family project together.

I love everything about this Santa, even the buttons being on the wrong side… but the thing I love the most is that he looks like my dad… a self portrait so to speak.

Below is my daughter Patty age 2 and 1/2 in 1966…

… and her daughter (my granddaughter) Tiffany age 2 and 1/2 in 1991.

Here’s to Christmas memories

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Tagged christmas, Family, Memories, Photographs

Sheep Week!

Posted on December 10, 2013 by WoolyMama | Comments Off

This week is very exciting for us around here for two reasons: the return of the LambCam, and Modern Farmer Magazine.

LambCam has been a crazy popular JMF institution since Susan came up with the whole idea waaay back when she was still up in New York. It’s called “LambCam” for obvious reasons: it was a way for shareholders of her newly minted fiber-based CSA (also her invention – she was the first one in the US to do it) to see the lambs being born and finding their legs. LambCam followed her down here to Virginia where it continued to have heavy traffic.

This past spring it was with heavy hearts that she dismantled the LambCam as we moved her out of her farm and installed her – and the animals – here with us temporarily. Susan never stopped talking about getting it back online, though. For my part, I thought she was crazy. Who would want to watch the animals at my little farm? Wouldn’t they rather wait for Susan to move them to greener, lusher, better pastures? Wouldn’t they rather see Susan herself out there instead of me?

Susan didn’t think any of that mattered. And you know what? She was right! People want sheep, sheep, and more sheep! And goats! And a llama! And even though currently her flock is here, it’s still her farm, her vision. It’s as though we’ve blended to become one happy farm for now, and I am thrilled because I get to care for my best friend’s animals and have my best friend living with us whenever she’s not traveling.

This week Paul finished up the camera placement and we went live. That’s where things got super exciting, because the JMF LambCam is now the official Modern Farmer Magazine LambCam!

It’s a bit shocking to see how many people are watching at any given time but it’s also been pretty fun. We are expecting a new microphone to come any day and we can get the sound working so you can hear just how ornery and prehistoric Cosmo’s baa sounds.

Edited to add: WE’RE ON BUZZFEED NOW!!!!!!

Until then, keep an eye on that cam, and here are some flock pics!

Cosmo

Martin calls shenanigans on this weather.

Peregrine

Adelaide

Caramel

Piper

Yummy hay!!!!

Jerry

Fairfax

Lucy, trying to eat through the fence. I love how Orzo is in the back all, “Mom? I really don’t think we’re supposed to do that.”

Hannah

Samantha

Cassie

Alabama

Cosmo and Darby, snorgling a bit.

Feeding times are roughly 9:30 am and 5:00 pm, so stay tuned to that LambCam!

Tagged: Farm, Pets

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Tagged Farm, Pets, Uncategorized

December Morning …

Posted on December 10, 2013 by mvobsession | Comments Off

Edgartown ~ Martha’s Vineyard

- by Joan -

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Tagged architecture, christmas, churches, Lighthouses, Martha's Vineyard, Photographs

Tell Me Something Good Tuesday

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Lauria | Comments Off

Tell Something GoodTuesdays

There’s a lot of good stuff right now at Juniper Moon Farm! The giveaway is going very well and the end is in sight. I’m especially enjoying reading the comments on the Grand Prize Giveaway – favorite holiday memories – and on the Ravelry giveaway – moments of friendship. They’ve made be both laugh and cry and I thank you for that!

I’m nearly recovered from shingles. Of course between shingles and this giveaway I’m terribly far behind all my emails! (So if I owe you one, I apologize. I promise I’m trying to get to them and will be able to double down my efforts starting next Monday!) But I’m feeling much stronger than I have been and that makes me very happy!

The first shipment of our blanket CSA has arrived and the second shipment is due today! So all day today I’ll be shipping out blankets so that you will have them in hand before Christmas. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for speedy postal elves! I’ll have some pictures for you tomorrow.

Susan announced that we’ve got a book being published by Sixth&Spring and we couldn’t be more thrilled about that! We’ll have a photo shoot at the end of January, so look out for that.

And, our lambcam was named the official lambcam of Modern Farmer. We’re incredibly honored and excited that they chose us to kick off sheep week. Of course, we had the first ever lambcam, so it’s natural that they picked us.

So here’s the Something Good that we’re going to tell you: Everything in the shop is 10% of celebrate the good that this happening! That includes our shares! Just in time for holiday gift giving! To take advantage, use code TMSGT10. There will be a couple of great additions coming to the shop soon. The only things that this code doesn’t work on is merchandise sold outside fiberfarm.com. Lulu.com (where our calendar is being sold) has extended their free shipping offer through December 15th (code: FREESHIP), and they’ve been running additional deals. Yesterday I was able to order a calendar at 10% off PLUS free shipping, so you’ll want to see if they’re running any promos today.

Okay, we told you something good. Now it’s your turn! What’s good with you?

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Tagged sale

Monthly Archives: December 2013

Indie Gift-Along Interview 1 of 2: PAKnitWit

Boiled Custard

Red Barn In The Snow …

All I Want for Christmas: Pattern Giveaway

A Snowy Lunchtime Moment

All I Want for Christmas: JMF Goodies

Family Santa …

Sheep Week!

December Morning …

Tell Me Something Good Tuesday

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Monthly Archives: December 2013

Recent Posts

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