Pre-Surtex Sneak Peek

Posted on May 11, 2016 by | Comments Off on Pre-Surtex Sneak Peek
May Flowers bring Spring... 
& Surtex!
I cannot believe it's May and time for Surtex!!
It's heeere!!
I've been prepping all year long for this surface design and textiles industry trade show, and it feels a little unreal that it's only a few days away. 
May flowers are an appropriate metaphor I think. I've been planting seeds since last year, and now is when they are starting to bloom...

My seeds (preparations) included creating over 180 images, making booth banners, promo bookmarks, promo books, fabric swatches, greeting cards, brochures, and sewing some hand-printed zip pouches! My fellow members of Finch & Foxglove, my art collective, have also been prepping their hearts out in order to make our collective's Surtex debut a success!




Prep Talk: Little Cards,
Big Thanks!

One of the things I love doing is making things with special touches -- a handmade embellishment, a touch of real texture, a tiny print, or very intricate background. In preparation for Surtex, I created teensy tiny cards that I printed, scored, and cut myself in order to give thanks to visitors, art directors, or art buyers who stop by our Finch & Foxglove booth. I also sewed some zipper pouches that are fully lined inside! The outside fabric is my own work, and it's so nice to see it on an actual product!
This is a general overview of the items I'll be bringing with me to exhibit at my debut Surtex, and I will be doing a post-Surtex review once all is said and done. I'm excited to figure out what works (as well as what doesn't)!

Wish me luck!!

And, if you're going to be at Surtex in NYC this Sunday to Tuesday, you can find me and my work at Finch & Foxglove's booth #543.  Can't wait to meet you! 

Wishing you a wonderful week!

P.S. Let me know ahead of time if you'd like to meet up with me so I can be sure to be at the booth - we're taking shifts since we're 8 artists in a 10x20' booth.

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Vogue Knitting Live: Pasadena

Posted on May 10, 2016 by | Comments Off on Vogue Knitting Live: Pasadena

Just a quick note to let you all know I’m going to be doing a meet & greet / book signing at VKL: Pasadena from 12-1 on Sunday May 15th at the Yarnover Truck.

Come say hi!

(Here’s some more Estuarine eye candy in the meantime.)

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Oh, and a cat picture.

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Review: Crochet One-Skein Wonders for Babies

Posted on May 10, 2016 by | Comments Off on Review: Crochet One-Skein Wonders for Babies

Review: Crochet One-Skein Wonders for Babies post image

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First, the facts:

Title: Crochet One-Skein Wonders for Babies

Editors: Judith Durant and Edie Eckman

Published by: Storey, 2016

Pages: 286

Type: Crochet patterns for babies

Chapters:

1. Little Hats and Caps
2. Little Socks and Booties
3. Little Tops and Dresses
4. Little Bottoms
5. Little Bibs and Washcloths
6. Little Toys
7. Little Blankets and Sacks
8. Little Bags and Accessories

KS: Crochet One-Skein Wonders for Babies

The In-Depth Look:

We’ve done the knitting version, but now it’s time to look at adorable crocheted things for babies.

How can you resist all this cuteness? (Hint: You can’t; don’t even try.)

The newest installment of Judith Durant’s series of one-skein wonders is here, and it’s filled with truly cute things for truly cute little, little people.

Bags, tops, toys, bibs, blankets, booties. So many cute things!

I do mean so many, too. One hundred one projects for toddlers and infants, here–that is a LOT of patterns. Things to keep a little person warm, entertained, stylish, and portable, there are a lot of things to choose from here, and almost every single one of them is just what you’d expect … cute!

I don’t know if it’s possible to have too much cuteness in one book, but if you’ve got one of these tiny people in your life, and if you like to crochet … this collection is fantastic. Versatile, colorful, entertaining … and with 101 patterns, it’s a great bargain, too.

You can get your copy rushed to you from Amazon.com.

Want to see bigger pictures? Click here.

This review copy was kindly donated by Storey Publishing. Thank you!

My Gush: So much cuteness.

Other posts for this author:

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TEST KNIT is open: Estuarine Shawl

Posted on May 9, 2016 by | Comments Off on TEST KNIT is open: Estuarine Shawl

estuarine (5)I finished the Cumbria shawl!  It now has a name: Estuarine Shawl.

Dave gasped when he saw it laid out for blocking.  He’s always been supportive, and enthusiastic, about my work, but this was the first time I ever got that reaction!  I heard a similar gasp from my mom in law Rosemary when he texted her a pic of the blocking shawl, too (they were chatting on speaker phone).

Interested in getting your hands on the pattern early?  (It’s due to be published in mid June.) I’m looking for testers in my Ravelry group here.

In the meantime, here are some more pics (including a blocking pic) and the pattern details.

One Size

Finished Measurements
Height: Height: 33½ in / 85 cm
Top Edge: 85¼ in / 216.5 cm

Yarn
The Fibre Company Cumbria Fingering, 60% Merino Wool, 30% Masham/MassamWool, 10% Mohair (328 yds / 300 m per 3.53 oz / 100 g).
4 skeins (1173 yds / 1073 m) MC (shown in Helvellyn)
2 skeins (624 yds / 571 m) CC (shown in Scafell Pike)
Sample used 1066 yds / 975 m MC and 567 yds / 518 m CC

Needles
US3 / 3.25 mm, or size to obtain gauge

Gauge
20 sts and 31 rounds = 4 in / 10 cm in side panel stitch pattern (blocked)
Note that this shawl is blocked quite vigorously. See notes on blocking.

Notions
(4) stitch markers, yarn needle

Skills
simple intarsia; stranding; cabling; reading charts; knitted on edging; garter stitch tab; provisional cast on if desired; knitted cast on

Testing needs: 4-7 testers. I’d love to see someone do this as a single color shawl, and someone else do the main body in one color and a contrasting edging.

Due date: June 11th 2016

Please PM me that you agree to the testing policies (link here) and include your email address so I can send you an invite to the google doc & send you a link to the pattern. (If you have a google account, please send me the email address associated with it.)

This pattern has been sent to the tech editor.

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Marvelous May

Posted on May 9, 2016 by | Comments Off on Marvelous May

It’s finally May!  Hopefully this will mean the weather will continue to warm and we won’t have weeks on end of rain anymore.  May also means two birthdays in our house, Neve (at the end of the month) and Maddie.

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My  baby sister turned 21 this past week (and her sweet boyfriend John graduated college!).  Aren’t they adorable?

Now that it’s almost summer I’ve been missing Europe pretty hard, and thinking about surrounding myself with herbs and flowers again.

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I’ve got potted herbs started on the deck, and my veggie seedlings are finally starting to outgrow their pots and will be ready to transplant into the garden soon. Neve and I started a few dozen basil seeds, and I’m hoping we get a decent amount of grown plants. Right now I’m a little overwhelmed with basil sprouts, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

My grape plants are budding and starting to leaf out:

05.08.16d

I was pretty concerned about these, I’m not going to lie. When I planted them they looked like dried-up sticks and nothing more. I had a hard time tilling the soil where I planted them, and though I used a bit of compost when I put them in the ground, the area where they are planted is in full sun and the dirt is very rocky and poor. Now, I did that purposely after reading many, many articles about how and where to plant grapes. Still, it felt counter-intuitive, and I’m relieved to see how well they are doing.

Likewise, my elderberries are growing like mad! I’m pretty excited about these; looking forward to elderberry jam!

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I’ve finally got a few pea plants growing – I only planted them like a freaking month ago – and I’m hoping it doesn’t get too hot for them before they grow pea pods. I’ve also finally got some beet sprouts and chard.

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In the back garden I’ve got cucumber, cantaloupe, watermelon, zucchini, and yellow squash sprouts, and I’m very excited to say that in the pumpkin patch there are several rows of pumpkins, sunflowers, and corn sprouts. 05.08.16h

This year I’m prepared with industrial quantities of diatomaceous earth! I’m getting a decent harvest this year if it kills me.

While we’re talking about lovely things growing, check out the back pasture!

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What a difference from the rocky, barren field it once was! I’m not sure when we are going to put the flock back out there. Initially we were going to try and give it more time to really grow in, but since there are still lots of rocks out there we really can’t mow,  we may need our four-legged mowers out there soon!

05.08.16e

Wild irises along the stream!

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On the other bank, these wild daisies!

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Peonies

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The ducks are finally all feathered-out, and patiently waiting to be let out of their pen to roam the garden.

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The little chicks have also made a transition – from the brooder to the tractor!  I still worry they’ll be warm enough, but they are almost completely feathered, and 7 weeks old now. In addition to the tractor itself, I’ve placed them in Orzo’s circle of protection. I can’t wait for these babies to be egg-laying ladies!

 

 

 


Tagged: Farm, Garden, Pets

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Weekly Challenge: Earth …

Posted on May 7, 2016 by | Comments Off on Weekly Challenge: Earth …

The prompt is:  between the global Earth Day celebration, and Mother’s Day in the United States, share your vision of our glorious Mother Earth.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

These are the Gay Head clay cliffs in the town of Aquinnah on the island of Martha’s Vineyard. The clay cliffs are ecologically protected, and it is forbidden to climb the cliffs or touch the clay.

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My creation

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(CLICK HERE)

 

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/earth/


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Newport, RI – Part 1 – Marble House…

Posted on May 5, 2016 by | Comments Off on Newport, RI – Part 1 – Marble House…

As you may have guessed from the clues in the previous post ‘April Road Trip’.. our trip was to Newport, Rhode Island to visit the mansions of the Gilded Age.  And gilded they were.

Mansion #1- Marble House.

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According to Wikipedia :  “The mansion was built as a summer “cottage” retreat between 1888 and 1892 for Alva and William Kissam Vanderbilt. It was a social landmark that helped spark the transformation of Newport from a relatively relaxed summer colony of wooden houses to the now legendary resort of opulent stone palaces. The fifty-room mansion required a staff of 36 servants, including butlers, maids, coachmen, and footmen. The mansion cost $11 million ($260,000,000 in 2009 dollars) of which $7 million was spent on 500,000 cubic feet (14,000 m³) of marble.”

The tours are audio guided which lets you progress at your own speed…  also now photos are allowed with smart phones.  You can use SLR’s without flash with written permission when you get there.  I used my SLR digital camera as well as my smart phone.   Let’s step inside now and begin the tour of Marble House…

Foyer and staircase….

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Around the house..

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Deb pic
marble house
marble house

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Deb pic
Deb pic

kitchen

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Alva was big in the Women’s Suffrage movement, you can find this ‘Votes for Women’ china in the gift shop.

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One cannot leave Marble House without walking around the grounds and visiting the Chinese Tea House on the back lawn.

pizap.com14624786166341

pizap.com14624870194831This is only a sampling of the many pictures we took.  This house, escuse me ‘summer cottage’ is incredibly beautiful and interesting.  To read more about it and the original owners, William Kissam Vanderbilt and his eclectic and interesting wife Alva… CLICK HERE and CLICK HERE

Coming next… the ultimate ‘summer cottage’.  Can you guess which it is ?

(photographs by my daughter Deb and myself)


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Newport, RI – Part 1 – Marble House…

Posted on May 5, 2016 by | Comments Off on Newport, RI – Part 1 – Marble House…

As you may have guessed from the clues in the previous post ‘April Road Trip’.. our trip was to Newport, Rhode Island to visit the mansions of the Gilded Age.  And gilded they were.

Mansion #1- Marble House.

IMG_2679

IMG_2327

According to Wikipedia :  “The mansion was built as a summer “cottage” retreat between 1888 and 1892 for Alva and William Kissam Vanderbilt. It was a social landmark that helped spark the transformation of Newport from a relatively relaxed summer colony of wooden houses to the now legendary resort of opulent stone palaces. The fifty-room mansion required a staff of 36 servants, including butlers, maids, coachmen, and footmen. The mansion cost $11 million ($260,000,000 in 2009 dollars) of which $7 million was spent on 500,000 cubic feet (14,000 m³) of marble.”

The tours are audio guided which lets you progress at your own speed…  also now photos are allowed with smart phones.  You can use SLR’s without flash with written permission when you get there.  I used my SLR digital camera as well as my smart phone.   Let’s step inside now and begin the tour of Marble House…

Foyer and staircase….

pizap.com14624708048221

Around the house..

mosaicbcba6e02830c1479793091274d5bd2ffbad719ca
Deb pic
marble house
marble house

Deb pic

Deb pic
Deb pic

kitchen

pizap.com14624779698831

Alva was big in the Women’s Suffrage movement, you can find this ‘Votes for Women’ china in the gift shop.

pizap.com14624753224231

One cannot leave Marble House without walking around the grounds and visiting the Chinese Tea House on the back lawn.

pizap.com14624786166341

pizap.com14624870194831This is only a sampling of the many pictures we took.  This house, escuse me ‘summer cottage’ is incredibly beautiful and interesting.  To read more about it and the original owners, William Kissam Vanderbilt and his eclectic and interesting wife Alva… CLICK HERE and CLICK HERE

Coming next… the ultimate ‘summer cottage’.  Can you guess which it is ?

(photographs by my daughter Deb and myself)


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Book Review (Non-Knitting): The Rooftop Growing Guide

Posted on May 3, 2016 by | Comments Off on Book Review (Non-Knitting): The Rooftop Growing Guide

rooftop gardenOstensibly, I’d signed up for the Blogging for Books book review program to review knitting-related titles, but it’s been their gardening books that have snagged my interest (you can read my review of The Water-Saving Garden by Pam Penick here).

The Rooftop Growing Guide by Annie Novak was the next book I chose.

Our little house has a very (well, relatively speaking, for the neighborhood) large front yard, and a backyard that is more like a normal house’s side yard.  I’ve always liked the idea of growing our own produce and herbs, but don’t really have a place in the front yard (we’re pushing it in the neighborhood with our drought-tolerant native plants, let alone an edible landscape), and the backyard was always for our dog Rigel, and doesn’t get a lot of sun anyways.

We do have a deck that sits partially on our single-car garage. Part of the roof of the garage is visible and reachable from the deck, especially since our deck repair a few years ago included a gate for access to the garage roof (before that I was climbing back & forth over the railing).

We’ve set up Earthboxes that we now just use a big planters (rather than the Earthbox system) on the garage roof.  It’s not the most cosmetic set up. I’m really envious of the lovely redwood planters set up on a garage roof down the street (I KNOW they got the idea from us and just did it up nicer).

We also have some very nice pots with a mix of herbs and succulents on our deck itself.

So, with that intro, that’s why I was interested in The Rooftop Growing Guide.  Had I started out with this book, I’m sure our rooftop garden would be a bit more successful (though we have sage, thyme and mint year ’round, and volunteer tomato plants!).

The Rooftop Growing Guide discusses gardens ranging from huge, green roofs through more modest set ups like ours.  It includes assessing your particular situation (from sun exposure to microclimates to budget to zoning and more) then addresses the nitty gritty of soil, irrigation, plant choices, composting, pest management and more. A lot the information is addressed towards commercial use, but it applies to smaller-scale home gardeners as well.

It’s divided into 9 chapters (see below), and lavishly illustrated with photos of examples and diagrams and sketches as needed.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 Why Rooftops?   9
2 Assessing Your Rooftop   15
3 Containers, Greenhouses, Green Roofs,
and Irrigation Methods   41
4 The Dirt on Rooftop Soil   87
5 Rooftop Seeds and Starts   125
6 Flowers, Herbs, Shrubs, and Trees   149
7 Planning Your Planting   167
8 Rooftop Pests and Problems   189
9 Taking Care of Business   229

The passion of the author, Annie Novak, is apparent. From her bio: Annie is the head farmer and cofounder of the nation’s first commercial green roof vegetable farm, the Eagle Street Rooftop Farm atop Broadway Stages in Brooklyn. She is the manager of the Edible Academy at the New York Botanical Garden, and founder and director of Growing Chefs, a field-to-fork food education program.

As noted above, the information covered is pretty extensive, and you can definitely use this book to create your own rooftop garden plan.  It’s a lot easier to consult this book then try to search different options online — trust me, I’ve been periodically doing so for years! If you’re thinking of tackling this sort of project, I do recommend this book.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.  All opinions are my own.

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Craftsy Class Launch!

Posted on May 3, 2016 by | Comments Off on Craftsy Class Launch!

titleCard_10634My Craftsy class Custom Colorwork Techniques: Mitts went live Monday.

It’s all about choosing and customizing motifs for your own mitts. The focus is on motifs at the wrist and then the top cuff, but I also touch upon tips and hints for motifs on other parts of the mitts. I review charts, knitting math specific to the mitts, color choices, fiber choices, and more!

My goal is that you end up designing mitts that you love. I’m really excited to see what everyone will come up with!

Please click here for 50% off on the class.

Here’s a preview:

http://www.craftsy.com/video/course?courseId=10634

Here are some pics Craftsy took of my samples, swatches, etc.

 

 

I can’t say enough how fantastic everyone was (and is!) at Craftsy.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! Laura, I wish I could be like you when I grow up. You are awesome! Greg, you made me believe every supportive word you gave me — that’s a huge gift. Gabe, here’s the Dance of Joy once more. Ryan, thank you for being so patient through all the Cintiq! Kim, we never met in person, but thank you for all those weeks of hard work and fine tuning 🙂

 

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