ASK and ye shall receive!

One thing about those ASK people--if you say "yarn swap" they take it seriously!
Look at this tableful of loot:

Pretties, right? I mean, this is the good stuff! Malabrigo, Fiesta, Colinette, Noro...
merino wool for dyeing, raw silk for ditto.
Plus the obligatory stuff with labels like, "Mystery Yarn" and "Muppet Pelt."
So we picked. We chose, and we encourated each other.
After all, it was La's first day off her yarn fast, aka Knit From Your Stash. Kudos to her for sticking to it for the full six months!
No comment on what she took home. Let's just say, it's "seed yarn" for a new project. She will tell you about it when the time is right!


What came home with me? Well, this pretty Malabrigo did, and some fraternal-twin Compatto yarn that might make a cute baby sweater since there is a new granddaughter coming. At least, we've been told granddaughter. (Don't tell, but I might tackle the Baby Surprise Jacket.)

Some Noro Cash Iroha in a dark burgundy that, even in natural light, refuses to show its true color.




Some of La's first hand-dyed fabric, mohair in a color she calls "Algae." I do believe she blogged about this when she was dyeing it. I think it's pretty, and I think it can become something wonderful.

Sunshine Yarns sock-weight in a nice mix of browns and creams with a touch of pale yellow.

Baby bootees, maybe?
I loved what Wendy said: sometimes you get yarn, and you take it home, and you find out that it isn't really "your" yarn. Seemed to me that we all had some of that, and it was nice to find it all new homes.
The leftover yarns that we all felt too enriched to claim will be heading for Stitches from the Heart in Santa Monica, courtesy of Ellen.
Speaking of whom, she makes the meanest mac n' cheese in LA. All of the food was wonderful, including Madgik's noodle salad, La's lemon cake, the sandwich roll (was that Zoe or La? My bad!) and the sangria... I didn't get food pics this time, but if you check the other folks' blogs, I think the food will show up. (Note: Zoe brought the yummy tapenade and home-grown tomatoes and the sandwich rolls and Sangria were Wendy's. MMM!!)


Now, here's some stuff that has arrived in my mailbox. This is NOT from the yarn swap! This month's STR Club yarn, in a yummy hot hot hot red and orange blend; and my latest score from Melanie at Lotus Yarns:


My progress on the Mystery Stole 3: Chart A done! (We won't mention how many times.)

The Paris scarf, in its languid "Parisienne" mood, sunning itself on the back of the new sofa, and then "ready for my close-up, Mr. De Mille!"



Progress is being made on the Rose Garden Shawl as well as on the Noro chevron scarf.
Knitting has been happening.
Yay!

Full Strawberry Moon, and a "Fields" Trip

Moon view from my front walk, looking up through the crape myrtle tree. June is definitely strawberry season! Today's field trip was to northern San Diego County, to see the lavender in bloom.

It was definitely blooming, and the scent was heavy in the air.

The lavender fields are at the end of a long and winding dirt road. Let's just say, we brought the right vehicle: my truck is a good off-road vehicle!
But it was all worth it.

The lavender fields are spectacular, and there was enough bloom to satisfy that craving that's been existing since we were in France.

Sister-in-law and traveling companion Linda and I were thrilled to have been in Provence. There was lots of lavender "stuff" there but the fields were not yet in bloom.

So we were glad to have the opportunity to visit these, closer to us than France and thus much more accessible.
The fields are planted with many different varieties of French, English, Spanish and American hybrids of lavender. Some were in full bloom, some had passed their peak. The harvest was in full swing.

The farm is only open for visits during May and June. Today was the last day of this year's season. We caught the tail end of a tour, and learned quite a bit about lavender and its preparation.

There are llamas and Navajo churro sheep in residence on the farm, as well as lots and lots of lavender.
There is yarn for sale in the Wool Shed on the property. Some of it is churro wool, in natural colors and some dyed in lovely natural hues. Churro wool is a bit coarse, and this was spun into a rustic texture that spoke of felting and warm mittens. There was also some very soft and smooth wool dyed in wonderful shades. The guide explained that the dyer will often look outside and match the colors in the natural fields. However she does it, it's gorgeous stuff.

The distillery is where the cut blooms and stems are turned into essential oil and perfumes. The farm is a certified organic grower so all of their products are pure and natural.

Closeup of the lavender plant:

There are lots more photos on my Flickr page--just click the link on my Flickr badge and you can go see!

We finished the day with a visit to La Petite Knitterie in Ladera Ranch. No, this is not really "near" the Lavender Fields--there's a lot of hills and mountains in between--but it was a nice day for a road trip. Traffic was rather heavy going from one freeway to the other, as the area is being developed a little more rapidly than the roads are.

Anyway, LPK was quite wonderful. We *almost* met Lori Lawson, who does the gorgeous Capistrano Fiber Arts hand-dyed rovings and yarns, we got to fondle many of the gorgeous colors (and yes, some of them came home with us) and textures and samples. It's a great store and I for one will probably visit them again whenever I am in the area. Kat told us that they are planning to offer the CFA yarns (and others) on their website, as soon as they can. You can bet I for one will be checking it out!

That's it for tonight. See you in July... I'm off to bed, to watch the moon! (Moon gaze? Moon struck? Whatever!)

Just Remembered...

...that this is supposed to be a knitting blog! My bad! So here without further ado, some yarny goodness!
First up, this is what I do when my truck needs servicing. I bring enough knitting to last me for several days, and then the dealership gets really efficient and gets it done quickly!
This is Artyarns Silk Rhapsody, in the Rose Garden colorway. I wound the first skein into a ball at yesterday's knitfest, then cast on and started knitting the shawl today. I did this much worth while they changed my oil and got my "baby" ready for the road trip this weekend. (If it comes off as planned, it will be a great photo op and blog-worthy post.)
Actually there are two events this weekend. Oh good, blog fodder!
Don't have a pattern name for this shawl--it's something I made a working copy of from one of my books, and I've totally forgotten which book it was. I made a dark blue "test" version of this as a prayer shawl last year, out of navy Wool-Ease, and it's a nice simple pattern that still looks quite effective. I think I'll like the way the yarn pools on this--nice to have some solid green leaves and solid pink ones!

Then there is this collection of yumminess: Merino Lace yarn, two skeins in cream, one in pure white, one in wine and one in dark green. From a listmember who is destashing.

Going to swatch with the cream for the Mystery Shawl 3. By the way, I put myself on the Frappr Map for MS3--have you done it yet? Kinda fun to see where everyone is!

What's a post without a gratuitous cat photo?

Actually, Simon was cuddling with the extra yarn for my CPH when I got home today. The boy knows a cozy spot when he finds one! The green bag is what I carried the Rose Garden Shawl around in. (There, I guess it has a name for now! I'd better add it to my WIPs!)

Lastly, some goodies that arrived in a surprise package from D1 and the bugs. Monastery honey, nicely wrapped in little burlap baggies; some caramels (Yum!) and note cards; and a box of Garden Compost Tea.

I need to read the directions better, but I think the tea is for my plants and not for me. At least I certainly hope so!

That's it for today. Unless, of course, something else presents itself as a wonderful opportunity to share with you. Hmmm... www.Ramwools.com is having a sale on their Rowan yarns. And Interweave is having a sale on their magazine back issues. And the Yarn Girls have some super specials, including Louet yarns!

Now quick, go buy up all that stuff and save me from ET!!

Some News!

Back a little while ago, at the urging of Knit Devil, I joined her in entering Morrighana's Desert Island contest. Well, guess what? Hey, prizes are good, but Honorable Mention is good too! Congrats to KD for coming in as First Honorable Mention!

The new chair and ottoman have the Feline Seal of Approval.
Yes, that's a big cat. A BIG cat. Not a small chair!


Too bad the lamp doesn't show up very well--it's a floor lamp version of an Ott light (joann.com sale) and this looks as if it might become my new knitting corner.
You can't see the basket of knitting next to the chair, but it's there. Right now it's got a lot of odds and ends in it, and I really need a little table to hold the cold drinks. but it's definitely got possibilities in the relaxing-nook department!
This is the desk I mentioned previously:
Closed.
And open.
Yes, I know the flag is a nice touch. We have to put the bracket back up on the new pergola, and then we can fly our flag.
(We actually have two of them--those aluminum rods are the pole for the second flag. )
Anyway, the desk is here and as you can see, the new furniture fits its styling quite nicely.

I think the desk looks pretty good for its age, and I've watched enough Antique Roadshows to know that it would not be a kindness to try to refinish it. It's got some scuffs but that's all part of its character.
Like my grey hairs and wrinkles and lines are all part of mine, I keep telling myself.
Yeah, I don't really believe it, but I try!



View of the Japanese Garden at the Huntington Library, scene of Sunday's invasion by a horde of tea-drinking, pinky-lifting, knitting-in-public OOPSers.



And finally, my quilting classes have resumed in the new venue. Like all new endeavors, it will take a little while to ease ourselves all into the different routines.
But some of the things don't change. Tonight my Dynamic Overachieving Duo made not one, but two Christmas tree skirts. Harry is modeling one. I don't know if all retired pediatricians have a secret wish to be a Christmas tree. I do know Harry is one of a kind!
There were a lot of quilts being worked on. I will post a some of these, and put the rest on Flickr if you're interested in seeing them all. You can also visit Anne's blog to see hers. She's going to post it as soon as she recovers from Water Heater Shock.

More tomorrow. It's turning out to be a very knitty week!

Sunday Funnies, and a Contest

Melanie is having a contest! I read about it on Madgik's blog, so of course I have to play along! She wants to see pictures of either your first project or your next, not-yet-cast-on project. My first project was a pink scarf, done probably umpty-many years ago--I was 7. So here's my next thing: it's 3 skeins of Noro Cash Island, destined to be a ripple scarf.
I will probably use Feather and Fan
because I love it, it's easy to do in all sorts of circumstances, and the result is pretty and soft. I'm going to experiment a bit though, since I have 3 hanks of this yarn and 2 made a nice long scarf.

See, here's the first one. Two skeins of Noro Cash Island, one repeat of Feather and Fan, yarn wound off my knees in the car on the way to Shelburne, cast on and knit that day, frogged the next--it was two repeats, and it would have made a short wide scarf. Very short. As in, maybe a dickey? Wouldn't have gone around the neck even once! Finished it on the plane on the way home.
If you are going to have to spend a couple of hours on the tarmac while a lightning storm rages around your plane, it helps to have knitting and an iPod to keep your cool.

This is what's been keeping me from doing much knitting lately--I came home to a living room full of boxes. Very very large boxes.
And a partially-assembled sofa, which apparently was delivered into the back yard in a box that was so trashed and so heavy that D4 couldn't move it. So she hauled the sofa parts inside and began assembling.
Simon is decorating the box that contains the two-seater sofa. You can tell it also arrived in not great shape.
I was concerned about the condition of the parts inside, but not to worry.
Everything came in great shape. The quality of the pieces is exceptional.

Here's the assembly person hard at work. Behind her is the completed 2-seater.
Nothing like getting up close and personal with your work!
Yes, she assembled all five pieces by herself, with a hammer, screwdriver, and the tools provided.
The finished pieces get the feline seal of approval. We have a living room again! The color on the upholstery is an olive green--not quite as brown as it appears in these pictures. I love the Mission lines, the ultrasuede-y texture, and the whole room has picked up a flair it hasn't had for a long time. I will try to get a picture of "the desk" and post that too--it's an old family piece, and it's the real thing. Came across from Virginia to Illinois on the Immigrant Train when my husband's great-grands were traveling West.
But that's a story for another day. Now to go let Melanie know that I'm in her contest! Why don't you join us? And tell her Madge and I sent you!

Yet Another Road Trip

Did I happen to mention that the reason for all this traveling around is that we have a new graduate in the family?
Here she is, Grad Girl herself, aka Oldest Granddaughter Alyssa, just ready to run out the door with her cap (lavishly decorated in school colors orange and black) and gown (adorned with the red and gold cords of the National Spanish Honor Society).
Too bad Gramma isn't proud of her, huh? Well, she's a winner.
Heading for college come fall, for an interior design degree--the program is intensive, and she'll earn a BA in 3 years. She'll have lots of architecture, CAD, and drafting classes. She's been working part-time for an interior design firm after completing an internship with them.
Meanwhile her brother (last year's grad) is transferring to the University, where he plans to major in theoretical math.
I think #2 and Mrs. have done a great job with their kids!!
Fur therapy for kitty-love-deprived grandmother: Miss Kitty, all 17 or so lbs of her.
She's as pretty and mellow as she can be, and our relationship is cemented every time I see her--she adores being brushed, and I love brushing her. Purrr!
They have another cat, but I have never seen shy little Snickers. Maybe one day!

Massachusetts mountains--they're green. Northeasterners know this, but in SoCal mountains are either totally barren brown sand lumps, or black chunks of dried-out vegetation.
Me, I love the green.

This is one of the views from the hilltop whereupon sits the Soldiers Home where my dad is residing. At nearly 90, he's still feisty, still sharp as a tack, in spite of failing eyesight, failing hearing, and the residual effects of a stroke. He's planted a garden here--there is an area set aside for the residents with raised beds that are easy to tend from a wheelchair. The Master Gardener is growing (what else?) tomatoes.
Another view from the hilltop, looking north and east. Believe it or not, this valley is home to some major industrial zones--but the trees hide it all. Even along the interstates, and the major highways, there are few areas where you're aware of the city you're driving through. I drove 80-some miles through Conn yesterday (each way) and the only city I saw was Hartford. All the rest was trees, including a lovely watershed area.

Another flower picture. Isn't this pretty? I think it's astilbe, but I'll have to look it up to be sure.

One last "confession." Perhaps you can see the name on the bag? I just opened it and took a picture of the contents.

Yeah, it says Webs. After all--that mountain in the picture above? It's just a little way from Webs. I told you, you can't see the interstate for the trees. So I went to see my father today, took some pictures, and then ET steered the car on the Northbound side of I-91 instead of heading south. Bad ET. Bad bad me--oh, but that laceweight alpaca is the softest nicest thing I've ever ever felt. And the red Zarina? Well, I had one ball, and it was lonely. So I bought it some friends. And I hit the magic number for the Webs discount, so it's all good.

July is going to start my yarn fast. My clean-out-that-stash-fest. Think I'm just talking? Hah! I have found a resource that I think will be just what I need. As soon as I see if it works the way it promises to, I will share the info.

Promise. Until then, I have to go figure out how to get this into my suitcase... and then how to lift it all, since I'm traveling home alone. Wish me luck with the airline!

Monday Knits n' Stuff

As promised, here's the latest version of the chevron scarf--one repeat of Feather and Fan, plus 3 edge stitches. I'm using two skeins of Noro Cash Island (wool, cashmere, nylon) alternating every two rows. This is version 2; version 1 was 2 repeats, but it would have come out wayyyy too short. I originally thought even short would be okay, but there wouldn't have been enough to even tuck into a neckline. And, since these were two orphan balls that were on sale at Webs, well, this will have to do. There are lots more colors to come, although both balls have a LOT of black. We'll see how it looks!

Closeup of the afghan that I used as a background. This is one my mother made, in a creamy color, and it's HUGE. Mama made blankets! The pattern is very interesting--I may try to decipher it for my next scarf. (Yeah, I have some red Cash Island, 3 skeins, probably enough for a good long scarf.) I am fascinated by my mother's work, especially since she never did learn how to read patterns. She'd just work at something till it looked like the picture, and she did this with crochet, and tatting too.

Me, I've never been able to learn to tat. She really tried to teach me, too, for many long years!

Because there was just a small road trip today, with no photography involved, I'm treating you to some greenery.
These are seeds growing on a Burleigh Maple, one of two that live in my brother's front yard. The leaves have a nice russet-y tinge when they mature, and they turn a lovely chestnut brown in the winter.
It's been a very long time since I saw maple "helicopters" since we don't have a whole lotta maple trees in SoCal. Oh, our first house had a lovely tall thin maple tree in the side garden, but the next door neighbor used to prune it straightup from his side of the wall. It always looked a little odd, and when we moved out of the house, he trimmed all the branches on the tree so severely that it was dead by winter. This man was the kind who did not allow his grandchildren into the house--they had to sit on the front steps, and after they left he'd scrub the steps down with bleach. My husband referred to the guy as Twinkletoes.
All this because I wanted to share some maple seeds. Well, they are pretty and interesting anyway!

Cherries on a cherry tree. SoCal is also rather light on cherries, especially the sour "pie" cherries. But they are so pretty on the tree!

Okay, time for strawberry shortcake and knitting. This house has cable--whee!--and I get to hold the remote, too. What a treat! I have already watched one episode of What Not To Wear and two of Ten Years Younger.

Even with cable, my taste in TV is trash. Sigh.

Road Trip #2

Quilts! Where is a good place to see quilts on a random Saturday?
Hint: takes a few hours of driving northward.
Of course, when the route is mostly through Vermont, it's a very pleasant drive indeed.
We took the interstate--I-91, the one that runs by Webs--north to White River Junction, then cut across Vermont via Route 4 and Route 7. Took us past Quechee Gorge, through lots of lovely towns and even more lovely countryside.
Finally made it to our destination: the Shelburne Museum!
What a place! I can't begin to list all the delights in this very interesting museum--although, I don't think "museum" conveys the full flavor of the enterprise.
Electra Havemeyer Webb was a collector. Her tastes were eclectic and her purse ample, so her museum has lots of room devoted to some of her favorite things.
Quilts.
Dolls.
Trains--yes, there is more than one. Even a whole train station.
Dollhouses.
Samplers.
Folk art of all sorts--painting, sculpture, weathervanes.
Spinning wheels and looms have their own building.
So do the print shop, and the blacksmith shop. The blacksmith was making a large hook when we were there, chatting about the original owner of the shop on the premises and telling us what he has in his own shop, at home.
The weaving shop has a full-size operational jacquard loom, as well as lots of different spinning wheels and other looms.
Art--one building is Impressionist art.
Wheeled vehicles, including a couple of stagecoaches, peddlers' wagons, medicine wagon...
A lighthouse.
A schoolhouse.
A meeting house.
A recreation of an early New England family's house and outbuildings, with all of their furniture and tools, so well done you almost think you can hear them talking in the next room.

The round barn is the visitors' center, and it holds the current exhibit of contemporary Vermont quilts.
It's also got an exhibit of chandeliers, ranging from pretty to funky to downright weird--how about a chandelier made of plastic tableware? Or covered in feathers, fur, lace, and tassels?



There's a whole building devoted to a miniature circus parade, and carousel animals.
You can adopt a carousel creature if you'd like, as they are in need of restoration and your sponsorship can provide it.
Oh yes, there is a carousel on the grounds.
As well as a steamship.
If you are thinking that you'd like to visit Vermont, or any of the New England states, don't miss the opportunity to visit Shelburne.
Seriously.

The steamship Ticonderoga. Used to ply the waters of Lake Champlain--which is actually just a few miles away. Now it's got a rather interesting new career, wouldn't you say?

Oh, and the flowers are glorious.

So for part of the drive up, I wound up two balls of the Noro Cash Island, cast on a ripple scarf, and knitted happily away. (I told my brother that when I drove, he'd have to knit, but he convinced me that wasn't a great idea.)


We had a great time exploring. The docents were very interesting, and friendly.
One of them in particular was very chatty, and as we were saying goodbye to her, I happened to look at her name tag. Her last name is the same as my maiden name--my brother's name! Small world, huh?
We rounded out the day by meeting up with my cousin, his wife and daughter, for dinner and some good talk. Then we headed for home.
I got to knit some more on the way home--I opted to take the "dark" part of the drive, after the sun had set.
We also saw a double rainbow. At one point, the bottom of the arc touched down in the valley just a mile or so ahead. Quite magical.
Not so magical? Running into the very heavy rainstorm that was responsible for the rainbow! Quite a gullywasher.

So, back home again in the same day. But what a day!
Oh, the scarf? It got pretty far along, and then I realized that I was going to have a scarf that was 9" wide and 12" long. So it's been frogged, and re-cast-on at half the width. Now it's about an inch and a half long, so when it gets longer I'll take its picture and post it.

More road trips in the near future, including the one that's the reason for this whole trip. Stay tuned?
PS--if you click on my Flickr badge, it will take you to my page where you can check out all 175 or so of my Shelburne photos--in the set called, un-originally enough, Shelburne Museum!