Busy

Lots of knitting done this weekend. I'm good with deadlines. :-)

Ready to pop off that provisional edge and pick up those live stitches.



It just unzips! Like Magic!! Bolder knitters might just rip that bad boy out of there and pick up all those "living dangerously" loose stitches.

I take a more measured approach: 1x1. No worries.



All picked up and ready to knit those legs.



Legs are done and he's mostly stuffed. Casting on the arms tonight.

Somehow reminiscent of Venus of Willendorf.


Spent some quality time planting the garden. So much potential. A lot of things still in flats. "Hardening" on the deck before transplanting.

The foreground is a stone sculpture by nuttnhubby. He's also responsible for the balanced boulders. Yes - they are safely up there.


And the herb garden. Small boy included in both photos to
(1) illustrate scale and
(2) illustrate cuteness of Z
who, btw, went to daycare in UNDERWEAR today! My joy has no limit.

Rebirth

Back to Baby Bobbi Bear. Goal: to COMPLETE by eod Friday, June 1.

Note: provisional cast on!

Also note: warming weather = photo outside in the natural light.

Additional also note: 10% got himself a new cam-damera. So tempting...


Spinning continues. Singles of the Coopworth.

Next: learn to ply.
Any advice on how to Z-ply on a drop spindle?
Is it as simple as spinning in the other direction?


New Yarn Goodness. Koigu for another beret.
I'm an addict (berets and Koigu, a terrible double whammy).

This for Suzanna, a friend from work. We're trading.
I'll get some handmade beautiful jewelry in return.
Will keep you posted :-)


Z photographed nuttnhubby cooking ribs. Ugly grills produce sublime results.

Not bad for a 3 yr old (the photo by Z, not the ribs by nuttnhubby).


Z carefully considering approach and method.

And proudly regarding grimy fingers.

Bring on the days of summer...

In other news:

1. Check EsterKal for progress there. I'm done knitting and ready to block. Anyone have recommendations for "shawl pins?"
2. Check Knits a Beautiful Life for my soon-to-be-posted yarn review.
   

Still spinning - although I need to figure out how to simultaneously support spinning and knitting. I love learning new things but recognize one life can only sustain so much activity. Sometimes perfectly enjoyable things don't make the cut.



That being said there is some roving with my name on it. These from Hidden Valley Farm & Woolen Mill.

Above in Blossom colorway of 100% Coopworth - the colors of now.

Below in Desert Spring of 70% Coopworth, 13% Mohair, and 17% silk - so subtle.



Latest progress on Ester.
See what the other folks are up to on the KAL site.

This is such a fun pattern to knit. The KnitPicks Main Line Yarn? Lovely to work with. Highlights cable work so nicely.


AND... just enrolled in Summer of Socks. Couldn't resist.

Seven wierd things meme...

I was tagged by Joy for the 7 wierd things meme. This is a tough one b/c I'm probably the most normal person I know.

Let's just call it 7 things, then.

1. I'm a slave to Dublin Dr. Pepper. Like regular Dr. Pepper (which I love) dressed for a classy party.
   
2. I think I can learn to do anything well.
   
3. I have severe odontophobia. The valium + nitrous + novacaine kind.
   
4. I'm intolerant of intolerance. Now how do I reconcile that one?
   
5. The clothing in my drawers is intensely organized (e.g., socks are paired, rolled, and arranged in rows according to a system of height and material).
   
6. I'm in support of cosmetic "procedures" - facials, teeth bleaching, botox, you name it. Whatever you need. Choice is a wonderful thing.
   
7. I'm an avid fan of traditional country music and old hymns.

Spinning makes me dizzy...

...with joy!

This weekend hit the Shepherd's Harvest Festival.

Great event, tons of gorgeous yarn, and people who know things!
Plopped myself down next to a spinner and started with the questions.
Before you know it...


Spinning! Not well, but spinning!
Did a little internet research and tested how a 2-ply might come together.



There are a lot of issues here and this is not yarn that will really hold together for the long term, but let a gal experiment for a bit.

Bought a bunch of roving.



This is hand dyed by Susan Hensler. Pretty, pretty stuff. Susan's friendly and helpful. That counts for a lot.

Off we go:

Spinning!

On to the yarn winder.

In the future I'll skip this step and go straight to the "arm wrap". Not the technical term but you know what I mean.


Earliest work is on the bottom. I'm getting better at not "over spinning" and putting in TOO much twist.



Lastly, I "set the twist" by soaking in warm soapy H2O and then hanging to dry. Ready to knit!

I have tons to learn but am heartened by this progress. Can't wait to do some more. Went a little crazy and bought a big bag full of roving.

I love the feeling of potential :-)



Lilacs finally bloomed. Wish this was smell-o-vision.

Another beautiful china painting by my Grandmother on the vase. Blackberries and Roses: I use it whenever I can.

I live and breath...

... the Ester Knit-a-long.
Seriously folks - knitting cables without cable needles. You must.



I'm delirious with joy over this sweet little reject. A converted softie from Amanda at Zhinka dinki doo. She was making some test bunny puppets and described this little guy as a disaster. I expressed appreciation for him (I think he is forlorn, yet jazzy!) ... and she sent him to me!
So sweet, so lovely.

Believe me, any little bunnies out there that are too "nuttn" for you can come my way.
We do work with an organization that serves homeless teens in our state. Some of the gals are homeless b/c their parents found out they were pregnant and KICKED THEM OUT! What the f***? So... there are some wee tinnies out there who have not much and they can always use a lovie. The bigger tinnies (aka their teen parents) can use lovies too. If anyone has some extra "walking around money, you can donate $ or materials via their website.



Lastly, the rhubarb has landed.
We haven't yet sampled the delights but tonight it's all over. :-)

Nigella Lawson's Guinness Cake under construction.

Hard to photograph the finished cake with it's stark contrast.
That fluffy head and the dense Guinness Cake. Super moist and yum.
Fortifying.

It sits on a beautiful cake platter painted by my lovely and talented Nana - a great china painter. I'm lucky enough to have a couple of her pieces.
She's out in CA right now and just had some work in an Art show.

I love these Old-Fashioned Roses, sweet yet rugged. A little scrappy.
Runs in the family. :-)


Our Japanese Iris are blooming. Little surprises amongst the emerging daylillies. You can't believe how sweet they smell. Almost like a cartoon flower.

Soup to Nuts

All in one post we go from...

...the receipt of the May Yarn on the Month Club which contains the newsletter, a tank pattern, and yarn (clockwise from upper left):

• Bamboo by Be Sweet
  5 sts/inch on US 6s
  100% Bamboo
• Pomaire by Araucania
  5 sts/inch on US 7s
  100% Pima Cottom
• Pima Silk by Frog Tree
  5 st/inch on US 5s
  85% Pima Cotton, 15% silk
• Bali Sky Sarong by Mango Moon
  3.75 sts/inch on US 9s
  

Frog Tree is a not-for-profit that supports herders, spinners, dyers, and knitters all backed up with a Fair Trade pledge.

Mango Moon works with women in Bolivia, Bali and Nepal who dye and spin this recycled silk yarn.

I've mentioned Be Sweet before. They have great impact in South Africa with job creation and school support programs.

Auracania was started with the goal of introducing traditional products to the world beyond Chile.



... to the completed swatches. Next month I'll pay more attention and lay them out in the same orientation for both photos.

• Bamboo by Be Sweet - I knit this at 6 sts/inch on US 6s. Supple and fun to knit although it did split quite a bit. I have a skein of their laceweight mohair that I'll swatch soon. Destined for a beret (no surprise there)
  
  
• Pomaire by Araucania - This swatched at 4.75 sts/inch on US 7s. Also very soft and a beautifully subtle color change that I don't think captured well in the photo. This would be easily wearable and durable (I expect). Would be nice for some knit softies.
  
  
• Pima Silk by Frog Tree - My gauge at 5.5 st/inch on US 5s. Another winner. Soft with a nice sheen.
  
  
• Bali Sky Sarong by Mango Moon - 3.5 sts/inch on US 9s in my hands. This one's puzzling, fun, like a little yarn party, but to do with it? Could easily end up featured on What not to Knit.
  

In the future, in addition to the YOTM posts, I'll be doing monthly yarn reviews for Knit's a Beautiful Life.




Z and I recently made pizza. A big hit. Dough from Trader Joe's (so worth the long trip, for us), Newman's sauce, Shredded Mozzarella, Fresh Ricotta, and Avo.

Like that little Avo smeared face?

My advice: Get that dough as thin as humanly possible and crank that oven ALL THE WAY UP. We kept the baking sheet in the oven the whole time and transferred the pizza in and out using parchment paper and a cutting board.

I also advise reading Jeffrey Steingarten's essays - one of which focuses on trying to cook pizza on his Weber grill and getting it so hot that it melted the paint off!

He's the food writer for Vogue magazine. No really, I get it for the articles :-)

I feel like I'm forgetting something...

Here we are:
walking hand in hand,
smelling the rosies,
enjoying the journey.



The gasp of horror with the realization:
Mama Nuttn Bear has forgotten to
give Baby Bobbi Bear a bum (that rolls neatly off the tongue).


Baby Bobbi Franknbear.

Is there a Freudian correlation between this
and our current potty-training impasse with Z?



This is the promise of a new day:
Happy, pinky forgiveness and a promise to proceed more attentively.



Two other bits of news:


1) Ester Knit-a-long has launched.



And...


2) The contest and drawing.

Mia!!

Email me (nuttnbunny [at] hotmail [dot] com) with your mailing address
and Peaches is on her way to you.

Yes, it was rhubarb. Next time I will more cleverly disguise the file name (thanks Sasha :-)
I promise to post all forthcoming culinary experiments.

Thanks to all my commenters!! I really enjoy your blogs and look forward to hearing from you again!

I love sharing and am already plotting how and when to do this again.

Peaches wants you

The Peaches Beret! Just in time for Spring.

Here's the deal:

1. I heart comments.
   
   
2. It may be a gross overestimation
   but I like to imagine that there are nuttnlurkers so...
   
   
3. For my friends, frequent commenters that they are,
   because they give advice, comfort, incentive, and support, and...
   
   
4. To entice the lurkers to come forward...
   
   
5. A Give-a-way:
   
   
6. Leave a comment between now and when I next post
   (for God's sake my life is structured enough without being required to give an exact timeline, and, after all, it is my blog :-)
   correctly identifying the Leafy Goddess shown below
   (an extra credit point if you provide a supporting recipe)
   and your name will be entered in the drawing for dear Peaches,
   the last in the line of Koigu berets from the PurlBee pattern.

Who am I and how should I be eaten?

Peaches' sister Pinky (as in Tuscadero) is also complete.
I'm way up on my game for a certain someone's birthday this year :-)

Keep posted for:

1. Peachy drawing results
2. Ester KAL reports. We cast on today!
3. The Sad but True tales of Bobbi Bear Gone Bad