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Our little buddy who feeds on the flowers on our patio, and defends his turf from his perch in the oak tree. Don’t you love his cute little feet?

Last time you saw Girasole, it had just been started.

My, how it has grown!

If I had to write another one of those “What Does Summer Mean To You” essays for grade school, I’d now say baseball and knitting blankets.

Blankets?

I know, the last thing on most knitters’ list of summer projects is a big heavy blanket.  (And trust me, Pastaza makes for a heavy blanket). But happily, we’re under the Pacific Ocean’s influence, which gives us cool evenings.

As a matter of fact, my poor neighbors planned a fantastic Fourth of July party one year. They knocked themselves out getting their yard ready for dinner and dancing outside under the stars. Dinner was catered. The band was the best you could hire… We knew we were in trouble when we all donned overcoats and sweaters at 6:00 in the evening, just for the drive over. By 8:00, everyone, bundled up as we were, was shivering and heading for home. I felt so bad for our hosts! You just never know about California. 

But I digress…

My husband loves watching baseball, and I love to keep him company and pretend I love watching baseball too. A big project like the Girasole blanket is just right for long innings. And it’s warmth is welcome by the time the cool evenings come around. Its repetitive nature offers enough serenity to counteract errors, foul balls and disconcerting calls by umpires.

As with my Mitered Square Afghan , the goal is to complete the blanket by the end of the World Series.

As many of my friends know, I have been shuttling back and forth between the West Coast and Ohio for the past (almost) four years. On this last flight I finally confirmed exactly how much yarn it takes to get from Cleveland to LA.
It takes 100 yards! Isn’t that [...] Continue Reading…

I’m busy designing stuff that I can’t show you. Phooey. In the meantime, I hope you’ll enjoy some Critter Interludes.

Here, the deer make themselves at home in our front yard. When we re-landscaped after the earthquake, I made sure the plantings were wildlife friendly. Enough grows here that we don’t [...] Continue Reading…

As you may know, we now have a part-time home near where I grew up in the Midwest. I’m not used to living in the suburbs where other people can see me. In California, the only people who might get weirded out by my photographing socks are the deer and [...] Continue Reading…

I haven’t been knitting a whole lot, as we’ve been settling into our new part-time place. I don’t want to bore you with details; let’s just say that when life gets a bit rocky, having a wonderful husband and a new place to nest makes all the difference.
  A good [...] Continue Reading…

Recently I had the good fortune of reconnecting with some cousins I hadn’t seen in ages - not since before the knitting fever felled me for good.

My cousins were kind enough to invite my husband and me over for dinner.  The game of catch-up went (more or less) like this:

Me: Gosh, [...] Continue Reading…

I haven’t tried Sockotta sock yarn before. But when I saw these pretty spring colors, I just had to start a pair. I think all my projects should be color coordinated with my garden.

I’m excited and grateful to be part of Knit Pick’s Independent Designer Program! The Knit Picks version of my Smock Top Sweater uses their beautiful Merino Style yarn. I’m crazy for the Kenai color seen here:

 
I have a Japanese Maple that leafs out red in the spring. Doesn’t it [...] Continue Reading…

At long last I’ve finished the Tangled Yoke Cardigan. It soared to the top of my list of favorite patterns to knit. Eunny Jang’s genius in the cable design made it delightful. I kept wondering, “How did she think of that?” as I went along. I just love the [...] Continue Reading…