It's About 'Inner Beauty'...

Sometimes it really is about inner beauty. This may look ... um.... odd, but in truth, it is an amazing thing. No, it is not a someones colonoscopy... it is not even human at all. It is a gem of the vegetable kingdom. A rare find... a true diamond in the rough. Yes I speak loving words for this strange curcurbit for it is due the praise. Please judge not until you have seen it to the end (of the post below that is).

The Inner Beauty Revealed...

Here we continue with the mystery beauty, though a mystery to you no longer. This is a Marina di Chioggia squash that I grew in my garden this summer. This was by far the most delicious winter squash I have ever grown. It was sweet and cooked up so well. It's inner beauty was the stuff of soup legend and dinner table seconds. If you were lucky enough to be at the Long Beach Stitch'nBeach party (you were lucky enough!) for our dear Jennifer and her baby Heath you may have tasted some of this beauty. It was used to make the squash soup. After cutting up this adorable darling I realized that it was just too much inner beauty for our family alone (and not to mention I had to share some of it's yummy goodness with a friend) I called Sharlene to come and get a bit. She made 'inner beatuy' soup for the party! So remember.... Sometimes it is about what's on the inside..... Eat up that inner beauty and revel in your own!

Wonderful Things Just Happen....

One of my students was learning to knit and purl, as she learned to switch stitches she came up with this delicious scarf for her dahlink daughter... a happy accident for her which much impressed the other students (and her instructor). A magical little mushroom, growing merrily away under a tree where I work. A fleeting organic sculpture .... or a sleeping faerie ... hmmm.
Eat up the scarf... not the faerie (make a wish).

More Cuteness!

Will the juicey cuteness ever end?
At least not until she has that baby!
Here is Jennifer at our Long Beach knitting group showing off the adorable sweater she knitted for her baby boy Heath.
We love Heath already.
Heath will soon have two nalbound baby hats to wear, and since he is a Viking baby he needs nalbinding! Come on Viking mommy, what's up the the knit? Okay.....it's cute....juicey cute...eat it up.

Pregnant Viking!?

Gads that hat is just so cute it is going to explode with juicy cuteness! My friend Jen with her Viking baby hat, lovingly knitted for her by dear Monica Martinez. (Oh, I had to toss in a bit of nalbinding too, well...since we cannot eat spinach...nalbinding will have to do!) Amazing things happen in our Long Beach knitting group.
Eat the juicy cuteness.....juicy.

Nalbinding on Caffeine

You betcha that tea is hot....and the nalbinding is even hotter!
Gotta love a Java Jacket in Korgen stitch. My increases look like I had too much of a good thing there, but I think it is the change of colors that makes them so apparent. Works like a charm though, and environmentally friendly. So whip one of these little babies up and wow them at your local coffee emporium.
Ah, tea and wool....yummy!

Nalbinding for Vikings

How proud I was to offer these pouches of nalbinding to the King and Queen of Caid. Ah yes, I am one of those medieval re-enactors who does appreciate a little royalty on the weekends. This Saturday was a Festival of the Rose, an arts & sciences display with the SCA...what a wonderful site. I sampled breads and cakes and watched dear Medb Renata work her magic with pewter ( I even got a beautiful button). The Vikings were there with a grand display of a Viking encampment, it was Vikingly tasty. I was so inspired I am planning on sewing some Viking garb...I saw the cutiest little hoodlet...yummmm, must have one. These pouches were done in (my favorite) the Finnish stitch, very simple, a tube with a bit of increasing at the top. I braided the drawstrings and threaded them through the stitches. Must go nalbind and
bite into a Viking pinafore....chomp!

Alpaca for Dessert

Went to the Santa Monica Fiberfest today. What a fiber feast was had. Alas...there was not one dish of nalbinding. Though I was served wonderful wool appetizers, I was left hungry with out a nalbinding main dish. So what is a fiber hungry gal to do? Have alpaca's for dessert. Get me a spoon! Eat 'em up.

Hanging in a Gallery

Angel's Gate Cultural Art Center in San Pedro California currently has a show up 'Fiber/Fabric'. I have 4 pieces up in the show. All of these are knitted in wool and then felted (fulled). How deliectible to be on a gallery wall. I love to sculpt in wool. yum.

Beach Boys

So... as I was driving down Pacific Coast Highway on my way to my local yarn shop, I pass Main street at the Huntington Beach pier. Suddenly it dawns on me....hey, I live here, in a Southern California beach city. This is where other people come for their summer vacations.
Life is good.

It's Really Green

It was a hot summer day and I had just finished a nalbinding project. My hands sat idle, I began to figit. I needed something, something to knit. My eyes wandered around the room and landed on the teapot. It's poor cozy was stained and worn, daily life had caught up with her. I took pity. Quickly I scanned my stash and found some olive drab wool, bought on sale, still in the ziplock bag. Oh yes, this could be it. My needles flew, the tea kettle sang and soon I had a new outfit for my precious Brown Betty. She sat patiently on her little flowered pillow and allowed me to dress her. Her spout held high, her handle sturdy and waiting, the cozy fit perfectly. She looked adorable as she posed for the photo, alas the lighting in my kitchen was not flattering so I thought she would look better in red.....delicious.

Nalbinding Knights

A hot medieval weekend, complete with knights in shining armor. Oh yes ladies...real knights, real armor and real record temps in Southern California....but did that stop me from nalbinding? Heck no...well I stopped a bit to watch the knights. And here are two knights having at each other on the field.....dreamy....Next is a pouch I finished in the Korgen stitch. I made a flap and added a bone button....ooooh....ahhhh....yummy.

Finnished in Olso

A finnished bag in Oslo stitch and a bit of a close up of the stitch. This is my first piece in Olso, it is less dense than the Finnish stitch I usually use, tidy just the same. In yummy grape flavor too! snack time...eat it up.

Sea, Nalbinding!

Nalbinding on holiday at the sea. We went on the Aqualink...a sea going vessel...from Alamitos Bay (where there is a lovely yarn shop) to the Aquarium of the Pacific. It was a wonderful day though I got very little nalbinding done.
I love the ocean....eat some seaweed.

Molly's Gotta Brand New Bag!

Yippeee and Hooorrray,
Third time is the charm. The third bag turned out just right. I embroidered on one of the ecru stripes with brown...as you can see...I have never done this before. I am pleased with the outcome. I toyed with the idea of needlefelting but...as I do not have any of the needlefelting toys and I wanted the bag done - now - I did this instead. whew... Now I can take it to work on Monday and be done with Molly's bag.
New project hungry now....eat it up.

Look up 'mistake' in the Thesaurus:

Error, misjudgment, blunder, gaffe, botch, clanger, howler(my personal favorite), goof-up, flub, debacle... Oh alright then, I made a little miscalculation - twice!
Here are two photos of purses. One is too big, yes Gracie it is already felted. The other is too small. These were to be Molly's birthday gift...she is still waiting.
I am currently working on a third, with smaller needles and a plan.
.....off to eat more yarn.

silk baby sweater

Oh yes, a silk baby sweater. I knitted this one for a local yarn shop...BananaBerry...where we have our knitting nights on Wednesdays. It hangs next to the yarn from which it sprung. We figured you would spend this much on a baby gift for someone you really like ( if you don't really like them, make it with acrylic). So with a bit over a ball of silk at $14.00 a ball and the baby sweater pattern from the Mason Dixon Knitting book...voila!
Silk decadence......eat it up

herding sheep, shrinking purses, Irish curls

Well, I am supposed to be at a friends party but... When I fulled the handbag (last night) I had knitted for her it came out more like a coin purse...so.....while I was at the Irish Fair and festival in Irvine Meadows today (see photo of young ladies wearing outragously sequined dancing dresses and outragously curled wigs) with my son who was in the Irish dancing competition (though he wears neither the dress nor wig) I tried to knit a new one. Alas, I don't knit that fast so, no gift. Now after a long day outside in the heat with two kids, nachos and shave ice, listening to accordians and 'Bad Haggis' I am tired. Therefore I am not at my friend Molly's party. BUT while at said festival I was able to watch an amazing demonstration of SHEEP HERDING. One of my favorite subjects, sheep...wool...fiber on the hoof...yipppeee! It was delectible....eat up those sheep, not the Bad Haggis.

Eye Candy

I am currently nalbinding two pouches for my SCA King and Queen, as well as knitting a bag to felt for my friend Molly's birthday party...um, Saturday. So I thought I would rest my eyes on the flowers growing in my garden. Here are some lovely hydrangeas . Fiber is fun but don't forget to smell the flowers....oh, and many can be tossed in a salad! eat them up.

Food for Feet

I finally finished nalbinding my second pair of medieval style slippers. These are for a friend in the SCA.
They are done in the finnish stitch and are a bit rough. I still need more practice with all of the shaping and getting them to look alike....I will just have to make a few more pair!
I love the yummy color....eat it up.