Tag Archives: lantern moon

New needles

Posted on December 17, 2010 | 15 Comments

If you read my other blog at LanternMoon.com, you know that the new ebony and rosewood interchangeable needle sets have come in to the warehouse. I’ve been knitting with a prototype of these needles. The joins are really smooth. My yarn doesn’t catch on them, and I haven’t had any come apart while knitting with them. (This used to happen to me with other my Boye aluminum interchangeable needles, a long time ago. I’ve become a wooden needle convert since then.)

The needle tips I’m knitting with are the new Featherlight wood, which is certified as sustainable by the Forest Stewardship Council. The interchangeables won’t be in this wood, at least not for now. I just happen to have gotten lucky and borrowed these to play with. Check them out.

tips

I knit my Mini Mochi fingering weight Infinity Entrelac Infinity Scarf with the size 4 tips.

And I’m now knitting another Noro DK weight version with the size 7 tips.

I like them a lot. They’re not quite as slick as my ebony needles, but I like the slate gray color and slight texture on them. I haven’t been knitting too much this week; the view is a distraction.

infinity view

Stay warm!

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Blogging, and more

Posted on July 20, 2010 | 16 Comments

I’m so pleased to announce that I’m going to be blogging for Lantern Moon! I’ve been in a knitting group (the knit nite group) with Sharon Woodcock, one of the owners of Lantern Moon, for about three years. Our group grew out of an intarsia class that we had with Leigh Radford. I was thrilled when Sharon & Joel (her husband, and co-owner of Lantern Moon) asked me to blog for them. Please come check out the new blog here.

We went to the Tigard Knitting Guild meeting last Thursday; Sharon was the guest speaker. It’s a great group of knitters, and I even participated in the show and tell time, with my Pacific Shawl.

pacific

I still have to finish writing up the pattern; it’s been on the back burner for a bit. But I hope to have it out to test knit in the next few weeks.

So, not much knitting around here, but I’ve been cooking. This is our new favorite pasta salad. It’s just right for summer. You can put any of your favorite things in it, but here’s what I did:

orzo salad

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad

Dressing: in a jar, combine and shake well:
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced or run through garlic press
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

For the salad:
1 pound orzo pasta, cooked, rinsed, and cooled (this makes a LOT)
2/3 lb asparagus, cut in 1.5 inch pieces (add these to the pasta for the last 1.5 minutes of cooking)
1 14 ounce can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1/2 cup kalamata olives, sliced in half
1 pint grape tomatoes (whole)
3 ounces crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup pine nuts

Combine salad ingredients and toss with 1/2 the dressing. Store the salad, refrigerated, to let the flavors meld. Before serving, add more of the dressing to refresh. (You can use all, or part, of the remaining dressing, as you desire) We served it with grilled chicken, and really enjoyed it!

What’s cooking/knitting with you?

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Posted in Blogging, Knit, pattern design, recipe

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Blog party!

Posted on February 9, 2010 | 24 Comments

Happy birthday to Marie! She’s having a birthday party over at PermissionToUnwind, and I’m helping her celebrate. Go on over there and wish her a happy birthday!

I’m fashionably late. I was up late last night baking for the party. We’re having Butterscotch Shortbread (recipe here).

scotch2

And we’re also having Butterscotch Brownies. This is completely Carrie’s fault, because I saw these on her blog the other day, and I knew I had to make them.

blondie2

And what’s a party without a present? I’m giving away this Wrap and Roll dpn needle case from Lantern Moon. It’s gorgeous silk.

case

It has silk taffeta pockets inside for your skinny dpns. You could also put bigger ones in there, but you’d have to spread them out over 2 pockets.

in case

If you’d like to be in the drawing for the needle case, please say so in your comment. If you just want to comment, do that, too! I’ll close the drawing at midnight between Saturday and Sunday (Valentine’s Day!). I’m a big believer in birthday *week*, not just a day.

Happy birthday, Marie!

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And the winner is…

Posted on April 7, 2009 | 10 Comments

Aunt Kathy! Who is not *my* aunt, but just Aunt Kathy. She wins the Lantern Moon Silk Needle Case. Congratulations, Kathy! I will send this off to you this week.

After organizing my needle stash, I found that I only needed two of the four needle cases that my family picked up at the Loop & Hoop event, so I’m giving away one more. Back to the random number generator, and the second winner is Sarah, of Attitude Hats. Go check out Sarah’s creations; they are amazing!

And another winner! DH won an elevator pitch contest, and he’s pretty pleased with himself. What’s an elevator pitch? According to Wikipedia, an elevator pitch is an overview of an idea for a product, service, or project. The name reflects the fact that an elevator pitch can be delivered in the time span of an elevator ride (for example, 30 seconds & 100-150 words). Congrats, Sweetie!

I think I need a knitting picture now…

bo

I’m knitting the Baby Bolero from One Skein by Leigh Radford. It’s a short and sweet little jacket for a newborn. It will be a bit longer than this when the ribbing is added to the edges. I picked up the sleeves and am knitting them top down instead of knitting them flat and sewing them in.

I love the little motif on the back (I did change some of the k2togs to ssk to enhance the hole-iness):

motif

What I’m not loving is the yarn.

1824

It’s Mission Falls 1824 Cotton, a fluffy cotton core with a wrap which gives it a fun texture. But the fun texture is interfering with my ability to control my tension, I think. I have a horrible column of loose stitches between dpns on the sleeves (see them in the picture?), and I have to go back and adjust everything to even them out. Yuck. I’ve knit with lots of cottons before, and haven’t had this issue. Maybe I should have knit the sleeves flat? But then I’d never sew the sweater up! (I know myself.)

So I guess I’ll finish, since I’m so close to finishing, and give it a soak and see if things block out/even up. Otherwise, I’ll re-knit this with a smooth cotton. It’s a quick knit, except I’m having a hard time sitting down with it!

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Pass it on…a giveaway!

Posted on March 30, 2009 | 48 Comments

Well, it turns out that I really don’t need all *four* Lantern Moon silk needle cases from the Loop & Hoop event. I already own a matching needle case especially for circulars, so five is over the top! The circular case holds my Lantern Moon ebony and rosewood circulars. One new case holds my 16 inch LM ebony circulars and matching dpns. (These are all size 7 and up; my skinny dpns live in a different case.) Another holds my bamboo (non-LM) circulars. I’m reserving one more because I’m not sure how storage is going to work out, but I still have at least one extra case. Combined with my missing my first blogoversary this month (March 17), I think this means I need to celebrate the anniversary and have a giveaway!
case ext

Here’s the inside of the case. There’s a zippered compartment on the left, storage for circulars in the middle, and storage for straight needles on the right.

case int

If you’d like to win this needle case, please leave a comment on this post by April 5. I’ll use the random number generator and pick a winner. Good luck!

In other news, one of my pictures has been published in Schmap Portland Guide. You can see it here, but you saw it on my blog, first! The Schmap people must have found the picture by title from flickr. Schmap seems to be a nice travel guide, and it’s free. Cool!

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Loop & Hoop swag

Posted on March 27, 2009 | 10 Comments

Last night’s Loop & Hoop event at the Blazer game was fun! We made it a family outing. I knew CollegeGuy would be happy to go to a game on spring break, even if surrounded by knitters. Our seats were pretty high up, but it was a good crowd.

Here’s the swag from the goodie bag:

swag

Let’s see, a re-usable bag with the Blazer logo. A Lantern Moon silk needle case (beyond awesome) and catalog of temptation. Yarn and a pattern from Yarn Garden. Tea from Knit/Purl. A sample of Soak from Knitted Wit (and I got to sit next to Lorajean and her DH). And a Channing Frye bobble head doll!

The best part of this deal is that my whole family was there, so we got this, times four.

swag4

CollegeGuy claimed most of the Blazer bags, and my bobble head doll. I figured DH & I could share. But I claimed all the knitterly goods, which means I have FOUR Lantern Moon needle cases (and I probably own enough needles to fill them), four balls of yarn, four samples of Soak. And tea.

We also got coupons for free chalupas from Taco Bell thanks to this sequence from Rudy Fernandez to end the third quarter:

The Blazers won 129-109, so it was a happy time all around.

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Beach souvenir, and a Lantern Moon event

Posted on February 25, 2009 | 19 Comments

I bought two skeins of Mirasol Hacho at Coastal Yarns in Cannon Beach, Oregon last year during Crafty Moms Weekend. It’s been sitting in my tiny stash, waiting to become socks. I love dk weight socks; they knit up so quickly.

hacho

When I first started swatching, I tried some lacy patterns, but the lace got lost in the variegated yarn. I thought about my entrelac socks like the ones Anna test knit for me with some Hacho last year (same yarn expedition).

IMG_0914

But I wanted something different. This yarn definitely needs some stockinette to have an opportunity to sing. Here’s what I finally settled on:

seafoam

I love the way this is knitting up. The ripples remind me of waves at the beach. Very fitting for a yarn from the coast!

ridge detail

I’m having a lot of fun making this up as I go, and I’m planning to write up the pattern when I’m done.

In local news, Lantern Moon is having an event at their warehouse next Thursday, March 5, 6:30 pm. There will be an opportunity to view January’s TNNA fashion show, local yarn shops showing what’s new and hot in the stores, Leigh Radford signing copies of her new book, AlterKNITS Felts, and refreshments. It’s also an opportunity to purchase Lantern Moon products at 20% off retail prices. Reservations are required; RSVP to diana@lanternmoon.com to let them know you’re coming. It’s no secret that I’m a big Lantern Moon fan; I’ll be there!

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Drum roll for the winner please…

Posted on February 16, 2009 | 9 Comments

And the winner of the drawing for the Lantern Moon Sox Stix is…

prizes

Turtlegirl76! I’ve added a couple things to the prize package, too. The yarn is fingering weight, hand dyed by Knitted Wit. I love the colors of this yarn, but when I started to knit with it, I realized that I’m just not a skinny yarn knitter. All my socks are sport or DK, or even worsted! Also included is a cute cake keychain, also from Lantern Moon. Have fun, Cristi! Please send me your snail mail addy, and I will send your package out this week.

Edit: It turns out that Cristi’s not a dpn knitter! See the next post for the new winner…after checking out the blogs mentioned below.

And I’m a winner, too! This week, I’ve been nominated by two bloggers, Jeanne Knits and Knitting Siamese, for a Kreativ Blogger Award. Thanks, Jeanne and Courtney!

kreativ

Here are the rules:

1. Copy the award to your site.
2. Link to the person from whom you received the award.
3. Nominate 7 other bloggers.
4. Link to those on your blog.
5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominated.

And here are the blogs that I think you should check out:

Emilee Knits: Emilee is working her way through the Barbara Walker treasuries, doing a swatch a week. I’m enjoying seein the swatches, and Emilee’s commentary on the stitch patterns.

Earthtones Girl: Denise is a fantastic knitter, and a big fan of Elizabeth Zimmermann. You can see it in her projects. A woman after my own heart!

Princess Pea: Anna lives in the UK, and knits exquisite things. Tea cosies, Jared Flood’s druid mitts, anything! Her photography is lovely.

Turtlegirl76: Cristi (yes, the same Cristi who won the Sox Stix!) is an amazing knitter; I love seeing her projects. And her cats, Ripple and Calvin!

Smariek Knits: Marie loves cables. Me, too. Her scarves and mitts are in many Ravelry queues, and she’s just finished her first socks.

We Do Not Have a Knitting Problem aka IrishGirlieKnits: Carrie is a big fan of BMFA, and I can see why. I love looking at her projects.

What Katy Did: Katy is a local blogger, and I found out last month that we have a mutual friend in real life. Small world. Check out Katy’s Kiki Mariko.

Enjoy!

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More, more, more…Athena

Posted on December 19, 2008 | 6 Comments

athena redux

I finished my second Athena entrelac neck warmer last night. Purling back backwards (not turning the work each row) makes this go pretty quickly. But it looks like this Athena won’t be for me. She’ll be going on to her new life as a shop model. Shannon and Emily will be selling the hard copy pattern at Twisted, and they’d like a sample. Done! So I picked up more Taos and will make another one for myself, in a bit. Check out this color:

taos 2

And I bought myself a little present for the next one: 16″ ebony circulars from Lantern Moon. Mmmmm, I love these needles. I didn’t realize that they made 16″ circulars, but now that I know, I had to get a few. Great tools make knitting even more of a pleasure!

LM ebony

I’m also dreaming of some quick worsted weight socks, because it’s cold and snowy, and my boots are just a tad big so there’s room. I think I’ll use some stash KnitPicks Wool of the Andes and make something fun with a color pattern, because I have a lot of bits of different colors left from other projects.

I guess I should be cleaning my house for Christmas, but if I clean it now, it will be messy by Christmas Eve. Maybe tomorrow!

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I’m a winner!

Posted on December 1, 2008 | 6 Comments

Liz had a contest to celebrate her blogoversary, and I’m a winner! The prize is two skeins of Mirasol Hacho, a dk weight yarn. I can’t wait to get this yarn in my hands; I’ve used it before and love the weight of it. Just right for sport/dk weight socks, which is what I like to knit. Thank you, Liz!

If I ever have to go on the lam, I don’t want Tami tracking me. She’s a super-sleuth! I asked if anyone could figure out where I was last weekend, based on this statue.

statue back

Here’s her comment:

“We were watching Anthony Bourdain’s ‘No Reservations’ and this episode is set in Colombia where there’s a whole plaza of Fernando Botero statues.

A little work to get his name again and then search for ‘man & horse’ tells me that you are visiting here:

“This statue is located in Clayton, Mo. at the intersection of Wydown and Hanley. The statue is constructed in bronze by Columbian artist Fernando Botero.”

The picture I found shows that there’s a Starbuck’s behind him too, so you don’t have to be deprived while you’re in the middle of the country. ;^)

Have fun!”

I did have my holiday kick-off peppermint mocha at Starbucks over the weekend, and I think Tami was watching. Such diligence requires a reward. While this wasn’t an actual contest, she gets an actual prize!

minty

This is a tape measure from Lantern Moon. Seasonally cute! Tami, email me your snailmail addy, and I’ll send it to you.

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