PDXKnitterati

multiplying like rabbits…

Posted on December 24, 2011 | 7 comments

These are addicting to knit!

And so quick. Korknisser by Manne. There’s still time. 20 minutes a pop. You know you want to…

By the way, I blame Glenna for sending me down this road. Check out her korknisser here!

7 Comments

Posted in Knit

Tagged korknisse

Merry, merry Korknisse!

Posted on December 23, 2011 | 5 comments

Looking for a personal touch to add to your gift wrap? How about this little cutie?

My Lantern Moon size 5 ebony Sox Stix are perfect for this tiny project in worsted weight yarn. This is Korknisse, by Manne.

So cute! It only took about 30 minutes to knit this up. This little guy is going to the Lantern Moon office party for the gift exchange.

Gotta fly! Keep on knitting…

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Posted in Knit

Tagged korknisse

Never enough Aloha

Posted on December 23, 2011 | 3 comments

Let’s see, where was I? Oh, paradise!

Friday we went snorkeling at Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve. The bay was formed thousands of years ago when the southeast wall of Hanauma Crater eroded away. This is a perfect gentle snorkeling experience. Shallow waters, lots of colorful fish and coral. What’s not to like? Even swimming averse me had a great time.

I don’t have a lot of pictures from this day, because the real show was underwater!

Saturday began with a parade on Kalakaua Avenue, just below our lanai. It was the Hawaii Heroes and Veterans Parade, complete with troops and marching bands.

We went to Chinatown at noon and found it to be…underwhelming. But I think we’re pretty jaded (hah!) because we love San Francisco’s Chinatown. It’s hard to top that one. Saturday turned into a shopping day, which was fine, and gave CollegeGrad a chance to catch up with his college buddies. Nice to have friends living in Hawaii!

Sunday started out with a double rainbow over the water. Can you see the second one to the left of the bright one?

We chose this day to have breakfast from McDonald’s, which was just down on the corner. Portuguese sausage, spam, eggs, and rice! Is this at your local McD’s? About 25 years ago, we had Portuguese sausage and rice for breakfast at a McDonald’s in Waikiki. I guess everything is super-sized now…I saved about half of it for the next day.

We had planned to go kayaking from Lanikai Beach, but our energy level wasn’t quite up to it, so we planned another hike instead. Our destination? Makapu’u Point, the easternmost point of the island. The trail is 1.75 miles long, and is hot and dry, and really windy on the eastern side of the point! I guess that’s why they call it the windward side of the island. The lighthouse at the point is stunningly beautiful, but it’s off limits to the public.

You look down at the lighthouse from the viewpoint at the end of the trail.

We saw a hang glider while we were at the viewpoint. He had a good time showing off for us.

On the way back down, we saw a rainbow, skimming over the water towards us. I love the little rain shower under the arc of the rainbow. It was a three rainbow day!

I thoroughly enjoyed this trip. It was just what this empty nester needed, face time with my family. I suppose we could have been anywhere, as long as it was away (too many distractions and comings and goings at home), but this was perfect.

Mele Kalikimaka! And I knit all the way home…

3 Comments

Posted in travel

Tagged hanauma bay, hawaii, makapu'u lighthouse, makapu'u point, oahu

Aloha, Oahu!

Posted on December 22, 2011 | 5 comments

It’s been an interesting year. Youngest son went off to college across the country, and DH does a fair amount of travel in his work. My nest is pretty empty sometimes! When CollegeGuy left, I planned a trip for his winter break return. I knew we’d all need some face time. Last week we traveled to Honolulu for some fun in the sun.

The Occupy Portland camp may be shut down, but there’s still an Occupy Honolulu.

Our first night’s sunset was spectacular, but then they all were. We were in a 12th floor condo in Waikiki, facing west.

The next day we hiked to the top of Diamond Head (760 ft at the summit), the volcanic crater that overlooks Waikiki. You can see the hotels in the background. The views were spectacular all the way around.

The boys (young men?) took advantage of this old winch to pose for one of their “vacation murder” shots. Someday I’ll post the collection…

And that afternoon, we played on the beach at Waikiki and looked back up to where we had been.

Thursday we paid our respects at the USS Arizona Memorial. The Arizona was sunk in the raid on Pearl Harbor in 1941 that drew the US into World War II. The memorial is a simple white structure which spans the submerged hull of the ship, where 1102 sailors are still entombed. It’s a stark, somber place, beautiful in its simplicity. The ship itself still leaks oil from its tanks; it bubbles up and spreads across the water. There is an estimated 500,000 gallons of oil aboard the ship, which is monitored for environmental hazard.

We also toured the USS Missouri, which is berthed next to the Arizona. The Missouri was the site of the signing of the Formal Instrument of Surrender that ended World War II, so the ships are bookends of the war. The end of our visit found us looking at the Arizona Memorial, the guns of the Missouri, and…a rainbow. Somehow fitting, I thought.

I did have time for some knitting on this trip; I took Thrumbelina with me. This is the Madeline Tosh Merino yarn that I showed you a few posts ago. It’s dreamy to knit with, but easier to split with my needle than the Malabrigo Worsted.

It wasn’t too warm on the lanai to knit with thrums!
More vacation in the next post…

5 Comments

Posted in Knit, travel

Tagged diamond head, hawaii, oahu, USS Arizona, USS Missouri, waikiki

Thrum-pa-pum-pum

Posted on December 21, 2011 | 5 comments

I’m doing one Christmas knitting project. Just one. It’s under control; I’ll have it done tonight. It’s Thrumbelina for a friend. I took it on vacation with me, but I wasn’t sure how it would do on a plane. Big hint: Turn off the overhead air vent when making thrums; they like to fly!

There was also a little breeze here, but it was pretty manageable. And the birds didn’t try to steal the thrums.

I’ll tell you about the trip in the next post, but here’s my obligatory Lantern Moon sheep tape measure vacay pic:

How is *your* Christmas knitting? Almost done? Only four knitting days left!

5 Comments

Posted in Knit, travel

Tagged Baa-bette, thrumbelina

Hello, Beautiful

Posted on December 14, 2011 | 12 comments

Where have you been all my life?

Remember this bag from the January TNNA show?

The Lantern Moon Bali Weekender has arrived from Bali. (So new it’s not on the website yet. The Bali Overnight is similar, with a different needle punch design.) They made it to the Lantern Moon warehouse last week, so I made a beeline over there and brought one home. Did I need another bag? Ummmm, yes. This one.

It’s rather gorgeous, isn’t it? The needle punch work is exquisitely lovely.

And the bag is a great size for travel, or a big knitting project. Or several small knitting projects, which is what I’ve got in there right now. (A pair of slippers, a cowl, and some fingerless mitts, in case you’re wondering.) There’s lots of room left.

What’s your perfect knitting bag? I think I’ve found the one for me!

12 Comments

Posted in Knit

Tagged bali weekender

knitchat, and selfish knitting

Posted on December 12, 2011 | 5 comments

Are you on twitter? Do you know about #knitchat? It’s a twitter chat that’s usually on Thursday evenings, 6:30 p.m. PST. I drop in when I can. (I’m @pdxknitterati on twitter; follow me!) Natalie Kilkenny (@cloudynatknit) is the organizing force behind #knitchat; you can read more on how it works here. Last Saturday, we had the first ever US/UK knitchat. It was fast moving and fun! One of the topics was “What’s on your needles,” and the conversation veered to gift knitting and selfish knitting. Apparently December is all about gift knitting, and January is Selfish Knitting Month.

Apparently, I’m ahead of my time. I’ve always been precocious! The siren call of the thrum was strong; I had to have Thrumbelina slippers for myself, right now! The pattern isn’t available outside the Single Skein Club until March 1, but it’s my design, so I already have it. I cast on a week ago Saturday at Twisted, and finished Wednesday night. It’s a quick knit.

I love this combination, Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Velvet Grapes, and Knitted Wit merino roving in Beaujolais. It’s a little more subtle than the sample pair. These are really soft and cushy!

I also want to knit some as a gift. I chose this Madeline Tosh merino, not realizing it was superwash. I don’t think it matters, because I’m not planning to felt the slippers.

I may have also bought another color, because it was so hard to choose between them.

I also have one more selfish knitting project lined up. Lorajean gave me some of her DK Polwarth/silk in Beaujolais for some of my Hugs and Kisses Fingerless Mitts. Lorajean was knitting a sample last Saturday, and it was a perfect combination. I’m currently having a love affair with deep winey red purple, and I need some new mitts!

It may have to wait until January, the traditional Selfish Knitting Month for those who spend December frantically gift knitting. But since I only have one quick gift to knit, I may get to it sooner. Should I feel guilty about my selfish knitting? I definitely know that my recipient will appreciate my work, and I won’t felt it, either!

5 Comments

Posted in Knit

Tagged knitchat, selfish knitting, thrumbelina

Thrumbelina

Posted on December 2, 2011 | 5 comments

It’s December! And I have something to show you. If you’re a member of Twisted‘s Single Skein Club, you may not want to look until you’ve picked up/received your package. I’m throwing in a gratuitous kitty picture so you can avert your eyes and not scroll down.

Ready for the real deal?

This is Thrumbelina, my design for Twisted’s Single Skein Club this month. Thrumbelina is a thrummed slipper, filled with fluffy woolly goodness. These babies are cushy, comfy, and warm! The thrums will eventually felt down and be a custom fit for your foot.

I love how these are all business on the outside

And a party on the inside!

Wouldn’t you love to put your foot in these?

You can, if you’re a member of this year’s Single Skein Club. If not, the pattern will be for sale March 1 here through PDXKnitterati and also through Twisted. The purple pair you see in the pictures are knit with Malabrigo worsted in Velvet Grapes, and they went to Twisted as the sample. The SSC offering is black Malabrigo worsted with either beaujolais or wintergreen roving for the thrums, dyed by my friend Lorajean Kelley of Knitted Wit. I think I’ll knit myself a pair, too. I have a skein of Velvet Grapes and a merino knot of beaujolais, and I think they’ll make a delicious pairing.

This is the last year of Twisted’s Single Skein Club, but fear not! Next year they are offering a new club in its place, the Mad About Tosh Club. All yarns are from MadelineTosh, including an exclusive Twisted color one month.

I’m really pleased to have had two designs in Twisted’s Single Skein Club, my Thrumbelina Slippers and my Breezy Market Tote last year. Shannon & Emily are absolute loves to work with. I enjoy teaching in their sweet shop, too. Speaking of which, I’m teaching a class on thrumming next Saturday, December 10, from 10 to noon. We’ll be starting Thrumster earbands or cowls. If you’re a SSC member that wants a little extra help, or just want to learn how to thrum because it’s chilly out and you want to add that special pizazz to your knitting, contact the shop to sign up!

I’ll be in the shop before then, though. There’s a Knitted Wit trunk show through Sunday, and Lorajean will be there from 1 to 3 tomorrow (Saturday, Dec. 3). Stop by and say howdy. I will!

5 Comments

Posted in Knit, pattern design

Tagged thrumbelina, thrummed knitting, thrumster

odds and ends

Posted on November 29, 2011 | 6 comments

Remember my angst about my non-gelling ginger plum jam? I opened a jar this weekend, and it’s perfect. Somewhere between the week after I made it and now, it gelled perfectly. Tastes great, too. It’s a mystery, but I’m happy with the outcome. I even sent some home with family at the end of Thanksgiving weekend.

I’m working on a new shawl design with this beautiful yarn from Knitted Wit. It’s from her Community Supported Yarn club from this past summer, a vibrant green luscious merino/cashmere/nylon blend. I charted this out in September after taking a lace shawl design class with Sivia Harding. It took several tries to modify a lace pattern for the center panel so that it didn’t bias like crazy, and then I set the project aside. After all that, I chose a different lace for the center panel last month. When I picked up the project last week, I decided I didn’t like the new center panel after all, so I ripped it out today, only to find that I couldn’t knit from my previous chart.

Mostly because there was another piece of work on my desk, and my chart. Oops. But we’re back in business and I think I’ve got it figured out. Now I actually have to knit it and see. It looks promising…

And just a reminder, I’m having a pattern sale now through December 3, $1 off any of my pdxknitterati patterns, no limit. That’s 17-33% off, depending on the usual price of the pattern. Enter the code giftknit at checkout. Here’s a link to my Ravelry design page so you can see what I have. Most of my patterns are quick one skein projects, so there’s plenty of time to make a gift for someone, or for yourself. Or your cat…

Edited to add: I just found out that if you use the buy it now button from my pattern pages, it doesn’t give you the opportunity to use the coupon code. You’ll definitely want to go to my Ravelry design page so that the checkout options come up before sending you to Paypal!

6 Comments

Posted in Knit

Traditions, adjusted

Posted on November 27, 2011 | 11 comments

It’s Sunday afternoon, Thanksgiving weekend. I haven’t knit a stitch in five days. But I’ve played hostess to a house full of family, and it’s been fun. CollegeGuy was home from Orlando for the weekend, and it was great to have him around. Now he and all the guests have gone back home, so I’m taking a moment to catch up.

I haven’t hosted Thanksgiving in nearly 20 years. We used to round robin New York, St. Louis, Chapel Hill with DH’s family, but when we moved back to Portland from New York in 1995, Thanksgiving landed semi-permanently at my in-laws’ home in St. Louis. This year, I asked to have Thanksgiving here, so that the freshman CollegeGuy could come home for the holiday. I think he appreciated the chance to be home and see his friends, most of whom stayed on this coast for school. Our niece is in London for a semester abroad, so she joined us via skype on Thanksgiving afternoon.

I made the traditional meals on the traditional days. If it’s Wednesday dinner, it must be brisket. If it’s Saturday lunch, it must be minestrone. Saturday night is always turkey, redux. I didn’t want to rock the boat too much since I had absconded with Thanksgiving, but I snuck in a few changes. We had sausage/potato/kale soup on Thursday instead of sandwiches, bourbon caramel sauce with our apple pie, and I tried a new bourbon cranberry sauce (see end of post for recipe).

Friday was sunny and lovely, so we headed out to wine country for open house weekend. We went to Brick House Vineyards for a tasting. Lovely wines in a lovely setting. And I set up this picture (the family picture is another Thanksgiving weekend tradition).

On Saturday, I took MIL and SIL shopping on trendy/funky Mississippi Avenue. I found this knitted frog dissection at Paxton Gate. High school biology would have been even more fun this way.

I’m so happy we were able to host this traitional autumn celebration here at home. Same same, but different! What are your Thanksgiving traditions?

Bourbon Cranberry Sauce

1 pound fresh cranberries
1.5 cups sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup bourbon

Mix cranberries, sugar and cinnamon in bowl. Transfer to 9×13 baking dish.
Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Stir, bake another 30 minutes. Remove from oven, transfer to bowl and stir in bourbon immediately. Refrigerate. Enjoy!

11 Comments

Posted in recipe

Tagged bourbon caramel sauce, bourbon cranberry sauce, thanksgiving