Peanut (Dress) and Banana (Bread) Related

I've been knitting away at the Peanut Dresses, and I'm happy to say that the main knitting portion of PD1 is finished. It is without straps and embroidery details as of yet, but at least the body is done. Finally. After a couple trips to the frog pond and back (knitting one's own design, I'm finding, is not without its fair share of difficulty). Here's a little taste:

I am now onto knitting PD2, trying with all of my might to avoid SDS (Second Dress Syndrome). At least all the math is done, and I can simply follow my notes from PD1 to knit PD the second. Should be a cinch, right? Yeah, we'll see. There is always room for user error. I feel compelled to mention that this is the most plain stockinette I've knit in a while. Yes, that's right, a little dress' worth of stitches is the most plain stockinette I've knit in a while. People, I told you I have issues with this, and I wasn't kidding! Luckily, these things are small.

So, to break up the PD monotony, I escaped into a brief baking interlude. There were a couple motivating factors for this, in addition to the wanting to take a break from knitting part: 1) 3 bananas in the fruit bowl on the verge of over-ripening, and 2) The Knitting Cook, which I started listening to recently, which has really gotten me back into the cooking/baking mood. I have two people to thank for this: Julia, for turning me onto this podcast by way of mentioning it here and there over the past however many months, and Faith, for producing such a wonderful podcast. Now that I've figured out how to listen to podcasts easily at work, I've been catching up with a quite a few of them. I am hooked- it definitely adds some fun to the tediousness of the workday. But, I digress. Back to The Knitting Cook- Faith has a lovely personality and does a great job of merging two of my favorite topics - fiber and food - into one charming podcasty package. If you are like-minded, I highly recommend that you check it out, if you haven't already!

So anyway, I decided to rescue the on-the-verge bananas and (not so) magically morph them into a loaf of banana bread. Mmm.

I love baking quick breads, and banana bread is one of my favorites (zucchini bread is another). I have to say, though, that I prefer homemade banana bread often to that which you might find in, say, a coffee shop chain, because I am control the level of sugar. A lot of the time I find, especially with banana bread or muffins, that they are way too sweet for my taste. But, I digress again!

I used my go-to banana bread recipe, which is based on the one in my trusty Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook. (This is also my go-to source for pan gravy instructions at Thanksgiving, but who asked about that.) I modify the recipe a little by using whole wheat flour instead of regular all-purpose flour, and substitute a little more banana for a little less sugar (it's still plenty sweet that way, and if anything, a little more banana-y). And of course, I would never leave out chopped walnuts- I am my mother's daughter, after all. I'm happy to say that it turned out really well, and it's been supplying me and B with breakfast all week.

Okay now- back to PD knitting...

That's one messy bathroom...

I am currently in some major denial about my Cozy V-Neck Pullover. It is finished theoretically, but it needs some help to make it work. Turns out, although I've really gotten to know how to knit for my body in pieces, I haven't yet been able to make that transition to knitting top-down.

I have fairly square shoulders (swimmer's shoulders we decided this afternoon), so somehow I need to learn to allow for space for them, but at the same time not allow too much space for my "conservative" front. Basically, by the time I got my pullover big enough to fit comfortably under my arms, there was way too much width across the chest. Unfortunately, this was a difficult thing to spot while I worked because of the big gaping v-neck. I pretty much had to finish everything before I knew how it would fit. In fact, I couldn't even tell the extent of the damage until I seemed up the sleeves and closed the hole under my arm. I am hoping that I can do something to save me from having to rip out the neck band and re-knit the body. After some thorough discussion this afternoon, I think we've figured out what to do so wish me luck!

In the meantime, I will distract you with some other things. First, B and I recently joined a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) group here in San Diego called Be Wise Ranch. Every week, we get a box of local (at least as much as possible), organic veggies at a pick-up location close to our house. So far, we've been very pleased with the service. We opted for the small box since there is just the two of us, but there has still been so much food! For example, this week we got a head of lettuce, one bok choy, a large bunch of red chard, 2 onions, a bag of carrots, a bag of zuccini, two boxes of strawberries and an avocado.

The chard was one of the most beautiful veggies I've ever seen. The contrast between the deep red of the stalks and the large rich green of the leaves was striking. Pretty delicious too!

The other thing I wanted to share was an interesting class project B was working on for his art history class. I came home to a proclamation - I'll clean it up. What? - I asked. And then I saw this:

If you've ever been to our place, you may recognize this as our bathroom...which B turned into an art installation. All the objects were carefully chosen and arranged to tell the "history of B". He took a photo of the installation then took it into PhotoShop to add additional elements like superimposed photos and other images. Believe me there is not one thing in that bathroom that doesn't mean something whether literally, linearly or iconographically. I thought the finished piece was really cool and wanted to share it.

It looks really great printed and B is looking into getting a larger version printed for class. It's definitely one of those images that the more you look, the more you see. I think it's worth an 'A', don't you?

Went camping but ended up in Vegas...

Is that a bear wading through a river?

K and I just spent over one week in beautiful Utah national parks and meeting up with friends and family in Colorado. Our first stop was at Zion, where we hiked/waded through the Virgin River to the Narrows. This was by far our favorite hike - four hours in ankle to hip-deep water, where I slipped on river rocks twice, resulting in two big, ugly bruises on my right knee. Really, we had a great time. It was amazingly beautiful - photos cannot do it justice.


We also hiked up to Hidden Canyon - I almost pee'd in my pants when I saw this narrow climb. We clung onto the metal chain and tried not to look down the sheer cliffs...


We even had some time to play nine holes at a golf course in Hurricane, UT, before meeting up with friends in Glenwood Springs, CO (where we played more golf and biked along the Colorado River - beautiful! I wished So Cal had trails like that one!) and with family in Denver.

Then back to Utah, where we (inadvertently) took a long route to Arches via Scenic Byway UT-128, but we're glad we did because we had the chance to experience some wonderful scenery. We camped by the Colorado River and drove into Arches (where it was VERY windy.)
The initial drive into Arches was incredible...we felt like we were transported to a different planet.

The famous Delicate Arch (we thought we were going to be blown off the cliff!)

...and the Landscape Arch (a big chunk of this fell in the early 90s, resulting in a razor thin arch)

We then dropped by Capitol Reef and did a quick hike through some orchards that Mormon pioneers had planted (or so we were told by an REI employee in San Diego.) Beautiful shades of green painted the white stone landscape. Then onto Bryce Canyon via Scenic Byway UT-12, where as I was passing through a small town, I was pulled over by a cop for speeding. I had made a conscious effort in slowing down. He told me that he wasn't going to cite me, but I still needed to submit payment for a $100+ fine (ugh!) Thereafter, it took me a while to enjoy the beautiful scenery along the UT-12...


One of the most breathtaking views of the entire trip was at Bryce. The cylindrical formations are called "hoodoos" but K decided that "hookahs" was more appropriate. This shot was taken on the evening before the snowstorm...


Yup, lo and behold, it snowed the morning that we were supposed to backpack into the high country. Snow was not in the forecast. We had no winter apparel, so we packed all our stuff, and with Dis' help (thanks again!) we drove to Vegas. Although we stayed at the Stratosphere, we drove to old downtown and played blackjack amongst a bunch of gambling Hawaiian retirees at the California. K lost $150, I lost $55 (but I played for about 2.5 hours at the same table...the dealers were so fun to talk to!) We then spent more money the next day at the outlet stores in Primm. It was definitely a whirlwind trip...I can't believe all the things we did and saw in less than 10 days!

Random!

Okay, Shelley, you tagger! You asked for it, you got it, 7 random things about me.

1. I totally fell this morning and gave myself a strawberry or raspberry or whatever fruit you grew up calling it, on my knee, just like a 4 year-old. I expect a giant bruise to follow. I've said it before and I'll say it again- stairs and me- we don't go. I’m not an overly klutzy person most of the time, but for some reason stairs seem to have it in for me. I misjudged one step in the semi-darkness this morning (that's all we have in our house, one step down into the living room). I was half asleep, getting ready to take the doogles out, and *thud!* I completely ate it.

1a. I totally fell the night before my 25th birthday (also by missing a step on hardwood floors, this time during a black out) and broke two bones in my right foot (4th and 5th metatarsals), which resulted in foot surgery the next day and being in a cast and on crutches for 4 months. I still have a metal plate and three screws in my foot as souvenirs. (And no, I don't set off metal detectors at the airport.)

2. I still write letters- as in actually write, by hand and with a pen and paper, actual letters- to the first friend I made in college. Actually, we met during freshman orientation, the summer before our freshman year. We lived together for part of our second year, but then she transferred to a college on the east coast (where she now teaches). We've kept up with each other, mostly via handwritten cards and letters, ever since. Though we both know what email is, we discussed our shared love of handwritten letters long ago, and have continued corresponding this way ever since. We don't see each other very often, but I still feel close to her because of our correspondence. I just received a card from her yesterday. It made my day.

3. I travel with my own pillow. Nothing against all the other pillows of the world, but I just like having my own. Unfamiliar beds can be less than comfortable; having my pillow from home helps.

4. Along the same lines, hotel bedspreads totally gross me out. I'm not a serious germophobe or anything, but I saw a story on Dateline or one of those shows once and oh the grossness that lives on those things! Yuck! The first thing I do upon entering a room is strip the bed of the bedspread and promptly toss it in the closet where it shall remain for the duration of my stay.

5. I love Crayola crayons. The smell of crayons brings back fond memories of childhood when I would draw and color for hours on end. Colored pens are fun, too, but there’s just something especially nostalgic for me about the Crayolas. I like to keep older crayons in one big bin that you have to sift through to find the colors you want. (Note to self: Find a way to incorporate crayon usage more in my everyday life.)

6. I like my hands. I have the same hands as my mom and her mom. This brings me great joy. I miss them both very much, but I am reminded of them when I look at my hands. I feel like my hands hold a piece of history. They make me proud.

7. I am currently in a quandary over what to do with my hair. I like it short, but it's so much easier to deal with when it's long. When it's short, I have to have it trimmed more often (otherwise I go crazy- last week, pre-trim, I wanted to kill it- if it were possible to kill hair) and I have to actually do stuff to style it, whereas when it's long, nothing! And being the low maintenance gal that I am, the long, "do nothing with" hair style is much more my speed. And, I miss being able to put it up. Problem is, now that its been trimmed and is cute once again, I don't know what to do. I just know I can't do this forever, but I hate that "growing out" process, Feel free to offer up your opinion if you happen to have one.

Okay, so I don't know how amusing that was to read, but it was random, you can give me that! Happy Wednesday!

I'm Dyeing Ova' Heea!

First of all, I am finally starting to feel like a human again. I haven't been sick in a very long time, but something evil lurks at the LYS we take our design class from because Knitzalot, Cora and I all ended up sick by the middle-end of last week. I have been home sick for 4 days straight and I am starting to loose my mind. I feel like I should go to work tomorrow, but I'm still hacking up a lung every 10 minutes or so and I'm on my 3rd box of tissue (ouch!).

Anyhoo! This is a post about my first attempt at natural dyeing. I love the idea behind natural dyes and when executed properly (*ehem*) you get some amazing results. I myself had some not-so-amazing results. But I thought you might find the process interesting nonetheless.

My first mistake was to pick a stubborn plant (purple basil) to use for my first try. I decided against the warning of this "particularly frustrating" plant because I really wanted something other than yellow, which is the most common color you can get from natural dyes. I decided to go for it and know that I was taking a risk. I used A Dyer's Garden by Rita Buchanan for my source book (gifted to my by my SIL). This book is nice because it given a nice overview of the process, as well as numerous examples of what you are supposed to get using particular fibers, mordants and dye plants.

Originally the plan was for me to use the fingering weight Paint Your Own Knit Picks yarn in my stash to dye up the yarn for Seraphim. However, once again my memory failed me when I discovered I had lace weight, not fingering weight dyeable yarn in my stash (Ravelry - I can't hardly wait until you go live!). So this yarn was going to have to be for a different project, no biggie! I also originally wanted to grow the plants I was going to use for my experiment. Unfortunately, it turns out that purple basil needs to be fresh when used as a dye. You also need about 18 plant tops to dye 100 grams of wool. The chance that I could have 18 plants alive at one time is highly improbable, so I went with the next best thing - just buy it fresh! Knitzalot helped me track some down at a local organic farm just outside of Rancho Santa Fe. Without going to a "and then, and then, and then" story about the day I bought said purple basil...lets just say that didn't go as planned either and I ended up with about half of what I was supposed to buy. Oh well, lets see what happens!

So first step, you need to pick out your mordant. This is the heavy metal that you need to pre-treat your yarn with so that it will absorb the natural dyes properly. I liked the results you were supposed to get with tin mordant, a deep vibrant purple, so I went ahead and mixed up the mordant and cooked the yarn.

One soaked, dried, washed and ready to be dyed, I got the purple basil.

You make a dye bath by cooking the plant materials for a set amount of time. For purple basil it was also suggested that you let the plant matter soak for a day or two to help extract all the color. Below, you can already see the once purple leaves are looking pretty green!

Now it is suggested that once you finish preparing your dye bath you strain the plant matter out of the dye. But being cheap and not having a strainer I could give up to dyeing (you should only dye with pots and utensils that will NEVER touch food), I decided to not worry about the random bits of plant material left in the bath. This is ok, but not ideal.

Again, the book suggested that after cooking, you let the yarn soak in the dye bath for a day or so to help soak up the dye. I also added a bit of vinegar to help obtain a deeper color.

Things looked really promising until it was washing time. Although, I let my yarn dry before I washing, I still lost A LOT of dye in the wash water.

As you can see, this light purple is not even close to the dark lustrous purple I was supposed to end up with. Not only that, most of the yarn is green! I tried really hard to get an accurate photo of the yarn, but with the light at my place it came out either too washed out or too dark.

Let's just say that my "colorway" has been named Rainbow Sherbet on a Hot Summer's Day, because this gray-green blah of a color has a date with some purple Kool-Aid.

Peanut Dresses - knitting has commenced!

It's hard to believe that I actually wanted to be a fashion designer at one point in time. In no way had (have) I the creativity needed for this profession, but fashion interested me, and I was into it for a while there in my early teens. Judging from my very simple, rudimentary sketch for my Create Along project, it's clear to all why it's just as well I let that dream die. (If I had any sense at all, I would have turned to shoe designing, but that's another lost dream for another day.)

Peanut Dresses on paper

I've improvised, tweaked, and winged several projects before, but this is by far the biggest designing project I've undertaken- on purpose. Somehow, I need to not only come up with an idea (or ideas, as the case may be), find yarn I like, and then turn that into dresses for a certain pair of twin peanuts.

Peanuts, in dresses

What's that, you say? Good luck? Thank you, I will need it! Because although I at least had the foresight to chose a very simple shape and line for the dresses, there's a lot that goes into designing! (Duh) Translating the picture and idea in your head to paper and then to an actual piece, is far more involved and labor intensive than you might think. I've always respected designers for their talent and ability, and this process has only intensified my admiration.

It took a while for me to settle on a design, but I've got it now, and after swatching and profuse mathematical planning (and readjusting), I'm finally on my way! I played around a little and came up with this little design-whatever (highly technical design term) for the non-hemline. I think it adds some visual interest, as well as (hopefully) some stability, so we might avoid the whole rolling up thing. Here's a glimpse of the bottom of PD1.

No, it's not a watermelon dress. You'll see.

"Do you think Aunty knows what the heck she's doing? Hmm..."

A Place to Sit

One of the "mostly non-knitting related" projects that was preoccupying my time last weekend where these puppies. B and I happened across a special that Michael's was having on ready-to-finish Adirondack Chairs with Ottomans. They were a good deal and I happened to have a gift card, so they were even a better deal - free!

We got busy painting them, primer and all. And by the time we were done, I'm pretty sure we had undone all the effects of the environmentally friendly changes we'd been making in our daily lives. We picked out spray paint because we thought it would only take a couple cans and the time it would save painting all those wood slats would make it worth it. First, I forgot how crazy-toxic spray paint is when you use it (my nose has only just now recovered). Second, it took about 12 cans. Sorry planet Earth, we owe you big time!

However, now that they are done, we are at least enjoying the outdoors more. We have a fairly big patio, but never really used it much. We never invested in patio furniture before because we always felt like we were about to move. However, we decided recently that barring any unforeseen circumstances (fire, flood, or a crazy rent hike), we would stay and see if this housing turn-down will finally allow us to buy our own place. So, we figured might as well enjoy those great San Diego mornings and evenings on our patio in free chairs!

Sunday night we took our wine and cheese out to the patio. (See Jess, I opted for the tumbler!) Even Jenny had a good time!

I call this a "mostly non-knitting related" project because the chairs can be used for so many things...but you know a lot of knitting is going to be done on them!

Just Plain Silliness

First off, thank you so, so much for all the wonderful compliments on Josephine! I'm so pleased at how she turned out, and I'm glad you all like her, too! Now, normally I wouldn't barrage our fair blog with so many photos of myself - two days in a row, no less - especially when I look like a total goof in them. However, given that there were two photographers snapping away at me at the FO shoot, a good deal of photos were taken, and considering the players on and off set, many of said photos were naturally quite silly in nature. These pictures were not included in my previous post, because I thought the official FO post should strive to be somewhat, oh I don't know, respectable? That being said, there were some funny ones that I thought I would share as well, since Julia asked for them, and so that you may admire the photographers' work (not the goofy model).

FO: Josephine - C'est Fini!

It is not often that I am able to tout a project I'm working on as finished, slow knitter that I am. But here we have a lucky one! My latest FO- Josephine (AKA French Girl's Fifi). Knit using Rowan Calmer in Refresh and US7 needles. Photos below courtesy of two gifted photographers (thanks, Lori and Julia!) and one rather popular photo shoot spot.

I previously posted about how much I was enjoying knitting this little sweater at the WIP stage, and I'm happy to say that the love affair continued 'til the end. I am officially a member of the Calmer fan club. I am in love with this yarn, and I can see why Marnie uses it so often. It's a dream to work with- it's soft to the touch, and provides great stitch definition. As evidenced by this super cool detail shot via Lori and her kickass camera. (I'm laughing right now, remembering how this photo was achieved.)

I must have mentioned before that I am largely incapable of knitting lots of plain stockinette. As such, I am deeply envious of anyone who revels in this kind of knitting. I've abandoned more projects than I'd like to admit because I couldn't get through the stockinette. Why bring this up? Well, until I bite the bullet and invest in a knitting machine (and it is really just a matter of time), I choose to focus on designs that I know will hold my interest. This top down design met my self-imposed requirements: it provided enough cables & things to hold my interest, yet it was simple enough that I could still zone out and get into a groove while knitting.

The cable details at the top add visual interest and given that my body is in dire need of a series of yoga and/or pilates classes at this particular point and time, I really appreciate the elongating, dare I say "flattering"effect of the vertical ribbing along the sides. To further elongate (literally), I decided to add several inches to the bottom.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a cute, short-sleeved top to knit. I would say that I love this top so much I would knit it again, but come on; you and I both know I won't. But it's not for lack of love. I know this will be one of my favorite handknits. I love the style, as it echoes the style of one of my favorite cap-sleeved t-shirts, the color makes me happy, and I am quite happy with the fit (even though it requires some tugging at the bottom while being photographed). I also foresee wearing this top a lot. It will go with my wardrobe standard a-line skirts, and should also look good with jeans and slacks. All in all, j'adore!

Lazy Sunday

Our planned lazy Sunday turned out not to be so lazy after all. My goal all week and into the weekend was to get all of our chores done so we could relax and play today...that didn't happen. It was fine though because we got so much done it is ridiculous! First, we ended up doing all those chores today in the midst of two major (mostly) non-knitting projects which will be blogged about this week as they are completed.

So to distract you, I've included a current status picture of my modified Cozy V-neck Pullover. You can see that the neck is doing what I was hoping it would...namely be deeper. I had some gauge issues that I think I have more or less worked out, so I think with a good blocking all the little wiggles and warps should *hopefully* work themselves out.

I would love to keep working on this sweater full steam except for my design class sweater is getting in the way. The front is supposed to be done for our class next Saturday. I have the back done and I am working away on the front but really it is just two of the exact same. I don't NEED to have the front done in order to plan out my sleeves in class but given my current level of distraction, I feel it is a really good idea to get the front done as soon as possible.

I had initially intended to repeat the lace panel along the bottom edges of the short sleeves, but the more I have thought about it, the more I think that would just take away from the lace at the bottom of the front and back. I'm thinking a little something needs to be at the sleeve edge, but more toned down. Knitzalot suggested a picot hem, so I'll be looking into that this week before class.

And as a final distraction, I thought I would share a few photos of the roses from the Balboa Park Rose Garden I took last weekend. I thought it would be a fun contrast to the beautiful desert scenery Nonnahs posted earlier in the week.

Red Rock Country

Try as I may, photos fail to capture the breathtaking landscape in and around Sedona. The true beauty of Red Rock Country is something you will have to take my word on...and go see for yourself! The colors, first of all. I mean, come on. Give me a break. They were difficult to capture, partially because we experienced varying weather conditions during our stay in Sedona. Most of the days were partly cloudy and overcast, but then we had a couple of rainy days and maybe one really nice, sunny day. Regardless of the weather, our surroundings amazed me every day. I wondered whether long-time residents eventually take their view for granted. I couldn't imagine. Nature is awe-inspiring, is it not? Just. Well, just look at this...


Many of the rocks have been given nicknames after their shape and things they resemble: Coffee Pot Rock, Chimney Rock, my favorite, Snoopy Rock, and this one: Bell Rock:

Many of the rock formations also take me remind me of the architecture of temples found in India. (Hi, Art History geek!)

You can see these amazing hills of rocks just driving through town, but you can also get up close and personal, like we did, thanks to a really cool jeep tour, as well as hikes on a few of the dozens of hiking trails in the area. I highly recommend doing both.



Dis clued me in on a very pretty scenic drive which takes you north of Sedona, through Oak Creek Canyon. Along the way, make sure you stop at Slide Rock. Oy, was this pretty! Nestled at the foot of these rock hills are smooth, flat rocks, formed by the creek that flows through. There wasn't a whole lot of water when we were there, but evidently people swim there during the summer. We hiked through this area, mostly along the water, up and over the rocks - it was stunning! It would have made for a fabulous picnic site, had we known in advance. I could have stayed there all day!

At one point, while sitting in the shade, I may or may not have uttered the words, "I could really just sit here, knit, and then take a nap." B just laughed. (Note to self: Next time I'm in this neck of the woods, take a knitting a buddy or two!") PS: check out that ginormous boulder below and see if you can make out the humans just to the right of it, for scale:

As you continue to drive north through Oak Creek Canyon, you will eventually get to a vista point, where you will see this grand view of the canyon. There really isn't much more to say...

Dogiversary

It's hard to believe, but it's been a year since Dakota, AKA the doogles, has come into our lives. It was a very big day when Dakota came to live with us. After a thorough adoption application and interview process, B and I were very excited to welcome D. Jones (another nickname, and p.s. neither of our last names are Jones) into our home. Noreen, Dakota's "foster mother" from the Bill Foundation, brought him over to our house and spent a couple hours with us while we all got to know each other better. Then, she took our picture. Our very first family portrait.

This past year has been so wonderful and now I can't imagine our house without the pitter patter sound of little puppy feet against our wood floors. (We call him puppy, even though the educated guess is that he's at least 4 years old.) We don't know much about Dakota's past life before he was rescued, but we have a feeling he was abused. :( Though he has fully bonded with us and is very comfortable around people he knows, he remains skittish and unsure in new settings. The upside is, he has retained all the wonderful training he picked up while under the care of Noreen and the Bill Foundation, and we haven't let him down in that regard (we take our "parenting" very seriously)!

Our trip to Sedona last week marked our first family vacation. B and I hadn't been on a vacation, short or long, in a while. He had the month of April off while he was between movie projects, so I decided to take off a week so we could go and do something fun. We decided to bring along the doogles, and I'm so glad we did! Though we weren't able to do as much hiking with him as I had hoped, we did a little, and anyway the trip wouldn't have been the same at all if he weren't with us. I think he had fun, too! Among other things, he was introduced to "vacation eating." We are such suckers. Yes, he is a bit of a spoiled pooch, but hey, what do you want from us? Could you resist this face?

Happy Dogiversary, doogles!