kitchen scenes

peach pie and zinnias

popovers that taste just like the ones from jordan pond house in maine.

 homegrown garlic. the first thing i planted at our house.

homemade mozzarella for caprese salad. 

i'd highly recommend ricki's kit if you'd like to make your own.

broccoli and zinnias from the garden.

a new dishcloth. i want to knit a whole pile of houses!

here's the pattern. i found it via casey.

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What's been keeping you busy lately?

sunset shawl (my multnomah)

My Multnomah

Hello there. I have another finished object to show you. I've had a couple of people recently tell me I'm a fast knitter (I wish!), but the truth is that I just knit all the time. I knitted this shawl in a flurry of too-hot-to-leave-the-house boredom, spurred on by Andi, whose shawls seem to fly off her needles, and Izabela, who whipped up a gorgeous shawl in just a few days. Compared to those ladies, my knitting is as slow as molasses!

I'm very happy with my Multnomah. I love the lacy ripples and the sunset-hued streaks. As soon as fall comes, this shawl will be on my shoulders, keeping me warm at cinnamon-scented fall festivals. I do need a shawl pin so that I don't have to hold it in place, and of course I think I should carve one myself. No matter that I don't have any carving experience. I just need a stick and a knife, right? OK, and maybe a few online tutorials. We'll see...

More details here.

Free pattern here.

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What are you working on these days? 

I just ordered yarn to make Christmas presents and to make a sweater for myself. I can't wait to get started!

imogen tee

I finished my Imogen tee a few weeks ago, just before a heat wave brought triple-digit temperatures to Kentucky. No way was I putting on a wool sweater in that weather, even for a few minutes of photos. Rain clouds rolled in last weekend and broke the swelter, so I can finally share my Imogen tee with you!

It's a dream of a sweater. The gray wool and silk feels so soft and light. Because it's a tee, it's casual enough for a neighborhood stroll, but the frost flower lace makes it fancy enough for a day at the office or art museum. I should be able to wear my Imogen tee in fall and spring and layer it over dresses and long-sleeved shirts in winter.

The pattern is clearly written and easy to follow. I don't like knitting sleeves, so these short ones were perfect for me. I'd definitely recommend this pattern! 

I used Quince and Co.'s Tern yarn, a wool and silk blend that's soft and smooth. The pale dove gray of the Oyster colorway is one of my favorites. It will pair well with many other colors, so I expect this tee to be a wardrobe staple.

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See more photos and details here.

knitted bunny and top handmade baby gifts

I keep forgetting to share this sweet bunny with you. I made her during a knitting frenzy back in April for my sister's birthday. This bunny is pretty adorable if you ask me! She's the long-eared version of the Well-Dressed Bunny (you may remember the short-eared version I made).

This pattern doesn't take too long to knit, but does require keeping track of the pattern and pieces during the process. The worst part is sewing all (eight!) of the pieces together. I don't have much practice with finishing techniques (this book might help), and I don't think it's very fun. However, the resulting bunny is so adorable that I'll brave an hour of sewing.

Apparently I've hit the time in my life when everyone starts having babies. A few years ago everyone got married, and now my Facebook feed shows nonstop pregnancy and baby updates that make me sometimes wonder if people ever see their babies outside of the camera viewfinder. I try to counteract all the digital media these babies experience by always giving a handmade gift. 

This bunny makes the sweetest baby gift (at least in my knitterly opinion). I gave the short-eared bunny to a friend who recently had a baby and plan to get some superwash yarn and make more to give away. I actually never look at baby registries (is that terrible?). Instead, I just make something because all babies need something handmade. The friend I gave the bunny to told me she'd received 15 baby hats, but none of them were handmade. I was glad I hadn't made her baby a hat (that's my go-to baby gift) and glad that I had taken the time to make something!

Here are my favorite baby gifts to make:

Top Handmade Baby Gifts

• Well-Dressed Bunny
• Elf Hat (the bulky yarn would be so fast to knit, and no one else will give the baby a hat like this!)
• Beanie (crochet or knit versions)
• Felt lamb
• Socks (these look quick and cute)
• Blanket (granny square, ripple, or shell)

I also recently stocked up on Maiden Radio's Lullabies to give as last minute gifts or send to friends who live in warm places.

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What are the top handmade baby gifts you've made or received?

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yarn along: bedtime

This week I've been knitting a Nutkin sock little by little -- a round in the car, on the bus, in bed -- because I'm also still knitting my Multnomah shawl. Nutkin is a pretty, faux cable sock pattern that is easy to knit and easy to memorize. I'm making mine in SweetGeorgia Yarn's Tough Love Sock yarn in the Orchid colorway. You can't tell from this photo, but it's a shockingly bright pink. I'm sure when the weather turns cold they'll certainly keep away the winter dreariness.

Nutkin and Multnomah work well as foils for one another. The Nutkin rounds are quick, so I can take it on my commute; the Multnomah rows keep getting longer but are mostly garter stitch, so it makes good  movie knitting.

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Reading The Marriage Plot piqued my interest in the traditional marriage plot, and since it's pretty embarrassing that I've never read Pride and Prejudice, I started reading Jane Austen's famous novel the other night before bed. I thought I was setting myself up for failure because I've tried to read this book at least three times before and never made it past page 20. Each time before I'd get bored and move on to some other book. But this time something clicked. I felt drawn in, and I don't want to jinx it, but I think I may finish it this time.

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I hope you're having a great week. What are you making and reading?

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Find more people yarning along on Ginny's blog.

yarn along

This week I started on a Multnomah shawl for myself. The pattern is so easy to memorize and knit. I can even squeeze in a few stitches while waiting at the bus stop since I don't have to keep track of a complicated pattern. The yarn is Malabrigo sock in Archangel, the same colorway I gave away. It's a good thing I bought a skein for myself because I don't think I could have parted with it otherwise.

After waiting on the library list for six months, I'm finally reading The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides. The novel explores the Victorian marriage plot and applies it to modern fiction, asking whether it's still relevant. Eugenides sets the novel in the early 1980s and incorporates elements of Victorian novels (there's a madman, a grand tour of Europe, a love triangle). It's an interesting concept and I'm enjoying the novel, but it often feels like the book tries too hard to be in conversation with Victorian novels (The Portrait of a Lady, Middlemarch, Austen novels). I'd definitely recommend Eugenides' other works, The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex, over this one.

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I'm yarning along today. See what everyone else is reading and making over on Ginny's blog!

summer light (and a winner)

top photo: a sign. bottom photo: berries in my mug.

Oh me. Oh my. Summer is here. I've sweated through more clothes and taken more showers in the past week than I can ever remember. Despite the heat, humidity, and sudden avalanche of yard work (Seriously weeds? You're killing me.), I still feel so glad it's summer. I love the summer light (and I've been trying to capture it!).

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I chose a winner for the yarn giveaway using the random number generator. The winner is Kepanie of Knitspiring Odyssey! Kepanie, please send me your info and I'll send you a pretty skein of yarn.

Thanks to everyone who entered! I appreciate that you stopped by to visit, and I'm looking forward to checking out all of your blogs and pattern recommendations.

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