Scallop Reveal--Potholders!

It's interesting to think about how a project comes to be. I cook and bake quite a bit, but I'd never once thought about crocheting a potholder until I saw a couple of blog posts about it. Dani posted about some colorful ones she'd made, and then I saw that Carol Anne had made some scalloped ones. After that I couldn't get the idea of crocheting a potholder out of my head. 

I ended up using that same scalloped pattern for my potholders; in addition to the fun edging, I also like the raised lines radiating from the center and the old-fashioned-feel of these potholders. 

Like Dani, I don't think I can bear actually using my potholders to get hot, bubbling dishes from the oven. I do think these will make lovely trivets for using at the table, though. They're double-thickness so my table won't get burned by straight-from-the-oven pans.

I originally made the red one for a friend, but then I couldn't part with it, so I made the blue for her instead. I think I'm only able to give it away because there is nothing blue in my kitchen. I am such a selfish crafter!

Making these potholders has already led me to other projects. I love the raised designs you can make using front post double crochet (fpdc). I first discovered fpdc while making this hat, but these potholders rekindled my love. I have several projects in the works that use fpdc to make cables. I'm so excited about them!

If you'd like more information on the potholders, here it is: pattern, red one, blue one.

csa day: catching up

[two weeks ago--that big thing in the middle is a melon that tasted like cantaloupe]

Well, happy Monday to you! How did the weekend slip away so fast? I spent mine visiting with family, taking walks, having movie nights, and reading reading reading for school. Before I knew it, it was over.  

It has dawned on me that my CSA-documenting has gotten a little lax, and we just can't have that, can we? So today I'm catching up on two weeks worth of CSA vegetables from Finger Picking Farms (last week and the week before).

We've been eating melons, peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, and some very delicious okra. Hot red peppers hang on our wall, waiting to be dried and crumbled into spicy dishes.  We've also gotten some beautiful flowers--cockscomb and zinnias--as well as fresh basil. So, we've had plenty of fresh food around, though we've been struggling to find time to cook it.

What works for us during the school year is cooking only three times a week. We cook two big meals in advance, and each lasts two nights. So, on Sunday we cook a meal to eat on Monday and Tuesday. On Tuesday, we make dinner for Wednesday and Thursday.  Then we plan one fast meal to cook on Friday. This week we're planning soup (can't shake the fall fever), pasta, and homemade pizza. 

[our half of the vegetables from last week]

Menu Highlights from this week and last (i.e. I'm not including the night we ate popcorn and easy mac)

Summer Vegetable Minestrone with artisan bread

Creamy Corn Soup

Enchilada Stack with white beans, peppers, onions, and squash

Pasta with veggie crumbles, peppers, onions, and squash (noticing a theme?)

Homemade pizza with olives, tomatoes, onions, and peppers

* * * * * 

This time of year old routines get shaken up and new ones established. I hope you're finding your groove.

this moment: walking to the bus stop

[Because sometimes I need to use words to remember a particular moment]

Breaths of cool morning air fill my nostrils with the scent of summer's end. It smells bittersweet--green leaves and cut grass mix with the exhaust from yellow school buses, scrubbed clean like the kids on it, ready for the first days of a new school year. 

Acorns lay scattered on the sidewalk, still green. Gray squirrels shake a new shower of them down every few minutes. I dodge the storm and quicken my pace.

The light and shadows keep my attention. My eyes follow the changes in the dappled gray and gold; leafy shadows cross my path with the breeze. The iron fence casts a railroad track onto the concrete in front of me. I walk the tracks, a morning adventure that reminds me of the childhood magic of placing a coin on a hot rail, then returning hours later to find a flat oval slick of metal, an old President's head just barely discernable. I think of high school days spent with my nose buried in books about tramping across the country, my mind filled with dreams of traveling light, train-hopping, and living simply. 

The tracks end abruptly in the shade of a tall beech tree. The contrasting layers of its bark, swirls and rounds of gray, white, and green, look like a topographic map. The world on a tree. It feels rough beneath my trolling fingers. I keep moving.

At the corner I stop. I like the certainty of the bus stop. Stand here, sooner or later, something will happen. I wait, taking in the stillness after my brisk walk. The bus with its fumes, its crowded passengers, and its old driver will soon arrive, and though I am anxious to start the day, this pause at the bus stop feels right. It's funny, but even though I know the passing traffic is filling the intersection with honks and humming, what I hear is quiet. 

* * * * * 

Find more moments on SouleMama's blog.

Scalloped Sneak Peek

Just a little look at what I've been working on lately. Scalloped edges make me happy!

* * *

What projects are you working on?

Fall Fever

I've got fall fever bad. I just didn't have a name for it until last week when I opened the newspaper to this comic. It seems like this guy is on to something...

Today is my first day back to school and work, and I'm ready to get into the groove of a routine. I'm ready to spend my evenings with a cup of hot tea, a book, and an open window. My hands are ready to get tangled up in wool yarn while making Christmas presents. My feet are ready to crunch fallen leaves on my neighborhood walks. My arms are ready for cardigans again. I want to shiver in the cool, smoky autumn air and then throw on a sweater for that delicious feeling of warmth and comfort. I'm ready to wear jeans and socks again.

I want to eat soup. I want to go to fall festivals and come home toting bags of apples. I want to bake with lots of cinnamon. I wouldn't mind a frost. I'm ready for hot, humid days to be just a memory.

I'm ready for fall. Hurry up and get here!

Baby Ripple Blanket

I've showed a couple of sneak peeks of this baby ripple, and here is the final product. Hopefully it will be wrapped around a new baby boy in about 4 or 5 weeks. 

I started this on our road trip to Minnesota, so I think it holds within its ripples the magic of traveling and a love of adventure, that might just rub off on little Gabe. 

The edging is single crochet with picot bobbles on the tips of the zigzags. 

I think this blanket will look so sweet with a baby playing on it. 

* * * * * 

Find more information about my Baby Ripple Blanket on Ravelry.

If you're interested, I made an Ocean Waves baby blanket when Gabe's big sister Emma was born last year. 

Summer 2010 Vintage Swap

First off, let me just say that today is such a lovely day. The windows are open! I can feel the breeze blowing in as I type and the temperature is still under 80. It feels like a dream. 

Now, on to the Vintage Swap goodies. My partner was Amanda of Urban Almanac and she sent some doilies, a hand-adorned pillowcase, and a cheery yellow teapot. 

Over the years I've collected quite a few teapots, which I justify by telling myself that each teapot creates a different mood for a tea party. Some are small for solitary sipping, others are large and whimsical for more celebratory occasions. I am running out of room for teapots, so I've had to become pretty picky about which teapots I buy and which I leave at the store for someone else to love. 

This yellow teapot definitely has a spot in my life. I mean, it's yellow! Plus, it has such wonderful details, like the golden oak leaves and acorns and the little hook to secure the lid. I love it.

As proof that this teapot was meant just for me (and to better show off it's gorgeous color), it matches my sunshine chair perfectly. I see in my future quite a few fall evenings spent curled up in this chair, crochet project in hand, and this teapot steaming beside me. Cool breezes from the open windows will keep me company. I can't wait. Thank you, Amanda!

Here are the things I sent to Amanda. You'll notice that we both gathered yellow and green items. My finds ended up being very kitchen-y. I sent her a metal recipe box, buttons, a half-apron, a green Pyrex bowl, a wooden spool of yellow thread, and a zigzag hand towel. I hope she finds some use for these vintage items. 

I had a lot of fun picking things out with Amanda in mind and was thrilled to receive such a great teapot. I'm not sure when the next Vintage Swap will be, but if you want to participate, just keep your eye on this blog for more information.