Wednesday, November 4, 2009

One Mystery Solved; Three to Go!

There are never ending mysteries in our lives. A lover of mystery novels and mysteries period--the October sock mystery has been solved (yes, they are socks and darn neat pattern to boot). Mystery bag pattern is still being knitted although all the clues are there, there hasn't been time to piece together the last remaining hints to solve this one!
The toe of the handspun sock follows the lines of the sides. Hard to photograph one's toes; guess sock blockers should be one of the things on Christmas list!
This was an enjoyable pattern to solve! Easy to read the clues! We do not rest on our October laurels though, there are mysteries remaining to be solved in November--two hat patterns from Ravelry group, WoolyWormHead--hats to share with Knits for Needs
Shhhhhh, detective at work!


Monday, November 2, 2009

Stitchers Angel Indeed!

This summer there was the opportunity to join the Stitchers Angel swap, which was sponsored by Hugs from Helen . The criteria was to send at least three 'goodies'. Each week there was a wonderful pattern given that we could use. My swap partner lived in Italy and my stitcher angel lived in Tasmania. Her name is Marja. Just recently my wonderful gifts arrived! What fun it was to open each package and discover what lay underneath the bright colored paper. Here is the group of three.
Nice collection of handmade gifts by Marja!
Closeup view of stitching on wall hanging--received just in time for the holiday season!
This lovely stitchery will make a great wall hanging in my sewing studio.

And a super little bag to carry stitching supplies! What great treasures! Thank you, Marja, my stitching angel!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Knitscape Scenery

What fun it was to turn down Larchmere Street in Cleveland to find Knitscape trees! All of the trees were decorated in their finest knitting pattern.
The color combinations and yarns were the same on each tree. The pattern was a large lace stitch with large yarn. Anyone know the pattern?
There were some trees that had their top branches decorated with knitted designs! Knitting is alive and well on Larchmere Street in Cleveland! Thank you knitters.

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Ohio Amish

A ride through Ohio Amish country brings serenity and peace. Clean cut fields, white clapboard houses, horse and buggy, limited hassle -- the softer side of life.
Dairy farms dot the landscape, resulting in lots of cheese production. Lines of tourist pack a local cheese shop for tastings. Many tasted. Few bought. We, however, bought cheese and more cheese.
Even restaurants display artful quilts.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Cleveland Rocks

On the annual mother-daughter trip, we journeyed to Cleveland, which was the blonde-headed daughter's choice. Here is Westside Market where we enjoyed lunch. It is an indoor market filled with fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, and breads.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum took longer than planned to view. Lots of guitars, album covers, and hand-written lyrics to see, along with an exhibit on influences of rock and roll artists.

My constant travel companion, little piggy, found some lost souls in the Southwest customer service baggage area.

The fall colors are vivid here in Cleveland, even in the rain.



Sunday, October 25, 2009

Weekend Treats

Some weekends bring special treats and feasts to the sight and senses. This weekend brought just that. The weather was perfectly fall! Activities abounded in the neighborhood. Everywhere you looked there was a special event happening. After a long walk along the green belt area, we ended up at the town center to meet our son for coffee. The plaza was filled with costumed dogs of all breeds for the 'Howl-a-ween' dog walk--what fun! There was Sleeping Beauty, a lobster, a squirrel and TX University supporter and this was just a few of the canines dressed in their finest.




Later in the day we attended one of the local high school's pumpkin patch parties--lots of small, medium, large pumpkins to choose; homemade root beer, lemonade, grilled hamburgers & hot dogs along with muffin walk, games galore, a pumpkin catapult (which was a hoot!) and since this was a fund raiser for the orchestra, a string ensemble was playing (one of their songs was Autumn Leaves!)
What a grand way to spend the afternoon!
The rest of the evening was filled with football and some knitting on mystery sock. This is a wonderful pattern!

Friday, October 23, 2009

Tapestry


Today we feature one of our fellow fiber artists, who has found her calling. She loves to design and weave tapestries. These are not the large over sized pieces of art but small intricate, delicate works that measure 4"x4" or 5"x5". She works her wonders on her regular loom instead of typically using a vertical loom. Last night we attended a reception for local gallery and several of Gerry's pieces were on display. She has found some humor in one of her pieces, a pizza with a slice missing!. Her other pieces are woven homage to historical sites: Goliad, TX
There was also the earth on display in miniature. Yes, Gerry has truly created some wonderful weavings.

Repurposing!

 Still cleaning out closets; finding all sorts of interesting things I had forgotten about.  Years ago, I had spun cotton and wove on indigo...