Finished Cowl

Very soft, very cushy, very warm.

Notice how the wrong side of the cowl looks like large sections of knit woven together.


I finally finished my first cowl. I do have a fleece cowl that I use a lot in the woods when it's really cold. This knitted cowl will be prettier and could be worn around town.


Quick to knit, but I couldn't knit this while chatting. I don't know if other people count lace in a different way than I do, but I was counting in my head....and definitely got confused if I stopped mid-row.



Needles: US 8 wooden double-pointed needles
Yarn: 1.5 oz (.85 of a skein) of Princess by Classic Elite
40% merino, 28% viscose, 10% cashmere, 15% nylon, 7% angora
Color 3432
Pattern: Lush-ious Swirl Cowl by Linda Frydl

We're having an unusually warm winter so far, so I've barely had the chance to use my new cowl. I'll bet I'll get a chance to use it soon though!

Related posts:
Starting this cowl
On ravelry

Yule Log Cake

I know on the day after New Year's, when everyone is trying to be healthy, the last thing you all want to see is a giant chocolate cake! I'm sorry!!!

At Christmas, for the first time ever, I made a chocolate Yule log cake. I had to save a picture of it here so I can find it again another year.


Meringue mushrooms are surprisingly tasty!! (The cake is delicious too....although I'm in more of a salad mood today!)

The recipe (a giant tutorial from King Arthur Flour) is here.

I hope your holidays were wonderful and that 2012 brings so much light, laughter and love into our lives!

Happy New Year!!!

Meg at Unravelling has a New Year's tradition of posting photos of her looms to get the year off to a good start.....plus inviting weavers around the world to join her.


So here's my Toika, poised for me to get these towels woven!!


My baby wolf (temporarily naked) has been pushed aside so that we can try to snap a quick photo of a fox that has been frequenting our yard.

Don't worry....the loom will win out in 2012!!!

Wishing you all the 2012 of your dreams!! Happy New Year!

Striped Hat

You know how projects spawn other projects, right?

With leftover yarn from the animal tracks sweater, I plan to make an animal tracks hat or two.

But first, I want to make sure I have a hat pattern that fits.


In consultation with Mr. LifeLoomsLarge, the recipient of this future hat, I picked a plain hat pattern, and then made a striped version for a wee bit of interest.

The good news is that this hat fits perfectly. It's so nice to knit a project and have it come out as hoped for on the first try!!!!


The details:
Pattern: Ellen's Knit Hat (SHIPS Project)
Yarn: Harrisville Highland in Midnight Blue & Cypress (Less than half a skein of each)
Needles: Size 7 double pointed needles


Here it is on ravelry!

Note: My computer died last week, while this blog entry was almost done, so please don't feel neglected that I haven't caught up with comments!!! Hopefully I'll be back to full steam ahead computer-wise very soon!

Related posts:
A hint of the animal tracks sweater (which is finished, but barely blogged)

Holiday Ornament Making

Swag

In late November, the Col. Paul Wentworth House hosts a holiday decoration workshop.

Victorian Garland on Cardboard Deer

I made all of these Christmas decorations in 2 hours at the workshop, using materials and instructions set up at the house.

Clementine Clove Pomander

It was a great way to kick off the holiday season!

Front of Col. Wentworth House (Photographed in July)

Wentworth House has a great story. My super short version is that it was built in 1710, then moved to Massachusetts where it stayed for years, falling into disrepair. In 2002, it was numbered, disassembled and moved back to NH on a flatbed truck. It remained in the trailer of the truck on this property for years, while a team of motivated people raised money to put the house back together. Finally they were able to reconstruct it. Very cool!

Back corner of Wentworth House (also in July)

This saltbox shape is traditional in New England.

Foil Ruching

This foil ruching would have been made during Victorian times, when candlelight reflecting off silvery surfaces was all the rage.

Cranberry wreath

Cranberries strung on a wire make a small wreath.

Popcorn Cranberry Garland

Wentworth House (Rollinsford, NH, USA) is having a free holiday open house with music and snacks Saturday, Dec. 10 from 4-6 pm. If you haven't had a chance to visit the house yet, you could stop by to see it decorated for the holidays!



Related posts:
Making the cardboard deer head

Happy Thanksgiving!

From my household to yours, whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or not, I wish you all of the best that this season has to offer.

I'm grateful for all of you bloggers, readers, weavers and friends!!!

Enjoy!

Going Stag

Mr. LifeLoomsLarge might be a bit hard to shop for.

This year, I made the perfect gift.....completely out of recycled materials!!

Behold the cardboard deerhead, perfect for any man cave!


I printed and cut out templates (modifying the end of the antlers to make it easier for me to cut). Since I had lots of cardboard boxes around, I traced the templates on box pieces, then cut them out using scissors and an Exacto knife.

Putting the deer together was a snap. (I did cut thinner slots to fit the whole thing together, since the templates were created for foam core.)

For hanging, I just threaded a needle and put a piece of cottolin yarn (or string would be fine) through the two vertical pieces of cardboard on the back of the deer neck.


I can't help but think of other animals I could make!!

I'm so bad at keeping gifts secret, that as soon as I finished it, I gave it to Mr. LLL in a box so he could open it and laugh.

For more inspiration, templates, and how-to tips:

By the book

Plain cardboard version