Winter Gardening

Hi Everyone!
It has been a long time since I have added an entry, so I am hoping to make up for lost time!  The holidays are always hectic, but this year was unusually so, since our Dean at the Cathedral of Saint John has retired at the end of November, and there were a lot of things to do.
I am going to try to be more faithful to regular blogging this year, and here is one thing that has been going on in my world.

This morning, it is snowing here, with about 6 inches expected.  We can't complain, as this is the first real snowfall of the year and it's nearly February!  I love gardening, and I miss all the lovely summer plants in the yard and on the deck.  So here are some pictures of my Winter Garden.  Enjoy!

Have a great day,
Barbara

Hi Everyone!
Today I am posting another new wedding cake.  Dear friends and neighbors, Danielle and Jennifer were wed yesterday and I was priviledged to make their wedding cake.  Here is a picture:

Also, on another topic,  I am busy learning the newest novelty scarves, making some for my upcoming show in Rehoboth, MA.  The scarves are made with a new novelty yarn called, "Twilight."  It is a  type like "Rizos," which you see below.  It is done by knitting through strands on one side of the yarn.  I am including some pictures of my work so you can see it.  It is easy to do, once you get the hang of it!

 Here are a few pictures of my work:

  This one is another pattern. done in the same way, but has many large loops when finished, and is much more light and "flowy."  This pattern is called, "Triana."  You can find these novelty yarns and the patterns in many of your local yarn shops.  I found mine at "Knit One Purl Too," in Wakefield, Rhode Island and at "The Yarn Outlet" in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

Have a nice week, and Happy Fall!!

Barbara

The National Cathedral and its damage in the earthquake

Hi Everyone,

So, it's been a while since I have posted, but I have pictures from The National Cathedral after the earthquake this morning and thought I would post them. The damage is certainly bad, but thank God that the damage didn't include any people getting hurt! Anyway, here they are:

A Sweater Vest for My Honey!

Hi Everyone,

Today I want to show you what I have been working on this week. I have (finally!) started working on a beautiful sweater vest for Roger, that I have been wanting to make for him for some time. I am using a great book, called, "Knits for Men," by Margaret Hubert. Here is a picture of her book front along with a picture of the model in the finished sweater vest. If you are interested in finding the book, click here for the connection to her web site and ordering information.

Don't ever let anyone tell you that it isn't worth it to go after the same yarn that you see in a book pattern. In this case, for example, I ordered the 100% Soysilk yarn ( Southwest Trading Company ) that is used in the sample, and it is remarkable!

Cables are the prominent design in this piece, and though they may look intimidating, you can't believe how simple it is to learn how to make these lovely additions to your work.

I did use my usual transfer of information to the Notebook, which makes it far easier for me to follow patterns, as you see in one of the pictures. The advantage for this pattern is that I can transfer the information specific to his size, so I don't have to keep checking that I am in the correct size section. I find this saves me a lot of confusion.

I think I will be working on this for a while, especially since I will be getting serious about weaving very soon for the Fall shows, but I hope it will be done for his birthday, which is in September. By the way, he loved that it is done in what he calls, "Terrier Red!" (He works at Boston University.)
Have a great day,

Barbara

Paul Simon!

Hi Everyone,

Well, I know that I usually enter what I've been working on, but today I wanted to take a moment to say how we "fed the soul" yesterday.

Diana and I went to see Paul Simon at The Wang Theater, and it was just fabulous. He sounds just like he did in 1972, and has such a versatility to his art that he never gets old. His new stuff, especially "So Beautiful or So What" is every bit as good as the classic Paul Simon, a la "Graceland" or even "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme." He is truly iconic of my generation, and I am so glad that I get to share him with my daughter as well!

Have a great day!
Barbara

Today's Exciting News!

Hi Everyone,

Today I finished a knitted lace shawl that I have made for Diana. It was one of the projects that I spoke about in my last blog entry. This project is called, "Upstairs Shawl," and was designed and copyrighted by Michaela Behrends.

Now at last, I am getting these wonderful projects done! What do you think?

Have a great day!

Barbara

Catching Up On Set-Aside Projects

Have you ever had so much enthusiasm for a project that you just can't wait to get it started? Well, when you work with fiber arts, that happens all the time! It can be great fun, but it can get to be a problem when several of these great and exciting projects come up all at once!

I had several scarves that I was working on for my daughter, each one started in this way, but none of them finished. Well, as you see, they are now done, and am I ever so happy that I had the perseverance to get it done!! I have made myself a promise that I won't get anything new until I finish all the wonderful things that I have in bage, boxes and shelves. I started with all the beautiful baby yarns, languishing in storage bins. Made over 100 infant hats by the time I finished it all. Whew!

Now I'm onto the scarves. Baby quilts to be finshed up come after this. Little by little, the stash is getting smaller. I hate having a lot of stash hanging around, and given our climate, it can get unusable if it sits in boxes too long.

So, onward! Lots more to do before I get to start a new stash!!

Have fun and enjoy the day!

Barbara